No lead for KC affecting sack opportunities

[Tribal Warfare]

No lead for KC affecting sack opportunities
By RANDY COVITZ
The Kansas City Star
The Chiefs’ failure to own the lead in regulation in any of their eight games this season has had an effect on their ability to sack the quarterback.

Most sacks occur for a defense when the other team has to come from behind, making it more predictable for when it has to throw the ball.

“My entire career here, except for maybe one or two years has been trying to get sacks even though we’re not in the lead,” said Chiefs outside linebacker Tamba Hali, whose five sacks are second on the team to fellow linebacker Justin Houston’s six.

“With all the pass rushers we have here, you truly don’t get to see how well they rush the passer because teams are able to come in with a different game plan once they get the lead. That slows us down on how we approach them because we don’t want to get gashed on the run.”

It’s no accident the AFC’s two leaders in sacks, Houston’s J.J. Watt (10.5) and Denver’s Von Miller (9.0) play for division leaders.

“You look at a team like Denver,” said Hali, who led the AFC with 14.5 sacks in 2010 when the Chiefs won the AFC West. “The young kid Von Miller, they get the lead … even when Derrick (Thomas) was here, he could pin his ears back and go get the guy.”

The steel curtain

Pittsburgh will enter Monday night’s game with the NFL’s top-ranked overall defense that is also No. 1 against the pass and No. 7 against the run. Chiefs running back Peyton Hillis, as a member of the Cleveland Browns, butted heads against the Steelers twice a year in 2010 and 2011 and knows what awaits the Chiefs, who rank No. 3 in rushing.

“Running the ball against those guys is a mind-set,” said Hillis, who carried 20 times for 55 yards in two meetings last season. “They’re very disciplined, very big, very strong, and they’ve been playing together for a long time. If we can come out early and hit ‘em in the mouth in their stadium, then I think we can definitely move the ball on them.”

Gibbs to work sidelines

As the Chiefs’ new defensive coordinator, Gary Gibbs will call the game from the sidelines as opposed to the press box.

That’s the vantage point Romeo Crennel used when he was defensive coordinator for the Chiefs during 2010-11 as well as during his career with the New England Patriots. Crennel, who divested his duties as defensive coordinator this week to concentrate his full attention to the team as head coach, said the positioning of the coordinator doesn’t matter to him.

“I think some guys operate better from upstairs because they feel like they have great vision of the field and can see everything,” Crennel said. “Some guys would rather be down on the field because they get a feel of the players, what their attitude is and if he can encourage them from on the field, it works better.

“Each coordinator is different, so you kind of do what the coordinator thinks is best for himself to be able to do the job that he has to do.”

Some say the sideline is the worst seat in the house to watch a game, which is why every team has coaches working from the press box.

“We have competent people upstairs who are able to give us good information … Otis Smith and Adam Zimmer … and they’ll continue to do that,” Crennel said. “They are sharp young minds, and they see a lot of things and make good suggestions, and they’re good coaches.”


Trying to catch Wallace

Pittsbugh wide receiver Mike Wallace turned a short pass to the middle into a 51-yard touchdown that ignited the Steelers’ 24-20 come-from-behind win against the New York Giants last week, and his speed has impressed the Chiefs.

“He’s so fast, I haven’t seen him on tape yet,” said Crennel. “He’s a blur. That’s how fast he is. He’s really fast and makes it difficult to defend him because he has that kind of speed. You’ve got to stay back, or either he runs past you, and when you stay back, then he stops and hooks it up in front of you and then it’s a catch-and-run. You’re kind of between a rock and a hard place when you’re trying to defend that kind of speed.

“You have to try to affect the quarterback and try to get him off the spot and destroy some of the timing, which is tough with Ben (Roethlisberger) because he’s a big, strong quarterback in the pocket, knows how to move, doesn’t go down easy, so it’s a tough task.”

Injury report

The Chiefs said defensive end Glenn Dorsey (calf) and quarterback Brady Quinn (concussion) did not practice on Thursday. Offensive tackle Branden Albert (back) was limited. The Steelers said wide receiver Antonio Brown (ankle), safety Troy Polamalu (calf) and linebacker Stevenson Sylvester (hamstring) did not practice, while tackle Marcus Gilbert (ankle) and running back Rashard Mendenhall (Achilles) were limited.

[Hammock Parties]

Gary Gibbs was DC in NO from 2006-2008

They were 26th and 25th his last two years.

[TimeForWasp]

Gibbs

How can a loser ever win?
How can you stop the sun from shining?
What makes the world go round?

[Hog's Gone Fishin]

Originally Posted by Cassel's Reckoning

Gary Gibbs was DC in NO from 2006-2008

They were 26th and 25th his last two years.

So we may get better is what you're saying.

[jspchief]

Originally Posted by Cassel's Reckoning

Gary Gibbs was DC in NO from 2006-2008

They were 26th and 25th his last two years.

Perfect fit then. That resume sounds a lot like Daboll's.

[Death2CasselFans]

About time someone mentioned the effect of Cassel poor QB play has on other aspects of the game

such as teams stacking the line of scrimmage and stuffing our running game

[Rain Man]

I miss the days when we had Tamba Hali rushing off the edge. What ever happened to that guy?

[listopencil]

Originally Posted by Tribal Warfare

Trying to catch Wallace

“He’s so fast, I haven’t seen him on tape yet,” said Crennel.

Crennel watches tape? And he can't see WR's when he does? There's your problem right there. Crennel probably doesn't want Mark Asshole passing because he thinks Mark is just trying to throw the ball away all of the time.

[Ace Gunner]

so the defense is absolute crap unless they are winning. k.

[Chiefnj2]

Hali should rush a little harder on the other teams first possession.

[Deberg_1990]

Gibbs should make a huge difference in this game.
Chiefs D under Crennel Steelers 54 Chiefs 3
Chiefs D under Gibbs Steelers 49 Chiefs 3

[Woodchuck]

“My entire career here, except for maybe one or two years has been trying to get sacks even though we’re not in the lead,”

Now that is interesting... I never thought about it that way.

[Hammock Parties]

Hali would probably be a borderline HOFer if he had been drafted by Pittsburgh or Baltimore.

[Woodchuck]

Originally Posted by Lou_Zare

so the defense is absolute crap unless they are winning. k.

No, it means Tamba and Houston would have a helluva lot more sacks if we were winning because the other teams would have to throw more.

[BlackHelicopters]

7.9% unemployment and Gary Gibbs has a job.