Chiefs Top Storylines of Training Camp
By Laddie Morse
“En garde, on Guard” Storylines
Tackles and the Center positions may be set but the competition for the two Guard spots is going to be a bad case of Dueling Banjos until the last weekend of camp. Here are the nominees: Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, Jah Reid, Zach Fulton and rookie Parker Ehinger (sounds like “anger” only has the “in” sound for the first syllable).
On the other hand, last week and this past week, has been rather calm when it comes to musical chairs and the offensive line. On Thursday, Andy Reid was asked if he felt satisfied and set with the group he has right now and he said,
"“I think I feel pretty good about it. Uhm, again, let’s see them hit and bang around a little bit and see how they do in games. But, I think we have a nucleus there that’s good and I’d even stretch it into the 2-deep. I’m feeling pretty good about that.”"
So, the Chiefs could have a starting line of Fisher-Parker-Morse-LDT-Schwartz. What would be surprising is… the lack of musical chairs thus far. If Andy Reid sticks to the same group all the way through camp it might be a record for him. It makes me wonder about the potential stabilizing influences of Brad Childress and Matt Nagy as offensive coordinators? Could there be a shift in the Chiefs grand offensive matrix?
More on this development when we all go camping this July 30th, the first day of camp.
NFL’s Most Overrated/Underrated Story Lines
Earlier this week, NFL.com’s Marc Sessler wrote a piece called, “The NFL’s Overrated/Underrated Offseason Storylines.” The Chiefs made neither of those lists… so that’s probably a good thing. However, we shall use his theme as a template for the Chiefs offseason stories.
Chiefs Overrated/Underrated Story Lines
Chiefs Overrated Camp Story Lines:
- Any Story About the Denver Broncos– it’s not necessary to give credence to what the Broncos are doing this offseason any longer. Their offseason has been one butt-ugly crash-n-burn reality show since their defense won the Super Bowl so, no one here needs to worry about the blue and orange smoke rising above the Denver skyline. Don’t you enjoy outdoor fires at twilight?
- Any story saying the Chiefs offensive line needs revamping– with three important positions being held by sturdy players in Mitchell Schwartz at right tackle, Mitch Morse at center and Eric Fisher (who’s finally bulked up) at left tackle, the offensive line will not be below average this year. Consequently, any story line saying the Chiefs still need a transplant guard would be off base. While Laurent Duvernay-Tardif needs to improve… he’s shown improvement in each year with the team and he should make a solid starter this year, his third season. 6-foot-7, 325 lb. 6 year veteran Jah Reid could compete for a guard spot given time to get more reps. Anyone who gets reps with Schwartz and Morse starboard and port should improve steadily. Point is, the O-line will not need an overhaul, as in years past. No, they won’t be the best in the league, but they should no longer be in the lower tier either.
- Any story about Andy Reid’s clock management- with Brad Childress, a former head coach and play caller, taking an active role in the development of the offense and game day offensive play calling, it’s hard to project that things will be, “Same as It Ever Was” (from Once in a Lifetime). While getting plays into Alex Smith in a timely manner may initially be an issue, I expect those wrinkles to get ironed out in the preseason games. It may be something to watch for but far too much is made of this issue and is an overrated issue in my book.
Next: Chiefs Underrated Camp Storylines?