A weird sort of quiet has settled over the Kansas City Chiefs’ offense this season. The numbers tell a story of a team stuck in neutral: a paltry 6 total TDs on the season, 3 rushing, 3 passing. They haven’t been scoring, and it’s become a legitimate conversation in Kansas City, a conversation now colliding with the one player who’s rarely shy about what’s on his mind.

Then there’s the Baltimore Ravens, a team equally hungry and twice as dangerous, and the Chiefs’ elder statesman, Travis Kelce, has rung the alarm bells: “They’re going to be hungry, man,” Kelce said. “They’re going to be hungry and uh pissed off, man. I’m sure they felt like they’ve handed these uh these last two games away…” He stopped there, a thought hanging in the air as Dan Orlovsky praised the Lions.

Thing is, the Chiefs haven’t exactly been handed anything, either. With Mahomes only completing 59% of his passes for just 669 yds and his team ranked a modest 15th in passing, they’ve been grinding, not gliding. The Chiefs are feeling the rub, and so are their fans.

The frustration boiled over last week, with the kind of sideline scuffle between a star player and a coach that sends the Xsphere into a frenzy. Kelce himself believes it’s on the players to right the ship. “I think they got enough guys and enough vets on that team to where it doesn’t I don’t even think it takes Harbaugh to come in and challenge those guys,” Kelce declared. “They are going to want to get that fixed themselves. And um I expect them to be coming in rock and roll.”

The Chiefs’ O-line has been under a microscope all season, with Mahomes leading the league in scrambles and getting sacked 6 times through 3 games.

Mahomes finds calm as Chiefs welcome back Worthy for Ravens

But according to both the HC and the QB, things are starting to click. HC Reid, ever the pragmatist, saw the improvement last week in New York. “I thought that this past week was one of their better games,” he noted, downplaying the 8 total pressures the Giants generated.

The line, anchored by Jawaan Taylor, is starting to find its footing, and Mahomes is feeling it. “100%,” Mahomes said about his renewed trust. “I think that’s been huge…my feet you can tell are a little more calm.” And then there’s the return of Xavier Worthy.

The 1st-round pick had been sidelined since W1 with a shoulder injury that was caused after a collision with Kelce. His absence has been conspicuous. The Chiefs’ offense, for all its talent, has been missing that one pure speed element. Worthy’s return is the kind of jolt the offense needs as they prepare to face a Ravens team that, for all its frustration, still possesses a punishing defensive front. They allowed a combined 79 points in their 2 losses—numbers that sting—but you don’t stay down for long in this league.

Kelce, for one, understands the stakes. It’s the kind of game that defines a season, a chance to get right or to sink deeper into the muck. The Chiefs have the pieces, but now they have to put them together against a team that’s wounded and angry. “Excited for the challenge, baby,” Kelce said with a smile.