This time last offseason, the Kansas City Chiefs were basking in the glory of their second consecutive Super Bowl victory. But after this February’s humiliating 40-22 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, which crushed hopes of a three-peat for fans awaiting Missouri sports betting, 2025 has taken on an entirely different tone. Fans and pundits alike have begun speculating that a lack of depth – especially on offense – has finally been exposed.
So with the future of the Chiefs dynasty being debated across sports media, BetMissouri.com decided to look back at the last 25 years of Kansas City football rosters to see how the current squad measures up.
Position | Player | Years With Team | Approximate Value During Years |
QB | Patrick Mahomes | 2017-Present | 123 |
RB | Priest Holmes | 2001-2007 | 74 |
WR | Tyreek Hill | 2016-2021 | 74 |
WR | Dwayne Bowe | 2007-2014 | 58 |
TE | Travis Kelce | 2013-Present | 116 |
OT | Mitchell Schwartz | 2016-2020 | 62 |
G | Brian Waters | 2000-2010 | 89 |
C | Casey Wiegmann | 2001-2011 | 65 |
G | Will Shields | 2000-2006 | 91 |
OT | Eric Fisher | 2013-2020 | 66 |
As your home for Missouri sportsbook promo codes once legal, regulated operators launch, BetMissouri.com used pro-football-reference.com and its Approximate Value metric, which tries to quantify a player’s relative value to his team. With those numbers, we picked the best player at each position for the Chiefs over the past 25 years.
Surprise, surprise: Patrick Mahomes checks in under center for our squad of Chiefs all-stars. The six-time Pro Bowl selection and three-time Super Bowl MVP has spearheaded the Chiefs’ dynasty since becoming the team’s starting quarterback in 2018. Still under 30, and signed through the 2031 season, Mahomes (career AV of 123 at the Pro Football Reference site) will be a mainstay of the roster for many years to come.
The only other active player on our quarter-century offense is tight end Travis Kelce – despite rumors that 2024 would be his final year in the NFL. Nevertheless, Kelce confirmed he’ll be back again in 2025 shortly after the Chiefs’ Super Bowl loss, saying, “I can't go out like that.”
Mahomes and Kelce are the Chiefs’ all-time passing and receiving leaders, respectively. It remains to be seen if folks in the Show-Me State will be able to use Missouri sports betting apps to wager on this season’s games and player props on Mahomes and/or Kelce.
Meanwhile, the team’s all-time rushing leader, Jamaal Charles, did not make the team, which may surprise some fans. Instead, Priest Holmes takes the lead running back spot. Holmes surpassed 2,000 scrimmage yards during each of his first three seasons in Kansas City.
Highlighting the quarter-century team’s O-line is right guard Will Shields, who played for the Chiefs for 14 years, making 12-straight Pro Bowls between 1995 and 2006, never missing a game throughout his career.
Position | Player | Years With Team | Approximate Value During Years |
DE | Tamba Hali | 2006-2017 | 94 |
DT | Chris Jones | 2016-Present | 104 |
DT | Dontari Poe | 2012-2016 | 45 |
DE | Jared Allen | 2004-2007 | 40 |
LB | Derrick Johnson | 2005-2017 | 101 |
LB | Justin Houston | 2011-2018 | 65 |
CB | Brandon Flowers | 2008-2013 | 38 |
S | Eric Berry | 2010-2018 | 55 |
S | Greg Wesley | 2000-2007 | 46 |
CB | Marcus Peters | 2015-2017 | 35 |
On defense, tackle Chris Jones stands out as the only member of our quarter-century team currently under contract with the team. Will he maintain his fantastic form and boost Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl odds in the 2025-26 season?
Other notable member of the front seven are Jared Allen, who began his career in K.C. – though the Hall of Fame pass rusher’s most productive years arguably came as a member of the Minnesota Vikings – and linebacker Derrick Johnson, who holds the record for all-time tackles among Chiefs’ defenders.
In the secondary, fan favorite cornerback Eric Berry is considered the most valuable Chief of the past 25 years. The fifth overall pick in the 2010 draft, Berry played his entire nine-year career with the Chiefs, earning five Pro Bowl selections. He also won NFL Comeback Player of the Year in 2015 after undergoing chemotherapy for Hodgkin’s lymphoma during the 2014 offseason.
Position | Player | Years With Team | Approximate Value During Years |
K | Harrison Butker | 2017-2024 | 29 |
P | Dustin Colquitt | 2005-2019 | 34 |
Harrison Butker lands the kicker spot on our quarter-century team. Butker was the kicker for all three of the Chiefs’ most recent Super Bowl wins and nailed the winning field goal during Super Bowl LVII in 2022. Dustin Colquitt takes the punter spot with his 15-season tenure with the Chiefs between 2005-19.
Bookmark this site for our guide to Kansas City Chiefs betting in Missouri and more coverage all year round.
USA Today photo by Mark J. Rebilas
Author
Jeff Parker is an entertainment writer for BetMissouri.com. A writer for film, television and the internet, Jeff is a life long movie buff, with a Masters Degree in Popular Culture. He lives in Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he works full time as documentary filmmaker and producer.
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