Merlin's Magic: Five Fifteen Edition

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Inside outside, leave me alone

Inside outside, nowhere is home.

Inside outside, where have I been?

Out of my brain on the five fifteen.

- The Who

Yes, the kool aid drinkers are chugging, traveling on the five fifteen. All is forgotten, mistakes are ignored or glossed over. OK, let’s have a reality check. Five fifteen is the operative number, but we’ll get back to that.

The Pittsburgh game was a big win, no doubt about it. To knock off a very good football team is a huge statement. We may have graduated from doormat to weakling. Now, we have shown we are capable of beating a good team. Oh yes, then there is that five fifteen matter.

Confidence is a big deal for any football team. This win gives every player a lift and increases confidence. Todd Haley coached one of his better games. He has started to lighten up on his players and that is a good sign. Hopefully, he will avoid the hubris trap. I am hoping that he has learned that yelling is not always the best motivational tool. That and he has taken a big bite of ‘twenty two guys off the streets’ humble pie. Haley took a big step when he admitted that when he was an assistant he thought he had all the answers. He doesn’t, no one does. But it was a big step for him to admit it. Oh yes, there still is that five fifteen to deal with.

Now, before people start to imagine going on a roll, let’s talk about the five fifteen. What is it? Well, it’s the yardage our defense gave up to Pittsburgh. Is Pittsburgh a great offensive team? No, but they are a good offensive team. Before you start dreaming…. well, OK, after you start dreaming, ask yourself honestly: What percentage of games does a team win giving up over 500 yards of offense? That should be a cold reality check. The win was the exception, not the rule. It’s a great win, yes. It is a very important win. Is it a sign we have turned to corner? No, it is not. We are building and getting better, but the corner is yet to come.

bbq

sgt_ducttape:

I don't see it as negativity as much as I see it as realism. Just because we pulled off a big upset in overtime does not mean we're back. I think Merlin was probably just letting us know we shouldn't get our hopes up over this one game, and he's right.

I also think that we are not the kind of franchise or fanbase that should be content with one big win. We got used to being a damn good team throughout the 90s and up until a couple years ago. We are not the Detroit Lions. We demand quality, we do not settle for mediocrity, and that is a good thing.

Now let's see a win this week against the surging Chargers, and I may just change my tune a little bit.

Either way, I'm proud of my team for what we accomplished last week. GO CHIEFS!

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sgt_ducttape

Ok, I just don't recall anyone saying we're playoff bound or headed to the SB just because we won a game. Maybe I missed the kool-aid embibing rants calling out the second coming.

Haley even said that while the win was big, "we are still a 3-7 team, but we are 2-0 in the third quarter of the season."

I just wonder if the "reality check" posting is necessary at this time. "Now before people start to imagine going on a roll...," sounds like a pre-emptive strike to me. While I do feel some apprehension about the teams ability to recreate another win like that in next weeks game, are there folks running around with crazed expressions calling for the Chiefs to win out the season or something?

I just don't see the need for all that negativity is all.

sgt_ducttape: Merlin is right, man. I've been thinking the same thing about this win.

Don't get me wrong -- this victory was HUGE, and it proves that we have the ability to be competitive. We are playing smart football right now. Matt Cassel is doing a really good job of taking care of the ball.

But if not for a Jamaal Charles kickoff return for a TD, we likely would not have made it to OT to try our luck. Fortunately for us, the Steelers special teams has been the weak point of the team, and we found a spark in the return game when we needed it most.

But we can't expect to keep winning games like that. Giving up 500 yards of offense to your opponent is never a good strategy, and it will kill you 9/10 times.

Like I said, this win proves that we have the ability to be competitive... it does NOT, however, mean that the Chiefs are a good team yet.

Ok, we were dominated in just about every stat. But we found a way to win.

"Look, I'm definately not going to complain about the stats if the Chiefs win, but you can't get dominated every single game in yardage..." So you can't have it both ways. Say you won't complain about the stats and then complain about them. Unless yardage is no longer considered a stat.

If we can beat the Bills and the Browns and 1 team out of the other remaining 4 on our schedule we will have equalled the number of wins for the last 2 years.

Yes we had a chance to win all those games you mentioned. Now when we finally find a way to win, and beat the WORLD CHAMPION PITTSBURGH STEELERS and you complain we didn't win it how you would have liked?

Merlin

Whir:

I agree. Our offense needs to give the D some rest. These 3 and outs are far too common and put our D on the field far too often. Our D needs to clean up the big plays and stop getting killed in the middle of the field. Tight ends have been killing us all year.

Whir

This is a good post, Merlin. I've been thinking about this matter a lot lately. Think about the Baltimore game. The Dallas Game. The Jacksonville game. We had a chance to win all of those games and we either got dominated statistically or at least did NOT overwhelm the other team at all. I think the only game that the Chiefs did dominate was the home Oakland game that they LOST! So while the win against Pittsburgh did make me feel happy, even joyous, I knew in my heart that the Chiefs really got destroyed. They just didn't turn over the ball, and the defense made plays at the right time. Look, I'm definitely not going to complain about the stats if the Chiefs win, but you can't get dominated every single game in yardage and expect to be a serious team.

Jeremy Hanson

"We have learned that hard work does pay off. So maybe we’re not in the playoff hunt, we are progressing. And isn’t that what we really wanted?"

Right on Sgt!

While the Chiefs are not yet turning the corner, the message is "same as it ever was."
Win the turn over ratio.
Don't kill yourself with penalties.
Limit your negative plays.
Prevent the big plays from killing you.
Play and coach smarter.

Keeping these things in control will more than likely put you in position to be able to win the game, if you can close. These things were done, for the most part, and the Chiefs experienced what it takes to finish. That is HUGE. So maybe we haven't turned the corner. But we have won more games so far this year than last. We have won at home finally. We are entering the "better" part of our schedule with momentum. We have learned that hard work does pay off.

So maybe we're not in the playoff hunt, we are progressing. And isn't that what we really wanted?

Slack JAW

Right on Merlin, The Chiefs are still a long way from being competitive every week .I believe some progress is being made ,Thats really all I was expecting out of this season...

I guess what I am trying to say is anyone who thought the Chiefs would win more than 5-7 games with all the changes that happened was doing some wishfull thinking...