Tribal Warfare
07-25-2010, 12:03 PM
As camp looms, Chiefs feeling more upbeat and focused than a year ago (http://www.kansascity.com/2010/07/24/2104876/as-camp-looms-chiefs-feeling-more.html)
By ADAM TEICHER
The Kansas City Star
When you’ve won 10 games over the previous three seasons, as the Chiefs have done, it doesn’t take much to prompt the feeling that the worst is finally over.
The Chiefs think they’ve earned the right to feel that way. They point to a productive offseason that saw them rebuild coach Todd Haley’s staff of assistants, sign a 1,400-yard rusher in Thomas Jones and draft one of the top safety prospects to come out of college in many years, Eric Berry.
Haley dared give voice to that notion as far back as the NFL’s scouting combine in February. He didn’t back off last month when the Chiefs concluded their offseason practice.
“I don’t have any doubt in my mind we’re making progress,” Haley said. “We’ve gotten better this offseason. I know we got better as the year went on last season. The next step is training camp.
“Unfortunately, they won’t spot us a couple game for doing good work in the offseason. But by doing what we’ve done over this offseason, we’ve at least given ourselves a chance to be more competitive.”
The Chiefs begin training camp this week, having moved from their long-time summer home in River Falls, Wis., to nearby St. Joseph and the campus of Missouri Western State University.
The overriding theme of camp is that the Chiefs, while far from a polished product, should be ready at long last to be competitive again. It’s a feeling brought on by the sense that the many changes made by Haley in his year and a half with the Chiefs are finally taking root.
His first moves of the offseason were to import new coordinators. Offensive coordinator Charlie Weis and his defensive counterpart, Romeo Crennel, are Super Bowl veterans.
The Chiefs also made some impact signings in the free-agent market, bringing in Jones and offensive lineman Ryan Lilja, among others. The team’s draft class, which includes Berry and speedy receiver Dexter McCluster, looks more promising than last year’s.
Much of Haley’s optimism stems from the Chiefs’ season-ending 44-24 win over the Broncos in Denver, their first win in Colorado since 2000.
“When you can finish in a positive fashion, it does nothing but help you,” Haley said. “For these guys, seeing what they felt like, to walk off a division rival’s field with a real big win did nothing but help. I know a lot of these guys are using that as a little springboard into this season.”
There’s certainly danger in putting too much stock in one game. Even considering that Denver game, the Chiefs have a lot of ground to cover.
They were last in the AFC West in each of the past two seasons, finding a way to finish below even the lowly Raiders. The Chiefs lost four games last year by 20 points or more.
The Chiefs are passing that off as growing pains in the first year of the administration of Haley and general manager Scott Pioli. Lurching from a blowup with guard Brian Waters to a preseason firing of offensive coordinator Chan Gailey to a midseason dismissal of running back Larry Johnson, the Chiefs spent most of the season trying to figure out where they were going and how they could get there.
“I think it’s accurate to say we were scrambling at this time last year,” quarterback Matt Cassel said. “You always hope the worst is over, but you never know what you have until you get into the season. But I can say this: Where we are now, compared to where we were at this time last year, is night and day.”
Much was made about the Chiefs’ draft and the quality of character of Berry and the rest of their picks. Overlooked was the fact that the rookie class shares another quality: They like to work at football as much as play it.
That’s an important quality to Haley and Pioli. They weeded out players such as Johnson and Bernard Pollard, who they thought didn’t have it.
“You can definitely tell the environment has changed to where there’s more focus on the work we’re doing on the field and not any extracurriculars,” Waters said. “Everyone is more secure in knowing what is expected of us and what our expectations are.”
Those expectations have been raised, but on defense it may amount to wishful thinking. Much is being asked of Crennel. The Chiefs’ defense finished near the bottom of the league last season, and the only significant playing addition is the rookie Berry.
Expectations appear more realistic on offense. Between Haley taking control of the offense to shaky pass protection to a group of receivers that led the league in dropped passes to a running game that foundered in the first half of the season, Cassel struggled for much of the year.
The Chiefs tried to fix many of those shortcomings in the offseason. They signed Lilja to help upgrade the line. They signed Jones, who could pair with Jamaal Charles to give the Chiefs a dangerous pair of runners. They’re expecting help in the passing game from two rookies, McCluster and tight end Tony Moeaki.
Then there’s the addition of Weis.
“Charlie pushes you each and every day. He’s a guy that doesn’t let anything slip by. He’s very meticulous in how he coaches. He’s very tough on us that we can’t have any lulls. That’s important for us.”
By ADAM TEICHER
The Kansas City Star
When you’ve won 10 games over the previous three seasons, as the Chiefs have done, it doesn’t take much to prompt the feeling that the worst is finally over.
The Chiefs think they’ve earned the right to feel that way. They point to a productive offseason that saw them rebuild coach Todd Haley’s staff of assistants, sign a 1,400-yard rusher in Thomas Jones and draft one of the top safety prospects to come out of college in many years, Eric Berry.
Haley dared give voice to that notion as far back as the NFL’s scouting combine in February. He didn’t back off last month when the Chiefs concluded their offseason practice.
“I don’t have any doubt in my mind we’re making progress,” Haley said. “We’ve gotten better this offseason. I know we got better as the year went on last season. The next step is training camp.
“Unfortunately, they won’t spot us a couple game for doing good work in the offseason. But by doing what we’ve done over this offseason, we’ve at least given ourselves a chance to be more competitive.”
The Chiefs begin training camp this week, having moved from their long-time summer home in River Falls, Wis., to nearby St. Joseph and the campus of Missouri Western State University.
The overriding theme of camp is that the Chiefs, while far from a polished product, should be ready at long last to be competitive again. It’s a feeling brought on by the sense that the many changes made by Haley in his year and a half with the Chiefs are finally taking root.
His first moves of the offseason were to import new coordinators. Offensive coordinator Charlie Weis and his defensive counterpart, Romeo Crennel, are Super Bowl veterans.
The Chiefs also made some impact signings in the free-agent market, bringing in Jones and offensive lineman Ryan Lilja, among others. The team’s draft class, which includes Berry and speedy receiver Dexter McCluster, looks more promising than last year’s.
Much of Haley’s optimism stems from the Chiefs’ season-ending 44-24 win over the Broncos in Denver, their first win in Colorado since 2000.
“When you can finish in a positive fashion, it does nothing but help you,” Haley said. “For these guys, seeing what they felt like, to walk off a division rival’s field with a real big win did nothing but help. I know a lot of these guys are using that as a little springboard into this season.”
There’s certainly danger in putting too much stock in one game. Even considering that Denver game, the Chiefs have a lot of ground to cover.
They were last in the AFC West in each of the past two seasons, finding a way to finish below even the lowly Raiders. The Chiefs lost four games last year by 20 points or more.
The Chiefs are passing that off as growing pains in the first year of the administration of Haley and general manager Scott Pioli. Lurching from a blowup with guard Brian Waters to a preseason firing of offensive coordinator Chan Gailey to a midseason dismissal of running back Larry Johnson, the Chiefs spent most of the season trying to figure out where they were going and how they could get there.
“I think it’s accurate to say we were scrambling at this time last year,” quarterback Matt Cassel said. “You always hope the worst is over, but you never know what you have until you get into the season. But I can say this: Where we are now, compared to where we were at this time last year, is night and day.”
Much was made about the Chiefs’ draft and the quality of character of Berry and the rest of their picks. Overlooked was the fact that the rookie class shares another quality: They like to work at football as much as play it.
That’s an important quality to Haley and Pioli. They weeded out players such as Johnson and Bernard Pollard, who they thought didn’t have it.
“You can definitely tell the environment has changed to where there’s more focus on the work we’re doing on the field and not any extracurriculars,” Waters said. “Everyone is more secure in knowing what is expected of us and what our expectations are.”
Those expectations have been raised, but on defense it may amount to wishful thinking. Much is being asked of Crennel. The Chiefs’ defense finished near the bottom of the league last season, and the only significant playing addition is the rookie Berry.
Expectations appear more realistic on offense. Between Haley taking control of the offense to shaky pass protection to a group of receivers that led the league in dropped passes to a running game that foundered in the first half of the season, Cassel struggled for much of the year.
The Chiefs tried to fix many of those shortcomings in the offseason. They signed Lilja to help upgrade the line. They signed Jones, who could pair with Jamaal Charles to give the Chiefs a dangerous pair of runners. They’re expecting help in the passing game from two rookies, McCluster and tight end Tony Moeaki.
Then there’s the addition of Weis.
“Charlie pushes you each and every day. He’s a guy that doesn’t let anything slip by. He’s very meticulous in how he coaches. He’s very tough on us that we can’t have any lulls. That’s important for us.”