Adam Schefter of ESPN.com  is reporting that St. Louis Rams offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels is likely to return to the New England Patriots to take on the same post in 2012.

According to Schefter, the Patriots are going to hire McDaniels immediately as an offensive assistant and that he will coach for the Patriots in this year’s playoffs. This is possible because the St. Louis Rams told McDaniels that if he wished to leave the team that they would release him from his obligations at any time.

After the playoffs, McDaniels is expected to be promoted to offensive coordinator as current Patriots coordinator Bill O’Brien has accepted the head coaching job at Penn State.

Wow, talk about crazy times. I can’t remember a coach from an eliminated team ever jumping ship during the playoffs to coach for a team still in the hunt. Leave it to the Patriots.

With McDaniels likely off the market, the Chiefs will be searching elsewhere for their new offensive coordinator. Still, you have to believe that should McDaniels repair his reputation in New England that he could be a potential head coaching candidate for the Chiefs when the Romeo Crennel era is through.

The Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots have asked the St. Louis Rams for permission to speak to their offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, according to Bryan Burwell of Stltoday.com.

Burwell says there is no word on if the Rams gave the teams the OK to interview McDaniels.

As long as McDaniels is under contract with the Rams, any team wishing to interview him would need permission from St. Louis, otherwise they could be punished for tampering.

This report makes sense, especially considering the news that broke last night indicating that Patriots offensive coordinator Pat O’Brien will leave the NFL to be the new head coach at Penn State.

For McDaniels, both jobs should hold a certain amount of appeal. Going to New England would offer McDaniels a great chance to rebuild his reputation by joining back up with Tom Brady and Bill Belichick. In Kansas City, McDaniels would be reunited with Matt Cassel and while he might not have as easy a time making the Chiefs’ offense successful, he’d likely have a chance to slide into Kansas City’s head coaching job should Romeo Crennel retire after three or four years. This of course, is all dependent on Crennel landing the job.

Jason La Canfora of NFL.com is reporting that Denver Broncos offensive coordinator Mike McCoy could be a potential target to land the likely soon to be open offensive coordinator position in Kansas City.

From NFL.com:

The Kansas City Chiefs could pinpoint Denver Broncos Offensive Coordinator Mike McCoy as a possible coordinator/coach-in-waiting should they be unable to land Josh McDaniels from St. Louis, sources said. (According to league sources, the Rams would like to retain McDaniels as offensive coordinator to stay with Bradford.) McDaniels would be a candidate in Kansas City if Romeo Crennel is promoted as many expect, and New England coach Bill Belichick also would welcome him back if Patriots offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien departs for Penn State or the Kansas City opening himself.

I can buy this. McDaniels might be tough to get. Even if the Rams let him go, the Pats might swipe him away. Then again, if he thinks Scott Pioli plans to make him a head coach once Romeo Crennel retires, if Crennel is named head coach, then KC might be an attractive sport for McDaniels to land.

All of this is interesting but nothing can happen until the Chiefs decide for sure that Crennel is going to be their permanent head coach. I wouldn’t be shocked if we found something out by the end of this week.

The Kansas City Chiefs entered the 2011 season with what most considered to be a pretty high-powered offense.

The team was returning Matt Cassel, Tony Moeaki, Jamaal Charles and Dwayne Bowe and they had added Steve Breaston and Jonathan Baldwin.

Unfortunately, injuries and shoddy play calling led to the Chiefs having a unit that was amongst the worst in the league.

Some of the blame has to be put at the feet of offensive coordinator Bill Muir. Though the offense did appear to improve after Todd Haley left and Kyle Orton took over under center, KC still struggled to find the end zone.

According Jason La Canfora of NFL.com, Muir is likely to retire this offseason.

This is a move I expected. Muir has been coaching for 46 years and this was his 34th NFL season. Heck of a career for Muir, who is well respected around the league.

The leading candidate to replace Muir is St. Louis Rams offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels should he be relieved of his duties across the way.

What a season.

After last year’s turn around from 4-12 to 10-6 division champ, it’s not what we all would have wanted. That having been said, what record would you have predicted for KC if someone told you that Jamaal Charles, Eric Berry, and Tony Moeaki would all be lost for the season by week two, Matt Cassel would miss the second half of the season, Tyler Palko would start four games, Todd Haley would be fired, and the Chiefs would be the second lowest scoring offense in the NFL? Before all of that happened, I would have put the window of Chiefs wins this season between 7-11. If you had told me all of those things would happen I would have guessed that they’d win about two games. Instead, the Chiefs won seven games and were an overtime loss to the Raiders away from winning the division.

Now, let me be very clear. I know this team is not a Super Bowl contender yet, even when everyone is healthy. The offense was HORRIBLE this season, flat out HORRIBLE. They scored the fewest points of any team in the AFC. The fact that Jacksonville, Cleveland, and the Manningless Colts all scored more points than the Chiefs tells you all that you need to know. It also tells you just how good the defense is becoming that the offense was that horrible and the Chiefs still won seven games. Those three teams that I mentioned above only averaged 3.67 wins/team. The Chiefs’ defensive stats may not look elite when you just look at the numbers (11th in yards allowed, 12th in points allowed). However, multiple games where the Chiefs offense couldn’t stay on the field wore this defense down at times. I think this defense has proved that if the offense can just move the ball enough to let them rest and score a few points, the defense will hold up their end of the bargain.

It’s easy for fans to get carried away at the end of a disappointing season. Many fans may be crying for the Chiefs to fire Scott Pioli, hire Bill Cowher, trade the entire next two drafts for Peyton Manning, Andrew Luck or RG3, and then sign every high dollar free agent on the market. That all sounds very exciting, but it’s about as realistic as me winning both the Power Ball and the Publishers Clearing House in the same year.

So what should the Chiefs do?

They should keep the band together. I’ll explain after the break.

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The Kansas City Chiefs could end up with Brandon Lloyd starting opposite Dwayne Bowe in 2012.

It isn’t as crazy as it sounds.

A few things will need to happen for this scenario to go down. For starters, the Chiefs would need to re-sign or use the franchise tag on WR Dwayne Bowe.

Then the Chiefs would need to bring in former Broncos coach Josh McDaniels as their offensive coordinator. There are multiple reports floating around that Chiefs’ GM Scott Pioli would like to bring in McDaniels as the new head coach but that he can’t sell the idea to Clark Hunt or the fans after McDaniels’ terrible run in Denver.

What many are hypothesizing is that Pioli will go ahead and make Romeo Crennel the new head coach and bring in McDaniels as the new offensive coordinator, reuniting him with Matt Cassel. Selling McDaniels as a coordinator would be easier for Pioli. Crennel, who is in his mid-60s, likely won’t be around for a long time so Pioli would have McDaniels lined up as Crennel’s successor. If the Chiefs offense is successful under McDaniels, it will be pretty easy for Pioli to promote him.

Where does Lloyd come in to all this?

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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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It is well known in league circles that McDaniels drafted using the scouting function on Madden.

According to Woody Paige of the Denver Post, former Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels almost immediately regretted drafting RB Knowshon Moreno.

According to Paige, McDaniels and his staff quickly decided Moreno was a bust:

What I do know — from someone who worked closely with Josh and is someone I trust to tell me the truth — is that after the draft, McDaniels and the staff believed privately they made a big mistake on Moreno. He was not what they thought. He hasn’t been tough, smart, motivated, if that’s what you’re asking. He has been a bust. I’ve said it before. He’s not a great clubhouse guy. Interpret that how you want, and he’s been a wimp on the field.

From www.denverpost.com (share this quote)

Kind of hilarious. Looks like Moreno is just one in a long line of stupid personnel decisions made by McDaniels. Then again, since McDaniels was usually wrong about everything, perhaps his belief that Moreno is a bust means he is actually a hall of famer in the making. But still, McDaniels drafted him in the first place so going by the logic that McDaniels is always wrong, if he drafted him thinking he was good then he is probably not…but then again, if McDaniels later believed…

I’ve gone cross-eyed.

The point is, Moreno sucks. And so does McDaniels.

Go Chiefs!

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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McDaniels might have made a lot of terrible choices in Denver but he got trading Jay Cutler right.

December 14^th, 2008 was a big day in the lives of Herm Edwards, Carl Peterson, Josh McDaniels, Matt Cassel, Scott Pioli, Mike Shannahan, Donnavan McNabb, Jay Cutler, Lovie Smith, Kyle Orton and Tim Tebow as well as for fans of the Kansas City Chiefs, Denver Broncos, Washington Redskins and the Chicago Bears.

Only none of them knew it.

It is crazy to think that one single football play could have such a drastic impact on the paths of so many but it happened. It happened on a cold, December day at Arrowhead Stadium.

On that day, Herm Edwards was taking his 2-11, self described “college team,” into a battle with the ever underachieving 5-8 San Diego Chargers. The Chiefs were 2-11 and had nothing much left to play for except for Edwards’ job and for the chance to play spoiler.

The Chargers were attempting to make their customary late season charge at the AFC West title. Unfortunately, they were still trailing Mike Shannahan and the Denver Broncos. Jay Cutler was Shanahans QB at the time and was in the midst of a Pro Bowl season.

Things weren’t looking good for the Chargers that day at Arrowhead. They allowed three sacks to a Chiefs team that managed only 10 on the entire season, setting an all-time NFL record for futility. On top of allowing the Chiefs to get 25% of their season’s sacks in one game, the Chargers were also allowing Herm’s “College All-Star Squad” to beat them.

Late in the 4^th quarter, the Chiefs were leading 21-10 and looked to have the game in the bag. Yet, as fans in Kansas City know all too well, when Herm Edwards is on your sideline no lead is safe. The Chiefs used all three of their second half timeouts despite their 18 point lead and the Chargers mounted a furious comeback. Gunther Cunningham’s defense allowed 11 points in the final 79 seconds of the contest to lose 22 to 21.

The key play came when the Chargers attempted an onside kick with just over a minute to go. The ball bounced right into the waiting arms of Chiefs receiver Dwayne Bowe, who allowed the ball to bounce off of his chest and into the hands of Kassim Osgood.

If Dwayne Bowe holds on to that football, the game is over. The Chiefs would have gone on to win, moving their record to a much shinier 3-11 and the Chargers would have fallen to 5-9, eliminating themselves from playoff contention. The Broncos would have gone to the playoffs, Mike Shannah and wouldn’t have gotten fired, Donnavan McNabb wouldn’t have got traded to the Redskins, Josh McDaniels would never have been hired in Denver, Tim Tebow wouldn’t have been drafted by Denver and most frighteningly, there is a chance, albeit a slim one, that Carl Peterson and Herm Edwards would have been given one more year to finish destroying the Kansas City Chiefs.

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Todd Haley and Josh McDaniels have a checkered past which may be why the Chiefs did not persue the former Denver coach.

If the Kansas City Chiefs were every really considering hiring Josh McDaniels to be their new offensive coordinator they just missed the boat.

ESPN.com is reporting via a league and team source that the St. Louis Rams have hired the former Denver Broncos head coach to be their new offensive coordinator. ESPN reported earlier that talks between the Rams and McDaniels had broken down, indicating a financial dispute.

It has been an interesting couple of years for McDaniels who was a hot head coaching candidate when the Broncos hired him 2 offseasons ago. McDaniels lead the Broncos to a 6-0 start in 2009 but the team collapsed down the stretch and continued to flounder in 2010. After one of his assistants was caught illegally video taping a San Fransisco 49ers walk through in London, McDaniels was fired.

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Would Todd Haley accept Josh McDaniels as his new offensive coordinator?

Rumors are flying around that Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Charlie Weis might blow town to take the same position with the Florida Gators.

If Weis were to depart, there would be a number of options available to the Chiefs. It has been suggested that Kansas City GM Scott Pioli might be interested in bringing in Josh McDaniels, who was fired as head coach of the Denver Broncos earlier this year. McDaniels succeeded Weis as the offensive coordinator in New England a few years back and was largely credited for helping develop Chiefs QB Matt Cassel.

McDaniels is not very popular among Chiefs fans after coaching in Denver. There was also an incident earlier this season where Kansas City coach Todd Haley refused to shake McDaniels’ hand after a blowout loss in Denver. Give the incident, it seems hard to believe that Haley and McDaniels would be able to coexist, however, if the Chiefs were looking for a seamless transition for Matt Cassel and their offense, McDaniels would probably be the logical choice.

Thus we move on to our AA Saturday poll:

“What’s exciting to me as the head coach is we have a lot of guys that really care…These guys care and that is such a refreshing, positive thing out of this group… I’ve heard so many of our coaches, myself included, say this is a fun group to be around and coach, and it’s because they care.”

— Coach Todd Haley (December 5, 2010)

Yes, it’s true—this team cares. And ’tis the season when we all make a point to tell each other just how much we care. We double-check our holiday-card lists and we send the very best (or, in the case of Shaun Smith, reach out and touch someone). So I dug around in the Chiefs’ outgoing mailbag and here, with apologies to the good folks at Hallmark, are a few of the seasons greetings that I found…

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That second paragraph is comic gold. Props to Bill Williamson.

Source: Yardbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Broncos 10-6 Sunday and it appeared to be the nail in the coffin for Denver coach Josh McDaniels.

Sportscenter announced just moments ago that the Broncos have fired McDaniels just 3/4 of the way through his second season as the head coach.

McDaniels has had a rough go of it in Denver. After starting 6-0 last season the Broncos have been downright awful going a pitiful 5-17 since. McDaniels was also criticized for a number of boneheaded personnel decisions including running Jay Cutler and Brandon Marshall out of town and drafting Tim Tebow in the first round of the draft.

This is going to send pretty big waves through the Broncos organization and the AFC West. All players drafted by McDaniels, including Tebow, are now somewhat damaged goods. The future is now very uncertain in Denver.

One thing is for sure, the Denver Broncos will be paying three coaches next season. They are still on the hook for Mike Shanahan’s contract and now they’ll have to pay out McDaniels plus whoever they hire to replace him.

What a mess.

We’ll have more as this develops but what are your early thoughts?

Source: Yardbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs will host the Denver Broncos this weekend so we are going inside the enemy camp to talk with Kim Constantinesco, the lead blogger over at Predominately Orange, FanSided’s Broncos site.

I talked with Kim for the second time this season and asked her about the recent troubles with Spygate II, the last Chiefs/Broncos game and what her prediction for Sunday’s contest is.

Let’s go inside the enemy camp with Predominately Orange.

AA:Well…so…um…you kicked our butts in Denver. I took a lot of heat for predicting a Denver victory way back then but even I didn’t think things would get that out of hand.

My question for you is, how did that happen? I mean, the Broncos have been terrible this season, only winning 3 games. What looked different to you about the way Denver played on that afternoon as opposed to the rest of their losses?

PO: They got off to a quick start and were able to maintain their momentum throughout the game. That has been the first and only game for the Broncos where that’s happened. They had things going on both sides of the ball. Defensively, they stopped the run and capitalized on a turnover. Offensively, they had both the passing game and the rushing game going. This offense is capable of putting up 40+ points on more than one occasion if they have both facets going. The key stat for the Broncos in week 10 was their ability to convert on third down. They went 6-10 that day, but in their last two weeks, they’ve gone 2-22. I’m convinced that the Broncos are their biggest opponent. You never know which team is going to show up.

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McDaniels rejoices after only being fined $50k for cheating... (Source: Yardbarker.com)

 Great news! The Chiefs have back to back wins once again for the first time in nearly a month.  Spirits are high in the Chiefs Nation!  We are reveling at Bowe’s run at history for receiving touchdowns in one season (two per game would beat Moss’s record set in 2007), and Matt Cassel is looking more and more like a 60 million dollar quarterback.  To top it off our defense put up a good game (20 net rushing yards, not too shabby) despite having players go down faster than the hype surrounding the Miami Heat.  What should I do LeBron? 

It is an old adage that when you look too far down the road, you trip on what is right in front of you.  Well, it’s not an old adage.  I just made it up.  It sounds good though and is fitting.  I of course am talking about the upcoming game against the Denver Broncos. 

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Source: Yardbarker.com

The Denver Broncos have been investigated by the NFL for secretly videotaping a 49ers walk through practice.

The verdict: guilty.

Reports are pouring in via Twitter and it looks as though the employee who filmed the practice has been fired and that Broncos and head coach Josh McDaniels have been fined 50 thousand dollars each.

It looks as though this will be the extent of the punishment from the league. NFL.com’s Jason LaCanfora has reported via Twitter that the NFL has told the Broncos that they will reopen the probe if any more information comes to light.

LaCanfora also reports that McDaniels claims to have never watched the 6 minute tape.

My reaction after the jump.

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Did coach Haley know something we didn't when he snubbed Josh McDaniels a few weeks ago? (Source: Yardbarker.com)

The Denver Broncos are being investigated by the NFL for illegally video taping a San Francisco 49ers practice in London, according to the Denver Post.

You may remember a few years back, the New England Patriots were nailed by the NFL for video taping opposing team’s defensive signals during games which was against NFL regulations. The Patriots were in turn, stripped of a 2008 first round draft pick and heavy fines were levied against the team and head coach Bill Belichick.

Two employees of the Patriots at the time of the incident were Josh McDaniels and Steve Scarnecchia. McDaniels is now the Broncos head coach and Scarnecchia is their director of video operations.

Hmmmmm? See a pattern here?

More after the jump.
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What's really behind the obsession with Haley's finger-wagging snub? (Source: Yardbarker.com)

Forgive me, but two days later I’m still fascinated. I know I shouldn’t be. I know it’s something we’re not really supposed to talk about. 610 Sports Radio’s Nick Wright declared it a topic “not worthy of much discussion” (and then, of course, gave it much discussion).

On NFL.com, it’s still listed among the top headlines on the homepage. An AP story called it “perhaps the most intriguing” storyline “on another Sunday of many intriguing storylines”—a day that included one coach disgracing his brother’s defense to win in the final seconds of overtime in Cleveland, an almost-over-the-hill future Hall-of-Famer fumbling all over the field in Chicago, the last winless team winning in Buffalo, and a Hail-Mary pass batted down and then caught to break a tie with no time left in Jacksonville.

I am not exaggerating all that much when I say that it was the first, if not only subject being discussed yesterday on any Chiefs-related talk show or blog I checked in on (this blog, of course, being a notable and proud exception to the overkill—until now, I guess). I opened the sports section this morning and half-expected to see this in the injury report:

QUESTIONABLE: HC Todd Haley (Ego)

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Source: Yardbarker.com

Kansas City Chiefs coach Todd Haley had some choice words for Broncos coach Josh McDaniels following last Sunday’s game between the two teams.

Now those words have been revealed.

Yesterday, after Haley apologized to McDaniels and the Broncos for not shaking McDaniels’ hand I thought this issue was pretty much over. We had some good debate about it and I was all set to turn my attention to the Arizona Cardinals but last night, what Haley actually said to McDaniels was revealed, shockingly, on NFL.com.

From NFL.com

Audio of the brief exchange between the two was provided to The Associated Press by WDAF-TV in Kansas City. McDaniels does not speak but Haley can clearly be heard saying as he pointed at the Denver coach and turned to walk away, “There’s a lot of (expletive) being talked about you.”

Looks like Haley wanted McDaniels to know he isn’t very well respected in the league.

Let’s have a little fun with this. Since what Haley said isn’t nearly as interesting as we might of imagined, what do you wish he would have said instead? Keep it relatively clean of foul language.

Todd Haley has taken a lot of heat today for his behavior following the beating his Kansas City Chiefs suffered at the hands of the Denver Broncos Sunday.

After the game, Haley refused to shake Denver coach Josh McDaniels’ hand, instead opting to wag his finger in an accusatory fashion before turning and walking away.

Today Haley is apologizing. During his press conference today, Haley apologized to coach McDaniels and the entire Denver organization, admitting that he let his emotions get the best of him.

“Wasn’t the right thing to do,” said Haley.

This is absolutely the right move by Haley. Regardless of what McDaniels did that upset him he needed to be the bigger person yesterday. Haley and his team have a lot to focus on this week and he is doing the right thing by putting this issue to rest with an apology.

When trying to figure out what, if anything we can take from the shellacking the Kansas city Chiefs suffered at the hands of the Denver Broncos on Sunday, we must realize we are walking into a house of mirrors of which nearly nothing that we see is real.

Sunday’s game got so out of hand so fast that almost everything that happened after the first quarter is utterly irrelevant. Thus I am going to proceed into the fun house that was the Chiefs/Broncos game with extreme caution, taking care to not run into my own reflection while trying to walk down a hallway that isn’t really there. I’ll do my best to guide you all along, pointing out what is real and what is simply smoke and mirrors.

Reality: The Chiefs were out-coached.

This probably goes without saying here but it needs to be reiterated. I mentioned earlier in the week, when I picked the Broncos to beat the Chiefs, that I thought Kansas City was walking into an ambush. I was worried about what the Broncos coaching staff was going to cook up during their off week. Their team was 2-6 and their coach was in danger of losing his job and they were likely to bust out a game plan that the Chiefs weren’t ready for.

I mentioned that I was worried about KC’s bend but don’t break defense giving up too many yards, allowing Denver to move up and down the field and keep the game close. Many of you pointed out that Denver’s problem was their lack of a running game often stalled their drives when they got into the redzone. The Broncos obviously realized this and instead came out firing the ball deep with a game plan designed to get their receivers behind the KC secondary. It was a master stroke by McDaniels. Denver came so hard and so fast that by the time the Chiefs figured out what was going on they were already down three touchdowns.

Denver’s strength is the passing game and McDaniels decided to go all in early and try to get a lead he knew the Chiefs offense wouldn’t be able to overcome. It is a strategy the Broncos likely won’t be able to implement again this season because teams will now be extremely cautious in guarding against it but it was the perfect post bye week game plan and Denver executed it to perfection.

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“I’m told Haley was not happy with Broncos max protecting, throwing deep & blitzing regularly with a 32-point 4th-Q lead.  That’s one reason he refused to shake (Josh) McDaniel’s hand afterward. In fact, he appeared to give him a few words before walking away.”
Jim Trotter, Sports Illustrated

Following the game, Haley jogged out to mid-field for the traditional handshake with the opposing coach. Only Haley didn’t shake hands with Denver coach Josh McDaniels.

Instead he did this:

This is a bad move by Haley. I’m not sure what Haley’s exact reasoning was for snubbing McDaniels but it doesn’t reflect well on the Chiefs coach. I don’t think the Broncos were trying to run up the score in this game. The Chiefs left their starters in and continued to try to come back so the Broncos kept playing until the game was over.

Haley often preaches character and leadership yet he didn’t really demonstrate either of those qualities after today’s game.

I’m not saying I want Haley to like McDaniels. I actually prefer it if he doesn’t but Haley is the authority figure in the Kansas City locker room and he needs to conduct himself with professionalism at all times, even after painful losses.

What do you think Addicts? What did Haley say to McDaniels? Do you think he had good reason to snub the Denver head coach?

From Bill Williamson of ESPN.com:

The Broncos couldn’t have suspended for Williams for the entire game for the arrest. Only the league can discipline players for legal issues. The team’s punishment was based on the distraction Williams caused, and for the fact that he missed much of Friday’s work schedule. He was arrested at 2:50 a.m. in downtown Denver.

We apologize for getting this wrong. It looks like Williams will perhaps miss the first quarter or so an dthen come in to the game.

If I may flex a little editorial muscle here, I have to say that this kind of makes Josh McDaniels look like a joke. Last year before the Chiefs came to town, McDaniels benched Brandon Marshall for the entire game because he questioned Marshall’s commitment to the team. Now he has a drunken fool driving around town and getting arrested just a couple of days before the game and he is going to let the player play.

Perhaps McDaniels remembers all to well the results of benching his better players when the Chiefs come to town but it certainly makes him look like a flip-flopper as a disciplinarian. I honestly can’t see how can have any credibility in the Denver locker room.

I guess since McDaniels is trying to save his job he has put his morals on the shelf for this week.

Source: Yardbarker.com

The Kansas City Chiefs go inside the enemy camp this Sunday when they travel to Denver to take on the Broncos.

Earlier this week, Arrowhead Addict went inside the enemy camp to get a better idea of what the Chiefs are up against when they take on the Broncos. Kim Constantinesco, Fansided’s Broncos blogger was kind enough to answer a few of my questions. Check out her Broncos site Predominantly Orange.

AA: The Broncos are 3rd in the NFL in passing yards per-game but dead last in rushing yards. What has been holding the Broncos back on the ground this season?

PO: At first the injury bug caught the ground game off guard. The preseason and the first few games of the regular season saw a rotating offensive line and backfield. Pro Bowl left tackle Ryan Clady didn’t practice with the team during training camp because of an off season knee injury. Knowshon Moreno and Correll Buckhalter also missed most of camp and a couple of regular season games with injuries. Factor that in with three rookies on an offensive line that is constantly rotating, and the rushing attack hasn’t had time to gel as a unit. The blocking has been subpar and the team has backs that dance around in the backfield instead following their blockers and of shooting the open gaps. With the kind of performance that Kyle Orton has had this year, one would think that his throwing capability would force teams to play the pass, enabling the Broncos’ ground game to explode for a big run here and there. That hasn’t happened yet and that’s the frustrating part.

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Here goes:

Source: Yardbarker.com

#10:

Al Davis has actually been dead for 12 years but is being kept alive using a secret formula he developed in the 70′s.

It consists of the tears of a baby, the ground up bones of a kitten and a lock of John Madden’s hair. Al puts all this in a blender, adds ice and goats milk and drinks it every morning. For some reason, this concoction keeps his heart beating but it doesn’t keep him from decomposing before our very eyes. As long as John Madden keeps drinking whatever the hell it is he is taking to ward off death, Al will be ok.

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Source: Yardbarker.com

Josh McDaniels continues to get rid of Denver’s good players. Chiefs fans continue to laugh.

The Broncos sent disgruntled TE Tony Scheffler to the Lions in a 3 way trade involving the Eagles and linebacker, Ernie Simms.

Here is how it breaks down:

The Lions trade LB Ernie Simms to the Eagles.

The Eagles give Denver their 5th round pick (137) this year.

Denver gives their 7th round pick this year and TE Tony Scheffler to the Lions.

Got all that?

Kidding about the Donks aside, I can’t blame McDaniels for wanting to build the team as he sees fit. That means getting rid of guys who clash with him, which is why we have seen the departure of Marshall and now Scheffler.

Denver has used these trades, along with he Jay Cutler deal last year, to stock pile a ton of picks. If the Broncos hit on all of those picks they could be a force. If they whiff on most of them, they could be left old and depleted of young talent.

I am hoping for the latter. Sorry Denver. =)

Source: Yardbarker.com

First thing this morning, when I was putting together The Morning Fix™  I noticed that there were suddenly Marsahall to Miami rumors swirling. I meant to get a post up about it but I ran out of time and had to leave for work.

Well, I am glad I didn’t go to the trouble because by the time I got to Manhattan, the deal was done.

ESPN is reporting that, pending a physical, Marshall is headed to Miami. It looks like the Dolphins are giving the Donks a 2nd round pick in the year’s draft as well an additional 2nd rounder next year.

This is good news for Chiefs fans because it means the team won’t have to face Marshall twice a year and if you remember, KC performed much better against the Broncos when Marshal was benched.

More after the jump.

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Dwayne Bowe. Someone to build on.

“But for this week’s game, I just think it’s not fair to him. I just think Damon, he got us some momentum going and hopefully we can build on that, said Herm Edwards during a September 9th press conference in 2008.

Nearly a year and a month later, the Chiefs had a new coach, and Damon Huard was long gone. This time, it was Todd Haley putting on his construction hat.

HALEY: I was really proud of the guys. I think they pulled together and overcame adversity, overcame some injuries in some key spots to score a touchdown and tie the game and give us a chance to potentially win the game. I think that’s something we definitely as a team have to build on.”

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It is a beautiful thing to see the whole Broncos Nation flipped upside down with all this Jay Cutler drama going on, and the cause of it all is our man Matt Cassel.  Why did the Broncos want Cassel over Cutler so bad?  I know Josh McDaniels worked with Matt Cassel all last year, but I believe it goes deeper than that.  I mean Jay Cutler is a decent QB, so why were they willing to ship him away?  It is simple.  Matt Cassel > Jay Cutler.  Here is why.

2008 Stats

The stats don’t lie.  Our boy MC was better than Jay Cutler in pretty much every stat last year.  We are talking about basically a rookie in Matt Cassel, who hasn’t been a starter since high-school, doing better than a “established” starter in the NFL.

This is what intrigues and excites me the most.  Last year, all I ever heard anyone say about Tyler Thigpen was that ” oh, he’s basically a rookie and look how he’s doing, he’s got such potential,”  and rightly so.  I was one of those people.  Well, look how well Matt Cassel did last year and he was basically in the same boat as Thigpen, having never been a starter.

On the other hand, Jay Cutler showed great potential coming into the league, but what Josh McDaniels might be worried about is that Jay is leveling off and starting to show his true colors.  Don’t get me wrong, I will give credit when credit is due and JC is a good QB. But  I’m sure McDaniels took into account both players’ potential, and having seen MC first hand for an entire year he felt persuaded to go after Matt.

The bottom line is this:  If Jay Cutler was better than Matt Cassel or even as good,  then Josh McDaniels and the Broncos front office would not have gone after Cassel.  Less than six months to go until 2009 kickoff and, no, I cannot wait.  If the Donkeys ship Cutler away, that’s great for us.  If they keep him, it will just heat up the rivalry.  This year is going to be fun, folks.

(Go vote for who the Chiefs should take in our sister site Phin Phanatic’s interactive mock draft, as our Red and Gold is on the clock. Should be interesting! – Adam)

Won’t be seeing much more of this…hopefully!

The big news in the AFC West today is that Denver Broncos’ star quarterback Jay Cutler has demanded a trade. The Cutler-Josh McDaniels feud began back when McD allegedly tried to trade for Matt Cassel, only to be beaten to the punch by Scott Pioli, his old boss, and the Chiefs. Not only did the move land the Chiefs their quarterback of the future, but it caused their biggest rival to potentially lose theirs as well. Talk about a double whammy for the Donks.

Now, I’m reading suggestions from Chiefs fans that we should trade Cassel for Cutler. My response: No. Way. In. Hell. In fact, I wouldn’t trade Cassel and Dwayne Bowe for Brandon Marshall and Cutler if they threw in a second-rounder. Wouldn’t even take the call; I’d slam down the phone and ask the phone company to block their number.

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We always say buck the Froncos, but this time Broncos fans are actually saying it themselves. In the past few days, some outraged Broncos fan has launched the site Keep Jay Fire McDaniels. The site dubs Josh McDaniels “McDevil,” and demands that he be fired.

On February 28, 2009 Josh McDaniels sealed his fate in Denver before ever coaching a game.  McDaniels was actively trying to trade our best player, and the face of the Denver Broncos for a mediocre QB that wasn’t good enough to start at USC over Matt Leinart.  Yes, the Matt Leinart that rides the pine in AZ.  As if this wasn’t enough, McDaniels (along with Brian Xanders) is rumored to have offered our first round pick as well to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.  To recap, that’s a first round pick and the face of the franchise in exchange for a backup QB.  Cutler is rightfully upset about this and we are too.  Please leave your comments below letting Josh McDaniels know how you feel about his attempt to sabatoge our team and franchise.

That’s some serious hateration on Matt Cassel (are you so angry that you can’t even write dude’s name?). Who cares. We’re very happy with our quarterback, coaching staff and front office included. The Broncos cannot boast the same claim. At least our QB doesn’t look like the third Manning brother with a more severe case of cerebral palsy. Ahem, Jay Cutler.

I still say this is far and away the single best thing about the Cassel trade. I love that it has nearly caused a Broncos Nation civil war. I guess that sometimes I like seeing the Broncos suffer even more than I like seeing our Chiefs succeed. Missouri loves company, I suppose.

Every Monday, Arrowhead Addict editor/lead writer Adam Best will kick off the week with his AA Greeting — his one-of-a-kind POV on all things Chiefs.

Since the Oscars just recently went down, I thought we’d honor the biggest haters from free agency’s opening weekend. Drumroll, please…

Slumblog Millionaire – Merlin

“Caveat Emptor” came off as sour grapes. He wanted Jon Kitna and Tyler Thigpen, while yours truly and a whole lot of others wanted Matt Cassel or a comparable young quarterback. He didn’t get his way, so he tried to paint the move as a mistake. He even went Scott Mitchell on us, which I would have given him points for if he had of actually come up with the zinger on his own. Daddy Defense, like Slumdog Millionaire, your views typically represent all the “little people,” and are presented with a lot of heart. Not this time. “Caveat Emptor” was completely out of touch. Wack.

In Borges – Ron Borges

Who? Who? Never heard of the guy. His whole column just sounds like some serious homespun hatin’ to me. There are “far more personnel men” who think Cassel’s a flop than a franchise quarterback? Really? Who have you been listening to and reading? I’ve heard just the opposite. But screw hearsay; Cassel made a believer out of me late last season, when he went 4-0 down the stretch and posted ridiculous numbers. I understand, Borges — you’re a Bill Belichick apologist. He’s obviously got your balls in his Darth Vader-like vice grip. Even Colin Farrell’s performance in In Bruges didn’t make me laugh as much as your column. You’re a funny guy, Borges.

The Readerless – Jay Mariotti

I’d listen to just about anybody before the guy who gets clowned live and in living color by Woody Paige on almost a daily basis. Conspiracy theory? Not when your fellow haters are calling Cassel and Mike Vrabel a bench-riding phony and a washed-up snitch, respectively. If last year’s Pau Gasol trade in the NBA didn’t get overturned, there is no way this is even going to get investigated. What a desperate attempt to regain some readership after getting canned from the Chicago Sun-Times. Just how I don’t understand The Reader getting the props it did on the awards circuit, I don’t understand how Mariotti has managed to stay relevant for so long.

The Dark Write – Jason Whitlock

Boy, did Jason do some serious damage this past weekend. Way to cast a dark shadow over one of the few happy moments Chiefs fans have experienced during the past few years, Big Sexy.

First off, since he enjoys mafia references, he played the role of Luca Brasi for the Godfather of the Chiefs locker room, Brian Waters. Considering they are dealing with The Pioli Trinity and not King Carl and his consigliere Herm Edwards, I wouldn’t be surprised if B-Dub and Big Sexy were sleeping with the fishes soon. Can’t you just see the Trinity wacking them out as the No. 3 pick gets baptized, er, selected?

But seriously, nobody else even talked about Waters last weekend. After considering that, doesn’t it seem like Big Sexy was simply trying to stir the pot? His rivalry with Carl Peterson was his bread and butter, so it doesn’t surprise me that he wasted no time kicking off his feud with the new regime. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure Waters and Whitlock are cool, and I’m sure this was partially done as a favor to Waters. But the big fella definitely had his own agenda.

Then there was his column on the Cassel-Vrabel trade. You know, the one where he belittled Scott Pioli and Tood Haley by calling them Scott Belichick and Todd Parcells. You know Jason, I could do that to you. You have a mentor, too — the late, great Ralph Wiley. I could call you Ralph Whitlock. Real funny, huh? Ha, ha. They went out and did what you, myself and everybody else who covers the Chiefs had been begging them to do for, well, freakin’ forever  — get a franchise quarterback! — and you respond by blasting them for it? Not only that, you went on to compare Haley to Dick Vermeil and Pioli to “King Carl on steroids” not long after you openly campaigned for both men. Worst of all, you welcomed three-time Super Bowl champion and 2007 Pro Bowler Vrabel to Kansas City by calling him a “snitch.” You, my friend, have watched one episode too many of The Wire.

Jason, Jason, Jason. Sometimes there’s no columnist I like better. I have no problem admitting it; for years now I’ve been both one of your biggest fans and your biggest critics. Why? Because when you’re on, you’re as good as anybody. Like the piece you did on the drug war and incarceration for Playboy last year. I always enjoy your FOX Sports columns as well (except when you called Chad Johnson a bojangler, that is). But sometimes you play the contrarian just so you can take the slant that nobody else is taking. Just admit it. I even see why you do it. It makes you look like an independent, outside-the-box thinker with brass balls, plus it stirs up conversation.

This concocted contrarian act is getting a little stale. We’ve seen it more times than Brandon Marshall’s been arrested at this point. Hey, all of us writers do things to elevate our own status and boost our readership. I can admit that I do it, too. But acting like Waters’ pushy divorce lawyer and throwing the new regime and their first two high-profile acquisitions under the bus in the same weekend was completely uncalled for. Especially considering that we are still in the honeymoon period. Besides, can’t you just let us enjoy possibly the biggest trade acquisition in the history of the franchise for a little while? Would that kill you?

Like The Dark Knight, you were the outcast on this one. Problem is, we just got rid of the Joker, we don’t want your gloom and doom right now, and we’re not down with you trying to turn Scott Pioli into Scotty Two-Face.

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I know this: If I’m the rest of the AFC West, and I see Scott Pioli and the son of Dick Haley with $45 million in salary cap room, and with the third and 34th picks in the April draft, I’m getting a little nervous.

If Al Davis is still coherent at all, he’s crapping his Depends right now. Alex Spanos and Pat Bowlen can’t be too happy either.

As you know, we’ve kind of got that team of rivals going on around here. A couple of staff members blasted me in the comments section about me allegedly claiming that I was right on Todd Haley, which I never even did. All I said is that in the end I got what I wanted. That even confused some people, since I had Josh McDaniels and Steve Spagnuolo in the first two versions of this year’s Blueprint. King, however, explains everything pretty well here:

For Pioli, it’s likely he would have wanted to hire Josh McDaniels before the Broncos scooped up the New England offensive coordinator, or Steve Spagnuolo before St. Louis hired the Giants’ defensive boss. But maybe Pioli got lucky. In Haley he’s getting a very smart game-planner, a guy who can command a room, and a former personnel man with scouting in his genes.

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Personally, I think things lie somewhere in the middle. Negotiations are taking place and moving along somewhat steadily, but nothing is quite imminent. We all know by now that Hunt moves with the speed of a Special Olympics hurdler when it comes to personnel moves. So, let’s all take a deep breath and exercise some patience before Chiefs Nation’s collective head explodes.

Still, I wonder what the ripple effect of the Broncos hiring Josh McDaniels will be. If Pioli wanted McD to by his man, then that’s going to be another big obstacle that must be overcome.

Since today is a huge day for the Presidential candidates, we’re going to do present a politically inspired alternative to griping about the departed (Mike Solari) and the retained (Herm Edwards and King Carl). Here’s the Arrowhead Addict list of potential offensive coordinators. These candidates have either been mentioned as possible candidates for Chiefs offensive coordinator, or mentioned as the top candidates for any open O.C. job.

Jim Caldwell/Colts (assistant head coach/quarterbacks coach): While it appears that Herm Edwards and Caldwell never coached together, they came close. Caldwell was the Buccaneers’ QB coach back in 2001 — the year Herm Edwards left Tampa Bay to take the head coaching job in New York — and followed Tony Dungy to Indianapolis. Both quarterbacks (Brad Johnson and Peyton Manning) and receivers (Keyshawn Johnson, Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne) have flourished under his coaching. Additionally, even though the Colts have a prolific offense, at times it can be both conservatively aggressive and a ball control offense. I agree with Peter King; If Dungy and Manning both vouch for this guy, it’s hard to overlook him. In fact, King also vouches for him, listing him as his No. 1 head coaching candidate. Caldwell has championship experience, and he understands how to beat the Patriots. If you ever want to come out of the AFC, those two areas of expertise are key. If he’s overlooked for a H.C. gig, he’d be a great fit — remember, Tom Moore is still the offensive coordinator in Indianapolis. The Herm-Dungy connection makes this hire feasible. Caldwell was the head coach at Wake Forest for eight years prior to joining Dungy’s staff. A.A. Outlook: Our No. 1 choice (bio here)

Josh McDaniels/Patriots (offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach): McDaniels is a pretty obvious candidate, but also a sexy one. He could possibly be offered a head coaching job, and is a “hot” candidate, much like Lane Kiffin was last year. While we like him, we’re not sure he’s going to really be an option. A.A. Outlook: Our No. 2 choice (bio here)

Bill Callahan/unemployed – We really like him as a football coach, given that he wrecked two of our least favorite football entities — the Oakland Raiders and Nebraska Cornhuskers. We just don’t like him as a football coach for us. A.A. Outlook: Unapproved (bio here)

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