Chiefs Teicher: Johnson, Toribio and Lewis sit out Chiefs practice with injuries - Page 39

**Tribal Warfare** · 09-03-2012, 07:50 PM

Johnson, Toribio and Lewis sit out Chiefs practice with injuries
By ADAM TEICHER
The Kansas City Star
The Chiefs began their practice week Monday without four defensive starters, including their two Pro Bowl linebackers. They’re preparing to play against the Atlanta Falcons, who were seventh in the NFL in scoring last season, that could present a problem.

The situation could improve some by the time the Chiefs and Falcons open their seasons against one another on Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium. But even early in the week, things were far from ideal.

“You’d like to have all your guys all the time,” coach Romeo Crennel said. “But in this business you don’t have all of them all the time and so you have to depend on other guys to step up and do their part when they’re called on.”

Linebacker Derrick Johnson, nose tackle Anthony Toribio and free safety Kendrick Lewis didn’t go through team portions of practice. Johnson and Toribio have injured ankle, Lewis an injured shoulder.

Johnson, injured in the final preseason game against the Packers, appeared the most likely of the group to be ready for Sunday’s game.

“As long as I make progress every day, that’s the plan,” Johnson said when asked whether he would play against the Falcons. “I am a fast healer. Let’s hope that this week I can be even faster.”

The Chiefs’ other Pro Bowl linebacker, Tamha Hali, will not play against Atlanta. He is serving his one-game suspension for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy.

Cornerback Brandon Flowers, who didn’t play in the preseason and hadn’t practiced for more than a month, was back to work Monday. But Flowers, who has what the Chiefs have called as bruised heel, said he didn’t know if he would play Sunday and suggested the decision might come down to day of the game.

“If I’m out there on Sunday, then that means I’m ready to go,” he said “We’ll know game day.”

For one day, at least, the Chiefs patched together a lineup that included backups in four spots. Cory Greenwood and Brandon Siler took turns at Johnson’s position. Rookie Dontari Poe is starting for Toribio and veteran Abe Elam for Lewis.

Andy Studebaker, Edgar Jones and Cameron Sheffield have been rotating in Hali’s spot.

“Particularly (in Hali’s spot), that’s what has to happen,” Crennel said. “We’ll have to rotate guys in there and we will during the course of the week and I expect all of them to step and to be able to produce. Now, are they going to produce the way Tamba is able to produce? Only time will tell that.”

All coaches have jitters the opening week of the season given the uncertainty of what lies ahead. Even before the injuries, suspension and resulting lineup changes, this would have been an anxious week for Crennel.

The Chiefs are one of the NFL’s youngest teams. They have five players who are 30 and they are the oldest. Heading into their ninth NFL seasons, guard Ryan Lilja and special teams player Terrance Copper have the most NFL experience.

“If you have a veteran team (with players) who have proven themselves and that you feel good about, I think you can be less anxious,” Crennel said. “I think everybody gets anxious when the season starts. But if you’ve got a veteran team and you’re solid all across the board, then I think you can be less anxious because you know what you have.

“(The Chiefs) have some young players who have to play and we all know that young players make mistakes. You don’t know how many mistakes they’re going to make or what a mistake might cost you during the course of the game. Some guys, when there are 70,000 or 80,000 in the stands and they know that it counts, they react differently. We’re going to have to see how all of that plays out.”

Adding to the mystery about how well the Chiefs will play on Sunday is their uneven preseason. The Chiefs went 1-3 with the starters playing well in the first and fourth games but not so in the middle two, when the defense was particularly disappointing.

Crennel said he takes comfort in the fact the Chiefs have gotten it done, even if not consistently.

“In the first preseason game, the way they executed in that game and then the last game, they showed they could execute at a good level,” he said. “So I think they gave us enough to feel good about going into the regular season.

“One of the things I wanted to do was to be able to say we could be solid and sound coming out of the last (preseason) game. I think from our play versus their first guys, we were solid and sound coming out of that game.”

Atlanta was also 1-3 in the exhibition season, losing to Baltimore, Cincinnati and Jacksonville while beating Miami. The Falcons made the playoffs in each of the past two seasons, though they lost their playoff game each time.

“This is a good Atlanta team coming in,” Crennel said. “They have some skill on all sides of the ball, really. So we’re going to have to play our best to win.”

Black Bob · 09-07-2012, 05:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SNR

Romeo really should just stop pretending that Daniels is a safety. He's needed NOW at CB, and there his ass will be on the bench behind Elam and Berry while Brown and Arenas get repeatedly fist****ed.

I agree with this for the most part but, I think Romeo wants him in that 3-3-5 package and I think we will run it alot. In that package he's a S/CB tweener...

Also, I think White would not be a good match for Daniels. I think Brown will fair the best if Flowers can't go.

Quote:

Originally Posted by BossChief

I hope they sit Toribio and Powe gets a lot of time.

He should get some time in the rotation. This will be a good chance for him to shine.

Black Bob · 09-07-2012, 05:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brock

Your sig leaves out 5-0.

My claim was 6-0

Black Bob · 09-07-2012, 05:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cassel's Reckoning

No, because we're not talking about three years.

We're talking about Derrick Johnson, the player, in the present.

The closest reference is last year's Derrick Johnson, who missed 10 tackles in over 1,000 snaps.

He had the same missed tackle ratio as Ray ****ing Lewis.

So if you want to sit here and call DJ a poor tackler, better call Ray Lewis a poor tackler.

YOu ****.

This was just the icing on the cake. When we compared DJ in the present to Siler's entire career, DJ looked worse. He missed a tackle every 104 attempts and Sile missed a tackle every 141 attempts. That's it and that's the stat.

It doesn't really matter in the end. DJ is a better play. This only started because I stated we were better off depth wise than last year and Siler was a better tackler than DJ. I clearly stated DJ was a better player. It's just that in my opinion, Siler is a better fundamental tackler. It's easy to see and tackles per attempt stat back's it up in my opinion.

What bothered me and fueled this debate was the clear cut denial that DJ is known for being a poor tackler.

There's no point in discussing this anymore and it's time to move on.

Sofa King · 09-07-2012, 07:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlackBob

This was just the icing on the cake. When we compared DJ in the present to Siler's entire career, DJ looked worse. He missed a tackle every 104 attempts and Sile missed a tackle every 141 attempts. That's it and that's the stat.

It doesn't really matter in the end. DJ is a better play. This only started because I stated we were better off depth wise than last year and Siler was a better tackler than DJ. I clearly stated DJ was a better player. It's just that in my opinion, Siler is a better fundamental tackler. It's easy to see and tackles per attempt stat back's it up in my opinion.

What bothered me and fueled this debate was the clear cut denial that DJ is known for being a poor tackler.

There's no point in discussing this anymore and it's time to move on.

You little troll you. You keep bringing it up to try to piss people off.

Hammock Parties · 09-07-2012, 08:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BlackBob

He missed a tackle every 104 attempts and Sile missed a tackle every 141 attempts. That's it and that's the stat.

And yet you fail to even realize what that means.

It means they both miss one tackle every two games.

Furthermore, because Siler is not even a full time player, you using that MT/snap ratio is completely meaningless.

Siler would miss more tackles if he played 3x the snaps he usually does, like DJ does.

It's foolhardy to make a comparison between these players.

09-03-2012, 07:50 PM
Tribal Warfare Man of Culture Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Far Beyond Comprehension Casino cash: $-2767187	Teicher: Johnson, Toribio and Lewis sit out Chiefs practice with injuries Johnson, Toribio and Lewis sit out Chiefs practice with injuries By ADAM TEICHER The Kansas City Star The Chiefs began their practice week Monday without four defensive starters, including their two Pro Bowl linebackers. They’re preparing to play against the Atlanta Falcons, who were seventh in the NFL in scoring last season, that could present a problem. The situation could improve some by the time the Chiefs and Falcons open their seasons against one another on Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium. But even early in the week, things were far from ideal. “You’d like to have all your guys all the time,” coach Romeo Crennel said. “But in this business you don’t have all of them all the time and so you have to depend on other guys to step up and do their part when they’re called on.” Linebacker Derrick Johnson, nose tackle Anthony Toribio and free safety Kendrick Lewis didn’t go through team portions of practice. Johnson and Toribio have injured ankle, Lewis an injured shoulder. Johnson, injured in the final preseason game against the Packers, appeared the most likely of the group to be ready for Sunday’s game. “As long as I make progress every day, that’s the plan,” Johnson said when asked whether he would play against the Falcons. “I am a fast healer. Let’s hope that this week I can be even faster.” The Chiefs’ other Pro Bowl linebacker, Tamha Hali, will not play against Atlanta. He is serving his one-game suspension for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy. Cornerback Brandon Flowers, who didn’t play in the preseason and hadn’t practiced for more than a month, was back to work Monday. But Flowers, who has what the Chiefs have called as bruised heel, said he didn’t know if he would play Sunday and suggested the decision might come down to day of the game. “If I’m out there on Sunday, then that means I’m ready to go,” he said “We’ll know game day.” For one day, at least, the Chiefs patched together a lineup that included backups in four spots. Cory Greenwood and Brandon Siler took turns at Johnson’s position. Rookie Dontari Poe is starting for Toribio and veteran Abe Elam for Lewis. Andy Studebaker, Edgar Jones and Cameron Sheffield have been rotating in Hali’s spot. “Particularly (in Hali’s spot), that’s what has to happen,” Crennel said. “We’ll have to rotate guys in there and we will during the course of the week and I expect all of them to step and to be able to produce. Now, are they going to produce the way Tamba is able to produce? Only time will tell that.” All coaches have jitters the opening week of the season given the uncertainty of what lies ahead. Even before the injuries, suspension and resulting lineup changes, this would have been an anxious week for Crennel. The Chiefs are one of the NFL’s youngest teams. They have five players who are 30 and they are the oldest. Heading into their ninth NFL seasons, guard Ryan Lilja and special teams player Terrance Copper have the most NFL experience. “If you have a veteran team (with players) who have proven themselves and that you feel good about, I think you can be less anxious,” Crennel said. “I think everybody gets anxious when the season starts. But if you’ve got a veteran team and you’re solid all across the board, then I think you can be less anxious because you know what you have. “(The Chiefs) have some young players who have to play and we all know that young players make mistakes. You don’t know how many mistakes they’re going to make or what a mistake might cost you during the course of the game. Some guys, when there are 70,000 or 80,000 in the stands and they know that it counts, they react differently. We’re going to have to see how all of that plays out.” Adding to the mystery about how well the Chiefs will play on Sunday is their uneven preseason. The Chiefs went 1-3 with the starters playing well in the first and fourth games but not so in the middle two, when the defense was particularly disappointing. Crennel said he takes comfort in the fact the Chiefs have gotten it done, even if not consistently. “In the first preseason game, the way they executed in that game and then the last game, they showed they could execute at a good level,” he said. “So I think they gave us enough to feel good about going into the regular season. “One of the things I wanted to do was to be able to say we could be solid and sound coming out of the last (preseason) game. I think from our play versus their first guys, we were solid and sound coming out of that game.” Atlanta was also 1-3 in the exhibition season, losing to Baltimore, Cincinnati and Jacksonville while beating Miami. The Falcons made the playoffs in each of the past two seasons, though they lost their playoff game each time. “This is a good Atlanta team coming in,” Crennel said. “They have some skill on all sides of the ball, really. So we’re going to have to play our best to win.”
Posts: 43,419