SB Nation - Ron Edwards

What do the Chiefs do with Haley, Assistant Coaches, and the Offensive Line in 2010?

Jon Yoon — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:12:35 -0000

More photos » by Reed Hoffmann - AP

Last week, I spoke about some of the moves the Chiefs need to make this offseason on offense, but the Quarterback and Receiver issue pretty much hijacked the entire discussion. I want to use this part of the column to round out that discussion by focusing on the Chiefs' offensive line. I also want to talk about the coaching staff and special teams.

What's really interesting about the scope of this discussion is that two months ago, the fans were stressed about the state of the offensive line but pretty psyched about the progress of the coaching staff. Today, it seems like the fans have flipped opinions.

Special Teams: Let me just get this part out of the way. Ryan Succop and Dustin Colquitt are clearly safe. Steve Hoffman has also quietly built an outstanding coverage unit around them and that coverage will only get better as the roster becomes deeper with talent (remember, when there is a lot more uncertainty on a roster, it becomes tougher to keep dedicated special teams specialists like Gary Stills on your roster). I sense that as the roster gets better, you'll see more Terrence Coppers on this team and that will make an already outstanding special teams unit even better. At the Kick Returner position, given that the Chiefs have a need for both a speed threat at wide receiver and a returner, don't be surprised to see the Chiefs try to kill two birds with one stone by bringing in a guy who can do both.

Offensive Tackle: I know there's been a lot of uproar about how the Chiefs must get the best offensive lineman on the board with the top pick, no questions asked. I couldn't disagree more. With a top 5 pick, the only position that carries any positional value is Left Tackle and while I am not a draft expert, I'm not really that wow'ed by the top Left Tackles on the board and I'm pleased enough with Branden Albert's progress over the last few weeks. If Branden Albert is indeed the answer at Left Tackle, then you absolutely, positively do NOT move him to any other position. Especially with your top 5 pick. On the right side, I don't see Ryan O'Callaghan ever progressing to the point where he would be considered a franchise Right Tackle. However, given the Chiefs' high urgency needs at multiple positions, I would have to think that finding O'Callaghan's replacement is pretty low on the priority list. That's a position that the Chiefs could probably fill through the later rounds of the draft. I am all in favor of bringing in a whole truckload of competitive options; I just don't think the Chiefs need to reach to get any specific one. The Chiefs should try to do better than O'Callaghan, but if he is the Chiefs' option in 2010, that's not a decision that will come back to haunt them.

Stays: Branden Albert (#1 LT), Ryan O'Callaghan (#2 RT), Barry Richardson (#2 LT)
Pick up: New starting RT either through free agency or around rounds 3-7/undrafted

Center: I don't know who will play Center for the Chiefs in 2010, but it had better not be Rudy Niswanger. Wade Smith might be an option, but I doubt it. There really isn't an option on the team that makes you do cartwheels. If I was to prioritize offensive line positions, I would have to say that bringing in a top-flight Center is easily at the top of the list. However, Rudy Niswanger will have a secure roster spot because he's fine as a backup and you have to like his flexibility to play both Guard and Center

Stays: Rudy Niswanger (#2 Center)
Pick-up: A higher draft pick (2nd-3rd round) or highly touted free agent

Guard: Guard is a position that I see as a pressing need, but not a pressing priority. Brian Waters isn't the Left Guard we thought he was when he was playing next to Willie Roaf, but he's still a good option. At Right Guard, Wade Smith really isn't a terrible option and there are some players on the roster who might make for interesting competition. I still think Rudi Niswanger could make a decent Guard, and you have two young players on the practice squad---Colin Brown and Darryl Harris---who might be able to compete in the offseason for the starting job. The Chiefs need to start thinking about bringing in a better player than Smith and an eventual replacement for Waters, but for now, the position is such a low level of priority that the Chiefs shouldn't consider an upgrade unless there is a Best Player Available (BPA) option in the 3^rd through 7^th round of the draft or a clear upgrade who slips into free agency.

Stays: Brian Waters (#1 LG), Wade Smith (#1 RG)
Potential In-house Replacements: Colin Brown, Darryl Harris
Pick-up: Either drafted potential #1 RG or free agent #1 RG, Potential replacement for Brian Waters at LG in 2-3 years via draft

Head Coach:

There's been a lot of talk about Todd Haley being a target for firing. I really hope that's not the case and given his contract, I don't think that will happen. Coaches need time to establish their program. It always reflects badly on an organization when they play musical chairs with their coaches. Oakland and Washington are two NFL markets that can never seem to establish continuity because they're continually changing systems and philosophies. Haley has made a lot of mistakes for sure, but most rookie head coaches do and I still think he would make considerably less mistakes if he wasn't wearing so many hats. The Chiefs need to hire an Offensive Coordinator and Quarterbacks Coach and that's non-negotiable.

However, the clock has started to tick for Haley. The mistakes he's making now are unforgiveable in 2010. He has to become a better game manager. In his defense, a lot of his game management mistakes are situational. Haley has been over-aggressive on fourth down situations, but who's to say he'll be just as aggressive when this team is a little better? When you have an offense that struggles to put points on the board, sometimes you take a few more risks to score touchdowns. When you have a defense that can implode at any given second of a game, sometimes you have to be more aggressive about going for 7 to create some cushion for the defense.

I'm also becoming increasingly concerned about the team's lack of discipline. Haley was hyped up to be a disciplinarian and yet his team plays without any shred of discipline. Maybe the team has started to give up, but it's also quite possible that they don't buy what Haley is selling. Sometimes when you overthink, you become more prone to mistakes.

Assistant Coaches:

I've said from the beginning that the stupidest move the Chiefs made this offseason was to enter the season without an Offensive Coordinator or a Quarterbacks Coach and they are paying a price for it. How many times have we watched another team's sideline and saw a Quarterback make a mistake, then immediately consult with one of the Assistant Coaches. Cassel hasn't had that luxury. He's had to figure that all out on his own. He's a young QB who's had to coach himself, not only on mechanics, but on how to think through the game. It might also help Cassel to have a fall-back guy. When Haley tears Cassel apart for making a mistake, sometimes it helps to have another coach on the staff to turn to for help. I imagine Cassel doesn't have the same access to good coaching off the field either. The Chiefs bought a $60M product and didn't even equip themselves with a training manual. Unbelievable.

On other levels, rather than go into painstaking detail about each and every coach, let's just talk about the ones whose job security might be called into question. The two names that most often come up in discussions are Tim Krumrie and Bill Muir. In my opinion, Krumrie is a scapegoat of convenience. It started several years ago when he got negative publicity for running what many consider to be a useless combine drill. That escalated into hatred when he coached one of the worst defensive lines in football. In the fans' defense, Krumrie probably should have been canned along with Herm Edwards. But I was okay with keeping him on board because Scott Pioli, a completely neutral set of eyes with no tie to Herm Edwards or Carl Peterson, thought Krumrie was good enough to keep on his staff.

The question is, has the Defensive Line improved under Krumrie? My answer is "yes." Don't get me wrong. The Defensive Line still stinks, but you have to be careful about understanding why that's the case. We shouldn't judge Krumrie based on his ability to coach up players who don't have talent to play their respective position in the first place (Ron Edwards) or rookies who might not see improvement until 2010 (Tyson Jackson). Krumrie has taught his linemen to operate in an entirely different defense, and he has improved several of the players within it. Dorsey went from a non-factor last season to a fairly consistent disruptive force at a position that I still don't believe best fits his skill sets. Tamba Hali has improved by leaps and bounds in his role as a 3-4 OLB. Even Wallace Gilberry and Alex Magee have looked pretty good from time to time. In other words, when he has talent and the time to develop them, he hasn't done a poor job and maybe the 3-4 Defense is his sweet spot. If Dorsey and Hali continue to play at a high level, if Jackson plays better in his second season as Dorsey did, and if the Chiefs bring in a legit Nose Tackle (which they have to), the Defensive Line will be a strength for the Chiefs.

As for Muir, that's also a tough call to make. I never really liked him because I was never a fan of the offensive lines that he coached in the past. But like Krumrie, he's actually made a lot of progress with virtually nothing to work with. The Chiefs have horrible players on the offensive line. No amount of coaching is going to fix that. I do think Muir has done a surprisingly admirable job making a bad unit look increasingly better over the past several weeks.

At Wide Receivers coach, I'd expect a change here too. The Chiefs demoted Dedric Ward earlier in the season and plugged in Richie Anderson. I would be surprised if the Chiefs looked at Anderson as anything more than a stopgap, unless they plan to keep him as an Assistant coach somewhere else.

Finally, Clancy Pendergast. I don't like his defense. Behind all the shifts and moving people around, the defense still seems pretty vanilla. To this day, I still wonder if he was hired because he was the guy Pioli wanted or because he was the only one left late in the season. I sense it's the latter. I actually think Pendergast would make a terrific assistant coach, but more likely than not, he's not going to accept a demotion.

Stays: All Assistant Coaches except Pendergast
Goes: Clancy Pendergast, Dedric Ward
Pick up: Offensive and Defensive Coordinator, Quarterbacks Coach, Wide Receivers Coach

I know it sounds like I'm not pushing for change. Between keeping continuity on the coaching staff

Chiefs Promote Dion Gales, Not Derek Lokey

Joel Thorman — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 22:30:05 -0000

When the Kansas City Chiefs released NT Kenny Smith earlier this week, it was widely presumed that someone would be promoted from the practice squad to replace him as a backup to Ron Edwards. And it was also widely presumed that the player would be NT Derek Lokey.

That presumption was wrong.

The Chiefs promoted defensive end Dion Gales from the practice squad this afternoon.

Gales is listed as a defensive end, not a nose tackle. He's also listed as 6'5", 259 pounds, which is far below the ideal weight for a nose tackle, backup or otherwise.

So is Gales backing up Edwards? We'll find out tomorrow but the timing of the transaction, and the current state of the Chiefs nose tackles would suggest that he is.

In nickel situations, Wallace Gilberry has lined up as a defensive tackle as well.

Gales' promotion also means that there is now one open spot on the practice squad.

Interesting side note on Gales: He had 85 rushing yards as a junior in high school. Can you imagine him running over 17 and 18 year old kids? Sheesh, talk about the high school version of Brandon Jacobs.

Dorsey, Edwards and Krumrie Highlight Chiefs and Bills Connections

Chris Thorman — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 16:00:30 -0000

by David Duprey - AP

2 months ago: Buffalo Bills' Kawika Mitchell is carted off the field after being injured during the first half of the NFL football game against the Cleveland Browns in Orchard Park, N.Y., Sunday Oct. 11, 2009. (AP Photo/David Duprey)

View full size photo »

The normal five comments this connection post gets each week will likely be zero today because there is really nothing of interest to point out between the Kansas City Chiefs' and the Buffalo Bills' connections.

Let's see. Our nose tackle was a Bill for five seasons. One of our tight ends is from Buffalo. And Glenn Dorsey has a cousin on the team.

Whoopty do.

To make this post more interesting than it already is, can you think of some guys from earlier years that were both Bills and Chiefs? Getcha coffee ready (Yeah, that was a bad TO reference. You got a problem with that?).

Chiefs GM Scott Pioli ('88-89) and asst. GM Joel Collier ('88-89) were graduate assistants at Syracuse. Collier was born in Buffalo, NY.
Collier's father, Joe Collier, served as the Bills head coach ('66-68), leading the club to the '66 AFL Championship Game vs. Kansas City.
Chiefs DL coach Tim Krumrie held the same role with Buffalo (2003-05).
Chiefs DT Ron Edwards spent five seasons with Buffalo (2001-05).
Bills asst. to the head coach/special projects Chuck Lester was a scout for three seasons with the Chiefs ('84-86).
Chiefs offensive quality control coach Nick Sirianni is a native of Jamestown, NY.
Kansas City TE Sean Ryan is a native of Buffalo, NY.
Buffalo asst. LBs/special teams coach DeMontie Cross played ('94-96) and coached ('98-99) at Missouri.
Bills P Brian Moorman is a native of Wichita, KS and played collegiately at Pittsburg State in Pittsburg, KS.
Bills LB Kawika Mitchell is currently on IR. He entered the NFL as a second-round (47th overall) selection of the Chiefs in 2003.
Chiefs DE Glenn Dorsey is the cousin of the Bills TE Shawn Nelson.
Buffalo offensive quality control coach Nathaniel Hackett is the son of former Kansas City offensive coordinator Paul Hackett.

Let us know if you come up with any players that were Bills and Chiefs.

Chiefs Bring Back NT Lokey, Release NT Favorite

Joel Thorman — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 23:42:55 -0000

Entering today, the Kansas City Chiefs had one spot on the practice squad open due to Quinten Lawrence being promoted to the active roster over the weekend.

Now that spot has been filled.

Familiar face NT Derek Lokey returns, Josh Looney of KCChiefs.com reports. The former Texas Longhorn signed with the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent in May of 2008. He spent most of the 2008 season on the practice squad before being promoted to the active roster on December 19th.

He was released from the team during the September cut week this season. He spent much of training camp backing up Ron Edwards and then Chief Tank Tyler.

Lokey could be a valuable commodity at some point if current nose tackles Ron Edwards or Kenny Smith goes down.

And because they added a nose tackle to the practice squad, the Chiefs evened it out and released Marlon Favorite from the practice squad.

Favorite was signed by the Chiefs on October 21st of this season. He hails from LSU so his departure means the Chiefs can't feature an all-LSU defensive line with DEs Glenn Dorsey and Tyson Jackson.

So, the Chiefs have one open spot on the practice squad. Do they sign someone straight to the practice squad? Does someone from the 53 man roster move down?

Opponent History: Buffalo Bills vs Miami Dolphins

sireric — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 13:00:15 -0000

Buffalo Bills (3-7) vs Miami Dolphins (5-5)
Sunday, November 29, 2009 at 1:00 PM EST
Ralph Wilson Stadium, Orchard Park, NY

The Buffalo Bills have begun to play division opponents for the second time. The first meeting this year had the Bills heading into Miami with high hopes for the season, while the Miami Dolphins had just lost Chad Pennington for the year and were still without a win. We all know how that match-up ended.

Chad Henne, he of the too-small helmet and scrunched up forehead, leads the Dolphins into Buffalo this week. The last five meetings at the Ralph after the jump.

Sunday, October 17, 2004: Bills 20, Dolphins 13
Drew Bledsoe. Jay Fiedler. Need I say more about the suck involved in this game? Both sides got a touchdown and two field goals out of their offenses, but the difference was a Takeo Spikes pick-six. The Bills' D came to play in this game, recording five sacks along the way. Aaron Schobel (2.5), Ron Edwards (2.0) and Pat Williams (0.5) did the honors. Other than that, there isn't a whole lot to tell.

Sunday, October 9, 2005: Bills 20, Dolphins 14
The score and date looks eerily similar to the year before. This time, the Bills jumped out to a 17-0 lead on the strength of a Willis McGahee one-yard touchdown run, an Eric Moulds touchdown from Kelly Holcomb, and a Rian Lindell 24-yard field goal. Gus Frerotte led the Dolphins back by hitting Will Heller and Randy McMicheal for scores to bring the Fish back to within three points. Lindell would hit his second field goal of the day to cap the scoring and help preserve the win for Buffalo. Chris Kelsay and Ryan Denney each had a sack in this game.

Sunday, December 17, 2006: Bills 21, Dolphins 0
J.P. Losman tossed three touchdown passes, one each to Robert Royal, Josh Reed, and Lee Evans. That was more then enough scoring, as the Bills' defense shout out the Cleo Lemon/Joey Harrington lead Dolphins offense. Schobel and Kelsay proved yet again that they are only effective against the Dolphins by getting another half-sack each.

Sunday, December 9, 2007: Bills 38, Dolphins 17
The Bills jumped out to a 21-0 lead thanks to a George Wilson fumble return for a touchdown and not one but two Trent Edwards-to-Robert Royal touchdown passes. Samkon Gado put the ball in the endzone for the Dolphins twice, but those scores sandwiched a Lindell field goal and an Evans touchdown catch. Evans would catch one more to continue his dominance over the Dolphins. Both Fred Jackson and Marshawn Lynch rushed for over 100 yards in this game. Being that Cleo Lemon was at QB for the Dolphins, this was of course a good day for the Bills' D numbers-wise. Four sacks and two interceptions (one each by Donte Whitner and Terrence McGee) added to the eight fumbles by the Dolphins. Of course, the Bills were only able to recover 3 of those 8.

Notice a pattern? The first two games had the Bills playing the Dolphins almost a year apart to the day and winning by almost identical scores. The second two have the Bills winning by identical margins (21) almost a year to the day apart. The dates are also the same - 17 and 9. Weird.

Sunday, December 7, 2008: Dolphins 16, Bills 3
The Bills' first-ever regular season game played in Toronto gave the Canadian fans quite the show. The Bills had almost nothing on offense that day, gaining only 163 total yards. J.P. Losman was the Bills leading rusher with 53 yards. Of course Losman offset his rushing prowess by getting sacked 4 times...

Who Plays When for the Kansas City Chiefs Defense

Chris Thorman — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 13:06:30 -0000

More photos » by Orlin Wagner - AP

about 1 month ago: San Diego Chargers running back Darren Sproles (43) is tackled by Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Mike Vrabel (50) during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 25, 2009, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)

Browse more photos »

Position	Player	% Run	% Pass	% Coverage
DL	Glenn Dorsey	50%	50%	0%
DL	Tyson Jackson	57%	42%	0%
DL	Ron Edwards	50%	50%	0%
DL	Tank Tyler	48%	52%	0%
DL	Wallace Gilberry	48%	52%	0%
DL	Alex Magee	32%	68%	0%
DL	Kenny Smith	71%	29%	0%

We've got a whole new set of statistics that we'll be giving you and they're from a fantastic new site we've just discovered - Pro Football Focus.

Pro Football Focus has play percentage stats (as you can see), special teams tackles, run and pass blocking stats and more...It's really an amazing site. Check it out.

To get us started taking a look at these stats, I've posted the percentage that each Kansas City Chiefs defensive player plays on either running plays, passing plays and on special teams.

I've got the linebacker and secondary stats for you after the jump.

If you include special teams, S Mike Brown is actually leads the team in playing time.

I know it sounds geeky but I'm very excited about the possibilities of mining Pro Football Focus for interesting stats. We'll have a lot more of their stats for you over the weekend and coming weeks.

It's Friday, so my laziness is showing through in the lack of analysis on this post. After the jump, the linebackers and secondary playing time stats.

Linebackers

Position	Player	% Run	% Pass	% Coverage
LB	Mike Vrabel	45%	31%	24%
LB	Tamba Hali	45%	40%	15%
LB	Corey Mays	58%	9%	32%
LB	Demorrio Williams	58%	6%	37%
LB	Jovan Belcher	28%	12%	59%
LB	Derrick O. Johnson	29%	15%	57%
LB	Monty Beisel	19%	3%	77%
LB	Andy Studebaker	100%	0%	0%

Secondary

Position	Player	% Run	% Pass	% Coverage
DB	Mike Brown	46%	3%	51%
DB	Brandon Carr	45%	1%	54%
DB	Brandon Flowers	46%	2%	52%
DB	Jarrad Page	45%	1%	55%
DB	Maurice Leggett	33%	4%	62%
DB	Jon McGraw	32%	9%	59%
DB	DaJuan Morgan	56%	0%	44%
DB	Mike Richardson	16%	4%	81%
DB	Donald Washington	26%	5%	68%
DB	Ricardo Colclough	11%	5%	84%

Anything interesting stand out to you?

Chiefs Work Out Two Defensive Tackles

Joel Thorman — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 01:23:38 -0000

More photos » by Stephan Savoia - AP

2 months ago: Newly-aquired New England Patriots defensive lineman Terdell Sands (74) stretches before practice begins at the NFL football team's facility in Foxborough, Mass., Wednesday afternoon, Sept. 30, 2009. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)

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The Kansas City Chiefs worked out two defensive tackles today according to Bill Williamson of ESPN.com. Shaun Smith and Terdell Sands could both be used as depth behind Ron Edwards.

Sands should be familiar to Chiefs fans. He was drafted by the Chiefs in the seventh round of the 2001 draft. He spent time with the Green Bay Packers and Oakland Raiders. He spent three weeks on the New England Patriots this season.

He is listed at 6'8", 355 pounds and is 29 years old (for only another four days).

Smith was a UDFA with the Dallas Cowboys in 2003. He also played for the Arizona Cardinals, New Orleans Saints, Cincinnati Bengals and Cleveland Browns.

He is the guy that reportedly punched Brady Quinn in a locker room fight last year with the Browns.

He is listed at 6'2", 325 pounds and is 28 years old.

Williamson reports that the Chiefs don't necessarily have any plans to sign either one at this time. It's possible they were just keeping up on players that are out there.

New Chiefs NT Kenny Smith Plays for the First Time in Six Years

Joel Thorman — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 22:30:34 -0000

More photos » by Stephan Savoia - AP

7 months ago: New England Patriots veteran outside linebacker Kenny Smith (92) stretches during football practice at the team's training facility in Foxborough, Mass., Wednesday morning, May 20, 2009. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)

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Six years is a long, long time. Think where you were six years ago. For me, it was a completely different phase of life with different problems, situations and friends. A whole lot is different.

For Kenny Smith, he's where he is six years ago - playing in the NFL. Except that those six years in the middle included no regular season snaps. Besides a couple of preseason games, and some offseason work throughout the years, Smith has not been playing football.

With the trade of Tank Tyler, his role in the offense became extremely important. So, how did he do in his first action since 2003?

"I was satisfied," he said. "Technique plays into a lot of it. Maybe a couple of the plays I was a little high but that comes with the repetition in the game."

"I had a couple preseason games after that," he said referring to 2003, "but once you got the mentality to play football things kinda come to you," he said.

Smith rotated in and out even lining up next to the Chiefs other nose tackle Ron Edwards.

"Just coming out there and getting the intensity part of the game, getting the game speed in the first few snaps and getting into the groove of things," Smith said when asked what the hardest part of returning to the regular season was. "Once a couple snaps got away I was able to get things going."

One advantage Smith has is NOT having been on the Chiefs squad the last two years with all the losses, personnel and management turnover. Some might look at that as a good thing where he hasn't become accustomed to all the losing.

"You come into every team with a positive outlook," he said.

The familiarity was helped by watching the Chiefs defense the past few weeks. Smith worked out for the Chiefs a few weeks back and has been keeping an eye on them.

"Of course, I've been watching the teams over the weeks."

Dorsey, Gilberry Options For Chiefs Nose Tackle Depth

Joel Thorman — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 16:05:47 -0000

More photos » by L.G. Patterson - AP

Wallace Gilberry (right) sure doesn't look like a nose tackle. (AP Photo/L.G. Patterson)

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I caught something interesting in Todd Haley's press conference yesterday afternoon. He was asked who might spell nose tackle Ron Edwards now that Tank Tyler is gone.

"We’ve been giving reps to a couple of different guys that have nose (tackle) possibilities. I think any number of guys: Glenn Dorsey could play in there if need be, Wallace Gilberry’s got some reps, so we’ve got a plan if something were to happen significant."

Dorsey and Gilberry are defensive ends in the Chiefs 3-4.

Dorsey is listed at 6'1", 297 pounds while Gilberry is a slim (?) 6'2", 268 pounds. Not exactly the 6'3", 330 pound nose tackles we see across the league.

We talked a little bit about Kenny Smith yesterday but Haley did acknowledge that he or possibly a practice squad player (Marlon Favorite) could be seeing some time pretty quickly. Haley also said he's encouraged by what he's seen from Smith in just a couple of days but qualified that statement with IF he can stay healthy, which has been a major concern for him over the last six years.

It's hard for me to see Smith playing this weekend but, then again, that wouldn't be the first time I was wrong. If Smith isn't a contributor this weekend, then look for Dorsey and/or Gilberry to possibly fill that role.

(H/T stagdsp for the link!)

Chiefs Coach Acknowledges Heavier Load for NT Ron Edwards

Joel Thorman — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 20:34:50 -0000

More photos » by ED ZURGA - AP

Ron Edwards will need to see more playing time now that Tank Tyler has been traded. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)

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Number one question following the trade of Tank Tyler to the Carolina Panthers: Who will be the Kansas City Chiefs back up nose tackle?

Well, we know the answer to that. Kenny Smith was signed off the street. However, Smith hasn't played in a regular season game in six years so it's hard for me to imagine he'll completely replace a guy like Tyler who recently had become a 10-15 snaps-per-game player.

Enter Ron Edwards. The 6'3", 315 pounder has been the starter for the last month but was usually given some breathers with Tank's presence. Today, head coach Todd Haley acknowledged that Edwards will need to have the endurance to play more.

"I think he’s so big sometimes those guys have a tendency to wear out a little bit," Haley said this afternoon. "He’s got to think of himself as a full-time player and not a part-time player."

Haley acknowledged Edwards was "up and down early on" but is generally pleased with where he is right now. In fact, he was given the defensive game ball against the Washington Redskins. Coincidentally (or not), Tyler's presence wasn't necessary a day later.

According to Haley, Edwards bought into the program early.

"Ron is a guy who bought in 100% starting in the off-season program," he said. "He changed his body; he’s a big boy and is still a big buy, but he lost a significant number of weight and weight he had been carrying for a long time in his career. He changed over a span of time. I think it’s starting to show and the last couple of weeks he’s been a pretty disruptive force in there."