I actually liked my original Pioli column when Clark hired him.

[jwhit]

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/col...ry/980160.html

Hiring of Pioli puts the Chiefs in the Hunt again
Jason Whitlock

We have no more questions about Clark Hunt’s commitment to winning the Super Bowl.

By landing the biggest fish in the NFL’s off-season ocean — Patriots front-office guru Scott Pioli — Hunt told us everything we need to know about his desire to win at the highest level.

Clark Hunt is as passionate and committed as the most fanatic Chiefs fan.

You pierce your costume with arrows on game day, wear red on Fridays, decorate your basement with Chiefs apparel, rock Priest Holmes jerseys throughout the week, tolerate taxes to renovate Arrowhead Stadium and pay $22 to tailgate before exhibition games.

Clark Hunt appreciates all that. But he wants you to recognize he just spent a fortune to eliminate the stench of Carl Peterson and make the Chiefs Super Bowl contenders again.

We thought dethroning King Carl was a big deal. Luring Pioli to replace Peterson is much, much bigger.

There is no way to guarantee Pioli will be a success. The longtime Bill Belichick right-hand man might be as fraudulent as Romeo Crennel, Charlie Weis, Eric Mangini and the other Belichick clones who failed once they left the Patriots coach’s shadow and cashed in.

I like Pioli — a lot. He’s young, confident, disciplined, smart and he’s certainly been in the right organization.

But when it comes to the Patriots and success, we just don’t know where Belichick ends and everybody else begins. The Patriots are like the Jackson 5, and Belichick is Michael Jackson. Crennel and Weis proved to be Tito and Jackie.

Is Pioli the next Jermaine Jackson, who had a solid solo career? Or, better yet, is Pioli the next Janet Jackson, a megastar just waiting for the opportunity to shine?

We don’t know. And we won’t know for a couple of years. We’ll need to see how he drafts, whether he can find a legitimate quarterback of the future for the Chiefs, whether he can hire his own version of Belichick.

(Oops, I’m assuming that Herm Edwards will be relieved of his duties.)

What we know for sure is that ownership is going to provide Pioli with everything he needs to be successful.

There’s no way Pioli takes the job without those assurances. He had a great deal of leverage entering this off-season. The Cleveland Browns wanted to make him their general manager. The Lions were initially interested. Pioli could’ve stayed with the Patriots and waited for the perfect situation.

He got it here. He took this job because he found an owner ready to do things the Patriots way. He found an owner ready to match his level of commitment.

You don’t leave Belichick and all those Super Bowl rings unless you believe you’ve discovered a place where you believe you can do the same thing. Oh, I’m sure the money is awesome. I’m sure the Pioli family is set.

But Pioli has no interest in being Weis or Crennel. They’re laughingstocks. They’re known as football men who were great Belichick puppets and nothing else. One of life’s toughest tasks is recovering a lost reputation.

Pioli has a great rep. He’s risking a lot leaving the Belichick nest. He didn’t do it blindly or with dollar signs dancing in his head.

He did it thinking about creating his own legacy and with playoff victories dancing in his head.

Pioli and Hunt recruited each other. Pioli had to convince Hunt that he had a plan to fix the Chiefs. And Hunt had to convince Pioli that he was willing to support that plan.

For two decades under Peterson’s rule and Lamar Hunt’s budget, the Chiefs shopped for bargains in their pursuit of a championship. Peterson grabbed Marcus Allen and Joe Montana at the end of their careers. Peterson snagged underappreciated veterans such as Dan Saleaumua and James Hasty.

Only once can I remember Peterson stepping out and paying top dollar for a big-time free agent. He gave his football godfather Dick Vermeil a golden parachute. Peterson spent lavishly on assistants and Vermeil’s dream of building an offense superior to Mike Martz’s.

It worked.

Well, now Clark Hunt has stepped out and grabbed the most elite name in front-office magic.

And with this move, Hunt has boldly stated only the best and brightest are good enough for the Chiefs.

That’s just what we needed to hear.

[L.A. Chieffan]

SPAM

[jwhit]

Originally Posted by Bugeater

I don't understand why the other thread was locked either.

People here becoming too protective of me. You guys should still call bullshit on me and are free to disagree with my opinions. I'm no different from anyone else. The $600 bucks did not come with strings attached. A little criticism won't stop my support of making your voices heard.

[Easy 6]

The level of pressure that SaveOurChiefs can bring to bear, is NOTHING compared to the actual, onfield product on display today.

YOU'RE NOT BLIND CLARK @./..

[jspchief]

At the time it happened, landing Pioli was a huge win. No one can fault Clark for that move.

Problem is everyone thought we were getting a guy that could build a race car. Turns out he's just a guy that was in the garage when it was done.

But now is when Clark needs to shoulder some of the blame. He got fooled the second time when he believed Haley was the problem. How much farther down does he allow the team to be taken before he changes something.

[Lonewolf Ed]

Originally Posted by jwhit

People here becoming too protective of me. You guys should still call bullshit on me and are free to disagree with my opinions. I'm no different from anyone else. The $600 bucks did not come with strings attached. A little criticism won't stop my support of making your voices heard.

There's nothing to criticize here lately, Jason. When Pioli was first hired, it looked good. It felt good. Herm was gone, Carl was gone, and things were set up to get going in the right direction. For a while, it looked like they were, and many of us were not sure what to make of your articles and calling Pioli "Egoli."

Now that hindsight is clear, we're saying you were right on the money. We're sick of this and the tales of Pioli's bizarre management methods and quirks, for example, the supposedly bugged phones and the candy wrapper debacle.

For Christmas the year KC went 2-14, I received a long sleeved black Chiefs shirt. The words "Kansas City Chiefs" are in red with a white outline, but the rest is black. I wore it and said I was a fan in mourning. I despise Oakland, but I wore the black shirt today to watch the game, fully expecting a loss. That was the first time I wore the mourning jersey when KC played Oakland. The first!

My hope for this team is a rapidly dwindling ember where once it was a roaring campfire.

[Ace Gunner]

Originally Posted by jwhit

People here becoming too protective of me. You guys should still call bullshit on me and are free to disagree with my opinions. I'm no different from anyone else. The $600 bucks did not come with strings attached. A little criticism won't stop my support of making your voices heard.

I've kind of brought forward some points that at least raise questions about the Hunts. If you think this is not coming from the ownership to some degree, then ya, I would say it's worth another look.

How do you explain all this foolish behavior by Pioli while he has a boss that is alleged to be part of the decision process in how the FO was turned over? There are lawsuits with regard to how those personnel decisions were deliberated, from my understanding, or there were.

You've met Clark, is he not a different personality than the person responsible for all the horror stories coming out of 1 arrowhead? Why does he serve you white bread while his staff is threatening folks for not picking up candy wrappers?

I don't know, but shit isn't adding up right to me with regard to the Hunt family. I hear how much southern charm they carry, all the while scrutiny seems to permeate the atmosphere at 1 arrowhead.

[Chiefs=Champions]

Continue the good fight jwhit my man. Im so excited about the prospect of emulating the colts next year. New gm, new coach, new qb, new defense and hope.

[keg in kc]

I still question what kind of resources any GM here is or will ever be given. Which is not intended to be a statement of any sort of leniency towards Pioli or the job he's failed to do. I just think that the next GM may end up looking an awful lot like the current GM and the GM before him, where the marching orders that get the guy hired will continue to be basically "do as much as you can with what little you have to work with".

[BigRedChief]

You have been hanging here long enough to know we are not shy about calling you out.

It's not about the $600. I don't think anyone finds that money a major factor in SOC. It's much more important to have your verbal support. We feel voiceless. You give voice to ours on a national level. And that Mr. jwhit rocks.

[smittysbar]

Originally Posted by BigRedChief

You have been hanging here long enough to know we are not shy about calling you out.

It's not about the $600. I don't think anyone finds that as important as your support. We feel voiceless. You give voice to ours on a national level. And that Mr. jwhit rocks.

This

[ChiefsCountry]

Originally Posted by jwhit

People here becoming too protective of me. You guys should still call bullshit on me and are free to disagree with my opinions. I'm no different from anyone else. The $600 bucks did not come with strings attached. A little criticism won't stop my support of making your voices heard.

Come on you have been here long enough to know when people will call you out.

[L.A. Chieffan]

**** you Fatlock.

There. Feel better?

Originally Posted by Bugeater

I don't understand why the other thread was locked either.

I don't either. Seemed relevant to me.

[GoHuge]

Wonder what JWhit would be saying right now if Pioli was black? I'm being serious.

[jwhit]

Originally Posted by GoHuge

Wonder what JWhit would be saying right now if Pioli was black? I'm being serious.

I love this stuff. So clueless.

I'd give him the same protection I provided Turner Gill.