Dorsey/Albert Update

From River Falls, Wisconsin

This is not a good way to foster the growth of a rebuilding project.

The cornerstones of the Chiefs future are 10 days into their pro careers and both will be on the sidelines Monday when the team returns to work here in the northwoods.

Right now if the Chiefs didn’t have bad luck, they wouldn’t have any luck at all.  In the span of three days both first round draft choices went down with injuries; it’s a left knee for Glenn Dorsey and a right foot for Branden Albert.

Right now the news is better on Dorsey than Albert.  He’s expected to miss a week, possibly 10 days.  Albert figures to be gone three to four weeks at the minimum.  He was hobbling along at UW-River Falls on Sunday using crutches.

These injuries are not catastrophic in a football sense since both players should be able to play most of the season.  But there’s no questioning the fact this puts a severe crimp in the rebuilding of this team.

Some would say what’s the difference? The Chiefs aren’t going to win a lot of games this year anyway.  That may well be true. But any rebuilding project is designed for creating a stronger unit for the future, not just the present.  To make that happen, the cornerstones need to be on the field and they need to be growing into their roles not only as players, but as leaders. 

Fans and the pundits are already throwing up their hands and declaring all is lost.  They’ve signaled to have the life boats lowered because they think this ‘08 Chiefs ship is about to go down.  Herm Edwards will have to fight to make sure that none of that poison seeps into his locker room.

Here’s a guess that it will not.  Edwards has tried to fill his roster with players who carry a mindset similar to the head coach.  It can be best described in three words: do your job.  There’s no worry or concern about what’s going on somewhere else on the team.  Just go out every day and make yourself better and that will help the team.  Do your job.

The Chiefs need to get better, whether they have Glenn Dorsey and Branden Albert on the field or not.  That’s something that can still be accomplished if everybody does their job.