KCrockaholic
10-15-2011, 07:36 PM
http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=capress-fbn_chiefs_bye-11397240
It takes a lot to get Steve Breaston(notes) riled up.
The Kansas City Chiefs' wide receiver is about the most docile football player you'll ever come across. Sure, he gets feisty for games, and his energy in practice is downright infectious. But in the locker room and away from the playing field, Breaston is about as chill as they come.
Todd Haley managed to do it.
More than once, too.
"It's Jekyll and Hyde when it comes to coach Haley," Breaston said. "It's the way his coaching style is, and a lot of people see him ranting and raving. But he knows how to handle each player. You understand that's part of coaching, and you understand how you have to handle him."
Haley has blown up on the sideline more than once in his two-plus seasons in Kansas City, and more than once those blowups have been caught by television cameras. The latest happened a couple weeks ago against Minnesota, when Haley got into it with quarterback Matt Cassel(notes), the video clip showing up on Youtube within hours of the incident.
The sideline flare-ups have rubbed some people the wrong way, but one thing is undeniable: Haley coaches his own way, and nobody is going to make him change.
"You got a bunch of guys who are really passionate about being better, and being good, and being part of a good team, and when you have passionate guys who care, I would expect there to be some emotion," Haley said. "What's important is that you move forward and that everybody is on the same page, and that the coaching is done, however it's done, and that points are made."
Apparently, the message is getting through.
It probably doesn't hurt that it's often delivered at an earsplitting decibel level.
Haley took over a franchise that was down and out, an aging roster in need of turnover, and quickly made it into a winner. The Chiefs won the AFC West last season, something few people outside the practice facility thought possible, and came into this season with high expectations.
Injuries and an awful start wiped those expectations away, but Haley has stayed the course. The result has been a modest two-game winning streak going into the Chiefs' week off, and the very tangible sense that the team is getting better. Haley isn't willing to take the credit for it, but just about everyone in the locker room points their finger at him as the reason why.
"Sometimes emotions get the best of you," Cassel said, recalling his sideline spat during the Chiefs' win over Minnesota. "He came over and sat next to me five minutes later, and nothing else is made of it, and we move forward. You just understand that's how he does things."
Fullback Le'Ron McClain(notes), who had spent his entire career with Baltimore before this season, has noticed the "Jekyll and Hyde" style of his new coach.
McClain pointed out that Haley can bellow with the best of them on the practice field, and he shudders to think of the earful his coach gives referees. It was McClain who wound up separating Haley and Cassel during their tiff at Arrowhead Stadium, trying to get everybody to calm down.
But there's also the side of Haley that people don't see, McClain said.
Like when Haley went to a Lil Wayne concert with cornerback Brandon Flowers(notes), or decided to bring a game called "cornhole" into the locker room to give guys something to play between meetings. Haley often joins in, tossing bean bags at two pieces of lumber with holes drilled in them, or he'll just watch with a sly grin while drinking a Diet Coke off to the side.
"A lot of people get caught up in that other stuff and think that's coach Haley the person," Breaston said. "That's coach Haley motivating us to play better, to play with discipline."
Breaston could have gone elsewhere during the off-season, but he signed with Kansas City of his own volition. The biggest reason was Haley, who got the most out of him as a young wide receiver back when Haley was the offensive co-ordinator at Arizona.
"He may be hard on you, but growing up in certain households, your parents are hard on you," Breaston said. "They want you to do things right, but then they're cheering for you also, you know? They're behind you, and coach Haley is like that. Behind the scenes he's a fun guy."
Haley admits there are times he tries to tweak his players. That's part of coaching. Knowing how and when is what separates the good ones from the bad.
"There's got to be something to provoke a reaction," Haley said, "and in some cases those are a little easier to find than others."
In the case of Breaston, Haley was on him every day in practice. He stayed on him in the halls of the practice facility. He quizzed him mercilessly in the film room, trying his best to break him.
It nearly worked.
Breaston is grateful for it now.
"He knows how to handle each player," Breaston said. "It's not always rah-rah-rah. He knows how to handle different situations. He's been around football for a very long time, and when you're around that environment, you learn how to motivate certain people.
"He's pushed me. It happens. But the one thing he understands is that I go out there and do it right. I show him I understand by correcting my mistakes and doing it right," Breaston said. "He might think, 'I'm not getting across,' because I'm not reacting to it, but then I go out and do it right."
That, of course, is all that matters.
It takes a lot to get Steve Breaston(notes) riled up.
The Kansas City Chiefs' wide receiver is about the most docile football player you'll ever come across. Sure, he gets feisty for games, and his energy in practice is downright infectious. But in the locker room and away from the playing field, Breaston is about as chill as they come.
Todd Haley managed to do it.
More than once, too.
"It's Jekyll and Hyde when it comes to coach Haley," Breaston said. "It's the way his coaching style is, and a lot of people see him ranting and raving. But he knows how to handle each player. You understand that's part of coaching, and you understand how you have to handle him."
Haley has blown up on the sideline more than once in his two-plus seasons in Kansas City, and more than once those blowups have been caught by television cameras. The latest happened a couple weeks ago against Minnesota, when Haley got into it with quarterback Matt Cassel(notes), the video clip showing up on Youtube within hours of the incident.
The sideline flare-ups have rubbed some people the wrong way, but one thing is undeniable: Haley coaches his own way, and nobody is going to make him change.
"You got a bunch of guys who are really passionate about being better, and being good, and being part of a good team, and when you have passionate guys who care, I would expect there to be some emotion," Haley said. "What's important is that you move forward and that everybody is on the same page, and that the coaching is done, however it's done, and that points are made."
Apparently, the message is getting through.
It probably doesn't hurt that it's often delivered at an earsplitting decibel level.
Haley took over a franchise that was down and out, an aging roster in need of turnover, and quickly made it into a winner. The Chiefs won the AFC West last season, something few people outside the practice facility thought possible, and came into this season with high expectations.
Injuries and an awful start wiped those expectations away, but Haley has stayed the course. The result has been a modest two-game winning streak going into the Chiefs' week off, and the very tangible sense that the team is getting better. Haley isn't willing to take the credit for it, but just about everyone in the locker room points their finger at him as the reason why.
"Sometimes emotions get the best of you," Cassel said, recalling his sideline spat during the Chiefs' win over Minnesota. "He came over and sat next to me five minutes later, and nothing else is made of it, and we move forward. You just understand that's how he does things."
Fullback Le'Ron McClain(notes), who had spent his entire career with Baltimore before this season, has noticed the "Jekyll and Hyde" style of his new coach.
McClain pointed out that Haley can bellow with the best of them on the practice field, and he shudders to think of the earful his coach gives referees. It was McClain who wound up separating Haley and Cassel during their tiff at Arrowhead Stadium, trying to get everybody to calm down.
But there's also the side of Haley that people don't see, McClain said.
Like when Haley went to a Lil Wayne concert with cornerback Brandon Flowers(notes), or decided to bring a game called "cornhole" into the locker room to give guys something to play between meetings. Haley often joins in, tossing bean bags at two pieces of lumber with holes drilled in them, or he'll just watch with a sly grin while drinking a Diet Coke off to the side.
"A lot of people get caught up in that other stuff and think that's coach Haley the person," Breaston said. "That's coach Haley motivating us to play better, to play with discipline."
Breaston could have gone elsewhere during the off-season, but he signed with Kansas City of his own volition. The biggest reason was Haley, who got the most out of him as a young wide receiver back when Haley was the offensive co-ordinator at Arizona.
"He may be hard on you, but growing up in certain households, your parents are hard on you," Breaston said. "They want you to do things right, but then they're cheering for you also, you know? They're behind you, and coach Haley is like that. Behind the scenes he's a fun guy."
Haley admits there are times he tries to tweak his players. That's part of coaching. Knowing how and when is what separates the good ones from the bad.
"There's got to be something to provoke a reaction," Haley said, "and in some cases those are a little easier to find than others."
In the case of Breaston, Haley was on him every day in practice. He stayed on him in the halls of the practice facility. He quizzed him mercilessly in the film room, trying his best to break him.
It nearly worked.
Breaston is grateful for it now.
"He knows how to handle each player," Breaston said. "It's not always rah-rah-rah. He knows how to handle different situations. He's been around football for a very long time, and when you're around that environment, you learn how to motivate certain people.
"He's pushed me. It happens. But the one thing he understands is that I go out there and do it right. I show him I understand by correcting my mistakes and doing it right," Breaston said. "He might think, 'I'm not getting across,' because I'm not reacting to it, but then I go out and do it right."
That, of course, is all that matters.