A general view prior to the AFC Championship Game between the Buffalo Bills and Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on Jan. 26, 2025. (Photo by Todd Rosenberg/Getty Images)
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The Kansas City Chiefs may have slipped to 6-11 in 2025, but they clearly remain must-see viewing on TV.
During the 2026 regular season, they will play six times in prime time, which is just one fewer than the seven they played in 2025 when they were coming off their third straight Super Bowl appearance.
The prime-time contests start with back-to-back night games in Weeks One and Two. They host the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football on Sept. 14 and the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday Night Football on Sept. 20.
The Monday night game against the Broncos means the Chiefs will begin their season in prime time for the fourth straight year.
Week One could play an important role in who wins the AFC West. No team other than the Broncos or Chiefs has won the division since 2009.
But it remains to be seen who will start at quarterback during both of these prime-time contests.
Patrick Mahomes, the three-time Super Bowl MVP, tore the ACL and LCL in his left knee on Dec. 14, but the Chiefs staff has been raving about his recovery from that season-ending injury.
Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said Mahomes might even participate in organized team activities (OTAs), though that’s basically a non-contact passing camp.
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“He is in a good position to be able to do some things,” Reid said. “He’s doing a lot of stuff right now.”
Broncos quarterback Bo Nix had been expected to be ready for training camp after breaking a bone in his ankle on Jan. 18 during the AFC playoff win against the Buffalo Bills, but it was revealed that he underwent a second procedure on his surgically repaired right ankle during a follow-up visit with Dr. Norman Waldrop III in April.
Colts starting quarterback Daniel Jones is coming off a season-ending torn Achilles.
Three of the Chiefs’ prime-time games will feature prominent newcomers going against their former teams.
On Oct. 25 Super Bowl LX MVP Kenneth Walker will face his previous Seattle Seahawks team on Sunday Night Football.
The Chiefs signed the former Seahawks running back to a three-year, $43 million contract.
“It’s a winning culture,” Walker said. “(They’ve) been to plenty of Super Bowls and they know how to win. I feel like it’s a great fit for me.”
It also looks like even better value for the Chiefs after the Miami Dolphins and New York Jets recently re-signed running backs Devon Achane to a four-year, $64 million deal and Breece Hall to a three-year, $43.5 million contract, respectively.
The Chiefs play on the road on Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football when they face the Los Angeles Rams on Dec. 3, and that Rams secondary will look very familiar.
Los Angeles traded for former Chiefs cornerback Trent McDuffie and then made him the highest-paid cornerback in NFL history, signing him to a four-year, $124 million extension that includes $100 million guaranteed. Shortly thereafter, they also signed cornerback Jaylen Watson to three-year, $51 million deal with $34 million guaranteed.
On Dec. 21 the Chiefs will host a Monday Night Football game against the New England Patriots, the former team of Khyiris Tonga.
The Chiefs signed the run-stuffing defensive lineman to a three-year, $21 million contract, including $14 million guaranteed.
On Thanksgiving night on Nov. 26, the Chiefs will play at the Bills on NBC.
Though Mahomes is 4-0 vs. Josh Allen in the playoffs, Allen has had the upper hand in the regular season, including last year’s 28-21 victory.
The Chiefs also played on Thanksgiving last year, a game which had 57.230 million viewers, making it the most-watched regular-season game in NFL history.
“We’re excited to get to go out there and play on Thanksgiving,” Mahomes said before last year’s game against the Dallas Cowboys, “and the whole world watching.”
Once again many will be watching the Chiefs in prime time.
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