In Week 18, most of the national rankings have the Kansas City Chiefs on top. There are still, however, a few that don’t.

Here’s this week’s sampling:

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I wasn’t nervous about moving Kansas City up to No. 1 last week, but the Christmas Day performance certainly validated my decision. This is the version of the Chiefs we would have liked to see at least once or twice before this season, even as they’ve rolled to a 15-1 mark that puts them, record-wise, among the best ever. Patrick Mahomes turned in a vintage effort, and the defense racked up five sacks without Chris Jones. Now they can sit Mahomes and Jones and any other veterans they want to rest in the meaningless regular-season finale in Denver. Well, it’s not meaningless for the Broncos, who can clinch a playoff spot and knock out the Bengals, but you get the idea. Honestly, the Chiefs would probably rather the possessed Bengals be dispelled anyway, even if Cincinnati and Denver gave them all they could handle in Kansas City this season. The key thing to remember about those games (in Week 2 and Week 10) as the playoffs near is that they both ended as most Chiefs games do: with Mahomes and Co ahead when time ran out. They have only gotten better since.

— Eric Edholm

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Biggest offseason contract situation to watch: Wide receiver Hollywood Brown

The Chiefs next year at wide receiver will have Xavier Worthy heading into his second season and Rashee Rice returning from a knee injury. Can they afford to invest in Brown, particularly considering their tight salary cap situation and list of potential free agents that also includes safety Justin Reid, linebacker Nick Bolton and guard Trey Smith? Brown missed most of this season with injuries but has nine catches for 91 yards in the two games since his return.

— Adam Teicher

(up from 4)

The Chiefs clinched the AFC’s No. 1 seed with their Christmas Day win. That means the next time they play a meaningful game, we all will have already given up on our New Year’s resolutions (Jan. 18 or 19). That’s good for Patrick Mahomes’ ankle and 35-year-old Travis Kelce’s energy level. Bad news for the Chiefs haters: Since Week 8, Kelce is fourth in the league in catches (69 for 578 yards).

— Josh Kendall

(down from 3)

A few weeks back I mentioned that Carson Wentz didn’t look bad in his limited action. If Kansas City does, indeed, decide to rest starters this weekend, it’s a really interesting test to see what the Chiefs look like under similar circumstances faced by teams that have passed them by in the power rankings, like Minnesota and Philadelphia. Can Wentz hang around against a good Broncos defense? We’re constantly moving the goalposts on Kansas City in this forum, but that would shock me out of my unfair bias.

— Conor Orr

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They picked the right time to play their best game of the year.

— Mike Florio

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They will rest guys this week to get ready for the playoffs. Win two and they are in the Super Bowl again.

— Pete Prisco

(up from 4)

The narrative about the Chiefs winning nothing but close games is fading. None of their past three wins were in doubt, and two were against playoff teams. Kansas City is starting to peak, and that’s scary for the rest of the AFC.

— Frank Schwab

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The Chiefs have reminded everyone how Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and the offense can rev up when needed and the defense remains the steady foundation. They are again the clear team to beat to stop a “three-peat.”

— Vinnie Iyer

(up from 3)

Sure, the style points have largely been lacking in 2024. Yet K.C. could still join the 2007 Patriots as the only teams to win 16 regular-season games. That aside, does anyone doubt that a core that’s won three titles in the past five seasons can elevate its performance in January? As such, could this be the year we finally see a historic three-peat Lombardi breakthrough?

— Nate Davis

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And just like that, the Kansas City Chiefs are the No. 1 seed in the AFC, and the road to the Super Bowl runs through Arrowhead. It sure seems like the Chiefs have coasted through the first month of the season and are now starting to ramp up toward the playoffs. They played arguably their best game of the season against Pittsburgh, holding the Steelers to just 10 points, even without Chris Jones. It’s hard to imagine anyone going into Kansas City and beating them in the playoffs at this point.

— Marcus Mosher