December 21, 2019
By Fred Liggett
FredL@lstribune.net
It’s time for a return to prime time television for the AFC West Division champion Kansas City Chiefs as they travel to the Windy City for this edition of Sunday Night Football in America on NBC. It’s the third and final time this season for the Chiefs to be highlighted on this big stage and providing the challenge in this edition is the Chicago Bears.
Sunday nights have not gone well for the Chiefs so far in 2019 as they lost at home to both the Colts and Packers back in October. Now the Chiefs try their luck on the road to secure a Sunday night win and things are trending upward for the team at this time. Heading to Chicago the Chiefs take with them a 6-1 road record so far this season with the only loss coming at Tennessee. Plus the team the Chiefs face may not have much interest in getting a win under the bright lights of network TV. The Bears enter the game at .500 on the year at 7-7 and were eliminated from the NFC playoff picture just last week. The loss was a difficult one for the team as it came against their biggest rival in Green Bay.
This week 16 match up when originally scheduled was expected to have many playoff implications on the line as the Chiefs were forecasted to repeat as division champion and the Bears predicted to win the NFC North. Coming from a playoff berth in 2018 the Bears were thought of as the team to beat in the division when the season began. A familiar face for the KC Chiefs players is still in command in Chicago that being Head Coach Matt Nagy. The Bears head coach served as quarterback coach and then offensive coordinator for the Chiefs prior to leaving for Chicago. Not only did the team have an offensive guru to call the plays but Quarterback Mitch Trubisky to lead the team on the field. But the second go around the NFL has not gone very well for Trubisky as he missed a pair of games due to injury earlier in the season. Now back on the field and healthy the young QB is not putting up the same numbers as a year ago. Coach Nagy just this week talked about his starting QB saying he is “still growing and learning.”
The Chiefs enter the match up having fulfilled the predictions for them up to this point. Winning the AFC West Division for the fourth straight year, beating the New England Patriots on the road ending the Pats 21-game home winning streak and beating division rival Denver by 20 in the snow is what the team has accomplished so far in December. Prepping for this week’s road game the Chiefs learned six of their players were named to the NFL Pro Bowl doubling the three selected from the Bears. Off the field the Chiefs made a move to enhance their roster as they head into the post season signing seven-time All Pro Terrell Suggs. The 37 year old with the nickname T-Sizzle is ready to take the field as a Chiefs defensive end.
Anyone watching Sunday night’s game can expect a number of shots on both head coaches as the mentor goes up against one of his former students. Viewers will also be treated to another fine show by the Chiefs as they shake their Sunday night blues with a win in Chicago. That’s What I REID Into It for this week.
What I REID Into It Is Sponsored By Wiesemann Realty Group RE/MAX Heritage 816-463-6768 * 816-224-8484
