The Kansas City Chiefs have locked up the No. 1 seed and now have the luxury of resting star quarterback Patrick Mahomes and some of his first-team peers in Week 18 against the Denver Broncos.
But that doesn't mean the decision-makers are resting.
"It's just going to be nice getting guys healthy," Mahomes said after a Christmas Day win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. "I think this was the earliest (winning of a) bye I've ever had just in general. To kind of have this grind ...
"We'll see how Week 18 goes and who plays and who doesn't play. That's up to coach (Andy Reid). But even getting this little break, getting back healthy and then getting ourselves ready to go for the playoffs, it was super important."
It appears "coach'' has made the call, and the move is to start veteran journeyman Carson Wentz at QB against the Broncos, who as they also close out the regular season do have something to play for, with a lingering mathematical shot at a playoff berth.
So to them? The more Chiefs backups, the better.
One member of the Chiefs who will not get the opportunity to show what he can do is veteran wide receiver Montrell Washington, who has been cut from the team's practice squad in favor of the signing of linebacker Blake Lynch.
Washington is a third-year NFL pro and, as it happens, a former fifth-round pick of the Broncos. But he will now be watching his two former teams go at it while Wentz - once upon a time a highly-regarded first-round pick - will guide KC through the weekend while Mahomes gets that rest.
