Chiefs Mellinger: Credibility of the Chiefs takes a hit - Page 4

**Tribal Warfare** · 08-19-2011, 11:41 PM

Credibility of the Chiefs takes a hit
SAM MELLINGER COMMENTARY

BALTIMORE | Even as the Chiefs guard details like wartime secrets, we know that a scuffle happened between their top draft pick and a respected veteran.

We know that the rookie is missing snaps and falling back before his rookie year even begins.

That’s not the worst part.

The Chiefs can try to ignore this incident and tell their players not to talk about it, but the story of the preseason has consequences both on and off the field. This is a horrible look for Jonathan Baldwin, the first-year receiver who already carried a reputation as a diva, and the second time Thomas Jones is known to have fought a younger teammate.

Those are both minor sidebars to the big takeaway: General manager Scott Pioli and the Chiefs’ decision makers look foolish today.

The Chiefs lost their second preseason game 31-13 to the Ravens on Friday. There are football issues to discuss, but for now the only topic that matters is a midweek scuffle between Baldwin and Jones that occurred during training camp and has Baldwin injured and unsure when he’ll return.

“If it’s not a football question, at this point, there’s nothing for me to answer,” Jones said after the game, in which he played and gained 15 yards on five carries. “If it’s not a football question, I’m really not interested in answering.”

Stopped in the locker room, head coach Todd Haley confirmed that Baldwin was back in Kansas City “getting treatment” but otherwise declined to comment.

Some context is essential here. Training camp fights happen all the time. Testosterone-charged men are isolated with each other and millions of dollars at stake, so stuff happens. Most of it we never hear about. The day before Jones and Baldwin reportedly got into it away from fans and media, there was a minor scuffle on the practice field.

So a fight between teammates is neither unusual nor unexpected.

But it is significant, most notably because the first-round draft pick is now injured. That makes it a big deal for the Chiefs’ offense. Baldwin is a key part of insulating quarterback Matt Cassel with enough playmakers to be one of the league’s more dynamic offenses.

Already without a summer’s worth of workouts and reps because of the lockout, Baldwin is now even further behind. What this does for his status in the locker room is even worse. First impressions matter.

The biggest egg, though, is on Pioli’s face. He spent most of the last two years preaching character and team-building and especially The Right 53 — a reference to fielding the right men, upstanding men, on the club’s 53-man roster. The first two years of the Pioli regime, the Chiefs drafted team captains and National Merit finalists. They were very clear that this was part of The Plan.

But all of that felt more like convenient rhetoric this spring when Pioli selected Baldwin, whose time in college included charges of indecent assault, harassment and disorderly conduct that were later dropped. That’s not to mention his public accusations that his coaches at the University of Pittsburgh were deliberately sabotaging his draft stock.

After the draft, the Chiefs went out of their way to squash any talk about Baldwin’s issues.

“We are very comfortable making him a Kansas City Chief,” Haley said.

“We talked to a lot of people on this, and we feel very confident,” Pioli said.

“I won’t be a problem,” Baldwin said.

Three weeks into training camp, there is already evidence against that. To whatever extent it disrupts the Chiefs’ progress, Pioli is the one in charge and in line for the blame.

It isn’t just Baldwin. The Chiefs used a third-round pick on linebacker Justin Houston, who reportedly failed a drug test before the draft.

They went away from the Boy Scouts and citizenship award winners they so valued while building the Chiefs into AFC West champions last year, and they didn’t make it to the first real game before the first real problem.

There is a credibility issue here. Privately and publicly, they have talked up Baldwin’s character, promoting the fact that he moved in with Cassel for part of the summer and downplaying his past problems as overblown.

Whatever the genesis of the issue between Baldwin and Jones, who once scuffled with fellow running back Cedric Benson when the two played in Chicago, it puts Pioli and the other decision makers in an awful spot.

If there is a significant feeling in the locker room that Baldwin was the instigator, then not only are the Chiefs seeing their top rookie’s development set back, there are questions about the franchise’s overall direction.

When a group ties itself so closely to a philosophy, credits it for success and then shifts away from it, opinions will be formed.

Again, scuffles between football players during training camp are not uncommon. This isn’t the end of their progress or a condemnation of what the organization stands for.

If the Chiefs have been as successful at team-building as they say during the new regime’s first two seasons, they should be able to move past this and classify it as a normal locker room occurrence that just happened to leak out to the public.

The hope within the organization is that Baldwin can use this incident as a positive experience. He wouldn’t be the first Chiefs receiver to shed some knucklehead.

The point is that there are people — inside the locker room and out — who believe Pioli never should have taken the risk.

Okie_Apparition · 08-20-2011, 06:41 AM

big whoop, you wanna tweet about it

Deberg_1990 · 08-20-2011, 07:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phobia

I agree with most of what you're saying here but I would like to add...

The biggest reason this is an issue is because the Chiefs are trying their very best to make it a non-story.

Here's how it should go:

Haley: Yes, we had a scuffle between a veteran and our rookie first round pick. We're disappointed. It's unfortunate. It's a development setback for Baldwin because he's going to be out 4 weeks. We're going to make sure he runs routes and gets conditioning so he'll be ready when his wrist is healthy. Next question?

What would the talking heads on the radio have to talk about all day if that's how the Chiefs deal with it? I'm so tired of the lies and stupidity that comes from these guys. Press conferences are worthless. They don't say anything. Ever.

yes, this is certainly a case where being quiet and secretive can work against you. This will just continue to be fuel for the talk show nuts.

tomahawk kid · 08-20-2011, 07:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave

Mellinger is a ****ing drama queen.

THIS.

I'm so sick of the local media talking and writing about how they're no longer getting "access".

You know what - they SUCK anyway. It wouldn't matter if Pioli passed around Jamal's jock to sniff - its not going to make them better journalists.

Sorry, just find this whole thing ridiculous. It would seem to me the only one losing credibility this morning is Mellinger.

Messier · 08-20-2011, 07:26 AM

Who was it that swung his helmet and broke John Tait's nose several years back? The local media treated that as a joke.

Is this being made a big deal just because Baldwin got hurt? I'm sure, but that's not the point Mellinger is trying to make. He's trying to make a training camp fight, which isn't unusual, into a underlying problem with the organization. I think it's silly and disingenuous, and as most local commentary, seems like it's meant to punish the Chiefs for being so secretive.

milkman · 08-20-2011, 07:41 AM

OH NO!

The Chiefs are melting down!

TEX · 08-20-2011, 07:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Messier

Who was it that swung his helmet and broke John Tait's nose several years back? The local media treated that as a joke.

Is this being made a big deal just because Baldwin got hurt? I'm sure, but that's not the point Mellinger is trying to make. He's trying to make a training camp fight, which isn't unusual, into a underlying problem with the organization. I think it's silly and disingenuous, and as most local commentary, seems like it's meant to punish the Chiefs for being so secretive.

Victor Riley.

**OnTheWarpath15** · 08-20-2011, 07:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phobia

I agree with most of what you're saying here but I would like to add...

The biggest reason this is an issue is because the Chiefs are trying their very best to make it a non-story.

Here's how it should go:

Haley: Yes, we had a scuffle between a veteran and our rookie first round pick. We're disappointed. It's unfortunate. It's a development setback for Baldwin because he's going to be out 4 weeks. We're going to make sure he runs routes and gets conditioning so he'll be ready when his wrist is healthy. Next question?

What would the talking heads on the radio have to talk about all day if that's how the Chiefs deal with it? I'm so tired of the lies and stupidity that comes from these guys. Press conferences are worthless. They don't say anything. Ever.

This.

A million times this.

**Smed1065** · 08-20-2011, 07:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by |Zach|

I think there was a time where I thought this was a big deal.

That time is gone.

Like hours later?

So you realize you suck at football knowledge?

**Smed1065** · 08-20-2011, 07:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OnTheWarpath58

This.

A million times this.

Damn conspiracy, I say.

No receipts or no we love our fans, let them run my job. LOL

Consider if it was your job. :hmmm

Yeah not in the public eye, etc..

Grains of sand to them.

Deberg_1990 · 08-20-2011, 07:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by milkman

OH NO!

The Chiefs are melting down!

This is one of those times i hate the Internets and media age we live in. This kind of stuff has gone on for years and years.....fans have too much access now.

chiefzilla1501 · 08-20-2011, 08:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Deberg_1990

yes, this is certainly a case where being quiet and secretive can work against you. This will just continue to be fuel for the talk show nuts.

Yes and no.

Being secretive could hurt the Chiefs... then again, what if the truth is worse than the speculation? And how can the coach say something without taking sides?

Everybody knows there was a fight. The only thing we don't know is why. And I don't see how Haley addressing that is going to help the situation. Would only make it worse.

Okie_Apparition · 08-20-2011, 08:02 AM

Victor Riley was the one who rammed his wife's car(which had his babies in it) with his. Because a Chiefs WR was in the front seat with her. Not so sure he was the one who creamed Tait

**ShortRoundChief** · 08-20-2011, 08:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Okie_Apparition

Victor Riley was the one who rammed his wife's car(which had his babies in it) with his. Because a Chiefs WR was in the front seat with her. Not so sure he was the one who creamed Tait

That would be Eddie Freeman for 300 Alex

Okie_Apparition · 08-20-2011, 08:59 AM

That's right Freeman. I'm pretty sure the WR in the car was Cat Morris

Reerun_KC · 08-20-2011, 09:06 AM

Its comical that the media and fans feel they are entitled to know the details or expect that the Chiefs should address this to their liking...

...

I love that Pioli and Haley could give two shits about what the media and fans think they deserve in the form of information.

08-19-2011, 11:41 PM
Tribal Warfare Man of Culture Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Far Beyond Comprehension Casino cash: $-2917187	Mellinger: Credibility of the Chiefs takes a hit Credibility of the Chiefs takes a hit SAM MELLINGER COMMENTARY BALTIMORE \| Even as the Chiefs guard details like wartime secrets, we know that a scuffle happened between their top draft pick and a respected veteran. We know that the rookie is missing snaps and falling back before his rookie year even begins. That’s not the worst part. The Chiefs can try to ignore this incident and tell their players not to talk about it, but the story of the preseason has consequences both on and off the field. This is a horrible look for Jonathan Baldwin, the first-year receiver who already carried a reputation as a diva, and the second time Thomas Jones is known to have fought a younger teammate. Those are both minor sidebars to the big takeaway: General manager Scott Pioli and the Chiefs’ decision makers look foolish today. The Chiefs lost their second preseason game 31-13 to the Ravens on Friday. There are football issues to discuss, but for now the only topic that matters is a midweek scuffle between Baldwin and Jones that occurred during training camp and has Baldwin injured and unsure when he’ll return. “If it’s not a football question, at this point, there’s nothing for me to answer,” Jones said after the game, in which he played and gained 15 yards on five carries. “If it’s not a football question, I’m really not interested in answering.” Stopped in the locker room, head coach Todd Haley confirmed that Baldwin was back in Kansas City “getting treatment” but otherwise declined to comment. Some context is essential here. Training camp fights happen all the time. Testosterone-charged men are isolated with each other and millions of dollars at stake, so stuff happens. Most of it we never hear about. The day before Jones and Baldwin reportedly got into it away from fans and media, there was a minor scuffle on the practice field. So a fight between teammates is neither unusual nor unexpected. But it is significant, most notably because the first-round draft pick is now injured. That makes it a big deal for the Chiefs’ offense. Baldwin is a key part of insulating quarterback Matt Cassel with enough playmakers to be one of the league’s more dynamic offenses. Already without a summer’s worth of workouts and reps because of the lockout, Baldwin is now even further behind. What this does for his status in the locker room is even worse. First impressions matter. The biggest egg, though, is on Pioli’s face. He spent most of the last two years preaching character and team-building and especially The Right 53 — a reference to fielding the right men, upstanding men, on the club’s 53-man roster. The first two years of the Pioli regime, the Chiefs drafted team captains and National Merit finalists. They were very clear that this was part of The Plan. But all of that felt more like convenient rhetoric this spring when Pioli selected Baldwin, whose time in college included charges of indecent assault, harassment and disorderly conduct that were later dropped. That’s not to mention his public accusations that his coaches at the University of Pittsburgh were deliberately sabotaging his draft stock. After the draft, the Chiefs went out of their way to squash any talk about Baldwin’s issues. “We are very comfortable making him a Kansas City Chief,” Haley said. “We talked to a lot of people on this, and we feel very confident,” Pioli said. “I won’t be a problem,” Baldwin said. Three weeks into training camp, there is already evidence against that. To whatever extent it disrupts the Chiefs’ progress, Pioli is the one in charge and in line for the blame. It isn’t just Baldwin. The Chiefs used a third-round pick on linebacker Justin Houston, who reportedly failed a drug test before the draft. They went away from the Boy Scouts and citizenship award winners they so valued while building the Chiefs into AFC West champions last year, and they didn’t make it to the first real game before the first real problem. There is a credibility issue here. Privately and publicly, they have talked up Baldwin’s character, promoting the fact that he moved in with Cassel for part of the summer and downplaying his past problems as overblown. Whatever the genesis of the issue between Baldwin and Jones, who once scuffled with fellow running back Cedric Benson when the two played in Chicago, it puts Pioli and the other decision makers in an awful spot. If there is a significant feeling in the locker room that Baldwin was the instigator, then not only are the Chiefs seeing their top rookie’s development set back, there are questions about the franchise’s overall direction. When a group ties itself so closely to a philosophy, credits it for success and then shifts away from it, opinions will be formed. Again, scuffles between football players during training camp are not uncommon. This isn’t the end of their progress or a condemnation of what the organization stands for. If the Chiefs have been as successful at team-building as they say during the new regime’s first two seasons, they should be able to move past this and classify it as a normal locker room occurrence that just happened to leak out to the public. The hope within the organization is that Baldwin can use this incident as a positive experience. He wouldn’t be the first Chiefs receiver to shed some knucklehead. The point is that there are people — inside the locker room and out — who believe Pioli never should have taken the risk.
Posts: 43,444

08-20-2011, 06:41 AM	#46
Okie_Apparition Banned Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: floatin cobwebs n the sky Casino cash: $10004900	big whoop, you wanna tweet about it Attached Images
Posts: 7,012

08-20-2011, 07:26 AM	#49
Messier MVP Join Date: Mar 2004 Casino cash: $10005050	Who was it that swung his helmet and broke John Tait's nose several years back? The local media treated that as a joke. Is this being made a big deal just because Baldwin got hurt? I'm sure, but that's not the point Mellinger is trying to make. He's trying to make a training camp fight, which isn't unusual, into a underlying problem with the organization. I think it's silly and disingenuous, and as most local commentary, seems like it's meant to punish the Chiefs for being so secretive.
Posts: 7,610

08-20-2011, 07:41 AM	#50
milkman Dumbass! Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Leading the Marty bashing Casino cash: $10029395	OH NO! The Chiefs are melting down! __________________
Posts: 70,769

08-20-2011, 08:02 AM	#57
Okie_Apparition Banned Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: floatin cobwebs n the sky Casino cash: $10004900	Victor Riley was the one who rammed his wife's car(which had his babies in it) with his. Because a Chiefs WR was in the front seat with her. Not so sure he was the one who creamed Tait
Posts: 7,012

08-20-2011, 08:59 AM	#59
Okie_Apparition Banned Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: floatin cobwebs n the sky Casino cash: $10004900	That's right Freeman. I'm pretty sure the WR in the car was Cat Morris
Posts: 7,012

08-20-2011, 09:06 AM	#60
Reerun_KC Banned Join Date: Aug 2005 Casino cash: $7231160	Its comical that the media and fans feel they are entitled to know the details or expect that the Chiefs should address this to their liking... ... I love that Pioli and Haley could give two shits about what the media and fans think they deserve in the form of information.
Posts: 1,529