Comeback Falls Short, Chiefs Lose Again
From Jacksonville, Florida
They made it interesting right until the end of the game. But the Chiefs dug a hole for themselves in the north Florida sand that was too deep and too steep to escape.
Jaguars 24, Chiefs 21 at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium where an announced crowd of 45,546 saw the home team improve to 4-4 and the Chiefs fall to 1-7. It’s only the second time in the 50-season history of the franchise that the team is 1-7. The other year was last season when they went 1-10 before winning their second game.
Without knowing the facts of the game, someone would look at the final score and figure the Chiefs must have been in quite a struggle. Save for the last three minutes of the game, they would be wrong. When Jacksonville RB Maurice Jones-Drew scored with four minutes, 26 seconds to play in the game, the Jaguars led 24-6 and obviously began celebrating.
That’s when the Chiefs scored a pair of touchdowns and recovered an onside kick in the span of 91 seconds. A second onside kick was not successful and the Jags stumbled off the field with a three-point victory.
The combination of QB Matt Cassel and WR Chris Chambers made things interesting.
They hooked up on a 54-yard touchdown pass. Then, after Ryan Succop ended up recovering his own onside kick attempt, Cassel and Chambers finished off an eight-play drive with a five-yard TD pass. Cassel and RB Jamaal Charles hooked up on a two-point conversion and the Chiefs were just three points away.
“That game on the road could have gotten ugly,” said Chiefs head coach Todd Haley. “They fought back. They really fought hard to get back in the game. They converted some plays that ended up giving us a chance to win the game. I’ve got to give it to those guys; one thing this team hasn’t done is stop fighting.”
The Chiefs finished the game with 301 offensive yards, but 134 yards came on the last two possessions, when they produced their only offensive touchdowns. The defense gave up 426 yards and allowed the Jaguars to have a time of possession advantage of more than 12 minutes. They also gave up plays of 61, 45, 33 and 28 yards, two of those going for touchdowns.
“We are not going to win giving up big plays like that,” said Haley. “Offensively, we did some good things in the first half, but in the second half have we had some third and longs and that’s from negative plays. We just can’t overcome those.”
For the first time this season, the Chiefs got points on their opening possession of the game. They won the coin toss and deferred their selection until the second half. The defense went out and held Jacksonville to three plays and a punt, and the offense took over on its own 43-yard line after a poor punt by the Jaguars Adam Podlesh.
Cassel hit WR Dwayne Bowe on the first play for a seven-yard gain, and came back on second down for a 13-yard pass play to Charles for a first down. It was the first time since the Oakland game in the second week of the season that the offense produced a first down the first possession.
The drive bogged down there as the Chiefs got nine yards on two plays and then could not convert on third down, as RB Dantrell Savage was stopped for no gain. Succop came on and hit the 45-yard FG with the wind at his back for a Chiefs 3-0 lead.
Jacksonville came back and took the lead on a nine-play, 79-yard drive where most of the damage was done by QB David Garrard and Jones-Drew. They accounted for 30 yards on the ground and Garrard completed two passes for 21 yards, including a 12-yarder to Jones-Drew. But it was RB Rashad Jennings who got the score, as he burst through the gap between center and left guard, fought off SS Mike Brown’s feeble tackling attempt and scored on a 28-yard run. The PAT kick by Josh Scobee gave the Jaguars a 7-3 edge with just over five minutes to play in the first period.
Early in the second quarter, Scobee missed a 53-yard FG and then the Jaguars turned the ball over, on a fumble by WR Torry Holt that was recovered by FS DaJuan Morgan at the Jacksonville 20-yard line.
Given that great field position, the Chiefs offense was unable to get into the end zone. RB Kolby Smith ripped off a 12-yard gain on first down, but the next three plays went for just five yards and Succop came on and hit a 21-yard field goal and the Chiefs trailed 7-6. That was a major disappointment.
“We can’t leave four points out there,” said Haley. “With our margin of error, we need to score points. The field goal was a letdown.”
As they did the first time the Chiefs got a FG, the Jaguars answered back with a touchdown. On a 1st-and-10 play at their 39-yard line, Garrard hooked up with WR Mike Sims-Walker on a 61-yard scoring play. In the Chiefs secondary, the only man close to Sims-Walker was Brown and he watched helplessly as the ball floated over his head and into the receiver’s hands. Sims-Walker ran the last 25 yards for the score. The PAT kick gave the Jags a 14-6 lead.
The Chiefs got one more shot in the half, and drove the ball into Jacksonville territory thanks to a 27-yard completion from Cassel to WR Lance Long. But with time running out, the Chiefs went for a 56-yard FG attempt from Succop into a wind. In pre-game warm-ups, the rookie kicker hit from 50 yards in that direction but did not try anything longer.
Succop’s kick was short and caught in the end zone by Jacksonville CB Rashean Mathis, who ran it back 94 yards before he was finally knocked out of bounds by Colquitt at the Chiefs 15-yard line. It was all for nothing however, because the Jaguars were flagged for an illegal block by LB Daryl Smith. So the half ended and the Chiefs trailed 14-6.
Because they deferred at the start of the game, the Chiefs got the ball first in the second half, but went three plays and out thanks to their first negative offensive plays of the game. Cassel was sacked by Smith for minus-four yards and a pass to FB Mike Cox went for minus-4 yards.
The teams traded punts, before the Jaguars were able to get a 27-yard Scobee FG near the end of the third quarter to take a 17-6 lead. A 44-yard punt return by WR Mike Thomas later gave the Jaguars a 1st-and-10 at the Chiefs 22-yard line. Jones-Drew ran four of the five plays, including the last one from 10 yards away to get the touchdown. With the PAT kick, Jacksonville led 24-6 with 4:26 left to play in the game.
After a kickoff and an 18-yard return by Savage, the Chiefs started their possession at their own 29-yard line. Cassel got a first down with an 18-yard completion to Bowe on a 3rd-and-2 play. Then came an incomplete pass and a sack on second down, as Jags DT John Henderson pulled Cassel down.
But on the next play, 3rd-and-19 from the Kansas City 46, Cassel found Chambers open on the right side for a TD. Succop’s PAT kick made the score 24-13.
With CB Maurice Leggett holding the ball, Succop dribbled the kickoff. The ball hit Jacksonville’s Atiyyah Ellison short of the 10-yard distance the Chiefs needed, but Succup grabbed the muffed kick and Kansas City had possession at their 32-yard line.
Cassel went 12 yards to WR Mark Bradley and then 36 yards to Bowe, pushing the ball to the Jaguars 20-yard line at the two-minute warning. He threw three straight incomplete passes, but on the third down throw, Jacksonville rookie CB Derek Cox was hit with an illegal contact flag. Cassel found Long on pair of passes for 10 yards and a first down at the Jaguars five-yard line. That’s when he hooked up with Chambers again. The two-point PAT made the score 24-21 and those few that remained in the stadium were concerned.
But Succop’s onside kick was recovered by FB Greg Jones with 59 seconds to play and the Jags had a victory.
“If we can eliminate the big plays, then the score would not have been what it was,” said Haley. “We have to keep working hard, keep having good practices and then translate that to the game.
“That’s all we can do right now.”
I never thought I’d utter or think the following but this 2009 crew leaves little doubt: They’re worse all the way around from Head Coaching, to OC play calling, to execution, and on to GMing.
Herm and CP are an upgrade over this sad sack excuse for a NFL franchise. Getting better? You kidding me? They’re worse than last year at this time and last year was horrid.
I have two concerns: Matt Cassel and Scott Pioli.
There is no way to know if Cassel will develop until the O line is fixed. There is no way to know how Pioli’s drafts and FA signings will pan out until a few years pass. Cassel has to work out or we are set back for God knows how long. Pioli misjudged our O line and that has clouded the picture going forward.
Pioli and Haley will know this team very well by season’s end. They already know they need O line help, a TE, a safety, a LB and maybe one more on the D line. That can be accomplished this off season (assuming Pioli picks the right guys). But if Cassel isn’t the guy and if this past draft doesn’t pan out………oh my.
I like Haley. Give the guy some time to grow and some talent and I think we’ve got ourselves a coach. I do hope he upgrades his staff in the off season. If he stands pat, then I would re-evaluate my opinion of him.
ThunderChief I must agree. Everyone seems to be living in a fantasy Chiefs world. Talking about the progress being made. I don’t see it.
And why don’t I see it. Why don’t you see it. Because it’s not there. This team makes me homesick for the 80’s.
I do believe Haley is a good coach. But not a head coach. Not yet. His mistakes are showing up big time.
Look at his decisions. Pendergast … can’t scheme a JV game. Gailey used the talent he had and scored. But he’s gone. And the Pollard thing bit him hard this week. Not to mention the Tony G trade.
He’s built a team alright. A team of losers.
Give him time I hear. OK, but at this rate it will take 10 great drafts just to be good enough to beat the Raiders.
Progress … What world are you living in ? They are stuck at horrible. And not moving.
Last year at least we were in games. Yes we didn’t win them but we had chances. It was because of Gailey imo. As Mitch said after the game Cassell is having to play with a new wide receiver every week. How can he develop a chemistry with this happening. Hopefully Chambers will solve this problem. Bowe, Chambers, Long could finally be the right mix. Although Long cost us a chance for a decent field goal at end of first half by not going out of bounds. I thought we abandoned Charles to early.
Bob I want to pick up in the first half where you mention Kolby runs for a 12 yard first down. Then we go 3 and out and kick a field goal to make the game Jags 7 Chiefs 6. Then Haley says at press conference we can’t leave 4 pts on the field oh really. How about don’t line up in shotgun on the goal-line. How about don’t run shotgun draws on the goal-line. How about line up in a goal-line offense and give Kolby or Charles the ball. We left 4 pts on the board due to bad play selection on the goal-line.
This guy is as bad as Mike Solari calling plays. Love the guy as head coach but he’s a horrible play caller. Didn’t get Bowe or Chambers going early in the game. How can Long be targeted more than those guys in the first half. Other than improving the o-line, adding more wideouts, we need to bring in a good offensive coord. in the offseason. Seriously this guy just isn’t getting it done. If the offense doesn’t improve we’ll go 3 and 13 or 4 and 12 this year. Wins only against the Browns and Raiders. Maybe one against the Bills.
Lets see. Thunderchiefs and BT, couldn’t agree more. I have been saying this for weeks. This team has taken a huge leap backwards compared to last years team. I am very frustrated with the purging of young talent that we’ve acquired over the past two/three years. And we’re purging them for what? Old, used up veterens. I understand that the young guys might not be perfect, but they were still better than what we have, and they had upside. Now we have vets with noplace to go but down.
I find myself wondering what would have happened had we kept Herm for one more year. There is no chemistry with this team, they are all on different pages. Most likely becuause they havn’t played together, and there’s constant turnover. I also do not believe that the acquisition of Cassel has been an upgrade for us. People are defending him by saying we have horrible line play, and they are right, but he has not played any better than the QB’s we had on the roster last year, and the same O-line arguements can be made for their play last season. Instead of using that pick for Cassel and Vrabel, we should have picked up another lineman.
Overall, this season has been a huge failure. This team has noplace to go but up. But after 10 weeks of regular season, I think a lot of people should recognize that Herm was doing a decent job the players he had. I think the team played much better for him than they have this year, and at least we were getting younger. What do we have to hang our hats on now? Cassel??
I was a Chiefs fan as a New York state jr. high kid in the early 70s. Lenny Dawson, Willie Lanier, Otis Taylor. We actually moved to Kansas City in the mid 70s, but it was hard to stay a Chiefs fan in the Paul Wiggen/Charlie Winner era. I was very hopeful throughout the 80’s and saw some reward for that in the 90’s. At this point I don’t know what to think. Record-wise for the past 2 1/2 years this is not only the worst Chiefs teams ever but one of the worst NFL teams ever. The Chiefs were much much better even in the 80s when they were still pretty pathetic. Is there light at the end of the tunnel? When Marty and Carl came in they didn’t throw out all the Frank Ganz/John Macovic players. Bill Maas, Albert Lewis, Deron Cherry, Christian Okoye, Neil Smith, etc. played a big role in the Chiefs resurgence. Did Haley/Pioli really have to strip the cupboard bare? I still think the Chiefs have some shot at things. They could go 3-5 or 4-4 during the second half of this season: 2/3 or 3/3 against their peer teams: Buffalo, Oakland and Cleveland, and an upset or two against the Chargers, Broncos, Steelers, Bengals, or they could go 0-8. They could use the draft and free agency to put together a decent o-line and have their 3-4 defense gel, or they could use free agency and the draft to pick up a new bunch of stiffs who can’t play. Only time will tell. I gave up completely on the Royals in the late 90s as it became obvious that they had no clue how to compete in Major League Baseball. The Chiefs are hitting that wall for me now. Maybe it’s time to worry about something else Sunday afternoons.
Sorry Al, just do not see what you see. Chiefs upset anybody? only if the other team gets the flu. Buffalo, Oakland, and Cleveland are bad team but the Chiefs are worse. Pioli had one preseason but nothing he has done any good. Can he do better, yes?, why? Haley is a joke. No business being a HC, look up overated in dictionary and his picture is there. Defense was drafted for and is worse than herm garbage. We have at least 3 year of the two fools but do expect many wins. Those two are just to smart for the fans of KC.
Disagree. Raiders and Browns are far worse than Chiefs. Browns don’t have anyone on offense as good as Bowe, Charles, or Chambers for that matter. And can you name anyone good on their defense other than the nose guard they got from Detroit. Raiders have Russell who is the most inaccurate QB in the league. He’ll definately make the seoondary look good this Sunday. With this lousy play calling those are the only two wins I see us getting unless this offensive play calling improves. Which starts with getting Charles 20 plus carries and getting Bowe and Chambers the ball early in the game.
Observations:
1. Jackson needs to bust his ass and get to the ball carrier instead of jogging to the other side of the field! Man!! Worthless!!
2. Cassel still has issues! FACE it!
3. Way to go Tamba!
4. Chambers I am impressed!
5. Savage ran the hardest!
6. Coach I don’t see you yelling and doing more sitting down and talking.
7. Right now I am more disappointed in Pioli…very poor!
8. Boy am I glad I don’t own Chiefs Season tickets.
9. Nope! Won’t go even to see a preseason game!
10. Clark: You are in trouble!
mike brown …lmao…got clowned.ova and ova belcher got burned..and could not tackle the whole team let jones take them in the enzone ..o well…i said it once i’ll say it again there are not playing for coach haley there are showing pay check efforts..but they are not he sucks..dont know talent cant coach a player to play his role..if so DJ would on the field..no talent no talent no oline..well packers online suck to but rodgers is throwing the dam ball…anyways my bacon is burning ..ill see ya guys next week ..we will be mad then toooooooooooo..lata