Chiefs Carl Peterson on Chiefs

ShowtimeSBMVP · 11-09-2012, 04:14 PM

Jeff Rosen ‏@jeff_rosen88

Ex #Chiefs GM Carl Peterson: “I don’t keep track of what’s wrong (in KC), but it’s a sad situation." LOTS more coming to @KCStar ...

Jeff Rosen ‏@jeff_rosen88

More Carl Peterson: "I don’t think the cupboard was bare when they came… They had one good year, won the division, then went south." #Chiefs

Excerpt: Pioli and Peterson's first four years with Chiefs
By RANDY COVITZ
The Kansas City Star

Editor's note: Coming Sunday, we take an in-depth look at how the first four years of Scott Pioli’s tenure as general manager of the Chiefs stack up against the first four years of former GM Carl Peterson. Both men enjoyed some highlights, and yes, some lowlights. Here’s an excerpt from what you can read Sunday in its entirety.

In 2009, when Scott Pioli took over as general manager of the Chiefs, he faced the same critical decisions that his predecessor, Carl Peterson, did 20 years earlier.

Hire the right head coach; select a quarterback with a strong and accurate arm; make shrewd picks at the top of the draft; fill holes on the roster via free agency.

Those are the four pillars for building a successful NFL franchise. Make the right decisions, and the club can enjoy long-term stability that produces perennial playoff teams, if not Super Bowl champions. Whiff on those choices, and it will set a franchise back into perpetual rebuilding jobs.

Pioli, who is midway through his fourth season running the club, appears to have struck out on all counts. His first head coach, Todd Haley who had never been a head coach at any level, didn’t make it through his third season, though the Chiefs did win the AFC West in 2010. Haley’s successor, Romeo Crennel, is 3-8 since taking over last December, including a 1-7 mark this year going into Monday night’s game at Pittsburgh.

Pioli’s hand-picked quarterback, Matt Cassel, is the 31st-rated passer in the NFL, has turned the ball over an NFL-worst 18 times, and would be a backup right now had it not been for a concussion to backup-turned-starter Brady Quinn.

Pioli’s drafts have been unproductive, starting with defensive end Tyson Jackson, taken with the third overall pick in 2009, and his free-agent signees have made little impact.

When Peterson was hired by the late Lamar Hunt as president, general manager and chief operating officer in 1989, he hired Marty Schottenheimer, a proven winner at Cleveland, as head coach. Peterson inherited veteran quarterback Steve DeBerg, but for competition in the first year, he 1989 brought in free agent Ron Jaworski, spent a second-round draft choice for Mike Elkins and traded for Steve Pelluer. DeBerg led the Chiefs to three straight winning seasons to the 1990 and 1991 playoffs.

While Peterson’s draft record was spotty at best, he selected with the fourth overall pick in the 1989 draft outside linebacker Derrick Thomas, who would be the centerpiece of a ferocious defense and eventually be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. And though unfettered free agency would not begin until 1993, he took advantage of the precursor of the system, Plan B free agency, and combed the waiver wire for several major contributors on both sides of the ball.

The differences in the Chiefs of 1989-1992 and the Chiefs of 2009-2012?

The Chiefs went 39-24-1 in Peterson’s first four years, and only a 17-17 tie in the mud at Cleveland in 1989 kept the club from reaching the postseason all four years. And a once-moribund fan base that included fewer than 25,000 season ticket holders in 1988 became 75,000 strong by 1991 and created one of the most menacing home-field advantages in football.

“The general manager presents and acquires the players, but the rest of the story has to be the coaches who develop these guys to do what they want them to do,” said Peterson, who today divides his time between Kansas City and New York. “I don’t keep track of what’s wrong (in Kansas City), but it’s a sad situation.

“As a general manager, you have to have an intimate working relationship with your head coach. My job was to hire the head football coach and give him everything he needed to be successful … That would include his coaching staff, players, facilities and create an environment to win.”

The current Chiefs are 22-34 under Pioli and have spiraled into one of the biggest punchlines in the NFL. They have trailed by at least 17 points in seven of their eight games; lost six games by double digits; became the first team since at least 1929 not to have led a game in regulation through eight games of a season; and, worst of all, have won just three of their last 14 games at Arrowhead Stadium, where fan apathy is starting to set in — just as it did in the dark days of the late 1970s and most of the 1980s.

“I don’t know exactly what happened in the first year before I got here (in 2010),” said Crennel, speaking for Pioli, who chose not to comment for this story. “We got to the playoffs (in 2010), and we weren’t able to repeat it (last) year. And then this year, we’re really struggling.

“The only thing I can do is try to improve the lot that I have right now. We’ve got eight games, and if we can get it turned around in eight games, we can say that there’s a chance that this organization can move forward.”

READ THE FULL STORY SUNDAY ONLINE AT KANSASCITY.COM AND IN THE PRINT EDITION OF THE KANSAS CITY STAR.

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2012/11/09...#storylink=cpy

11-09-2012, 04:14 PM	Topic Starter
ShowtimeSBMVP Chiefs Join Date: Feb 2009 Casino cash: $3426009	Carl Peterson on Chiefs Jeff Rosen ‏@jeff_rosen88 Ex #Chiefs GM Carl Peterson: “I don’t keep track of what’s wrong (in KC), but it’s a sad situation." LOTS more coming to @KCStar ... Jeff Rosen ‏@jeff_rosen88 More Carl Peterson: "I don’t think the cupboard was bare when they came… They had one good year, won the division, then went south." #Chiefs Excerpt: Pioli and Peterson's first four years with Chiefs By RANDY COVITZ The Kansas City Star Editor's note: Coming Sunday, we take an in-depth look at how the first four years of Scott Pioli’s tenure as general manager of the Chiefs stack up against the first four years of former GM Carl Peterson. Both men enjoyed some highlights, and yes, some lowlights. Here’s an excerpt from what you can read Sunday in its entirety. In 2009, when Scott Pioli took over as general manager of the Chiefs, he faced the same critical decisions that his predecessor, Carl Peterson, did 20 years earlier. Hire the right head coach; select a quarterback with a strong and accurate arm; make shrewd picks at the top of the draft; fill holes on the roster via free agency. Those are the four pillars for building a successful NFL franchise. Make the right decisions, and the club can enjoy long-term stability that produces perennial playoff teams, if not Super Bowl champions. Whiff on those choices, and it will set a franchise back into perpetual rebuilding jobs. Pioli, who is midway through his fourth season running the club, appears to have struck out on all counts. His first head coach, Todd Haley who had never been a head coach at any level, didn’t make it through his third season, though the Chiefs did win the AFC West in 2010. Haley’s successor, Romeo Crennel, is 3-8 since taking over last December, including a 1-7 mark this year going into Monday night’s game at Pittsburgh. Pioli’s hand-picked quarterback, Matt Cassel, is the 31st-rated passer in the NFL, has turned the ball over an NFL-worst 18 times, and would be a backup right now had it not been for a concussion to backup-turned-starter Brady Quinn. Pioli’s drafts have been unproductive, starting with defensive end Tyson Jackson, taken with the third overall pick in 2009, and his free-agent signees have made little impact. When Peterson was hired by the late Lamar Hunt as president, general manager and chief operating officer in 1989, he hired Marty Schottenheimer, a proven winner at Cleveland, as head coach. Peterson inherited veteran quarterback Steve DeBerg, but for competition in the first year, he 1989 brought in free agent Ron Jaworski, spent a second-round draft choice for Mike Elkins and traded for Steve Pelluer. DeBerg led the Chiefs to three straight winning seasons to the 1990 and 1991 playoffs. While Peterson’s draft record was spotty at best, he selected with the fourth overall pick in the 1989 draft outside linebacker Derrick Thomas, who would be the centerpiece of a ferocious defense and eventually be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. And though unfettered free agency would not begin until 1993, he took advantage of the precursor of the system, Plan B free agency, and combed the waiver wire for several major contributors on both sides of the ball. The differences in the Chiefs of 1989-1992 and the Chiefs of 2009-2012? The Chiefs went 39-24-1 in Peterson’s first four years, and only a 17-17 tie in the mud at Cleveland in 1989 kept the club from reaching the postseason all four years. And a once-moribund fan base that included fewer than 25,000 season ticket holders in 1988 became 75,000 strong by 1991 and created one of the most menacing home-field advantages in football. “The general manager presents and acquires the players, but the rest of the story has to be the coaches who develop these guys to do what they want them to do,” said Peterson, who today divides his time between Kansas City and New York. “I don’t keep track of what’s wrong (in Kansas City), but it’s a sad situation. “As a general manager, you have to have an intimate working relationship with your head coach. My job was to hire the head football coach and give him everything he needed to be successful … That would include his coaching staff, players, facilities and create an environment to win.” The current Chiefs are 22-34 under Pioli and have spiraled into one of the biggest punchlines in the NFL. They have trailed by at least 17 points in seven of their eight games; lost six games by double digits; became the first team since at least 1929 not to have led a game in regulation through eight games of a season; and, worst of all, have won just three of their last 14 games at Arrowhead Stadium, where fan apathy is starting to set in — just as it did in the dark days of the late 1970s and most of the 1980s. “I don’t know exactly what happened in the first year before I got here (in 2010),” said Crennel, speaking for Pioli, who chose not to comment for this story. “We got to the playoffs (in 2010), and we weren’t able to repeat it (last) year. And then this year, we’re really struggling. “The only thing I can do is try to improve the lot that I have right now. We’ve got eight games, and if we can get it turned around in eight games, we can say that there’s a chance that this organization can move forward.” READ THE FULL STORY SUNDAY ONLINE AT KANSASCITY.COM AND IN THE PRINT EDITION OF THE KANSAS CITY STAR. Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2012/11/09...#storylink=cpy
Posts: 23,755