KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The heavy lifting is over for the 6-3 Kansas City Chiefs, for the most part.

Most of their difficult games were loaded into the schedule’s first nine games. The Chiefs have played five opponents that entered Week 10 with a record of .500 or better. Included were games against the New England Patriots, Philadelphia Eagles, Pittsburgh Steelers, Dallas Cowboys and Houston Texans, before they lost quarterback Deshaun Watson for the season with a knee injury.

Over the final seven games, the Chiefs will face just two teams that had a record of .500 or better through Week 9. The Chiefs return to game action after their Week 10 bye next Sunday against the Giants in New Jersey.

Head coach Andy Reid will bring into the Giants game his 16-2 career record the week after a bye. That includes a 3-1 record with the Chiefs.

The Chiefs had all of last week off from practice.

“It’s not going to win a game by itself,’’ quarterback Alex Smith said before the bye of Reid’s post-bye record. “That’s for sure. We’ve got to go put in the work. It will be nice to get some time off and get rested. We need to come back ready to roll.

“I think part of it is that he does his method all week, getting guys their rest not just physically but mentally as well.’’

The Chiefs’ struggling defense should benefit the most from the easier upcoming schedule.

They’ve played against four of the teams that entered Week 10 in the top 10 in scoring and none of the teams in the bottom 10.

They have no games left against top-10 scoring teams, but four against opponents in the bottom 10.