Dec 16, 2012; Houston, TX, USA; Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (12) drops back to pass against the Houston Texans during the second quarter at Reliant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Campbell-USA TODAY Sports

If you have tuned in to a NFL game this season and was taken-aback by a pair of shaven-headed cheerleaders wearing wrist bands with the words ChuckStrong* printed on them, then you have watched an Indianapolis Colts game. And it’s not only the team’s commitment to their leukemia-battling head coach, Chuck Pagano, which is strong; it’s their record as well.

*New LiveStrong perhaps?

The Colts enter Arrowhead on Sunday with a 9-5 record, 2^nd in the AFC South, and with a chance to clinch a wild card playoff spot with a win. They are outperforming their Pythagorean expectation, or expected wins/losses – measured using points scored and points allowed and have the Colts at closer to a six win team then a nine win team – which means they are dynamite in close games. With so much to play for in this uplifting and inspirational story in Indianapolis, the Colts are looking to put the finishing touches on their playoff doubts and a whooping on the hapless Chiefs.

Offense

I’m not going to beat around the bush: I love Andrew Luck as a player. Should he be NFL Rookie of the Year? No. Robert Griffin III should run away with that one. Would I promise to name all of my henceforth lineage after him if he somehow defected and became a Chief? Without a doubt. He might still be going through rookie growing pains, but he is running an offense most offensive coordinators wouldn’t dream trying to implement to a quarterback until at least their third year. With just 22 passing yards on Sunday, Luck will pass the 4,000 yard threshold. Additionally, he has 20 TDs compared to 18 INTs (which is why I think it would be a mistake to award him ROTY over RGIII) while completing 54.6% of his passes.*

*Amazingly even lower than Mark Sanchez’s 54.8 completion percentage.

A real struggle for the Colts has been their rushing offense, having a committee approach (Chiefs 2011) to the position between Vick Ballard, Donald Brown, and Delone Carter. Ballard, the rookie 5^th round pick out of Mississippi State, leads the squad with 667 rushing yards, with Andrew Luck leads the team in rushing scores with 5 (he also has 233 rushing yards).*

*Which means Luck has more rushing yards and TDs than Peyton Hillis …

For receivers, Luck has found a favorite target in Reggie Wayne, having a renaissance of a season with 97 catches, 1,234 yards, and 4 TDs. Donnie Avery, the free agent acquisition, and T.Y. Hilton, the 2012 3^rd round pick from Florida International, round out the top three with both having over 700 yards catching. For tight ends, a pair of rookies makes up that group with 2^nd round pick and former Stanford teammate of Luck’s, Coby Fleener, and Dwayne Allen, the 2012 3^rd round pick out of Clemson who occasionally comes in as a full back. Allen has 482 yards and 3 TDs while Fleener, battling injuries this season, only has 278 receiving yards and 1 TD.*

*Better than Jon Baldwin’s numbers.

For the offensive line, the Colts have the 25^th best (or worst) run blocking and 22^nd best pass protection unit according to Football Outsiders; which isn’t good. Injuries have forced a lot of guys to be thrown in the fire, but I’m not sure if their backups are all that much worse than their starters at this point. From left to right: Anthony Castonzo, the Colts 2011 first round pick; Joe Reitz, who was born in Indy; Samson Satele, a second round pick by the Dolphins in 2007 who was traded to the Raiders after just one season; Mike McGlynn, a free agent signing of this offseason; and Winston Justice, because it’s hard to be a right tackle in this league without having Winston in your name.

On the season, the Colts are 8^th in passing yards per game (267.6) and 21^st in rushing yards per game (107.1).

Defense

When Pagano came over from the Ravens, he brought in a different defensive scheme than had been used previously under the Tony Dungy coaching tree. Out went the 4-3; in came the 3-4. And one of the first questions that was asked was: how are Robert Mathis and Dwight Freeney going to fit into this? Freeney, a 7x Pro Bowler, and Mathis, a 4x Pro Bowler, were the identity of the defense from the defensive end positions. Well, much like how Tamba Hali made the switch from DE to OLB under Romeo Crennel, Mathis and Freeney have fit right in. They’ve combined for another 11 sacks while continuing to grow in this new defensive system.

For the rest of the linebacking unit, Jerrell Freeman* leads the team with 125 tackles while the guy beside him, Kavell Conner, is a distant third on the team with 54. For the defensive line, Cory Redding, Antonio Johnson, and Clifton Geathers** make up the unit.

*Originally an undrafted free agent in 2008, Freeman spent three seasons in the CFL with the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

**Brother of Bengals defensive end Robert Geathers.

In the defensive backfield, the Colts have Vontae Davis and Darius Butler at the corner positions. If you are a fan of the HBO football series, Hard Knocks, then you should be familiar with the scene of Dolphins GM Jeff Ireland explaining to Davis that he had been traded to the Colts. Davis, the former first round draft pick in 2009 out of Illinois, was traded for a second round pick. Well, Davis hasn’t exactly wowed anyone, having no interceptions on the year. But as bad as the Colts defense is now, without Davis the Colts might not be looking to clinch a playoff berth this weekend. As far as the rest of the backfield is concerned, underrated free safety Antoine Bethea* has 89 tackles and 2 sacks while the strong safety, Tom Zbikowski, who followed Pagano this offseason to Indy, has 38 tackles and an interception.

*A two-time Pro Bowler.

With none of the statistics I included above wowed you, that’s probably because the Colts are 21^st in passing yards allowed per game (241.6) and 23^rd in rushing yards allowed per game (124.7).

Well, Chiefs fans, today is Valentine’s Day, and that means only one thing: margaritas.

However, while it might be our tradition to spend every Valentine’s Night at a Mexican restaurant (the tacky-red-paper-hearts-per-person quotient is much lower), I realize everyone approaches this fake holiday in his or her own special way. Even back in third grade—which, frankly, is where the celebration of this day should begin and end—when societal norms and, more specifically, Mrs. Brockmeyer demanded that we give paper valentines to everyone in class, we had to decide which valentines best represented us, as well as which of our secret crushes would receive the more risqué—and risky—messages.*

*Was “You rock, Valentine!” coming on way too strong?

Just as a set of perforated Transformers valentines (“Let’s roll, Valentine! You’re a Mega Friend!”) perfectly represented who I was back in 1984, today’s Kansas City Chiefs fans need valentines that speak to us, that capture the angst and occasional joy of this tumultuous relationship in which we’ve entangled ourselves. And among all the boxes of Harry Potter, Shrek, and Smurfs valentines at the local CVS, I couldn’t find any. So—you can guess what’s coming next—I had no choice but to make a few of my own.

Feel free to print, perforate, and share as you wish. Perhaps—just like the Indianapolis Colts on draft day—you’ll get lucky.

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“This, then, is the mark of the man, the beard. By this, he is seen to be a man. It is older than Eve. It is the token of the superior nature… It is therefore unholy to desecrate the symbol of manhood, hairiness.”

— St. Clement of Alexandria, circa 180

After the Kansas City Chiefs came back from 17 down to notch their first-ever win in Indianapolis two weeks ago, Head Coach Todd Haley declared to the world (or, at least, to a glaringly lit room full of sports reporters) that he would ne’er desecrate his symbol of manhood so long as his team continued to reap victories on the football field. “As long as we’re winnin’, I’m not shavin’,” he said of his decision, supposedly made during the game in San Diego.

I’ll be honest—I didn’t really believe Haley at the time; it seemed like this could be another one of his, you know, jokes.* But when he emerged before Sunday’s game against the Raiders, it was clear: the man ain’t shavin’. Nor, it would appear, is he bathing, at least not effectively, or changing or washing his nasty off-red cap and hooded velvet man-blouse, which over the last few weeks has turned from a dark gray to a splotchy black.

*Like the one time two times he put Jamaal Charles behind Thomas Jones on the depth chart. That was hilarious!

But the accoutrements of genius will always look like signs of madness to the unqualified eye, just as credit and blame are often a function of who’s doing the assigning. In the last several days, some of Haley’s decisions over the past couple of years—such as who to bench, and when—have inspired a few rounds of the passionate, highly confrontational, and only vaguely mean-spirited debate that the devotees of this site can take pride in. But aside from the effect of Haley’s direct interventions in the playing time of LJ, DJ, and JC, for example, let’s look at the coach’s repertoire of general-purpose motivational devices:

• Dividing the season into “manageable” quarters
• Liberal use of obscenities
• Yelling at players
• Starting sideline fights with quarterback, receivers, and/or others as needed
• Turning routine post-game handshakes into newsworthy morsels for the media
• Introducing bean-bag games—the kind normally played by senior citizens or drunken tailgaters*—into the locker room

And now…

• Not shaving, bathing, or doing laundry

*Or drunken senior citizens, who may or may not be tailgating

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Yeah, Kelly Gregg played out of his mind Sunday.

Each and every week we take you Inside the Numbers of the previous Chiefs game by breaking down the team’s significant grades from Pro Football Focus.

We’ve been doing this for a while but just in case you are new, PFF grades every player on every play of every game all season long. They assign players a grade for each play, from -2.0 (the worst) to +2.0 (the best). Keep in mind that to get a positive grade, a player has to do something extra or more than he is expected to do. To get a negative grade, a player has to fail at his assigned task. Thus, most players grade at a 0.0 for each play. Only when they do something good or bad, do they get a + or -. This is why PFF is a really great barometer for measuring how good a player is because it measures consistency.You might remember a player for making one big play and thus conclude that he had a great game. But what about the other 60 or 70 plays? That is where PFF comes in.

How did Tyson Jackson follow up on his solid effort a week ago? How good was Jackie Battle?

Let’s go Inside the Numbers!

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The Kansas City chiefs came back from 17 down to beat the Indianapolis Colts in a thriller.

We’ll have much more later today but see below to catch up on all of Arrowhead Addict’s post-game coverage.

Chiefs Beat Colts 28-24

Dwayne Bowe One-Handed Catch vs. Colts

Chiefs vs. Colts: Who Gets Your Game Ball?

AA Radio, Episode 9

God Mode

Chiefs Coach Todd Haley Not Shaving Until Team Loses

Todd Haley might want to give the game ball to Jackie Battle after he revived the KC running game.

The Kansas City Chiefs came back after being down 17-0 to beat the Indianapolis Colts 28-24. It was truly a team effort with the offense leading the way.

It really isn’t fair to give out just one but hell, it will be fun. Who gets your game ball for today’s win?

The Kansas City Chiefs have won their second game in a row by defeating the Indianapolis Colts 28-24 Sunday. Join AA’s Patrick Allen as he breaks down the victory in episode 9 of AA Radio.

In a game that looked to be a blowout, the Kansas City Chiefs came back after being down 17-0 to defeat the Indianapolis Colts 28-24.

There were a lot of stars in this game but Matt Cassel, Dwayne Bowe, Steve Breaston and Jackie Battle led the way. Bowe put on a WR clinic. Breaston was as clutch as they come and scored two TDs. Matt Cassel threw four TD passes and Jackie Battle rushed for 121 yards on 19 carries.

We’ll have more later but for now, let’s celebrate. Who is your player of the game?

The game is still going on but if the Kansas City Chiefs come back to defeat the Indianapolis Colts, this catch by Dwayne Bowe will be remembered as being a huge part of the victory.

Just extraordinary.

The Kansas City Chiefs look to get a little winning streak going today by snagging their second win of the season in Indianapolis.

We discovered earlier that WR Jonathan Baldwin will not play but there are still plenty of intriguing storylines to follow.

-Can Matt Cassel follow up on his solid second half vs. the Vikings?

-How much will we see of RB Jackie Battle?

-In what quarter will offensive coordinator Bill Muir nod off in the booth? (I’ve got ten on midway through the third).

Talk about all that and more LIVE with the AA staff in our live game thread.

Let’s go Chiefs!

The Kansas City Chiefs will look for their second win of the 2011 NFL season today when they face off against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium.

How is it going to shake out? The Arrowhead Addict staff goes on the record with their predictions for today’s game.

Patrick Allen

Chiefs 30, Colts 16

I think today is the day the chains come off the Chiefs offense. I’m not sure if it has been the play calling or if Matt Cassel has just been looking for one option and then checking down but I think the second half of last week’s game will have given the coaches and Cassel the confidence that will lead to an offensive explosion. Look for the Chiefs to be aggressive throwing to Bowe, Beaston and hopefully Baldwin. KC’s best offensive weapons are now in the passing game and not the running game. We’ll see a new Chiefs offense today.

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The Kansas City Chiefs absolutely have to get a road win today over the Indianapolis Colts if they hope to climb back into the race in the AFC West.

Here are five things I think the good guys need to do if they are to keep the Colts winless.

1. Live by the pass, die by the pass

Matt Cassel has been less than stellar this season but he showed last week that he still has the ability to make plays through the air. If he can carry that momentum into this week’s game, the Chiefs should be able to move the football through the air. Dwayne Bowe and Steve Breaston have shown themselves to be effective weapons. If Jonathan Baldwin gets on the field today then there is no doubt the Chiefs will have favorable match up in the passing game. If KC can be bold and Matt Cassel can play well, the Chiefs’ offense could look better today than it has all season.

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Any team that is starting out 0-3 in the NFL is not in their ideal situation. The situation gets even worse when you are the defending division champions like our beloved Kansas City Chiefs.

This is the position the Chiefs found themselves in going into week 4 against the Minnesota Vickoings.  After three weeks of disappointment, Kansas City saw the Chiefs defeat the underachieving Vikings for their first win of the season. The fans did not immediately jump back on the bandwagon, and I don’t expect them too, but it is safe to say some people began to feel cautiously optimistic again.

While it was great to get that first W of the year last week, in my mind week 5 is a must-win game. The Chiefs will go to Indianapolis and face a Colts team without all world quarterback Peyton Manning.

Read more after the jump to see why this is a must-win game and what the Chiefs need to do to enter the bye week with 2-3 record, and more importantly a two-game winning streak.

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Every week we go Inside the Enemy Camp and speak with the blogger who covers the next victim opponent of the Kansas City Chiefs.

This week I sat down with Adam Hughes of Naptown’s Finest, FanSided’s Indianapolis Colts blog. Adam just took over the site this year and the Colts thanked him by starting the season 0-4. There is a lot of turmoil in Indy these days without Peyton Manning behind center. Find out what is going on from a Colts fan’s perspective as we go Inside the Enemy Camp!

What do you think of Painter? Would you rather see him take the reins the rest of the way instead of Old Man Collins?

I was really happy with the Collins signing when it happened, thinking that it gave the Colts their best chance to win without Manning.  Now, though, the combination of Collins’ age and the Colts’ young (and injured) offensive line makes him a sitting duck.  It’s pretty clear that the Colts aren’t going to do much this year without Manning, and Collins only stands to get beat up more if he continues to be planted in the pocket.

With that background, I think now is the time to give Painter an extended look.  I’m one of those Colts fans who ridiculed Painter’s play over the past few years, but the team has stood by him through all the embarrassing play.  Hopefully, Painter will show decisively that he can be a long-term answer as a backup or that he’s not cut out for the NFL.  After one-plus games, it honestly looks like he might be OK.

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The Kansas City Chiefs will try to get their second win of the season Sunday when they travel to Indy to take on the Colts.

Here is some really great analysis on Sunday’s game from NFL Network.

If you haven’t heard yet, teams other than the Kansas City Chiefs are picking in the 2011 NFL Draft.  In fact, those teams play a very important role in the Chiefs’ draft since the Chiefs don’t pick in the top 5 this year.  Who the 20 teams before us pick can have a significant impact on who we draft.  So, for those wondering why I don’t think AJ Green or Julio Jones will be there for us at 21, take a look at one way I see the first round of the Draft going.
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Not Kansas City Chiefs related but still pretty big news nonetheless.

The Indianapolis Colts have released SS Bob Sanders.

This doesn’t come as a great shock but it is still crazy to think of a player with Sanders’ talents being a free agent. Sanders was a key reason the Colts won the Super Bowl during the 2006 season and he is a true difference maker when he is on the field.He was named the AP Defensive Player of the Year in 2007.

The key there being “when he is on the field.”

Sanders has been hampered by injuries his entire career. The Colts took him in the 2nd round in 2004 but he has played in only 9 games in the past 3 seasons.

Interesting to see where Sanders lands. Even with his injury issues someone is sure to take a chance on him. The Chiefs have Eric Berry and are pretty well set at safety so they aren’t likely to be players. Still, injury concerns or not, you have to hope Sanders doesn’t land in the AFC West.

What do you think Addicts? Where will Bob Sanders sign?

SourceL Yardbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs were one of the worst in the league last season at protecting the QB but now they are one of the best.

The best, in fact.

The next closest team to the Chiefs is the Colts. Peyton Manning, who is almost never sacked, has been brought down six times.

This morning I decided to take a look at just how much better the Chiefs were performing in the protection department. I compared Matt Cassel’s first five games of 2009 to his first five of 2010. The results were staggering.

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Grandmaster Kim taught the Chiefs pass rushers about hand to hand combat and how to get their man off balance.

Well check out this great Youtube video someone put together of Tamba’s performance against the Colts.

The Kansas City Chiefs continue to be the underdog despite having one of the best records in the NFL. Todd Haley’s team is currently being given five points by the wonderful folks in Vegas.

You can see the logic here. The Chiefs were considered to be a bad team so they were naturally underdogs, even at home, against the Chargers to open the season.

The next week they went on the road to face a Cleveland team that torched them on the ground just a few months earlier. They Chiefs won ugly.

In their third game, the Chiefs were underdogs at home against the 0-3 49ers. This one is a head scratcher. I guess the Cleveland win wasn’t as convincing for Vegas as the 49ers’ loss to the New Orleans Saints the same week.

The Chiefs covered the spread. And then some.

More after the jump.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

If the NFL teaches us one thing year in and year out it is that past success is not an indication of future sucess.

Unfortunately for the Kansas City Chiefs, Scott Pioli and Todd Haley, Matt Cassel’s successes in New England were not an indication of future sucess in Kansas City. And while Cassel’s struggles over his last 19 starts are not proof that he won’t suceed down the road, they are proof that he is not a good QB right now.

And that is a problem for the Kansas City Chiefs.

Matt Cassel apologists will jump all over this article. They will say I am being too hard on Cassel. They’ll say I am not giving him enough time. They’ll do what apologists and sycophants do; they’ll make excuses.

Before all the hate comes flying in let’s make one thing perfectly clear; no one in Kansas City wants Matt Cassel to fail. He is a great guy, he works hard and everybody likes him. Everyone, except maybe Brodie Croyle, is rooting for him.

 That should go without saying but the folks wearing the red and gold colored glasses will beg to differ. They can’t separate their love for their favorite team with what they are seeing on the field. They think just because the Chiefs are 3-1 and leading a horrible AFC West that it is foolish to complain. They spit venom when guys like Kent Babb, Jason Whitlock, Nick Wright and Sam Mellinger try to tell them the truth.

They spit venom at me.

“Wait till they lose before you start tearing down the team,” they told me after the Chiefs squeaked by the Cleveland Browns on the back of Brandon Flowers. “You just want to stir up controversy where there is none. We’re undefeated and Cassel is playing fine.”

It isn’t Cassel’s performance in the Colts game that is spurring this article and the other articles like it that will surly emerge today. It is about Cassel’s body of work since arriving in Kansas City.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs may have lost on Sunday to the Indianapolis Colts but there were still players who did a good job.

And they are earning their Arrowheads.

Let’s take a look at five Chiefs who earned their Arrowheads in the 19-9 loss.

1. Tamba Hali

Tamba, Tamba, Tamba. The heart of the Chiefs defense once again showed he is one of the best in the business. Hali was constantly putting pressure on Manning, eventually taking the QB down for a strip sack. Hali as usual, showed a lot of heart, playing with a busted chin and covered in his own blood, the Chiefs OLB never let up. He earned 2 arrowheads Sunday.

More after the jump.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

Even in a losing effort the Kansas City Chiefs defense showed Sunday that they are likely to give teams problems all year long.

It isn’t easy for the best defenses to slow down Peyton Manning but the Chiefs did just that in a 19-9 losing effort.

The Chiefs defense kept the heat on Manning all day holding the future hall of famer to under 250 yards passing, something no team has been able to do all season.

Manning finished the day 26 of 44 for 244 yards, 0 TD’s and 1 interception. He averaged only 5.5 yards per pass and had a QB rating of 65.0. He was sacked once.

The Chiefs also managed to shut down the Colts running game which was impressive given that the Colts came out determined to run the ball. The Colts rushed 31 times for only 97 yards and a 3.1 yards per carry average.

More after the jump.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs were defeated 19-9 by the Indianapolis Colts but the game was a lot closer than even the score indicates.

The surprising Chiefs showed the nation that they are for real by bringing the best defensive effort of any team all year against Peyton Manning.

In the end, however, it was four plays that doomed the Chiefs on the road. There is no doubt, had the Chiefs avoided these four mistakes, they would have had a much better chance of upsetting the Colts.

1. The first quarter failed fourth down conversion.

The Chiefs first offensive drive could have ended in points but a decision to go for it on fourth down, cost the Chiefs.

Kansas City moved down the field at will on the Colts defense, marching 73 yards on 15 plays but were stopped short on the Colts’ 8-yard line.

Facing 4th and 2, and trailing 3-0, the Chiefs decided to go for it on 4th down but failed, costing theselves a sure 3 points.

The other three plays after the jump.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs showed a lot of heart but in the end, fell to the Indianapolis Colts 19-9 for their first loss of the season.

Neither team could find the end zone until Mike Hart scored on an 11-yard run with 4:02 remaining in the fourth quarter. The lone Indianapolis touchdown proved to be the difference.

Matt Cassel lead the Chiefs offense down the field on a two minute drill but Ryan Succop failed to convert his fourth field goal of the game, enabling the Colts to run out the clock.

It was the Chiefs defense that stepped up, limiting the usually dangerous Manning to 244 yards and no touchdowns. Kansas City frustrated Manning all day but in the end, it was the offense that could not muster the fire power to keep pace with the Colts.

And the the blame is likely to fall on QB Matt Cassel.

Cassel was again uninspiring for the Chiefs, completing just 16 of 29 passes for 156 yards with no TD’s and no INT’s.

The Chiefs game plan seemed to suggest that the Chief’s had little to no confidence in Cassel as most of his passes were short dump offs or screens. Since the Chiefs failed to stretch the field, the Colts focused on stopping the run, holding the Chiefs to 113 yards on the ground which was their worst effort of the season.

Even with the loss, most Chiefs fans will find encouragement with the fight the team showed in Indy. Unfortunately, the blue print for beating the Chiefs is now drawn up.

Stop the run and make Matt Cassel beat you.

Until Cassel proves he can make defenses pay, the Chiefs will be vulnerable.

Source: Yardbarker.com

It is 9 AM here on the east coast. I am sitting here drinking my coffee, watching ESPN and thinking about today’s game.

The Chiefs are likely at the hotel engaging in a power breakfast. They’ll have different routines for getting ready for the game. Some will shut themselves away, earphones in listening to a mix designed to get them focused and pump them up.

Others, guys like Dwayne Bowe and Shaun Smith will work through their nerves with rambunctious behavior, clowning and general trash talking.

Matt Cassel is likely huddled at a table with Todd Haley, Charlie Weis, and Brodie Croyle. They’ll look over some last minute X’s and O’s and some snap shots of Indi’s various defensive formations.

Soon the first bus will come. This will be the ride for the specialists. They’ll hop on and head to Lucas Oil Stadium. Later, the rest of the team will join them.

Past that, nobody can predict what is going to happen this afternoon.

But let’s give it a shot anyway.

5 predictions after the jump.

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Keep it here at Arrowhead Addict for all your Chiefs needs. We’ll have our prediction thread coming up a little bit later as well as the game day inactives. We will also have our usual live game chat kicking off around 11:30 AM central.

Until then, here is your Morning Fix!

Clipped from: seattletimes.nwsource.com (share this clip)

There’s only one team in the league that’s still unbeaten, and that’s the Kansas City Chiefs, who just so happen to be one of the two largest underdogs in the NFL this weekend for their game at Indianapolis.

From seattletimes.nwsource.com (share this quote)

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Crennel could be the Chiefs' X-Factor Sunday in Indi. (source: yardbarker.com)

Kansas City Chiefs coach Romeo Crennel did a rare press interview this week and the subject of choice was Colts quarterback Peyton Manning.

Being that Crennel was the defensive coordinator in New England earlier in the decade during some of the epic Patriots/Colts battles, he is no stranger to preparing for a Manning led offense. The Patriots were 6-0 against the Colts during Crennel’s stint in New England.

Can he continue his success versus Manning with the Chiefs?

“I do not play one snap in the game,” Crennel told reporters. “I have not played one snap in ages. So I can’t make any plays, I can just try to get our guys to play hard and they’ve been playing hard so far and hopefully we’ll keep playing hard and doing the things the right way and we’ll see how it turns out.”

The Chiefs’ defense has shown immense improvement over their 2009 counterparts but Crennel knows they’ll have their hands full with Peyton Manning.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs have been fortunate this season, not just in their number of victories but on the injury front as well.

After 3 games, the Chiefs list only three players on their injury report. DE Tyson Jackson and RT Ryan O’Callaghan are both listed as questionable and safety Reshard Langford is doubtful.

My guess is Jackson will play and that O’Callaghan will be dressed but will back up Barry Richardson at RT. I feel like Richardson has played very well in stead of O’Callaghan and the Chiefs won’t want to mess with that. Richardson is young and has more upside. If he struggles, however, it will be nice t know O’Callaghan is available.

Colts injury reoprt after the jump.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs will certainly have their hands full this weekend when they travel to Indianapolis to take on Peyton Manning and the Colts.

All week we have been talking about the Chiefs chances.  Now I think we should get in to a little game planning. I won’t claim to know the intricacies surrounding the Chiefs’ defensive game plan for the Colts. There is obviously a lot of moving parts that we don’t know about but in general terms, there are two ways the Chiefs defense can attack the Colts.

Let’s take a look at the two basic strategies the Chiefs could use Sunday and then debate which we think will be the most effective given KC’s personnel.

1.  Attack

The age old theory is that you can’t stop the pass if you don’t get pressure on the QB. Give a QB too much time int he pocket and he will eventually find an open receiver.

 Give Peyton Manning too much time in the pocket and he will find the receiver, steal your wallet, give you a wedgie, shtoop your sister and film a cable comercial before you even know what happened.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs were so weak at safety in 2009 that they drafted both Eric Berry and Kendrick Lewis in April.

That spelled bad news for DaJuan Morgan.

Morgan, drafted by former Chiefs coach Herm Edwards, failed to make an impression on the new regime in 2009 or the 2010 offseason and as a result, he was cut, eventually landing in Indianapolis.

Now after a rash of injuries to the Colts secondary, Morgan is listed as their #1 SS.

What do you think Addicts? Will Morgan come back to haunt the Chiefs this Sunday?

Reality is chasing the Kansas City Chiefs.

Reality is chasing their fans.

Don’t look back.

When the 2010 NFL season began not even the most optimistic Chiefs fan could have predicted the team would start 3-0.

When I say “the most optimistic Chiefs fan” I’m not talking about crazy, delusional Chiefs fans like my buddy Casey who last season drunkenly declared during halftime of the Chiefs/Steelers game that if Kansas City pulled out the victory that he would celebrate by tattooing the teams logo on the underside of his forearm. After the game, when the Chiefs had emerged the victor my other buddy Marshall would not let Casey forget his declaration. By the time I got to the next bar where we were going to celebrate (victories were so rare the last three years that any win was worthy of a few more hours of drinking) Casey where nowhere to be found.

“Where is he,” I asked?

“At the tattoo parlor,” said Marshall.
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Source: Yardbarker.com

(Please excuse me for the brevity of this post, but I am in the middle of trial preparation).

While watching the Colts and Jaguars game I, (like you probably), could not help but feel torn.  I wasn’t really sure if I wanted the Colts to win or lose.  Did we want to face a confident and good Colts team heading into week five if they won, or did we want to face a good and angry Colts team in week five if they lost?

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Source: Yardbarker.com

Sunday’s game against the Colts is going to be one of the toughest tests the Kansas City Chiefs face all season. It won’t be easy to take down Peyton Manning in his own house but there are some things the Chiefs can do to improve their chances. Let’s take a look at five of them.

1. Slow Down Manning

Notice I didn’t say stop Manning. Stopping Manning isn’t really a possibility for any team.

If you look at Peyton’s numbers in the two Colts losses, they look pretty similar to his numbers in the two victories. Manning is going to get his yards and he is going to drive his team into scoring position. It is inevitable.

One thing the Chiefs defense can control is how the Colts get into scoring position. That means keeping the Colts receivers in front of them and not giving up the big play. The more FG’s the Chiefs can force the Colts to kick, the better.

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Source: yardbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs are 3-0, alone atop the AFC West, AFC Conference and NFL standings and are less than a week away from traveling to Indianapolis for what could be the most important game in franchise history.

Oh yes. It could be that big.

There is no more denying that the Chiefs are a better team. Significantly better.

The rest of the league may not be ready to believe it but anyone who has followed the Chiefs over the last three years knows a few things about the NFL that the analysts often forget.

No wins are easy in the NFL.

Chiefs fans know, perhaps better than any football fan in the country, the value of a victory.

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The Tennessean, citing unnamed sources, reported Monday that the Titans have agreed to a four-year deal with guard Jake Scott, who played the past four seasons for the Indianapolis Colts.

Scott, 26, started 55 straight games for Indianapolis. His new deal with the Titans will average $5 million per season, the Tennessean reported.

This takes another OL off the market for the Chiefs. After doing a five hour live blog (yeah, thats right, it was five hours) yesterday and talking with other Chief fans, I have concluded that the Chiefs have to at least sign one free agent offensive lineman. If we wait and think we can draft two to three OL starters, then the Chiefs are crazy. We need to at least bring in somebody with a chance to start so we do not handcuff ourselves on draft day. That will force us to reach the entire draft and we know what reaching does for you in the draft, just take a look at the Dick Vermeil drafts.