It’s been quite a week. If you turn on the radio or TV it’s all the same: playoff talk and plenty of it.
First there was Black Monday… when Andy Reid was “supposed” to be fired (because I called for exactly that, when the Chiefs were 1-and-5… oops… apologies for everyone in the bar, the apologies are on me)… then there were the days of rumored firings… followed by coaches being re-hired and signed to longer term deals… and that’s not even the coverage that each of the playoff games have gotten this weekend… and there’s been a ton of that. In fact, the Kansas City Chiefs have actually gotten national coverage (proverbial tongue in proverbial cheek).
So much coverage that… even lesser known players have come center stage.
On Thursday I was watching the Chiefs rookie wide out Chris Conley be interviewed and… but first let me tell you about him, in fact here’s how Ivan Maisel, Senior Editor for ESPN, once described Conley,
"“… a starting senior flanker on a top-10 team and a college senior, a film director and a screenwriter, a budding athletic administrator and a coffeehouse musician, a Bible-quoting honor student and a superhero-loving, “Star Wars” geek….”"
Well, it was a strange sight to see, our seldom targeted third round pick from Georgia being drown in a sea of microphones. Well, maybe not a sea… but there were microphones not usually seen in thems-here-parts.
And… all of that rhetorical attention was being placed on… Chris Conley. You know… the Chris Conley who’s averaged 1-catch-per-game this season.
Another, less-known player who happens to be getting some national attention is Charcandrick West. And rightfully so. In his interview with Andrew Siciliano of NFL Network West said,
"“We know they (the Houston Texans) have a great defense. Man, 1-through-7 is the best I’ve ever seen in my life. So, I feel like we’ve got a good game plan, if we go out and execute it together, we can come out with the same outcome we had in the last ten games.”"
An interesting match-up will be between CB Marcus Peters and WR De’Andre Hopkins. Here’s what they’re saying,
"“It’s going to be electrifying.” ~ Marcus Peters “The interception, he just happened to be at the right place at the wrong time.” ~ DeAndre Hopkins (on Marcus Peters interception in the first game of the season.)"
Then there’s “Coach-speak” which is always fun.
Head Coach Bill O’Brien on Alex Smith,
"“Alex Smith is a mentally tough guy. He’s been through alot in his career. He’s really an efficient quarterback. That means he gets the operation in and out of the huddle very quickly. They operate at a fast pace. He’s smart. He makes very few mistakes with the ball. He does a very good job of taking care of the ball and he can run. He can really run. So, they can do some things with him in the running game that is a threat to your defense.”"
Chiefs Defensive Coordinator Bob Sutton on Houston QB, Brian Hoyer,
"“The thing we appreciate about [Brian] Hoyer is, he’s a competitive guy, very smart. He really understands what they’re doing system wise, because, you know, he was with Bill [O’Brien] in New England. That, I think, flows very good and you can see how they adapt each week: different kinds of plays and formations… he grew up in that system. He’s got a great kind of moxie about him. He’s got a great belief in himself, that he can move the chains.”"
Sutton and O’Brien must be email buddies… right? I mean, at the very least O’Brien must have peaked into Sutton’s “Mirror of Erised”… I mean really now (sorry for the obscure “Harry Potter” reference but I binge-watched all the Potter movies over the Holidays and they’re still dominating my waking consciousness).
Next: Is There Any Juicy Bulletin Board Material Out There?