Andy blames himself, not Alex, for Chiefs' sputtering offense

[ShowtimeSBMVP]

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- When you're 6-0 and coming off a 2-14 season, there really shouldn't be any complaining.

There can't be a football fan or scout or executive anywhere on the planet who could have forecast the amazing turnaround general manager John Dorsey and coach Andy Reid have conducted with the Chiefs -- certainly not to the extent of a 6-0 start.

But -- and isn't there always a but? -- there is one small area of concern that even Reid himself continues to address: a sluggish offense.

The Chiefs are 25th in the NFL in offense, chugging along at just 326 yards per game, a remarkably low figure for a team unbeaten this far into the season.

No one is more aware of the offense's struggles than Reid. The offense is his baby.

"Listen, I'm never going to make excuses," Reid said Monday. "That's not how we roll here. But the reality of it is we're a little young, but we have to get better.

"I see some phases we're getting better at. But I've got to do a better job of getting these guys in the right position to succeed. We've all got a little piece of the pie to get things right. We're learning on the fly, but we're going to get better."

The Chiefs likely will have to. Fans in this area have seen this script before. They've seen the Chiefs' teams of the 1990s soar through the regular season on the strength of their overpowering defenses and elite special teams.

Then those fans saw the same teams misfire in the postseason, mainly because the offense couldn't step up and contribute when it had to.

To avoid revisiting that script, the Chiefs must get more production out of quarterback Alex Smith, whose numbers keep sinking.

Smith is 26th in the league in passing yards at just 221.7 per game. He's also 20th in the league with a passer rating of 79.8.

But if you're looking for Reid to point any fingers toward Smith, you'll have a long wait.

Reid knows what kind of team he has. He knows, outside of Jamaal Charles and at times Dwayne Bowe, he doesn't have an explosive offense.

Reid also knows you can win in this league simply by not messing up, and letting the opponent beat itself. The Chiefs are No. 1 in the league in turnover ratio at plus-12, and don't have the appearance of a team that will beat itself anytime soon.

"Not turning the ball over is very important to us," Reid said, "especially when you have a solid defense like we have and the kicking game we have, both from our punter and our kicker."

In that respect, Smith is giving Reid all he needs, even if the offense has that familiar conservative look of the '90s. After all, there is a fine line between wanting more offensive production, and opening the offense up so much that more turnovers occur. Reid isn't likely to stand for that.

"You want to always start off by protecting the ball," Reid said. "There's no fine line there for me. ...

"Alex is doing that. And we need to point out the way Alex continues to manage this offense."

And that is the key in Reid's mind: He simply wants Smith to manage the game, which also includes managing the different personalities in the huddle.

"We've got a guy at quarterback, this kid, he's a stud," Reid said. "The things he does for this team is unbelievable. He's making people around him better. He takes the blame for things -- that's what good leaders do.

"At the same time, he's able to teach and explain to other guys with a clear head. Those are valuable things for us as coaches to see. I'm very pleased with the job (Smith) is doing."

In Reid's mind, let the other quarterbacks around the league possess the pretty passing numbers; Reid will take the ultimate one that counts. That is, for now, 6-0.

Still, Reid also has been around long enough to know that his offense will have to improve as the season wears on, even if it's just incrementally.

And that will be up to Reid himself as the play-caller and architect of the offense, something Reid has mentioned almost every week.

"I think we have done some good things, but we have plenty to work on," Reid said. "I don't think I've done a very good job of putting guys in position to make plays. That has been obvious at times. I have to do a better job."



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Sorry if Q

[KC_Connection]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

Could you be any ****ing dumber?

I don't know, I suppose I could be the guy saying that he wouldn't trade Alex Smith for Tony Romo and that Self is an underachiever of a college basketball coach. That'd be pretty ****ing dumb.

And I'm that you're still butthurt over comments I made in 2005 about Bill Self.

Obsess much?

You're the one who brought up Bill Self here (for what reason, I'm not sure, as it certainly didn't enhance your already thin credibility).

I wouldn't have remembered your nonsensical opinion on that issue otherwise (which, apparently, you still maintain judging by your prolonged defense of it in this thread).

[DaneMcCloud]

Originally Posted by KC_Connection

I don't know, I suppose I could be the guy saying that he wouldn't trade Alex Smith for Tony Romo and that Self is an underachiever of a college basketball coach. That'd be pretty ****ing dumb.

Tony Romo has won absolutely nothing. He isn't worth discussing and up until now, he's been one of the NFL's all-time unclutch players.

And Bill Self got his shit pushed in by Bradley and Bucknell.

You can make all the excuses you want but nothing you say or do can change history or facts.

[Mav]

Originally Posted by KC_Connection

From the guy who thinks Alex Smith is a good quarterback and Bill Self is a bad basketball coach everyone!

Im a tarheel guy, who hates Kansas. Love Roy Williams, but Self is a BEAST of a coach.

BEAST. Hell of a recruiter as well.

[Mav]

Originally Posted by KC_Connection

Smith has really propelled that Chiefs defense this year, hasn't he? I don't know where they'd be without him.

You don't want to start this. I have stayed away from this conversation.

You really don't want to start this fight.

Just let it alone.

Alex Smith is a very big reason as to why the defense is what it is.

If the past two years in San Francisco didn't show you that, look at weeks two, and three for the 49ers this year, who tried to OPEN UP THE OFFENSE, and look how pitiful the defense looked.

Alex Smiths limitations aside. His ability to not turn the ball over, and to not put the defense in a position so they have to defend the short field, is A BIG REASON this defense is so special.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

Alex Smith isn't Matt Cassel. He's not Geno Smith.

While he's certainly not putting up historic numbers, he's also not putting his team in bad situations, nor is he turning the ball over at crucial times.

You need to get over it, Dude. Alex Smith is who he is and he's not going anywhere.

Alex Smith has the good fortune of playing with the #1 defense.

He almost never has to play from behind.

If he did, I have a feeling we'd see a far more turnover prone QB. Right now he has the luxury of almost never having to fit the ball into a tight window when the team really needs it. He basically sat around with his thumb up his ass last game apart from one drive.

Shit, he's already had 6-7 INTs dropped this year. Those are going to be secured if he keeps it up.

[Mav]

Originally Posted by Pam Oliver's Forehead

Alex Smith has the good fortune of playing with the #1 defense.

He almost never has to play from behind.

If he did, I have a feeling we'd see a far more turnover prone QB.

I agree with you.

But, his ability to not turn the ball over, and to allow the defense, and THE MVP to do their jobs, is a huge part of that.

You should have no problem agreeing with that. Even though, I know you want to.

[keg in kc]

He's had several INTs dropped, and the team as a whole has had several fumbles go out of bounds. Fortune has definitely been smiling down on us. Karmic balancing-out from last season's horrors.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by Mavericks Ace

I agree with you.

But, his ability to not turn the ball over, and to allow the defense, and THE MVP to do their jobs, is a huge part of that.

You should have no problem agreeing with that. Even though, I know you want to.

And the people who are impressed by that are the same people who praised Cassel in 2010. The guy had 4 INTs in the first 15 weeks of play. He was being compared to Tom Brady.

[Mav]

Originally Posted by Pam Oliver's Forehead

And the people who are impressed by that are the same people who praised Cassel in 2010. The guy had 4 INTs in the first 15 weeks of play. He was being compared to Tom Brady.

There really is nothing to be compared to Cassel, and im not praising Alex Smith.

Simply stating that his style of play leaves opposing teams with LONG fields. Its very hard against a GREAT DEFENSE, to establish long drives over and over.

This has very little to do with anything Alex does, other than making sure drives end in either a fg, punt, or extra point.

That's ALL he has to do.

When you are playing the Chiefs, and you look up, and you have to go 80 yards on that defense, that is NOT an encouraging sight.

its just not.....

[KC_Connection]

Originally Posted by DaneMcCloud

Tony Romo has won absolutely nothing.

Dallas has won nothing because they are consistently a horribly flawed football team (with those flaws mostly coming on defense). Teams win games, not individual players. You'd think you should have learned that much by watching these last six weeks of Chiefs football while Alex Smith played the role of "game manager (which has become just another way of saying he doesn't really do anything).

He isn't worth discussing

His presence alone would propel the Chiefs to be a top 10 offense. That, combined with their elite defense, would make them a SB contender. The same goes for any other QB of Romo's caliber (i.e. QBs better than Alex Smith, of which there are many).

and up until now, he's been one of the NFL's all-time unclutch players.

Except there is little basis to make that statement beyond 3 playoff losses on teams that were never going anywhere to begin with due to their inherent flaws. And as mentioned, there is considerable evidence to suggest the opposite (his 4th quarter stats and comeback record).

And Bill Self got his shit pushed in by Bradley and Bucknell.

And yet, despite these crapshoot losses (which are the norm for every other top basketball program if you actually took the time to look, see Kentucky and especially Duke), he's built the most successful program in the sport over the last decade with the most regular season and post-season success over that time. Only an absolute know-nothing, perspective-less moron would criticize Bill Self and the job he does. But I suppose that's you, isn't it?

[KC_Connection]

Originally Posted by Mavericks Ace

Im a tarheel guy, who hates Kansas. Love Roy Williams, but Self is a BEAST of a coach.

BEAST. Hell of a recruiter as well.

Of course. You'd have to either be trolling or completely delusional to suggest differently. It's him, Coach K, and Cal at the top of college basketball right now and it likely will remain that way until they retire/move on to the NBA.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by Mavericks Ace

There really is nothing to be compared to Cassel

Yes there is.

In 2010 Matt Cassel did a great job of protecting the ball.

He also could not throw down the field to save his life, the same as Alex.

It is almost exactly the same situation now, except Cassel was actually a more productive passer than Alex Smith that year.

Through six weeks that year, Cassel was:

91/153 (59.4%)
1,044 yards
6.8 YPA
11.4 YPC
9 TD
3 INT
91.5 rating

The Chiefs were averaging 21.5 OPPG (I took out defensive/special teams scores).

This year, through six weeks, Alex is:

122/216 (56.5%)
1,330 yards
6.2 YPA
10.9 YPC
7 TD
3 INT
79.8 rating

The Chiefs are averaging 19.5 OPPG this year.

Sure, the Chiefs were 4-2 that year. Why?

1. They lost to Peyton Manning.
2. They lost a game to a team that scored 35 points.

We're going to lose in the same situations with Alex as we did with Cassel in 2010. I guarantee you.

[keg in kc]

Originally Posted by Mavericks Ace

There really is nothing to be compared to Cassel, and im not praising Alex Smith.

Simply stating that his style of play leaves opposing teams with LONG fields. Its very hard against a GREAT DEFENSE, to establish long drives over and over.

This has very little to do with anything Alex does, other than making sure drives end in either a fg, punt, or extra point.

That's ALL he has to do.

When you are playing the Chiefs, and you look up, and you have to go 80 yards on that defense, that is NOT an encouraging sight.

its just not.....

I'll give you this much: you really get creative when it comes to painting his play so far this season as being beneficial in some random way.

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by OnTheWarpath58

Laz is absolutely correct. We hold a two minute advantage in TOP.

That's ridiculously low considering the play of the defense.

Scoring 4 defensive TD's and a ST TD will skew that as well as it puts the defense right back on the field. Thats almost a drive per game so far where the offense didn't get the ball.

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by Pam Oliver's Forehead

We're going to lose in the same situations with Alex as we did with Cassel in 2010. I guarantee you.

That and $2 will get you a cup of coffee at Starbucks.