My humble first game thoughts

[Sully]

First, the pregame.
It was great. The video was great, and if there is a video of it, I'd love to see it. I recorded the whole thing, and hope to post the 10 minute video of the entire pregame online in the next couple of days, but I could only hear about 1/3 of what Riggle was saying, because it was so loud. Even at that, though, you could simply feel the power in the presentation. The lasers, the fireworks...the force of it all. It was a fantastic experience. Funny thing is, it HAD to take place after dark. So that 9:15 start time was essential to that experience.

To the game.
Offense:
Cassel is not good enough. It's been discussed ad nauseum on this board for a year and a half, so I won't go any further than to say that.
But the offensive line did a great job. Cassel had plenty of time to throw on most of his passes (or non-passes). but once it became clear that there was no threat through the air, San Diego focused on the run.
Brandon Albert was nails. I didnt watch him every play. But the 2/3rds of the time I watched him, he was kicking ass.
It was nice to see Moeaki play so well, too. To be honest, that's probably the most we'll ever see from the TE in a Haley/Weis coached offense. But he looked good.
McCluster, though he didn't put up offensive numbers, will be a weapon. If someone can get him the ball on time, and let him use his shiftiness, he's gonna break several of those quick passes into long gainers, especially on dry turf. Problem is, even on a quick hitter like that, Cassel seems to get him the ball a hair too late, and in the NFL, that hair is what is keeping him from having some fun on those plays.

Defense:
Wow.
It was FAR from perfect. And I believe if it was a dry field, we lose that game. There were plenty of drops, the big fumble (let's not forget it happened at the end of a big run), and poorly thrown balls. I think Norv absolutely choked away this game, getting the plays in slow, and not taking advantage of the huge holes in the middle of our zones.
That said, good teams take advantage of poor plays, and we did that. We should've taken more advantage. But you have to win those sloppy games.
Dorsey had, IMO, his best game as a Chief. He was tough on that right side.
Jackson has been playing very well all preseason, so last night's game didn't surprise me. I gave him an average grade after the first preseason game, and got ripped for it. So I paid extra attention to him through the rest of the games...not to prove anyone wrong (I'm not Hootie), but to see if I was crazy and the ripping was deserved. It wasn't. He had very good games against Tampa and Philly, and an average game against GB. There are still one or two plays every game where he gets his ass kicked. I don't know if he's taking those plays off, or what. But otherwise, he's directing his OL to the pile, getting double-teamed (yes...really), or gaming the OL to open holes for blitzers. He's not a "plan the game around him" type of player, but it was clear when he went out, the defense was markedly worse. But he's very solid, and if Dorsey continues to play as he did last night, we now have two bookends. Add to that...Gilberry as an every down player is a myth. He was awful in the GB game, and though he didnt embarrass himself in few snaps last night, just doesn't have the lead in his ass to play DE in a 3-4...especially at the LDE.
Smith did well last night in Jackson's absence, last night. Not great. But he wasn't a non-player. He's a good backup player to have, but if he's my starter, I'm worried. (and after Jackson was already out, and DOrsey started having trouble getting up, I started thinking implosion. A line of Gilberry on the wrong side, Edwards, and Smith is an invitation to run for 13 a pop.)
DJ was a beast. Not only was he a pretty solid tackler, but he played the most physical game I've ever seen him play, last night. Two games is an awful small sample size, but the past two games he's played have been pro bowl type games. At some point, if this continues, we have to give credit to Haley for doing the right thing with DJ last season. If BRC's stories are true, it sounds like we could even have a shot at retaining him after this season. But I'm just speculating on that.
Flowers was great, and when he went out, I thought the season was over. That's how good he was last night.

Hall had against the Broncos, when McCluster caught that punt inside the 10, I was dog-cussing him. It's always fun when a play so quickly turns from dog-cussing to jubilation.

The highlight for me from last night's game...


The Coaching.

I noticed a few things last night, and they all go to coaching.
#1) Adjustments. This was a game of constant adjustments on both sides of the ball. Some worked/ some didn't. But the fact of the matter is that both coordinators were changing things up as the game went along, something we haven't seen in a long time (if ever, really. Vermeil teams didn't adjust that much in-game, IIRC). It was obvious, especially after that final 3rd/4th down sequence of TOs and gamesmanship, that we have a special coaching staff.
#2) Communication. I haven't seen Chiefs players talk this much on the field since the vaunted mid-90s. Constant communication and adjustments to what they are seeing was going on, and in many cases, looked like it worked. We all poke fun at last year being the year to build the way the Haley version of the Chiefs was going to be, but I believe that foundation is in place, and the interactionamong the players was evident in a way I hadn't seen in a long time.
#3) Sideline discussions. So many times the last few years, as the O or D came trudging off the field, it seemed they would listen to what the coaches had to say, but I didn't see much real engagement (people who sit closer are free to correct me on that, if I'm wrong). Last night, though, it seemed the players were really into the adjustments. Really paying attention, and really wanting the next series to be better.


Anyhow...there it is.

Rip away.