Herm Speaks Vol. 4

From Arrowhead Stadium

There were a few more smiles from Herm Edwards as he met with the media horde on Tuesday for his weekly press conference.

It always helps coming off a win, but like most head coaches, Edwards has moved on from the Denver victory. A tough Carolina team is ahead and his focus is on that. But obviously, the media has other agendas and naturally there was a lot of talk yesterday about Tony Gonzalez.

Here’s what Herm had to say about that, and several other items that caught my fancy. …Read More!

Chiefs Update 9/30

From Arrowhead Stadium

At his Tuesday afternoon press conference, Herm Edwards had some news on injured players and their possible status for this Sunday’s game against Carolina.

Rookie LT Branden Albert injured his right elbow in the first half against Denver and is unlikely to play this weekend.  The elbow was dislocated.  “I would say he’s probably questionable this week,” Edwards said. “His elbow is pretty swollen. He’s better than he was after the game, but his elbow is really swollen.”

When asked if surgery was needed now or in the future on Albert’s elbow, the head coach said: “Not that we know of at this point.  It was good, nothing broken, just one of those kind of like when your finger comes out, you put it back in. Except it’s an elbow.  That’s kind of bigger than a finger.”

Edwards said CB Pat Surtain, out for the last two games with a right shoulder injury, planned begin practicing again on Wednesday.  LB Donnie Edwards is improved with his ankle injury, but is not ready to return to full practice work.

It sounds like October 19th against Tennessee remains the target date to get QB Brodie Croyle back on the playing field after his shoulder injury suffered in the season opener.  That means he should participate somewhat in practice this week.  Croyle did not practice last week, but was on the field and did some throwing..

College Preview 9/30

There’s a lot of college football on the ESPN family of networks this week, including a Tuesday night game from the Sun Belt Conference between Florida Atlanta and Middle Tennessee State. Kickoff is 7 o’clock on ESPN2.

There are some NFL draft prospects, but only at Florida Atlanta this year. Here they are.

Florida Atlantic

#46 FB William Rose – 6-1, 228 pounds, JR-Redshirt. Rose played every game in ’07 for the Owls and showed versatility as a blocker, runner and pass catcher. He had 333 yards rushing and 264 yards receiving on a combined 101 touches. So far in the’08 season, Rose has run 13 times for 54 yards and caught seven passes for 50 yards.. He’s considered a fourth/fifth-round talent. …Read More!

Tuesday Morning Cup O’Chiefs

TO ALL OUR READERS CELEBRATING ROSH HASHANAH, WE SAY HAPPY NEW YEAR!

The first coaching domino has fallen in the NFL.

The St. Louis Rams sent Scott Linehan (left) packing on Monday morning after the team started the season 0-4, giving him a record over the last two-plus seasons. He was replaced by defensive coordinator and former New Orleans head coach Jim Haslett on an interim basis.

That’s a bit of a laugh around the NFL because the Rams defensive play so far this season has been one of the biggest reasons they have yet to win a game. But Haslett has head coaching experience from his time leading the New Orleans Saints, where he posted a record over seasons.

Reportedly Rams ownership and management considered several options besides Haslett. They talked about offensive coordinator Al Saunders, but again he was a bridesmaid. They actually talked about leaving Linehan in the job and bringing in former Rams and former Chiefs head coach Dick Vermeil as a consultant for the rest of the year.

This is a hoot because some of the same people that talked about that possibility tried to fire Vermeil as the Rams head coach after the 1998 season. Ultimately, owner Georgia Frontiere decided not to make a move and all the Rams did in ’99 was take a Super Bowl championship. Some of these same people that talked about bringing Vermeil back this week were officials that were happy when he retired after the Super Bowl because they wanted him and his minions out the door.

That’s the NFL. Stand on the same corner of pro football long enough and cars will drive by several times.

Next, the league is waiting on Al Davis and his decision on head coach Lane Kiffin (right). The Raiders are also on a bye week. For whatever reason, Davis is having trouble pulling the trigger on firing Kiffin. On Monday, he had private meetings with several assistant coaches on Kiffin’s staff.  A press conference with Davis himself supposedly is now scheduled for 4 p.m. CDT.  Hard to imagine Davis getting in front of a microphone for any reason other than firing Kiffin. 

UPDATE: DAVIS HAS FIRED KIFFIN AND REPLACED HIM ON AN INTERIM BASIS WITH O-LINE COACH TOM CABLE.  MORE DETAILS TO COME

…Read More!

Gonzalez Still Upset By Lack of Record

From the Truman Sports Complex

Everyone around the Chiefs facility was happy on Monday after the franchise’s first victory in 12 games.

Well, everyone that is but TE Tony Gonzalez, who came up three yards short of setting the NFL career record for receiving yardage by a tight end.

Gonzalez allowed that he was still “upset” because the Chiefs did not give him an opportunity to set the record late in the game on Sunday against the Denver Broncos.

“I had my family out there, I wanted to do it in front of the fans, I wanted to do it in a home game,” Gonzalez said. “That would have been a great way to do it.

“I’m disappointed by that.  For whatever reason, my number wasn’t called.  If that’s going to help the team win, I guess that’s what it is.” …Read More!

Leftovers from Chiefs-Broncos Game

After doing a quick trip through the game tape late Sunday night, let me tell you that given more time for development, Denver QB Jay Cutler is going to be scary.  Cutler is going to be a thorn in the side  of teams in the AFC West for some time.

Now, he threw at least one ill-advised pass against the Chiefs, the one CB Brandon Carr picked off.  Cutler had TE Tony Scheffler open down the middle of the field.  Scheffler was bracketed by safeties Jarrad Page and Bernard Pollard, but with Cutler’s arm I’m not sure they could have gotten there in time to break up the pass.  The throw that Carr got was a tough one for any QB to make.

Other than that, Cutler was very impressive.  He threw several balls to places where only his receivers could have caught the ball.  He showed his velocity on the TD pass to Marshall and he showed his touch on several other throws, especially one to rookie WR Eddie Royal where he dropped it in over his shoulder.  Royal never broke stride. …Read More!

Game Coverage of Chiefs-Broncos

From Arrowhead Stadium

Funny thing with young teams.  Just when you think they are the worst club in the league, they show up and surprise everybody with their good play.

Chiefs 33, Broncos 19.

It was a victory that produced relief around Arrowhead Stadium and throughout the Chiefs Nation.

To enjoy our game coverage, then click right here.

Sunday NFL Review No. 4

Things don’t get any easier for the Chiefs.

They were able to overcome a 3-0 Denver team, but coming up in their next two games – sandwiched around their bye week – are Carolina and Tennessee.

On Sunday, the Panthers beat Atlanta 24-9 and they are now 3-1 on the season. The Chiefs travel to Charlotte this coming Sunday. Then, they get a week off.

Tennessee, who the Chiefs will face at Arrowhead on October 19, went 4-0 for the first time in franchise history with their victory over Minnesota.

It was just two of the outcomes from the fourth NFL Sunday of the season. In other outcomes of note, Buffalo went 4-0 with a victory over St. Louis. Cleveland won its first game of the season, beating the now 0-4 Cincinnati Bengals. Houston and St. Louis both lost and also remain without a victory, along with a Detroit team that had the bye weekend.

…Read More!

Denver Inactives

From Arrowhead Stadium

The inactive players for the Chiefs in their game Sunday against the Denver Broncos:

• LB Donnie Edwards
• QB Brodie Croyle
• CB Pat Surtain
• G Brian De La  Puenta
• T Barry Richardson
• KR B.J. Sams
• LB Napoleon Harris

Ingle Martin is the 46th player, the third and inactive quarterback.

Inactive for the Broncos are S Vernon Fox, RB Ryan Torain, LB Louis Green, DT Dewayne Robertson, T Erik Pears, G Dylan Gandy, WR Darrell Jackson and DT Josh Shaw.

Denver does not have a third quarterback.

Roster Move: Chiefs Add Dacus

With a shallow depth chart at linebacker thanks to the foot injury suffered by Donnie Edwards, the Chiefs on Saturday moved rookie LB Wes Dacus from their practice squad to their active roster.

To make room for Dacus, the Chiefs were expected to release WR Marques Hagans with the idea of returning him to the practice squad or active roster next week.

Dacus was signed as a college free agent out of the University of Arkansas. He had nine tackles on defense and three tackles on special teams during the pre-season.

The 6-1, 232-pound native of Searcy, Arkansas was a two-year starter for the Razorbacks. His addition now gives the Chiefs 16 rookies on their active roster.

And his addition now gives the Chiefs six healthy linebackers for the game against Denver. Expect Dacus to be active on special teams, otherwise there wouldn’t be much of a reason to add him to the active roster.

Sunday Morning Cup O’Chiefs

When the American Football League played its final game and the won-loss records for the teams were compiled for the 10 seasons of play, the Dallas Texans-Kansas City Chiefs were the most successful team in league history.

The Texans-Chiefs record was 87-48-5.

Those teams from the 1960s earned that record thanks in large part to their domination of the Denver Broncos. In the AFL Decade, Lamar Hunt’s team was 19-1 against the boys from the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

When the Chiefs and Broncos face off Sunday afternoon at Arrowhead Stadium, it will be the 97^th regular or post-season game between these original AFL franchises. The Chiefs hold a 52-44 edge over Denver.

That’s due in large part to that early domination of the series by Dallas-Kansas City. In fact, in pro football history it’s hard to find one team that so dominated another for so long as what the Chiefs did to the Broncos.

When the AFL began play in 1960 and the Broncos logo was top left, the Texans swept the first eight games. Denver’s logo had changed (middle left) before it won a game against the Chiefs. That first victory came in 1964. It would change again (bottom left) before there was another win for the Broncos, as the Chiefs won 11 games in a row. After that second Denver victory in 1970, the Chiefs reeled off six more consecutive wins. …Read More!

How The Chiefs Can Beat Denver

The Chiefs have quite a chore in front of them on Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium. First, they must face the 3-0 Denver Broncos, the NFL highest scoring offense. Then they must face their fans, who are in a foul mood with the team’s 0-3 start and don’t figure to provide much in the way of vocal support. If they have something to say, it will probably not sound very good.

But despite those hurdles, this is the National Football League and anything is possible. The Chiefs can win this game, but they have to elevate their play to a level they have not shown yet. If they played as well as they did in New England, that would not be enough for a victory against the Broncos.

The Chiefs must establish a new profile. They can do that by making these three things happen:

College Preview 9/27

There’s a lot of good action on this weekend of college play, including the Arkansas-Texas game that was postponed by Hurricane Ike and moved to this Saturday.

Here are the top prospects involved in some of the major TV games this weekend.

ARKANSAS AT TEXAS, ABC, 2:30 PM

Arkansas

#63 C Jonathan Luigs – 6-4, 314 pounds, SR-Redshirt. Luigs is considered by some NFL teams the top interior offensive lineman in the Class of ’09. He won the Rimington Trophy last year as a junior and was nominated for the award as a sophomore. He’s got the size and speed the NFL is looking for at center these days, but isn’t naturally strong and may need work in the weight room to be able to battle bigger, stronger defensive tackles. He should be a bottom half of the 1^st-round selection. …Read More!

Saturday Morning Cup O’Chiefs

There was a time when the Chiefs and Broncos went head to head that it was a battle of the unstoppable force and the unmoveable object … the Denver running game against the Chiefs run defense.  Especially if the contest was held at Arrowhead Stadium.

Over the last 10 years, only three Denver backs have come into Kansas City and run for more than 100 yards.  Terrell Davis did it in 1998 (18 for 111 yards), Clinton Portis in 2003 (23 for 141) and last year Selvin Young ran 20 times for 109 yards.

Right now, the Broncos backs must be salivating about their trip this weekend to Arrowhead.  They’ll face a Chiefs defense that after three weeks of the NFL season is allowing 204 yards rushing per game.  That’s bad enough to be ranked 31st among 32 NFL teams. …Read More!

No Record For Tony; Other Notes & Quotes

From Arrowhead Stadium

Tony Gonzalez needed 50 yards on Sunday to become the tight end with the most receiving yardage in pro football history.  A representative of the Pro Football Hall of Fame was at the game, prepared to accept the football to be placed in Canton’s hallowed Hall.

Gonzalez came up three yards short.

The veteran tight end caught three passes for 47 yards, including a pretty 10-yard TD catch.  All of those catches came in the second half.  With the Chiefs trying to bleed the clock in the fourth quarter, they went to the running game and thoughts of records were out the window.  The idea was to assure the victory.

Gonzalez did extend his franchise record reception streak to 119 games.  He also became the first tight end in NFL history to have 1,000 receiving yards in his career against three different teams.  He’s over that mark against Denver, San Diego and Oakland.

SPECIAL TEAMS MAKE CONTRIBUTION

When needed the Chiefs kicking game was solid and provided plays that helped decide the game.

Not the least of which was Kolby Smith’s recovery of Denver’s onside kick late in the game.  The Broncos actually had hands on the ball, but somehow Smith came up with it and that ended any comeback hopes for Denver.

K Nick Novak hit four of five field goals, missing only from 48 yards when he was wide right.  Novak had his best day of the season on kickoffs.  He put three of his eight kickoffs into the end zone, three more at the goal line and another at the two-yard line.  His only poor kickoff went to the 11-yard line.

Dantrell Savage had a 51-yard kickoff return that set up a fourth quarter field goal for the Chiefs.  That’s the longest kick return for the team since a 60-yarder by Dante Hall against the Broncos on Thanksgiving Night 2006.  Savage also contributed two tackles on special teams.

The Chiefs made a change in their set up for kickoffs in this game.  Prior to Sunday, the Chiefs had three guys back in their wedge.  For this game, they had four big guys for Savage and Jamaal Charles to run behind.

L.J. & BLY JAW

There were several occasions where Larry Johnson and Denver CB Dre Bly exchanged pleasantries in language that can’t be repeated on a family website.

L.J. instigated a lot of it because of a incident that happened years ago when Johnson was a young player with the Chiefs and Bly was in Detroit.

“When I was a second-year player, he was always busting me about getting scrap time and something about Penn State running backs were busts,” Johnson said.  “I got hurt last year and didn’t get a chance to go at him.  I definitely wanted to go at him today.”

Said Bly, being diplomatic: “Larry Johnson is one of the better backs in this league.  I know he hasn’t gotten off to the good start he has in the past.  He’s a big, physical guy and he was able to make some plays.” 

NOT MUCH FROM SHANAHAN

Denver head coach Mike Shanahan did not have a lot to contribute after the game, pretty good evidence he was really ticked off by the outcome of the game.

“We talked about the keys to the game and obviously the first one is you can’t turn the football over,” Shanahan said.  “Kansas City has an unbelievable home record when they win the turnover battle and they won it by three today.  Credit that to them.”

Here’s what Shanny was talking about: the Chiefs are now 31-4 at Arrowhead dating back to ’95 when they force two or more INTs.  They have won 19 consecutive home games with a positive turnover ratio, the fourth longest active streak in the league right now.  And they are 46-4 at Arrowhead when positive on turnovers dating back to ’95.