Is this the best we can do?

Is this truly the best storyline we can come up with heading into the Super Bowl?

That the Kansas City Chiefs are villains in Sunday’s mega-matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles?

Are you kidding me?

Calling the Chiefs villains is like the police pulling over the ice cream truck for disturbing the peace.

Really?

Seriously?

Sigh.

Nothing says “evil” like Taylor Swift, a global superstar renowned for her philanthropy and kindness, showing up at games to support the love of her life — Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. Puh-leeze! Rooting against Taylor Swift is like rooting against Dorothy versus the flying monkeys in The Wizard of Oz.

I get it, we’ve all made light of how many times the TV cameras flash up to Tay-Tay cheering on Kelce and the Chiefs over the last two seasons, but let’s not lie to ourselves. We actually love seeing Swift at the games. Why wouldn’t we? She’s famous, she’s attractive, she’s smart, she’s talented and she’s a universally beloved role model for millions of women across the globe.

Portraying the Chiefs as villains just shows you how soft we have become as a country. It’s no wonder that everyone from Vladimir Putin to Steve Jobs has said Americans are becoming weak, lazy and decadent. We used to embrace dynasties and the hard work it takes to build them, but now we are inventing reasons to hate the Chiefs’ quest to become the only team in NFL history to win three consecutive Super Bowls. We come up with unfounded accusations and conspiracy theories accusing NFL referees of being biased and favoring the Chiefs despite a lack of evidence to support such inane claims

Honestly, how could anybody root against Andy Reid, the jolly, big-boned, big-hearted Chiefs leader who is one of the greatest and most likable coaches in NFL history? Reid was actually fired as the vastly successful coach of the Eagles despite taking the team to nine playoff appearances, five NFC championship games and one Super Bowl.

And how did Reid respond to getting dumped in Philly? He didn’t cry or complain. He didn’t rip Eagles ownership on his way out the door. He simply took over a moribund team in Kansas City that was 2-14 before he arrived 11 years ago and has led them to 10 10-plus win seasons, seven consecutive AFC championship games and five Super Bowls in the last six years.

And how could anybody root against Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who is one of the most exciting, fun-to-watch and successful quarterbacks in NFL history? Unlike the other great Super Bowl-winning quarterbacks such as Tom Brady, Terry Bradshaw, Joe Montana and Troy Aikman, Mahomes has redefined the position with his incredible arm talent, escapability and improvisation, swagger and joy and, of course, his clutch performances.

And how could anybody root against the town of Kansas City — one of the NFL’s smallest markets; a neighborly city in America’s heartland filled with loyal, passionate and classy fans. Unlike their boorish, booing counterparts in Philadelphia, Chiefs fans are known for their hospitality and actually welcome opposing fans to join their barbecuing paradise at Sunday tailgates. And Chiefs fans don’t just cheer, they roar. Arrowhead Stadium holds the Guinness World Record for the loudest crowd noise in an outdoor stadium, hitting 142.2 decibels — more deafening than the combined sound of a jet engine and grandma on the speaker phone at the grocery store.

Have I convinced you yet that portraying the Chiefs as villains is as ridiculous as the price of eggs? Quite frankly, I believe we’ve concocted this contrived storyline to try and get ourselves pumped up for Super Bowl Sunday. For whatever reason, there seems to have been significantly less pre-Super Bowl hype this season than I can remember.

Maybe it’s because the NBA trade deadline — and the historically monster deal that saw the Dallas Mavericks send Luka Doncic to the Los Angeles Lakers for Anthony Davis — overshadowed the Super Bowl’s traditional pregame hype and hoopla. Sports fans and ESPN’s debate shows were actually talking more about the NBA than the NFL during this Super Bowl week.

And among non-sports fans, it was President Trump who stole the NFL’s pre-Super Bowl thunder. It’s no secret that the annual tsunami of Super Bowl hype isn’t just because sports fans and sports media are hyping it up; it’s mainly because non-sports fans and non-sports media are hyping it up.

Well, guess what? President Trump — between implementing tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China, putting Elon Musk in charge of deconstructing the government, banning transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports, talking about usurping Canada, buying Greenland and turning the Gaza Strip into the next French Riviera — ran the layoff-thinned news media ragged. With Trump dominating the news cycle, shows like "Good Morning America" had precious little time to talk about the best Buffalo chicken dip recipe for your Super Bowl party.

Moreover, because this is Kansas City’s third consecutive Super Bowl and fifth in six years, perhaps we’re not as pumped up about the big game simply because of Chiefs fatigue. Once upon a time, we celebrated dynasties and respected the sustained excellence of teams such as the 1990s Chicago Bulls, but in today’s short-attention-span, social media-driven world, we have been conditioned to crave something new. We swipe, scroll and move on to the next big thing before the current one has even run its course.

If you ask me, the Chiefs aren’t sports villains at all; they’re sports heroes. The story of Andy Reid, Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and, yes, Taylor Swift is about resilience, dedication, love, passion and the relentless pursuit of historical greatness

So, as we head into this Super Bowl, let’s forget about the phony narrative of villainy.

Instead, let’s relish the dynamic, dynastic run we’re witnessing and cheer for a team and a town that has earned every bit of success they’ve found.

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