Kansas City Chiefs DVOA, Stats, & NFL Rankings

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce caught seven passes for 117 yards and a touchdown in the 23-14 win over the Houston Texans in the Divisional Round. The 35-year-old broke his tie with Hall-of-Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice for the most playoff games with at least 100 receiving yards. All but 60 of Patrick Mahomes' 177 passing yards went in the direction of Kelce in today's contest. The veteran tight end also received Mahomes' lone passing touchdown in the game. Kelce will now play in the AFC Championship game for the seventh straight season. Kansas City will face either the Baltimore Ravens or Buffalo Bills in next week's matchup. Whoever the opponent is, look for Mahomes and Kelce to connect early and often.

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes completed 16 of 25 pass attempts (64%) for 177 yards and a touchdown in the 23-14 win over the Houston Texans in their Divisional Round matchup. Mahomes displayed his game-managing abilities as Kansas City ran only 50 plays in this contest compared to 65 for Houston. The veteran quarterback was not particularly impressive in this game but did manage to scramble away from a sack to deliver a touchdown pass to Travis Kelce in the fourth quarter. Mahomes and company will now play in their seventh-straight AFC Championship game against the Baltimore Ravens or Buffalo Bills. The 29-year-old will face off against either Lamar Jackson or Josh Allen to determine who will represent the AFC in the Super Bowl. The Chiefs have displayed their willingness to grind out low-scoring games, but a shootout is not out of the question, given the level of competition.

The Kansas City Chiefs officially ruled out wide receiver Mecole Hardman (knee) on Friday for the Divisional Round contest on Saturday against the Houston Texans. Hardman remains on Injured Reserve but will not be activated for the team's first game of the playoffs as they seek an unprecedented third straight Super Bowl title. The 26-year-old was designated to return from IR back on Jan. 1 but did not play in the Week 18 regular-season finale against the division-rival Denver Broncos. The Chiefs were on bye last week during the wild-card round of the playoffs. If the Chiefs advance to the AFC Championship next weekend, it remains to be seen if Hardman will be available to return after he was limited in practice this week. He has been out since Week 13, so even if he were to return if KC advances, it's unlikely Hardman would have a very big role on offense.

Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker will face the Houston Texans in the Divisional Round of the playoffs this Saturday. Butker missed his lone field goal attempt in the Week 18 shutout loss to the Denver Broncos. The veteran kicker will look to turn things around now that the playoffs have started. Since returning from knee surgery in Week 15, Butker has nailed three of his five field goal attempts and eight of nine extra-point attempts. The 29-year-old could be heavily involved if the Texans get rolling offensively, which is possible given they scored 32 points in their Wild Card matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers. Given how the Chiefs perform in the playoffs, Butker should be good for at least two field goals and extra-point attempts. Butker should be considered a viable plug-in kicker in DFS and playoff leagues this week.

Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins will face the Houston Texans in the Divisional Round of the playoffs this week. Hopkins rested in Week 18 with the rest of the starters, making it nearly three weeks since he last suited up. Hopkins played a consistent role in the offense following his acquisition at the trade deadline, but his involvement tapered off as the season went on. The emergence of rookie Xavier Worthy and the steady presence of Travis Kelce pushed Hopkins down in the pecking order. That said, Mahomes has still demonstrated trust in the sure-handed veteran receiver at key moments. Hopkins will also have to contend with a tough Texans defense that held the Los Angeles Chargers to 12 points and picked off Justin Herbert four times. The 32-year-old is a risky play in both DFS and playoff leagues, given his low floor, but there's still a chance he finds the endzone.