Red Zone Misery For Offense
From Arrowhead Stadium
They are frequently the toughest yards in football. First and goal means a lot of things and it takes a lot of precision and heart to make plays work in the shortest part of the field. It’s where brains combine with brawn. There has to be a good plan, and there has to be real feeling that nothing is going to stop this offense from cracking the goal line.
Right now, plenty of folks are debating whether the Chiefs had the brains or brawn when it comes to making some of plays within the 10-yard line. Their failure when they were that close to the end zone was one of the major reasons they dropped their sixth straight game, losing to the New Orleans Saints.
It wasn’t like the Chiefs were never able to punch the ball in when deep in New Orleans territory. Both of Tyler Thigpen’s touchdown passes to Dwayne Bowe came in second-and-goal situations, the first from six yards, the next one from five yards.
But two more times the Chiefs got to a first-and-goal situation and in each of them, they were forced to take a field goal because they could not move the ball. That’s eight points gone from a possible 14 points.
Yes, they lost by 10, but a lot of things change if the Chiefs can punch the ball in.
“It’s one thing we are going to have to work on offensively, our red zone offense,” said Thigpen. “When we get down there that close we’ve got to be able to put points on the board. We can’t settle for three points. We’ve got to have seven points.
“Kicking field goals is going to get you beat in the long run.”
With a big, bruising running back in Larry Johnson back on the field, the Chiefs figured to be perfectly set up to run some tough plays in the goal-to-go situations. Johnson never had a chance. The Saints defensive front overwhelmed the Chiefs offensive line in those situations and forced the play behind the line of scrimmage.
“I’m sure we are going to look at the tape and say we needed to be more physical,” said LG Brian Waters. “I’m sure we will see things we could have done differently, we will see things that we could have called differently. But it comes down to this: whatever is called, we have to execute it and we did not do that today.”
Here’s what the Chiefs did on their goal-to-go plays:
- First-and-goal from the 4: Johnson lost two yards.
- Second-and-goal from the 6: Thigpen to Bowe for TD.
- First-and-goal from the 1: Johnson no gain.
- Second-and-goal from the 1: Johnson loses a yard.
- Third-and-goal from the 2: Thigpen throws incomplete for Bowe.
- First-and-goal from the 3: Johnson no gain.
- Second-and-goal from the 3: Thigpen throws incomplete for Bowe.
- Third-and-goal from the 3: Thigpen throws incomplete for Bowe.
- First-and-goal from the 3: Johnson loses two yards.
- Second and goal from the 5: Thigpen throws to Bowe for TD.
That’s 10 plays that gained a total of six yards. There were five running plays for minus-five yards.
Once the media reached the Chiefs locker room after the game, Johnson was gone so we do not know his thoughts on the matter. Herm Edwards spoke pretty plainly about the situation.
“We didn’t get any push at all,” the head coach said. “They pushed us back and we didn’t get any yards. We just bogged down in the red zone. If those are scores it’s an entirely different game.”
Said Waters:
“Let’s face it, you don’t run the ball very well down there. It’s very tight quarters. Even in their coverage the defense’s first obligation is to stop the run. It’s a tough area to call plays, a tough area to run.”
But to win, the Chiefs must find a way. Not too many years ago, they were one of the best goal-to-go offenses in the league. They seldom left points on the field.
Sunday, they left points and possibly a victory out there.
“That’s not good,” said tackle Damion McIntosh. “We have got to punch it in.”
Punch it in, or get punched out, that’s what happens in the NFL in the red zone.
Keep up the great work Coach Edwards. ALL of KC is behind you and we know that you will lead us back to glory very soon now.
AND NOW, Clark Hunt has RE-affirmed Herm’s The Man!
I read an article on the KC star praising the offensive line, and I said then one game don’t make up for the last 9.The right side still needs to be addressed. The draft can’t get here sooner. Forget the quarterback crap we need to draft a RIGHT TACKLE AND GUARD.
Talk about predictable! When they got down there it was either LJ up the gut or fade pattern to Bowe. Bob shows it up there in plain English. A lot of people have brought up the point that Brad Cottam should be utilized more in the red zone, but if the ground game isn’t getting it done down there it’s tough. Personally, I hate the corner fade in the end zone. It’s just putting the ball up there for grabs and it stops the clock if the play doesn’t work.
If they’re going to be predictable in the red zone anyway, I’d rather see them just keep pounding it with LJ until something gives. Just my opinion.
Also, if Thigpen keeps playing well, then they may not feel the need to draft a QB with a high pick. I’d agree with you ED that we have got to keep addressing that offensive line. RG and RT are not up to snuff right now and Niswanger isn’t getting enough criticism either. All three spots need better talent and some high picks (1st-3rd) would help. MLB would be a wisely spent pick as well although if Jonathan Vilma is available in free agency I’d pick him up.
So many problems………
“You play to win the game.â€
- Herm Edwards -
And Herm coaches to lose the game.
Keep up the great work Coach Edwards. ALL of KC is behind you and we know that you will lead us back to glory very soon now.
AND NOW, Clark Hunt has RE-affirmed Herm’s The Man!
AND WILL BE FOREVER & EVER MORE!
heh heh heh
YAY!
Bradley dropping the ball was a physical mistake - Edwards punting the #1 offense (which was going to be confronted with the NFL’s worst defense) is one of the most pathetic and gutless “play to lose” strategies I have seen this year. I think he’s great for the young guys - but even if they get better I have no confidence he has the demeanor to handle the pressure of big playoff games. that was his problem in NY - and will always be his problem - he’s a checken at the end of games. I’ll be t Paytone was jumping up and down when he saw the punter. Two plays later the saints were right about where the Chiefs would have given the the ball - Edwards, I love part of him —but on days like this I feel we’re destined for some awful heartbreak and frustration even if he does improve the team.
People can rave about Bowe all they wany - he drops a lot of balls he should catch. I hope he cures that problem because you can’t be the #1 guy when it’s a crap shoot whther or not you hang on to the ball? Thigpen was hurt by dropped balls all day today - I thought he played well.
Bowe’s drops are very frustrating, but I go back to Gonzalez’s second season: Tony G dropped 14 or 15 balls that year and about drove me insane. He usually doesn’t drop anything reasonably catchable now. Hopefully Bowe’s inconsistencies will decrease as he contniues to improve. If he cuts down on his drops, he really could be a top 5 WR in this league.
Bowe is going to mature over time. I was very impressed with Bradley and Franklin’s day (even Bradley’s bad drop).
Herman Edwards is a good coach, and he’s taken a team with 19 rookies and is coaching them up to play loose and passionately against some of the top teams in the NFL. Give him another few years and I think we’re going to see some real results. Another draft and a good free agent signing or two, and we’re going to be the rising team that is everyone’s sexy pick.
Was at Arrowhead today and the crowd was great. Didn’t see a ton of negativity (except when Herm decided not to go for it on 4th and 2, a mistake in my opininon).
I’m not going to point fingers at the coach. Players have to get it done plain and simple. I’ played football in high school with one of the worse coaches in high school football history. We had 8 pass plays and 8 run plays that we could run either left or right. The guy didn’t have a clue about coaching, but from my freshman yr to my senior yr we only lost 5 out of 40 reg season games. Because players made plays
I”m not going to talk about how Savage drop kickoff return that put us in bad field position. Or how Bradley drop that easy pass that would have kept the drive going late in the game on that 3 and 2 when we were down 27 to 20.
But what I am going to get on is the line on both sides of the ball. It don’t matter who the coach is when you have to go to shotgun on the goal line that is ridiculous. On defense man Breeze had time to pulled a Joe Horn and made a phone call before he threw the ball down field.
I”m not going to jump on Herm case because we don’t have the Chargers roster out there. If I was a Charger fan and underachieving like they are I would be highly upset. But when you got guys like McIntosh and Aaron Boone having to play on your line I can’t blame Herm for that.
The draft needs to be so focus on getting atheletes in the trenches on both sides of the ball. So much that I wouldn’t even consider a middle linebacker till later in the round unless we get some more 2nd and 3rd round picks through a trade or something. The 2009 draft can’t get here any sooner I’m sick of watching this garbage right side of the line and these horrible defensive ends who can’t get any pressure on the quarterback.
At the end of the day we have good skill players, but good skill players will make you competitive against good teams, but they want help you beat good teams. When you have atheletes in trenches on offense and defense you can beat anybody. Ask the Titans and Giants. You talking about two teams with the best offensive and defensive lines in the league and also two teams with the best record in the league also.
Colby,
I couldn’t agree more. Herm Edwards talks a great game, but the evidence is on the field. Punting on 4th and 1 to the #1 offense in the league is asinine. Last week, when his defense was kicking ass and had momentum, he goes for two because he didn’t want to put them back on the field (read: he didn’t believe they could close the game out in OT) but today, when his defense only ends up stopping the Saints three times in the entire game, he decides to punt for field position, believing that his defense, a defense that was basically the same group to run out on the field in the 4th Quarter of the Chargers game and couldn’t cut it against a mediocre offense, would be able to force a three and out, something they had only done ONCE the entire game…
I saw a lot of empty seats in my section today. I have to believe that Clark saw that too. Let’s just hope to God that he’s just a man of character and is letting Herm play out the rest of this atrocious season and that he’ll drop the axe in January…
Ed, I completely agree with you for once! RT is the biggest weakness of this team. I think we have lots of candidates for the guard position though (we have 3 on the PS, Richardson might be able to play G, along with Jones and Smith for competition).
Colby, Agree that the chiefs were too predictable in the redzone. LJ is not as good a red zone back as Priest was.
You’ve got the Chiefs on the right path…keep up the great work!
I’m not going to put it on LJ got damn offensive line can’t allow the guy to get hit in the backfield. We could have had Marcus Allen back there and he would’ve gotten no where behind that o-line. We do need to be more creative in the red zone but damn we at least have to have a threat to run the ball. Like I we have to fix the line on both sides of the ball. Until we do that we want beat good teams in this league. Its the same reason why the Lions,Bengals,Rams,and Raiders are losing. Don’t matter how good your skill players are if the guys in the trenches are not getting it done. The opposite of that its the same reason why the Giants and Titans are winning. Both teams a good offensive and defensive line. Both probably going to be in the Super Bowl.
Until we address ours it want matter who the coach is we’re still going to lose.
Some of Thigpen’s incompleted passes were not really his fault, I think (i.e. Bradley drop on last drive) and the interception didn’t really matter because it was the end of the game anyway. I’d like to see Chan mix in more of those QB draws on 3rd down when Thiggy’s in there. Jamaal Charles made something out of absolutely NOTHING on 3rd & 11 on the draw. As the guys on TV said, “Give credit to the KC Chiefs for putting up a fight and competing against hte #1 offense in the league”.
Ed, your high school coach sounds like a pretty good one to me (88% winning pctg in spite of three graduating classes). The high school game is, above all, learning to execute. Fewer plays practiced ad infinitum is generally better than 100 plays that nobody knows how to run. That’s also why so much time gets spent in blocking and tackling drills. Do the basics well and your high school team is usually better than average. Your old high school coach also sounds like he could put the right players in the right places. In your own words, “players made plays.” It doesn’t sound like he tried to make a QB out of a linebacker or a right guard out of a left tackle. In fact, that sounds remarkably similar to the NFL. Maybe Clark Hunt should give him a call. I wonder if he would put up with all the missed tackles and bad blocks the same way Herm Edwards does. I bet not. Pure and simple, KC’s defense is now the biggest problem and is a product of a conservative scheme (which puts Gun out of his element) meeting with talent that is average at best. Herm’s had two and a half years to make his defense better (what he said was his major focus when he came to KC) and all it has done is gotten worse. At this point, KC is no longer losing because of an inability to produce offensively. It’s because the defense can not run the scheme the way the head coach is calling it. That IS bad coaching and not just bad luck. Let’s talk about coaching first by addressing your DMac complaint. Herm claims he is committed to youth but he has two young tackles one of whom has started and played very well standing on the sideline while Macintosh blows block after block….coaching decision! Linebackers and D-backs are beat up and there is no pressure on the QB and no blitz packages thrown at him…coaching decision! Maybe Edwards pointed the Chiefs in the right direction but I don’t believe they will ever get past that initial stage with Edwards in charge. By the way, is Rin Tin Tin a Bronco’s fan that just shows up here to gloat?
“is Rin Tin Tin a Bronco’s fan that just shows up here to gloat?”
- no cousin larry, rather, Rin is a life-long Chiefs fan- since ‘63 at any- and too, Josh’s conscience…
Herm is doing a great job huh? Has lost his last 17 out of 18 yep he is doing an astounding job.Boy I love the Chiefs too but I am not a homer please take off your red and gold glasses. This man is a motivating speaker but when it comes to crunch time I sometimes wonder are some of few of the players are listening. Again Clark sees something in him that he likes otherwise this guy would be out of town. I have a question who is worst? Rob Marinelli of Detriot, Marvin Lewis of the Bengals or Herman Edwards who is your vote for worst coach of the year and I think Detriot is due for a win somewhere down the line but so far I will give it to Marinelli of Detriot. And last but not least who is the mysterious surprising team no one is talking about my choice is the Arizona Cardinals and Ken Wisenhunt would be my choice of Coach of the year.
Correction he has lost 18 of his last 19.
The Chiefs are dealing with a huge shortage of quality players which accounts for many of their problems, but I look to the small things for coaching. Blocking, tackling, catching, etc. The Chiefs don’t do any of that well. The fundamentals are so lacking that it just amplifies the other issues. They would be better off just to focus a week of practice on those issues and forget the opponent. You can have great game plans, but if you can’t tackle or catch the ball, it doesn’t really matter.
I saw McGraw’s comments about special teams having so many new faces that it was hard to get together. I don’t understand that really. Coverage units consist of staying in your lanes, getting off of blocks, and tackling. There aren’t many x’s and o’s there. It is mainly having more will than your opponent. Those are the things that are most frustrating to me.
B in SC…
We did that last year, sometime about this stage during the season. We went back to basics and stressed fundamentals in practice, tackling, blocking, catching. Here we are a year later talking about the SAME thing. Its very frustrating.
I keep hearing all of you blaming Herm but does it really matter even if we do go for it on 4th and 2 and go on to score a TD, with our special teams and defense the Saints just drive right back down the field and we lose anyway.
After the second world war, many Germans claimed that when they allowed the Holocaust to happen, they were simply being good citizens. They were not questioning their leaders, because to do so showed disloyalty and was unpatriotic.
Questioning the direction Herm Edwards has taken the program has no relation to the quality of being a Chiefs fan. Fans cheer for their team. They want their team to win. There is no requirement that they blindly agree with every decision the team makes. Healthy debate about those decisions is worthwhile and useful for many fans.
While Herm Edwards has positive qualities, he has expressed his basic philosophy many times as something along the lines of: Don’t make penalties, sustain long drives to keep the defense off the field, play good defense, play offense well enough to win. As he’s fond of saying, if a team does that, they’re going to be in a lot of ball games.
I do not agree with that philosophy. I did not agree with it when Herm Edwards was hired, and I did not agree with it when he took the Chiefs to the playoffs in the ‘06 season. I feel it’s a flawed philosophy that only works in very special circumstances. One of the requirements is that the team using that philosophy has a truly elite defense.
I also do not agree with Herm Edwards decision to simplify the offense schemes to the point he has done so. While he has young players who are struggling to learn the offense, I see plenty of college teams run a much more complicated offense with less practice time, less intelligent players, and theoretically less incentive to do what it takes to succeed. While I grant that the Chiefs have been hampered by injuries this season, I see that as a predictable result given the offensive and defensive schemes they are asked to play. I do not believe it’s a coincidence that Herm Edwards has a easily documented record for having his players sustain serious injuries. With Herm Edwards directing the Jets, Chad Pennington never played a full season. Since Herm Edwards left the Jets, Chad Pennington has only missed two games with a single minor injury. If you play for Herm Edwards for long, you play timidly and with hesitation. That kind of play gets you hurt.
I believe Herm is a great evaluator of talent. He’s just not a great user of talent. His abilities would be better served in the front office of an organization rather than on its sidelines.
He should finish out the season, certainly, but short of winning four of their last six games, I could never justify keeping him as the Chiefs head coach. On the other hand, Clark Hunt will probably do so because Clark recognizes winning it all in 2009 is almost an impossibility. Given that, he might let both Carl and Herm hang around another year. Herm will draft great players. Carl will finish supervising the stadium reconstruction. And when a new coach is hired for the 2010 season, there’ll be plenty of potentially great players on the roster and a newly remodeled stadium mostly complete. He would have allowed Carl to finish his contract and he will have allowed Herm four years to make the Chiefs a winner. Both actions should make hiring quality people for a new GM and a new coach even easier.
Just my opinion.
Great Post Watson!
It’s as if herm feels every game should come down to getting a lucky break or the other team making a mistake ie turnover or maybe a blown call or some other fate based philosophy, as apposed to Dominating a team and TAKING the win.
JohnNdallas very succinctly summed up what I was trying to say above. That was exactly my point.
Even accounting for all of it: the poor special teams play; mediocre play of the O line on the goal line; both sides of the ball sleepwalking during the beginning of the first half; the erratic defense, having problems with fundamentals and communication; mental errors all around; the Chiefs still could have won this game. LJ up the gut over and over at the goal line (first and second down), and fade routes in the corner of the endzone? That’s all they could come up with? True, an offensive line should be able to get a power back like LJ into the endzone from there, but this line isn’t good at it and that’s no secret. So line up in the I and throw it. Give the offense some options, at least. Not a fade, you’re locked in on that one thing. Get Thigpen moving; get all the receivers moving; give yourself a chance. If you still haven’t made it on third and goal, then give it to LJ. 50-50, because they won’t expect it. At least on one of those series. Gailey’s shown a lot of imagination lately, but the Chiefs pick the weirdest times to go vanilla. I don’t get it.
I still hope Gailey will continue to come up with more ways to use LJ creatively in this offense, though.
Defense. For crying out loud: blitz! They’ll probably kill you on it several times but, again, at least you’ve got a chance.
Special teams. The only thing I would add is that I wonder why Robinson didn’t return more. Did he get injured? I’d like to see someone with more speed and explosion than Savage returning kickoffs. Robinson, Franklin, Darling, Colclough are good options. Like Savage on punt returns.