Costly, frustrating losses to the Chiefs and Western Force have scuppered the Reds' hopes of a top-three finish and home quarter-final with two rounds to play.
Instead Kiss's men are in a fight to qualify at all, with only bonus-point wins against Moana Pasifika and Fijian Drua able to drag them into fourth.
Sitting sixth, wins in what could be Pasifika's final home game this Saturday, and then at home to the Drua, would leave the NSW Waratahs (seventh) needing two bonus-point wins to jump them.
The Brumbies can still sneak into third with two bonus-point wins while the Force need two big wins and a string of other results to go their way to finish sixth.
Quarter-finals will match first against sixth, second against fifth and third against fourth, with the winners and the highest-ranked loser progressing to the semi-finals.
Kiss has watched his side fall in quarter-finals in his two seasons at the helm and will depart to take over the Wallabies job after this season, ahead of next year's World Cup.
"There's a lot still on the plate there," Kiss said of the Reds' predicament.
"And those things look after themselves. A couple of other coaches won't be here as well and we've just said 'total focus' on this weekend."
Pasifika are facing the axe from next year's competition and the Reds are expecting plenty of feeling in a potential North Harbour Stadium goodbye.
"It's a huge fortnight but it's a huge game against Moana to start with," Reds scrumhalf Tate McDermott said ahead of his injury return.
"There will be a lot of emotion there and last time played them in NZ we lost.
"And in terms of sending Les off, hopefully we have a few months yet to do that."
The Reds will be boosted by McDermott and lock Josh Canham's return from injury, while Wallabies star Fraser McReight, lock Lukhan Salakaia-Loto and in-form utility Filipo Daugunu are all back after being rested last week.
SUPER RUGBY FINALS EQUATION
* Brumbies - fifth, 29 points - play Waratahs away, Moana home - can finish as high as third and as low as seventh.Â
* Reds - sixth, 28 points - play Moana away, Drua home - can finish as high as fourth and as low as eighth.
* Waratahs - seventh, 26 points - play Brumbies home, Force away - can finish as high as fifth and as low as 10th.
* Force - ninth, 22 points - play Drua home, Waratahs home - can finish as high as sixth and as low as 10th.
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