With the major storylines being discussed at great length for a Kansas City Chiefs camp that appears set more for reps then competition, I’ll take a look at some topics quickly.
First off, the controversy in town over the new parking procedures and prices really shouldn’t be as big of a deal as it’s become. Granted, as has become their nature recently, they have handled the news and reaction with an amazingly poor grasp on reality and their fans.
Raising prices in the league is an annual event, and shouldn’t be a surprise. Like I said in a previous column, the league in general is on the precipice of pricing their fans out of attending the games on Sundays, and while the Chiefs are certainly not alone in this practice, the level of tone deaf by league executives is quite stunning.
The organization simply needed to come out and tell fans they wanted parking paid prior to gameday, which would improve the gameday experience. They didn’t, and fans have had, at least on social media, a revolt of sorts.
The new ‘lines’ or as some fans regard to them as tailgating restrictions, is something that isn’t that alarming. There should always be a clear lane for a car to drive down in a parking lot regardless of what is going on. Fans spilling out of cars and making a lane impossible to drive down is not an example of tailgating, it’s an example of obnoxious. Fans are making much ado about nothing, other then simply not being allowed to be obnoxious.
Secondly, the battle for the backup quarterback spot could be depressing. I’m not all that enthralled by any of the quarterbacks, as they all have limitations. Bray hasn’t played or really practiced in two seasons, Murray is both short and weak-armed, as well as the fact he couldn’t beat out Chase Daniel last year, which was the original plan.
Hogan is a poor man’s version of Byron Leftwich, which is to say he has a strong arm, but isn’t the most accurate passer and his passing motion is more of a baseball windup (though it did improve somewhat his senior season). To end this ramble, if Alex Smith is out for an extended period of time, don’t anticipate or hope for much.
Lastly on this ramble, the Chiefs have a great opportunity to ‘win back’ or restore their prestige in the city with the struggles of the Royals. But to do so, they have to open up. Fans are smarter now then ever before, understand the game then ever before, and simply don’t accept that what happens on the field on Sundays is everything.
Going to games (as I mentioned previously) is now a costly activity, in both money but also time. While I know it won’t happen, it would be nice to see an organization be on the forefront of bringing the fans back into the action and the fold, instead of viewing simply as a commodity.
That’s all, lets hope no one gets hurt at training camp. The season has started. Go Chiefs.