Originally, I planned that today’s column would be spent reviewing the attributes of our new assistants. However, after reading Jason Whitlock’s most recent article entitled “Chiefs loading up on secrecy,” I abandoned that topic. Instead, I have chosen to write a rebuttal to Mr. Whitlock.

First, let me say that I appreciate Jason, his work and his talent. But sometimes he just gets out on a tangent and can’t let it go. I have seen it with Damian Nash at Mizzou, who he interviewed after a bitter loss, then published his displeasure with playcalling and patterns of substitution by the coaching staff. This resulted in Mr. Nash permanently landing in Coach Pinkel’s doghouse.

Another example was his most recent diatribe with Brian Waters. Through amplification, as well as conjecture he has pitted the longest-tenured veteran player and NFL Man of the Year against the new GM and head coach..

Now, Jason is upset with the cloak of secrecy at One Arrowhead Dr. He feels that he should be on the sidelines at every practice, be allowed in the locker room after every practice and be consulted by Haley and Pioli on every personnel decision.

WRONG! Haley and Pioli are not interested in developing articles for the Star and embellishing the personalities of individuals. Their job is to rid the Chiefs locker room of self-serving wannabe stars and develop team concepts without interference from the outside. I have often thought in K.C the last several years we have glorified our players with individual radio shows and spots which in many cases were not earned or justified. As Dwayne Bowe said today in an interview, “It’s kinda nice, we are coming together — it is important for me to keep a low profile with so many young and new players”

Jason wake up and smell the barbeque. It’s not about individuals anymore — its about team. I am reminded of Joe Kapp, the journeyman QB who led the Vikings to the super Bowl in the 70s, who said “Winning it’s about 40 guys for 60 minutes.” Save your critiques for the regular season. Ultimately, Haley and Pioli will be held accountable for their record. Let them do it their way without interference from the media.

As for you, I suggest you go to the nearest Gates and drown your displeasure with an order of long ends.

Haley is a hard nosed, tough minded, accept no B.S., selfless kind of guy. He is not “touchy feely” like Vermiel, and does like to hear himself talk like Herm. If you haven’t noticed the Chiefs have sucked for many years now, and maybe, just maybe, Todd Haley’s despotism is exactly what an underachieving and underperforming team like the Kansas City Chiefs need. Todd Haley is not here to make friends or look good in front of a camera (that is obvious to all who have witnessed any of his press conferences). He is here to change the mentality of a losing franchise and win. Want proof?

When Todd Haley interviewed for the head coaching job in Dallas after Bill Parcells left, he told Jerry Jones that “I really want this job but I can’t coach this team with this guy on it. And I don’t think you are going to win anything of any consequence with this guy on it.” That guy was Terrell Owens. To say that to Jerry Jones takes a lot of guts and tells me that Todd Haley is more into fighting for the team instead of himself. Most people in an interview say everything that they expect the perspective employer to hear, and they especially don’t slam the employer’s star employee. Haley calls them like he sees them. It is no wonder he did not get the job and Wade Phillips did. You may remember Wade, the coach who has very little personality, has a hard time controlling his team, and appears to be a mere puppet for Jerry Jones, but hey, Dallas’ loss was Arizona’s and now the Chief’s gain.

One thing the Chiefs will no longer lack is discipline. Todd Haley’s coaching methods weed out the selfish, me first players which leads us to Mr. Brian Waters. Brian is a wonderful offensive lineman and a pillar in the community. He has never been a problem player before, but he learned rather quickly that nobody is above the team. You see, I believe that as good as Brian Waters is, Haley is trying, whether conspicuously or not, to let everyone be aware that they were all a part of the problem over the last couple of years. These individual players may have been good, even very good, but the overall team has not. The team and “team concept” in Haley’s mind takes absolute priority over everyone, including Waters (who played with the second team at mini-camp today and admittedly reported out of shape).

We badly need Brian Waters this year and I hope that he realizes the changes currently being made in Kansas City will make the Chiefs a better team. Isn’t that what Waters has always wanted; to be on a better team? If not, then Waters is exactly the kind of player that Haley is trying to weed out.

As mini-camp starts today, I must admit that I am most excited about TE Brad Cottam. In the NFL you cannot succeed without the opportunity to do so. Opportunity simply means playing time. With the God of Gods gone, Brad will have plenty of that. Brad has a huge hole to fill, and at 6’7, 269 pounds, I believe he can (some sources have him listed at 6’8, 271 pounds).

Listen, I know, you know, and he knows, that he will never be Tony Gonzalez. I love Tony and he will be missed by us all. Those spectacular tough catches might be few and far between from now on. 1000 yards and 10 TDs will not be replaced easily by one player. For many, many years we have been spoiled by Tony Gonzalez. However, Brad Cottam really gives the Chiefs an exciting TE option for the following reasons: first, as a rookie he received some great starting experience; second, he is a bigger target than most, if not all, tight ends in the league; and third, he is very fast for his size.

As a rookie, this third round pick played in all sixteen (16) games last year starting seven (7) of them. He spent most of the year honing his blocking skills and playing second string to Tony. He had no passing plays until week eight (8) against the Jets when Chan Gailey finally split him out like the Chiefs did with Tony. Per Cottam “splitting him out was only to last for one series but they did it on four (4) series since it worked so well”. He had four catches for thirty four (34) yards that game. Of course those aren’t Tony numbers, but those are pretty good. He averaged 9.0 yards a catch for the year. Not too bad for a rookie playing behind the greatest tight end ever to play the game. (It is also a good thing that Chan Gailey knows Cottam can “split out” and run some of the plays Tony ran last year).

Additionally, Brad Cottam is bigger than any linebacker or cornerback in the league. His size will create serious mismatches. This size disparity will allow him to outreach defenders for all footballs thrown his way. Can you imagine a six (6) foot corner (which is big by NFL standards) or a six foot two inch (6’2) LB on him? That’s a five (5) to seven (7) inch height difference, and at 269 pounds he will be able to “post up” like Tony used to. (Brad Cottam will make an excellent red zone threat with Bowe probably receiving double coverage).

Best of all, Brad is also very fast for his size. He can run a 4.65 forty (per rivals.com). That is faster than some linebackers in the league. We all know that Tony was and is the greatest tight end to play the game, but he was never a burner. I expect Brad’s yards after the catch to be some of the best in the league for TEs.

What is Brad’s only negative? He has battled the injury bug. During his career, he has had five surgeries, including one upon his wrist in 2007, and another injury as a result of a car accident. If Brad can escape the bug, I predict that he will have forty five (45) catches, five hundred yards (500) receiving and six (6) touchdowns in 2009, only to do better in 2010. Is that reasonable? What say you?

It’s a tough time of year for Chief Addicts. Frankly, there isn’t much going on. So, I got to thinking about Chief history and some of my favorite players from years past. Specifically, I am thinking about players that are not big stars that most Chief fans remember and love. I want to throw this out to every Addict and see who pops up. First the ground rules. I want one player each on offense and defense. The players can’t be in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, or have a retired Chief jersey or be in the Chief’s Hall of Fame. Here is the list of players in the Chief’s Hall of Fame:

Inductees

1970 Lamar Hunt, Founder 1971 Mack Lee Hill, Running Back 1972 Jerry Mays, Defensive Tackle 1973 Fred Arbanas, Tight End 1974 Johnny Robinson, Safety 1975 Chris Burford, Receiver 1976 E.J. Holub, Center/Linebacker 1977 Jim Tyrer, Offensive Tackle 1978 Mike Garrett, Running Back 1979 Len Dawson, Quarterback 1980 Bobby Bell, Linebacker 1981 Buck Buchanan, Defensive Tackle 1982 Otis Taylor, Wide Receiver 1983 No Induction 1984 Ed Budde, Guard 1985 Willie Lanier, Linebacker 1986 Emmitt Thomas, Cornerback 1987 Hank Stram, Coach 1988 Jerrel Wilson, Punter

1989 Ed Podolak, Running Back 1990 Jim Lynch, Linebacker 1991 Abner Haynes, Running Back 1992 Jan Stenerud, Kicker 1993 Sherrill Headrick, Linebacker 1994 Jack Rudnay, Center 1995 Curtis McClinton, Running Back 1996 Deron Cherry, Safety 1997 Dave Hill, Tackle 1998 Art Still, Defensive End 1999 Lloyd Burruss, Cornerback 2000 Christian Okoye, Running Back 2001 Derrick Thomas, Linebacker 2002 John Alt, Tackle 2003 Gary Spani, Linebacker 2004 Joe Delaney, Running Back 2005 Jack Steadman, Vice Chairman of the Board 2006 Neil Smith, Defensive End 2007 Albert Lewis, Cornerback 2008 Curley Culp, Defensive Tackle

Retired Jersey Numbers

3 Jan Stenerud, Kicker
16 Len Dawson, Quarterback
28 Abner Haynes, Running Back
33 Stone Johnson, Running Back
36 Mack Lee Hill, Running Back
63 Willie Lanier, Linebacker
78 Bobby Bell, Linebacker
86 Buck Buchanan, Defensive Tackle

I lost a couple of my favorites in that list. Art Still was a very underrated DE and I always enjoyed watching Gary Spani play. So, who did I pick? Answer below the fold.

Continue Reading »

As you know Derrick Johnson was our first round pick in 2005. He has been a full time starter on our defense for the last four (4) years, and for the last four (4) years the Kansas City Chiefs’ defense has stunk. The Chiefs have been trying to focus their defense on him ever since he arrived in Kansas City. In a recent article, Zach Thomas indicated that the new defense will allow Derrick Johnson to excel. Don’t we hear that every year? Is it time to stop counting on Derrick Johnson? I like Derrick and wish him well. I can see he is trying and working his butt off, but are we kidding ourselves by placing our trust in him? I wish I could be “pollyanna” in regards to Derrick Johnson, but take a look at the evidence:

During his KC career Mr. Johnson has missed five (5) out of sixty four (64) games (that’s pretty good). His highest tackle total was ninety five (95) tackles in his rookie year, but he averages only eighty seven (87) tackles a year (which would be considered okay by most, but not enough to be considered as a top linebacker). He averages 3 sacks a year (again not very impressive). He averages .75 interceptions a year and he has never recorded a safety (pretty bad). He averages five (5) passes defended a year and averages 2.75 forced fumbles a year (again pretty bad). Considering Derrick has had every chance to shine over the last four years and has failed to do so, can we expect any better from him this year? When does it become obvious that it is the player and not the system? Playmakers make plays. It is as simple as that. Can you recall any plays he has made? What do you think?

We continue our introduction of the Chiefs coaching staff by focusing on the defensive side of the ball. Let us begin with defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast. Clancy was born in Arizona and graduated from the University of Arizona in 1990. He began his career as a graduate assistant at Mississippi State and subsequently had coaching stops at USC, OU and UAB. In 1995, he was hired as an assistant coach with the Houston Oilers. In 1996, he became a quality control coach (1996-2000) with the Cowboys, then was the team’s secondary coach in 2001-02. It is of interest that in 2002 he worked under the tutelage of head coach Bill Parcels (Pioli’s father in law).

In 2003, Clancy became the linebackers coach at Cleveland. While at Cleveland he impressed Jeremy Green, personnel man and son of Dennis Green. Jeremy Green convinced his father to hire Clancy as defensive coordinator in 2004. In 2006, when Ken Whisenhunt became head coach, he retained Clancy as defensive coordinator only to fire him after the Super Bowl. Clancy became one of the first, if not the first, coordinators to be fired after a super bowl appearance

During his last three years at Arizona his defense accumulated the following rankings:

• 2006 29th in total points and 29th in total yards
• 2007 27th in total points and 17th in total yards
• 2008 28th in total points and 19th in total yards

Of interest is that Whisenhunt favored using the Steelers’ 3-4, however, Clancy preferred the 4-3 while at Arizona.

Gary Gibbs recently became the Chiefs linebackers coach. Like Pendergast, Gibbs has been a defensive coordinator, most recently with the Saints in 2006-08. A former linebacker for OU, Gibbs began his coaching career under the direction of Barry Switzer, ultimately becoming OU’s defensive coordinator in 1981. In 1989 amidst controversy, shootings in the dormitories and NCAA, he ascended to head coach at OU . Interestingly, he had a young assistant on his staff named Clancy Pendergast. Despite having a six year record of 44-23-2 during his six years at OU, he was fired in 1994 due to his inability to beat Texas, Nebraska and Colorado on a consistent basis

After leaving OU, he eventually became defensive defensive coordinator at Georgia in 2000 then LSU in 2001. He left the college ranks in 2002 to work with Cowboys (Parcells and Pendergast), where he was the linebackers coach until 2005.

The Coaching Tree continues. It is clear that Pioli and Haley didn’t pull their coaches names out of a hat. These were men they had previously worked with and had grown to trust. Although both men were fired from their most recent jobs, they were based on offensive-minded teams. The familiarity of Penergast with Haley probably was the deciding factor in his becoming D.C.

Next week — key assistants.

OK Addicts, it’s quiz time. What Chief Head Coach said this:

“If it doesn’t look pretty, it is not going to matter to me if it’s a W (win). We are going to do what we have to do to give us the best chance to win. If that is three yards and a cloud of dust, we don’t turn the football over and we play great defense, I’ll be the happiest guy sitting here after games.”

Was it the the coach who’s philosophy became to be knows as Martyball? No, it was not Marty Schottenheimer. Was is the Addict favorite, Herm “you play to win the game” Edwards? No, wrong again. That quote is from the Head Coach who called plays for the team last year who ran less than any other team in the NFL. That’s right, that quote is from Todd Haley.

So Addicts, I pose it to all of you. Are you jumping to conclusions that the Chiefs offense will be built to resemble the Cards offense? Is Todd Haley being pigeonholed as a pass happy coach?

Things can change in the blink of an eye. After Mr. Larry Johnson lost his contract appeal I was certain he was a goner. I was pretty sure of it when the official KC Chiefs website was selling his jersey for close to seven bucks. Now anything is possible, but I would be completely shocked if he is traded or released at this point. He is virtually certain to be our opening day starter, and I am glad, except for missing out on that seven dollar jersey (At present you can only buy his authentic home jersey for $245.00).

Larry Johnson, whether his attitude was good or bad, has always been a beast. At 29 years old he still has some gas left. A wonderful yard stick for measuring the effectiveness and talent of a running back has always been his yards per carry. Despite a decrease in his carries, being phased out of the run game, his suspension, and a suspect line, Larry’s yards per carry last year was 4.5. For those of you keeping track 4.5 yards per carry was better than Matt Forte (3.9), Maurice Jones Drew (4.2), Steven Jackson (4.1), Brian Westbrook (4.0), Frank Gore (4.3), Marion Barber (3.7), Clinton Portis (4.3) and Ladainian Tomlinson (3.8). Of the top running backs in the league, only Adrian Petersen (4.8) Michael Turner (4.5), Deangelo Williams (5.5), Chris Johnson (4.9) and Steve Slaton (4.8) had better or equal yards per carry averages. Larry still ranks upon the leagues’ best when he gets his totes.

Larry Johnson has been, by my count, to every off season practice, and has drawn the praise of the head coach. We no longer hear him complaining, and whether that is because he wants his money or not, this is good news for the Chiefs. I can see Larry Johnson returning to form in 2009. Losing obviously affects Larry Johnson. He hates losing and I am sure that the constant losing over the last couple of years lead to his malcontent. I think Larry Johnson now realizes that he has gone about things entirely wrong in KC, and has changed his tune. There is a new regime to go with his new attitude. Even if this is his last year in KC, he must show the world that he is still a gamer and he will. One thing is for certain: whether Larry loves the Chiefs or not; or whether the Chiefs love Larry, or not; he loves to run the ball and the Chiefs love when he runs the ball too.

Of those who wished him gone, what do you think about Larry Johnson now? Have your feelings changed? Love him or hate him? Sound off Addicts.

As reflected in my earlier posting on Mark Bradley, I am of the opinion that we should bring in an experienced, non injury prone, receiver to add more depth and talent to our current roster of wide receivers.

It is no secret that many of the high profile free agent wide receivers currently available have some serious legal and moral issues to deal with. Look no further than Plaxico Burress and Matt Jones. Their escapades have been media fodder for many months. The Chiefs have generally been a team that avoids such players. There is, however, one such free agent receiver who has had such issues but has for whatever reason flown far below the radar. His name is not being mentioned with Plaxico’s and Matt’s. Should the Chiefs quietly place him upon the roster? Can they? Do you know him?

This receiver is Reggie Williams. He is 6’4, 212 pounds, and 26 years old. Did you know that Reggie has missed only one (1) game out of eighty (80) games total, and in 2007 he caught 10 TDs? His career average per catch is 12.3 yards. He has 2,322 career receiving yards, and eighteen (18) career TDs. I think that he would be a solid number two (2) receiver and a spectacular number three (3). He is a big bodied receiver who has escaped the injury bug. He would be an excellent red zone target.

Most people do not know, (or at least the media has not discussed at great length), that Williams was arrested in January 2006 and charged with possession of marijuana; he was permitted to enter a pretrial intervention program, which he successfully completed. He was arrested again and charged with DUI and possession of marijuana on February 27, 2009 in Houston; both charges were later dismissed. On April 5, 2009, police officials reported Williams was arrested on felony drug charges after scuffling with Houston police officers at a local night club? Police tasered Williams and took him into custody at which time police found what appeared to be a bag of cocaine in his back pocket. Williams pled guilty to possession of a controlled substance. A judge sentenced the 25-year-old unrestricted free agent to deferred adjudication and fined Williams $200. It is reported that Williams will not have a felony conviction on his record if he successfully completes probation. (We can expect that Mr. Reggie Williams will be facing a league suspension for this legal run in. Such a suspension would probably be in the range of four games).

Being tasered by police and having cocaine in your possession is some serious business, and I am by no means attempting to argue otherwise. I do not condone it, nor wish to ignore it. However, if the Chiefs were to sign Reggie Williams, would questions and eyebrows be raised? To what extent? Should we consider it? Would we be able to do sign him without the same media scrutiny of signing Plaxico Burress and Matt Jones. Most people do not know about Reggie Williams, do you?

Some of you may remember last year Adam posted a thread asking who would be the “most surprising” Chief for the upcoming 2008 year. I said it would be our third string QB Tyler Thigpen. I simply had a hunch that Croyle would not last the first two games, and since Herm Edwards wanted to go younger he would put Tyler Thigpen in even though Huard was the second string QB. I was right. I point this out not to brag (although it is nice), but to make the following prediction:

Like Croyle, Mark Bradley is also injury prone and cannot be counted on to be our second receiver. Do not get me wrong. I like Mark Bradley. I think he is a very good receiver. When he came to the Chiefs, we could all see he added a spark to the offense. When he threw that TD to Tyler last year, I jumped out of my seat and screamed like a little kid. When was the last time you saw KC run a play like that? But, Chicago, who is receiver starved, let him go for apparently one reason. He cannot be counted on. Want proof? All you have to do is look at the stats to prove this point.

In 2005 after being drafted in the second round by Chicago, he played in 7 games, starting 4 with 230 yards on 18 receptions with 0 TDs. In 2006 with Chicago, he played 10 games, starting 0 with 282 yards on 14 receptions with 3 TDs. (One TD was a 75 yarder). In 2007 with Chicago, he played in 15 games, starting zero with 71 yards on 6 receptions with one TD (a 49 yarder). In 2008 with Chicago he played in two games with no statistics, he later went to KC playing in 10 games starting 8 with 380 yards on 30 receptions with 3 TDS.

In college he finished his collegiate career at Oklahoma (2002-04) after playing 2 seasons at Arkansas-Pine Bluff (2000-01). He switched to cornerback to fill a team need during practice; then moved back to WR just prior to the start of 2003 season He started 10 career games, catching 58 passes for 1,114 yards (19.7 avg.) while adding 22 kickoff returns for 523 yards (23.8 avg.) with 1 TD. He then transferred to Oklahoma after tearing his ACL as a sophomore at Arkansas-Pine Bluff.

Although Mr. Bradley flashes talent, his durability should be a major concern for the Chiefs, especially since our third wide receiver, Bobby Engram is 36 years old and Tony Gonzalez has left the building.

Speaking of which, Bobby Engram might do and say all the right things, he might even play and practice the right way, but at 36 years old the wheels are starting to come off. I too would be shocked if he played all 16 games (Out of 13 seasons Bobby only played 16 games 6 times).

Even though Bradley and Engram are truly talented enough to play the second and third receiver roles, history tells us that they are accidents waiting to happen. We simply have to bring in more depth and more competition at wide receiver. My hope is that a veteran wide receiver not over the age of 30 and not injury prone comes available before or during training camp. We cannot risk it. We cannot afford to have history repeat itself.

Who should be brought in?  Who will become available? Sound off Addicts.

As we continue into the abyss known as the NBA Playoffs, and the Royals current swoon continues, I thought it would be of interest to explore our coaching staff and its origins.

It is well documented that our head coach, Todd Haley, was the son of Dick Haley, the former player personnel director for the Steelers and the Jets. Haley, a former golfer at the University of Florida, became involved with the Jets in 1995 in the scouting department. In 1997, he became offensive assistant for quality control under the tutelage of Charley Weis. During his time with the Jets, Haley befriended Scott Pioli.

Mr. Haley would later again work with Bill Parcells (Pioli’s father in law) as wide receivers coach for the Cowboys in 2004-2006. Thus the relationship of Haley-Parcells-Pioli-Haley is well documented, as Todd’s father now works for Bill Parcells as a player personnel analyst for the Dolphins.

Maurice Carthon is the assistant head coach for the Chiefs. A former tight and running back out of Osceola, Arkansas and Arkansas State, Maurice is best known as Herschel Walker’s blocking back for the New Jersey Generals, a former USFL team owned by none other than Donald Trump. He subsequently won two super Bowl Rings with the Giants and became a favorite of Bill Parcells.

After retiring as a player in 1992, he began his coaching career in 1994 as running backs coach for the New England Patriots. Maurice ascended the coaching tree, becoming the offensive coordinator for the Browns in 2005. After a miserable 2005 season — scoring only 232 total points in 16 games — the Dawg Pound coined the phrase “MO Gotta Go.” He was fired six games into the 2006 season after scoring a league low 88 points. Prior to joining the Chiefs, Maurice worked with Todd Haley as the running backs coach for the Arizona Cardinals.

The purpose of this series is to show that these men usually have a history of working together, and more often than not have had similar mentors in the coaching tree. Next week we will explore some defensive coaches.

“Our march yesterday was terribly severe. The sun was like a furnace, and the dust thick and suffocating. Many a poor fellow marched his last day yesterday. Several men fell dead on the road. Our boys have all come through so far, accepting the hardships as a matter of course, and remaining cheerful and obedient I assure you I feel proud of them.”

Lt. Colonel Rufus R. Dawes, Ten miles from Leesburg, VA. June 19, 1863

Rufus R. Dawes (July 4, 1838 to August 2, 1899) was a military officer in the United States Army during the American Civil War. He was noted for his service in the Iron Brigade, particularly during the Battle of Gettysburg. The Iron Brigade was noted for its strong discipline, its unique uniform appearance, and its tenacious fighting ability, the Iron Brigade suffered the highest percentage of casualties of any brigade in the war.

Our Rufus Dawes is no general and I do not know why this pen name was chosen. As you are all aware, our Rufus Dawes has been the Kansas City Chiefs’ “media watchdog” that rebuts, or mitigates, any negative media or fan opinion, sentiment, and comment via the Chiefs website. Throughout the years I have always assumed that Rufus Dawes was Carl Petersen. He admittedly loved to read the newspapers and websites, and I am sure he did not appreciate all that he read. He needed and/or wanted a medium in which to address the truths and lies that appeared in the media. However, since Mr. Petersen’s firing on December 15, 2008, Rufus Dawes has authored another nine (9) articles. (The earliest archived article was published on March 19, 1998). Mr. Petersen is long gone and it is now safe to assume that he was not Rufus Dawes. So who is?

Since we have completely overhauled the administration and coaching staff (save Denny Thum), I presume that Rufus Dawes is in the public relations department. By process of elimination one can easily rule out Brad Kubhander (Manager of Football Information) and Josh Looney (Public Relations Coordinator) since they were hired after Rufus Dawes began penning articles. That leaves Bob Moore (Director of Public Relations) and Pete Morris (Associate Director of Public Relations) both of whom have been with the Chiefs for twenty (20) years and fifteen (15) years respectively. However, Pete Morris has only been the Associate Director for the last eight (8) years. Rufus Dawes began writing in 1998 (eleven years ago). Therefore it is reasonable to assume that Bob Moore is and has always been Rufus Dawes, or at the very least the creator of Rufus Dawes.

Bob Moore denied the he was Dawes back in 2001 (see the link below). However, Mr. Moore went on to say that: “I find it interesting that people who criticize don’t like to be criticized,” and “as long as people are reading it, as long as it is correct and in good taste, why shouldn’t we run it?”.

I will tell you why: no one is reading it, it is not in good taste, and it is akin to whining. The articles also have an elitist sentiment to them which is insulting to most fans. Rufus Dawes is the antithesis of how the new general manager, Scott Pioli, operates. Media and fans should have a right to comment, in any manner, in regards to their favorite team. The fact that the team responds seems juvenile.

Bob Moore would have been wise to have retired Rufus Dawes upon the firing of Petersen. Petersen would have been the perfect scapegoat. Instead, the finger is clearly pointing right at him. Am I wrong?

• The Pitch (Source)

May is historically dead time in football lore, the doldrum days featuring the minicamps, OTAs and training camp. But something is always going on in the NFL. As such, we will proceed with the ramblings of an old chief.

Micheal Vick is soon to be released from Leavenworth and then it’s on to a halfway house. Ultimately, his freedom could be restored by the beginning of training camp. But other issues remain: 1.) What owner wants to face the ridicule of PETA and doglovers everywhere?; 2.) He must face the fact that he lied to commissioner Roger Goodell prior to his indictment. Some league sources feel that the commissioner will levy an additional 4-8 game suspension for his deceit of the commissioner. The Micheal Vick saga continues.

Salary cap issues abound around the NFL. The NFL recently re-figured the salary cap by adding an additional one million dollars to each franchise. But what about the Chiefs, 49ers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, each of which are approximately 30 million under the cap!?!? According to sources, they must be within a certain amount of the total salary cap number and aren’t even close at this point. How the Chiefs will get to this figure only Pioli knows, but a long-term contract for Matt Cassel seems likely.

Roger Goodell continues the legacy of Bert Bell, Pete Rozelle and Paul Tagliabue. He is negotiating with Comcast to make the NFL Network as part of the standard cable package. In exchange for this, he has offered the Red Zone Channel (previously only seen on the DirecTV package) to both FOX and CBS. Although TV at times seems to drive the NFL, I firmly believe that the NFL always has the leg up on the networks. Mr. Goodell by these negotiations is getting a heads up preparing for the future negotiations with the players association. By the way, the RZC is the perfect anecdote for today’s instant-gratification, ADD-laden coach potato.

William Franklin, aka the Helicopter was released this week from the Lions. He will apparently be signed by the Rams — the only team in the NFL with a worse receiving core than the Chiefs. I have heard rumors of using Tyler Thigpen as the wildcat next year and potentially even as a wideout. He certainly has the speed and toughness to be a wideout in the NFL. Think Hines Ward, another college QB who was never a flat-out burner.

Chase Patton was not offered a contract by the Chiefs. They cited his lack of playing experience and four young QBs on the roster (Cassel, Thigpen, Brodie Croyle and Ingle Martin) as their reason. Hopefully, other teams will seize the moment and sign him to their training camp roster.

Have a great Memorial Day weekend, Chiefs fans!!

The good doctor’s recent Chase Patton article left me pondering the following question: Should Brodie Croyle have a spot on our roster? Wouldn’t he be better off competing for a roster spot on another team, than fighting it out for our team’s third spot?

Brodie Croyle was Herm’s guy. His other biggest supporter Dick Curl is long gone. Haley and Pioli have been completely silent regarding him. At 6’2 and just over a svelte 206 pounds he is injury prone. He is still rehabbing his knee injury. His upcoming 2009 contract calls for $530,000 (league minimum is just over $285,000). His career completion rating is 57.7%. His career TD to Interception ratio is 6:8. His average yards per pass completion is 5.4. His winning record is absolutely abysmal.  I don’t believe that Croyle is a bad QB. He showed promise when he could play. In fact if the Chiefs had a better offensive line, I am sure his abovementioned stats would have been better. But we didn’t and they are not.

The entire franchise has changed its administration, personnel, and coaching. New players have come in and old players have left. Shouldn’t Brodie Croyle? Although he might be a good third QB, would our team chemistry be better suited by purging the former starter? A new start for him and the Chiefs may be just what the doctor ordered.

The arrival of Chase Patton at the Chiefs weekend for draftees and undrafted free agents signaled the beginning of a long trek previously completed by the Chiefs’ newest leader behind center — Matt Cassel. Both Chase and Matt are tall QBs — Chase 6-foot-5, 220 pounds; Matt 6-foot-4, 230 pounds — and both were baseball pitchers and elite QBs in high school. They both also had the misfortune of playing behind outstanding QBs in college; Matt behind Heisman winners Matt Leinert and Carson Palmer at USC; Chase behind Heisman finalist Chase Daniel and the incomparable Brad Smith at Mizzou.

Matt Cassel was a seventh-round pick of the Patriots, and in 2008 became the only QB to start an NFL game without starting a game at QB in college. Could undrafted free agent Chase Patton of Mizzou follow in his footsteps? This weekend he had a tryout with the Chiefs, where he, along with other undrafted free agents, also completed a Pro Day-style workout. Here is my excluside post-tryout interview with Chase.

Old Chief: “Good evening, Chase. How was the tryout?”

Chase Patton: “It was a fast weekend. We arrived on Thursday and began signing paperwork and were handed out our equipment. Next we got to meet Todd Haley — very personable, intense and passionate to do things ‘the Chiefs Way.’ There were approximately 30 draftees and free agents attending the camp. On Friday in the morning we had a Pro Day testing reps in the 225-pound bench, 40-yard time, vertical jump and the broad jump.”

Old Chief: “What happened after Pro Day?”

Chase: “We had position meetings. I got the opportunity to meet Chan Galley. He was
simply awesome with complete grasp of offensive football.”

Old Chief: “How many practices did you have?”

Chase: “We had several each day. We went seven on seven as well as all on 11 in helmets on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. In between we had position meetings and studied the playbook.”

Old Chief: “How were things different than at Mizzou?”

Chase: “First, I had to get used to taking snaps from center because at Mizzou we ran strictly out of the spread. Secondly, I had to get used to having an attached tight end. We only had a few receivers and tight ends so the speed of the practice was down from the tempo in which Coach Haley likes.”

Old Chief: “What do you remember the most about the weekend?”

Chase: “I was impressed of the size and speed of Tyson Jackson, the mental preparation for the professional sport. The notion in the pros is how you deal with adversity and have a short memory. It was a weird feeling wearing the uniform of the team I grew up watching as a boy.”

Old Chief: “Your best memory?”

Chase: “That my final pass of the weekend went for a touchdown.”

Old Chief: “Great!! Good luck, Chase. We at Arrowhe Adaddict appreciate your time!”

Chase has a great future. Beyond being a potential NFL QB, he has already been accepted to dental school and is married to the beautiful former Mizzou track star Ashley Guy-Patton.