Posnanski: Peterson delivers his state-of-team address

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http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansas...s/11413903.htm

Peterson delivers his state of team address

Defensive buildup remains high on agenda

JOE POSNANSKI


Yes, it's time once again for our annual Carl Peterson state of the Chiefs column, where we give some space to the Chiefs' president/CEO/general manager/space cowboy/gangster of love/Maurice, and we let him talk about his team, free agency, the draft, his hopes and all that.

We do this every year before the draft. We give Peterson his say. And every year, without exception, we get dozens of angry letters and phone calls from Chiefs fans brightly pointing out that Carl Peterson is a “joke,” that he has never taken this team to the Super Bowl, that parking prices are outrageous, that all the Chiefs want to do is fill the stadium. They want to know how we could just let this man TALK and GIVE HIS OPINION, without bashing him for his many sports crimes.

Hey, the frustration is more than understandable — it's a part of being a Kansas City sports fan. We all know it has been 35 years since the Chiefs played in the Super Bowl, and the last 16 have been on Peterson's watch.

See, here's the thing, though: I don't believe there's any shortage of Carl Peterson bashing around town. I mean, seriously, if you absolutely, positively have to have some Carl Peterson ripping, there's a pretty good chance you could find some.

Here are some of Carl Peterson's thoughts without much comment. If it makes you feel better, though, you can read this and bash along at home.

***

Carl Peterson on … fixing a lousy defense (Take 3).

One year ago, Carl Peterson believed the Chiefs had enough talent to win on defense. He says his coaches and player-personnel people believed it, too. They thought a new attitude, inspired by new defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham, would make the Chiefs' defense at least respectable.

This year, after breaking down film of a defense that was not respectable, Peterson and his people came to a very different conclusion.

“I'm going to say something I haven't said before,” Peterson says. “Last year some of our coaches and player-personnel people — I'll even say most of our people — looked at our young defensive players and said: ‘Look it, the defense didn't play as well as we hoped. But we have good, young ascending players on our defense. We don't want to lose them.' And we signed our players — Greg Wesley, John Browning, Eric Hicks and so on. I was very much a part of that evaluation, but it was something we all agreed on after watching the film.

“This year, after watching the film, those same players were evaluated by the same people. And all of a sudden, they couldn't play. They were descending players. What happened? Were we that wrong? Did the players decline? Did we not coach as well as we should have? There could be a lot of reasons for it, and I think some of those players will still get better. … But the bottom line is this: I felt like this year we had to improve the talent level on our defense.”

Here's what Peterson felt like the Chiefs had to do in free agency: get a cornerback, a linebacker and a safety. Peterson feels like they got the linebacker in Kendrell Bell, who was The Sporting News rookie of the year four seasons ago and who played in only three games last year because of injuries. Peterson feels like they got the safety in Sammy Knight, a one-time Pro Bowler who has 35 career interceptions.

Peterson also feels like they got a bonus when they traded a fifth-round pick to Tennessee for Carlos Hall, a defensive end who had eight sacks as a rookie but has not been as effective since. “I expect him to be a major plus,” Peterson says.

So that leaves the cornerback spot.

“We have a couple of options there,” Peterson says. “One, of course, is Ty Law. The other is more complicated and involves (Miami's) Patrick Surtain. We are still having conversations with him about a contract — we have not come to an agreement as has been reported. But we are still talking, and if we do agree to something that makes sense for both him and the Kansas City Chiefs, then we would have to talk to the Dolphins about draft compensation. But we have not reached that point yet.”

Peterson feels like at the end of the day, he will fill those positions of need one way or another — the Surtain trade is still very likely. But he also feels like the defense will not get better unless Cunningham's defensive philosophy takes hold, and some of the players already on the Chiefs step up.

“We cannot throw out all of our defensive players or say that all of our defensive players are bad,” he says. “That's not fair to them, and it's just not true. Nobody wants to hear this, but I thought our defense showed some improvement at the end of the year. I believe that with Gunther now here for a full year, everyone knows what he's trying to do, and I think our players will step forward. I really believe that.”

***

Carl Peterson on … Dick Vermeil.

Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil has said this will be his last year as a coach. Of course, he has said things like that before. Nobody in football knows Vermeil better than Peterson.

“Right now, I'm working under the assumption that this will be Dick's last year,” Peterson says. “He will turn 68 this year. I can't ask him to coach into his 80s.

“Part of my job, certainly, is to keep my eye on the future. And I certainly am prepared for what will happen at the end of this season. But I can also tell you that our No. 1 goal remains finishing the job, doing what Dick Vermeil came here to do, which is to hand Lamar Hunt the trophy that bears his name (the AFC Championship Trophy).

“Dick says this is his last year, and I take him at this word, but I will tell you that he might be hedging on it. … Hey, he has come back twice before.”

***

Carl Peterson on … the window of opportunity.

The Chiefs have scored more points the last three seasons than any team in pro football. In those three seasons, they have made the playoffs once and have not won a playoff game. Plenty of people see the window of opportunity closing.

“There certainly is something to that,” Peterson says. “I've said this before, we cannot expect our offense to keep scoring at that incredible pace. We have to give our offense help. That's why I said (last year) that I just wanted our defense to become respectable. I thought we would. It didn't happen.

“But in the National Football League, there's a window of opportunity every year. That's part of what makes our league so unique and special. This year, I believe with the additions of Kendrell Bell and Sammy Knight and Carlos Hall — and, of course, we're still working on things and we have draft choices to make as well — that our window of opportunity will be wide open in 2005. I'm very optimistic.”

***

Carl Peterson on … the draft.

Last year, the Chiefs traded out of the first round, and neither second-round pick — defensive tackle Junior Siavii or tight end Kris Wilson — made an impact. But it does look like the Chiefs found a special player in the fourth round: defensive end Jared Allen. And Peterson is very high on the other fourth-round pick, Samie Parker, a receiver who showed some flashes at the end of the year.

“I tell our scouts that it's the second day that really tells you about the ability of a scout,” Peterson says. “If you can come out of there with some players, then you are way ahead. That's how you can build a strong football team.”

That said, Peterson says he expects to get a good football player with the 15th pick this season, someone who can make a big contribution right away. He says the strength of this draft is built around two positions where the Chiefs need help — cornerback and wide receiver. He says the Chiefs could get help there in the second, third and even later rounds. He says there are some good linebackers, too, but not many.

It seems like most mock drafts have the Chiefs taking a pass-rushing defensive end like Maryland's Shawne Merriman, Georgia's David Pollack or Wisconsin's Erasmus James. Peterson is obviously not naming names, but I asked him what he would do if a gifted receiver (say, Mike Williams) fell to the 15th pick.

Peterson was pretty blunt.

“If it's an exceptional offensive player, and all of the top defensive picks are gone, then it's a possibility, I suppose,” he says. “But I think it's pretty well documented: We're looking at defense.”

***

Carl Peterson on … his four-year extension.

When Vermeil said he was going to walk away at the end of the year, Peterson hinted that perhaps he might consider walking away, too. It was only a hint. A few weeks later, he signed on for four more years. Chiefs founder Lamar Hunt has started to call Peterson “Delano” after four-term president Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Peterson is the longest-tenured general manager in American sports.

“I'm obviously very pleased to extend one more time,” Peterson says. “I've enjoyed these years with the Chiefs, with Lamar and Clark, immensely. And we have accomplished a lot. We brought back the pride of the city and of the Midwest to the Kansas City Chiefs. We've had a lot of playoff games, a lot of exciting games, a record at Arrowhead we're very proud of. And there are attendance figures and all that — all the consecutive sellouts.

“But we haven't accomplished the one thing I came here to do, and that is assist in bringing a world championship to Lamar Hunt and the Kansas City Chiefs organization and fans. That has been my goal since the first day.”

Peterson knows that he is surrounded by a city desperate for something good, a city with a struggling baseball team, struggling college teams, a long series of sports heartbreaks the last few years. And the Chiefs, who are the core of the Kansas City sports scene, have not won a playoff game in more than 10 years.

“I think we're going to be a good football team,” Peterson says. “How good remains to be seen. We have a lot of work to do. And the teams in National Football League are very close in talent level. But I'm very optimistic. I think we have a chance to do something special.”