ChiefsPlanet Perception of the Chiefs outside of KC among football fans. - Page 4

Based on some encounters I've been having recently, I thought it might be fun to start a thread for those of us who live outside of Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska,
and the general surrounding area of the place the Chiefs call home.

What if anything are you seeing/hearing/witnessing from football fans regarding the Chiefs and their chances to beat the Pats, go to the Super Bowl, and win it all?
As a fan living well outside of the home base, it has been anything but fun in the past to try and explain why the Chiefs are a great organization despite the lack of trophies,
and why Kansas City's football atmosphere is second to none. But, as you might well imagine, the "arrowhead" is pointing WAY up,
and being a fan "out in the wild" ain't quite what it used to be.

The New Mexico Report, Albuquerque:

New Mexico is in a unique position regarding professional sports teams in that they have none, so people here who are NOT transplants from other markets have complete
free will to choose any professional football, baseball, or basketball team they like.
Sadly, many of them chose poorly and decided to be Donkey turds either because of Elway back in the day, or Manning as of late.
There is also the issue of Denver being roughly 500 miles to the north of ABQ, so that may have something to do with it as well.
The other Locos and Locas split time and fandom between Dallas( a fairly large local base ), Oakland( the next largest down though getting smaller and smaller in recent years ),
and San Francisco( a very small local fan base ).
I've been wearing my Chiefs beanie quite a bit this winter and as a result, I've had several people come up to me who want to talk football, Chiefs football.
What used to be at best a sideways look followed by "the Chiefs???", has become "The Chieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeefs, essay"( :-) ).
The respect level is WAY up and we all know the main reason why:

Spoiler!

Um...no. Actually, it's THIS guy:

And, quite a bit of the other guy pictured as well along with Kelce. These three players are well known among the people of New Mexico that I talk to along with Chris Jones here and there.
But mainly, people want to talk about Mahomes and with good reason; he's a once in-a lifetime player that fans of the game, regardless of who their team may be, LOVE to watch play.
The main question I get over and over is, "how did you guys FIND this kid"??? And I enjoy walking them through the entire story from start to finish because it IS an amazing story,
and one that will likely not be repeated again.
Apparently, more people are aware of the playoff history of the Chiefs and between the Chiefs and the Colts than I had imagined.
I bring this up because EVERYONE that I talk to is thoroughly convinced that the Chiefs are going to not only win, but tear New England a New Asshole in this upcoming game based on the state of the team
combined with getting that Colts/playoff monkey off of our backs. Most people are a little surprised when I temper my own response and take on the game, but I understand; they are living completely in the now
while I am still weighing the past as well as not foolishly discounting B/B in the playoffs.
That said, it's cool to meet all of these people who are convinced that our team is hands-down the best in the AFC, and who have every chance in the world to win it all. Refreshing!
Also, even the fans who are not completely lovey-dovey will admit that they want the Chiefs in the Super Bowl if for no other reason than to spare them another outing from New England,
something I believe any NFL fan who is NOT a Pats fan can agree on.

And finally, the gear is coming out and starting to show up. It is not uncommon for me to see someone in a Chiefs hat or beanie, or even a full blown getup, or to see an Arrowhead sticker
on a vehicle at least once or twice a week now. That's quite a step up from when I moved here in 2011, and there was absolutely NO swag in sight for miles other than my own.

At the very least, the Chiefs are making inroads in to New Mexico and as long as Reid and Mahomes are winning games, I believe it's safe to say that we can count on quite a few new fans out here as the years roll by.

:-)
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Originally Posted by Kiimosabi:
What part of LA do you live in? I'm in Studio City and my feelings are:

There are shit tons of Chiefs fans. Three bars in my area are overflowing with red.

There are shit tons of Rams fans.

There are no Chargers fans.

As for people not caring about putting on sports at a party, well you nailed that one. Most transplants here are theater majors, after all.

I live in North Hollywood and agree. Love that the biggest Chiefs bar in LA is a 5 minute drive. That said, I still stay home as much as possible because I'm lame and cheap.
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Originally Posted by DJay23:
The main thing with these kids though is if you lose one game, "aw the Chiefs suck, they lost to the Chargers." Dealing with 13 year olds after your team loses is a pain in the ass.

:-):-):-):-)

Take away their phones without warning for the whole class period when they do this(and see if they 'get the correlation' over time) and I bet it will prevent them from giving you a hard time next loss we experience.:-)
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Originally Posted by suzzer99:
My office has an Eagles fan, a Cowboys fan and everyone else seems kind of ambivalent. The millennials I work with talk about gaming the way my generation talks about sports.

Out of curiosity - let's say the Rams lose a heartbreaker on Sunday - how depressed do you think the Rams fans in your office would be, as compared to the average Chiefs fan?

One guy is old school, grew up in Echo Park in the 60s, looks like Danny Trejo, and would really not like it if accused of being an average anything! But yes, the younger ones wouldn't really feel it. They do all play in fantasy leagues so the general NFL fandom is there as well as Rams specific even if they aren't fervent long timers.
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I'm proud to say that I've converted many of the Music City football fans to the Red & Gold. Admittedly, it took awhile. I think fantasy football had a lot to do with it, though.

A lot of people in Nashburg are sick of watching the Tacks try to figure out if they have a QB who can play 16 straight games in a row. (They don't.)

My approach has been to appeal to their desire to watch exciting football and the Chiefs provide that. Although it deserves mention that many of them get confused because they've never seen exciting football before, so it's still a work in progress.

FAX
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Originally Posted by underEJ:
One guy is old school, grew up in Echo Park in the 60s, looks like Danny Trejo, and would really not like it if accused of being an average anything! But yes, the younger ones wouldn't really feel it. They do all play in fantasy leagues so the general NFL fandom is there as well as Rams specific even if they aren't fervent long timers.

I hate that shit: Well I'm rooting for the Rams but I really need Kamara to get 2 touchdowns. So I'm torn.

:-) fake fan.
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Originally Posted by suzzer99:
My buddies had a house in Palms I think that they dubbed CCA - Culver City Adjacent.

But really - try meeting some chick at a party - "Where do you live?" - "Valley Village". Yeah that'll get the panties flying off. I live in North Hollywood baby. It's gritty, and kinda dangerous, like me.

My girlfriend from Chicago and I were looking for a house four years ago. I said I couldn't live in Valley Village. She goes why? I said it's the name. She said but you love skiing. Valley? Village? They're total ski names.

I'm like...I can't argue with you. But all I picture is a 60s era Valley View Bank in Prairie Village.

Not. Sexy.

Studio City now...that's a name.
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