Note: This story updated Dec. 9, 2024
The Kansas City Chiefs are 12-1 this season, tied for the best record in the NFL, as they pursue an unprecedented third consecutive Super Bowl title.
But they have not dominated their opponents. Ten of Kansas City’s 12 wins have been decided by one-possession margins. So how often is Kansas City proving the saying, “Good teams win, great teams cover” with operators offering Kansas sports betting promo codes?
We look at the 2024-25 Chiefs, how often they cover, and how they compare to the past 10 Super Bowl champions against the spread (ATS). That list includes the Kansas City teams from the 2019, 2022 and 2023 seasons. After Sunday night's squeaker against the Los Angeles Chargers, in which K.C. won by a 19-17 score for the second week in a row, coach Andy Reid’s team is 4-8-1 ATS, according to SportsOddsHistory.com. This list only includes regular-season games. The Sports Odds History site uses the BetMGM Kansas Sportsbook to track odds through the years.
Team | Actual record | ATS record | ATS win pct. |
2023 Chiefs | 11-6 | 9-7-1 | .559 |
2022 Chiefs | 14-3 | 7-10 | .412 |
2021 Rams | 12-5 | 8-8-1 | .500 |
2020 Buccaneers | 11-5 | 9-7 | .563 |
2019 Chiefs | 12-4 | 10-5-1 | .656 |
2018 Patriots | 11-5 | 9-7 | .563 |
2017 Eagles | 13-3 | 10-6 | .625 |
2016 Patriots | 14-2 | 13-3 | .813 |
2015 Broncos | 12-4 | 8-7-1 | .531 |
2014 Patriots | 12-4 | 9-7 | .563 |
The Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl odds are still strong whether they win by one or win by 41. But they have some ground to make up this season, at least as far as folks making spread wagers are concerned.
The Chiefs have covered in victories against the Baltimore Ravens, Atlanta Falcons, New Orleans Saints and San Francisco 49ers, according to SportsOddsHistory.com data.
But Kansas City has failed to cover in each of the past seven games, including the team's lone defeat, on Nov. 17 at the hands of the Buffalo Bills. On Sunday, K.C. was favored by 4.5 but won by two when Matthew Wright made his fourth field goal of the game as time expired for the winning margin. Even that 31-yard kick was close: It deflected off the left upright and went through.
The game on Sept. 29 against the Chargers, which the Chiefs (-7) won 17-10, ended in a push.
One interesting aspect to all of this is that the Chiefs have usually not had huge spreads to cover at Kansas sportsbooks. Never in their first 10 games were they a double-digit favorite. That streak ended when Kansas City was favored by 11 points against Carolina on Nov. 24, but the Chiefs won 30-27. On Black Friday the Chiefs were laying 13.5 and didn't come close to covering, winning by that 19-17 margin.
Last season, on their way to a second Super Bowl title in a row, the Chiefs were favored by 10 or more points four times. They covered twice and failed to do so once, with one game ending in a push.
Who was the only Super Bowl champion in the past 10 years that failed to cover in more than half of their regular-season games? That would be the 2022 Chiefs, who were 7-10 ATS.
The 2019 and 2023 teams that brought a Vince Lombardi Trophy back to GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium had a better rate at rewarding spread bettors – especially since last season’s team paid off those wagers for those able to use legal, regulated Kansas sports betting apps inside the Sunflower State.
Last season’s Chiefs were 9-7-1 against the spread, a .559 winning percentage for bettors. Reid’s first championship team, in 2019, was 10-5-1 ATS (a .656 percentage).
The best team ATS over the past 10 years, at least among Super Bowl champions, was the New England Patriots in the 2016 season. That team steamrolled to a 14-2 record and covered in 13 of those 14 wins, for an .813 percentage. That was tied for the second-best ATS percentage since the advent of the Super Bowl in the 1966 season. Only the 2003 Pats (14-2, .875 ATS) covered more often.
As of Dec. 9, the Chiefs have +500 odds at FanDuel Kansas Sportsbook to win their third consecutive Super Bowl. Kansas City clinched its ninth consecutive AFC West title by edging the Chargers on Sunday. Only the AFC East’s Patriots (2009-19) had a longer streak, at 11 straight division titles.
USA Today photo by Denny Medley
Author
Jim Tomlin edits and writes about sports, gambling and the intersection of those two industries. He has 30 years of experience with companies such as the Tampa Bay Times, FanRag, Saturday Down South and Saturday Tradition. He now lends his expertise to BetKansas.com, among other sites.
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