SB Nation - Turk McBride

Friday Notes: Matt Millen-Free for a Year Already

Sean Yuille — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 15:20:15 -0000

According to Tom Kowalski, 10,000 tickets were available yesterday at the 1 p.m. blackout deadline. That's how many tickets were available on Wednesday, so it appears the threat of a blackout didn't cause hardly anyone to go buy tickets to the game.
If you are going to the game on Sunday, plan on showing up a little earlier than usual due to expected delays related to security. All over the country there is heightened security at sporting events, including the University of Michigan, which actually banned all bags from the Big House.
It's already been a year since Matt Millen was fired. It seems like he's been gone for much longer than that, though the stink of his presence is still on this franchise.
Describing his fumble against the Vikings, Kevin Smith said it best: "You never like to drop the money on the way to the bank."
Gunther Cunningham thinks highly of Redskins tight end Chris Cooley.
Turk McBride is quickly adjusting to playing in a 4-3 with the Lions.
Add Mike O'Hara to the list of people placing the blame of the Jared Allen sack on Jerome Felton.
Larry Foote is concerned with some of the problems the Detroit PSL has been having.
40 former Lions players will be at Sunday's game as part of alumni day festivities. The list of players includes Lomas Brown, Luther Elliss, Eddie Murray, and Charlie Sanders, among others.
The Detroit News obtained the police report from when Charles Rogers was arrested earlier this month.
As always, check out SB Nation's fantasy football page for continuous updates all weekend on who to start and who to sit.

Lions Claim Turk McBride, Release Orien Harris

Sean Yuille — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 21:27:29 -0000

As speculated by PFT's Mike Florio yesterday, the Lions have claimed defensive end Turk McBride, who was waived by the Chiefs yesterday. McBride was drafted in the second round back in 2007, so it's no surprise that the Lions claimed him. Aside from wanting to upgrade their depth at DE, defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham was with the Chiefs when McBride was drafted. As we have seen before, coaches like to bring their former players to their new teams when they become available, and that is exactly what happened in this case.

Arrowhead Pride, SB Nation's Chiefs blog, had this to say about McBride.

This is, in my opinion, a good move for McBride. The Lions defense is coached by Gunther Cunningham, who was on staff when the Chiefs selected McBride in the second round of the 2007 draft.

While I was tweeting the news that McBride had been released, more than a few folks were chalking him up to another Herm Edwards draft pick failed. Well, McBride just didn't fit the scheme. He did everything the "Todd Haley Way" as Nick Wright of 610 Sports said this morning.

So, I think in a 4-3 defense, McBride's still got a chance. Just because he was cut from the Chiefs doesn't mean he's a bad player. He's just not a fit for what they do.

Orien Harris, the defensive tackle acquired in the Ronald Curry trade, was released to make room on the roster for McBride.

UPDATE: Via PFT, Adam Schefter reports that the Bears and Jaguars also put in a claim for McBride.

Without Turk McBride, Who Will Entertain Tank Tyler?

Chris Thorman — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 11:34:19 -0000

With the word coming that DE Turk McBride was cut yesterday, my immediate reaction was "Is this the end of the Tank and Turk YouTube videos?"

Yeah, it probably is if I had to guess.

One more time, check out the "Reality TV Demo" put out by Tank and Turk earlier this summer. The longer, funnier part two is after the jump. These are definitely worth a watch if you get some extra time around lunch (or just watch videos at your desk all day anyway).

Chiefs Waive Turk McBride; Lions to Claim Him?

Sean Yuille — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 02:53:13 -0000

More photos » by Tom Gannam - AP

St. Louis Rams tight end Daniel Fells looks up with the ball after crossing into the end zone with a 6-yard pass for a touchdown, as Kansas City Chiefs defensive end Turk McBride defend during the second quarter of a preseason NFL football game Thursday, Sept. 3, 2009, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Tom Gannam)

Browse more photos »

The Kansas City Chiefs waived defensive lineman Turk McBride tonight, and Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio, who broke the story, thinks the Lions will claim him.

And so he'll be claimed by the Lions.

This time, we aren't kidding. Lions defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham served in that same capacity in K.C. when McBride was drafted, making McBride an obvious candidate for Honolulu Blue.

And, actually, the move to Motown would put McBride on a team that has actually won more games than the Chiefs since he entered the league in 2007.

(Our last win actually came against the Chiefs near the end of the 2007 season)

Based on the how the defensive ends played against the Saints and the fact that Paul Spicer visited today, I'd say Florio's guess is a pretty good one. The Lions still control the top spot in waiver priority, and McBride would be an upgrade over someone like Copeland Bryan, who the Lions claimed on September 6.

14 of Herm Edwards 26 Draft Picks Remain

Joel Thorman — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 21:30:13 -0000

More photos » by Ed Zurga - AP

3 months ago: FILE -- This is an Aug. 15, 2009, file photo showing Kansas City Chiefs coach Todd Haley before an NFL football game between the Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga, File)

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The release of Turk McBride from the Kansas City Chiefs marks the 12th Herm Edwards draft choice that has been released.

They're not all bad, however, or an indictment on Edwards.

Some were scheme related (McBride, Pollard) while some appear to be talent related (Maxey, Stallings, etc).

There are definitely some mistakes in the last three years but there also some important building blocks, particularly from the '08 draft.

A few notes on Edwards 26 draft picks:

Eight are starters
14 total remain
All three first round picks remain

After the jump, is a break down of the three drafts by starters, reserves and those released.

2008: 8/12

Starters: Glenn Dorsey, Brandon Albert, Brandon Flowers and Brandon Carr
Reserve: Jamaal Charles, Brad Cottam, DaJuan Morgan and Barry Richardson (PS)
Released: Will Franklin, Kevin Robinson, Brian Johnston and Mike Merritt

2007: 3/7

Starters: Dwayne Bowe, Tank Tyler
Reserve: Kolby Smith (IR)
Released: Turk McBride, Justin Medlock, Herb Taylor and Michael Allan.

2006:3/7

Starters: Tamba Hali and Jarrad Page
Reserve: Brodie Croyle
Released: Bernard Pollard, Marcus Maxey, Tre Stallings and Jeff Webb

Kansas City Chiefs Release LB Turk McBride

Joel Thorman — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 20:45:46 -0000

Not a bad first day for Josh Looney with the live Chiefs call-in show. He just broke the news of who the Chiefs released to make room for Bobby Wade.

It's Turk McBride.

He was drafted under the previous regime in 2007 as a second round pick. He was drafted to be a defensive end with the Herm Edwards 4-3 defense. The switch to the 3-4 under the new regime moved him to outside linebacker.

We haven't heard a lot of positives out of McBride's position switch so this move isn't too surprising. It's always a gamble to move an end to linebacker. Some guys just aren't a fit.

So, McBride is out and Wade is in.

Here is the official release on the signing of Bobby Wade.

As always, we wish Turk the best of luck in the future.

The Kansas City Chiefs Kick Off 2009 Season Against the Baltimore Ravens

Chris Thorman — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 16:00:36 -0000

And we have the first open thread of the 2009 regular season!

Yes, football is here Kansas City Chiefs fans. I'm am getting so jacked up for this game.

Here are the essentials:

When: Noon central time

Who: Kansas City Chiefs v. Baltimore Ravens

Where: M&T Bank Stadium, Baltimore, MD

Ravens on SBN: Baltimore Beatdown

Chiefs inactives: QB Matt Cassel, QB Matt Gutierrez, CB Brandon Flowers, RB Dantrell Savage, G Andy Alleman, TE Jake O'Connell, DE Turk McBride, LB Pierre Walters

All coverage of this game is at this link. Listen to the game on the radio online here (Click Listen Live in the upper right corner).

Get your predictions in early today. Game time is in one hour.

GOOOOOOOOOOOOO CHIEFS!!!!

Talking Chiefs and Stats with Football Outsiders

Joel Thorman — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 20:58:38 -0000

More photos » by Orlin Wagner - AP

4 months ago: Kansas City Chiefs coach Todd Haley watches morning practice during NFL football training camp in River Falls, Wis., Monday, Aug. 10, 2009. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)

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A few days ago, we were given an opportunity to check out the Chiefs section on Football Outsiders' 2009 Almanac. If you're not familiar with FO, they're the sabermetrics of football. They break the games and players down into insanely detailed statistics that help predict what a team, position group or player will do.

They are very good at what they do. Check out the website to gain a better understanding of a few of the things they do.

If you're interested, here's a link to the FO Almanac 2009. It's cheap and definitely something we're going to keep our eye on for the Chiefs upcoming season.

Below, we asked Bill Barnwell of FO five questions about the Chiefs this year ranging from Larry Johnson and the 'Curse of 370' to Turk McBride playing at linebacker.

The Chiefs ran a shotgun formation 63% of the time last year. What percentage do you expect them to run the shotgun this year after bringing in Matt Cassel?

I think somewhere around the same percentage of the time. Todd Haley used the shotgun 69 percent of the time in Arizona, and while Kansas City doesn't have the sort of receivers that Arizona did,

Cassel's comfortable working out of the shotgun from his days in New England. It was also where he did his best work; he had a 7.8% DVOA in the shotgun, but a 2.2% DVOA under center.

Despite the infamous F.O. "curse of 370," do you think Larry Johnson has a chance to make the Pro Bowl this season?

I think a far bigger concern would be the quality of the offensive line play in front of him. The line should be better than it was a year ago, and if the passing attack plays better, then Johnson should have more opportunities to run without having to break tackles behind the line of scrimmage.

Of course, the possibility exists that Johnson could also either get hurt or lose his job to Jamaal Charles. We're very high on Charles, who was far better than either Johnson or Kolby Smith a year ago. I think the chances of Johnson making it to the Pro Bowl are probably a little below that of Johnson losing his job to Charles altogether. So we'll see, I guess.

Will the loss of Tony Gonzalez (a) hurt much worse than anticipated; (b) be mitigated by Brad Cottam and others; (c) barely be remembered at the end of the season?

I think it really depends on how Todd Haley deploys his offense. He barely used a tight end in Arizona; they had a tight end on the field 58 percent of the time, while every other offense in the NFL had a tight end on at least 70 percent of plays. Obviously, that wouldn't have been the case if Gonzalez had been around, but Haley might have moved him to wideout; Gonzalez was essentially playing as a wideout in the Pistol, anyway.

I suspect that Haley won't call Cottam's number frequently enough to have him or any other tight end stand out. If the offense plays well, Gonzalez won't be missed, but if it doesn't, well, it's an easy scapegoat.

Does 2007 second round pick Turk McBride have a chance in KC?

I don't see how McBride will have an impact, personally. His body type isn't a good fit for the 3-4 -- at 275 pounds, he's too big to play outside linebacker, but far too small to play end, meaning that he'll have to diet down some to play OLB. He doesn't have any experience at linebacker, and he wasn't particularly effective at the position he had any experience at, defensive end.

I would say to take this as a cautionary tale and avoid spending second-round picks on players who weren't even starters in college, but, well, the Chiefs did the same exact thing in acquiring Matt Cassel.

You call the Chiefs' safeties Jarrad Page and Bernard Pollard "average." Should the Chiefs be looking to upgrade their safety positions anytime soon?

I think that (as I believe Scott Pioli also thinks) you build your team from the lines out. Safeties look better when there's an excellent front seven in front of them; it keeps offensive linemen off of them and allows them to roam to the ball, and in coverage, they don't have to stick on guys for more than a few seconds.

Considering the way the Chiefs defense has played over the past couple of years, I don't think average is a bad thing. I'd hold onto them for now, see if they develop any further, and worry about them next year at the earliest.

Chiefs Settling at Running Back with Johnson, Charles and Battle?

Joel Thorman — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 21:56:02 -0000

Brian Waters lines up at center (via KC Star)

Adam Teicher of the Kansas City Star just appeared on 610 Sports talking Chiefs training camp. Here are a few notes I took.

Thinks Sean Ryan might be the starting tight end over Brad Cottam. Cottam is "not doing himself any favors" by missing practice time.
"There's already a comfort level with the coaching staff with Jackie Battle." Don't make too much of it now, but something to keep an eye on. Notes special teams ability.
"I'm not going to make any judgment on Larry Johnson right now."
On Larry Johnson: "Let's see what happens the first time they take him out on 1st down or the game's over and he only has eight carries."
They do a lot more situational plays in camp this year than previous years.
On Kolby Smith: "I talked to him when camp started and he indicated he was a little ways away. He's missed time already, and he'll miss more time so probably the best thing to do is just shut him down and let him rehab his knee."
"Right now it appears they're settling in at halfback with Johnson, Charles and Battle" but that could change.
Dorsey was sucking wind in between plays. Media talked to him 5 or 10 minutes after practice and he was still breathing hard.
Haley is "extremely organized" which is "encouraging to start off with"
Turk McBride: "He's learning a new position and he doesn't look like he runs well enough to play that OLB spot. They've got a guy by the name of Andy Studebaker that appears to be their project there at OLB."
On Tyson Jackson needing to be in camp: "We're getting close. If we're talking [about playing in] the first preseason game, then he needs to be here this week."

***

After the jump, I've got a photo montage of OLB Andy Studebaker laying out RB Jamaal Charles. He's lucky this wasn't a real game.

QB Brodie Croyle spots RB Jamaal Charles in the flat....

OLB Andy Studebaker sniffs it out....

Wait for it...

Initial contact...

Boom...

The follow through...

Where am I?

Photos courtesy of the UW-RF staff.

VIDEO: Tyson Jackson Talks Contract, Training Camp, Community Center

Joel Thorman — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:30:09 -0000

via FOX4-KC

The Tyson Jackson 101 event served as an open house for the new Southeast Community Center. Along with teammates Turk McBride and Tank Tyler, Jackson signed autographs and took pictures with kids from the Boys and Girls Club of Kansas City.

Jackson spoke with FOX4 - WDAF at the event as well. If you can watch video without your boss wondering why you're not working right now, then check below where I've posted the video courtesy of FOX4 - WDAF. For the rest of you, a transcript of the entire spot is below.

On the Tyson Jackson 101 Event:

Just coming back and giving something back to the community even though it's not the community I was raised in. It's different kids from around the inner-city who are growing up with some struggles and coming back and giving something back to those people is a blessing.

His schedule for the next month:

Well right now all the rookies are still training with the coaching staff. Still working out and running every morning. Thurday is our due date and we'll report back home from there. And once I get back home I'll get back to LSU and train with those guys to get ready for training camp.

Status of contract talks:

Well I haven't spoken to my agent yet but I should be getting in contact with him sometime this week and see where we are with the contract agreement. But so far I have no idea what's going on.

***

Pictures from the event can be seen at 610 Sports and FOX4-WDAF Video of the Tyson Jackson interview is posted below.