The new NFL campaign is just a matter of weeks away, getting underway on September 5th with the first Thursday Night Football of the year. The reigning champion Kansas City Chiefs will raise the curtain against a fellow AFC heavyweight in the form of the Baltimore Ravens, with both teams looking to lay down an early marker in their Super Bowl ambitions.
However, while both teams have very real championship ambitions, they could very well find themselves out of the running early doors courtesy of grueling schedules throughout the first half of the campaign. And they aren’t the only two teams that could struggle. Here are three teams whose championship aspirations could be up in smoke before the 2024 campaign reaches its business end.
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs have been a dominant force in the NFL in recent years, reaching the Super Bowl four times in the last five years and winning three of them. The last two campaigns ended with superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes and his loyal teammates reigning supreme over the rest of the league, and this year they have the chance to become history-makers by claiming three straight Lombardis. The bookies certainly fancy their chances, making them the short-priced +500 favorites for glory.
With an explosive offense and a solid defense, the Arrowhead side has become the NFL’s latest in a long line of dynasties, taking over from the Brady-Belichick Patriots that dominated for an eternity. However, their 2024 schedule could be their downfall in their quest for immortality.
The Chiefs have perhaps the toughest start of anyone in 2024, facing the aforementioned Ravens in a repeat of last year’s AFC Championship on week one, before welcoming the Cincinnati Bengals to Arrowhead on week two in a repeat of the 2021 and 2022 conference championship deciders. Add to that a week six clash with the San Francisco 49ers in a repeat of last year’s Big Game, and claiming a third straight crown is by no means a foregone conclusion.
By the time their week ten contest against the Denver Broncos rolls around, the reigning champions could have three losses on their record already. While the NFL odds for week 10 haven’t yet been published, one can expect that the reigning champions will be the favorites for that particular clash, but their +500 preseason Lombardi odds will surely have lengthened already by that point. And if they haven’t, then a defeat to Josh Allen and his Buffalo Bills at Highmark on week 11 may well finish the job.
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens have long been considered one of the elite teams in the NFL, known for their strong defense and dynamic offense led by quarterback Lamar Jackson. Last season, the Maryland outfit shook off their cobwebs and became a force to be reckoned with once again, finishing the regular season as the AFC’s top seed before making it to the conference championship. Ultimately, the Mahomes-Travis Kelce double act had too much for them to handle, reigning supreme before going on to claim yet another Lombardi, but not before the Ravens had announced themselves as contenders once again.
Last term, their former Louisville Cardinal under center claimed the MVP award for the second time in his career, and looking at the Ravens’ 2024 early season schedule, he will have to be at his very best once again. They begin with a trip to Arrowhead to face the reigning champions on week one, followed by a challenging trifecta of games on weeks three, four, and five, facing off against the Dallas Cowboys, Buffalo Bills, and Cincinnati Bengals respectively.
All four of those sides have very real hopes of winning the Super Bowl this season, and as such, there’s a distinct possibility that the Ravens could lose four of their first five games. That would certainly derail any hopes they have of emerging victorious this term.
Green Bay Packers
The Green Bay Packers have been perennial contenders in the NFC, thanks in large part to the exceptional play of quarterback Aaron Rodgers. However, the four-time MVP departed for the bright lights of the Big Apple last year, and in his place, Jordan Love has certainly lived up to the billing. The 25-year-old threw for 4,159 yards last term, while his 32 touchdowns were only bested by Dak Prescott’s 36.
The Packers rewarded their star QB with a mega-money four-year $220 million contract, the biggest in NFL history. And he will certainly have to repay his employer’s faith in him if the Cheeseheads are to make it through the first half of 2024 unscathed.
The Lambeau Field side travels to the Linc to face the Philadelphia Eagles on week one, but it’s the midway point of the campaign that will be their most challenging. The Packers face the Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars, Detroit Lions, and an upstart Chicago Bears between weeks seven and ten, and four consecutive losses could end their hopes of a first Lombardi in 14 years.
