The Chiefs may be the Super Bowl villain but we’d be lost without one

Kansas City have all the ingredients needed for bad guys: victories, dubious calls and unlikable players. But they’re also exactly what sports need.

VILLAIN ENERGY? Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, left, and tight end Travis Kelce celebrate after the Chiefs defeated the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship. Pic: Ed Zurga/AP

The term Chiefs fatigue, already in heavy use throughout the season, has only become more common the closer we get to Sunday’s Super Bowl. The team’s pursuit of a three-peat with a quarterback on pace to break all sorts of records for some reason doesn’t do it for most people outside Kansas City.

That so many teams (ahem, the Bills) have come so close to unseating the Chiefs only to head home in despair, means frustration and anger is naturally directed at the winner. But is it really fair to cast Kansas City as the NFL’s leading villain?