SB Nation - Jamaal Charles

Larry Johnson Gets His Christmas Gift

Joel Thorman — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 00:55:44 -0000

about 15 hours ago: In this photo taken on Sunday, Dec. 20, 2009, Cincinnati Bengals' Larry Johnson runs for yardage during an NFL football game against the San Diego Chargers in San Diego. Johnson will play against the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday, the team that let him go last month. (AP Photo/Chris Park)

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"I'd be lying if I said I ain't looking at that game as a game I definitely want to play in. You take one game at a time, one situation at a time. I'm just trying to get on the field as of right now. If that happens, that'd be the best Christmas gift I could get." -Larry Johnson, November 17th, on facing the Chiefs

Well, it looks like he's going to get his chance. Barring injury (or, let's face it, another off-the-field incident), Larry Johnson will line up in stripes and face the Kansas City Chiefs for the first time in his career.

LJ is trying to give off the impression that this isn't a big game for him and he's a team player now but Jamaal Charles told Cincinnati area reporters today that this is more of a revenge game for LJ.

"Right now, what's going on with this team is bigger than me versus the Kansas City Chiefs," LJ said. "It's basically us trying to put ourselves in a great position to get to the playoffs and hopefully get to the Super Bowl."

Yep, that's the good LJ. Remember him?

Here's a two month old LJ quote to jog your memory: "Gonna gallop all over the Chiefs. Cleat prints on the chests. Mud in the face masks."

That was just taken out of context, right?

Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer was asked if there have been any signs of the old LJ rearing his head.

"Not one single sign. He’s been on time to everything, ready to roll, prepared. He’s done everything you could ask him to do."

Charles doesn't have to say much more because he knows he's gotten all the revenge he needs. Charles doubled LJ's numbers once he got in there and finally gave the Chiefs a legitimate running threat.

Harrison Doesn't Win Player of the Week After 286 Yard Day Against Chiefs

Joel Thorman — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 20:08:37 -0000

I mentioned earlier this week that Kansas City Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles was nominated for the FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Week. In my writeup, I said Charles is unlikely to win that award because his opponent that week, Jerome Harrison of the Cleveland Browns, racked up the third best rushing day in NFL history.

Well, that may be the case with that award but in another award, even Harrison didn't win. Ben Roethlisberger threw for over 500 yards last weekend and brought home of the AFC offensive player of the week award.

So, the Chiefs aren't a quality enough opponent for someone who puts up the third best rushing day in NFL history to win a player of the week award?

Sheesh.

Don't worry, though, Chiefs fans. Our ineptitude did win an award for one other player.

Josh Cribbs was named the AFC's special teams player of the week after gouging the Chiefs for two touchdowns last Sunday.

Let's see if we can be on the other end of one of these awards this weekend in Cincinnati.

Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles Nominated for FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Week

Joel Thorman — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 23:12:00 -0000

More photos » by Ed Zurga - AP

3 days ago: Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles (25) gets into the end zone past several Cleveland Brown defenders during the first half an NFL football game on Sunday, Dec. 20, 2009, in Kansas City, Mo. Charles ran 47 yards for the touchdown. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)

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It's about time Mr. Charles got some recognition. In response to his 25 carry, 154 yard effort against the Cleveland Browns, Jamaal Charles of the Kansas City Chiefs has been nominated for the FedEx Ground NFL Player of the Week award.

154 yards was yet another career high for Charles. The only problem?

The Chiefs defense.

The man the Chiefs couldn't stop, Jerome Harrison of the Browns, rushed for 286 yards and three touchdowns so he's all but assured of taking home the hardware on this one.

The other nominee was Jonathan Stewart of the Carolina Panthers who became the first player in 36 games to put up over 100 yards rushing against the Minnesota Vikings. He added two fourth quarter touchdowns as wel.

Big congratulations out to Charles for the nomination. It's well deserved.

(H/T oldchiefsfan in the FanShots)

Shallow Thoughts & Nearsighted Observations

Ted Bartlett — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 13:30:15 -0000

More photos » by Chris Schneider - AP

3 days ago: Denver Broncos head coach Josh McDaniels, right, talks to quarterback Kyle Orton during a break in the action during the third quarter of of an NFL football game against the Oakland Raiders in Denver on Sunday, Dec. 20, 2009. (AP Photo/Chris Schneider)

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Happy Tuesday, friends, and welcome to Shallow Thoughts & Nearsighted Observations. I am writing this lead-in on Black Monday, and I'm still not in a very good mood, as you can imagine. I'm going to try to make the best of it, and drop a good column despite the bad feelings. We'll see, because I still haven't watched this infuriating game a second time yet. No guarantees. For now, let's get on with it. Ready..... BEGIN!!!!

1. So, I am not too thrilled, as you might imagine. I don't think anybody particularly is, but this game solidified a thought in my mind about the Broncos, that I've been close to, but never fully there this season. It kind of makes me feel like a fool actually, because way back, when I was the only credible analyst in the world predicting 11-5 for the Broncos, my main reason for thinking it is what I had wrong.

The Broncos offensive line is the weakness of the team, and I thought it was the strength. When I envisioned beating Baltimore and Pittsburgh, it was because I thought the Broncos would be able to block them. I've frequently observed the struggles of one guy or another, but the real conclusion we need to reach is that this group leaves a lot to be desired. Nice Thing to Say About Jay Cutler Alert: I think we all underestimated how much his quick release, mobility, and pocket awareness helped prevent sacks last year.

This year, they've given up sacks at key times, often when it's been obvious that they had to throw the ball. That has been the minor part of the problem. The major part is that they've struggled to drive-block all season, and lately, they've struggled to effectively zone-block, too. Russ Hochstein is terrible, and really hasn't been any kind of improvement over Ben Hamilton. Casey Wiegmann has regressed this year from his previously high standard and gets pushed backward too much. I haven't been too thrilled with the play of Chris Kuper over the last month either, and Tyler Polumbus has proven to be just a backup and special teams player.

I think this season turned when Ryan Harris got hurt. He's one of the best RTs in the NFL, and between he, Kuper, and often Daniel Graham, the Broncos had a good ability to open holes in the running game to the right, outside. Now, the Broncos get pushed backward too much, and are very susceptible to run blitzing against their zone schemes. In the short term, they can help themselves with plays like backside smoke screens off outside play action, inviting/exploiting the run blitzing. In the long term, though, they interior of the line badly needs to be upgraded, because the Broncos will always struggle against physical fronts if it doesn't.

Now, the Broncos do still control their own destiny, even after losing two in a row. They can beat Philadelphia too, if they can protect Kyle Orton, and run the ball effectively. I really think that the Eagles' tendencies toward throwing the ball a lot play to the Broncos' strength on defense. Like Kima Greggs said, sometime things gotta play hard. The Broncos wiped the field with the Giants, who are very similar to the Eagles, so let's not lose hope that they can do it again. Remember, every game is an independent event, and what happened last week is irrelevant to what may happen this week. Go Broncos!

2. Information From My Eyes, Raiders at Broncos-

a. This is kind of information from my ears, but I can't stand Gus Johnson. I know a lot of people like him, but to me, he sounds like he learned his technique from the WWE's Jim Ross (whose name I had to look up, in case you're wondering). Can't you just picture Gus wearing a cowboy hat and yelling "He hit him with a steel chair?!"

b. While I am dogging CBS announcer team guys, Steve Tasker sucks pretty bad, too. He lacks a command of the rules, and it just doesn't seem like he prepares very hard. He makes blanket statements like, "The Broncos have lost 5 of 7 since Kyle Orton's finger got healthy, and they started throwing more." No reasonable person in the world would blame those losses on Kyle Orton, but there goes Tasker, joining the Peter King train.

PK: In six of the past eight weeks, Kyle Orton hasn't put up more than 17 points on the board. Yikes.

It's like the rest of the team is just McNulty's breathing machine. Tasker played the game for a long time, as a spunky, high-effort, overrated special-teams gunner. He should know that a lot is going on on the field that has nothing to do with the QB, and he should be the first person making that point. Hell, there are people who think he belongs in the Hall of Fame (PK evidently being among them, unlike his take on Floyd Little). Tasker should be the "look at the little things" guy, and instead, just mostly stays quiet as Gus Johnson announces the next elbow drop from the top rope, only opening his mouth to mention correlations where there's no causation.

c. Mitch Berger's punt at the end of the first quarter may have been the ugliest in NFL history. It was just atrocious, for those who didn't see the game.

d. Casey Wiegmann had his worst game as a Bronco on Sunday, in my opinion. He was on roller skates all day, going backward. I appeciate the guy's durability and smarts, but I don't think the coaching staff will want to go into next season with him as the starter.

e. The officials let Chris Johnson get away with a clear pass-interference penalty on a key 3rd down in the 3rd quarter. He facegaurded Jabar Gaffney downfield, and rode him out of bounds with his body. Let Tasker tell it, it was a perfectly legal play. He didn't remember the 5-yard chuck rule, I guess. This play was egregious.

f. Andra Davis played great on Sunday, especially on the goal-line stand. He was all over the field all day, and made a bunch of plays.

g. Mario Henderson played better than I've ever seen him play for the Raiders, especially in the running game. He was downfield driving Broncos defenders backward. He also held up very well in pass protection, but was helped by Charlie Frye's focus on getting the ball out quickly.

h. Vonnie Holliday was very good in the pass-rushing game for the Broncos, and Robert Ayers had good moments, too. The only really good rush Elvis Dumervil had, he got called for roughing the passer.

i. Don't let me see anybody blaming Alphonso Smith for the winning TD. He was picked, clear as day, by #86 for the Raiders. In a poorly officiated game, it was another obvious penalty that wasn't called. It was offensive pass interference all the way, and he was out of position for the tackle, making it very difficult. It's true that Smith has struggled as the season has gone on, but that play wasn't his fault.

j. Finally, a word about JaMarcus Russell. He can make every throw a QB ever has to make. When he came into the game Sunday, I was actually worried about it, because he has much more physical ability than Charlie Frye. I'm not ready to say he turned a corner, but I'm sure he engendered some additional belief in his coaches and teammates than he'd been previously seeing. He got it done, given the circumstances, so all you can do is tip your hat to the guy.

3. Information From My Eyes, Other Games-

a. I continue not to care whether the Colts go 16-0, and I didn't get to see much of the game, due to a 10:30 PM ET conference call with some guys who work for me in Pune, India on Thursday. Ho hum, the Colts won.

I was all over the Cowboys beating the Saints, though, and I did watch that game. The Cowboys had to be tired of hearing all this stuff about how they can't win in December, and the Saints had been trying to give away a game for about a month. The Saints had a really hard time protecting Drew Brees, especially LT Jermon Bushrod. For the guy who shares a hometown with him, the jury is in for me. He's an RTO playing out of position on the left side. I think the Saints were too greedy, and didn't do enough to help him with DeMarcus Ware.

b. I made some Cowboys fan mad back in October when I proclaimed Anthony Spencer to be just a guy. Cowboys fans need to be told when their players aren't as good as the hype around them - because the hype is so strong, most of them believe it. Anyway, Spencer was fantastic on Saturday night. He was setting the edge in the running game, and he got Drew Brees 3 times, losing one to a questionable penalty in the secondary. It was the best I'd ever seen Spencer play in the NFL, and if he can keep playing like that, the Cowboys are suddenly really difficult to handle in the playoffs.

c. I was very impressed with Tony Romo's play Saturday, and it's nothing new lately. He's been playing terrific football, with 8 TDs and 0 interceptions in his last 4 games. Lazy, uninsightful MSM idiots who fixate on meaningless trends were falling over themselves to say that Romo couldn't win in December. To most of these people, the other 52 guys on a team are like garnish on the side of the plate. It's obscene how stupid that all is.

d. The Cowboys did the right thing, cutting the cord with Nick Folk. He's been terrible this season, and when you can't count on your kicker to make a 27-yard field goal, you have big problems. Of course, the guy they replaced him with, Shaun Suisham, lost his last job for missing a 20-something-yard FG against New Orleans, to put the game away, too. Kicker seems to be an issue for Dallas every year, and they really need to address it on a going-forward basis.

e. The Lions are still playing hard, I'm sure try to secure jobs for next season. They really gave Arizona a run for their money on Sunday, but came up short, to the disappointment of my buddy Chris Dillon, who was in attendance. I was pretty impressed with the play of Maurice Morris, but I've seen him flash like this a lot of times in his career, and then do nothing a week later. The guy I always like the look of is Drew Stanton, who was a second-round pick, but never got a chance to play for some reason. He had some good moments Sunday, and looked more useful than Daunte Culpepper.

f. The Cardinals can't be blowing double-figure leads if they want to get back to the Super Bowl. I was telling my brother the other day that I thought the NFC Champion would once again come down to Arizona against Philadelphia, but the Cardinals lacked crispness for a second week in a row. They'd do well to get their act together.

g. There were a lot of interesting things to see in the Cleveland-Kansas City game, which was surprising. I had no intention of paying any attention to it this weekend, but it ended up being the first game I watched when I got home Monday evening. First things, first. I've never been a big Jerome Harrison fan, but he obviously played out of his mind on Sunday for the Browns. I have seen a lot of him over the last few years, so I remain skeptical of him. Prior to Sunday, if I had to describe Harrison in a sentence this would have been it: "He's a third-down back who lacks much power, speed, or explosiveness, and shouldn't particularly scare anybody." I think his career day was equal parts the best day of his life and the significant inflation factor that comes from running against the Chiefs.

h. The Chiefs had to feel pretty good about most of their offense's performance Sunday. Matt Cassel looked outstanding, and was hurt by about 10 drops by his receivers. Dwayne Bowe was particularly feeling in touch with his inner dropsies. Maybe it was rust from his steroid vacation? Anyway, Cassel was a positive sign again, after a couple bad weeks, and the good things he did had the look of things that would work against good teams, too.

i. If you'd asked me six weeks ago about Jamaal Charles, I'd have questioned his size and power, and also his running instincts. I always saw him as a guy who missed creases and ran into tackles. The coaching he's presumably been getting seems to have clicked lately, because he's making tacklers miss more than I've ever seen. He looks really good running out of the shotgun, which he did a lot of in college at the University of Texas. He's not a bell-cow RB, but teams aren't looking for those so much anymore. He can be a very effective 50-50 tandem guy, especially if the Chiefs could find a Michael Bush-type player to complement him.

j. You know how you can look at somebody and tell when they seem to be physically uncomfortable? That's how Mark Sanchez looked to me on Sunday, in the cold of New York, kind of like a woman looks when she's constipated. I thought his ball traveled a bit better through the wind than it did a month or so ago, when he played in his first bad weather, but his clear lack of physical comfort worries me, and should worry the Jets. Sometimes, a guy who grew up in warm weather embraces the cold, and has success in it. Brett Favre immediately comes to mind. If Sanchez goes back to SoCal in the offseason to chill out, that will be a bad sign in my mind. He ought to stay in New York, and get used to the weather. You may think I am overstating this, but he's going to have to play a ton of games in the cold throughout his career if he's going to be a 10-year Jet.

k. The Shallow Thoughts fantasy team continues to save its best work for the playoffs in the Official MHR League, and was dominant Sunday, led by Aaron Rodgers' huge day. I'm now one game from a championship. Not bad for a guy who doesn't like fantasy football, and a team which was counting on Larry Johnson and Derrick Ward to be stud RBs. I've gotten solid work from both Laurence Maroney and Jason Snelling at times, which has helped. I thought of Snelling, because I have really come to like his game on the real field. He runs hard, catches the ball well, and picks up the blitz. He's a good backup to Michael Turner, and when they're both healthy, they can really alternate physically pounding a defense.

l. I'll tell you right now, Falcons FS Thomas DeCoud is going to be on the All-ST&NO Favorites team I'll be releasing next week. He ought to be in the Pro Bowl for the NFC, but that's almost certainly not going to happen. He's very mobile and smart, and he always is in great position. What sets him apart from other good safeties, though, is that he can catch the football, and he did once again on Sunday, with his third interception of the season. I like matchup safeties, and I'm a big fan of DeCoud, going back to the 2008 Draft.

m. Kerry Rhodes got benched recently, and he looks to me like he's playing with a lot more ferocity and toughness lately. Rex Ryan had him coming on a bunch of blitzes Sunday, and the Jets did a great job all day against the Atlanta offense. If they had gotten better play from Sanchez this season, the Jets would have run away with the AFC East, because that defense is real. Assuming Sanchez improves in the future, this is going to be a team to be reckoned with in the years ahead.

n. I said something nice about Jay Cutler earlier, and now I'm going to go into semi-apologist mode for him, ever so briefly. Neither of the first two interceptions he threw Sunday were really his fault. On the first, Devin Aromashadu failed to get across the face of Domonique Foxworth on a slant route, which is his job. That's 100% on the WR to execute, especially when the play called for Cutler to look right first, and come back left on time, semi-blindly. On the second pick, the RT failed to cut Jarret Johnson on a 3-step drop, and Johnson jumped up in the passing lane and made a play. I've made this point before recently, but on a 3-step drop, the DE must be cut to the ground to clear the passing lane, and the player (I think it was Kevin Shaffer, but couldn't tell for 100% sure) failed to execute. Cutler's third pick was on him, but it was a tough throw moving to his left. He threw that one right to Foxworth. If the Bears want to do a smart thing, they'll try to hire Jeremy Bates away from USC. I don't necessarily think Bates can coach Cutler out of his well-established bad habits, but he at least knows how to put him in position to be most successful.

o. It's so difficult to deal with the height of the Chargers WRs and Antonio Gates. I don't know if I really know the right answer for stopping them. I think you need to play physical with them, and try to cover them man-to-man, but that's easier said than done. It's got to be better than letting them run the sideline against cover-2 with no re-route from a CB, though. I think Johnathan Joseph and Leon Hall did pretty well Sunday, and the Chargers still got the win when it counted. San Diego is overrated in some areas, but they're underrated at WR.

p. I'd be shocked if LaDainian Tomlinson is back with San Diego next season. He was obviously a great player for a long time, but he's noticeably not the same guy he used to be. When a RB starts to lose it, you can see it in his leg drive when somebody hits him. LDT is going down a lot easier than he ever did in the past. He's like Arizona Cardinals-era Emmitt Smith right now, despite having a much shorter career than Emmitt.

q. I really liked Mike Tomlin's reasoning behind his onside kick strategy Sunday. I'm taking this from Peter King's MMQB, as I'm not sure if these comments were said exclusively to him, or were something he picked up from the team's PR people.

"I'll be very bluntly honest with you, based on the way the game was going in the second half, first of all I thought with the element of surprise we had a chance to get it, but if we didn't get it and they were to score, then we would have necessary time on the clock to score or match their score. Plan A didn't work, we got the ball but we were illegal, that was the correct call, but it kind of unfolded the way you envisioned it.

"We had 30 minutes of evidence that we could drive the ball on them, we also conversely had 30 minutes of evidence to show they could also drive the ball on us. That's why we took the risk when we did. We were just trying to win the football game. There was time left in that game that had we kicked that ball away and the half had gone the way that it'd gone, they were converting third downs. They would have moved the ball down the field on us, we wouldn't have had necessary time to respond. I'm just being honest, but it starts with feeling pretty good about the element of surprise and having a good chance to get that ball, but that part of it didn't work out.''

That makes sense, right? Even if you don't get the ball, you're cutting down the amount of time the Packers will take to score, and leave your own team enough time to answer. I generally can't stand the Steelers or their highly-ignorant fan base, but I have Tomlin's back on this one. After all, it played out exactly like he thought it would, if they didn't recover the kick. Nothing proves you right like being right, right?

But then PK chimes in with his commentary:

How the mighty defense has fallen. Wow. Mike Tomlin throwing his D to the wolves.

Sigh. Like they say on ESPN, C'MON MAN! You know what you are if you trust a defense that hasn't gotten it done all day? You're a moron who deserves to lose. I really think that this is the most idiotic conventional wisdom in football, that you have to trust your defense, no matter what. The Steelers got sliced up all game, and didn't deserve to be trusted. Tomlin had the pulse of the game exactly right. Hell, if I am him, I want my defense to know that I don't trust them in that moment, and step it the hell up in practice, and in the next game. Trust is earned, not freely given.

r. Here's a news flash for Peter King. Bryant McKinnie is not a very good player, especially in pass protection. You should never judge the quality of an offensive lineman on whether they get voted to the Pro Bowl, or were picked in the first round of the draft. McKinnie is solid against the run, but he's slow-footed, and he struggles to protect against good pass rushers. Julius Peppers did dominate McKinnie Sunday night, but it's less of a special feat than PK would have you believe.

s. I think the Panthers might have something with Matt Moore. He's not the most polished player, but you can tell he has some real talent. I'm not basing that on his results, per se, but more on the way the ball leaves his hand and flies through the air. If I were John Fox, Jake Delhomme wouldn't see the field again this season unless Moore got hurt.

t. Don't worry about Brett Favre arguing with Brad Childress on the sidelines. It doesn't matter, and these things happen all the time. I don't think the Vikings quite have what it takes to win a championship, but it has nothing to do with Favre and Childress not seeing eye-to-eye in one game. I think the only good player on their offensive line is Steve Hutchinson, and the rest of them are average to below-average. I also think Adrian Peterson isn't playing very well lately, and I wonder if he's banged up, because I don't see the suddenness and power I am used to from him lately.

u. The Giants really got their defensive line going Monday night. I guess it helps to play the Redskins, who can't block anybody. I was pretty surprised by the bad play of the Redskins defense, which has been tough all year. This game was so lousy, I barely paid attention to it after the first half.

v. Why couldn't the Redskins have run THAT variation of the Hunter Smith pass against the Broncos? That was a charlie foxtrot from the start.

4. For a straight single man, I'm a pretty good dresser. I figure I'm average looking, and I could stand to drop a few pounds, so I try to help myself by making smart wardrobe decisions. I have some common sense rules, I favor versatility and have a good feel for matching, and I never, ever wear trendy, overpriced crap like Ed Hardy. I'd give myself a B-plus to an A-minus.

So I am watching the NFL Network pregame show Sunday, and I can't help but notice the gear of the well-known sartorialist Michael Irvin. He had a pretty bad suit, and I remembered a draft a few years ago, maybe 2006 or 2007, when Irvin was working for ESPN. My ex-wife walked in, and saw him, and she was all about fashion. He was wearing a brown suit, with a brown shirt, and Christine says, "He looks like a big piece of poop." I couldn't help but agree.

So, horrible suit back then, pretty bad suit Sunday, funny memory. Then, the crew took off their jackets to do a technique demonstration, and I saw the worst part of Mike's gear. His shirt had epaulets!!! (I generally hate multiple exclamation points, but epaulets make it appropriate.) If you were in the military, chances are you know what epaulets are - if not, check it out here, where they spell it differently than how I learned in the Navy.

Okay, Mike? Unless you're going to a Troop Meeting, and making Eagle Scout, no epaulets, okay? There's no good reason in the world for a normal man's shirt to have them. Just say no to pretentious clothing. I wouldn't be surprised if Ed Hardy toolbag-in-chief Christian Audigier designed Irvin's shirt, too. The orange oompa loompa spray tan would look weird on Irvin, so it would be hard to carry the complete look.

I bet those guys' shirts have epaulets. By the way, I got that pic from the coolest Facebook fan page ever.

5. So there's big news that I have to share. I am retiring ST&NO. Next week, on December 29^th, 2009 I will post my last one ever, at least as far as I am planning now. New Year, new ideas, new LASIK eye surgery on January 15^th, so I won't be nearsighted anymore. The title just wouldn't make sense anymore, and like Russell Jones, I keeps it real. I plan to move my work in a bit of a different direction in the next year, and beyond.

Since I started writing ST&NO last January, I've tried to make it league-wide. Some MHR people have expressed appreciation for that, and I think some would like my work better if it was all Broncos, all the time. It's gotten more and more league-wide in nature during the course of this regular season - at first, kind of by accident. Later, I started to realize that I wanted to position myself for a more national platform, and I've gone with it more intentionally. I thank John Bena for always letting me write whatever I want, as I've been able to drop stuff that makes me happy.

In the marketplace of ideas, there's been a lot of evolution in how fans get football information. It used to be, you could watch your local market game, the Cowboys (America's Team), and a West Coast game, and then whatever was on Monday night. Now, you can watch any game you want, if you're willing to pay $400 a season for the privilege. Twenty years ago, you had your local rag newspaper, picking up some AP reporting, and having a couple Woody Paige-style columnists. I remember sitting in the front hall of my mom's house every Monday morning, reading the recaps and poring through the box scores. Now, you can go on the internet and read whoever you want. It's a brave new world, that continues to change all the time, and a guy like me has to continually evaluate my best positioning in it.

When there were just the rags, the strong written content was at the micro (team) level, mostly because it was the only particular written content, outside of a multi-sport skimmer like Sports Illustrated or The Sporting News. With the wide proliferation of the internet in the mid-90s, your average Len Pasquarelli and John Clayton emerged at ESPN.com, and the Worldwide Leader threw a ton of resources at football, taking the quality back to the macro level. In the early to mid 00s, it became much easier for people with no access to players and coaches to get information, and also to self-publish. Web 2.0 gave some people with real talent the chance to take the quality back to the micro level, where it really belongs, to a large degree.

Well, I'm a macro kind of guy who has been working at a micro level. I actually have personal friends who've told me explicitly that they won't read ST&NO because it appears on a Broncos site. It's just too much for some people to get past. You'll remember the story about the "repugnant" guy/girl from a couple weeks ago. The person's biggest burn was:

If you were as brilliant and talented as you think you are you'd be doing something other than running a niche website no one other than diehard Broncos fans gives a damn about.

As I told the critic in my response, I am very, very proud of MHR. It's the best Broncos site in the world, and I'm really proud to have been part of its rise, and call myself a member/alumnus of the site. From John, to the staff, to the community, it's really incredible what we have here, and I will always support and promote it. I'm struggling a bit to cut to the chase, which is unlike me, but you can probably tell by now that I am announcing my departure from the MHR staff.

I've decided to launch my own football site, with a stated goal of bringing MHR-style quality to the macro level. I looked at trying to convince a lousy MSM site like CBSSports.com to pay me for running my content on their site, and even went so far as to ask a friend to make an inquiry on my behalf. I've backed away from this idea, however, as I read about Bill Simmons' frustrations with ESPN's penchant for censoring his work. Everybody knows that wouldn't work for me. I'm taking the Oprah approach, instead, and owning my own outlet. I'm pretty close to being ready to launch, but not quite close enough to share details yet. Tune into next week's triumphant ST&NO finale, and you can get all the information about it.

There's such widespread suckitude at the national level, that I feel like I have to step directly into their arena, loudly and with both feet, if I really want to go after them. I'm here to tell you, I've got something for Peter King, Mike Florio, Clayton, Pasquarelli, Don Banks, Pete Prisco, and all the rest of them. Let there be no ambiguity. I am in it to win it at the national level, and I'll be applying everything I learned here at MHR, and every other resource I can muster to help make it happen. Sound the horns, because it is most definitely on.

It's Tuesday morning as I write this last part, time to post ST&NO, head to the office, and do another call with Kuldeep and Suresh in India. Have a great week, friends, and I'll see you next Tuesday for the final edition of this column. The ST&NO concept will definitely live on at my new site, but I'll be excited to have each of you with me next week, as we close this chapter of the story, and start writing the next one. Thanks for being MHR community members, and for reading my work every week. This site is going to continue to be great, and I'm just hoping to expand the universe a little faster than the reputation of the Most Interesting Man in The World, for a change. Thanks in advance for your support. :)

Chiefs TE Brad Cottam All of a Sudden Relevant

Joel Thorman — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 19:52:07 -0000

More photos » by Ed Zurga - AP

(AP Photo/Ed Zurga)

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When the Kansas City Chiefs spent a third round pick in the 2008 NFL Draft on a tight end of Tennessee, there was some excitement. He wasn't intended to be Tony Gonzalez's eventual replacement but those questions and comparisons (or lack thereof) surfaced before he even began his rookie season.

A seven catch rookie year ended many of those questions and I think there were a lot of us that began to write off Cottam's future with the Chiefs.

Now, Cottam has, for the first time in his career, caught a pass in three consecutive games including a career high 62 yards on four catches against the Cleveland Browns yesterday. His eight catches over the last three games are more than he caught his entire rookie campaign.

"It feels good because you go out there and practice and work on things all week. Then, when things work, you get to get the ball a little bit, it feels good."

Cottam recognized the fact that career highs don't really matter if you don't win the game (just ask Jamaal Charles). However, it's an encouraging development in an otherwise obscure season for Chiefs tight ends.

He also said the Chiefs were doing a little more motion and a hurry up offense to keep the defense off balance. With his career high in catches, he was obviously one of the beneficiaries of the offensive moves.

"The whole game, we’re talking to each other, telling them what we’re seeing, they might have two safeties or just one, and what we think we can do. We try to keep it within the offensive plan for the week, but we’re talking the whole time and trying to see what we can exploit on the defense."

Five Good Stats from the Chiefs' Loss to the Browns

Chris Thorman — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 13:45:08 -0000

More photos » by Charlie Riedel - AP

3 days ago: Cleveland Browns wide receiver Josh Cribbs (16) leaps over Kansas City Chiefs safety Mike Brown (30) while running for a short gain during the third quarter of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 20, 2009, in Kansas City, Mo. The Browns won 41-34. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

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Even though the Kansas City Chiefs lost yesterday in stomach turning fashion, they did put up 34 points and 491 yards. When that happens, you're going to have some good stats to talk about.

And not surprisingly, none of those good stats come from the Chiefs defense.

The Chiefs' defense was so surprisingly bad in the absence of DL Glenn Dorsey that it really shocks you to the core. I didn't think we had that many issues on defense...

Demorrio Williams was a active defensive player, making 13 tackles. His name was close to being on this list. He's by far the team's tackle leader by the way. The dynamic duo of Brandon Carr and Brandon Flowers each had picks, which was made even more amazing by the fact that the Browns only made 17 pass attempts for 66 yards. It was tempting to put that stat on the list - 66 yards passing - but the Browns were so clearly uninterested in passing the ball that it would be irrelevant to include that total.

On a sleepy Monday morning, here are my five things to make you feel better about the Chiefs game yesterday. We're talking about:

Check 'em out, after the jump.

The Now Weekly Jamaal Charles Appearance

No matter what, Jamaal Charles is going to end up as the Chiefs offensive MVP, if not team MVP of the 2009 season. He rushed 25 times for 154 yards yesterday. He included a 47-yard rushing TD and two catches for 16 yards.

For a relatively talented NFL team, a guy like Jamaal Charles can win you football games. For the Chiefs, it's Charles that's making the Chiefs games even watchable nowadays. He's had all of the Chiefs' rushing touchdowns this season plus the only kick return for a touchdown the team has had.

The only thing holding Charles back, in my opinion, from becoming a long time, full time running back is his tendency to fumble. On the final kickoff of the game, Charles took the ball back near the 30-yard line and fumbled it out of bounds right at the sideline. The Chiefs got the ball back but I think we all flinched a little when it happened. And we weren't too surprised it did.

491 Total Yards, 34 points

The Chiefs racked up major yards against one of the league's worst defenses. 491 total offensive yards and 34 points were both season highs. Here's how the big stat contributors break down:

QB Matt Cassel, 331 yards passing
RB Jamaal Charles, 170 total yards
WR Chris Chambers, 114 yards receiving
TE Brad Cottam, 62 yards recieving
WR Dwayne Bowe, 56 yards receiving

The Chiefs didn't have a lot of long drives to contribute to that 491 total. Out of thirteen drives, the Chiefs only had three, three and outs. The Chiefs consistently moved the ball, albeit against a poor defense.

It was the best offensive performance of the season for KC. The Chiefs ran the ball well; made some big plays; and converted on 2/4 red zone attempts.

Matt Cassel's Best Game of the Season

Cassel bounced back from three straight sub par games to put together a gutsy performance, performing his best in the fourth quarter as usual.

The Chiefs QB passed for 331 yards, 2 TDs and 0 INTs. Although, there was one pass near the goal line that really should have been intercepted if the Browns defender wasn't a total klutz. He ended up with a QB rating of 99.1 on 22/40 attempts. Include a reported nine WR drops in those numbers, and you can see Cassel had a great game. 331 yards passing was by far Cassel's best of the season - by 69 yards in fact.

The Chiefs' official wide receiver drop number is around 30 I believe. Todd Haley says it's more like fifty but we'll take thirty for now. If we add just that low estimate of thirty onto Cassel's season completions, his completion percentage jumps from 54% to 61.5%. That's a big jump and hitting that 60% number is really nice to see in a QB's stats.

Dustin Colquitt > Josh Cribbs

Josh Cribbs tore up the Chiefs special teams unit on kickoff returns, when he had the extra space the get a running start. On kickoff returns, Cribbs averaged nearly 40 yards on kickoff returns but only averaged 8 yards on punt returns. He was essentially neutralized on punt returns by Colquitt and the special teams unit.

We Could Be Talking about Chambers being the #1 WR

Chris Chambers had another great game for the Chiefs, catching five passes for 114 yards and a TD. He and Bowe are tied for the team lead in receiving TDs and Chambers is only 28 yards receiving yards behind Bowe for the season. Bowe has only played in one more game for the Chiefs than Chambers has.

Chambers has the Chiefs' best two receiving games this year, yesterday and against Pittsburgh. Him and Matt Cassel are building a repoire as well, which is something we haven't really seen around KC in a few seasons. Right now, Chambers is the biggest threat in the WR corp.

***

Give us your thoughts on these stats in the comments. It's not all bad, right?

Poll

Which one of these is the best stat?

Post-Game Thread: Harrison & Cribbs Set Records in 41-34 Win

Chris Pokorny — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 21:50:40 -0000

by Charlie Riedel - AP

3 days ago: Cleveland Browns wide receiver Josh Cribbs, left, celebrates with linebacker Blake Costanzo (54) after returning a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown during the first quarter of an NFL football game against the Kansas City Chiefs, Sunday, Dec. 20, 2009, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

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Last week, the entire defense deserved a game ball against the Pittsburgh Steelers. This week, I don't think anybody on the defense deserved any props. Matt Cassel, Jamaal Charles, and Chris Chambers had their way with our defense. Cassel threw for 331 yards and 2 touchdowns, with 114 of those yards going to Chambers. On the ground, Charles had 154 yards and a touchdown.

There were two stars on the team today -- one on offense and one on special teams.

On offense, RB Jerome Harrison nearly broke the NFL rushing record with 286 yards and 3 touchdowns. He shattered Jim Brown's record that had been held since 1961, and Harrison's single-game mark is by far the highest in the league this season.

Harrison did have a 71-yard burst to inflate his stats, but most of his carries seemed to go between 5-10 yards, even with the Chiefs consistently stacking nine players in the box. Brady Quinn couldn't capitalize on Harrison's running with good playaction passes, but it did set up a key playaction bootleg in which Quinn took off for 24 yards.

The other man of the hour is Joshua Cribbs, again. Cribbs returned two kicks for touchdowns in the first half -- one for 100 yards and the other for 103 yards. He set the NFL record for most career kick return touchdowns on his first try, and then broke his own record on the second try.

There was a somewhat controversial play at the end of the game. Harrison had the chance to go down at the one-yard line and then set up a field goal. Instead, Harrison took it in to give the Browns a seven-point cushion. I agree with what Harrison did, because more times than not, the opposing team won't be able to drive for a score. They almost did, but Cassel's pathetic-looking final pass attempt was batted away to seal the victory.

A 1-11 start, and now two wins in a row. We might be hurting our draft position, but with Mangini's job on the line, I'm sure that's the last thing on his mind.

Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles Getting Comparisons to Titans RB Chris Johnson

Joel Thorman — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 15:19:30 -0000

More photos » by Phil Coale - AP

(AP Photo/Phil Coale)

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Is the comparison fair? Probably not at this point but in our world every player is the next somebody. For Kansas City Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles, the comparison has been the next Chris Johnson, all-world running back for the Tennessee Titans.

Both are small, shifty and have the ability to score anywhere on the field. Johnson demonstrates that ability on just about a weekly basis. Charles has just flashed that potential only now and again.

Both lead their respective teams in rushing. Charles just passed 600 yards and Johnson just passed 1,600 yards. Both lead their teams in receptions - Charles with 34 and Johnson with 42.

Yeah, they're not the same player, but we need the comparisons to make us feel that our player is the next someone.

"I'm a physical player and I can run the ball just like Chris Johnson does," Charles said after last week's loss to the Buffalo Bills when he rushed for a career high.

Kent Babb of the Kansas City Star has a fantastic piece on Charles detailing his rise from an inactive afterthought in the second week of the season to one of the building blocks of the Chiefs future.

While reading and hearing the thoughts of more and more people who are talking about the Chiefs tailback,the JC-to-CJ comparison keeps popping up.

"He looks a little bit like the [Chris] Johnson kid from Tennessee, where he has that home run ability," Browns defensive coordinator Rob Ryan said this week. "They're using him all over the place. They flex him out as a receiver and he's doing some great things out there, beating corners and things like that."

"Jamaal has an ability to score form anywhere on the field and not a lot of guys in the NFL have that ability," Chiefs LB Mike Vrabel said this week. "Certainly those guys are hard to come by."

He's definitely not Chris Johnson yet but at least over the last five weeks the comparisons have becoming more and more realistic.

GOT NUMBERS? Previewing the Browns vs. the Chiefs.

Ryan Kelsey — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 19:21:20 -0000

More photos » by Charlie Riedel - AP

We must stop the Charles. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

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Since my computer blew up and the replacement has yet to come in, this article comes to you by way of a public library computer. That means slow connections and time limits. And a shorter version of my Got Numbers? weekly preview. It also means I won't be able to comment on this DBN until Monday and cannot edit this story, like I usually do. (I can read DBN from my phone, but I haven't successfully posted from it). So, sorry for any typos, spelling mistakes or blatant errors or omissions.

Not that anyone will mind. This week's game features two terrible teams with a combined record of 5-21 this season and 6-26 last year. And very, very few people will even know it is going on. It is blacked out in Kansas City. And it won't be shown in most of Ohio. These two proud franchises and fan bases now have little to cheer for and struggle to make their way to the games.

The Browns are coming off their second win of the season and have played, generally, better football since the bye week. But, let's see just how ugly we can expect this game to be.

As always, all DVOA, DYAR and sack rate numbers are thanks to Football Outsiders.

When the Chiefs have the ball:

Kansas City's offense is bad. They rank 32nd (yes, that's last) in the league in weighted DVOA for offensive efficiency (-28.4%). That means they don't pass well (28th, -23.5%), don't run well (32nd, -14.9%) and have been even worse lately because the weighted stats weight the most recent games more than earlier games in the year. The Browns defense has had borderline great games (Steelers II, Ravens II, Bengals I, Bengals II, Bills) and flat out disgustingly bad games (San Diego, Detroit, Chicago, Green Bay). Some of that is due to injuries, but some is just plain confusing. After dominating the Steelers in the wind and cold last week, the Browns rank 30th in weighted DVOA (up from 32nd). The Browns are 31st against the pass and 27th against the run in DVOA.

Kansas City's passing game is "lead" by Matt Cassel. Cassel has had an awful season. He has been less valuable overall this season than every quarterback with at least 100 passes, except Jamarcus Russel. That's right. Cassel has less total value than Derek Anderson in DYAR this season (-639 for Cassell, -406 for DA). On a per play basis, it is a little better, he is 39th of 44 qualifying QBs (-34.4% DVOA). Still, that's really, really, really bad. And while they haven't played the whole season (because they were midseason acquistions or injured) the Chiefs are not without decent receivers. Both Chris Chambers (-3.7%) and Dwayne Bowe(-3.0%) are right around league average on a per play basis. Though their "other" WRs kind of stink (Mark Bradley -38.8% DVOA and just a 40% catch rate; Bobby Wade, -26.8% DVOA). And they dearly miss Tony Gonzalez. Their best TEs, Leonard Pope and Sean Ryan have been non-factors. This is good news for the Browns because they remain the worst team in the league at defending passes to TEs. Part of the Chiefs problem is protecting the QB. They rank near the bottom of the league, allowing 40 sacks, about 9% of all their drop backs. And if the Browns can build on success in rushing the passer from last Thursday, this could be a big part of the game. The Browns ranked 17th in the league in getting to the quarterback on a per-dropback basis, but that has not been updated by Football Outsiders for last week's games. I'm sure the Browns are now near the top ten.

The Chiefs rushing game is an interesting story. While they rank last in the league in DVOA (mainly due to Larry Johnson's ineffectiveness- but he isn't on the team anymore), Jamaal Charles has broken out as a force on the ground. Despite not being a starting back until week 10, Charles has the 21st most value of all RBs and is 13th on a per play basis (7.7% DVOA). That's largely based on his really good 5.2 YPC. He is also coming off a career game against the Bills, where he rushed for 143 yards on 20 carries (7.2 YPC) and a TD. (Not to mention 7 catches for another 38 yards).

When the Browns have the Ball

The Chiefs are average against the pass, 17th in the league. Particularly, they are good against #1 WRs (8th in the league. As Brady Quinn plays more and more games, he is settling in around just below-league average. He is at -18% DVOA currently.

The Browns rushing game is also confusing to figure out. No current RB on the Browns qualifies for the league leaders on Football Outsiders. Jamal Lewis still leads the team in carries and he was horrible, dragging down the stats. Now that he is on IR, it is tough to gage how good or bad the run game really is. We just don't have much data on Chris Jennings (who has been pretty league average on a per play basis, -4% DVOA) or Jerome Harrison (who has been decidedly worse-20%DVOA). But the real X factor is Josh Cribbs. Football Outisiders classifies him as a QB. His runs come by the way of end-arounds, wild-cat formations, reverses. The creativity has lead to some good-to-great results. He has 305 yards on 42 carries, good for 7.3 YPC. The Browns ground game is key because KC is bad against the run. 29th in the league (8.0% DVOA).

Special teams

Josh Cribbs is awesome. KC has good coverage teams, so don't expect too much.

Conclusions and Questions

There are some rising starts and interesting things to watch, maybe not as ugly as I thought.

Three questions that will determine the outcome:

1.) Can the Browns get to Cassel like they got to Roethlisberger? And if so, will we take the next step and start forcing turnovers?

2.) Will the Browns play with a level of passion and intensity that is anywhere near the level they had for the Steelers at home at night?

3.) Will Jamaal Charles take another step to becomming the next NFL star runningback for the Chiefs?

For the first time since doing this column, I actually like the matchup. I think our strengths and their weaknesses are in the right areas (namely, our pass rush vs. their pass protection; their run game vs. our run defense).

Browns 28

Chiefs 20

Dantrell Savage Back on the Chiefs Injury Report

Joel Thorman — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 01:11:53 -0000

More photos » by Jeff Roberson - AP

Dantrell Savage Back on the Chiefs Injury Report. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

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Yesterday, the Kansas City Chiefs listed four players on their practice report. Today, they list five.

The new addition is running back Dantrell Savage, who appears to still be recovering from an ankle injury suffered a month ago. Savage was listed as a full participant in practice all of last week with the same troublesome ankle. With the emergence of Jamaal Charles as a full time running back, the need for Savage has decreased in recent weeks.

The only other change to the injury report was an upgrade to Wallace Gilberry. He dealt with a sore back last week and the issue continued yesterday. Today, however, he was listed as a full participant in practice.

Other Chiefs injuries:

G Brian Waters (hamstring) - Limited
S Jon McGraw (hand) - Limited
DE Glenn Dorsey (knee) - Limited

All these players are expected to be available on Sunday.