ChiefsPlanet - Chiefs Teicher|Poe is the clear-cut leader of the Chiefs’ rookie class

Poe is the clear-cut leader of the Chiefs’ rookie class
By ADAM TEICHER
The Kansas City Star
The Chiefs have to take these moments where they can find them, so a two-play sequence from early in last week’s game against Cincinnati gave them a rare opportunity to feel good about the future.

Rookie defensive tackle Dontari Poe, the Chiefs’ top draft pick, forced the Bengals offense off the field on their first possession, first by pushing guard Clint Boling backward and knocking down a pass. Poe on the next play used a swim move to beat the other guard, Kevin Zeitler, and forced quarterback Andy Dalton to hurry his throw, which went incomplete.

The Chiefs would eventually lose as their season continued to unravel. But in searching for reasons to believe next year might be better, they can point occasionally if not consistently to Poe.

Contributions from the rest of their eight-player draft class are sparing. Second-round pick Jeff Allen has been starting at left guard since early in the season and third-round choice Donald Stephenson made his first start at tackle last week against Cincinnati and may be in the lineup again Sunday when the Chiefs play against the Broncos at Arrowhead Stadium.

But much of the team’s hopes for this group of rookies is pinned to the continued development of the 345-pound Poe.

“I’m a much better player than when I first got here,” Poe said. “I came here a little afraid, but now I kind of know what’s going on.”

Poe didn’t get much done the rest of the day against the Bengals. He was in on just a couple of tackles.

But the Chiefs are expecting improvement from Poe over the season’s final six games.

“He’s on schedule,” coach Romeo Crennel said. “In the past, guys who have been drafted in the first round and started to play, it takes them about three-quarters of a season to feel comfortable with how we want them to play and what their responsibilities are. He’s adapted very well.

“I think he’s making progress. Last week he made a pass-rush move and got to the quarterback, and he was able to pressure him. He didn’t get the sack, but he was right on him in a one-on-one situation. We’ve said all along that he might be able to help us more (as a pass rusher) than other noses we’ve had in the past.”

Poe is often compared to Glenn Dorsey and Tyson Jackson, other defensive linemen recently drafted by the Chiefs in the first round. Poe is already giving the Chiefs more than the others because he’s playing on passing downs, when Dorsey and Jackson have gone to the bench.

Poe doesn’t have a sack but occasionally makes his presence felt, as he did on the back-to-back plays against Cincinnati.

“It’s tough to get sacks, but I think I can be a big factor as a pass rusher,” Poe said. “I’m going to keep working hard, and then we’ll see.”

Allen became a starter in the fourth game. His most memorable two-play sequence happened in the Nov. 12 game against Pittsburgh. Allen allowed Brett Keisel to shove him out of the way and make a tackle on Peyton Hillis for no gain, then allowed Keisel to push him aside and sack Matt Cassel for a six-yard loss.

The sequence is evidence that Allen is still an unfinished product.

“He got me a couple of plays, but the thing about that is that you’ve got to regain your focus and be able to come back on the next play,” Allen said. “It’s definitely been a learning experience. I feel I’m learning a lot and getting better each day.”

Stephenson allowed a sack that resulted in a fumble and touchdown in the Nov. 1 game against San Diego. He started at right tackle last week when injuries forced the Chiefs to make changes on the offensive line.

He is the probable starter at left tackle on Sunday against the Broncos in place of the injured Branden Albert. That prospect is an uneasy one for Crennel against Denver and two of the league’s top pass rushers, Von Miller and Elvis Dumervil.

“He was energetic,” Crennel said, reviewing Stephenson’s play from last week. “He felt good about playing. I don’t think it was too big for him. But he’s a rookie, and he does make some mistakes.”

Among the other Chiefs draft picks, wide receiver Devon Wylie and running back Cyrus Gray have played mostly on special teams, safety De’Quan Menzie is on the injured-reserve list and defensive lineman Jerome Long and wide receiver Junior Hemingway are members of the practice squad.