Offensive Line Gamble
From River Falls, Wisconsin
Are the Chiefs taking a big gamble in this 2008 season with their offensive line?
You bet they are.
Even Herm Edwards admits that.
“You are taking a gamble any time you go with as many young players as we are,” said Edwards. “There is always a risk. But what you build in this case is something that will last, not a one-year wonder.”
I talked at length with Edwards and other Chiefs personnel about the decisions that were made in the off-season when it came to rebuilding the team’s offensive line. Here’s the story that appears on kcchiefs.com.
The pull quote from what Edwards has to say is this one:
“Just because you’ve got a lot of games on your resume, doesn’t mean you can get the job done. Just because you don’t have a lot of games on your resume doesn’t mean you can’t get the job done.”
 It’s not so much that the Chiefs have gone younger on the offensive line. It’s that they’ve gone inexperienced. The starting ages of the group of Albert/Waters/Niswanger/Jones/McIntosh are 23, 31, 25, 27 and 31, or an average age of 27.4 years.
But among that group, only Brian Waters has actually started an NFL game at his position (101 startsat left guard.) Damion McIntosh has started 95 NFL games, but none at right tackle. Adrian Jones has 16 starts, but none at right guard. Branden Albert and Rudy Niswanger have no NFL starts at any position.
The same is true with the group of five that serves as the No. 2 offensive line: no NFL starts at their positions. Here’s how the whole group breaks down. Post-season starts are included in the totals:
| Â Players |
NFL Games Played* |
NFL Games Started |
NFL Starts At Current Position |
| Anthony Alabi |
15 |
0 |
0 |
| Branden Albert |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Edwin Harrison |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Adrian Jones |
47 |
16 |
0 |
| Travis Leffew |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Damion McIntosh |
99 |
95 |
0 |
| Rudy Niswanger |
16 |
0 |
0 |
| Barry Richardson |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Rob Smith |
1 |
1 |
0 |
| Wade Smith |
46 |
18 |
0 |
| Tre Stallings |
1 |
0 |
0 |
| Will Svitek |
16 |
4 |
3 |
| Herb Taylor |
2 |
0 |
0 |
| Brian Waters |
118 |
104 |
103 |
That is an inexperienced group of linemen! The Chiefs had the opposite last year and we saw how that turned out, so like Herm says don’t immediately assume that an inexperienced collection is going to be worse as a group than last year’s line.
In Chan Gailey’s offense, they’ve taken the lack of experience into account. You will see more misdirection on running plays, more ball handling by the quarterback, more bootlegs and screen passes in the passing game. Plus, the reduced playbook means a reduced number of blocking schemes. Thus, when the Chiefs practice they are working with the same plays over and over. Execution rather than variety will be the key for the whole offense, but especially the blocking group.
There is no question the decision to go with an inexperienced group is the biggest gamble of the 2008 Chiefs season. How that plays out will go along way to determining what kind of season the Chiefs have and whether Brodie Croyle survives or thrives.
Bob,
You are my new hero. Being a Chief’s fan in Northeastern PA was tough. Eagles…blah, blah, blah….Steelers, Giants, Jets…and there seems to be a lot of nonsense about the Packers for some unknown reason this training camp…
You have become my daily reading at work. On behalf of myself and my boss, thank you for the coverage.
Yes, I very much like the coverage as well, and Gretz tends to be very level-headed in his breakdown. However, I am very interested in more detailed play-by-play (perhaps the highlights), or a section that isolates the game of one of the new starters on either side.
Keep up the good work! I read the blog multiple times daily!
Bob, that was one of your best articles yet on kcchiefs.com. I LOVE the direction the team is taking this year with the young players, as opposed to the stop gaps or low level type older players they’ve relied on in the past. I’m glad Herm’s philosophy about playing the young guys is winning out over what we’ve previously had here. It will make for a better team in the future, and a more hungry team which may surprise some even this year. I’m hoping that Mcintosh gets beat out at RT and has to slide over to RG, where I think his talents will be better suited. Any of thye young players look like they have a shot to take that RT job? I’m hearing Richardson is struggling, but a young FA, Harrison is impressing.
Mark: just a second for a reply. Richardson has impressed the Chiefs with how much he’s learned and his growth. He’s not ready to be a starter in the NFL, but there’s still five weeks before the opener.
Harrison has an outside chance. Right now the odds are against him, but so many things can happen in the pre-season.
McIntosh to guard is remote, but not impossible. That will depend on Adrian Jones and how he plays. So far, he’s been inconsistent, but then the entire offense has been that way. Thursday night’s matchup against the Vikings should be an eye-opener on Jones and Rudy Niswanger at center.
BG