SB Nation User Blog: Ben S

Haley Speaks with Pioli

Ben S — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 21:49:23 -0000

Sorry, I really hope that this isn't a double post already on the fanshots, I must say that i really hate seeing the same thing on the side two or three times repeated.

However, in the following link it is mentioned that Scott Pioli had a chat during super bowl week, and as we all know, will be formally interviewed in the following days.

http://www.rotoworld.com/content/playerpages/playerbreakingnews.asp?sport=NFL&id=1354&line=138755&spln=1

Personally, for Pioli to speak with Haley on an unofficial chat during the super bowl, only to interview him in the following weeks, I think that a deal is imminent. As mentioned before, I really hope this hasn't been mentioned, but I think that news like this means Haley will no doubt be our new head coach. After seeing the play call on Larry Fitzgeralds last TD, I am quite excited to see this happen.

Lets just hope that it does.

Why Herm Should Not be Blamed for our Horrible Defense

Ben S — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 08:45:15 -0000

Now before you to begin to bash me for protecting Herm, know this. I do not want Herm around next year. Whether or not he is a good coach, you cannot have the record that he has accumulated and expect to be the coach of the same team next year.

However...

I do not think that Herm should be held completely responsible for the atrocious defense that we fielded this year. As a head coach, Herms job is to make sure that practices are ran efficiently and effectively, as well as managing plays, and in some cases, calling plays near the end of a game. One might say that by the looks of how the Chiefs preformed this year, he did not do any of the above effectively. Now, to be honest, I have to agree with you. Herm failed to make the right call at the right time and it actually contributed to a few losses.

But, I do not think that Herm is as bad as he appears on paper. Before I go on, I will remind the reader once again that I do believe that Herm should be fired. I am writing this article for the sole purpose that I think Herm is a nice guy, and not nearly as bad of a coach as he seemed to be in KC. Anyways, back to the point. As a defensive coordinater, I understand the relationship between a HC and DC to a certain extent ( this obviously differs between college and NFL, as well the certain individual), but I do know, for the most part, how things operate. During the course of a season, the HC of my team never spoke to me about our defense. Despite starting of the season allowing 4 passing touchdowns (dont get me started...), the HC did not ask a single question. He did come up with ideas, but in no way forced me to act upon them. This is what you would classify as trust. My boss trusted me to come up with a way to fix our defensive woes despite having his job on the line. Eventually, we did figure out what the problem was and fixed our defense, but that the ONLY reason why that was is because my boss trusted me enough to let me continue to coach and fix the issues that we were experiencing.

When it comes to Herm, I believe that he experienced the same dilemma. This season, I believe that Herm put his trust in Gunther and ol' Gunny let him down (mind you, I have never been a fan of Gun). I know that some of you will quick to blame Herm for trusting Gun in the first place, and that is fair. However, I will ask you have you ever had a girl/ guy cheat on you when you thought you could trust them? The point is that no matter if Herm made the right decision or not, I believe he made his decision based on trust, and gun let him down. If we had fielded a competent defense, would we had lost as many games as we did? Probably not. However, our HC made a mistake and trusted the wrong guy, resulting in him being on the hot seat for only winning two games in a season.

I am not trying to campaign for Herm to keep his job, nor am I saying that he did a bad job. The point of this article is to say that when it comes to our defense, I do not think it was entirely Herms fault. Yes, he failed to bring in necessary talent to challenge players for their position (hello Pat Thomas), and he also didn't give the defense much of a shot at all at the beginning of the year with the offense we fielded. However, in terms of the defensive state of the Chiefs, I believe it was Gunther, not Herm, who led us to failure as a defensive unit.

So, call for Herms head all you want. Chances are, I'll be with you. Just please make sure that when you are doing this, you have a picture of Gunny up there just as high as Herms head because I strongly believe that he is as responsible for the Chiefs short-comings as Herm Edwards is himself. The only difference between the two is that Herm should get a secoind chance somewhere else, and Gunther should not.

If You Were Carl...

Ben S — Fri, 28 Nov 2008 05:38:50 -0000

...Then what would you do?

In a season where our beloved Chiefs have won only one game so far, we have all heard much advice from one another. This ranges from a common goal to fire Herm, to not so popular ideas like converting Quinn Gray into a defensive end (thanks Parade, I'm always open for something new!). We talk about firing Gunn, getting rid of Herm, trading LJ, benching Sackintosh, and many other issues. However, never have we heard the complete package. So, it is I who places the burden upon you, the reader, to come up with your own personal remedy for the Chiefs. So, to get things started, I will begin with my own.

First off, I would not fire Herm until the end of the year. Despite disagreeing with many things that he has done in the past, I feel as though it is unfair to fire a coach with the personel that we have. However, he would be on an extremely tight leash. There is only so long that a coach can go on in the NFL losing as many games as Herm has, and he is certainly approaching that mark. However, what I would like to see (although not likely at all) is Herm retained as the head of our college scouting department. I am sure a lot of people on this site will disagree, but I personally feel as though Herm has brought in a lot of talent through the draft. It is not very often that a 7th round safety can come in and be a starter by his second year, no matter the quality of his play or the players at his position. That is impressive.

However, I am not so easy with Gunther Cunningham. I personally would like to see the Old Fun' and Gunn fired immediatly. I am well aware of the injuries we have, as well as the rookies we are playing. However, our defense come short on so many fundamentals that it makes me dizzy just thinking about it. Poor cantainment. Poor tackling. Vanilla playcalling. This list can go on and on, but because of the time it would waste that could be used to find a new (and better) DC, I will leave it at that.

As for personel, there are only a few changes I would make. However, I would like to point out that as fans, we do not get to watch practice, making our evaluation of players that much more difficult resulting in assumptions that would make us look like idiots in front of coaches, so I will do my best to keep it short. But, the first move I would make is to have Pollard and Morgan sharing playing time. Bernie has failed to make as many plays as you would hope from your safety, and for being a big hitter (which, I must admit, he is starting to live up to), he still only makes those big hits 8 yards down the field. Morgan, on the other hand, seems to constantly making plays near the line of scrimmage when the opponent runs the ball, and I have yet to see him miss a tackle. Now, I must admit that I have never seen Dajuan make a play on a pass, but judging from his play around the line of scrimmage, can he really be much worse than Burnt Pollard?

I would love to say that Richardson should start over Macintosh, but like I mentioned above, dont you think that they would give him a shot over the sack master by now if he was even close to an upgrade? I would be much more open to atleast giving Herb Taylor a shot on the right side, but I suspect that maybe it is his age that is getting in his way from making the switch to the right side in the NFL. I could be wrong, just my take on things.

That is about it for the changes I would make to the depth chart. There are a few areas that obviously need improvement, but I think that free agency and the draft will more than likely be better suitors for those positions. I know that many on this site feel as though this would be a good idea given the situation he is in at the moment, but I would love to see Julius Peppers in a Chiefs uniform next year. Maybe it's our cap space, maybe it's that he runs with DB's in practice, or maybe it's because he is just so fricken' good in Madden year in and year out!

This would basically be my remedy for this year. As most of you may have noticed, not a lot has changed this year. For me, the significant changes would come next year, pending on what happens for the rest of this year. Anyways, please share your thoughts on what the Chiefs should do, I would love to hear them.

Oh, and two more things:

1) I would start a petition on AP for a daily babe to help everyone get there mornings started!

2)I would fire myself (Carl) after hiring myself (Ben) as the GM for the next 20 years at 5 Million a year before retiring to Tuscany. Ah, the life.

Bens Safety Extravaganza

Ben S — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 05:46:13 -0000

1. William Moore - Missouri

Seems like a Bob Sanders type, will step in immediatly and help the run defense. Built like Bernard Pollard, minus the missed tackles and poor coverage. Has good size and is able to make any tackle in the game.

2. Patrick Chung - Oregon

Probably my favorite safety in the draft, however my hate for the pac-10 keeps him from the number 1 spot. Nasty playmaker who is constantly around the ball, and not 20 yards down the field either. Will step into a defense and be the next Ed Reed, just more vicous. Ed Reed makes plays with his brain and his hands, Patrick makes plays with his brain and his body. Nothing wrong with that.

3. Rashad Johnson - Alabama

Much more instinctive, seems to have very soft hands. Oddly enough, Pollard and Page almost seem like a poor mans Johnson and Moore, respectively. Plays for a big time program and knows how to turn a game around. However, needs to put on weight if he wants to be a succesful saftey in the pro game.

4. Curtis Taylor - LSU

I must admit, I don't watch much of the SEC, not to mention LSU, but from what I have read this kid is an important part of an always strong Tiger defense. My favourite players in the draft are always from the SEC (oddly enough, I know) because the defenses that the SEC fields year in and year out are the most resemblant to NFL defense, and there is no doubt in my mind that Taylor is part of this.

5. Michael Hamlin - Clemson

A mature leader on the field who has a knack for making the big play. Honestly, I hate using cliches, but sometimes they are just right. After all, who do we look for at the end of an Oakland game? *cough* JP *cough* Either way, this kid will make a serious impact on a team a year or two down the road when he adjusts to the speed and offenses of the NFL, and when he does, look for him to possibly go to a few pro bowls.

Good News for the Chiefs

Ben S — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 01:31:26 -0000

Thanks, Herm!

According to this report, the Chiefs will be sticking with the spread offense, forcing LJ to adapt his style. This is good news, considering that the Chiefs offense soared from one of the leagues worst to one of the best.

The article also goes on to say that the spread offence doesn't exactly fit LJs running style, but I do recall a few plays against the Chargers where a stronger back (enter the woman beater) would have broken an arm tackle and taken the run a little further.

Either way, we will certainly find out come sunday when the Chiefs get their second win of the season against the NO Saints.

GO CHIEFS!

Heres the link: Pro Football Weekly

Beef with Chris

Ben S — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 05:27:26 -0000

Being a Canadian, I can't help but be offended by the advertisement I just saw about Prince Edward Island being Canadas number 1 golf destination. That is false!

Being a current employee of a golf course in Alberta, I must go ahead and say that Alberta is a much better golfing destination for all of you link-lifers out there. Also, I darre you to find a Chiefs game in PEI anyways! In Alberta, my house is always broadcasting the Chiefs, no matter the record!

Sorry, I am really not upset at Chris at all, I just figured I had to warn you Americans from being lured into PEI from there advertisements. Alberta has everything you need and more. To be honest, anything you want in Canada you can basically find in the US anyways...

And with the number 1 pick in the 2009 draft, the Kansas City Chiefs select...QB Colt McCoy out of the University of Texas!!!

Dorsey Heating Up

Ben S — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 00:33:09 -0000

After missing the beginning of training camp, followed by a slow start, Glenn Dorsey has finally begun to show the type of player he is.

After failing to record a tackle in the season opener against New England, Glenn Dorsey has finally begun to show signs of the player that many scouts believed was the best player in the draft. Some experts have even go so far as to compare him to Warren Sapp, one of the games greatest DT's (of course beside our own DT, Derrick Thomas).

Despite only making two tackles and an assist, Glenn Dorsey continued to make plays and be disruptive on the line. While watching the gane, it was hard to find a play where Dorsey wasn't either double, or even triple teamed when Denver had the ball. It seemed as though whenever Denver ran the ball, Dorsey either made the tackle or set the runningback up to be tackled by a Chiefs linebacker.

The best part about all of this, however, is that Dorsey is still not playing to his full potential. When KC begins to reach the quarterback with its ends, something it has failed to do all season, Dorsey will begin to see more one on one battles with gaurds and centers, giving him an opportunity to make even more plays. The fact that our ends still can't get to the quarterback with Glenn being covered the way he is is a bad sign for the Chiefs ends. Had we been able to keep JA (not to say that is what I wanted), but I will go so far as to say that Dorsey would have atleast 1 sack by now.

At this point in his career, Dorsey is not playing his best. He is by no means in the peak of his career (after all, he has only played 4 games), and will only improve as the games go by. However, judging by what I have been seeing on the field from week to week, I have all the confidence in the world in saying that one day, Glenn Dorsey will be able to dominate games on his own, double team or not.

Apologies Welcomed

Ben S — Sun, 28 Sep 2008 20:33:59 -0000

As some of you may remember, I wrote an article about a week ago about how th Chiefs run defense was not as bad as it seemed to appear.

Upon writing this, many people were quick to point out how "stupid" and unintelligent the article was. Some even went to the extent to say that it didn't even make sense.

My main point was that the Chiefs defense couldn't stop the run because they spent too much time on the field due to our lack of offense. I mentioned that once our offense finally got its act together we would see a much stronger run defense then we had been seeing all season.

Enter denver broncos.

One of the most prolific offenses in the NFL was shut down today in Kansas Citys first win of the 08 season. Playing a major part in this was the terrific run defense played against denver, a team known to take any player off of the streets and turn him into a 1000 yard rusher automatically with there famous zone-blocking scheme. The Chiefs swarmed the field and prevented the Broncos from running all over the Chiefs. Heck, we even stopped the classic "Bronco Boot" from destroying us from time to time.

So, here I am, waiting for the people who were so quick to call me stupid and unintelligent to come back and eat their words. Hey, look on the bright side, we just won for the first time in 13 games!

GO CHIEFS!

Relax About the Run Defense

Ben S — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 00:45:01 -0000

I know you are reading this thinking "We were just run over by the Raiders. 200 yards is bad enough, but 300?"

I understand that 300 yards is a fair amount of yardage for a QB, and a disgusting number for a team to rush for on its own. But please, calm down. Believe me, I am as angry as any of you about how poorly the Chiefs played. My stepdad went so far as to say that this is the worst game of Chiefs football that he has ever witnessed.

However, when you look at our run defense with rationality instead of non-hopsitality (sorry, I felt like rhyming, deal with it), this game really is not an indication of how our run defense is. I am not saying that the Chiefs have a good run defense by any means so please don't freak out because I am being to optimistic, but what I am saying that to say that by judging from the game against oakland that our run defense sucks just doesn't make sense.

Let us start out with one thing: had our offense not been so dismal, the raiders would not have scored on our defense in the first half. What? But if we are being slaughtered on the ground, doesn't that mean that the offense should be able to move the ball at will on our team? The reason why running backs want above a 4.0 ypc is so that they can get a first down in 3 rushes, avoiding a fourth down. Simple math (please don't be "that guy" who points out that you really only need 3.34, I understand that).

Now, this next part will probably only be comprehended by the fans who ever played on the defensive side of the football, so I expect all offensive and non-football players to disagree with this. But, after the Chiefs defense spent the majority of the game on the field with no rest between (thanks, Werm Ball), the defense will obviously tire out. So, what do you think will happen when you take a guy who just ran in the low 4.3's plays against a defense that just spent more that half of the game on the field already? Yikes! Don't you think that maybe when he hits that hole awith about 90% of his stamina left, our defense will be just a little slow to close in on him?

You might think that this is just a Chief fan opinion, but McFadden is not that good. He was over rated in college because he can throw the ball half-decent (like most NFL athletes can anyways) and because he is so fast. The guy fumbled the ball when he hit his fullbacks heel for heavens sake! He runs like a deer, has poor vision, and cannot protect the football. The only thing he has going for him is that he is fast (Al Davis drafted him after all, right?). Unfortunatly, the last thing our exhausted defense needed at the end of the game was to face a fast running back, just like McFadden. Next week, he will preform poorly and everyone will complain about how bad our run defense really is when in fact, it isn't nearly as bad as it appeared at all.

So please, relax. Take a chill pill. Our run D isn't nearly as bad as it seems. Unfortunatly, we will never see that until our offense becomes respectable.

Oliver Hoyte, Possible Starter?

Ben S — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 04:38:12 -0000

Please read this before you think I'm crazy.

I understand that Pat Thomas is shaping up to be the number 1 MLB this tear should his apparent dominance over Napoleon Harris, however I think that there is the possibility that this race is not as far away as it would seem.

My initial reason that caused me to think of this was, "Why is a FB going from one of the weakest positions on the team to what is being called one of the deepest positions on the team in Linebacking corps?". This is a new player on the team who has by no means secured a spot on the final roster, why does he think he has a better chance of making the final cut playing behind the Chiefs linebackers?

If it was me, the place on the team I would want to be is the place that I am most likely to make, not the longshot just so I can play my favourite position. The only time I would even dream about changing positions when trying to make a team is if I knew I had a better chance at said position. But wait, Pat Harris is playing so well? He has even beat out Napoleon Harris already, the same player who led the Chiefs in tackles a year ago. Right now my head is spinning.

But Wait! A solution!

What if this is what I like to call the Ty Law affect. We have serious issues at a certain position, yet it is failed to be reported.

When Ty Law finally arrived at training camp, he was the talk of the town. We just landed last years interception leader and he was going to lock down the island. Throughout camp we read numerous reports about Ty Laws abilities and leadership roles. His foot was completely healed and he felt faster than he had before last season. However, when the season finally began, Law dissapointed.

Could this be happening with our Linebackers this year? After all, a player who I don't even remember the day we added him to our roster, is battling (and even winning) with our tackle leader. Does Oliver Hoyte, our ex-FB who works with the linebackers in one on ones think that he could beat out one, or both of our fullbacks? Lets remember this kid didn't work out so well in Dallas, so this might be his last shot at making an NFL team. I'm not to sure any of us would be screwing around with an opportunity like that.

When I first looked at Hoytes' postion change, I didn't think much of it. Then as I thank about it a little more, it came to me that the only reason he would humanly make the right choice is by going to the position he felt would help him make the team. Maybe he doesn't start, but I think that there is a legitmate LB battle about to heat up, atleast for backup role.