JoePo: There’s no hiding the Chiefs’ rebuilding mode now

[DaKCMan AP]

There’s no hiding the Chiefs’ rebuilding mode now
By JOE POSNANSKI

There are two dirty little secrets that the Kansas City Chiefs have been trying (and, more or less, failing) to keep away from fans and potential ticket buyers all season long.

Secret No. 1: The Chiefs are not contenders. They are in full-fledged, all-out, no-joke, batten-down-the-hatches, release-the-hounds, all-capital-letter REBUILDING MODE.

Secret No. 2: It stinks to be in full-fledged, all-out, no-joke, batten-down-the-hatches, release-the-hounds, all-capital-letter REBUILDING MODE.

Yes, the Chiefs have tried to fool people all around into believing they are actually a reasonably good team. It isn’t remotely true, but that’s not the real problem. The real problem is that the Chiefs have tried to fool themselves into believing that same lie.

There’s no believing that after Sunday, not after the Chiefs lost to the Oakland Scallywags 20-17 at home in front of a lot of empty seats and even more seats filled with people wondering what the heck they were doing there. What a snoozer. There should be a label on Chiefs tickets warning people not to operate heavy machinery while watching this team. The team should have the wonderful Tony DiPardo play reveille at the end of games to wake up the few remaining fans and alert them to go home.

The plot of Sunday’s game — at least, for most of the game — was familiar if you have watched Chiefs-Raiders games lately. It involved Oakland players doing comical things in their patented effort to lose. Turnovers. Stupid penalties. Dropped passes. Oh yeah, I checked with the U.S. Patent Office, the Raiders have registered trademarks on these.

On Sunday, though, the Chiefs matched banana peel for banana peel. The Raiders fumbled deep in their own territory? The Chiefs committed a holding penalty and fell out of field-goal range. The Raiders dropped a couple of key first-down passes? The Chiefs completed three passes in the first half. The Raiders grabbed a facemask for a timely 15-yard-penalty? The Chiefs’ Dave Rayner flubbed a 33-yard field goal.

The Raiders defense caved in the fourth quarter? Chiefs coach Herm Edwards ended the drive by calling one timeout, blowing another with a hopeless challenge. The Chiefs then passed on a field-goal attempt and got stuffed on fourth and 1.

No, you can never feel too good about losing to Oakland because the Raiders played smarter than you did.

But if you spend too much time focusing on Edwards’ timeout polka or the mind-numbing play-calling or the way the Chiefs’ origami defense folded in the last minutes again or the team’s muddled identity (the Chiefs are a field goal-oriented team that can’t make field goals), you might miss the bigger story: The Chiefs, plainly, are starting over.

This is new. The Chiefs have been treading the waters of NFL mediocrity for TEN STINKING YEARS now, and finally they have run out of free-agent life preservers and stopgap players. Finally, they are going with young players and trying to build a team rather than patch together a playoff pretender with duct tape, shoe polish, a couple of big contracts and somebody else’s backup quarterback.

Starting over involves pain. That’s why the Chiefs have refused to even say the word “rebuilding.” Chiefs president Carl Peterson and the marketing wizards have not filled stadiums in small-market Kansas City for 15 years by using slogans like, “Hey, we’ll be really good in a couple of years.”

Well, now, like it or not, it’s happening. The Chiefs are rebuilding now. And I think Edwards is just the right coach to build from scratch. He may drive people nuts with his defensive mindset and game planning, but the guy has a special talent for finding good young players and developing them, which is more important. All year, Edwards kept telling us that rookie running back Kolby Smith —— a fifth-round pick who did not even start at Louisville — was a special young player. Many of us didn’t see it.

So what happened Sunday? Kolby Smith got his chance. And he was fabulous. He juked. He cut back. He drove his legs. He never gave up on the plays. He gained 150 yards and scored two touchdowns — this behind an offensive line that all year made Larry Johnson look like Larry, Curly and Moe.

It looks as if Edwards was right. And it’s no fluke — he has generally been right about young talent. The last two Chiefs drafts have been the team’s best in years — eight players from those two drafts started or played key roles on Sunday.

Say what you want about Edwards: He’s unafraid of youth and the inevitable mistakes. As good as Smith was, it appeared that he hesitated and cut back on the key fourth-and-1 play, costing the Chiefs a chance for a first down and a big play. That will happen.

Brodie Croyle, making his second start at quarterback, was erratic — he mixed good passes with some wild misfires all game long. Defensive end Tamba Hali, so good as a rookie last year, had a sack, but he also appeared to get manhandled on some running plays. Receiver Dwayne Bowe caught four passes and has had a terrific year, but he also seemed to have a tough time getting open much of the game.

And so on. This is the ballad of youth in pro football — high notes, low notes, flat notes. Nobody in Kansas City wants to go through rebuilding now; it has been more than 35 years since the Chiefs were in the Super Bowl. But there’s no choice. This season is gone. The Chiefs are a bad team. They have to develop Croyle and young players and get what they can out of the rest of this season. Then, in the offseason, there will be all sorts of work to do. The Chiefs will have to clean house — players, coaches, you name it — change the offense entirely, have a spectacular draft, you know, all those things that rebuilding teams have to do. Is Carl Peterson right for that job? That’s a topic for another column coming up.

It has been a long time since the Chiefs have gone through this process. The last time was in 1989, when Peterson and Marty Schottenheimer took over a team with nothing, changed the mindset, drafted some defensive monsters, put together a fierce offensive line and built a winning team that gave Kansas City thrills and heartbreaks. The Chiefs held on to that team too long. They flopped on some big-time draft picks. They gambled on some veterans. They let the team rot and decay. That’s where we are now.

And now, they have to start over again. Yes, this year has been miserable. If my guess is right, it will get more miserable before the season is out. Sunday’s loss was part of the misery, but maybe finally everyone can say the truth out loud: It’s time to build the Chiefs again. It’s way past time.

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/v-print/story/376799.html

[HonestChieffan]

We saw that high skilled talent picker at work....Just imagine if some schmuck was picking our field goal kicker.

Im all for rebuilding. What scares me is Herm is no Contractor.

[the Talking Can]

"Say what you want about Edwards: He’s unafraid of youth and the inevitable mistakes."


is this a joke? Croyle and Smith were rotting on the bench and only got to play because washed up Veterans (Huard and Holmes) got injured....

they should have been playing all year, but that would be actually risky, as opposed to the fake risk-taking that Jo-Po is trying to sell here...

we won't even discuss Herm cutting Croyle's balls off....

we weren't rebuilding, we were trying to "win now"....

[CupidStunt]

Good article. Don't agree with all of it but the premise is spot-on.

The Chiefs can't sacrifice its future for Herm's good eye for talent and motivation skills. Yes, they're top-notch, but the Chiefs need a real GM (a guy like Phil Savage, who has an even better eye for talent) and they need a real coach (who perhaps isn't the motivator Herm is but excells in every other regard).

[Molitoth]

Croyle and Smith were rotting on the bench and only got to play because washed up Veterans (Huard and Holmes) got injured....

I would bet those were Carl calls.

[chiefsfan1963]

Until CP and his staff are fired we will always get what we have got the last 20 years. I hate Herm as our HC but he does pick good talent. Unfortunately that's not enough. Looking forward to the 2008 Draft.

I said that before the season started. God I'm good! ;)

[Messier]

is this a joke? Croyle and Smith were rotting on the bench and only got to play because washed up Veterans (Huard and Holmes) got injured....

they should have been playing all year, but that would be actually risky, as opposed to the fake risk-taking that Jo-Po is trying to sell here...

we won't even discuss Herm cutting Croyle's balls off....

we weren't rebuilding, we were trying to "win now"....


So you think at the start of the season herm should have just benched LJ and started Smith? Come on.

Edwards does start young players, alot. Hali, Pollard, Page, Bowe, even Brackenridge and Webb quite a bit, but because he went with the vet QB, and his all pro RB at the start of the season you think it isn't true, as I said before, come on.

[Brock]

Crazy article, considering the team just achieved a lifelong dream of having MU play KU at Arrowhead.

[Rausch]

is this a joke? Croyle and Smith were rotting on the bench and only got to play because washed up Veterans (Huard and Holmes) got injured....

they should have been playing all year, but that would be actually risky, as opposed to the fake risk-taking that Jo-Po is trying to sell here...

we won't even discuss Herm cutting Croyle's balls off....

we weren't rebuilding, we were trying to "win now"....

Croyle should have been in there much earlier, that's clear, but honestly expecting the team to bench LJ in favor of Smith? No. Not only did no one expect this performance out of him but it's also only ONE game. The Raiders aren't very good at stopping the run and this is Smith's first game.

No, the big mistake was putting the emphasis on the running game and defense when your line is falling apart.

[RedThat]

is this a joke? Croyle and Smith were rotting on the bench and only got to play because washed up Veterans (Huard and Holmes) got injured....

they should have been playing all year, but that would be actually risky, as opposed to the fake risk-taking that Jo-Po is trying to sell here...

we won't even discuss Herm cutting Croyle's balls off....

we weren't rebuilding, we were trying to "win now"....

I honestly believe Carl Peterson interfered with a lot of personnel decisions this year. Im not going to place the blame on Herm because I think all along he wanted to play the young guys. But Carl likes veteran players we all know that. Playing young guys is too risky. I really think it's Carl. Playing Priest Holmes over Kolby Smith. Huard over Croyle.

Hence, we've always gone in the direction of veteran leadership over the years rather then youth. i.e., always renting QB's from other teams is an example of the Peterson motto.

[Chiefs_5627]

I wish Vermeil didnt drive this team into the ground, we might not be in this situation.

[Chiefnj2]

Why do people refuse to believe and accept the fact that Herm is generally a very conservative head coach that prefers the safety of veterans?

[Molitoth]

Although Herm has done some dumb coaching, I really think he can lead this team to be playoff winners.

Carl needs to go, and Herm needs to fire Solari and Pfifer (sp?). Bring in a new Left tackle, guard, kicker as your main priority.

[Chiefs_5627]

Although Herm has done some dumb coaching, I really think he can lead this team to be playoff winners.

Carl needs to go, and Herm needs to fire Solari and Pfifer (sp?). Bring in a new Left tackle, guard, kicker as your main priority.



Agreed 110%, throw CB in that equation as well. ;)

[RedThat]

Although Herm has done some dumb coaching, I really think he can lead this team to be playoff winners.

Carl needs to go, and Herm needs to fire Solari and Pfifer (sp?). Bring in a new Left tackle, guard, kicker as your main priority.

Herman Edwards needs to be a scout. That is all.

[the Talking Can]

Croyle should have been in there much earlier, that's clear, but honestly expecting the team to bench LJ in favor of Smith? No. Not only did no one expect this performance out of him but it's also only ONE game. The Raiders aren't very good at stopping the run and this is Smith's first game.

No, the big mistake was putting the emphasis on the running game and defense when your line is falling apart.

where did I mention LJ?

I clearly identified Holmes as the person taking Smith's playing time.

Huard over Croyle
Priest over Smith
Retread kicker over Medlock


I am glad that we are NOW finally, truly, rebuilding...but that doesn't mean we get to rewrite history and pretend that Herm made tough choices...he didn't...he simply moved down the depth chart due to injuries

[Molitoth]

Retread kicker over Medlock


Both sucked total ass, what's it matter?

We need to cycle through kickers until one actually decides to show up.

[the Talking Can]

Both sucked total ass, what's it matter?

We need to cycle through kickers until one actually decides to show up.

throwing away draft picks after 1 game isn't rebuilding, it's trying to "win now"....there is no need to rewrite history....

[el borracho]

Why do people think Herm is such a great talent evaluator? If Herm is so great, why aren't the Jets stocked with talent?

[Chiefs_5627]

Why do people think Herm is such a great talent evaluator? If Herm is so great, why aren't the Jets stocked with talent?


Are you serious? :shake:

[el borracho]

Yes, I am serious. If Herm's drafts are so great, why aren't the Jets world-beaters?

[Zouk]

Yes, I am serious. If Herm's drafts are so great, why aren't the Jets world-beaters?

Mostly because their current 3-4 scheme makes their 2 best defensive players - Dewayne Robertson and Jon Vilma - irrelevant.

LaMont Jordan was very effective until back problems hurt his career. Santana Moss is an explosive touchdown maker. Kareem McKenzie is a very good right tackle for the Giants. Kerry Rhodes is an elite safety hidden on a bad team. Chris Baker is a nice tight end.

There were misses in there too, but the track record was much better than Vermeil-Peterson-Stiles.

[Messier]

Yes, I am serious. If Herm's drafts are so great, why aren't the Jets world-beaters?


Well so far so good for his drafts with the Chiefs wouldn't you say? I think these last two are the best in quite a while, and I don't think it's a coincidence.

[Chiefs_5627]

Yes, I am serious. If Herm's drafts are so great, why aren't the Jets world-beaters?


Please review the drafts he had. ;)

[jjchieffan]

This is a rebuilding time for one reason. Because Vermeil and Carl totally screwed up the drafts the last few years with bust after bust instead of drafting quality offensive linemen. If we had addressed the OL 5 years ago, we would be very competitive right now.

[PunkinDrublic]

Yes, I am serious. If Herm's drafts are so great, why aren't the Jets world-beaters?

Herms teams at least won in the playoffs. Herm has his faults but I believe he has us drafting more effectively.

[el borracho]

"Better than bad does not equal good." Vermeil's drafts for the Chiefs grade out to an "F" so it isn't really an accomplishment to do better than Vermeil. Realistically, I would give Herm's drafts here a C+ or maybe (maybe) a B-. Not great, not bad- perhaps a little better than average. It isn't like we have gotten multiple probowlers in the last two years.

[Chiefs_5627]

"Better than bad does not equal good." Vermeil's drafts for the Chiefs grade out to an "F" so it isn't really an accomplishment to do better than Vermeil. Realistically, I would give Herm's drafts here a C+ or maybe (maybe) a B-. Not great, not bad- perhaps a little better than average. It isn't like we have gotten multiple probowlers in the last two years.



Maybe not probowlers but not alot of 1st n 2nd year players are but we did get starters, productive starters at that plus key role players. Not every draft pick has to be a probowler to be successfull to be a good pick, just productive which 90% of Vermeils weren't.

[PunkinDrublic]

Maybe not probowlers but not alot of 1st n 2nd year players are but we did get starters, productive starters at that plus key role players. Not every draft pick has to be a probowler to be successfull to be a good pick, just productive which 90% of Vermeils weren't.

Exactly just think if we had spent our picks on guys who could play on the D-line effectively the first time, we could have focused on rebuilding the O-line in the next draft. Maybe I'm a homer but I a see less of a gap talent wise then there was. I think we're a lot closer to being a complete team. A good offseason will get us back up to where we need to be. Of course then you have to account for the putrid coaching.

[el borracho]

Yes, Herm's drafts have been better than Vermeil's. No sane person would say differently but Vermeil's drafts were terrible. Again, "better than bad does not equal good." You cannot just grade Herm's drafts against Vermeil's drafts- you have to grade them against the other 31 teams, as well.

[Chiefs_5627]

Yes, Herm's drafts have been better than Vermeil's. No sane person would say differently but Vermeil's drafts were terrible. Again, "better than bad does not equal good." You cannot just grade Herm's drafts against Vermeil's drafts- you have to grade them against the other 31 teams, as well.



You didnt read my post.

[el borracho]

You didnt read my post.
Yes, I did. What grade would you give Herm's drafts here (not just in relation to Vermeil, but in relation to the entire league)?

[Chiefs_5627]

Yes, I did. What grade would you give Herm's drafts here (not just in relation to Vermeil, but in relation to the entire league)?



Around a B. We got a great DE in Tamba, 2 new safeties, very good WR and a QBOTF plus most of the rest are at least in the rotation thats more than i can say for most teams.

[Wile_E_Coyote]

How much time do players need to develop? Different postions take longer. Rebuild means trial & error. Draft is prolly more error than success.

The lowly Raiders have been in rebuild mode for about half a decade & still suck

[Chris Meck]

That's because they fire the coach and start over again every other year.

[Wile_E_Coyote]

That's because they fire the coach and start over again every other year.

That's got the Fins in; wrong people for this system -hell, also

[Zouk]

Yes, I did. What grade would you give Herm's drafts here (not just in relation to Vermeil, but in relation to the entire league)?

I think you're unrealistic in asking for Pro Bowlers. There are so few rookie or 2nd year Pro Bowlers, and they're often 1st round picks. Herm has not had a top 15 draft pick here yet.

Bowe is an A plus. McBride and Tyler haven't done much yet, but D-linemen take time.

Tamba Hali is good. Guys taken in the picks after him were Laurence Maroney (we weren't taking a 1st round runner), Manny Lawson, Davin Joseph, Johnathan Joseph, Santonio Holmes, John McCargo, and Deangelo Williams. Santonio Holmes is the only guy I might want more than Hali - but then we probably wouldn't draft Bowe the next year. Looking at that list, I think we did good.

I think Bernard Pollard is a work in progress, and I'm not nearly as down as him as others on this board are. He came out as a Jr., so the growing pains are more glaring with him. I personally love Pollard, but the jury's definitely out. Jarrad Page in the 7th round is an A+++++.

The jury's out on Croyle too, but the signs seem promising. I do think Chief fans who think he would have been a 1st round pick are over-rating his natural talent. Love the intagibles. Good value in the 3rd.

I think that's way above average in the league over the last 2 years.

[Chiefs_5627]

I think you're unrealistic in asking for Pro Bowlers. There are so few rookie or 2nd year Pro Bowlers, and they're often 1st round picks. Herm has not had a top 15 draft pick here yet.

Bowe is an A plus. McBride and Tyler haven't done much yet, but D-linemen take time.

Tamba Hali is good. Guys taken in the picks after him were Laurence Maroney (we weren't taking a 1st round runner), Manny Lawson, Davin Joseph, Johnathan Joseph, Santonio Holmes, John McCargo, and Deangelo Williams. Santonio Holmes is the only guy I might want more than Hali - but then we probably wouldn't draft Bowe the next year. Looking at that list, I think we did good.

I think Bernard Pollard is a work in progress, and I'm not nearly as down as him as others on this board are. He came out as a Jr., so the growing pains are more glaring with him. I personally love Pollard, but the jury's definitely out. Jarrad Page in the 7th round is an A+++++.

The jury's out on Croyle too, but the signs seem promising. I do think Chief fans who think he would have been a 1st round pick are over-rating his natural talent. Love the intagibles. Good value in the 3rd.

I think that's way above average in the league over the last 2 years.

,


Nice post, agreed.

[blsilks]

Im sure Herm knows how to strip a car but does he know how to put it back together.

[FAX]

Im sure Herm knows how to strip a car but does he know how to put it back together.

You know, Herm's teams have traditionally gotten off to a slow start, then improved as the season wore on. Not in this case. He can blame injuries, I suppose, but Kolby's and Bowe's performances pretty much shot that one down.

Herm's in trouble. He's making stupid decisions. He can't accurately evaluate a player's performance based on practice. He can't fix the oline. His vets are bitching. He can't trust his players. He sounds tired and defeated.

If we don't see dramatic improvement next year, I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't pull a Jet out of KC to somewhere else.

FAX

[el borracho]

I think you're unrealistic in asking for Pro Bowlers. There are so few rookie or 2nd year Pro Bowlers, and they're often 1st round picks.
Ok, it takes time to become a Pro Bowler. Where are the Pro Bowlers that Herm drafted for the Jets? Why are the Jets a 2 win team?
Herm has not had a top 15 draft pick here yet.
Looks like he'll get one this year.

Just to be clear, I see Herm's drafts as a large improvement over what we have had in recent years; I am overall very pleased with them but, looking at it objectively, I don't know that he is much better than league average. Neither the Jets nor the Chiefs are exactly loaded with talent.

[Zouk]

If we don't see dramatic improvement next year, I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't pull a Jet out of KC to somewhere else.

FAX

It's all about next year. We all know that. I disagree with you though about not evaluating players correctly. Croyle himself has said that he was much more prepared to play in the game after week 9 then he was after the preseason in which he performed terribly. He also said that he thinks he earned the players' respect when he fought back after losing the competition and improving in practice. He gets it.

I also think those of you that want to throw Croyle loose with down-the-field passing are underestimating our inability to pass protect. Croyle had to take a shot in the locker-room to dull pain during this game. The offensive line is unspeakably bad - that's what's causing all the problems and the conservative play calling. You cannot play call around a terrible offensive line that is poor in both run blocking and pass blocking. There is no example of it ever having been done in the NFL.

I agree with those who said that Herm is paying for Dick and Carl's sins. The defense was awful and the offense was old. He only had time and resources to fix one, but in this offseason he'll have a chance to finish the job. I think people will be pleasantly surprised next year.

[Tribal Warfare]

I think people will be pleasantly surprised next year.



We've been saying this line for 19 years now

[Coach]

If it was a rebuilding, then why are the Chiefs playing Welbourn, Terry, and Turdly over the younger players?

[FAX]

Hmmm. Mitch on the radio talking about the hits Croyle took yesterday. He said he counted 6 hits that were really, really hard. In fact, Croyle was supposed to be on Mitch's show tonight but can't make it because he's taking extra treatment tonight.

That, my friends, is a worry. Screw our oline in the ear.

FAX

[kcxiv]

You know, Herm's teams have traditionally gotten off to a slow start, then improved as the season wore on. Not in this case. He can blame injuries, I suppose, but Kolby's and Bowe's performances pretty much shot that one down.

Herm's in trouble. He's making stupid decisions. He can't accurately evaluate a player's performance based on practice. He can't fix the oline. His vets are bitching. He can't trust his players. He sounds tired and defeated.

If we don't see dramatic improvement next year, I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't pull a Jet out of KC to somewhere else.

FAXYep, we are supposed to be getting better. I think we peaked out on defense against the Colts. The Defense is worn out. Herm has put way to much pressure on them. If he gets into a long situation, he just goes for the punt. He rarely tries to get a first down. How many times earlier in the season did we see 3rd and 10 and every single route we ran was for 5 yards?

This team has no will left, They are beat and destroyed. He has lost his team.


The ****ed up thing about it is that Herm is Carl's friend. It makes it that much more harder to fire him. See how chicken shit Carl was to fire Guntharr?

[CupidStunt]

I had never seriously thought about it until very recently, but missing on a high draft pick really sets back a franchise.

Consider: the Chiefs whiff in April, 2007, and here we stand with a question mark at QB, a trainwreck on the offensive line and NO receivers.

Just hitting on that one guy can change the entire look of a team. Now, we could get away with a third-round WR to compliment Bowe allowing the Chiefs the freedom to improve on the OL and even on defense.

If Vermeil hadn't not only missed but completey WHIFFED, we'd be unbelievably better off. Even if we could've drafted an Alfonso Boone-type player No. 6 overall instead of perhaps the worst DT in the NFL, the roster looks so much better.

[Valiant]

So you think at the start of the season herm should have just benched LJ and started Smith? Come on.

Edwards does start young players, alot. Hali, Pollard, Page, Bowe, even Brackenridge and Webb quite a bit, but because he went with the vet QB, and his all pro RB at the start of the season you think it isn't true, as I said before, come on.


A lot of these guys got thier breaks from injuries on offense to propel them to the front.. Or on defense where we were so tremendously horrible that Gochiefs could have started..

Pollard and Page are teh only ones who really won their spot, the others took over from injuries or no one being there when they were drafted.. Seriously Eric Hicks..

[Messier]

A lot of these guys got thier breaks from injuries on offense to propel them to the front.. Or on defense where we were so tremendously horrible that Gochiefs could have started..

Pollard and Page are teh only ones who really won their spot, the others took over from injuries or no one being there when they were drafted.. Seriously Eric Hicks..


So it only counts if the young player is replacing someone good? The question was about Herm not starting young players, not why. I'd say most teams only start young players when it's clear the young player is better than the older player.

[The Franchise]

Yep, we are supposed to be getting better. I think we peaked out on defense against the Colts. The Defense is worn out. Herm has put way to much pressure on them. If he gets into a long situation, he just goes for the punt. He rarely tries to get a first down. How many times earlier in the season did we see 3rd and 10 and every single route we ran was for 5 yards?

This team has no will left, They are beat and destroyed. He has lost his team.


The ****ed up thing about it is that Herm is Carl's friend. It makes it that much more harder to fire him. See how chicken shit Carl was to fire Guntharr?

This sums up my thoughts exactly. Our defense would be great if they could get a damn breather in the second half of the game.

[FloridaMan88]

Its the Peter Principle... Herm is a good scout, but he is in over his head as a head coach and beyond his abilities and capabilities.

[BigChiefFan]

Surem we are Joe Po-that's why we just signed a 43 year old kicker. Our front office is a disgrace and not one media member has the balls to call for Carl's head on a platter. What a joke we've become.

BTW, that game on Sunday was boring as Hell. The prices keep going up, with the same bland ass product and 1997 feel to it... except the Gary Glitter theme has been reduced to rubble. Carl rested on his laurels and his football inadequacies have run the organization in the ground. **** you, JoPO for even suggesting Carl could handle a rebuild.