Win or lose, it could be a long journey home for the Kansas City Chiefs Sunday as the reigning Super Bowl champions could be thrust into more travel chaos with blizzard conditions continuing to sweep through the Midwest.
After finally touching down in Denver Saturday night, after an hours-long delay to their flight, Patrick Mahomes and co. are set to suit up against their AFC West rivals in the final week of the NFL regular season Sunday.
However, the No. 1 seeded Chiefs will be thankful for their postseason bye week as getting home may be another challenge.
A blizzard warning has been expanded to include the entire Kansas City Metro, with the affected area spreading across both Kansas and Missouri, according to Fox4 News.
40mph winds, six to 12 inches of blowing snow and near whiteout conditions have been forecast for Sunday into the early hours of Monday morning, potentially throwing the Chiefs’ return trip into doubt.
It comes after the Chiefs left Kansas City four hours behind schedule, with the winter storm leaving the team plane stranded on the runway.
The Kansas City Chiefs finally touched down in Denver after a chaotic day of travel Saturday
After being delayed for hours, the Chiefs eventually landed in the Mile High City, with Mahomes and Travis Kelce filmed stepping off the aircraft onto the snowy runway.
According to Fox4 News, the Chiefs were originally due to leave for Denver around 2:45pm on Saturday. But it wasn’t until around 6:30pm ET when they finally set off.
The storm led to ‘rapid ice accumulation’ and forced the authorities to close the airfield at Kansas City International Airport – before the Chiefs could leave.
According to Fox4 News, the airport’s de-icing machine malfunctioned, delaying the departure of flights.
Some planes, it was said, were even diverted to Omaha, Nebraska – more than 500 miles east of Denver.
According to reports, the Chiefs attempted to alter their travel plans in order to leave earlier in the day.
But the charter plane carrying them to Denver was late arriving into Kansas City, forcing Reid and Co to stick to their scheduled departure time.
Andy Reid’s side take on the 9-7 Broncos at 4:25pm ET on Sunday. It is typically only a two-hour flight from Denver to Kansas City.
Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce were among the players who traveled to Colorado
But even if the Chiefs manage to take off from Denver, whether they will be able to land back home in Kansas City remains to be seen.
Quarterback Mahomes is being rested for the game against the Broncos, with the Chiefs having already secured the No 1 seed in the AFC.
There was some doubt over whether Mahomes would travel with the team, given he and his wife Brittany is expecting their third child ‘any day now’.
Kelce could also sit out Sunday’s game but on Saturday both stars were filmed walking on to the runway in Colorado.
