Cricket Quick Pay

KANSAS CITY -- The Chiefs' 2024 schedule was released along with the rest of the NFL slate on Wednesday.

A strong start is essential for the Chiefs, who face two of their top challengers in the AFC, the Ravens and Bengals, in the first two weeks. Both games are at Arrowhead Stadium, meaning the Chiefs will be doing a lot of traveling as the season wears on. Nine of their final 15 games are on the road.

The coaching rivalry between Andy Reid and Jim Harbaugh will be renewed in Week 4 when the Chiefs play at the Los Angeles Chargers. Harbaugh & Co. will return the favor with a visit to Kansas City in Week 13 for a Sunday night matchup. The Chiefs are scheduled for five prime-time games plus three contests in an exclusive TV window, including a Black Friday game against the Las Vegas Raiders and a Christmas Day meeting with the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Here is what's in store for the Chiefs:

Week 1: Sept. 5 vs. Baltimore (TNF)

Week 2: Sept. 15 vs. Cincinnati

Week 3: Sept. 22 at Atlanta (SNF)

Week 4: Sept. 29 at Los Angeles Chargers

Week 5: Oct. 7 vs. New Orleans (MNF)

Week 6: BYE

Week 7: Oct. 20 at San Francisco

Week 8: Oct. 27 at Las Vegas

Week 9: Nov. 4 vs. Tampa Bay (MNF)

Week 10: Nov. 10 vs. Denver

Week 11: Nov. 17 at Buffalo

Week 12: Nov. 24 at Carolina

Week 13: Nov. 29 vs. Las Vegas (Friday)

Week 14: Dec. 8 vs. Los Angeles Chargers (SNF)

Week 15: Dec. 15 at Cleveland

Week 16: Dec. 21 vs. Houston (Saturday)

Week 17: Dec. 25 at Pittsburgh (Wednesday)

Week 18: Jan. 4 or 5 at Denver

Strength of schedule: Tied for 14th easiest

Over/Under: 11.5 wins

The Chiefs will rarely get a normal week. Their eclectic schedule features two games on Mondays, one game on a Wednesday, one on a Thursday, one on a Friday, one on a Saturday and only 11 on Sundays -- that's every day of the week except Tuesday. They will have a high number of shorter-than-usual or longer-than-usual weeks and not as many breaks as normal of the typical six-day variety. How will they handle this? The Chiefs have a veteran team, and their experience should help, but it's a situation that bears watching.

The Chiefs owe some payback to a couple of their division rivals. The Raiders beat the Chiefs last season on Christmas at Arrowhead Stadium 20-14, but the six-point margin doesn't explain the extent to which Las Vegas handled business that day. The result broke the Chiefs' six-game winning streak over the Raiders, with four of those six victories being decided by at least 14 points. Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said after the Christmas contest that his team showed everyone the "recipe'' to beat Kansas City. The Chiefs also lost last season to the Broncos, breaking their 16-game winning streak against Denver.

The Chiefs will have a better record on the road than in the games at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs were 4-4 at home, 6-2 on the road and 1-0 at a neutral site during the 2023 regular season then won their first AFC playoff games away from Arrowhead in the Patrick Mahomes era by beating the Buffalo Bills and the Baltimore Ravens. The Chiefs have been an excellent away team over the years with Reid as their coach, and the road schedule doesn't appear quite as rugged as the home slate this campaign.