since you want to talk royals in the chiefs thread, i'd love to. the royals were great from 75-85, good from 86-94, and bad from 95 on, bottoming out in 2004-2006 being the worst.
How'd they fix it? Organizational shift. They began valuing things they hadn't prior to 2006. Scouting, Latin American signings, trading players to build depth, athleticism, hard throwing relievers, drafting based on talent not sign-ability, optimism, valuing things other teams devalued (contact hitting, speed) and spending money in free agency. It took too long IMO, and there were some dumb speed bumps (Trey Hillman, Jose Guillen, etc) but they got it done. It took some luck in October last year, but they got it done.
The Chiefs refuse to become modern and change. They refuse to value the draft, value quarterback play, and refuse to hire anything but retread coaches.
I am a Chiefs fan, I want them to play well and win, but they never NEVER change. Never.