The Kansas City Chiefs’ reign over the AFC didn’t just end Sunday; it broke into a million pieces.

After seeing their run of nine consecutive AFC West titles come to a screeching halt last week, the Chiefs’ 16-13 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers at Arrowhead assured that Andy Reid’s club will not be a part of the postseason for the first time since 2014. The NFL’s longest active playoff streak (10 years) was shattered.

“Guys are down,” Reid said after the loss, via the team’s official transcript. “They busted their butt to win the game, and I wouldn’t expect anything less. It’s not a great feeling. I wouldn’t expect it to be after losing a game.”

For just the second time in Reid’s 13 seasons with the Chiefs, K.C. hasn’t qualified for the postseason.

Sunday marked the first three-game losing streak of Patrick Mahomes‘ career, who had been 6-0 in his career when facing a potential three-game skid.

It was also the first time since Mahomes took over as the starter that he had been eliminated prior to overtime of the AFC Championship Game. Mahomes’ seven-season streak of playing in the conference title game fell one short of tying Tom Brady for most in the Super Bowl era.

“Every year is a journey. Success is rented every year,” All-Pro defensive tackle Chris Jones said after the loss. “Every year you get to rent success and sometimes it doesn’t go the way you plan for it to go. It’s a learning curve for you guys and especially us. I think we learned a lot this year and we understand the fact that in order to be successful, it’s an everyday thing. It’s not one week you put in and next week, no. It’s a consistent thing and we have a lot of guys coming back and they know that it’s rented every year. Just because last year’s team made the Super Bowl, that doesn’t guarantee success.

“You know, we have three more games which we have to finish strong still, as competitors, as employees of this organization. I think it’s important to finish strong and play with pride. Most importantly, play for yourself. The name on the back of your jersey, and also the name on the front of your jersey. I think it’s going to be competitive for us, and we’re going to keep on going. (It’s) something to build off of and (I’m) looking forward to next year.”

Of course, the big question looming in Kansas City is what might 2026 look like for Chiefs Kingdom.