There is nothing harder than being an avid Kansas City sports fan.
Trust me, we know better than anyone how heartbreaking a disappointing loss can be. Two of the three major athletic franchises in our area — the KC Royals and KC Chiefs — have suffered extensive playoff victory droughts, losing records and devastating losses.
The Royals have not made it to the postseason in 29 years, and the Chiefs have not won a playoff game in over 20. The Chiefs haven’t won a postseason game since 1993,  when they beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Wild Card, then beat the Houston Oilers (now known as the Tennessee Titans) in the Divisional round but lost in the AFC Championship to the Buffalo Bills.
However, on Jan. 4, the Chiefs got another shot at breaking their playoff drought in the Wild Card match against the Indianapolis Colts. As all KC fans now know, they blew their chance at winning — I mean they completely, totally, wholly and utterly blew it. Don’t get me wrong — both teams played a great game, but the Chiefs fell apart when they needed it the most. Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith had a strong performance in the first half, but Colts quarterback Andrew Luck came back strong and stole the show in the second half. With the Chiefs holding a lead of 31-10 in just the first half, every Kansas Citian firmly believed they would win. After that, KC’s defense just fell flat. As the second half approached, Indianapolis went on a 35-13 run against KC and pulled out a 45-44 win, crushing KC’s hopes of winning a playoff game. In the second half, Luck successfully completed three touchdown passes and then recovered a fumble for a touchdown to close in a lead just big enough to win the game.
And what’s worse with this scenario?
Since 1993, the Chiefs have lost four out of their past seven playoff attempts to the Colts. So, what does this mean for the Chiefs fans? Well, it depends on what kind of fan you are — if you’re fairweather, then it means absolutely nothing. You’re probably sitting at home cheering for the Denver Broncos because you’ve “always been a fan.”
For actual fans who’ve stuck around even through the 2012 season when, may I remind you, the Chiefs were a solid 2-14 and tied for dead last in the NFL, this means you have your January and February free this year and most likely many more years in the future.
Don’t get me wrong, I love the Chiefs, but the Lord definitely knows how to test my team loyalty. Usually, when a team has this bad of luck everyone assumes the team is cursed. Well, I couldn’t tell you if they are or not. All I know is since Lin Elliott missed not one, not two, but three possible game-winning field goal attempts in the 1995 Divisional playoff match against, guess who?
Yes, the Colts.
The Chiefs haven’t won a postseason game. I’m not saying they haven’t won a playoff game because of Elliott’s failure to perform his only task as a kicker, but they definitely could have shortened their losing streak to only 18 years.
Yes, the Chiefs had a good season — yeah, yeah, whatever, I’ve heard it before.
But they definitely didn’t finish like they were the only team to start 9-0.
It’s OK though, there’s always next year, right?
There is nothing harder than being an avid Kansas City sports fan.
Trust me, we know better than anyone how heartbreaking a disappointing loss can be. Two of the three major athletic franchises in our area — the KC Royals and KC Chiefs — have suffered extensive playoff victory droughts, losing records and devastating losses.
The Royals have not made it to the postseason in 29 years, and the Chiefs have not won a playoff game in over 20. The Chiefs haven’t won a postseason game since 1993,  when they beat the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Wild Card, then beat the Houston Oilers (now known as the Tennessee Titans) in the Divisional round but lost in the AFC Championship to the Buffalo Bills.
However, on Jan. 4, the Chiefs got another shot at breaking their playoff drought in the Wild Card match against the Indianapolis Colts. As all KC fans now know, they blew their chance at winning — I mean they completely, totally, wholly and utterly blew it. Don’t get me wrong — both teams played a great game, but the Chiefs fell apart when they needed it the most. Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith had a strong performance in the first half, but Colts quarterback Andrew Luck came back strong and stole the show in the second half. With the Chiefs holding a lead of 31-10 in just the first half, every Kansas Citian firmly believed they would win. After that, KC’s defense just fell flat. As the second half approached, Indianapolis went on a 35-13 run against KC and pulled out a 45-44 win, crushing KC’s hopes of winning a playoff game. In the second half, Luck successfully completed three touchdown passes and then recovered a fumble for a touchdown to close in a lead just big enough to win the game.
And what’s worse with this scenario?
Since 1993, the Chiefs have lost four out of their past seven playoff attempts to the Colts. So, what does this mean for the Chiefs fans? Well, it depends on what kind of fan you are — if you’re fairweather, then it means absolutely nothing. You’re probably sitting at home cheering for the Denver Broncos because you’ve “always been a fan.”
For actual fans who’ve stuck around even through the 2012 season when, may I remind you, the Chiefs were a solid 2-14 and tied for dead last in the NFL, this means you have your January and February free this year and most likely many more years in the future.
Don’t get me wrong, I love the Chiefs, but the Lord definitely knows how to test my team loyalty. Usually, when a team has this bad of luck everyone assumes the team is cursed. Well, I couldn’t tell you if they are or not. All I know is since Lin Elliott missed not one, not two, but three possible game-winning field goal attempts in the 1995 Divisional playoff match against, guess who?
Yes, the Colts.
The Chiefs haven’t won a postseason game. I’m not saying they haven’t won a playoff game because of Elliott’s failure to perform his only task as a kicker, but they definitely could have shortened their losing streak to only 18 years.
Yes, the Chiefs had a good season — yeah, yeah, whatever, I’ve heard it before.
But they definitely didn’t finish like they were the only team to start 9-0.
It’s OK though, there’s always next year, right?

Playoff history:
2013 — 44-45 (L vs. Colts — Wildcard)
2010 — 7-30 (L vs. Ravens — Wildcard)
2006 — 3-28 (L vs. Colts — Wildcard)
2003 — 31-38 (L vs. Colts — Division)
1997 — 10-14 (L vs. Broncos — Division)
1995 — 7-10 (L vs. Colts — Division)
1994 — 17-27 (L vs. Dolphins — Wildcard)
1993 — 27-24 (W vs. Steelers — Wildcard)
28-27 (W vs. Oilers — Division)
13-30 (L vs. Bills — Conference Championship)

2013/14 Wild Card game vs. Colts:

First:
Chiefs — Dwayne Bowe 6 yard pass from Alex Smith 7-0
Colts — T.Y. Hilton 7 yard pass from Andrew Luck 7-7
Chiefs — Ryan Succop Field Goal 10-7

Second:
Chiefs — Donnie Avery 79 yard pass from Alex Smith 17-7
Chiefs — Anthony Sherman 5 yard pass from Alex Smith 24-7
Colts — Adam Vinatieri Field Goal 24-10
Chiefs — Knile Davis 4 yard rush 31-7