Hammock Parties
09-16-2011, 11:42 PM
EVERYTHING'S OKAY NOW!
MCGRAW WAS AWESOME IN COLLEGE GUYS!
AND HE'S CRAFTY http://uranus.ckt.net/~gochiefs/ugh2.gif
http://www.kansascity.com/2011/09/15/3145688/chiefs-mcgraw-has-replaced-a-star.html
Jon McGraw knew there was pressure. There always is when an unheralded player replaces a star. He was about to be pushed into the starting lineup, stepping in for a popular and proven teammate.
“Big shoes to fill,” McGraw said. “He’s such a great athlete. But I feel pretty confident.”
He used those words in April 2000, months after Lamar Chapman’s eligibility was exhausted at Kansas State. Chapman had started 30 consecutive games and was an All-Big 12 free safety. McGraw was a former walk-on whose contributions for the Wildcats had come mostly on special teams.
More than a decade before McGraw, now a veteran Chiefs safety, was asked to step into the starting lineup to replace Eric Berry, he was a junior at K-State. McGraw had passed up a scholarship offer at Wyoming and an appointment at the Air Force Academy to play in Manhattan, his hometown.
Three seasons later, he had his chance.
“What I remember about Jon,” said Stan Weber, a former Wildcats quarterback who’s now the team’s color analyst, “is that he never seems intimidated.”
Weber also remembered that what McGraw lacked in dazzling speed, he made up for with intelligence. More talented players might have been able to recover if they missed an assignment or found themselves out of position. McGraw emphasized smarts and attention to detail.
In McGraw’s fifth game as a starter, he had two interceptions against Colorado. He returned one for a touchdown in a 44-21 win. He went on to be a second-round pick of the New York Jets in 2002, months after taking his own place on the All-Big 12 team.
“A great feeling for K-State fans to realize that this guy is a big-time player,” Weber said. “… Everyone felt comfortable with him playing, but then he just kept going and going. He just keeps improving slightly.”
More than a decade later, McGraw has another chance to show that he’s capable, but more than that, a chance to ease fans’ fears that there won’t be a colossal dropoff from McGraw to the player he’s replacing. Berry was the No. 5 overall draft pick last year and reached the Pro Bowl in his rookie season. Berry suffered torn knee ligaments in Sunday’s 41-7 loss to Buffalo, ending his season and thrusting McGraw again into the lineup.
McGraw is 32 now, and few expect him to emerge as a star. Coach Todd Haley said that’s not what the Chiefs are asking of him.
“It’s 11 guys, really, to close the gap there,” Haley said of replacing Berry. “I don’t know if you still are able to, but at the same time, it’s 11 guys that have to pick up the slack, and Jon is one of those guys.”
McGraw declined an interview request by The Star on Thursday, saying he was taking a “day off” from speaking with reporters. Carrying his playbook, McGraw then headed toward a team meeting.
Although McGraw’s skills might now be limited — he had trouble last week keeping up with Buffalo’s speedier receivers — he still takes an intellectual approach to the game. Second-year free safety Kendrick Lewis, who replaced McGraw in the starting lineup last year, said it’s common for the veteran to share his wisdom from nine NFL seasons — and to elicit some thoughts from youngsters, too.
“If there’s a defense that Coach calls, I might ask him, ‘Well, how do you look at it?’ ” Lewis said. “Or, ‘How do you see it?’ or, ‘How would you play it?’ … Just simple things like that, you know, just picking his brain because I know he’s been there, and him picking my brain so we can still be on the same page.”
That’s what the Chiefs need to bridge the gap between Berry and his veteran replacement, particularly Sunday as McGraw’s assignment will be preventing big plays from Detroit quarterback Matt Stafford and wide receiver Calvin Johnson.
It won’t be easy, and McGraw perhaps faces low expectations after the Chiefs lost Berry. Then again, Weber said, that’s what K-State fans thought 11 years ago.
“Jon is crafty,” Weber said. “… That’s the mentality that he has: That he’s going to find ways to be successful.”
MCGRAW WAS AWESOME IN COLLEGE GUYS!
AND HE'S CRAFTY http://uranus.ckt.net/~gochiefs/ugh2.gif
http://www.kansascity.com/2011/09/15/3145688/chiefs-mcgraw-has-replaced-a-star.html
Jon McGraw knew there was pressure. There always is when an unheralded player replaces a star. He was about to be pushed into the starting lineup, stepping in for a popular and proven teammate.
“Big shoes to fill,” McGraw said. “He’s such a great athlete. But I feel pretty confident.”
He used those words in April 2000, months after Lamar Chapman’s eligibility was exhausted at Kansas State. Chapman had started 30 consecutive games and was an All-Big 12 free safety. McGraw was a former walk-on whose contributions for the Wildcats had come mostly on special teams.
More than a decade before McGraw, now a veteran Chiefs safety, was asked to step into the starting lineup to replace Eric Berry, he was a junior at K-State. McGraw had passed up a scholarship offer at Wyoming and an appointment at the Air Force Academy to play in Manhattan, his hometown.
Three seasons later, he had his chance.
“What I remember about Jon,” said Stan Weber, a former Wildcats quarterback who’s now the team’s color analyst, “is that he never seems intimidated.”
Weber also remembered that what McGraw lacked in dazzling speed, he made up for with intelligence. More talented players might have been able to recover if they missed an assignment or found themselves out of position. McGraw emphasized smarts and attention to detail.
In McGraw’s fifth game as a starter, he had two interceptions against Colorado. He returned one for a touchdown in a 44-21 win. He went on to be a second-round pick of the New York Jets in 2002, months after taking his own place on the All-Big 12 team.
“A great feeling for K-State fans to realize that this guy is a big-time player,” Weber said. “… Everyone felt comfortable with him playing, but then he just kept going and going. He just keeps improving slightly.”
More than a decade later, McGraw has another chance to show that he’s capable, but more than that, a chance to ease fans’ fears that there won’t be a colossal dropoff from McGraw to the player he’s replacing. Berry was the No. 5 overall draft pick last year and reached the Pro Bowl in his rookie season. Berry suffered torn knee ligaments in Sunday’s 41-7 loss to Buffalo, ending his season and thrusting McGraw again into the lineup.
McGraw is 32 now, and few expect him to emerge as a star. Coach Todd Haley said that’s not what the Chiefs are asking of him.
“It’s 11 guys, really, to close the gap there,” Haley said of replacing Berry. “I don’t know if you still are able to, but at the same time, it’s 11 guys that have to pick up the slack, and Jon is one of those guys.”
McGraw declined an interview request by The Star on Thursday, saying he was taking a “day off” from speaking with reporters. Carrying his playbook, McGraw then headed toward a team meeting.
Although McGraw’s skills might now be limited — he had trouble last week keeping up with Buffalo’s speedier receivers — he still takes an intellectual approach to the game. Second-year free safety Kendrick Lewis, who replaced McGraw in the starting lineup last year, said it’s common for the veteran to share his wisdom from nine NFL seasons — and to elicit some thoughts from youngsters, too.
“If there’s a defense that Coach calls, I might ask him, ‘Well, how do you look at it?’ ” Lewis said. “Or, ‘How do you see it?’ or, ‘How would you play it?’ … Just simple things like that, you know, just picking his brain because I know he’s been there, and him picking my brain so we can still be on the same page.”
That’s what the Chiefs need to bridge the gap between Berry and his veteran replacement, particularly Sunday as McGraw’s assignment will be preventing big plays from Detroit quarterback Matt Stafford and wide receiver Calvin Johnson.
It won’t be easy, and McGraw perhaps faces low expectations after the Chiefs lost Berry. Then again, Weber said, that’s what K-State fans thought 11 years ago.
“Jon is crafty,” Weber said. “… That’s the mentality that he has: That he’s going to find ways to be successful.”