Two of the most talented players on the Kansas City Chiefs roster are in Hawaii tonight for the 2013 Pro Bowl.

So are four of their teammates.

Linebacker Derrick Johnson and safety Eric Berry sat down to talk about various topics on the the NFL Pro Bowl pre-game show on Total Access on NFL Network tonight before the game.

We jotted down what the to stars had to say:

On the hiring of Andy Reid:

Johnson:

Obviously, we’re very excited about Andy Reid and what he brings to the table. He’s a very proven coach in this league. He did a lot of great things with the Philadelphia Eagles. We’re just excited to get on, I guess the right foot, starting 2013.

Berry:

We just need everybody to buy in. Whatever philosophy, whatever plan he has for us, we just need to get everybody on the same page and just work toward that one common goal is getting to the playoffs and getting some rings. I think right now, the whole team is hungry. And we don’t want to go through anything like we went through last year. Right now we’re just focused on one mission so I want to stat early.

On the talent on the roster vs. the letdown last season:

Johnson:

This game of football is about chemistry. It’s a big team game so if you don’t play together, you know, your wins are not going to stack up like they should. We’ve got a good core of guys right now and we just need to add a few guys and we’ll be on our way.

On who needs to step up as a leader in the locker room:

DJ:Johnson:

Well that’s a good question. Veteran guys like myself, Eric Berry, young players that take a lot of initiative on the field. We have a lot of confidence in our players around us. At the end of the day, when things go bad, we’re going to have to forget about it, have a short-term memory and let that play go and go on to the next one. Too many times during the season we had a snowball effect and that snowball effect hampered the whole year for us.

On how difficult it is to stay composed when things go poorly:

Berry:

I mean, it’s tough but at the same time t could be worse. We went through so much, not just on the field but off the field as a team. So I feel liek a lot of stuff made us stronger as a unit, and right now we’re just going to let that carry over into next year. Like I said, we hungry right now, man. We had two wins last year. I don’t want to go through that again so I’m putting a lot on myself, I’m putting a lot on D.J., he’s putting a lot on me and the rest of the leaders of the team just to get Kansas City back to what it used to be. Because me, I’m a competitor. I love to win. I always want to win. I don’t want to come second to no one. Right now, we hungry. We’re gonna get it.

What they think about this Pro Bowl possibly being the final one because of poor player effort:

Johnson:

First of all, we’ve got to play harder. Playing against Adrian Peterson, he’s going to set the tempo right away so we’ll see how that goes.

Berry:

Me, I’m going full speed. I’m not taking anything for granted. I sat a whole year out, you know what I’m saying, not playing football, this is a privilege, a blessing. I’m going to take full advantage of the opportunity. I’m thankful to be here. So I’m going in.

Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry has struggled in his first season back from an ACL injury but if his grades from Pro Football Focus are any indication, he is well on his way back.

Players coming off an ACL injury often take an entire season before they are “back to normal.” The process was even worse for Berry because he only had one year of NFL experience under his belt before missing the entire 2011 season with the injury.

Berry started slow as a rookie but as the season wore on, his play began to improve. He began making a number of impact plays that helped the Chiefs win the AFC West in 2010 and was elected to the Pro Bowl.

In a way, Berry has been going through a second rookie season in 2012, while also learning to trust his reconstructed ACL. Through the first five weeks of the season, Berry struggled mightily. PFF graded him a -9.2 over that span. He had particularly bad games against the Bills in Week 2, the Chargers in Week 4 and the Ravens in Week 5.

But then Berry’s grades started to even out. Over the next eight games he graded a +2.5. He had a couple of slightly above average games but his really bad games vanished.

Through the first seven games of the season, Berry had 23 tackles, 7 missed tackles and 11 stops. A stop is considered a failure for the offense caused by the defensive player.

In the last seven games, Berry has recorded 44 tackles, 3 missed tackles and 28 stops.

The Chiefs have been so bad that it isn’t likely many people have noticed Berry slowly regaining his play-making form.

Berry hit a new milestone this past Sunday with his best game of the season. In fact, according to PFF’s grade history of Berry, it was the best game of his career.

E.B. was all over the field, racking up 11 tackles, 7 stops and an overall grade of +5.7.

Berry has also improve in coverage. In the first seven games, Berry was abused by opposing QBs. He allowed 19 receptions for 276 yards and two TDs. In the last seven games, he’s allowed 17 receptions for 179 yards and two TDs.

What’s more, Berry was targeted only 24 times through those first seven games whereas over this last stretch he’s been targeted 30 times. So he’s been thrown at six more times and he’s allowed 97 fewer yards. Berry has defended six passes on the season, five of which have come in the last seven games.

While it has been clear since his rookie year that coverage has been a hole in Berry’s game, it appears as though he is working his way toward fixing it.

In a season full of misery for Chiefs fans, Berry slowly returning to form is a sliver lining. If he continues to improve, Berry could be a major piece in a 2013 turnaround for the Chiefs.

John Rieger-US PRESSWIRE

In a season already filled with pain and embarrassment, the Kansas City Chiefs have yet another harsh reality to face.

Former first round pick Eric Berry is their absolute, worst defender.

The truth hurts.

According to Pro Football Focus, of all KC defenders who have played at least 25% of the team’s snaps, Berry has consistently been the worse Chiefs defender.

Don’t feel bad enough?

He’s the worst player on the team.

Still not ready to throw yourself off a cliff?

He’s the third worst safety, free or strong, in the NFL.

Through four games, PFF grades Berry at -7.2. Only LaRon Landry of the Jets (-8.2) and Michael Griffin of the Titans (-10.4) have been worse.

Berry has been bad in all phases of the game. His coverage grade is a -4.2. His run D is a -2.4. In the penalty department, thanks to last weekend’s debacle, he’s a -1.6.

In coverage, Berry has allowed one TD. He has been targeted 17 times, allowing 14 receptions for 150 yards and one TD. He has allowed 124 yards after the catch and QB’s throwing at him enjoy a QB rating of 123.0.

He has missed five tackles.

Now before we get into why Berry may be performing poorly, let’s cut him some slack. He has never been good in coverage. He struggled early as a rookie and improved slightly as the year went on. Then he tore his ACL and missed an entire season of football.

Still, Berry is doing poorly in the other areas he is supposed to be good at, like run support.

EB has a number of things working against him. He is still very, very young. He has only 21 professional games under his belt, but 17 of those game in 2010, which seems like an eternity ago.*

*I am not counting the few snaps he played in 2011.

Berry missing the 2011 season was, I think, a huge blow to his career. In my opinion, we are witnessing Berry going through a second rookie season. Only the Chiefs aren’t treating him like they did when he was a rookie. They are treating him like he is one of the best safeties in the NFL.

Berry isn’t right. He likely isn’t 100% physically and mentally it sure looks like he has a lot of rust to shake off.

There is no telling how long it will take Berry to get his groove back. There is a chance he could begin coming on strong as the year goes on but don’t rule out the possibility that his struggles could continue all season long. Berry plays a tough position and the Chiefs are asking more of him than he seems capable of right now.

One of the many reasons folks were projecting the KC defense to be so good this season was the return of Eric Berry. Unfortunately, to this point, Berry has been more of a liability than a help. Add to that the fact that Kendrick Lewis, another rising young star in the KC secondary, has yet to take a snap yet this season and you have a recipe for disaster.

The KC defense is struggling because other than on the corners, they have no consistent cover DBs. Berry is awful. Travis Daniels and Abe Elam are no picnics either. Javier Arenas is average at best (and an inconsistent average at that).

Eric Berry is talented enough and smart enough that he will likely get back to where he was in 2010. Eventually.

But until he does, the KC defense is likely to continue struggling.

Jeff Curry-US PRESSWIRE

Well, Kansas City fans, at this point during the week I’m sure we’re all a little exhausted of hearing about the the Chiefs’ failure against the Rams Saturday night. The Chiefs secondary was lacking in some things (to say the least), the injured status of Kendrick Lewis and Brandon Flowers has us all concerned and Ricky Stanzi performed miserably. To boot, we all have questions pertaining to just what caused Tamba Hali’s suspension. But let’s try to brighten up here. Bowe is back, Cassel is continuing to do well in Daboll’s offense and, at the pace he’s going, Peyton Hillis is looking to be a strong candidate for Comeback Player of the Year. Further, the Chiefs are better off seeing the weakness in their D now instead of, say, the fourth preseason game; the two remaining preseason games should provide us fans with a good litmus test for what to expect from our Chiefs at the start of the regular season now that Crennel knows just what kind of adjustments need made that could hamper some of the better QBs in the league, several of which the team’ll be facing right off the bat.

Before making my predictions last week, I considered how I saw the Chiefs’ 53-man roster fleshing out and drew the following conclusions:

ST: K – 1, P – 1, LS – 1

OFF: QB – 3, RB – 4, WR – 7, OL – 8 or 7, TE – 3 or 4 (8 OL & 3 TE, or 7 OL & 4 TE)

DEF: DL – 7 or 8, LB – 8, DBs– 10 or 9 (7 DL & 10 DBs, or 8  & 9, respectively)

When considering this structure, I felt a few position group numbers were a little high, but a quick look at last year’s roster, courtesy of Pro-Football-Reference, assured me that I’m pretty well in the ballpark. And, yes, having a minimum of nine guys in the secondary and a possible ten still seems a little excessive, but when you consider that last year’s active roster, at one point or another, included Brandon Flowers, Brandon Carr, Eric Berry, Kendrick Lewis, Jalil Brown, Travis Daniels, Javier Arenas, Reshard Langford, Jon McGraw, Donald Washington & Sabby Piscitelli, I’m not too far off base. Of the nine or ten DBs I expect to make the roster, do I expect all of them to be on the active roster come game day? No; just as I don’t expect the 7^th WR, 8^th OL, 8^th LB, or 3^rd QB to be on the active roster. Remember, though it’s a 53-man roster, only a maximum of 46 players may be active on game day (up from the previous CBAs 45-man limit), which leads us to this week’s predictions:

1.  With Flowers and Lewis out for an indeterminate amount of time, Crennel will take a hard look at the DBs on roster (I know, I’m friggin’ Nostradamus, right?). Chalking up Saturday’s problems to a secondary that is “young”, “inexperienced” and lacking “maturity”, Crennel will focus mostly on filling out the roster with the more veteran players. Though some of these players’ ceilings may not be as high as some of the newer guys, their consistency and reliability in the short term will prevail over longer term, but potentially better, developmental projects. As I see it the roster will consist of : 1. Flowers; 2. Routt; 3. Berry; 4. Lewis; 5. Abram Elam; 6. Travis Daniels; 7. Jalil Brown; and, 8. Javier Arenas. This leaves one maybe two spots to take on either Jacques Reeves and a project player, or two project players, with the likely candidates being Dequan Menzie, Terrance Parks and Tysyn Hartman. Dequan Menzie may be in the same boat as Junior Hemingway; an injury plagued camp may spell practice squad, but I think the odds of that are worse than with Hemingway, and choosing Menzie and either Parks or Hartman over Reeves to fill out the bottom of the roster wouldn’t be too surprising. That being said, I could somewhat understand if Reeves was chosen to stay on roster with the other candidates being practice squad eligible. In any event I would not be shocked to see all three of Menzie, Parks & Hartman keep ties with the team, even if one or two is/are kept in the capacity of practice squad player(s). The remaining options (Fenner, Fanor, etc.) just don’t strike me as making the cut in any capacity.  That includes Donald Washington, who despite being a veteran and “more mature”, seems to me to be too costly of a save at this point.

Scott Rovak-US PRESSWIRE

2. Stanzi will still make the roster, but as the No. 3 QB and only for the purposes of continued development. He’s just not looking that good right now, and if a playoff berth is still in the cards and push comes to shove (Cassel and Quinn are unable to play), Pioli has enough sense to make a powerplay for a much better QB. The three I could see getting the most consideration in this hypothetical situation are Matt Moore, Matt Hasselbeck and Mark Sanchez. Moore has the most (and recent) experience in a Daboll-driven offense and could slide in and understand the terminology, assignments, etc. the easiest. Hasselbeck, on top of the reasons Paddy pointed out, not only provides consistently good play, but given his age would not be perceived as a threat to Cassel. And I think Sanchez is simply better than he’s given credit for: he’s actually improved every year he’s been in the league, he has playoff wins under his belt, and given a more stable locker room and stronger supporting offensive cast, I think he would surprise. Obviously, this hypothetical scenario also takes place later in the season where Moore, Hasselbeck and Sanchez may be seen as expendable for the right price. In any case, I don’t see Stanzi taking the field if the Chiefs still have a shot at the playoffs; until he shows us significantly more than he has, I think I’d rather see Zorn suit-up and take the field.

3. Following another lackluster game performance, Josh Bellamy’s stock has dropped some, but he should still be counted as a candidate for the last WR slot (though arguments for Markshausen and, as KCMikeG pointed out, Jamar Newsome have gotten stronger). Bear in mind that a) the last WR isn’t likely to sniff the active roster, b) injury to Bowe or Baldwin will be overcome by Breaston resuming the role of the No. 2 WR, a role he held for most of his career (remember: Boldin played out of the slot in Arizona), and c) an injury to McCluster will result in Breaston, and eventually Wylie, being able to fulfill the role being carved out by Dex. If Breaston or Wylie get injured, it’ll be a blow, but likely not a humongous one. If any two of Bowe, Baldwin and Breaston get injured, the Chiefs would definitely be in trouble, but unless both of those injuries were expected to be long-term, I’d anticipate we’d see Daboll calling for more 2-TE sets until one of the guys returned.

Cary Edmondson-US PRESSWIRE

4. I’ve grown quite fond of Kendrick Lewis. As last year wore on after Berry’s injury, Lewis started to improve by leaps and bounds, and I firmly believe he is a better player now than he otherwise would’ve been at this point in his career had Berry not been injured. In the face of adversity, Kendrick rose to the occasion, and how can you not love a player capable of that? But that being said, I agree with AA’s own Lyle Graversen that the loss of Flowers is greater than the loss of Lewis. Abram Elam will provide adequate temporary replacement of Lewis until Lewis can heal up; however, one of the greatest disappointments concerning Kendrick’s injury is that the newly implemented defensive scheme of putting Lewis and Elam in at safety and letting Eric Berry roam freely and wreak havoc is in danger of not being utilized until his Lewis’ return. Enter Travis Daniels. I’ll admit, I was pretty indifferent to Travis Daniels prior to this season (didn’t love him, didn’t hate him), but since he switched to taking on safety duties, I have a little more hope in his capability to make significant contributions to the team. There are two preseason games left, and I would not be the least bit surprised to see Daniels tested harder at safety to see if he can provide suitable replacement for Lewis in the new scheme so it can start being effectively used before Lewis heals up and returns. With Tamba a certain loss in the Atlanta game, and Flowers and Lewis uncertainties as to whether or not they’ll play, Daniels being coached up enough so that the new scheme isn’t a liability may be integral to a Chiefs victory on opening day. That may be a lot of faith to put into Daniels, but a roving Berry may be the team’s best hope for a victorious pass defense without Flowers, Lewis and Hali in the mix.

Thus concludes my predictions/observations for this week, Addicts. If you disagree with anything I’ve said or proposed, or think that there’s a player I’m not giving enough credit to (or giving too much credit to, for that matter), let me hear it in the “Comments” section. And as always, Go Chiefs!!!!!

John Rieger-US PRESSWIRE

Eric Berry is ready for training camp.

In an interview yesterday with Adam Schein of Sirius XM NFL Radio, Berry said that he was physically “100%.”

This news shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. Berry got injured just five plays into the season and so he has had plenty of time ro rehab and recover. Still, Chiefs fans all over the world have to be breathing a big sigh of relief. Kc’s defense finished 11th in the NFL last year despite not having Berry.

Berry probably isn’t the best player in the Chiefs’ defense. I’d say right now that title is a toss up between Tamba Hali and Derrick Johnson but Berry certainly has the potential to be the team’s best defender. His athleticism will afford head coach/defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel more flexibility. Berry showed in his rookie season that he coul dplay close to the line, drop into coverage, stuff the run and rush the passer. He made a number of key plays throughout 2010 that likely led to KC wins.

The Chiefs will probably bring Berry along slowly as the enter training camp. They’ll want to get him out there to shake off the rust but they will also need to help Berry restore his confidence in his surgically repaired ACL.

The Chiefs are expecting Berry, RB Jamaal Charles and TE Toney Moeaki to be key parts of their plans in 2012. One thing is for sure, now that Todd Haley is gone I don’t think we’ll be seeing any of these guys playing in the 4th quarter of the last preseason game.

Kim Klement-US PRESSWIRE

While all of Kansas City is anxiously awaiting the return of Eric Berry this season, there is a pretty good chance Berry will get out of the gate slowly in 2012.

This isn’t a knock on Berry’s talent, skill level or dedication. In fact, even a rusty Berry will probably be better than many starting safeties in the NFL. He’ll definitely be an upgrade over the “Bum Parade” that started at SS for the Chiefs last season.* He’s a difference-maker with great football instincts and athletic prowess and a year off from football isn’t going to change that.

*All due respect to Quick Draw McGraw.

But even the best players can get rusty after missing an entire season.

Berry’s injury couldn’t have come at a more inconvenient time. While he was coming off a Pro Bowl, Berry’s rookie season was far from perfect. He flashed his play-making abilities, recording four interceptions (often at key times), 92 tackles, one forced fumble and nine pass defenses.

But Berry also had his struggles as a rookie. According to Pro Football Focus he struggled in pass coverage early, which caused him to end the season with a -0.9 grade overall, though it should be noted that he improved in that area down the stretch. He had a stretch from Week 10-17 where is overall grades were +0.9, -0.3, +0.1, +0.8. +0.5, +0.6, -1.2. That is seven weeks of fairly average play. Berry responded in the Chiefs’ playoff game against the Baltimore Ravens, however. He turned in his highest grade of the season with a mark of +3.7.*

*Berry also scored a +3.7 for his game against the Jaguars in Week 7.

The up and down performances were to be expected from a rookie. Adjusting to life in the NFL is tough and Berry’s triumphs and failures his rookie year reflected the reality of his situation. He was an incredibly talent player with a very bright future sometimes suffering lapses in consistency due to inexperience.

The 2011 season would have likely been a much more consistent season for Berry, as well a chance to begin plugging the holes in his game. He was the only Chiefs player to start every single defensive snap in 2010 and he would be entering his second year in Romeo Crennl’s defense. Unfortunately, after only a handful of plays, Berry’s season was over.

The question is, how much, if any, of a backslide will Berry have in 2012?

I think we can expect some more ups and downs for Berry throughout the first quarter of the season. He’ll not only be shaking off the rust but he’ll also face overcoming any uncertainty he may have about the stability of his newly reconstructed ACL.

Berry has been playing football his entire life so it likely won’t take him long to get his legs back under him but considering his inexperience at the NFL level, combined with the seriousness of the injury from which he is returning, it might be wise for fans to expect four or five games to go buy before Berry is able to go full-throttle.

The good news for Berry is that he is returning to a defense that finished 11^th in the NFL without his services.

What do you think Addicts? Will Berry get off to a slow start or will he put a clown-suit on me and pick up where he left off against the Baltimore Ravens in the playoff game?

First off, an explanation of how I am approaching this: I don’t look at this list as the 10 most productive players necessarily, but rather how important they are to the team and how much their loss would be felt. This is not a list of the Chiefs best players. A way of looking at it is, “who could we least afford to lose to a season-ending injury.”

1.) OLB Tamba Hali

This one may be a shocker right out of the gates. I know many people would put RB Jamaal Charles as the most important player to the Chiefs if they want to make a playoff run, but I get to differ. The Chiefs still managed to come within a blocked field goal of the playoffs without JC (and a whole lot else) last season. The Chiefs still had the 15^th best rushing attack last year behind Jackie Battle, Thomas Jones and Dexter McCluster – not an inspiring bunch.

However, the Chiefs also only had 29 sacks (3^rd least in the league) – 12 of which were Tamba Hali. Hali also probably deserves an assist on most of the other sacks that Chiefs players racked up, as opposing teams shifted their pass blocking to eliminate the pressure from #91. OLB Justin Houston should continue to up his game this year, but it’s hard to know how many sacks he would have gotten in 2011 if teams weren’t so focused on Hali. One thing we know for sure – if Hali goes down, our pass rush will be less than half as effective as it is when he is on the field.

Tamba Hali tackles Chiefs -- err -- Broncos Quarterback Kyle Orton, forcing a fumble in the process.John Rieger-US PRESSWIRE

Furthermore, the AFC West quarterbacking got a heck of a lot better this year. We won’t be playing against FB Tim Tebow twice a year, Rivers will surely bounce back from his worst season on record, and we won’t be so lucky as to catch Carson Palmer straight off the couch. We’re going to be playing Peyton Manning, Rivers and Palmer in late-season games for the division title. We will need Hali for that, hands down.

2.) SS Eric Berry

To my great surprise, the Chiefs have not addressed the team’s dreadful safety depth with anything more than a 5^th-round CB who projects to the position and a handful of low-level journeymen and UFA’s. Berry going down last year spelled doom for the Chiefs defensive backfield, despite the fact that we have very talented corners. McGraw is dependable as a smart, slow veteran, but with both he and Berry out of the line up, Kendrick Lewis cannot make up the difference. The idea that Donald Washington might see the field for anything other than special teams this season keeps me awake at night.

3.) LT Brandon Albert

Our tackle depth is a mystery right now. While the Chiefs have a bunch of young bodies behind their bookends with Albert and Winston, there are no proven commodities among them. While LT’s are generally looked at as the guys who keep their QB’s healthy, Albert has also been vital to the Chiefs’ run blocking. The team was massively better running to the left than the right last year. If Albert were to go down, they would likely move Winston to LT, a position he is not ideally suited for, and we would be leaving a question mark at RT that could very likely be worse than Barry Richardson – as hard as that is to imagine.

4.) CB Brandon Flowers

What? Three out of the top four are defensive players? But our defense was strong and our offense was weak! True. But, with the exception of the Chiefs, the AFC West is going to be a passing division in 2012. Rivers is poised for a bounce-back, Peyton Manning is in Denver, and Oakland is going to be forced to pass due to the fact that they now have bad running back depth and they will be in shootouts with opponents because their pass defense was decimated in the offseason.

I still think Berry is more important than Flowers overall to the Chiefs pass defense, but losing Flowers would also put KC in a pinch. I am high on Routt, but he did not fair well as the #1 CB in Oakland and Javier Arenas and Jalil Brown should really stay in the slot. Travis Daniels could fill in for a game of two as the #2 CB, but he’s not athletic and would be a liability long-term.

5.) WR Dwayne Bowe

Jon Baldwin has yet to prove he can take on the #1 role. The Cassel-to-Bowe connection remains the entire passing offense.

6.) RB Jamaal Charles

Finally, you’re thinking, he gets around to mentioning our franchise player. I put Charles 6^th because we unfortunately don’t know what we’re getting out of him this year and because the Chiefs now have killer RB depth. Our offense is indisputably more dangerous with him on the field, but we will be able to soldier on without him. Still, out of the ‘backs in the Chiefs stables, he is the only one with true home-run ability and that is something that the offense lacks all around. If the Chiefs want to be a contender, we have to make some big plays.

7.) QB Matt Cassel

He may not be Canton-bound, but he can be very productive with the guys the Chiefs have on the roster. Quinn has been inconsistent in his career and Stanzi is a mystery box.

8.) LB Derrick Johnson

Rob Grabowski-US PRESSWIRE

DJ is the rock to the Chiefs’ defense. He’s a tackling machine and is a mean run-stuffer. He also can be counted on to make 1-2 phenomenal head’s-up plays per game.

9.) RT Eric Winston

Winston is here for the same reasons as Albert — he would be extremely difficult to replace. But, we also need to him to cover the Chiefs right side because effective pass blocking there will allow Moeaki and Boss to release and be additional targets for Cassel or to block downfield for Charles and Hillis.

10.) NT Dontari Poe

While I don’t think expectations should be too high, I’m betting that Poe ends up contributing for us this season. If we don’t get production out of Poe we will be relying on Amon Gordon – a decent starter at DE, but a substandard NT. Poe has the chance to make the entire defense stronger, or weaker.

With four days to the Draft, we still have no idea who the Chiefs are going to pick first in the Draft.

I myself have argued for Poe, for Tannehill and for neither. The fact is that there is not a single right answer in this year’s Draft for the Chiefs. I believe strongly there are multiple ways they could go that will pay off for them down the road. It’s one of those beautiful times when the question is more about how the Chiefs will get stronger, not whether.

With that in mind, over the last few weeks I’ve been reviewing the Chiefs’ tape. In an admission of total powerlessness to my NFL addiction I paid the $69.99 to re-up my subscription for the NFL Gamepass to be able to watch NFL Network and all the games of the 2011 season on demand until August.

While I’ve already watched every game the Chiefs played in 2011, some stand out more memorably in my mind due to a mix of factors. Because I watch live games from 8-9 hours ahead of Eastern Time all year (meaning noon kickoffs at Arrowhead are either 9 or 10 p.m. here), sleepiness/alcohol remain obstacles to proper analysis. I also feel like the offseason narratives tend to take a life of their own the further and further we get away having actually seen some football played. We all agree that the Chiefs are going to be better and in contention for the division title again this year. But they were downright bad in certain areas last years – and not just at positions where we had injuries.

Therefore, I decided I would take a look a back at the season of ups and downs in a mixed order so to not just look at the awful start and the inspiring finish, but try to see how players played in the season as a whole. My final goal of looking back was to scout the Chiefs’ additions this offseason.

First up:

Week 15 Raiders at Chiefs, L 16-13

• Why: I was actually physically present at this game and long wanted to revisit it, because, although I had great seats and a marvelous view of how it went down, I continued to find it very hard to wrap my head around just how we managed to lose this game. Save for an easy field goal that was blocked as time expired, this would have won the division for us. I also figured it would be a good chance to scout CB Stanford Routt, who saw the light and joined the Chiefs after being cut by the Oakland freak show.
• Moving the ball: The Raiders have a very good front seven, and while the Chiefs didn’t run all over them, we overall did not have problems getting downfield. The fact that we only put 13 points on the board was due primarily to two blocked field goals, some questionable penalties and one AWFUL Kyle Orton interception in the endzone.
• Game-changing defense: Overall, it’s pretty clear that the majority of the Chiefs’ playmakers are on defense. We all love Hali and Flowers, but what was most interesting in this game was the play of S Kendrick Lewis and CB Javier Arenas. Each are young and promising players who also make bone-headed moves at times. Arenas, 24, had a timely interception that could have changed the game in the Chiefs’ favor. But as usual, he also drew a few penalties and got beat on a throws to the flat (although depending on the coverage scheme for that play, it could have been intentional). Lewis, 23, broke up two key passes, and again had a game of stout run support, but he also got beat BADLY on the first play of overtime, which was a deep pass to Denarius Moore that ended up sealing the Raiders’ victory. I have a love/hate relationship with both of these guys. They make plays, plain and simple, plus Arenas is a very valuable special teamer. At times they look so great I hate the idea of drafting or signing their replacements through free agency. But they also make some really deadly mistakes. In the end I think they will keep getting better and will be great for the Chiefs down the road. What gives me pause is the idea: can we afford it if they don’t?

Kelley L Cox-US PRESSWIRE

• Stanford Routt is very, very good: Look, Brandon Carr was a great fan favorite and Routt had horrendous 2011 numbers. He both gave up more touchdowns than any other corner in the NFL, he was also the most penalized guy at his position. But, if you actually watch him play, you understand why. First off, the Raiders are a blitz-happy, man-on-man defensive team, which means that whoever is covering the other team’s #1 option is screwed a good portion of the time. That defense was designed for Nnamdi Asomugha, who can handle being on an island, but Routt just doesn’t have his phenomenal ability. Still, he did very well with what he had to offer. As for penalties, the Raiders are the most penalized team in the league and this Week 16 nearly beat the single-game record for penalties. The fact is that it was clear Routt knew the score, knew he had no help half the time, so whenever he felt like Dwayne Bowe was about to break away from him, he took the 10-yard defensive holding penalty rather than give up a touchdown. In the end, he had an interception and held Bowe to six catches and a touchdown (a beautiful, undefendable left-arm bullet-pass). In my mind, that is overall a wash, which, on a team with crappy D-backs against the clear #1 target, is more than admirable. As for his stats and performance for the Chiefs, I think he will be a great #2 CB, and with S Eric Berry able to get to both sides of the field to help out in pass support with his insane athleticism, I think Routt will be safe to lay up on the penalties and just do what he does. In KC, he won’t have to carry the entire defensive backfield on his shoulders.

Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE

• Our offensive line is serviceable: Even against the solid Oakland front seven, the Chiefs were very productive running the ball, and only passed it when it was absolutely necessary, despite the fact that the Raiders were overall weaker in the secondary. For what G Ryan Lilja lacks in pass-blocking, he remains a very good run-blocker, especially when pulling to the outside.
• The “not getting it done” factor: The Chiefs suffered from this all season long. Sure, we lost by the freak probabilities of having a game-winning field goal blocked as time expired. But the Chiefs should have never been in that position. We outplayed the Raiders for all but a few big moments. We should have won by two scores, but we didn’t capitalize on our opportunities the way that winning teams find a way to do.
• Insight for the Draft: This was a very evenly matched game and when we play the Raiders next two times, it will not be so close in terms of the level of talent on the field. With all of the Chiefs’ injured players back plus free agent acquisitions and the Draft (Oakland is all but skipping the Draft this year), we should be able to roll these clowns on paper going into the next meeting. However, they will still be able to shoot at our Achilles’ heel – if Berry is out or is covering a different guy, we do not have any other pure athletes in our secondary that can keep up with the Raiders’ signature track-squad WR corps. If we continue to have problems scoring, this tendency to give up big plays late will still kill us in the end. Lewis may be a great run-support banger safety, but he is a liability against speedy downfield weapons. If the Chiefs trade back in the first round, I will have no problem with selecting Mark Barron with our first pick.

Kelly Lambert-US PRESSWIRE

Barron to KC? What do you think?

Crystal LoGiudice-US PRESSWIRE

As soon as I heard that the New Orleans Saints were getting busted for implementing a bounty program that paid players bonuses for injuring opposing players, the first person I thought of was Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry.

Berry, the victim of a low block by Buffalo Bills receiver Stevie Johnson last season, missed the entire year with a torn ACL. At the time, there were some fans who wondered if the block was intentional. There was some bad blood between the Chiefs and Bills entering the game because the Chiefs had fired Bills head coach Chan Gailey in 2009. Before the game, Gailey talked about how it would be nice to beat the Chiefs.

To be fair, Johnson went on the record as saying that it was never his intention to injure Berry.

But that didn’t stop people from wondering about it.

Apparently Berry himself, also wonders.

The Chiefs safety took to Twitter this afternoon and said the following:

Sometimes I sit n wonder if they had a bounty out on me…oh well…who cares. Either way u can’t hold me down.

Berry isn’t accusing Johnson of anything here but he, like the rest of us, can’t help but wonder.

It is because of situations like this that the NFL is likely to come down hard on the Saints.

We’ll likely never know if the hit on Berry was intentional or not. What we can guess is, “bounty hunting” in the NFL is probably a lot more common than the league would like to admit.

Kansas City Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles sat down with the Fantasy Focus podcast team to talk about how he is recovering from ACL surgery.

I was able to transcribe the entire interview. Check it out.

It’s goin real good. I’m about to start back running. Probably close, it’ll probably be in the next two or three weeks. The first two weeks was stressed out with the surgery, being in a lot of pain but after the fourth, fifth week I felt much better and I’m moving around a lot better. I’m starting to like jog right now so I’m feeling happy and ready to go.

Much more from Charles after the jump.

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Now that recent Kansas City Chiefs Head Coach Todd Haley has been “relieved of his duties” (and, presumably, his salary), it’s time to dust off that resume. This is a tough time to be looking for employment, and prospects are especially grim for a man whose primary job skills are his ability and tendency to yell at quarterbacks and NFL officials (honestly, the only place an NFL coach can get hired right now is Coors Light). Fortunately, it seems that Haley has already been busy revising the top part of his resume to reflect his hard-earned experience as a member of the Chiefs organization. Let’s take a look!

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Eric Berry's absense is surely hurting the Chiefs defense but just how much is impossible to measure.

Yesterday we dove into fun with statistics to try to figure out which Kansas City Chiefs were rushing the passer and how efficient they were in doing so.

We figured out that Kansas City’s defensive line was far below average at pressuring the QB when compared to other 3-4 defensive fronts.

Later in the day, AA staffer Lyle suggested that one of the reasons Kansas City is struggling to pressure the QB, is because the injury to Eric Berry has limited what the Chiefs can do defensively. He pointed out that the Chiefs are especially limited in how much they can blitz their linebackers. He correctly pointed out that in most 3-4 defenses, a majority of the team’s sacks come from their linebackers.

Lyle wasn’t making an excuse for KC’s pass rushing futility along the defensive line. It is clear that Berry or no Berry, the defensive line’s performance is below average in the pass rush department. However Lyle was suggesting that Berry being out means the Chiefs are dropping defenders into coverage more and thus blitzing their linebackers less. The lack of linebacker blitzing, Lyle suggested, not only hurt KC’s overall chances of pressuring the QB but also put more strain on the defensive line, thus making their job harder.

I thought it was an interesting point so I decided to dive into the numbers to see if it was true. Are the Chiefs blitzing their linebackers less than they would if Eric Berry was still playing? Are KC’s defensive lineman performing worse in the pass rushing department this season without Berry than they did last season?

Let’s look at the numbers and find out, after the jump.

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As the season marches on, the Kansas City Chiefs have been forced to move on without some of their best players.

While Eric Berry, Tony Moeaki and Jamaal Charles won’t see action again until 2012, it is important for the fans to remember they are working their way back from serious injuries.

Thankfully, Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles appears to be well on his way back. From JC, via Twitter:

My knee feels GREAT!! I’m back walking normal…no more walking with a lean. #GOCHIEFS

Indeed. Hopefully we’ll see Jamaal on the sidelines soon cheering on his teammates and giving them a boost.

As any respectable quantum astrophysicist will tell you, a black hole is an object with sufficient density that the force of gravity prevents anything from drifting beyond it; its defining feature is the appearance of an event horizon—a boundary in space-time through which matter and light can only pass inward towards the mass of the black hole. Nothing, not even light, can escape. (I, of course, did not learn this from any quantum astrophysicist. I cut-and-pasted it from Wikipedia.)

The Black Hole also happens to be the first movie I can remember that both enthralled and terrified me (according to Wikipedia, it came out in theaters when I was only five years old*). I have no recollection whatsoever as to what the movie was about,** but I remember being very frightened by the violent, faceless drones and morbidly fascinated by the concept that there was a place somewhere out there that could swallow everything that got near it. It gave me nightmares. I still can’t believe that this was a Disney movie.***

*Not that Wikipedia necessarily knows how old I am or when I was born…though, yeah, probably.

**If you have three minutes and twenty-nine seconds to kill, watch this trailer and tell me if you have any clue in hell as to what this movie is about either.

***Though come to think of it, two other traumatic moments of my early childhood involved seeing Bambi’s mother get shot and watching Dumbo get taunted mercilessly because he was different. WTF, Disney?

I mention all this because a black hole—and you probably realize that I am now referring to that Black Hole—is precisely what this Chiefs team and its fans need right now: an inescapable force to pull us in and push us forward into a situation both fascinating and infuriating (like this guy).

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I’m not much of an NBA fan*, so upon hearing the latest news of that league’s lockout—Commissioner David Stern has cancelled the first two weeks of the NBA season—all I could think was this: Ah, if only those first two weeks of the NFL season had never happened! The Chiefs would now be 2-1, the only blemish a loss at San Diego (expected) by the score of 20-17 (quite closer than expected). The team would still have a healthy Eric Berry and Jamaal Charles (assuming they wouldn’t have been injured in Weeks Three, Four, or Five). And Todd Haley would probably not be desperate enough to pledge to go unshaven (and to continue wearing velour hoodies and dirty sweat pants) so long as the Chiefs keep winning.

*I don’t know—watching monster-sized millionaires smash into each other on a football field doesn’t seem nearly as ridiculous as watching full-grown multi-millionaires scurry around in shorts on a squeaky court.

It’s so hard to analyze this team right now. The Chiefs seem both better and worse than their 2-3 record. Over the course of five weeks, they have laid down and died, and then fought back when it made no sense for them to have any fight left. And hindsight, as it does, has changed the context, too. While there’s no excuse for the embarrassments of the first two weeks, the two L’s on the schedule—against the only team New England hasn’t been able to beat this year and a team no one has been able to beat—aren’t looking as bad. The two wins, meanwhile, came against teams that were winless at the time, but both were real victories, requiring comebacks and last stands.

So the team may not be hopeless, but still doesn’t inspire much hope. Plus, even the “Suck for Luck” dream is dead, as the Chiefs are now in line behind or alongside 10 other teams—including the Eagles and Falcons!—for that first draft pick. As Lyle put it plainly in his post yesterday, “the odds of the Chiefs getting the #1 overall pick are about as likely as the Chiefs winning the division at this point.” And that, frankly, is depressing. This team seems destined for mediocrity of the mediocre kind: Four wins? Five wins? Maybe six? The Chiefs still don’t have an identity and it’s hard to imagine exactly what identity will emerge. I can see this team losing to Denver and then beating the Patriots or Packers. I really can.

So…it’s probably just as well that we are heading into the bye week, that curious once-a-year (per team) phenomenon that the NFL introduced in 1990 (according to Wikipedia), in order to extend the season by a week and “provide time for teams to rest” (according to nflbyeweek.com*). Perhaps we should all take a rest, too, some time to clear our heads and clear the slate.

*Yes, that’s real: there is an entire web site—one page—dedicated solely to a listing of NFL teams’ byes by week. It is brought to you by the same people who created whatdayoftheweekisitwhereyoulive.org and clickheretoseeawebpage.net.

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A couple of weeks ago I tried my first ever video creation and I decided it was time to give it another shot. So here you go AA, join me in my sorrows (and maybe a little humor) as The Armchair Addict and Phil Collins give you “A Safety Lost” (Take A Look At Me Now).

Eric Berry is gone and must be replaced.

The Kansas City Chiefs are likely to place S Eric Berry on IR today, thus freeing up a roster spot.

The Chiefs could fill that spot with a player from their practice squad, but they could also scour the waiver wire for help. They may also be contacting veteran free agents that currently do not have a team.

The loss of Berry is big and replacing him on the active roster with a practice squad player would be, in my opinion, a terrible mistake. If Scott Pioli thinks the team has a snowballs chance in hell of righting the ship and winning the AFC West with Donald Washington, Sabby Pisctielli and Jon McGraw playing safety he should have his head examined.

Or chopped off.

There are players available that would probably be an upgrade. Darren Sharper is a free agent and despite being 35 years old, he’d probably be an upgrade over Sabby.

Keep an eye on this space for news if and when it happens.

Bad things happen. The fact that Eric Berry got hurt isn’t Scott Pioli’s fault.

But if he doesn’t get off his ass and make a trade, or sign somebody, anybody, better than Sabby Piscitelli, he should be fired.

This is the “block” Steve Johnson threw against Eric Berry. Berry was injured after the play, tried to come back in and then left again after his leg gave out on him.

The mumbles out of KC right now are bad. Berry could potentially be done for the year. What say you? Legal block?

From KC Star’s Red Zone blog:

But there was concern inside the locker room that the injury could be serious. Berry was tended to earlier in the contest before returning; a few minutes later, the second-year safety was helped off the field.

From chiefsblog.kansascity.com (share this quote)

If this an ACL injury Berry could be done for the season. It would be a terrible blow to the KC defense that struggled mightily without one of its best players.

Ryan James was back at camp yesterday. Here is his report. -PA

• Walkthrough Offense and Defense split
• Individual positional drills
• Offensive line v. Defensive Line / Defensive Back v. Wide Receiver
• 7-on-7 drill / Outside Pass rush v. Offensive Line
• Punt
• 11-on-11

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Special thanks to Ryan. Be sure to check out his Sunday practice report here.

We’re still looking for camp correspondents (the more the better, right?) so if you are heading up to camp and want to contribute to AA’s coverage, please email me at patrick.arrowheadaddict@gmail.com

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Last week, ESPN.com asked their readers to “pick the players who, if placed on the same roster, would dominate from 2014 to 2016.”

I stopped by to vote and I can tell you, the competition was stiff. Still, the Kansas City Chiefs managed to sneak two of their rising stars onto the roster.

Can you guess who they are?

Find out, after the jump.

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We told you just minutes ago that the NFL was investigating the use of several NFL players in an advertisement for a party for the porn industry in Miami last month.

A number of NFL players, including Eric Berry and Brandon Flowers were featured in the ad in their uniforms, a big no-no as far as the NFL is concerned.

Now we are hearing that Eric Berry’s camp claims that the safety knew nothing about the party and the advertisement and that he did not attend.

Joel Thorman of Arrowhead Pride spoke to Berry’s agent.

“Eric did not attend and had no knowledge of this event, and he certainly did not approve the use of his name and image in connection with the party,” Berry’s agent told Thorman.

According to Thorman, Berry has an alibi as he was in Kansas City on the day of the party for an Inky Johnson book signing.

I won’t be surprised if we hear from Flowers’ agent here in the coming hours.

What is the Exxxotica Expo?

It is the largest gathering of porn industry stars in the world.

Apparently an official launch party for the expo was was held in Miami last month. A number of NFL players were listed in the ad as “hosts” of the launch party.

The problem with all this isn’t necessarily the players’ attendance at the event, but the fact that they were featured in uniform in the advertisement.

The story was broken by ABC-7 in Chicago. NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy spoke to ABC-7 about the matter.

“The NFL office works on behalf of the clubs to protect their intellectual property rights in matters such as this.”

There is probably a pretty good chance that the NFL players, which also included Bears safety Major Wright, Texans cornerback Kareem Jackson, and Raiders wideout Jacoby Ford, didn’t know that images of them in uniform would be used in the ad.

I don’t know what will come of all this. I doubt any of the players will get in trouble. More than likely, the league will go after the organizers of the event.

You can check out the ad here.

Props to KCCelt for the tip.

Enjoy.

Source: Yarkbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs 2011 NFL schedule was released November 19th, and to no one was surprised the Chiefs are slated to face much stiffer completion in 2011.  This increase in competition will mean that the Chiefs players, particularly the starters, will have to come ready and prepared when the season starts.

I’ll give you my preliminary take on how I see it all shaking out after the jump.

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If this guy is going to be better in 2011, how could the Chiefs be worse?

One of the hot topics around NFL circles these days, other than the always exciting lockout/litigation extravaganza, (pukes) is which 2010 playoff teams won’t be making a return trip in 2011.

Some folks are quick to point to the Kansas City Chiefs as a team heading for a fall.

It’s irritating, isn’t it? As fans, we suffered through three absolutely miserable seasons. Then, when things finally started turning around, we had to suffer through a season of “are they for real” questions. Still, going through the season with the “nobody believes in us” chip on your shoulder is a heck of a lot better than going through the season with the “who are the Kansas City Chiefs, is that a football team or a minor league soccer team” chip on your shoulder.

Now, as we are in the midst of the most boring NFL offseason since the internet age, bored TV pundits are already talking about how the Chiefs will take a step back in 2011.

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Kansas City Chiefs first round draft pick Eric Berry played every single defensive snap last season. While he played well and showed himself to be very durable in his first season, the sheer number of games he played took a toll on his body.It is easy to forget that these rookies are used to playing far fewer games in college and against much softer competition.

Adam Teicher of the Kansas City Star has a great piece up on the Red Zone blog with some interesting quotes from Berry.

”If we had another game, I would have made it and I would have been ready,” Berry said. ”But I have to tell you this: When the season was over, I didn’t do anything for about a month. I didn’t go out or do anything. I was supposed to go home (to Georgia) and I didn’t even book my flight. I just stayed in the house, watched TV. I just sat around the house. I wasn’t used to playing that many games. My body was just through afterwards.”

Check out the rest of Teicher’s piece over at the Red Zone.

I’ve been largely mum thus far as to the upcoming draft.  The lockout and its implications have loomed much larger in my mind, and this site has other writers with far more draft expertise than I.  My annual “Big Matt’s NFL draft dos and do not dos” post at the original BMCC wasn’t exactly the most clairvoyant of endeavors.  I study the players; I have my rankings.  But I’ve also grown to recognize how meaningless they are.  

Analyzing and studying the picks after they’re made is what appeals most to me, because that’s when we’re in a position to learn the most about our general manager.  This GM in particular reveals as little as possible through words.  All we have are his actions.  And bargain-basement free agent pickups really don’t tell us much.  If we want to learn about Scott Pioli, we must observe how he drafts. 

The guy has been a slippery one so far.  I thought I had him pegged after the ’09 draft (also known as the “don’t go anywhere” draft).  I was wrong.  The 2010 draft was a major curveball, and ultimately that ended up being a good thing.  A repeat of the ’09 draft would’ve been disastrous. 

Nobody knows what Pioli is thinking this time around.  I suppose that’s a testament to his discretion, if anything.  I’ve been critical of Pioli’s secretive ways, but the draft is one area where his paranoid tendencies could actually come in handy.  If nobody knows who we’re picking, so much the better.  It actually makes things a little more fun for the fans too, and that’s something I never thought I’d say about anything Pioli has ever done.  I have no idea who we’ll pick, and that’s an exciting prospect. 

Still, there is one tendency I’ve definitely picked up on.  Paddy touched on this a bit yesterday, and I think it bears further discussion.  Scott Pioli is not a risk-taker.  It’s just not in his nature.  He said this himself in an unusually candid moment a year or so ago.  It wasn’t big news at the time, but I definitely think its relevant now.  Pioli will make what he deems to be the safest pick. 

The argument can be made that both of his first round picks were actually fairly risky.  Berry was picked higher than any other safety in NFL history, after all.  And the Tin Man is far from is sure thing.  But that’s looking at things from our perspective, after the fact.  We need to look at those picks from Pioli’s point of view before they were made. 

We’ll start with Tin Man.  Most of us hated that pick at  the time, and after two years it certainly doesn’t look like a good one.  But what has Pioli repeatedly said they were looking for?  Someone who could play the position the way they wanted it played.  In a way that’s just GM-speak, I mean he doesn’t elaborate as to what “the way we want it played” entails.  So really he can claim Jackson is meeting that goal no matter how poorly he plays.  But the important thing here is his goal for the pick.  It was a pretty modest one, right?  Not looking for sacks, touchdowns, or any kind of big plays.  Just a guy who can play the position with the technique you want.  Make no mistake, Pioli thought he was playing it safe with the Tin Man.  The results haven’t been what we’d like, but that isn’t because our GM was taking wild risks.  That pick was anything but. 

Eric Berry, to me, was the safest of picks.  And I mean that in a strictly positive sense.  Safeties aren’t usually drafted high, but they can often come in and play right away.  Look no further than our fifth round pick, Kendrick “Louis” Lewis for evidence of that.  The guy was picked 136th and was immediately a starting caliber player.  That happens all the time with safeties.  I suspect this is because a safety’s responsibilities in the NFL are very similar to what they were in college, as opposed to linemen or skill players who are often entering a whole new world. 

I digress.  The Berry pick was nice-and-easy.  Russell Okung would’ve been considerably riskier.  Even from a fan reaction standpoint.  It was clear Berry was going to make some big plays and be a popular pick.  Safeties have every opportunity to do that.  Linemen don’t.  What if we’d picked picked Okung and he’d given up a few costly sacks?  Most fans only see linemen when they mess up.  If Pioli wanted to give the fans something to cheer, Berry was the obvious pick.

I’m not saying Pioli considered that, mind you.  Not consciously, anyway.  But he had to have known how the Jackson pick was viewed.  Not just by the fans, but by the media and the rest of the NFL.  That pick was pretty universally panned.  One thing he could be sure of is that the reaction to Berry would be nothing like that.  Yes, it was early, but everyone loved Berry.  There was zero chance of Pioli ending up with egg on his face. 

Our GM gave us a sizable hint when he admitted to not being a risk taker lo those many moons ago.  The question we need to ask ourselves is, which of the players available to us at #21 will be the safest?  I hate to say it, but I don’t think that’s Phil Taylor.  I’d like to see us take Taylor for a variety of reasons.  Double D would jump for joy, Merlin would have a meltdown, and we’d finally have a nose tackle. 

It’d be a fun ride, I just don’t think its very likely.  Taylor is many things, but unfortunately a safe pick isn’t one of them.  Akeem Ayers or Derek Sherrod is much more likely in my opinion.  Neither of those guys are exciting picks, but both should be able to come in and improve our team somewhere.  At #21, I think that’s all Pioli is looking to do.  That and stockpile those precious intangibles.  If there was a Mike Vrabel clone in this draft we’d probably trade up to get him. 

note: Just for the record, my preference would be for Pioli to pick Taylor because I think it would be by far the most interesting pick.  But if I was making the pick myself, I’d take Gabe Carimi.  It’s easy to wish for another man to roll the dice, harder to roll those dice yourself. 

note, part deux: I’ll be covering the draft Thursday and Friday.  I think its hilarious the NFL has issued me press credentials when the team I cover wouldn’t even let me have one of those bricks with my name on it.  But regardless, it should be a fun time.  I look like a total pervert in my press headshot. 

Eric Berry made the Pro Bowl as a rookie for the Chiefs

When the Kansas City Chiefs selected S Eric Berry with the 5th pick overall in the 2010 NFL Draft, the response from Chiefs fans was overwhelmingly positive. Berry was predicted to be one of the best safety prospects to come out of college in a long time and most fans of the Chiefs were still having violent nightmares involving Mike Brown.

Still, I remember in the months leading up to the draft, there was much debate over whether Berry was the right pick for KC. The team was coming off a terrible 4-12 season and seemed to have giant holes at just about every position. The main point of debate wasn’t so much whether Berry would be good, most everyone seemed to agree he would be outstanding, but whether or not taking a safety with the 5th pick in the draft would present the most value for the Chiefs.

Most analysts thought the Chiefs would make a safe pick. The general consensus seemed to be that OT was the safest move that KC could make. Then a quote from Chiefs GM Scott Pioli was “mentioned” by his good friend, Atlanta Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff.  Dimitroff mentioned that he had a conversation with Pioli and that he told the Chiefs GM that Eric Berry was the pick KC should make. Dimitroff then said that Pioli said “you know how I feel about taking a safety that high.”

Apparently he felt pretty good about it.

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Say what you want about Kansas City Chiefs coach Todd Haley but he appears to have his players committed to the football team.

Pro Bowl safety Eric Berry told the Kansas City Star that the players already have plans to meet in early April if the owners lock them out.

“We’ll probably move toward something like that, just to make sure we’re all in accord,” Berry told the Star. “Our goal is to come out ahead. I’ve been talking to everybody in the off-season. They’re pretty much ready to go. Everyone’s been working out and getting ready for this upcoming season. We don’t know when it’s going to start but I’m pretty sure the Chiefs are going to be ready.”

That is certainly encouraging to hear. While the players want to stay united int he case of a lockout, it is pretty cool that KC’s players plan to still be focusing on football. If they manage to stay sharp, it could give them a huge early season advantage over other teams who may not have practiced as much.

“We will have to get the people together,” RB Jamaal Charles told the Star.

Looks like a star on defense and a star on offense are becoming leaders of this football team. It is safe to say that the future is bright in Kansas City. Lockout or no lockout.

Source: Arrowhead Addict-Patrick Allen

We continue our evaluation of the Kansas City Chiefs roster by going back to the defensive side of the ball to look at Eric Berry.

The #5 overall pick came into the season with very high expectations from Chiefs Nation. As early as the preseason it was obvious that Berry had all the tools to be a very special player. He seemed to be all over the field, almost as if he was going at a different speed than everyone else.

The season began and the early reviews for Berry were mixed. He would be playing very well at one moment but then the next he would be making classic rookie mistakes. Berry seemed to excel in his run defense but his pass coverage left a lot to be desired. In the first quarter of the season Berry was burned in coverage on more than one occasion and his mistakes were reflected in his early season grades at Pro Football Focus.

As the season wore on, however, Berry seemed to settle down and he was making the highlights more often for making plays than making mistakes. When it was all said and done, Berry finished the season with 92 tackles, four interceptions, one forced fumble, two sacks and a TD. The rookie defended nine passes and racked up 102 interception return yards. Berry ended his season with a trip to the Pro Bowl.

Now that we’ve got the basics out of the way, let’s go deeper with Pro Football Focus.

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So here I was, all ready to dissect the shocking, fifth-round-fortune-shaping impact of the recent Kansas City Chiefs-Detroit Lions tampering scandal, when I realized: hey, it’s Oscar Week. And three weeks after the Super Bowl and seven weeks after the Chiefs’ last game,* it’s at least a mild comfort to once again have an over-hyped contest to watch on TV come Sunday, perfect for side bets and drinking games.

*It was an honor just being nominated. Oh, bullshit.

But I can understand if red-carpet cocktails and Oscar pools aren’t exactly any kind of substitute for pre-game tailgating and fantasy team-tracking. So in an attempt to bridge the divide, I went ahead and devised this quick quiz for your amusement.*

*What, you’d rather read more about the CBA?

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Just when you thought most of the football awards and accolades were all handed out, the Kansas City Chiefs have got just a few more to award.

The team gave out it’s annual awards today. These awards are voted on by the players so I always find it interesting to see who they choose for each honor.

The first honor is the Derrick Thomas MVP award and that went to RB Jamaal Charles for the second straight season. Can’t say I’d argue with that one.

The second honor is the teams Mack Lee Hill Rookie of the Year award and that went to S Eric Berry. Berry had an excellent rookie season and as Josh Looney of KCChiefs pointed out, was the first KC rookie since Derrick Thomas to be selected to the Pro Bowl.

The Chiefs have plenty of holes that still need filling but whenever I think of young starts like Charles and Berry I realize just how bright the future might be for out Kansas City Chiefs.

"Hey Tyson, Matt Finucane, Arrowhead Addict. So how fat do you plan on getting next year?"

My initial intention was to give Pioli a grade like everyone else. However, I quickly realized any letter I assigned him would be completely arbitrary. As I’ve said, I’m inclined to give him more credit than Todd Haley for our turnaround. But that’s more a reflection of my feelings on Haley than Pioli. Haley may turn out to be a good coach, but a master architect he is most definitely not. If he were in charge his first order of business would probably be to extend Thom Jones’ contract.

People have been heaping praise on Scott Pioli from the second he got here.  He was immediately declared a personnel genius.  His drafting, which none of us knew anything about beforehand, was proclaimed a specialty.  His approval rating on Arrowheadpride has always been ridiculously high.  Hell, on this very site last week one of our commenters said Pioli “won 3 Super Bowls.” 

It’s hard for me to know which way to lean on this.  On a personal level, I don’t like Pioli.  The secrecy, the arrogance, The Patriot Way, it all rubs me wrong.  And yet here we are, back to respectability just 2 years after Herm and Carl (The Lie Guys) did their best to flush our reputation down the turlet.  Surely someone deserves credit for that.  If not Pioli, I’m having a hard time thinking of who that someone should be. 

more after the jump:

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Though the Kansas City Chiefs had some pretty good rookies playing in 2010, Sam Bradord of the St. Louis Rams and Ndamukong Suh won the offensive and defensive Rookie of the Year awards respectively. The awards are given out by a 50-person panel of Associated Press members.

The The only candidate for the Chiefs that would have had a shot at Rookie of the Year honors is Eric Berry, who made the Pro Bowl in his first season. Berry had 92 tackles, 2 sacks a forced fumble and 2 interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown.

Suh, however, was simply dominate. The rookie DT had 66 tackles, 10 sacks and 1 interception. He was a dominate and disruptive force all season long and is pretty deserving of this award.

It is safe to say that Suh and Berry have very bright futures and could find themselves collecting many awards in the future.

Eric Berry has launched a website and he wants to know wuzzham with you.

Wait? What? Wuzzham?

At first I thought that Berry didn’t know how to spell and was trying to ask what ham was but then I realized I am just not really that hip and that wuzzham is slang.

You see folks, Eric Berry has invented a word, a slang term that can mean “what’s up” and “that’s cool.”

A couple of weeks ago, Berry took to Twitter and he and many of his followers were trying to spread the wuzzham hype. I thought that might be the end of it, that Berry was just leading a momentary practical joke on Twitter but I was evidently wrong. Berry really does want wuzzham to take off. He wants it so badly that he launched a freaking website and is selling t-shirts.

This in an effort to support Chiefs players in any endeavor that is not of the Ben Roethlisberger rapist variety, I’m declaring today Wuzzham Friday at Arrowhead Addict. All comments left on AA today should have wuzzham in them somewhere.

Why the hell not, right? Wuzzham with all of you today?

Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry is in Hawaii for his first Pro Bowl game and he managed to find himself some KC fans along the way. Looks like the lucky fans had a KC football with them that Berry signed for them. If Mr. Berry reads this, he can send me one while he is at it.

Berry tweeted the photo shown above. Pretty cool to see that Chiefs Nation extends all the way to Hawaii.

Many Kansas City Chiefs fans woke up yesterday morning and were greeted with the good news that two more members of their team were selected to the Pro Bowl. Tamba Hali and Eric Berry were added to the AFC roster when the Steelers advanced to the Super Bowl, meaning that Troy Polamalu and James Harrison would not be able to participate.

Hali making the Pro Bowl is widely viewed as justice being served after he finished the season second in the NFL and first in the AFC with 14.5 sacks. Berry on the other hand has been met with mixed reviews. Don’t get me wrong, I think all Chiefs fans are happy for Berry and think he is going to be a star. However, when you say someone is “going to be” something it implies that they aren’t there yet. I think the number one complaint is that Berry was too weak in coverage to really warrant making the Pro Bowl.

After the break I’ll explain why this Armchair Addict thinks that Berry not only deserves the honor this season but has a chance to be one of the best safeties in the entire NFL very soon.

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Aloha Stadium in Honolulu, site of the 2011 Pro Bowl: "Aloha" has many meanings, including "Hello," "Goodbye," "I Love You," and "What the $%&, Ref?? You Call THAT Pass Interference?!?"

It’s the end of January and the Kansas City Chiefs—six five of them!—are still playing. That is something to celebrate, and more importantly, something to watch. It will be great to see Jamaal Charles et. al. back in uniform on my TV, and not just on the faces of random strangers.

Now, as I may have hinted at last week, I’m not normally a fan of the Pro Bowl, if you define “fan” as “someone who is aware that the game is on while the game is actually still on.” I mean, it’s hard to accept the claim that the Pro Bowl only features the best of the best of the best of the NFL, when exceptions are made for those players who are:

a) Even the slightest bit injured.
b) Faking injury.
c) Skipping the game because they would rather stay home and pout, without even bothering to fake injury.
d) Actually playing for either of the two best teams in the NFL.

And, as you all probably also know, there are special regulations for the Pro Bowl:

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After Matt Cassel, Jamaal Charles, Brian Waters and Dwayne Bowe got nominated to this year’s NFL Pro Bowl, the Kansas City Chiefs defense finally got their due when OLB Tamba Hali and S Eric Berry were named as replacements for Troy Polamalu and James Harrison.

With the Pro Bowl now being played the week before the Super Bowl instead of after, qualifying players on the championship teams have to bow out in order to play in the big game. Thus when the Steelers won the AFC Championship last night, two Kansas City Chiefs were next in line.

For Hali, he gets the Pro Bowl birth many thought he deserved the first time around. Tamba was second in the NFL in sacks this season with 14.5 sacks. He also added 52 tackles and 4 forced fumbles for his best season as a pro.

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The Kansas City Chiefs had a magical turnaround season and although it didn’t end in the hoisting of the Lombardi Trophy, the organization and it’s players are still being recognized for their achievements in 2010.

The Pro Football Writers of America have released their list of yearly honors and three Chiefs are taking home some hardware.

Chiefs General Manager Scott Pioli was named NFL Executive of the Year. This is the 5th time Pioli has received this honor (3rd by the PFW). Pioli did a fantastic job in last offseason, bringing in key veterans like Ryan Lilja and Thomas Jones while also drafting the leagues most dynamic and effective draft class.

RB Jamaal Charles was selected to the All-NFL team. He joins Texans runningback Arian Foster as the only two backs chosen.

Lastly, rookie Eric Berry was selected for the PFW All-Rookie team.

Congratulations to Scott, Jamaal and Eric and here’s hoping even more Chiefs receive awards when the Associated Press released their hardware next week.

The Kansas City Chiefs had an excellent draft class in 2010 but a majority of their success in 2010 can be attributed to the development of their own players.

The Chiefs had multiple holes to fill entering the 2010 season and they were relying on many of those holes to be filled by the same guys who were part of the team’s 4-12 2009 season.

The development of players like Dwayne Bowe, Matt Cassel, Jovan Belcher, Brandon Flowers, Brandon Carr, Glenn Dorsey, Jamaal Charles, Barry Richardson and Branden Albert were all keys to KC’s 2010 run.

Now the players I mentioned above all had varying degrees of success and development but it can’t be argued that all of them didn’t improve at least a little bit.

After the jump, we’ll take a look at the players the Chiefs need to develop or continue to develop to get themselves through a rough schedule next season.

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Don't let the playoff loss get you down. Source: Rich Sugg/kansascity.com

For the second straight week the Kansas City Chiefs were destroyed on their home field. Last week the Chiefs could use the excuse that they already had the AFC West (and the playoffs) locked up. This week there are no excuses. Baltimore walked into Arrowhead and proved beyond any doubt that they were the better team.

As Kansas City Chiefs fans, many of us had held out hope that the Chiefs would prove the pundits wrong and bounce the more experienced Ravens from the playoffs. After the 30-7 blowout many of us felt like the guy in the picture above. As the dust settles we are beginning to start the process of appreciating the Chiefs’ turnaround season.

Popular “pick me ups” include:

“We won as many games this season as we had the previous three years combined.”

“Not even most die hard Chiefs fans thought we’d break .500 this year, yet alone win the division.”

I could go on, but you get the picture.

I’m here to tell you that the reason for optimism goes beyond that. After the jump I’ll explain to you why the Chiefs have the 10 most important pieces of a Super Bowl winning team already in place.

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Today is Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry’s birthday. Here he is showing off his favorite present.

Go Chiefs! AFC West division champions!

Source: Arrowhead Addict-Parick Allen

Kansas City Chiefs rookie safety Eric Berry has been nominated for the Pepsi Rookie of the Week award.

This is the fifth time Berry has been nominated for the award, though he has yet to win it.

He’ll have some stiff competition this week as he’ll go up against popular Denver Broncos QB Tim Tebow, who threw for 308 yards and a touchdown against the Houston Texans.

Other rookies in the mix this week are QB Sam Bradford of the St. Louis Rams, Joe Haden of the Cleveland Browns and QB Joe Webb of the Minnesota Vikings.

If Tebow or Berry don’t get it there is a good chance Haden will. The Browns CB racked up 5 tackles, a forced fumble, a sack and an interception against the Baltimore Ravens. Not a bad days work, eh?

Anyway, head over to NFL.com and vote for Eric Berry. Remember you can vote as many times as you like until Friday.

After you do that, check out this interview with Berry just about an hour before he was drafted by the Chiefs. He talks a little bit about Tim Tebow and some guy named Patrick Allen from Arrowhead Addict tells him he wants to see him in red and gold.

The Kansas City Chiefs clinched the AFC West title on Sunday and as the celebration stretched into Monday, we forgot to hand out arrowheads for the performance against the Titans.

Since the Chiefs didn’t clinch until after the Bengals beat the Chargers Sunday it was kind of easy to forget how important it was that the Chiefs took care of their business. Prior to last weekend’s games I had had a couple of nightmares where the Chargers lost but the Chiefs choked in Tennessee, throwing away their chance to take the AFC West. Thankfully that didn’t happen.

The Chiefs looked like a team determined to enter the post season on Sunday, in fact, they looked like a team determined to win in the post season.There were tremendous efforts all over the place for KC so lets get on with handing out the hardware.

Offense:

Matt Cassel

If Cassel had played as well in September and October as he has in November and December he would be giving Tom Brady a run for his MVP money. I still think you could argue that Cassel is at least as valuable to the Chiefs as Brady is to the Patriots. No Cassel = no winning.

Anyway, who cares. Cassel is playing lights out and the Chiefs are going to the playoffs!

Jamaal Charles

Showed his versatility by doing most of his damage through the air as a receiver Sunday. The Chiefs also smartly sat him down once the game was in hand, allowing the star RB to rest and avoid injury. I don’t imagine we will see a whole lot of Charles on Sunday. He’ll play but if the Chiefs can nab a quick lead expect to find him on the bench preparing to torch the NY Jets defense.

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I gotta think at least part of him knows how funny this pic is (source: sportsgrindent.com)

I rose from my post-game coma, and the Chiefs were in the playoffs.  Unless I’m ever woken up by a nude Katy Perry bringing me a Long John Silvers breakfast in bed, that will probably go down as the coolest wake up of my life. 

It feels like we all had a hand in this.  Like its something we’ve all been working towards for years.  And in a way, I guess we have.  We toil during the week so we can spend our Sundays as we will (watching football and worshipping vengeful deities).  And we’ve endured countless losses and endless ridicule on those Sundays in the hopes that one day wins would come.  Now they have, and its time to bask in it.   If anyone has earned that right, we have.

For me, said basking will take the form of having ink etched into my skin.  I made that promise, and I intend to keep it.  I wanted to go to Freaks on 39th, where my LOTR tat (Elvish writing is the ultimate aphrodisiac) was masterfully applied.  But they were closed, as was their Broadway counterpart.  My flight was at 5am this morning, so it appears my homage to the 2010 season will have to be done by a Brooklyn artist.  I’m not thrilled about that, particularly since my current city of residence will likely become enemy territory in about a week.  I’ll have to make sure whoever does it isn’t a Jets fan.  And if they are, I go to the restroom and pee on their toilet paper.  Guerrilla warfare baby!

Further ruminations from your boy Big Matt after the jump:

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The Kansas City Chiefs played so badly as a team yesterday it is darn near impossible to find a single player who performed well.

I did, however, manage to find a couple of guys worthy of an Arrowhead for their play in San Diego.

Jamaal Charles

Charles didn’t make much of a difference Sunday but he didn’t play poorly. He carried 10 times for 40 yards. Despite the Chargers stacking the box, horribly unimaginative play calling, no passing game and horrific offensive line play, Charles still managed to average 4 yards per carry. The kid is simply amazing. Don’t worry about Jamaal. He’ll be just fine.

What I like the most about Charles is that he was ticked off about how he played after the game. Even though there wasn’t much more he could have done in this type of game, Charles felt like he had let the team down and that he didn’t live up to the contract he had signed the day before. Jamaal is definitely part of the right 53.

More…just a few…after the jump.

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