If the Kansas City Chiefs Entering Acrisure Stadium on Christmas Day, the main goal was to secure the AFC’s No. 1 seed with a postseason win Pittsburgh Steelers.

But there was more at stake. In a welcome departure from the Christmas loss for the Las Vegas Raiders A year ago, the game turned out to be a one-sided contest. The defending champion rolled to a 29-10 winproving that it will take a lot more than a mediocre playoff team to dethrone the current king of the NFL.

Here are five things we learned when the Chiefs beat the Steelers.

1. The Chiefs are not paper kings

Photo by Mark Alberti/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

Kansas City played just a few days off against the second playoff team in two weeks. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes was just a week away from suffering an ankle sprain. The team was without pass rusher Chris Jones – its best defensive player – and fielded an offensive line that continued to struggle.

Under such circumstances, a normal NFL team might appear tired and sluggish – and struggling to get going. But the Chiefs are not Normal. Looks very similar a team that has been there before, Kansas City started quickly, took control of the game and never let it go.

It was exactly the performance we should expect from a team seeking its third straight Super Bowl title. As always, this battle-tested team has had its finger on the pulse of the season – and is now peaking at just the right time.

2. Without Chris Jones there is no run defense

Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images

We knew the Steelers were going to run the ball against the Chiefs. It’s what they do.

Before Wednesday’s game, Pittsburgh ranked 10th with an average of 130 rushing yards per game. While some better rushing teams (like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Baltimore Ravens) had little success trying to throw the ball against Kansas City, Pittsburgh overran the Chiefs’ defense, averaging 6.5 yards per attempt while allowing 202 yards claimed.

Part of this is due to the Steelers playing from behind. Kansas City preferred to emphasize its pass defense rather than stacking the box against the run. Still, it’s routine for the Chiefs to play with a lead.

The big difference in this game was being without Jones. Although he is sometimes criticized for his run defense, his impact on it goes beyond tackling opposing running backs. Because he doubles on almost every downhill, his teammates can run downhill and play on the ball.

The Chiefs missed No. 95 up the middle. However, he is expected to return for the playoffs.

3. The team didn’t do Harrison Butker any favors

Photo by Brooke Sutton/Getty Images

It’s never good when your placekicker – who is already struggling after surgery – has to attempt two extra points from 48 yards. But the Chiefs called two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties on touchdown plays, which put Butker in exactly that situation — and for the second time in three weeks, Butker missed a kick.

After his previous miss – a chip shot against the Cleveland Browns – special teams coordinator Dave Toub insisted it was a process error unrelated to Butker’s knee injury. If that’s true, Toub and his assistants have a few weeks to knock the rust off Butker’s leg before the playoffs.

Whatever the case, Butker just doesn’t look right – and he needs to be locked up come the postseason.

4. The rise of Jaden Hicks is upon us

Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images

For the third week in a row, the Chiefs’ rookie safety stepped up to make a big pass on the defense – this time breaking up a deep fourth-down pass against the Steelers’ star wide receiver George Pickens. away. Over the last month, Hicks’ on-field performance (and playing time) has increased. We’re now at the point where Hicks has become one of the best players on defense.

In recent weeks, second-year safety Chamarri Conner has struggled. So we have to wonder if the Chiefs will prefer to play Hicks now that Conner clears the concussion protocol. When Hicks works with fellow safeties Justin Reid and Bryan Cook, the Chiefs have a trio of hard-nosed safeties who can play all over the field.

5. The deep ball is not dead

Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images

There has been a lot of talk this season about the Chiefs’ lack of passing explosion. So you might think that by favoring a quicker, West Coast-style passing attack to make up for problems on the offensive line, the deep ball might disappear — once and for all dead in Kansas City.

But the opposite is actually the case. One of the main principles of the West Coast offense is that the quick passing game forces the defense into a single-high secondary look. Once the opponent is forced to deploy additional defense at the line of scrimmage to stop the bubble screens and quick slants, the offense can beat them over the top with the deep ball. That’s exactly what the Chiefs did against the Steelers.

With Xavier Worthy’s emergence as more than just a technical deep shot artist – and with the return of Hollywood Brown to the lineup – Mahomes and head coach Andy Reid have plenty of levers they can use to make explosive plays in the passing game.

It’ll be fun to watch.