Mellinger:Chiefs’ season report card

[Tribal Warfare]

Chiefs’ season report card

 Star columnist Sam Mellinger assesses the Chiefs’ season, which ended with Sunday’s opening-round playoff loss to Baltimore:


B+ Quarterback Matt Cassel’s transformation is the defining story of this season, but he played like a dog the last two weeks. He’s a guy you can win with, but not because of, and at this point that’s a huge improvement.

A- Running back/tight end Jamaal Charles is one of the best running backs in football, Tony Moeaki looks like a future star, Thomas Jones brought steadiness if underwhelming production, and Leonard Pope is, well, tall.

C+ Wide receiver Dwayne Bowe was inconsistent but mostly terrific. The rest of them can be (and in one case actually was) replaced by a guy off the street.

B Offensive line This unit probably deserves better. The Chiefs led the league in rushing, and Cassel’s sacks dropped from 42 to 16, but they need to get younger and got manhandled against Oakland and Baltimore.

C Defensive line Glenn Dorsey heads an improving group, and the 3-4 scheme makes it hard to judge, but ranking 19th in opponents’ yards-per-carry suggests there’s still room to get better.

A- Linebackers Tamba Hali led the AFC in sacks, and Derrick Johnson became worthy of a contract extension with a $15 million guarantee. The Chiefs will need another pass rusher to help Hali.

B Defensive backs This is the most improved unit on the team, in part because of rookie Eric Berry, but also because of improvement from Brandon Flowers and Brandon Carr.

D+ Special teams Ryan Succop missed six of 26 field goals, and the Chiefs finished in the bottom half in both kick and punt returns. Dexter McCluster and Javier Arenas were more sizzle than show here.

A- Coaching It’s impossible to harshly judge a staff that oversaw a turnaround from 4-12 to division champions. The wins give Todd Haley the benefit of the doubt regarding Charlie Weis’ departure, but things change quickly in the NFL.