Five preseason questions about the Chiefs are back on the table, and the answers are nothing like we expected.QQ

What did we think of Kansas City before the season — and how has it played out?

In a series of articles published over the summer, I covered the 10 biggest questions facing the Kansas City Chiefs in 2025. We’ve already revisited five of them. Now we’ll look at the rest.

6. What are the ceilings (and floor) at left tackle?

Before the season, the Chiefs had two options at left tackle: Josh Simmons and Jaylon Moore. The floor and ceiling of each player was in question.

Simmons had a much wider range of outcomes: he had the physical tools to become an All-Pro tackle, but he was coming off a major knee injury that made it unclear if he would be in proper shape this season. For Moore, the ceiling and floor were closer. It came down to if he could hold up as a starting tackle.

Simmons has been fantastic as the primary starter all season. He has very few plays where he looks like a rookie, his pass protection is elite and he can fit into any run scheme. He is already above average, which is a major win for Kansas City. As he grows into his body and gets comfortable with the system, he will be a superstar. After dealing with a personal situation, Simmons returned to the Chiefs’ facility over the bye week.

Moore started the last four games at left tackle while Simmons was absent. He started out great by showing athleticism in space on screen and run plays. But as time has gone on, Moore has started to show cracks. He really struggled in the Week 11 loss to the Buffalo Bills; he required a chip the entire game and still didn’t play well.

7. How will the Chiefs manage their slot receivers?

All three of the Chiefs’ starting wide receivers — Rashee Rice, Xavier Worthy and Hollywood Brown — thrive best in the slot, while having some limitations playing outside. Head coach Andy Reid had a challenge: bringing out the best in all three while hiding the weaknesses they share.

So far, the Chiefs’ offense has been able to do that with a committee approach. It has helped to have wide receiver Tyquan Thornton play the X-receiver role, while Worthy aligns on the outside quite a bit — rather than the slot. He’s a better route runner than Brown, so Brown gets more time in the slot.

This year, the Chiefs have used more condensed formations — which gets receivers off the ball with less impact from press coverage — and play-action that makes it harder for defenses to jam through traffic.

8. Can the Chiefs bring back explosive plays?

The majority of the discussion around Kansas City this offseason was about creating explosive plays. Last year, it was a defined weakness of the Chiefs’ offense that cost them in Super Bowl LIX against the Philadelphia Eagles. When the Chiefs’ offense got behind the sticks, it couldn’t generate long plays to mitigate the lack of a running game or successful early-down passing. The unit would get choked out when it mattered.

In 2025, the Chiefs are back to being an explosive passing attack. Worthy has taken a step as a route runner at all three levels. Brown struggles at the catch point, but he has been able to separate enough on routes to contribute. Thornton has been productive downfield. In only three games played, Rice is already showing his dynamism on underneath routes.

But there is still a lack of explosive runs. Even with improved run blocking this year, running backs Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco still struggle to take runs beyond the second level of the defense. Pacheco’s vision continues to be an issue and Hunt lacks the juice to break away from safeties pursuing downhill.

With the Chiefs’ improvement generating explosive passes, the offense just needs the running game to be efficient from down-to-down. So far, it is — especially in short yardage.

9. Can Patrick Mahomes master deep passing?

In recent years — without wide receiver Tyreek Hill — quarterback Patrick Mahomes’ effectiveness with deep vertical passes declined. With a new cast of downfield threats, there was hope Mahomes could get back to what he was doing earlier in his career.

The plan seems to be coming along. There has been an increase in explosive passes, but not all of them come from vertical plays downfield. The Chiefs have been using Worthy and Brown on horizontal routes like crossers to have them catch on the run and turn north.

Mahomes has been more aggressive as well. According to Next Gen Stats, Mahomes averages 8.1 intended air yards per attempt this year, tied for 17th of 36 quarterbacks. Last year, Mahomes had the third-lowest mark at 6.3 intended air yards per attempt. The increase shows the Chiefs are attacking downfield.

Thornton has been an upgrade over wide receiver Justin Watson as this team’s sacrificial deep-route runner. Worthy has improved on vertical routes. Against Buffalo, Brown was able to gain 4o yards on a deep corner route. Rice should get more vertical targets as he gets integrated back into the offense. The Chiefs’ ability to sprinkle in vertical passing has helped clear space for the offense.

10. How can the Chiefs avoid a season like 2021?

It’s too early to know the outcome of the season — but so far, the Chiefs have avoided the traps of 2021. After Week 1, the defense looked like it might start as slow as the 2021 unit, but Kansas City quickly rebounded to form an average or above-average defense. While it still has some warts, the offense has also been rolling since it got Worthy back in Week 4.

On both sides of the ball, the Chiefs have avoided extremely negative outcomes, proving to be more consistent than the 2021 team ever did. This team is a lot younger, has players in their primes and has experience. Barring a disastrous stretch after the bye, Kansas City is set up for a stronger season.