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The Kansas City Chiefs demolished the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 16, and Andy Reid's team will rely on their explosive offense to push them past the Steelers again this weekend at Arrowhead Stadium.
The Kansas City attack is littered with the offensive talent, from Patrick Mahomes at quarterback to Mecole Hardman and Tyreek Hill at receiver, as well Travis Kelce at tight end.
Chiefs X-factor vs. Steelers in 2022 NFL Playoffs
All of these players are elite weapons, and Tyreek Hill's speed in particular is game breaking. That being said, in this particular matchup, Travis Kelce is the X-factor for the Chiefs.
The reason for this is because of matchups: the Steelers have a decent secondary led in part by free safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and cornerbacks Joe Haden and Cameron Sutton, but they do have one weak spot–strong safety. Terrell Edmunds is not by any means a bad player, but he is without a doubt the weakest link on the Pittsburgh defense. As the strong safety, Edmunds is largely tasked with covering tight ends. This means that he will be matched up with Kelce for much of the evening.
For more insight on the Chiefs' Wild Card playoff matchup against the Steelers, listen below:
Arguably the best tight end in football, Kelce should be able to get what he wants at will against Edmunds.
This is a clear mismatch, and it is a mismatch that Kansas City absolutely must exploit. Kelce should be able to get open at will, and even when he is not open, he should still be able to use his body to shield Edmunds from the ball and come away with contested receptions.
If Kelce is able to serve as a consistent safety valve that Mahomes knows he can get the ball to whenever necessary, that will be a huge boost for the Chiefs' ability to sustain drives, which will put additional pressure on the Steelers defense to not fold late in the game.
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Without a doubt, the Chiefs are the better team in this contest. That being said, Ben Roethlisberger is a smart, veteran quarterback with years of experience and a clutch gene. If Kansas City allows the Steelers to hang around and gives Ben a shot to win the game late in the fourth quarter, there is a possibility that Big Ben will do just that.
Kelce, a player who is always open by virtue of his frame and ability to shield defenders from the ball, also happens to be a smooth route runner with sure hands and elite after-the-catch ability. The Chiefs will be asking a lot of Kelce in this matchup, but if he is able to take advantage of this mismatch to step up and take over the game, they should be able to pull away early and cruise to an easy victory.
If Kelce can record a stat line of at least seven receptions for 92 yards and at least one touchdown, the Chiefs can undoubtedly win this game. In addition to putting points on the board, that stat line would show the big tight end being active in the passing game, and the yardage totals would indicate that Kelce would have either had several big plays (15 to 20-plus yards), or had a couple big plays with several consistent intermediate plays (8 to 15 yards).
The Chiefs have a multitude of weapons on offense, but Kelce is usually one of their most consistent performers. He has game-breaking abilities, and as mentioned, he will have the best matchup for most of the night.
That is why Travis Kelce is the X-factor this weekend for the Chiefs.
