The Chiefs have causes for concern.
The reigning champs were just held to nine points — marking just the third time with Patrick Mahomes they failed to score a touchdown — against a Broncos defense that surrendered 70 points to the Dolphins. Mahomes’ least-explosive supporting cast has dropped a once-fearsome offense to 12th in the NFL in points per game (23.4).
The 49ers have lost three straight games since being crowned the league favorite.
All but two Eagles games have been decided by single digits.
The Dolphins have lost by double digits against the only two opponents they’ve faced with winning records.
The Cowboys were embarrassed by the 49ers — and lost to lowly Arizona — and haven’t been to the NFC Championship in 27 years.
The Ravens have won one playoff game in eight years.
The Bills are a Tyrod Taylor audible away from being .500.
The Bengals needed to win three straight games to finally climb above .500.
The Lions haven’t reached the playoffs in six seasons and have the longest postseason win drought (31 years) in the league.
So, which contender can you trust?
Perhaps this weekend will provide some clarity as eight of the top 11 Super Bowl favorites — according to sportsbooks — face each other.
Sunday morning starts with a potential AFC title game preview in Germany (9:30 a.m. ET, NFL Network) between the Chiefs (6-2) and Dolphins (6-2), whose quarterbacks are currently the top two MVP favorites. Tyreek Hill — the first player in NFL history with more than 1,000 receiving yards through eight games — will face his former team for the first time since forcing a trade out of Kansas City in 2022.
The Ravens (6-2) and Seahawks (5-2) take the spotlight at 1 p.m. ET (CBS). The Seahawks haven’t allowed more than 20 points in the past four games, but Lamar Jackson could put on a show against a defense that ranks 31st in rushing yards by opposing quarterbacks (5.4 per carry). Leonard Williams will debut on Seattle’s front, following his trade from the Giants. Geno Smith could take another step back against a defense that leads the league in sacks and opponents’ passer rating.
The Cowboys (5-2) and Eagles (7-1) vie for NFC East supremacy in the 4:25 p.m. slot. They split the series last season, but neither result holds much weight: Dak Prescott and Jalen Hurts didn’t go head-to-head. It only has happened once in their careers. The Cowboys were victorious in that game as Hurts threw two interceptions. Philly’s quarterback — who ranks second in the NFL with eight interceptions — faces another tough matchup against a Dallas defense that ranks third in interceptions (nine) and leads the league with four defensive touchdowns.
The nightcap (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC) is a rematch of a divisional playoff game, superstar quarterbacks and a near-tragedy. The Bills (5-3) and Bengals (4-3) return to the site of last season’s primetime game, which was canceled after Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest on the field in Cincinnati. The Bills enter a battle of Super Bowl contenders looking shaky, mixing two losses with two near-upsets in their past four games. The Bengals have shaken off another slow start and suddenly look elite again following last week’s win at San Francisco.
My sincerest congratulations to anyone with 15 hours to spare.
Today’s back page
Oh, that rings a bell
Jacob deGrom made six starts with the Rangers this season — the most recent coming in April — before undergoing season-ending surgery in June.
At the start of the second season of his $185 million contract with Texas, the former Mets ace will receive his first World Series ring. But unless deGrom, 35, contributes to another title, the two-time Cy Young Award winner’s presence in the champagne celebration will be forgotten.
He is not alone. Here are some other notable New York athletes who were the awkward recipients of a championship ring:
Jeremy Lin: The former phenomenon has played with 11 teams in three countries since leaving the Knicks in 2012. He became the first Asian-American player to win an NBA title during his 31-game stint with Toronto in 2019, when he averaged 3.4 minutes in eight playoff games.
David Lee: The former Knicks fan favorite joined Golden State in 2010 and was a key contributor — earning his second All-Star nod in 2013 — until the Warriors became contenders in 2014-15. Lee averaged 8.2 minutes per game in the playoffs as Golden State won its first title in 40 years — then he left in the offseason.
Eddy Curry: After five frustrating seasons with the Knicks, the former No. 4 overall pick landed with LeBron James’ Heat in 2011. Curry played a total of 83 minutes in 14 games and made no postseason appearances, but the big man still was awarded a championship ring.
Tyrod Taylor: Long before backing up Daniel Jones, Taylor earned a Super Bowl ring as Joe Flacco’s understudy in Baltimore during the 2012 season.
Chien-Ming Wang: The former Yankees ace’s time with the team was relatively short. He arrived in 2005, finished second in Cy Young voting in 2006, won 19 games in back-to-back seasons and was gone by 2010. It’s easy to forget he was part of the 2009 title season. Wang traveled down the Canyon of Heroes after injuries ended his disastrous season in July — he went 1-6 with a 9.64 ERA — but he felt undeserving of the ring and reportedly never wore it.
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Roberto Kelly: The former Yankees outfielder and two-time All-Star — who is best remembered for being traded for Paul O’Neill after the 1992 season — ended his career in 2000 with the Yankees. He played 10 games at the start of the season before undergoing Tommy John surgery. It was enough to earn a ring from the Yankees.
Sean Avery: The former Rangers agitator didn’t receive a ring during his rookie season with the Red Wings in 2001-02. What’s noteworthy is Avery appeared in 36 games with the eventual champs, falling five games shy of the threshold to get his name engraved on the Stanley Cup.
Shakedown Saturday
The second chapter of the College Football Playoff rankings will look very different.
No. 2 Georgia (8-0) faces No. 12 Missouri (7-1), the two-time defending champs’ first ranked opponent.
No. 7 Texas (7-1) will be without starting quarterback Quinn Ewers against the reigning Big 12 champion, No. 23 Kansas State (6-2).
No. 8 Alabama (7-1) could be eliminated from playoff contention by No. 14 LSU (6-2) for the second straight season.
The end — or pause — of a century-plus rivalry will see No. 9 Oklahoma (7-1) travel to No. 22 Oklahoma State (6-2).
The most entertaining game kicks off when No. 5 Washington (8-0) and No. 20 USC (7-2) — two of the nation’s top 10 offenses — meet in primetime at the L.A. Coliseum (7:30 p.m. ET, ABC).
Though the Huskies are still in contention for a national championship and feature the current Heisman Trophy front-runner in Michael Penix Jr. (+275), the greatest focus will be on last year’s winner, Caleb Williams.
Less than a month ago, the USC quarterback was the heavy favorite (+170) to become the second player to win a second Heisman. Now Williams is an 80/1 longshot who is no longer a lock to be taken with the No. 1 overall pick in the next NFL Draft.
Williams hasn’t helped his case, throwing for a combined four touchdowns and three interceptions in the past four games while averaging 261 yards passing with a 61.8 completion percentage.
But his teammates haven’t helped his cause, either. Despite the recent struggles, the Trojans still boast the second-highest scoring offense in the nation (45.9 points per game), but they’ve lost two of their past three games because of their 107th-ranked defense, which has allowed at least 41 points in four of the past five games.
If the Giants give up on Daniel Jones and try to land Williams, they’ll get another quarterback accustomed to playing without an offensive line. Over the past four games, Williams has been sacked 17 times.
North Carolina’s Drake Maye has become a threat to usurp Williams’ spot atop draft boards despite the Tar Heels’ pair of losses as heavy favorites in his past two games. In an enormous home upset to Virginia, Maye completed 50 percent of passes and threw a game-sealing interception.
Maye has thrown for 16 touchdowns, five interceptions and 2,559 yards, completing 65.6 percent of his passes and benefitting from modest external pressure. Williams has thrown for 25 touchdowns, four interceptions and 2,646 yards while completing 68.2 percent of his passes — numbers that are essentially the same as what he put up before dominating the Heisman vote last year.
The current Heisman favorite, Penix Jr., has virtually identical numbers to Williams, and has thrown four interceptions in the past four weeks, which included an atrocious effort against lowly Arizona State in which the Huskies didn’t score a touchdown on offense.
Williams hasn’t been at his best over the past month, but his best was never going to be good enough. The expectations were too high. His coaches were overmatched. His defense was fit for Division III.
It’s no wonder Archie Griffin stands alone.
What we’re reading 📖
📰 The news at a glance: Giants kicker Graham Gano is headed to IR, the Yankees put Domingo German on waivers, Craig Counsell is coming for his Mets interview.
🏀 The biggest question of the Knicks’ uneven start: What’s going on with Julius Randle?
🏒 Adam Fox’s early exit after a knee-on-knee hit was the talking point from the Rangers’ sixth straight win. Pair that with Filip Chytil being forced out due to injury, and the Rangers’ depth will be tested, writes The Post’s Larry Brooks.
⚾ Remember the name Zelus Analytics. That’s the firm that either sorts out the Yankees and how they use analytics or sells them a bunch of expensive consulting services only for them to drive you nuts again next year.
🏈 The Post’s Steve Serby talked to the Jets about how Aaron Rodgers’ hopeful rehab following a torn Achilles is inspiring the team.
🏈 Tom Coughlin, Steve Spagnuolo and Herb Edwards explain the qualities former Giants linebacker Antonio Pierce will bring to his head-coaching debut Sunday with the Raiders.
🎙 After Derek Jeter’s rookie TV season, The Post’s Andrew Marchand looks at what Jeter needs to do to become baseball’s preeminent voice.
