ounds, took apart Brand, who was as big of an underdog as has ever been seen. According to Westgate Las Vegas Superbook, Ward was

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- There is an argument to be made that the AFC West is the best division in the NFL.There is little argument to be made that the Chiefs are the class of it.After dispatching the Raiders on a frigid night at Arrowhead Stadium, the Chiefs are tied with them for the lead at 10-3 with three games left in the regular season. But they hold the tiebreaker thanks to two head-to-head wins over Oakland, which could loom large down the stretch.For the division title, sure. But also for a first-round bye in the playoffs.Every division game has got to be a playoff game. Its going to be something more, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce said after the 21-13 victory on Thursday night, especially with a team like Oakland thats at the top of the charts on offense and defense.Well, they had been at the top of the charts heading into the showdown.The Chiefs knocked them down a peg.It was their fifth straight win against the Raiders and their ninth consecutive victory over division foes, the third-longest streak in franchise history. Along the way are not only the two wins over Oakland this year, but also a win in Denver -- the other divisional team in the thick of the postseason hunt heading into the Broncos game Sunday at Tennessee.The Broncos visit Arrowhead Stadium on Christmas night.Its all about us. Its not about who we play, said star pass rusher Justin Houston, whose return from offseason knee surgery has given the Kansas City defense a big midseason lift.We just need to stay focused, he said. This win means a lot to us, but the seasons not over. We need to put this game behind us, stay focused, and finish the rest of the season strong.Thats because there is still plenty on the horizon.The Chiefs havent won the AFC West since 2010, when they finished 10-6 in a division that it seemed nobody wanted to win. Their many deficiencies showed when they were routed 30-7 by Baltimore in their first playoff game, which they hosted because of their division title.Their last two playoff trips have started on the road as wild cards.Three years ago, they went to Indianapolis and built a big early lead before their defense melted down in the second half. And last year, they went to Houston and came away with their first playoff victory in more than two decades, only to lose at New England the following week.So to say that a first-round bye and a home playoff game in the second round are crucial would be an understatement. They are more like necessities for a team dreaming of a Super Bowl.Its good right now, Chiefs running back Spencer Ware said, but we cant get comfortable. Weve got to keep our eyes on the prize and stay focused on the main goal.That goal became a little more challenging when the Chiefs lost Derrick Johnson, their veteran linebacker, to a ruptured Achilles tendon in his left leg. Johnson went down untouched late in the first half Sunday and, it seemed, knew right away his season was over.Still, the Chiefs rallied around their fallen leader. Their defense repelled Oakland throughout the second half, even when their own offense was stumbling, and did enough to keep Derek Carr and Co. out of the end zone late in the game to preserve the critical victory.The result? The Chiefs assured themselves a second straight 10-win season, something the club has only accomplished two other times in franchise history. And that nine-game win streak of division foes is currently the best in the NFL, though Houston can match it with a win over Indianapolis on Sunday.But the Texans are only 6-6 overall. The Chiefs are 10-3 and barreling toward bigger things, their future looking the brightest it has all season after their Thursday night win over Oakland.Were trying to get to our ultimate goal, Chiefs cornerback Marcus Peters said, so we have to win, individually, each game. So were going to prepare for our next opponent and just keep moving on.Game notes Chiefs coach Andy Reid said Friday that general manager John Dorsey is poring through options to replace Johnson, but no decisions have been made. We know we have a few guys that can play, Reid said. We havent made any decisions, dont have anybody coming in as of yet. ... 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For 12 monotonous rounds, light heavyweight contender Andre Ward toyed with the painfully slow and overmatched Alexander Brand en route to a shutout decision on Saturday night in a fight every bit the overwhelming mismatch most expected -- but at least it set up one of the most significant and fascinating fights in boxing.Ward, fighting before a hometown crowd of 8,653 at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California, won every second of the fight in a 120-108 rout on all three scorecards.It was the final step to a long-awaited showdown with unified light heavyweight titleholder Sergey Kovalev, whom he will meet Nov. 19 on HBO PPV, probably at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, in a fight that has been signed for months. However, Kovalev (30-0-1, 26 KOs) and Ward (30-0, 15 KO) had to successfully navigate interim bouts to seal the deal.In a Russian homecoming defense on July 11, Kovalev, 33, did his part as he retained his 175-pound world title for the eighth time. He scored a seventh-round knockdown and rolled to a one-sided unanimous decision against top-10 contender Isaac Chilemba.And then Ward, 32, the former super middleweight world champion in his second fight since making the move to 175 pounds, took apart Brand, who was as big of an underdog as has ever been seen. According to Westgate Las Vegas Superbook, Ward was a minus-10,000 favorite, meaning somebody would have to bet $10,000 on Ward to win just $100.The fighters purses also made it clear who was supposed to win. Ward made $850,000, and Brand made a measly $30,000, probably the lowest for an HBO-televised main event ever.Ward had his way with Brand, who got the fight only after at least three others turned it down. Ward poked him with hard jabs throughout the fight, confused him when he switched to southpaw in the fifth round and hurt him with right hands to the body.Brand (25-2, 19 KOs), in the meantime, did virtually nothing other than back up, grab, hold and look for a way to survive for 12 rounds.One of Wards stinging jabs opened a cut on Brands left eyelid in the seventh round. But before and after the cut Brand never showed any urgency. Ward, 32, at least appeared to be going for a knockout in the later rounds, but Brand,, 39, a former amateur standout from Colombia, has a reputation for having an excellent chin.ddddddddddddWe knew this guy was going to be really, really hard to knock out. Hes a veteran, said Ward, a 2004 Olympic gold medalist who was boxing on the day that the 2016 Olympic tournament began in Rio de Janeiro. People got to realize that when a guy with experience doesnt want to get knocked out, its hard, and hes throwing punches from crazy angles and has got nothing to lose. So I tried to press it. Didnt get it. But its good to get the rounds.According to CompuBox punch statistics, Ward landed ?190 of 490 blows (39 percent), and Brand landed only 45 of 285 (16 percent). Brand never had a round in which he landed double-digit punches, and he landed only two in the second and fourth rounds and just one of 20 punches in the 11th round.When the fight was over, Ward and Kovalev, who had watched at ringside, shook hands in the ring and formally announced their fight in an HBO interview with Max Kellerman.Im excited. Im looking forward to it, Ward said. I want to be the light heavyweight champion of the world. I had to get past this step. He had to get past his step. Ill see you in November.Said Kovalev when asked about the fight: Of course, Im ready. Hes ready. Im ready, too. I want to say lets do this Nov. 19.Ward, who was reluctant to speak about the Kovalev fight despite being asked about it constantly going into his tuneup match with Brand, showed immense respect for his next opponent.You got to respect Sergey for the way hes gotten to where hes got, Ward said. He hasnt had soft touches. He wasnt protected. And he wasnt really pushed by the media. Hes a guy who should get more credit than he has. The winner of the fight could possibly be pound-for-pound [No. 1].With Kovalev and Ward already top-five stalwarts on virtually every pound-for-pound list, many believe the winner of their toss-up showdown will earn recognition as the best fighter in the world, one of the reasons so many have been looking forward to it. The same could not be said for Ward-Brand. ' ' '