What History Surprisingly Says About Chiefs in One-Score Games

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – On countless occasions, inconsistency and not consistent enough were words the Chiefs used to describe their season. Those words fit perfectly into the team’s NFL-worst 1-9 record in one-score games.

“I think, offensively, we weren't consistent enough throughout games,” Patrick Mahomes said Jan. 15. “We had stretches in games where we played good. We had stretches in the season where we played really good. But we got to be better and that starts with me, and then it kind of has to feed throughout the entire offense.”

In fact, after the Chiefs finished the prior season with an NFL-best 11-0 mark in one-score affairs and brought an NFL-record 17 straight wins into the 2025 campaign, inconsistent wasn’t an adequate-enough adjective. So, Andy Reid brought back something that worked well in the past, Eric Bieniemy as offensive coordinator.

“I always keep my ears and eyes open for things,” Reid said Monday, announcing Bieniemy’s return, “and that's why we're very seldom stagnant. Even with our record – listen, what worked for us the year before, it just flipped on us. The games we won the year before, they flipped on us this year and we didn't win. And that's sometimes how this thing works.”

Chiefs were so uncharacteristic in 2025

One-score games worked in the Chiefs’ favor from 2018-22, Bieniemy’s first stint as offensive coordinator. The Chiefs during that stretch posted a 30-15 mark in games decided by eight points or less.

But the Chiefs smelled like a stagnant pond over large stretches of the 2025 season, and what stood out most was their inability to close tight games in the fourth quarter – especially when they were behind.

History tends to flip year over year

In addition to Bieniemy, there’s hope for the Chiefs to reverse that one-score trend, thanks to recent NFL history – and it’s not good for the Denver Broncos.

In 2024, Kansas City (1.000), Minnesota (.900), Philadelphia (.800), Detroit (.778) and Seattle (.750) accounted for the NFL’s top five winning percentages in one-score games. Only a year later, Kansas City (.100, last), Minnesota (.556, 15th), Philadelphia (.667, tied for seventh), Detroit (.375, tied for 20th) and Seattle (.667, tied for seventh) all got worse.

reid, campbel — Oct 12, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell shakes hands with Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid after the game at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

In 2025, the top five were Denver (.846), San Francisco (.833), the L.A. Chargers (.750), New England and Pittsburgh (both .700). The year before, Denver (.143) ranked 31st, San Francisco (.250) was tied for 27th, the Chargers (.500) were tied for 13th, New England (.333) was 24th and Pittsburgh (.600) was 10th.

In other words, history says teams that did well this year in one-score games will deteriorate in that category next season. And teams that did poorly this year will improve significantly in 2026.

“And so now,” Reid said, “it's making sure that we get back and correct some things, and then get them going in the right direction again.”

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