What a dome could unlock for Chiefs offense (and why it’s risky)

The Kansas City Chiefs could be the next team to play in a dome, as owner Clark Hunt reportedly wants his team to play in a dome when the next stadium renovation happens. Some Missouri faithful will never allow this comparison to breach their minds, but as a Kansas Chiefs fan, I don't really care.

Kurt Warner, Marshall Faulk, Isaac Bruce, Torry Holt, and every other member of the St. Louis Rams who revolutionized offensive football may never have their legacies supplanted. To this day, they are praised for their one-off title and aborbing the roles as first victims for the real dynasty of the time, the New England Patriots.

Those defenses were also pretty impressive, featuring a young London Fletcher and Lovie Smith before his Bears tenure. They also got to play all of their home games in a dome, which is relevant here because the Chiefs could also be in that boat if Hunt gets his way.

The easiest time to make the connection between the Rams of the early 2000s and the Chiefs of now would have been between 2018 and 2022, when the Chiefs were clearly dominant offensively. Tyreek Hill was still throwing up two fingers in the face of trailing defenders. Travis Kelce felt athletic, something we'd miss just a few years later.

At the time, calling the defense "underrated" would have been a compliment. Other times, Steve Spagnuolo began building the Kansas City chapter of his legacy with Tyrann Mathieu and Daniel Sorensen of all safeties.

With the recent reports about Hunt's dome dreams, the actual football reasons for the cover have been sidelined. The advantage of having an indoor stadium in a cold weather city are obvious (don't have to worry about the elements being the main one), but Hunt may be looking even further into the future.

Chiefs offense could thrive in a dome — but that’s not the point

Beyond the current era, Patrick Mahomes will likely be chasing records and rings set by previous legends. Similarly to how power hitter enjoy playing in ballparks compatible with their skill sets. Ahead of the 2025 regular season, Mahomes is 12-1 in indoor games and adds three more wins in retractable roofs. Clearly, he knows how to win when playing indoors.

There wouldn't be a macro advantage to gain though. Kansas City and Denver balance out the AFC West with colder cities compared to the domes in warm weather. The conference's other contenders are also in cold weather cities with occasionally worse circumstances like Buffalo. Welcoming Wild Card teams like Miami from a few years ago spells the biggest advantage an exposed stadium can offer and that advantage goes away with a dome.

That being said, a dome would allow for Mahomes not to have to worry about the elements and he and the offense can just cut loose. It'd also be something that could help the Chiefs once Mahomes' time in the league comes to an end.

As much as I would love to see the Chiefs cross state lines and a beautiful indoor stadium be thrown up, there are more football reasons on a conference scale to keep the status quo. The fireworks that would assuredly go off in the Mahomes Dome (just a working title) are only rivaled by their actual counterparts at Arrowhead.