ShowtimeSBMVP
08-26-2012, 11:04 AM
By Eric Edholm
Chiefs head coach Romeo Crennel said back on July 31 he thought CB Brandon Flowers would be back “soon” from a left heel injury he suffered in a practice that night. More than three weeks later, Flowers remains out.
Few know why, and no one is saying.
Crennel repeatedly has given updates on Flowers’ status while emphasizing how much the team needs him back on the field. With Week One very much closing in and the Chiefs’ secondary already down a starter (FS Kendrick Lewis, who could miss the opener against the Falcons because of a shoulder injury), there is legitimate concern.
One source told PFW this week that the team is having some trouble pinpointing exactly what is giving Flowers continued problems and why he hasn’t healed faster. Flowers, who has been seen in a walking boot, is the Chiefs’ best cover man, with the team having lost Brandon Carr to Dallas in offseason free agency.
The additional uncertainty could lead to the team keeping 10 or 11 defensive backs for the opening 53-man roster. The locks (or virtual locks) to make it are Flowers, Stanford Routt, Jalil Brown and Javier Arenas. Other corners on the depth chart now, all of whom are fighting for spots, include fifth-rounder DeQuan Menzie, Jacques Reeves, Chandler Fenner, Neiko Thorpe and Mikail Baker. Adding a corner released from another team’s roster is a solid possibility, too.
If the team is without OLB Tamba Hali (suspension) and Flowers and Lewis in Week One against the Falcons, it could be a tough chore stopping Matt Ryan and Co.
Chiefs head coach Romeo Crennel said back on July 31 he thought CB Brandon Flowers would be back “soon” from a left heel injury he suffered in a practice that night. More than three weeks later, Flowers remains out.
Few know why, and no one is saying.
Crennel repeatedly has given updates on Flowers’ status while emphasizing how much the team needs him back on the field. With Week One very much closing in and the Chiefs’ secondary already down a starter (FS Kendrick Lewis, who could miss the opener against the Falcons because of a shoulder injury), there is legitimate concern.
One source told PFW this week that the team is having some trouble pinpointing exactly what is giving Flowers continued problems and why he hasn’t healed faster. Flowers, who has been seen in a walking boot, is the Chiefs’ best cover man, with the team having lost Brandon Carr to Dallas in offseason free agency.
The additional uncertainty could lead to the team keeping 10 or 11 defensive backs for the opening 53-man roster. The locks (or virtual locks) to make it are Flowers, Stanford Routt, Jalil Brown and Javier Arenas. Other corners on the depth chart now, all of whom are fighting for spots, include fifth-rounder DeQuan Menzie, Jacques Reeves, Chandler Fenner, Neiko Thorpe and Mikail Baker. Adding a corner released from another team’s roster is a solid possibility, too.
If the team is without OLB Tamba Hali (suspension) and Flowers and Lewis in Week One against the Falcons, it could be a tough chore stopping Matt Ryan and Co.