The Colts will be Gun's final exam

[Red Dawg]

IMHO. This is the game we got Gun for in the first place. Shut the Colts down enough for us to win and no one can say we needed a bunch of FA's.

[Hoover]

I don't think you can "Shut Down" any good team in the NFL. Gun has to go in thinking about keeping them to three scores, to think you can shut down Indy is just stupid.

Manning, James, Harrison, Wayne, Stokley, and their TE's?

[keg in kc]

Final exam? It's the seventh game. Of at least sixteen.

[NY CHIEF]

I just want some payback after last years disgrace :thumb:

[2bikemike]

As long as we don't punt I wouldn't mind just making them punt say about 4 times.

[King_Chief_Fan]

IMHO. This is the game we got Gun for in the first place. Shut the Colts down enough for us to win and no one can say we needed a bunch of FA's.

If he stops the Colts once more than the Chiefs are stopped.......he will have passed. However, he will still need to review this staff and look to rebuild what the KC fans have been used to under his direction in the past.

[BIG_DADDY]

IMHO. This is the game we got Gun for in the first place. Shut the Colts down enough for us to win and no one can say we needed a bunch of FA's.

Gotta love Gun. You still don't leave 6 mill on the table IMO.

[Mr. Laz]

IMHO. This is the game we got Gun for in the first place. Shut the Colts down enough for us to win and no one can say we needed a bunch of FA's.

bull ...

your missing the point, even if our defense keeps improving and does become respectable .... how much "more than respectable" could it of been if we had really tried to improve the defense in the offseason?


the chiefs main problem is that they "settle for being good enough" instead of aggressively striving to be as good as possible.

not to mention the ramifications of taking a offseason OFF for our long term talent level. Next year we will have twice the needs as we had last year and you can bet we will hear about how the chiefs "can't fix everything in 1 offseason"

well we just took a nap this last offseason so now we will have to put more pressure of fixing issues next year.

[KCTitus]

your missing the point, even if our defense keeps improving and does become respectable .... how much "more than respectable" could it of been if we had really tried to improve the defense in the offseason?

And who in this front office does Laz support to make the 'right' FA pickups?

[Baby Lee]

the chiefs main problem is that they "settle for being good enough" instead of aggressively striving to be as good as possible.
Vermiel has a clear and unambiguous philosophy that led to our 'inactivity' in the FA market this last off season.
He feels that, if you've seen that the players fit the profile, you'll get more benefit from letting the players strive and struggle together over time than you will bringing in new players hoping they have greater talent.

[Chris Meck]

It's not the final exam, it's the mid-term.

Chris

[BigChiefFan]

Gotta love Gun. You still don't leave 6 mill on the table IMO.
Bingo!!!

[Mr. Laz]

Vermiel has a clear and unambiguous philosophy that led to our 'inactivity' in the FA market this last off season.
He feels that, if you've seen that the players fit the profile, you'll get more benefit from letting the players strive and struggle together over time than you will bringing in new players hoping they have greater talent.
yea, he does ... but then again, Vermeil is pretty much a liar of convenience too.

besides he said we had cap room but did not have the "resources" to sign new players this offseason.



so we dont know whether he actually wanted new players or not

[KC Jones]

Lionel Dalton looks like quite possibly the best defensive FA pickup of the offseason (and I mean that across the entire NFL). He repeatedly blows up the O-line and breaks up plays. Frankly, our problems aren't so much not spending enough in FA, it's requiring FAs to make up for the dearth of draft talent we have to fill our needs.

As for Gun, I wouldn't call this his final exam but this is most definitely a game he's had circled all offseason. This is the one where everyone in the world will be looking at to see the difference Gun makes over Grob. He knew it was important to show some pressure in that first preseason game at Arrowhead as well as our home opener, but this game is the game everyone will look at to judge his mettle.

[nmt1]

Frankly, our problems aren't so much not spending enough in FA, it's requiring FAs to make up for the dearth of draft talent we have to fill our needs.

Well said. We definitly need to do a better job in the draft.

[KCTitus]

And who in this front office does Laz support to make the 'right' FA pickups?

I guess I dont get an answer....either the front office cant pour piss out of boot with instructions on the heel or they can. One cannot pick both.

[Sure-Oz]

This will be a tough game, i really want this W, this should set us up for a run or knock us out, we will see.

[chiefz]

The key to the defense playing well in this game is for the Chiefs to score fast and plentiful.

You can't really stop the Colts offense, you can just hope to slow them down enough to outscore them, much like the Chiefs of the past couple of years.

Luckily for us, their defense is lousy just like ours was too for the past couple of years.

31st overall, 32nd (dead last) against the pass but 6th against the run.

[KC Jones]

The key to the defense playing well in this game is for the Chiefs to score fast and plentiful.

You can't really stop the Colts offense, you can just hope to slow them down enough to outscore them, much like the Chiefs of the past couple of years.

Luckily for us, their defense is lousy just like ours was too for the past couple of years.

31st overall, 32nd (dead last) against the pass but 6th against the run.

I agree with scoring plentiful but not with scoring fast. In an ideal world we'd run the ball as much and eat as much clock as we did against Baltimore and Atlanta. As soon as Al Saunders and Dick Vermeil learn to stop trying to be the 99 Rams and learn to play to our strengths we will become a team to be reckoned with. I believe we can run on anybody, and when we run on them we open up everything else. A 2:1 or 3:2 rush to pass seems to do a hell of a lot better for us than the other way around or even a 1:1 ratio.

[Gaz]

I consider it bad mojo to call the 7th game of a 16-game season the “final exam.”

xoxo~
Gaz
Hopes the football gods were not listening.

[Red Dawg]

The Chiefs main problem was keeping GR for the third year. We could have had Gun last year and probably beat the Colts.

[Nightfyre]

All I know is that I nearly panicked at the sight of teh words "Final Exam."

[chiefz]

I agree with scoring plentiful but not with scoring fast. In an ideal world we'd run the ball as much and eat as much clock as we did against Baltimore and Atlanta. As soon as Al Saunders and Dick Vermeil learn to stop trying to be the 99 Rams and learn to play to our strengths we will become a team to be reckoned with. I believe we can run on anybody, and when we run on them we open up everything else. A 2:1 or 3:2 rush to pass seems to do a hell of a lot better for us than the other way around or even a 1:1 ratio.

Sorry, I have this problem with not finishing my thoughts, I apologize.

What I mean't was scoring fast to begin with, that way we take away James and make Manning beat us.

If we can do that an keep pressure on Manning, then we can slow down the pace of the game later and keep their defense on the field as much as possible.

One of the keys is going to be dealing with Brandon Stokely.

This kid is having a monster year.

The problem is that even when you stop Harrison, Wayne and James (and think you have them licked) Manning starts hitting Stokely and Clark.

I have Stokely on my fantasy teams and several games this season he has led the Colts in receiving yards already.

The only way that I can see us being able to stop them when they lineup 4 wide is bumping Wayne and Harrison off the line and somehow getting pressure on Manning prior to being able to lock in on Stokely or Clark over the middle. I would be willing to bet we will see a ton of blitzing because everyone knows if you try and play zone on Manning he will pick your defense apart play by play.

[TEX]

Sorry, I have this problem with not finishing my thoughts, I apologize.

What I mean't was scoring fast to begin with, that way we take away James and make Manning beat us.

If we can do that an keep pressure on Manning, then we can slow down the pace of the game later and keep their defense on the field as much as possible.

One of the keys is going to be dealing with Brandon Stokely.

This kid is having a monster year.

The problem is that even when you stop Harrison, Wayne and James (and think you have them licked) Manning starts hitting Stokely and Clark.

I have Stokely on my fantasy teams and several games this season he has led the Colts in receiving yards already.

The only way that I can see us being able to stop them when they lineup 4 wide is bumping Wayne and Harrison off the line and somehow getting pressure on Manning prior to being able to lock in on Stokely or Clark over the middle. I would be willing to bet we will see a ton of blitzing because everyone knows if you try and play zone on Manning he will pick your defense apart play by play.


I want no part in "making" Manning to beat us - because he can. I'd prefer to run the ball and milk the clock approach myself.

[chiefz]

I want no part in "making" Manning to beat us - because he can. I'd prefer to run the ball and milk the clock approach myself.

Tex, with Edgerrin James in the backfield and the Chiefs run defense being ranked 24th in the league, allowing 4.6 YPC and 5 rushing TDs along with 35 rushing first downs I think I would rather take my chances with Manning, the blitz and our 8th ranked passing defense with 7 interceptions and 17 sacks for 100 yards.

We can beat Manning we get pressure and force turnovers but we can't beat Manning if James runs all over us.

[Rausch]

Tex, with Edgerrin James in the backfield and the Chiefs run defense being ranked 24th in the league, allowing 4.6 YPC and 5 rushing TDs along with 35 rushing first downs I think I would rather take my chances with Manning, the blitz and our 8th ranked passing defense with 7 interceptions and 17 sacks for 100 yards.

We can beat Manning we get pressure and force turnovers but we can't beat Manning if James runs all over us.

Our run defense has been better than our pass defense the last two weeks.

[Rick]

bull ...

your missing the point, even if our defense keeps improving and does become respectable .... how much "more than respectable" could it of been if we had really tried to improve the defense in the offseason?


the chiefs main problem is that they "settle for being good enough" instead of aggressively striving to be as good as possible.

not to mention the ramifications of taking a offseason OFF for our long term talent level. Next year we will have twice the needs as we had last year and you can bet we will hear about how the chiefs "can't fix everything in 1 offseason"

well we just took a nap this last offseason so now we will have to put more pressure of fixing issues next year.

I partially agree but think you're crazy if you don't think Lional Dalton, Wilson, Sammy Parker, Chris Bober, Keyaron Fox, Savaii, and Welbourne are "taking a nap" in the offseason. Too early to tell on the rookies (even though I can see what they see in Savaii and Fox), but Welbourne and Bober are young guys with quality experience that will help fill a void after Shields and Roaf are done. Skilled positions like corner and receiver is where we've been too still.
I agree we could have gotten some veteran short term help in the offseason, I've bitched about it all year, but to say we did nothing is not true in my opinion.

[chiefz]

Our run defense has been better than our pass defense the last two weeks.

It is certainly going to appear that way when you shore up your run defense by bringing the safeties and or corners up for run support.

Ever wonder two weeks ago why you saw so much one on one coverage with Jimmy Smith and Dexter McCleon?

The problem was the Jags still managed 101 yards rushing on 23 rushes with a 4.4 AYPC.

It only takes one or two one on one matchups to skew those pass defense stats dramatically.

As far as this Sunday is concerned I don't think that 119 yards rushing on 21 carries with a 5.7 AYPC versus 9 completed passes out of 12 attempts for 103 yards and 2 Interceptions "better" but ok.

[KCTitus]

I partially agree but think you're crazy if you don't think Lional Dalton, Wilson, Sammy Parker, Chris Bober, Keyaron Fox, Savaii, and Welbourne are "taking a nap" in the offseason.

Just to be clear, when Laz says 'taking a nap' he means KC didnt sign the guys that Laz wanted.

[tk13]

It is certainly going to appear that way when you shore up your run defense by bringing the safeties and or corners up for run support.

Ever wonder two weeks ago why you saw so much one on one coverage with Jimmy Smith and Dexter McCleon?

The problem was the Jags still managed 101 yards rushing on 23 rushes with a 4.4 AYPC.

It only takes one or two one on one matchups to skew those pass defense stats dramatically.

As far as this Sunday is concerned I don't think that 119 yards rushing on 21 carries with a 5.7 AYPC versus 9 completed passes out of 12 attempts for 103 yards and 2 Interceptions "better" but ok.
Over the last 4 weeks the defense is averaging 94 rushing yds allowed/game.... and Atlanta and Baltimore were like 2nd and 3rd in the NFL in rushing yards coming into this last week, the run defense hasn't been perfect but it's been much better than when were giving up 200 yards/game the first couple weeks....

[chiefz]

Over the last 4 weeks the defense is averaging 94 rushing yds allowed/game.... and Atlanta and Baltimore were like 2nd and 3rd in the NFL in rushing yards coming into this last week, the run defense hasn't been perfect but it's been much better than when were giving up 200 yards/game the first couple weeks....

NOTE: I am not saying that our rush defense hasn't improved some, if you read the entire thread you should easily be able to come to that conclusion.

[Mr. Laz]

I partially agree but think you're crazy if you don't think Lional Dalton, Wilson, Sammy Parker, Chris Bober, Keyaron Fox, Savaii, and Welbourne are "taking a nap" in the offseason. Too early to tell on the rookies (even though I can see what they see in Savaii and Fox), but Welbourne and Bober are young guys with quality experience that will help fill a void after Shields and Roaf are done. Skilled positions like corner and receiver is where we've been too still.
I agree we could have gotten some veteran short term help in the offseason, I've bitched about it all year, but to say we did nothing is not true in my opinion.

guess it depends on your hopes and expectations

Wilson,parker,fox are all draft picks ... every team gets draft picks

that leaves Dalton,Welbourne and Bober

Tait leaves = welbourne/bober (basically we tried to hold serve)


Dalton was a pickup turning out to be a better pickup as the year goes by ... lionel dalton and gunther cunningham are really the only Improvements that we tried to make.


it's all about effort and commitment ... IMO our front office is more commited to maintaining "Good" than striving for "Great"

[chiefsfolife]

we easly score 60 against these chumps

[Lzen]

It is certainly going to appear that way when you shore up your run defense by bringing the safeties and or corners up for run support.

Ever wonder two weeks ago why you saw so much one on one coverage with Jimmy Smith and Dexter McCleon?

The problem was the Jags still managed 101 yards rushing on 23 rushes with a 4.4 AYPC.

It only takes one or two one on one matchups to skew those pass defense stats dramatically.

As far as this Sunday is concerned I don't think that 119 yards rushing on 21 carries with a 5.7 AYPC versus 9 completed passes out of 12 attempts for 103 yards and 2 Interceptions "better" but ok.

I think you're forgetting what the running of Leftwich and Vick did to skew the stats a bit. First off, there's no way Leftwich should've ran on the Chiefs like he did in the first half of that game. For whatever reason, they weren't prepared for that. Probably because he's not known as a running QB. Vick, on the other hand, is. And he is bound to make those plays every so often. I would say Vick's 35 yarder and the late rushing (when the Chiefs were really expecting passes) made Atlanta look better running than what truly occurred in that game.

[DTLB58]

IMHO. This is the game we got Gun for in the first place. Shut the Colts down enough for us to win and no one can say we needed a bunch of FA's.

Peyton Manning is 10 times the QB Michael Vick is.

Remember what he did when the Packers blitzed him this year?

I was there for the playoff game last year and I would love to get some partial-revenge Sunday, but I don't think we will shut him down. I hope I am wrong!

[Inspector]

We need to bump them hard at the line. They seem to be really into timing and if we can mess with their timing by hitting them at the LOS, then we might be able to cause problems.

That and sacking that POS manning a few times - per quarter. I would like that.

I think Gun's final exam will be when his contribution has clearly placed the Chiefs into the SB. That's why he's here.

[chiefz]

I think you're forgetting what the running of Leftwich and Vick did to skew the stats a bit. First off, there's no way Leftwich should've ran on the Chiefs like he did in the first half of that game. For whatever reason, they weren't prepared for that. Probably because he's not known as a running QB. Vick, on the other hand, is. And he is bound to make those plays every so often. I would say Vick's 35 yarder and the late rushing (when the Chiefs were really expecting passes) made Atlanta look better running than what truly occurred in that game.

No, I am not forgetting that.

The running both of those guys did wasn't anything the run defense shouldn't have been able to pickup and contain. Specifically Leftwich but Dalton had this problem of getting sucked inside and opening up the middle.

Vick is going to run and if he finds a corner he is going to turn up the juice and get some yards, there is no doubt about that.

Still the point is that the Atlanta passing statistics were nothing shy of utterly pathetic, and the run stats (skewed as they may be) were better.