Getty Image / Perry Knotts
The Kansas City Chiefs are looking to become just the third franchise in NFL history to make four Super Bowls in a five-year span. They would join the Buffalo Bills of the 1990s and the New England Patriots of the 2010s as the only teams to do it.
To do that, they need to beat the league’s best team in the Baltimore Ravens on the road in Baltimore on Sunday.
But, that seems less likely now, as superstar guard Joe Thuney has been ruled out with an injury.
The #Chiefs have ruled out All-Pro guard Joe Thuney with a pec strain.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 26, 2024
Thuney has been a stalwart for the Kansas City Chiefs offensive line since coming over from the Patriots following the 2020 season. The All-Pro is part of what could be the best interior offensive line in the league alongside Creed Humphrey and Trey Smith, and they’re a big part of the Kansas City Chiefs success.
Make no mistake, the interior of that offensive line is going to be tested against one of the league’s best defenses. Michael Pierce is one of the league’s best nose tackles. But, the true star on the interior for the Ravens is Justin Madubuike. He had a breakout year this year, and was named All-Pro. My guess is that the Ravens will line him up across Nick Allegretti as much as possible.
Plus, I could see the Ravens deploying stud middle linebackers Roquan Smith and Patrick Queen as blitzers to try to test the communication of the interior offensive line and use the crowd noise to their advantage.
Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is the best football player in the world, and if anyone can overcome this it’s him. But, it’s going to make it much tougher, that’s for sure.