SB Nation - Damion McIntosh

Seattle Seahawks Agonizing in Victory; Win on Stafford's Five Interceptions

John Morgan — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 01:05:04 -0000

More photos » by Elaine Thompson - AP

Deon Grant and the defense benefited from five Matthew Stafford interceptions to lead Seattle back after going down 17 in the first.

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Seattle won. It wasn't pretty, it wasn't exciting and the Seahawks never looked like a playoff team, but halfway through its season, Seattle is a game away from last year's win total. These are the slow steps to rebuilding. Seattle started behind by 17, but gutted out a win against a team it could have stomped. It's not satisfying but it's something.

The offensive line is still disorganized and Seattle's run game is a liability. This line needs practice together. The organization needs to thoroughly scrutinize its line talent. Much of it may not return next year. I doubt Seattle re-signs Damion McIntosh. Ray Willis is cheap enough to stick at depth, but does not fit Greg Knapp's system. Sean Locklear will likely stick. Max Unger is a Seahawks. The rest of Seattle's linemen better pick it up in the final eight. Some, like Mansfield Wrotto, may not make it through the season.

It is possible that Tim Ruskell has been shy about drafting talent on offense because he didn't know what offense to draft talent for. Whatever the explanation, Seattle is not renovating, it's building a new offense. What it can salvage from this year's unit is like recycled mortar from the Kingdome.

The defense is built. Seattle will cash in when the pick is right. It needs a young athletic defensive end. It could use another disruptive defensive tackle, but should entertain re-signing Cory Redding. There's holes to patch. The talent must develop for it to be great. This defense is young and talented and capable of looking elite if paired with a great offense.

That might take a while. Seahawks fan must be brave, because the tables will be flipped soon enough. Matthew Stafford is a 21-year old rookie playing for a team that finished 0-16 last season. If he pulls it together someday, these trials will make his fans love him. Seattle will get its Stafford soon enough. Matt Hasselbeck played fierce and his effort helped lead Seattle back, but scraping for yards against a bad defense is not some miracle turnaround or rebirth for the Seahawks offense.

It took 51 attempts to get 329 yards. 17 passes were to his backs or fullbacks. Hasselbeck played like the aging game manager I think he now is. Seattle won around him, but mostly because of Stafford's five interceptions (worth 225 or 300 yards* depending on your interpretation). It didn't win because of him. Hasselbeck dinked and dunked against the 30^th ranked pass defense. He stared at his wide receivers like there wasn't a throw he could make. Hasselbeck checked down like he was facing a gifted young secondary. He was facing Kevin Hobbs.

(*Corrected from 350)

Today wasn't fun but it was a win. Remaking this offense will be a struggle, but it can't be pushed back anymore. The defense is starting to click. The Seahawks are branching two directions. The team is getting better as a whole, but worse at critical positions. I won't remember Matt Hasselbeck leading the game with a pick or picking his way back on top, but I will remember Hawthorne's two and Josh Wilson sprinting down field for six.

Game Ball: Josh Wilson recorded his first tackle a yard before the first down marker. Hawthorne would follow with a tackle for no gain to force the field goal attempt. Jason Hanson missed. From there he was pretty quiet. He might be seen tackling his receiver where he stood like against Bryant Johnson in the second quarter, but he wasn't seen much.

Detroit is a bad passing offense and Kelly Jennings could disappear in the folds of their failure, but for Wilson, this was step up time against a corps of tall, powerful receivers. He wasn't leapt over or bullied out. When Megatron went high over him on a critical fourth quarter pass attempt, Wilson stuck in and disrupted the catch. Today was a training wheels step towards starting, but Wilson kept it level and finished off flying. The Seahawks need Pistol to turn his quiet day with an "!" into the beginning of a beautiful career at right corner.

Sean Locklear Scheduled to Practice

John Morgan — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:30:24 -0000

More photos » by Elaine Thompson - AP

Sean Locklear is following the greatest Seahawk to ever play with fits and sits. He returns to practice today. A decision on his future looms large.

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Danny O'Neil is reporting that Sean Locklear will practice today for the first time since suffering a high ankle sprain. Of the many injuries Locklear has endured, this latest might be the most worrying because of the chance of recurrence. The Seahawks will determine Locklear's fitness and start him, sit him or render him inactive. If he can, Locklear should start.

A week ago, Locklear's return would have seemed an essential step to Seattle playing itself back into contention. After Damion McIntosh performed ably against the Cowboys ferocious pass rush, I am sure many see no reason to bench him. There is one. Seattle wants Locklear to stick at left. Locklear is under contract and short of being cut (don't count it out) will be with Seattle next season. It needs to give him every opportunity to prove he can stick or demonstrably prove he can't.

McIntosh is not a long-term solution for Seattle at left. He will want more money in the offseason and that alone would put Seattle in a bind. It cannot pay Locklear and McIntosh good money to be mediocre tackles. Locklear is nearing his sell-by date. The essential idea of converting him to left tackle was smart, but it always had risk. Lock hasn't flunked out on the field, but 2009 marks his third season in the last four that he has lost significant time to injury. Dumb luck is still the best and most sound theory for why some players suffer injuries throughout their careers and others stay healthy. But following another season disabled by player injury, pressure will be the on Seahawks front office to expel injury report regulars.

The Seahawks still must balance winning now with overall talent evaluation. It cannot deny McIntosh's performance. The solution might be to start McIntosh over Ray Willis. Willis has not been bad, but he has not be good either, and he doesn't fit with what Seattle wants to do or where it's going as an offense. Tim Ruskell let Willis walk and I now understand why. It's a finesse blocking system and Willis is a bull in a china shop.

Ultimately, Seattle will probably be cautious with Locklear and retain the status quo. For the first time all season, the Seahawks offensive line looked good against a good opponent on Sunday. It held against multiple blitzes and got push in the run game. Rob Sims and Chris Spencer are the undoubted strengths of this line. Max Unger is coming along though he often looks bad. From what they have and who they can re-sign, one tackle spot should be filled, but the other is an overdue offseason priority. It Locklear can stick at left tackle, finding a zone blocking right tackle should be a test too easy to fail.

Keep the Rhythm but Sell the Hooks

John Morgan — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 20:42:17 -0000

More photos » by LM Otero - AP

Football is both a battle for ten and a battle for the end zone. A team must keep the rhythm to keep the drive alive, but it also must cash in with its money calls.

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My friend Uncle Mike taught me how to freestyle. He said: You memorize the good lines and improvise the filler. It should sound smooth, integrated and uncontrived. The filler keeps the beat and the money lines punctuate the point. He said: Count off the beat and be ready.

Greg Knapp may not know hip-hop, but he gets the good and the filler.

Chris Spencer was blown back and dropped by Jay Ratliff and Ratliff virtually stood atop Spencer when he tackled Julius Jones for a loss of one. It was a worrying start for Seattle's offense compounded by miserable field position. Matt Hasselbeck was working from his own end zone on the next play, and the man with two busted ribs and a Fangoria-spread of aches and pains stood tall in the pocket, keeping his eyes at the marker and turning to read right just long enough to target Nate Burleson and connect for ten. Seattle converted the first on a screen pass to T.J. Houshmandzadeh. Housh was grouped with John Carlson and John Owens in trips right and turned two good blocks, a little too much patience and a veteran spot into a first down.

Spencer got revenge. He forced back Ratliff and turned him allowing Julius Jones to cutback left and rush for six. Seneca Wallace handed off to Jones on the next snap and Jones glided for seven. Seattle had escaped jail, was first and 10 on the 29, and after keeping beat for a string of snaps, was about to punctuate the action with a series of big plays.

First Hasselbeck found Carlson for 18 out of play action. Then Jones snaked the ball for three. Then Knapp dropped mathematics.

The screen pass is a money play in the Knapp playbook. We've seen it's a worthy one when executed. Dallas was blitzing off left end. Justin Forsett was the sole receiver on the left. Hasselbeck skated back and slung it to Forsett curling under on the left. Dallas is boned. If only.

Spencer shoves out nose tackle Junior Siavii and then flops, cutting inside linebacker Bradie James. Forsett does not curl in quite enough, and Damion McIntosh struggles to set a block in front of him. Seattle loses time. Forsett jukes behind McIntosh, attempting to zigzag forward while keeping the tackle between him and the defender. Seattle loses time. Forsett runs up Rob Sims legs and Sims stumbles but regains and runs straight ahead. Seattle loses time. Forsett finally releases from his lead blockers, but without great speed - without sufficient speed to evade Keith Brooking. Max Unger never gets round from the right and in front of Forsett to throw a block. He can be seen jogging just outside the action. Sims runs past Brooking, when if he had stopped and blocked, Forsett could have evaded him. But Brooking was not supposed to matter. Forsett splits his blockers and releases clean into the second level, but Seattle had already lost too much time, and Forsett doesn't have that gear to recover and outrun a linebacker with the angle.

And so the first money play was clever but it lacked teeth. 14, 14..it stings when it could have been 50.

Arrowheadlines: Chiefs News 11/2

NJ Chiefs Fan — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 11:39:32 -0000

via i.cdn.turner.com

Very little news today.

In seven games, the Chiefs offense has had 90 negative yardage plays. That’s running and passing play for minus yards, sacks, interceptions, fumbles lost and offensive penalties. When it comes to negative on offense, the Chiefs lead the league.

"Minus plays, minus plays, we have to eliminate minus plays," Haley said last week. "Coach (Bill) Parcells drilled it into my head over and over and over again for years about minus plays and how they lead to dissatisfaction with your offense.

"Right now, we’re all dissatisfied with the offense and to me the root of that evil is minus plays."

Here’s how those negative plays breakdown at this point in the season:

Negative Thoughts … Monday Cup O’Chiefs from Bob Gretz

A confession: for five years, I hosted the Dick Vermeil Show every Monday night, sometimes Tuesday nights, after Chiefs games. That would be 81 shows.
For 80 of those shows, which were done in the broadcast booth at Arrowhead Stadium, we had a bottle of wine on site. Almost always it was a red wine, because that was my preference; Vermeil’s too. There were usually five to six people there as part of the show, so the bottle would go quickly

The Coach would have about half a glass. He had been at work since 5 a.m. and was planning to be working until about midnight; Mondays are always a very busy day in the NFL. Anything more than a swallow or two would have Vermeil nodding off in his meeting with the coaches.

From Coaching To Wine, Vintage Vermeil from Bob Gretz

Instead, the union — fully aware of Johnson’s long track record of bad behavior (last year he was benched for three games by the former coach Herman Edwards and suspended for an additional game by the N.F.L. following two nightclub incidents) — kept a low profile and allowed the Chiefs and Johnson’s agent to negotiate a deal to avoid a grievance hearing. The league will not impose its own discipline because the team acted first, and the league agreed with its actions.
With that settled, there is no guarantee General Manager Scott Pioli ever allows Johnson to play for the Chiefs again. In 2006, Johnson had 2,199 yards in rushing and receiving but his production has declined since and this year he has just 358 yards on 132 rushes, for a 2.7 yards per rush average. The Chiefs, who are in rebuilding mode anyway, could decide that Johnson causes too many headaches for too little production.

What is Johnson's Future in Kansas City? from The New York Times

The Seahawks’ fourth starting left tackle this season, 10-year veteran Damion McIntosh, had a solid game in his first start with Seattle.

McIntosh was picked up two weeks ago when it appeared that veteran left tackle Walter Jones was bound for the injured reserve list with a knee issue while his successor, Sean Locklear, was still nursing a high ankle sprain. McIntosh stepped in to fill the void nicely.

Facing one of the league’s best pass rushers in DeMarcus Ware, McIntosh gave up just one sack . It came late in the game, after the outcome was decided.

Trufant targeted in return for Hawks from The Olympian

Player Tweets

BFlowers24 miami was craaazy.......shoutout to "......" gotta watch what u say on twiiter these days.....but yea cumn from kc i needed a time last nite

Media and Fans

ArrowheadPride Anyone else finding baseball to be a nice substitute for the Chiefs today?

About a thousand variations on this tweet:

bandfrag: Hurray! The Kansas City Chiefs did not lose today! They accomplished this by not playing, but still... @bandfrag loves the Chiefs!!!!

ShaneFWray_CA: @JoshLooney It would have been nice if the Chiefs could have taken a playmaker like Harvin in the draft instead of a DL picked way too high!

The Offensive Line Part 4: A Failure Not Earned

John Morgan — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 21:00:42 -0000

More photos » by Elaine Thompson - AP

It's hard not to be mad after yesterday's travesty, but class, and the ability to direct one's anger where it belongs, separates the losers of yesterday and the losers of tomorrow.

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Offensive line, right? It's a joke made thousands of times since 2005. From what little I saw of yesterday's game, the line was bad enough to kill the offense itself. The Seahawks week six line, Kyle Williams - Steve Vallos - Chris Spencer - Max Unger - Ray Willis, is the worst line Seattle has started since Tim Ruskell took over. Williams and Vallos are essentially replacement level talent, and Spencer to Willis is not the kind of intimidating right side that can hide a piecemeal left.

Seattle was poorly built but lucky in 2007 and as things turn out, it has been well built but unlucky in 2009. Kyle Williams was never meant to start. Seattle imported a player from across the country to keep Williams on its practice squad. Williams was buried behind Sean Locklear, Brandon Frye and theoretically Walter Jones.

Let's blow up the Jones situation again. Jones underwent microfracture knee surgery last fall. I thought that might be the end of his career, but I was in error. It might still be the end of his playing career, but Jones is very much a Seahawk and very much on the Seahawks roster. He cost $8.6 million against the cap each of the last two seasons and I believe costs even more than that this season. Maybe Jones is never going to play again, but in Ruskell's world, Jones is an investment and a failing one Seattle can't shake.

Before training camp, Jones passed his physicals. His microfracture surgery was a success. The rub is that the procedure is not likely to preserve Jones career and its short term consequences have left Jones unable to play. So the greatest player in Seahawks history, through no fault of his own or others, has become a big, fat boondoggle.

Seattle did invest into its tackle position. It signed Locklear to a contract with incentives if he stuck at left tackle. Locklear has been reasonably healthy and had shown some skills that could translate. The team was not relying on Locklear for its future, but with the entire tackle situation queered by Jones health, Locklear represented a cheap, low-downside bridge from the Jones era to whatever followed. Seattle re-signed Ray Willis to a two-year, inexpensive contract. Willis seems like a steal now that his early-career health problems are behind him. Funny how unpredictable injuries are.

Seattle's success kept it just outside 2008's historic offensive tackle class and it's hard to discredit Seattle for selecting Aaron Curry fourth overall in 2009. Linebacker is not typically a foundational position, but Stafford was gone, Sanchez was iffy, the tackle class overblown -- its best talent taken at two and its second best talent Andre Smith. Eugene Monroe is tossed around, but Monroe had serious injury concerns. He started the season for Jacksonville but has since been benched. If you saw the solution to Seattle's offensive line woes on October 11, you weren't sitting in Qwest Field.

At the time and in the short term, Curry appears to be the right pick. Seattle then traded its second round pick for the 2010 first round pick of the Denver Broncos. It was team with a rookie coach, Kyle Orton at quarterback and one of the worst defenses in the NFL in 2008. It was a smart decision then and whatever has happened since doesn't change that.

Unless it wasn't a smart decision. Eben Britton was available. He is playing right tackle now and may forever play right tackle. Seattle could have selected Andy Levitre, though Levitre is a guard. It could have drafted William Beatty, but neither player has done much for their respective teams. Instead it traded that pick for a better pick and traded back into the second to draft Max Unger. Unger has started all season and seems mostly competent for a rookie right guard.

So it was a smart decision. And yet Seattle's offensive line is in ruins. That is a microcosm for this entire debate. Tim Ruskell has made many smart decisions, but the Seahawks are not winning games. A general manager's job is to build a winning football team. Seattle is 6-20 over the last two seasons. It has clear and recognizable weaknesses at offensive line and in the secondary. Both are units Ruskell has invested in.

Ruskell drafted Ray Willis and he starts. He drafted Chris Spencer and Spencer starts, but has missed time because of injury. He draft Rob Sims and Sims starts, but has missed time because of injury. He drafted Unger, the rookie. He signed Sean Locklear as a low-downside stop-gap until the team could know what to do with Walter Jones, and Locklear's injury has been felt worst of all. He drafted Steve Vallos and Mansfield Wrotto, but Vallos has shifted around and started bad. Wrotto can't seem to impress Seattle's coaches. He got Brandon Frye for nothing, but Frye went down, and Williams for nothing, his asking price, and Damion McIntosh for almost nothing, but maybe a week too late.

Ruskell built his line through the draft and without great expenditure. His picks have been mostly mild to moderate successes. He may not envision an elite line or maybe just never saw value when Seattle was on the clock. That might be arguable, but it isn't indefensible.

So how did the offensive line become offensive? Injuries, age and one very bad decision, it would seem. Steve Hutchinson hangs over Ruskell. Walter Jones, Robbie Tobeck and Chris Gray got old. Jones, through not fault of anyone, has become a burden. Locklear, the young tackle many were gushing about in 2005 has suffered a rash of disconnected injuries. Sims, the young guard many were gushing about in 2006 has suffered a rash of disconnected injuries. Kris Dielman said "no". Unger is a rookie. Spencer has been competent and not too long ago was a steady, established starter. Mike Wahle filled in for a season before his body broke down. Tom Ashworth was expunged. No one Ruskell inherited from 2004 except Hutchinson who was worth retaining wasn't retained.

Revisiting Ruskell's decisions when they were made does not reveal great missed opportunities, but missed opportunities. It does not reveal a general manager that ran a historically great line into the ground, but instead one crucial mistake and the irrepressible destructiveness of time. It does not reveal a man who ignored the line, but added good talent to it, good overall, good respective to the available players and good respective to their cost. It reveals that yesterday's game, awful as it was, is the kind of game every franchise endures. Ozzie Newsome saw it week one of 2007. Bill Polian saw it in week three of 1987.

They saw, we saw, an everyday, frustrating as hell, meltdown -- The kind that happens every Sunday. But there's no heads to call for and no easy answers to rebuilding.

Step One: Chris Spencer and Max Unger's Vital Role

John Morgan — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 21:19:27 -0000

This is where we start. Seattle is two tight ends. This is a common formation for Seattle and one likely employed with strained depth at tackle. Arizona is in a normal, gap-contain 3-4.

I will go step by step and show how missed execution at any one step can cause the play to break down. Let's start where almost any zone rushing play starts, by moving the defensive line. We'll assume Seattle is stretch left. Arizona is weakest against runs off left end, but Seattle is also the worst team in football at rushing off left end. That's little wonder with the revolving door at left tackle. This is one instance Seattle might be better starting Damion McIntosh at left tackle. We'll revisit that later.

At the snap, Chris Spencer and Max Unger will attempt to move the Cardinals nose tackle hard left. The goal is to jam the middle and stop the Cardinals inside linebackers from having inside lanes of pursuit. Spencer and Unger will attempt to double Bryan Robinson, the nose tackle that sees the most snaps at nose tackle. The goal is to get sufficient push that Unger can then single-block Robinson and Spencer can release into the second level and block the right inside linebacker.

Two things can go wrong. The less likely mistake is that Spencer and Unger cannot get initial push off the line and an inside linebacker is able to penetrate and tackle or reroute Jones. (Note, both inside linebackers are not likely to penetrate, the above is only an illustration on how either can.)

The more likely mistake is that Spencer and Unger do not achieve sufficient push on Robinson for Spencer to pull into the second level and block out the right inside linebacker. With that linebacker free to seal off the outside, Jones is blocked from running outside and sealed off from cutting back by the left inside linebacker. This mistake has beset Seattle this year, but Spencer is an upgrade over Steve Vallos both athletically and at powering the tackle off the line. Robinson can succeed either by pushing back Unger and Spencer, or by disrupting Spencer enough to stop him from reaching or getting a good block on the opposing inside linebacker.

Arrowheadlines: Chiefs News 10/15

Chris Thorman — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:13:18 -0000

More photos » by Pablo Martinez Monsivais - AP

3 months ago: Players helmets for the Washington Redskins football team sit on the field at NFL football training camp at Redskins Park in Ashburn, Va., in this photo taken Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2009. A group of American Indians who find the Washington Redskins name offensive wants the Supreme Court to take up the matter. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

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Since the site was down this morning, I'm taking over Arrowheadlines duties. Don't be too harsh. It's been a long time since I did a "morning update."

Not a lot of news, which is typical for a Thursday. Here you go:

Kansas City Chiefs - Chiefs Insider Blog: Due Diligence
When Chiefs head coach Todd Haley arrived in February fresh off an NFC Championship run with Arizona, he immediately noticed the difference between a Super Bowl team and a 4-12 team. Fat.

No Belt For Portis | KC Chiefs Blog
Back in 2003, when Clinton Portis was a Bronco he torched the Chiefs for over 200 yards and five touchdowns in a game. Following the game he held up a WWE-style belt to show he was the best running back in the NFL. Will we see the belt return this week?

More after the jump...

Arrowhead Addict | A Kansas City Chiefs Blog
To The Critics of Matt Cassel: Matt Cassel looks really good so far considering the crap he has to deal with. Sure he has a few overthrows, but overall he looks good. He is cool under pressure. He is a competitor. For better or worse, he does not want to give up on a play. He wants to keep fighting. I like his style.

Chiefs notebook: Albert’s playing status uncertain - Kansas City Star
The Chiefs dressed only seven offensive linemen for last week’s game and two of them, starting left tackle Branden Albert included, didn’t practice. Albert has a sore ankle and his playing status is uncertain for Sunday’s game at Washington.

McIntosh makes ready for crash course - Football - The Olympian - Olympia, Washington
Originally from Florida, Seattle Seahawks new offensive tackle Damion McIntosh had been working out regularly in Kansas City, Mo., after the Chiefs cut him unceremoniously just before the season began. Six weeks later, the 6-foot-4, 328-pounder is back on an NFL roster, and thankful for another opportunity to show that he can play.

Chiefs News Chiefs Update | Chiefs Football at BobGretz.com
Take DE Alex Magee, the Chiefs third-round draft choice out of Purdue. One day after practice, Magee was asked what he learned that day. Magee pondered the question for a moment with a perplexed look on his face. With brow furrowed, he said: "Learn? I learn something every day. That’s all it’s been day-after-day. I couldn’t give you one thing."

Thanks For Your Support - Video from Dwayne Bowe
What's good YB's? Thanks for all of your comments and emails and support over the past few months. I hope you like the video!

Hali a player opponents notice - Kansas City Star
"The guy we’ve been looking for is 91," Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco said before his team’s regular-season opener against Kansas City. He’s not the only quarterback who noticed Tamba Hali, whose jersey number is 91, while studying film. "Ninety-one," Dallas quarterback Tony Romo said last week, "is a good player."

Seattle Signs Damion McIntosh, Puts Brandon Frye on IR

John Morgan — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 22:51:38 -0000

More photos » by Elaine Thompson - AP

Seattle placed Brandon Frye on injured reserve today after he suffered a neck stinger against the Jaguars.

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That news via Danny O'Neil, with a hat tip to Dukeshire and quickhandsandfeet for alerting me.

I hope Brandon Frye is ok. Neck stingers vary in severity, and though teams sometimes IR an injured player to retain him without taking a roster spot, Seattle is not in a position for a such shenanigans. I don't think. We probably will not receive updates until next year, but hopefully rest and time off is enough and he can return next year and provide valuable depth.

Damion McIntosh is a ten year veteran that played for Mike Solari in Kansas City. He was cut, in part, because his performance no longer matched his salary. He also isn't much of a pass defender. McIntosh played left tackle in 2007, but shifted to right tackle in 2008. Solari was his coach in 2007. He gives Seattle more overall depth at tackle, but I hope he isn't counted on to play left tackle against a good edge rusher. McIntosh is more power than finesse.

Chiefs’ Problems Start with Pioli and Haley

Jon Yoon — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 13:42:37 -0000

More photos » by Mel Evans - AP

2 months ago: Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Matt Cassel, center, is tackled by Philadelphia Eagles defensive ends Trent Cole, clockwise from lower left, Darren Howard and Chris Clemons in the second quarter of an NFL football game, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2009, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Mel Evans)

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Let me start by saying I firmly believe Scott Pioli and Todd Haley deserve at least two or three years to make their mark on this franchise before we can truly evaluate how well they're doing. And I realize that Pioli was posed with the challenge of cleaning up other people's messes.

But that doesn't change the fact that they both made critical mistakes this offseason, and those mistakes are going to delay the development of this franchise. Matt Conner had a great piece earlier in the week about the same issues. I'm going to add some opinions of my own to that.

I haven't been shy in saying that I really like the acquisition of Matt Cassel. He has the potential to be a very good quarterback in the NFL and I commend Pioli for bringing him in and locking him in to a long-term deal, but the instant he made that move, he should have made building an offensive line his top priority. It's not like we're talking about veterans like Brett Favre or Jeff Garcia here. We're talking about a quarterback who is still learning the game and needs quality reps. We're talking about a quarterback who was brought in moreso for his upside than he was for what he can do right now.

I'm about to say something that is going to make a lot of you very uncomfortable: Scott Pioli and Todd Haley have unapologetically set Matt Cassel up for failure this season. I don't know if that was ego, as Whitlock will probably tell you. Either way, it's inexcusable.

You don't have to look very far to understand how to best develop a quarterback. You're seeing it right now in New York with Mark Sanchez at the helm for the Jets, and you saw it last year with Joe Flacco and Matt Ryan. You develop a quarterback by surrounding him with a terrific running game that runs hard and often, and by giving him quality passing reps. Granted, it helped that all three of those quarterbacks were drafted by teams that were a lot further along in the rebuild than the Chiefs were, but you get the point. In each of those situations, their head coaches decided to do a few things: 1) build the quarterback's confidence by not forcing him to win games all by himself that early; 2) allow opposing defenses to play in a run-first mode, thus making it much easier to move the ball in the passing game; 3) teach the quarterback good habits by giving him the time to think through and execute plays.

Cassel isn't a rookie and you don't need to coddle him nearly as much as the above three quarterbacks, but he's still a young quarterback who has a lot to prove and a lot to learn. Pioli's number one priority after drafting Matt Cassel should have been to surround him with as good of an offensive line as he could put together. I'm not talking about long-term solutions; I'm just talking about short-term stopgaps and upgrades. It's not like that's a tall task. How hard is it really to upgrade from Damion McIntosh, Adrian Jones, and Rudy Niswanger? If we truly believe that decisions start from up top, then Pioli was the man who looked at videotape of our offensive line and decided that it was acceptable. In his defense, nobody knew that Goff, Waters, and Albert were going to be this bad, but he certainly knew that Niswanger and McIntosh would be. At least, I hope he did.

Instead, he prioritized defense over offense in his push to quickly install a 3-4 defense. Strange, given that when Pioli first started to build "the Patriot Way," the majority of his first-day draft picks were offensive players. Strange, given that when Brady first started playing quarterback, he played mostly in a role where the Pats didn't ask too much of their young quarterback. Instead, in 2009, Pioli's first three draft picks were defensive players, including a cornerback this team didn't even really need. In free agency, he picked up two defensive free agents who are currently starting. It took a few weeks into the preseason and an injured starting quarterback for Pioli to realize that maybe the offensive line was a problem.

Really?

On Sunday, we got a bitter taste of why that decision was a lousy one and it wasn't because the Chiefs were outmatched-that was going to happen anyway. It wasn't because the Chiefs lost-they were expected to lose over 10 games this season anyway. It's because our supposed franchise quarterback has to run a watered-down version of an offense because his offensive line can't hold a block. The Chiefs' offensive line was a complete embarrassment against the Eagles. Cassel couldn't even complete his dropback most of the time. On many quick-hit, short screens, Cassel was still getting destroyed. It was easily the worst performance from a Chiefs' offensive line that I've ever seen.

I've heard several people complain that Haley gave up in the second half, but anyone who paid attention to what happened in the first half knows that the alternative wasn't any better. Cassel was getting clobbered on short, 5-yard routes, what makes people think he'd have any kind of time to throw the ball downfield? Haley's only options were to run the ball or take a sack.

I don't fault Haley for the playcalling. I do fault him for a lot of other things.

Haley doesn't have any problem feeding Cassel to the sharks. I can only imagine that Cassel, like any young player, had some jitters about playing in a new offense. In order to overcome those jitters, you have to practice. A lot. The problem is, Haley hasn't given Cassel that opportunity. He's been so busy setting examples for disobedient players that he hasn't stopped to think that maybe playing musical chairs with receivers makes it very difficult for Cassel to establish any kind of working relationship with his targets. He chose to bench Bowe in a preseason game where Cassel needed quality reps, and he chose to bench his second camp target, Mark Bradley, in favor of a receiver they just signed that week. Given that Bowe was blanketed by arguably the best cornerback in the league, it's pretty unsettling that Cassel's top target against the Raiders was a receiver he had thrown to for only a few days (and keep in mind, Cassel wasn't practicing at 100% that week).

You can only hope that what he's doing now out of necessity doesn't develop into long-term bad habits, such as taking off at the first sign of trouble or locking on to a first read. The good news is, at least Cassel is learning from some good coaches. Oops. That's right. Pioli and Haley decided that it was a good idea to let Haley coach quarterbacks, in addition to his coordinating and head coaching duties. It's not that Haley is a bad quarterbacks coach; it's just that I can't imagine where in the world he'll ever find time to focus on Cassel, let alone Croyle and Thigpen. Cassel shouldn't have a selectively available quarterbacks coach; he should have one who is available to him all times of the day and week.

This season shouldn't have been about winning or losing. It should have been about Matt Cassel. I can accept wins and losses, as long as I see Cassel get better week after week after week. Unfortunately, the Chiefs are not going to have much opportunity this season to do that. And what's worse, they're letting him take the fall for mistakes they made this offseason. Here's an idea: rather than half-heartedly support your starting quarterback and spark rumors of a quarterback controversy, how about we stop playing games and start working our tails off to give him the resources to learn to become a better quarterback.

I can handle an 0-16 season. What I can't handle is the Chiefs throwing Cassel onto a deserted island and forcing him to fend for himself.

Kansas City Chiefs Cut Seahawks-linked Offensive Tackle Damion McIntosh

John Morgan — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 21:36:48 -0000

More photos » by Elaine Thompson - AP

Ray Willis is Seattle's only giant-sized, mauling offensive tackle. Recently cut veteran Damion McIntosh could bolster their tackle depth and free Willis to play guard in a pinch.

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(Hat tip to master aggregator Mike Florio.)

The Kansas City Chiefs have cut 10 year veteran offensive tackle Damion McIntosh . McIntosh is the first cut that represents a player linked to Seattle's coaching staff that would fill an immediate need. He was signed to the Chiefs in Mike Solari's second season as Kansas City's offensive coordinator. He started fifteen games at left tackle in 2007, but shifted to right tackle in 2008. He fits the giant-sized mauler profile of Ray Willis, could back him up and also provide emergency depth at left tackle. He's not a great pass defender or a great tackle, but as a stopgap familiar with the Seahawks offensive line coach, he is a near ideal depth signing.

McIntosh cost $2.8 million against the cap in 2008 and saved Kansas City $2.2 million after being cut. He won't sign for the veteran minimum, but he will sign for considerably less than he was making last season. Seattle might have to move a semi-expensive veteran to sign McIntosh, but given its dearth of depth on the offensive line, that might be the right move to make.