Former Kansas State Wildcat Among The Kansas City Chiefs Celebrating AFC West Title
The Kansas City Chiefs clinched their ninth consecutive division title after defeating the Los Angeles Chargers (8-5) Sunday night. Former Kansas State defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah was one of those Chiefs celebrating this accomplishment.
Anudike-Uzomah was twice named the Big 12 Defensive Lineman of the Year (2021, 2022), compiling 19.5 sacks, 25.5 tackles for loss, and eight forced fumbles in these two seasons. He was selected by the Chiefs with the No. 31 overall pick in 2023.
Playing every game this season, Anudike-Uzomah has 21 tackles, four tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, and one forced fumble.
Kansas City sits at 12-1 atop the AFC, maintaining their lead over the Pittsburgh Steelers (10-3) and Buffalo Bills (10-3) for the No. 1 seed. Despite their uncharacteristic ways of winning, nobody has devised a formula for defeating the Chiefs (outside of Buffalo). Quarterback Patrick Mahomes is on the quest for his fourth Super Bowl ring despite having arguably the worst season of his career. He’s thrown for 3,189 yards with 20 touchdowns, 11 interceptions and a 92.0 passer rating.
Yet, despite the fact that the league has seemingly neutralized Mahomes, they still haven’t figured out the Chiefs.
“Every year is a little bit different on how we’ve gotten there,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said after the Chargers win. “I’m proud of our guys, we’re just hanging in there. We have so many tight games, more so than some of these other years, and so the guys keep hanging in there and feeling like good things are going to happen and keep battling.”
Jayden Armant is a graduate of the Howard University School of Communications and a contributor to Kansas State Wildcats on SI. He can be reached at jaydenshome14@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @jaydenarmant.
Jayden is a journalism school graduate of Howard University. He was the 2024 recipient of the Terez Paylor scholarship award. He previously worked at the Orlando Sentinel.