For nearly a decade, the Kansas City Chiefs felt like a permanent fixture in January football. If the NFL postseason had a default setting, it was Patrick Mahomes under center with everything on the line. That’s why this season’s ending landed so strangely, not just because the Chiefs missed the playoffs, but because of the oddly poetic timing surrounding it.
NBC, the network that has become synonymous with the NFL’s biggest stages, has quietly missed every Chiefs Super Bowl run this decade. The only two Super Bowls NBC has aired since 2020, the 2022 and upcoming 2026 games, both came in seasons where Kansas City didn’t make it to the final Sunday. Coincidence? Absolutely.
The real reasons are far less mystical and far more football-related.
The Chiefs’ postseason hopes officially ended with a 16-13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, a game that perfectly summed up their season. Kansas City struggled to finish drives, missed key opportunities late, and couldn’t lean on its usual margin for error.
Patrick Mahomes tried to keep the season afloat, but even the league’s most creative quarterback can only stretch reality so far. Kansas City’s offense lacked its usual explosiveness, and the defense spent too much time on the field in tight games that swung on a single mistake. To make things worse, Mahomes suffered a season-ending ACL injury in the Chargers game.
Chiefs fans watched another postseason play out without their team, and once again, it just so happened to line up with NBC holding the Super Bowl rights.
No, NBC didn’t knock Kansas City out of the playoff hunt. The Chargers did that. Injuries did that. A few missed throws, stalled drives, and razor-thin losses did that.
But if the Chiefs are back where they’re most comfortable next season, deep in the playoffs with Mahomes healthy, don’t be surprised if NBC finally gets its long-awaited Kansas City Super Bowl after all.
