Chiefs GM: The 13 Grooviest Moves of John Dorsey PART II
By Laddie Morse
Drafting De’Anthony Thomas
When John Dorsey drafted De’Anthony Thomas (DAT) he had no idea that he’d be such a burner in his first season. DAT has afterburners to spare. Thomas not only returned a punt for a touchdown in the preseason he delivered one during the season too. In fact, he was so hot he ranked 4th overall (by ProFootballFocus) in the Overall returners category and third among all punt returners. He accomplished that all in his rookie year.
At Oregon, from scrimmage, DAT scored a touchdown every 8.6 times he touched the ball. However, he scored a TD every 7.5 times he touched the ball as a wide receiver so there’s a good reason for wanting him to touch it more as a wideout now. Last year, as a rookie, DAT did well from scrimmage too with 193 snaps and he ended up with a + 4.2 rating from ProFootballFocus but only one TD on 37 attempts (13 rushing and 24 receiving). Now that he’s being moved (more like being “schooled”) as a wide receiver he should presumably get more snaps, which means more time to burn the opposition. For the opposition… it may be like trying to catch the wind.
Grooviest Move Song Dedication: Catch the Wind (Donovan)
Drafting TE Travis Kelce
Travis Kelce is quickly becoming my favorite Kansas City Chief. We should nickname him “Crash.” You know the old saying, that guy is a crash waiting to happen… I would simply change that to, that guy is a touchdown waiting to happen. Last year, ProFootballFocus rated Travis Kelce as the number 4 tight end in the whole jam league. Only 3 tight ends (Rob Gronkowski, Jason Witten and Greg Olson) were ahead of the man Mr. Dorsey drafted in the third round of the 2013 NFL draft.
When you consider that last year was very much like Kelce’s first year in the league (because an injury kept him out during his rookie season) it only makes his overall contribution last year more profound… and.. his future so much more enticing to daydream about. The only glitch with Kelce is… the only “fly in the ointment” or you could say itsy-bitsy imperfection is… he needs to hold on to the ball better once he catches it… which he has no problem doing at all. If Kelce had held onto the ball in the week 14 Arizona game, the Chiefs would have… likely come out on top in that one… and likely ended up in the playoffs.
Grooviest Move Song Dedication: Hold Me Tight (The Beatles)
– here’s an admittedly obscure song by the Beatles which nevertheless will give you a feel for the era.
Trading for LG Ben Grubbs
When the Chiefs lost Rodney Hudson to free agency the offensive line became one huge question mark. When John Dorsey negotiated a trade for Ben Grubbs he stabilized the line on the left side and got someone he could count on the push the pile. Grubbs, a two time Pro Bowl participant not only likes to push the pile, according to him, he likes to dominate his opponent. Grubbs is especially good at run blocking and blocking for the screen and essentially… taking his man for a ride.
Grooviest Move Song Dedication: Magic Carpet Ride (Steppenwolf)
Next: Who made the Top 3?