Mr. Posnanski, Mr. Whitlock, This Is Your Wake-Up Call
“Chiefs heading in the right direction.”
“Chiefs are making strides under Edwards.”
Thanks to the two bumbling blobs over at The Kansas City Star, we now have this…
Jason Whitlock, stick to what earns you your paycheck — blaming Carl Peterson for global warming, the economy’s collapse, the latest season of Entourage starting off slowly and all the world’s other problems.
Jos Posnanski, stick to baseball — you don’t know what the hell you’re talking about when it comes to the gridiron.
Just because you can write well — and credit where credit is due, you both can do just that — doesn’t mean you can write well about the Chiefs.
Here’s the biggest thing; if Herm Edwards had of made some decent adjustments and not tightened up down the stretch like a nun’s holiest of holies, then the Chiefs would have never even been put in that position in the first place. Yet they were. Harm’s three consecutive three-and-outs gave the game away. For the third time in as many weeks, Harm snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. Either this guy is tanking it or he is criminally mishandling leads. There’s no way he’s tanking games either, so you do the math.
Another thing I hated about Harm going for two is that he basically put Tyler Thigpen in a position where he lost the game for the Chiefs, or at least I’m pretty damn sure that’s how he felt after he threw that near pick to end the game. Why not take it into overtime, where you can give Thiggy Smalls more pressure-situation experience and a better chance at being a hero. We all know that most young quarterbacks really struggle inside the redzone, especially inside the 10-yard line. Tony Gonzalez’s second touchdown was tipped by two Chargers, and it took every bit of Tony’s Hall of Fame skills to make that snag, so don’t give Tyler too much credit there. If we won the toss, there is no way the Chargers would have stopped our offense, as long as Herm allowed Chan Gailey to play call aggressively, which never seems to be the case late in tight contests. In that scenario, Thigpen leads us down the field, we kick a short field goal and Thiggy is the talk of the league. Now that would have been terrible for his confidence. Just terrible, I tell you!
If we lost the toss and, as a result, the game, we could have just blamed the loss on the defense being depleted by injuries. That way Thigpen’s psyche doesn’t get damaged. After all, developing a quarterback is the most crucial part of this rebuilding process. This year, it’s even more important than the final score.
I’m just sick and tired of fans and high-profile journalists alike patting Herm Edwards on the back. I expect that from “yes man” Bob Gretz, but the rest of you are better than that.
You know what happens if you go 1-18 in anything else? You get fired, replaced and laughed at as you drag your loser ass out the door. Would you still come to this site if only one out of every 18 posts was worth a damn? Would your boss still keep you around if you only actually did your job every 19th work day? Or say you’re a teacher, would you pass a student who only turns in one out of every 18 assignments? No, no, no. So, why is this situation any different? Because Clark Hunt wants to maintain the illusion that the Chiefs are on the right track so he can dupe people like the two of you?
I realize winning isn’t really the objective this season, but one win in your last 18 games? Even Art Shell would have won two by now, probably three or four, people. What is up with everybody and their mother becoming a Harm apologist? The guy is simply not head coach material. Not on Sundays at least.
I mean, just read this excerpt from Posnanski and try not to punch your screen…
And so, if you are one of those who want Herm Edwards fired, you probably should do yourself a favor and stop reading this column now. Enjoy your Monday. Get a doughnut or swim a few laps or do whatever you like to do. Because the rest of this will probably aggravate your ulcer. Or give you one.
Still reading? OK, you have been warned. I think Herm Edwards is doing a good job this year.
Other than having donuts on the brain, what else is kicking around in that head of yours? I think the other Joe Pa might be more with it at this point. But wait, there’s more…
The reason is that Herm Edwards is a good football coach.
Really? What proof do you have? That he’s taken both the Chiefs and the Jets franchises from playoff mode to commode? He gets them to play hard? Does that earn him frackin’ extra credit or something? Isn’t that a coach’s job? Matt Foley could waddle in and tell the Chiefs players that they’re going to end up living in “a van down by the river” and accomplish that. You’re right — Herm Edwards is no Gary Kasparov. Unfortunately, football is like chess — it’s a game of strategy. It takes a great mind to win, not a great mouth.
As far as him being a player’s coach and all that, it’s very overrated. When I was at Kansas State, I knew about 50 players who thought Bill Snyder was a prick. Can we hire that guy? Instead of falling asleep watching just 15 minutes of film, he was sleeping at the complex — if he slept at all. Instead of blowing off the details, Snyder was OCD about the littlest of things. Snyder worried about strategizing and winning, and let his assistants motivate. If something needed to be said then he said it, but he didn’t waste his time being a glorified cheerleader. I’d rather have Tony Sparano than this cheap Tony Robbins ripoff. Bill Belichick was also on that list with Edwards, by the way, and it wasn’t because he’s a nice guy.
I didn’t forget about you either, Big Sexy. I just don’t even know where to start with you. First off, you lost all credibility when you suggested that we should spend potentially the No. 1 overall pick on a quarterback from his alma mater who isn’t even listed in Scout Inc.’s top 32, or anyone’s for that matter. Oh, I get it — Nate Davis is the new Jeff George. After that I should have just crumpled up your article and used it as toilet paper, but I didn’t. Why? So I could do this…
We all need to take a step back and re-evaluate Edwards’ performance. He is not perfect. But he’s been hamstrung by a set of problems not his own making. He’s beginning to dig out from those problems.
Excuse me, Jabba, but did someone hold a gun to Harm’s dome and make him go into the season with Damon Huard backing up Brodie Croyle? Did someone make him play a style that didn’t really fit his offensive personnel for the first six games? And who is to blame when the Chiefs have suffered more injuries than any other team in the league? I’m not around the Chiefs enough to guarantee this — nobody in the media is, except maybe Adam Teicher and Gretz, and who in the hell listens to either of them? — but part of that is likely due to improper conditioning. That and us just not having enough talent, especially on the lines, causing us to get our noses caved into our skulls
You know what I really think is going on here? I think Jason is pumping up Harm so that his favorite whipping boy, Peterson, will continue to be public enemy No. 1. Riddle me this, Jason; if you blast King Carl pretty much every column for not winning in the playoffs, why don’t you blast Harm for not winning? Hell, three playoff wins in nearly 20 years is still better than one win in nearly 20 games.
The problem, Jason and Joe, is that you fellas are letting your personal affection for Herm Edwards — not to mention your disdain for Carl Peterson — cloud your thinking. The guy is a good man, a colorful character, and he’s obviously fun to cover (well, other than that losing part), but what is it with Chiefs Nation (and this nation, for that matter) that we want a leader we can have a beer with, someone who’s no smarter than we are. When it comes to the Chiefs’ head coach, excuse me, but I want somebody so intelligent that a chat with them about football over coffee would have me so intimidated that I soiled my boxers.
Thanks again, you two, for likely being the driving force behind us receiving another year with Bozo the Coach. Much appreciated!
so..let me ask yall this…if we didnt go for it and went into overtime and loss would anybody be sayin….that we should have gone for it?? im just curious
GO CHIEFS!!
November 12th, 2008 at 6:59 pmThis was a very good read, glad I found this site. I am one of Herm’s supporters, mainly because he has STARTED us along the right road (player-wise). Between his trades, drafts and free-agent acquisition I am quite pleased with him. However, his clock-management and overall decision making skills in games have left me baffled at times. I would have to say that the main reason I stay pro-Herm is the thought that he’s growing along with his team. I just wish he didn’t have to bump his head (or our’s) so much to realize where he needs to switch things up.
November 12th, 2008 at 7:28 pmI actually applaud herm on this decision. I think it was a great decision to go for two.
Firstly, he actually played to win the game. Secondly, he played to get the better draft pick. Think about it. At this point in the season, wins are almost as frustrating as loss’. The two point try showed the world that we are trying to win games, but allowed us to still be in the running for a top 3 pick. I think i have seen enough to say that we will be a very good football team in the future, but right now, what do wins achieve?
This idea of confidence? The chiefs know they could of easily kicked an extra point and tied it. They made plays when they needed to and the big drives when they needed to. They know they would of won, if the refs didn’t blow the call on the final play.
The 2 point conversion call was a great coaching decision, We either win the game (which is good), or get a good draft pick, (which is also good). Dig deep chiefs fans, we are entering the dead zone of the season. Wins or draft pick?
November 12th, 2008 at 7:48 pmAt least the guy isn’t commenting who said since Herm was at one point a scout for Marty’s teams, that Herm was responsible for the winning KC experienced in the 90s.
Why not just credit Herm for building Worlds of Fun…or the Power and Light District. Herm was in New York, I bet there is a way to connect him to 9/11, oh and Obama was ALL Herm. Herm carved Mt. Rushmore, and then he started carving Crazy Horse, but changed his strategy halfway thru. Screw Harm Edwards, even if we have a winning record, Herm will screw it up. We’ll pay great then lose games by a field goal- because Herm can’t manage the clock and gets everybody hurt. Preach that to your masses.
November 12th, 2008 at 7:52 pmCrane, you forgot to mention a couple of things:
Herm was also an uncredited screenwriter on The Dark Knight.
Herm also invented Auto-Tune, the technology that guys like Kanye West and T-Pain are using frequently to make hits.
Herm coined the term “pit bull with lipstick,” then so graciously offered it to Sarah Palin, free of charge.
Seriously, though, that guy was 3x over legal limit on the Herm Kool-Aid. I actually want him to come back. I love the Hermaphrodites — they make me laugh.
November 12th, 2008 at 8:04 pm“You play to win the game” Look I am not going to sit here and say that my first reaction when they went for it was (yay) but if you look at it what else do we do. I mean say we get the ball in overtime, our offense had done great in the first half but was virtually nothing until that last drive, if i were a betting man I would have bet that San Diego stopped us, and if you look at the flip side, if they had gotten the ball, all the had to do is get a good kickoff return and let the number one QB in the league (statistically if not # 1 then top 5)drive down the field and get a field goal which again if i were a betting man I think they would have, we took the ball and said we are going to finish this right now because our D is banged up and can’t last much longer, and Herm made a choice, was it right, going for two is always debatable, but giving what he had in the second half i would have to say he made the right call
November 12th, 2008 at 8:08 pmalso you play for the win on the road and the tie at home, because at home the crowd is your twelfth man
November 12th, 2008 at 8:08 pmI do agree with you about Jabba and Joe, they suck
November 12th, 2008 at 8:10 pmI agree Ian. The Chargers and everybody else seemed to figure us out in the second half. Ideal scenario, we go to OT and get the ball. We have NO threat of a running game, so all SD has to do is pin their ears back and get after Thiggy. I love the guy’s heart and improvement and agree that an OT experience would have been good for him, but what about an INT or Fumble for TD to lose the game? What does that do for his confidence? If he wins the game in OT, then yeah, awesome plan, but we knew we had the ball inside the 5 with a chance to win in regulation. We did not know what was in store in OT. Right call for 2, wrong result.
November 12th, 2008 at 8:36 pmI usually am with you Adam, but I really disagree on going for two. I think it was the right call, however, I refuse to in any way endorse Herm as a coach. It is absurd the free pass he has gotten. Everyone outside of Kansas City fans think he is a joke. Joe has no excuse for his manlove, but I think Whitlock refuses to bash Herm and even defend him because he wants to push everything he possibly can on Carl. I doubt that he actually believes that Herm is even somewhat competent. If either of those two is back next year we can expect more of the same bullshit excuses from everyone. I want someone who gets it done instead of makes excuses.
November 12th, 2008 at 8:49 pmIf you throw Herm out of it I saw a beat ragged defense not stopping a 3 point run had we lost the coin toss, and thats if we did manage to put the ball through the uprights which I have seen us miss plenty in the last 19 or whatever losses. Had we won the coin toss I saw us not making the 3 point run like we have screwed up again so many times in the last million losses. When everything is gone anything goes, balls to the wall football I say. Excitement for the fans, a loss means better draft picks , a win means more fans in the stands next game It appeared that Bowe was possibly open, and Tony may have been interfered with, it almost worked. I think the two points were what we wanted to go for. I think Herm is a horrible game day coach. The two are not mutually exclusive. Mid to high fifties prdicted Sunday so the cheerleaders will definitly have the regular outfits on Sunday yesssssss.
November 12th, 2008 at 9:35 pmI was also opposed to the decision to go for 2, but for different reasons. Being that I was at the game, I saw the potential OT as an opportunity to get more value out of the money spent on my ticket (5th row seats ain’t cheap either). In retrospect, I hesitate to make a judgment on the call. I can see the positives: we could’ve won it right there, if we did get the ball in OT and Thiggy didn’t deliver, it would have hurt his confidence more than a busted 2-point attempt.
November 12th, 2008 at 9:51 pmI wish I had been there Sudden. Since you were I certainly have to place alot of weight on your opinion about it. Can you make a judgement on a call that could potentially have failed either way? I cant say the odds of making the kick, winning the coin toss and making a three pointer or td were better than the simple two point conversion when Thiggys arm was gold. And the the spread sure seems to be one hell of an offensive tool when it comes to two point conversions. Finally Tony G was catching everything that was thrown within 10 feet of him and Bowe also seemed to have had a chance to be a target. Last but not least, it was damn entertaining and thats all thats left in this season is to rebuild and enjoy what you can along the way.
November 12th, 2008 at 10:11 pmFact: Harm (yeah, I’m using it now) is 1-17 in his last 18 games. How does this guy still have his job???
Cowher ‘09
November 13th, 2008 at 1:02 amYou guys remember taking the SAT?
Adam Best : Herm Edwards :: Jason Whitlock : Carl Peterson
November 13th, 2008 at 1:27 amWhich pick are you referring to that Thigpen threw? Thigpen hasn’t thrown an interception since Atlanta. I must have read that sentence wrong.
November 13th, 2008 at 4:13 amGeorge Senior : Saddam Hussein
Batman : Joker
I think I get it now Chief B
Seriously though how can the man get that kind of job security. I mean you would have to be sleeping with your boss in order to……………….uh oh
November 13th, 2008 at 7:47 am#
I still don’t agree with putting the fate of the game on one play (2 pt. conv.). The defense forced a three and out on the previous series, stopping LT twice and sacking Rivers. I think we had the momentum to finish strong.
Herm said he didn’t trust the defense to stop SD but on our previous offensive series, he chooses to PUNT on 4th and short?!?!? Why?
Why did you trust the defense last series but not on this one??? His logic, as always, is questionable.
SUMMARY:
Win the toss, drive to kick a field goal.
Lose the toss…play tough see what happens.
I think we shorted ourselves a genuine opportunity to win that game by going for two.
November 13th, 2008 at 9:07 amHarm still has a job because everyone in ownership and management agree that firing a coach midseason is an exercise in futility. I totally agree, 1-18 in 19 games is completely unacceptable. In all likelihood, he will be fired at the end of the season if we end the season 3 wins or less. I think a road win at Oakland, home win against SD, and/or road win at Denver could save his job. His players are going to fight for him tooth and nail, but his inability to manage close games that he loves to be in has been the death of us. I’m looking to see how the team responds this week. It could be ugly with the most dangerous O facing the replacements on D. Lets hope for sloppy weather…
November 13th, 2008 at 9:30 amI shall leave you guys with a classic Harm “Deep Thought”
On Larry Johnson’s return: “We’ve got another good football player and that’s good”
November 13th, 2008 at 9:39 amHerm, Jabba, Jopo, & Catholic bashing all in one post? Loved the Matt Foley reference.
Helluva post. Dead wrong but what a read!
Great comments too.
Problem numero uno is the NFL’s overtime rules. Stats overwhelming show that the game goes the winner of the coin toss. That may make the networks happy but’s it no way to decide a pro football match.
November 13th, 2008 at 9:44 amThe math is simple – when you’re on the road, you go for two. Besides, had our new KS not muffed the snap on the first TD we wouldn’t even be having this discussion. Oh wait, that was Herm’s fault too, right?
Tony was held on the 2PC btw. Shitty officiating decides yet another loss for us!
November 13th, 2008 at 9:47 amI can’t wait to read what you (Adam and Crane) have to say about Herm when we do win. I’m guessing it will either be along the lines of “yeah but not by enough” or “Herm succeeds in screwing up our draft pick.” Am I wrong?
November 13th, 2008 at 9:57 amYoungAce, welcome to the site and yeah, you’re dead on.
November 13th, 2008 at 10:02 amYou are so right, putting that kind of pressure on a young QB playing away from from home against a division rival who was within reach despite our pitiful record, was another sin on the long list of Herm Edward as coach. Sign that broacaster dude, from the Steelers!
November 13th, 2008 at 10:40 amWow DD just, wow. What’s it gonna take for you to open your eyes and realize even if we do get better under Harm he is not going to get better as a coach? What’s it going to take? Going 0-16? Harm starting some juco players because they are “his” guys? Maybe Harm going with 9 starters on a hunch? Seriously, your support of Harm is getting to be comical.
November 13th, 2008 at 12:26 pmOhh, Adam and Crane…all I hear from you guys is, “ARGGHHH ME HATE HARM…CAN’T GIVE ANY CREDIT…ARGHHH…ME HATE JABBA AND JOPO…ARGHHH…ME WANT THEIR JOBS!!!”
I have actually been slightly impressed with what Herm has been able to do in the past few games with a team 1/2 full of scrubs. On Sundays we play “Name that Chief” because we don’t know who is on the field from one game to another. You can blame that on Herm (sorry, Harm) but it is a little unfair. I understand the frustration, you want a winning team and so does every fan, but from where this team was at the beginning of the year you have to see the improvement. I think they are figuring out who are their players for next year and that is when you judge Herm (dammit, Harm) on wins and losses.
November 13th, 2008 at 1:29 pmAnd your criticism of Herm is bordering on obsessive. Just because I don’t find fault with everything he does doesn’t mean I’m in agreement with everything he does. If you feel that keeping an open-minded, totality-of-the-circumstances perspective on the situation is comical then I guess you’re easily amused. At this point, I fail to see any advantage to bringing in a new coach and can think of quite a few disadvantages to doing so. My view on the subject may change between now and the end of the season but I highly doubt it.
I do believe that if Herm had gone for the tie and then never saw the ball in overtime you would have been all over that too because, well, you seem to have an agenda.
November 13th, 2008 at 1:49 pmActually, Saleamua, I write over on the same MSM media site as Whitlock at the moment, and I definitely don’t want to write for a newspaper. No offense to those to anybody, just not my bag. Basically, me wanting their jobs has nothing to do with it at all. So, you can throw that argument out the window.
Whir, I honestly thought Jammar picked that ball in the endzone until I looked it up. NFLN even said that on the replay.
November 13th, 2008 at 1:50 pmDouble D, thanks for the compliments, and we do have an agenda, and it’s because most of Red and Gold nation refuses to look at Herm objectively and see the failure that he truly is. I think it’s totally the right agenda to have.
Remember the last agenda Crane and I had? That Brodie Croyle wasn’t going to work out. I am even MORE confident in Herm not working out. We aren’t trying to be negative just for the sake of being so. We are trying to pull the rose-colored glasses off people so they aren’t heartbroken and, more importantly, let Clarky know that another year of this idiot is not OK.
I’m about to make all the Hermaphrodite Addicts (sorry, but if you still back him at this point, you are part of that dubious club) write this on the chalkboard over and over Bart Simpson-style:
“I will not defend a 1-18 coach.”
November 13th, 2008 at 1:56 pmOh, Double D, Tony also got a phantom PI call before that, so officiating decided nothing.
November 13th, 2008 at 1:56 pmGreat comments, everybody. Remember, even if we don’t agree we argue so passionately because we love our Red and Gold
November 13th, 2008 at 2:04 pmDespite what the announcers and others have had to say about it, it seemed to me that Tony was definitely interfered with when the flag was thrown. I can’t remember who was covering him but he came from behind and hit Tony’s arm before the ball got there. So I say sound call there, and big time missed call in the endzone.
November 13th, 2008 at 2:27 pmI wouldn’t have faulted Herm if we lost in overtime. At least its a better than 50-50 chance to get the ball back and we had been playing solid defense despite the injuries.
As per the decision that was made…it really can’t be put better than it already has by Will Leitch
November 13th, 2008 at 3:00 pmI guess we couldn’t defend Jimmy Johnson at a 1-15 season. And the 3 Superbowls that followed probably would have happened wihtout the rebuilding of the team and the extra draft picks from, you guessed it, Minnesota (Thank you Herschel Walker, or Jared Allen).
The future of this team looks very, very bright to me. ANd getting brighter for the past 3 weeks. A good draft position this year will help a lot, and they have plenty of cap room to get guys signed and pull in some FAs to cap it. Call me silly but after 20+ years in the Army I know when I see a long term plan come together. And we are watching it unfold before our very eyes. I wonder what all the haters will by typing in 2 years?
Herm is indeed teetering on the edge, but I’ll wait till the end of the season to make a final judgement for myself. In the meantime some of these rants amuse me.
November 13th, 2008 at 4:42 pmWell, we didn’t get 6 picks with half of them being first rounders either. Dallas ended up with a total of six of Minnesota’s picks over the succeeding years, two of which were used to draft Emmitt Smith and Darren Woodson. Jimmy Johnson used the other draft picks to make trades with other teams around the NFL. One of the trades led to obtaining the first overall draft pick in 1991, which was used to draft Russell Maryland.
If we make a move like the latter that comes from the Jared Allen trade then by all means you earn commenter of the year. I doubt it when you’re talking a first and two thirds.
November 13th, 2008 at 6:43 pmI’m back!!!!!!
You know I wasn’t going to do this anymore but now that I know I got under your skin a ‘bit I might just try to do more of it now.
In no way was I giving “Harm” the credit that you suggest I gave him, I was just trying to say he can evaluate players, at least defensive ones anyway, although Bowe, Albert and Charles ain’t too bad on the offensive side. I really am not a “Harm” flavored Kool-Aid drinker like you say either. I just don’t think he’s as bad as you all think. Yeah we could do a lot better(how about a little Mike Singletary buzz) but we could do a hell of a lot worse too and I don’t understand your hatred for him. Also I don’t see how you consider 1 appearance since ‘97 being in “playoff mode”.
I will say one more thing about “Harm” and be done with trying to defend him. His biggest damn problem is he is the most stubborn mf’er there is and if he didn’t finally realize that change(and adjustments) is good I’d be right there with you.
But with your comments above you now force me to come back more more often so later!!!!
Go Chiefs!!!!!
November 15th, 2008 at 9:26 amOk I,m sorry I shouldn’t have added that adjustments in there because it is obvious he hasn’t quite got that down yet but I’m just trying to focus on the positives here. Anyway.
Go Chiefs!!!!!
November 15th, 2008 at 9:45 amOh and I guess I should have said 2 playoff appearances, I wasn’t counting Harm’s first year with the Chiefs.
November 15th, 2008 at 9:49 amWell at least we’re not the Raiders, right guys? They can’t pay a coach enough to go there now
November 15th, 2008 at 1:47 pmNovember 15th, 2008 at 6:48 pm