Andy Reid's Chiefs find themselves in unfamiliar position heading into final five-week stretch of the season

Andy Reid’s Kansas City Chiefs are in a position they’ve rarely been in during his tenure as head coach. The Chiefs are currently on the outside looking in at the AFC playoff picture as the calendar turns to December. Reid spoke to the media on Monday and talked about the challenges within a season and those his team faces heading into this final five-game stretch.

“Every season is different,” Reid told reporters. “This is a sport of challenges. That’s what it is. It’s probably a microcosm of life as you look at it. There’s always challenges. ... There’s such a small margin between winning and losing that every week is a challenge, a major challenge. That’s how you have to approach it, and you have to be ready for it.”

Kansas City is 6-6 and currently sitting in 10th place in the AFC and third in the AFC West. Any hope of winning a 10th consecutive AFC West title is just about out the window as the Denver Broncos improved to 10-2 on Sunday. The Chiefs are four games back for the division crown and even two games behind the second-place Los Angeles Chargers, who improved to 8-4 in Week 13.

The Chiefs are in danger of missing the postseason for only the second time since Reid became head coach in 2013, and that happened in his second year (2014) when the team finished 9-7. That was three years before Patrick Mahomes was even drafted. Since Reid came over from Philadelphia in 2013, the Chiefs have never finished .500, let alone end a season with a losing record.

After losing to Dallas on Thanksgiving, the Chiefs will almost certainly need to run the table in these last five weeks and get some help just to get a wild card spot in the AFC. Their remaining schedule has the Chiefs facing Houston, LA Chargers, Tennessee, Denver and Las Vegas to close out the season. Getting three wins down the stretch will be tough, and five feels nearly impossible.

“You’re one or two plays away and that’s what this game is,” Reid said. ”You look at our season, we’re one or two plays off, and we take care of that — whether it’s a penalty at a crucial time, a possible turnover somewhere, or having a chance to create a turnover — we are right in position where if we can figure out those two, three plays, you flip this around.”

Penalties have been an issue for a normally disciplined team, as the Chiefs have allowed the fifth-most penalty yardage in the league this season. Defensively they’ve produced very little by way of a pass rush with just 22 through 12 games, which is fifth worst in the NFL. They forced just 11 turnovers this season which is third worst in the league.

KC is running out of time, for the first time in a long time. There are still 12 teams with a somewhat legitimate shot at making the postseason, and the Chiefs cannot afford anymore setbacks as they continue to fight for their playoff lives.

In Week 14, the Chiefs will play in primetime on Sunday Night Football in a huge AFC battle against the Houston Texans at 8:20 p.m. from GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.