This is the Game
 

If you look at the Chiefs disappointing seasons over the last few years, the common thread seems to be a stupid loss on the road versus an inferior (at least in the minds of Chiefs fans) team in the second half of the season. Buffalo, New Orleans, Minnesota, San Francisco... etc.

In my mind, this game is a benchmark test for the Herm era Chiefs. Can we go on the road and take care of business against a team that I believe we are considerably better than? While I'll concede that one game does not equal the season, I do feel that this is the time when good teams are at their best. We need to go down there and take care of business, and we should do it in convincing fashion.

We're under .500 on the road...time to start learning to win on the road consistently if we have any hopes for play-offs and play-off wins.

No doubt, I had this earmarked as a pivotal matchup as well. I am not worried about the offense, it's there D that bothers me.

I thought they were pretty weak against the run.

Time to board the L Train baby......

AND we need to be able to make San Diego sweat, at least, when we visit them in a couple of weeks. Otherwise, regardless of whatever else happens....we are pretenders, not real contenders.

11-5 and a first round playoff loss at NE is, in my mind, nearly the same as a 10-6 record a missing the playoffs. Same result really.

History is not on our side, however...
 

I agree to a point....but even if we win this game, but then we lose at home in December, or stumble at Oakland (God forbid)....the result will be the same.

I'm with Gaz...the Miami game was the road game we should have won and didn't. I don't see us making that mistake again this year.

Yes, We need every AFC win we can get, but I don't see us losing to Oakland, they may be "trying" now but we will not lose there, and we will sweep home field in December - we're there dude!!

If we lose Sunday, we're not out, but we're clearly exposed as pretenders.

I'm not that interested in winning convincingly (although it sure would be nice), because I think Herm plays it too close to the vest for that to happen, unless an opponent just self-destructs. His philosophy cuts down on the number of possessions, so I think every game for us is going to be a 20-13/24-17/17-13 kind of game. So, I'll just take an ugly win and be happy.

I worry about us losing our edge after 10 days off. I worry about Cleveland using last week's meltdown as a rallying point and pulling it together this week. I'll be disappointed if we play fairly well and Cleveland just outplays us.

I will be very, very, very, very unhappy if we show up flat and uninterested, turn the ball over a couple of times, let Frye convert every 3rd-and-8. That will spark all kinds of doubts about what the hell's going on, why we have so much trouble translating even a fraction of our home success on the road.

But, we'll see Sunday which team shows up.

A road win at this point is huge.

But, as we all know, it will be downplayed because it's "only" Cleveland.

Good Thread JSP, it is all true. I have learned not to get overly excited this time of year, the fall is hard.

Downplayed by the media? Surely.

But not by me. We win by 1, we win by 17, I'll be tickled. We've lost too many "winnable" games over the years, I take nothing for granted. Every W is precious to me, regardless of opponent or score.

I agree, but I was talking about the board..if a loss to an "inferior" team carries so much weight, then the win does too, IMO.

If I understand you correctly, then I agree: I will be just as happy winning this game as I would be despondent if we lose it.

me too...this game should show where the team's mindset is.