Here's the thing. We saw what Belcher can do with negative play from the NT. So right now, any new NT has to do better than "garbage." If we get average NT play, that in itself will make Belcher a lot better.

And I'm not convinced at all that a good NT is that hard to find. Most NTs are taken in the later rounds, and they are among the lowest paid players on defense (which is odd, given how crucial they are to the defense). We're seeing NTs like Pickett, Aubrayo Franklin, and Kyle Williams play solid at the position out of obscurity.

It just so happens that Pioli has made zero effort to bring one in. And some of that is due to bad luck. I'm still pretty convinced that if last year wasn't uncapped, the Chiefs would have been strong players in the Wilfork sweepstakes.

So if the interior of the D needs upgraded, when do we start talking about upgrading DJ?

i wanted him so bad when he was a FA

So you think that Derrick Johnson needs to be replaced?

Obscurity?

You're talking about a former first round draft as being "obscure"? And Franklin was a draft choice of the Ravens, who seem to know a thing or two about drafting and developing defensive players.

Furthermore, all of guys you've mentioned took years to get where they are today. It's highly unlikely that the Chiefs can pluck a 5th rounder out of the 2011 draft and see an immediate upgrade at the position.

It would be awesome, but unlikely.

The Chiefs need to improve their interior defense. If they can find an obvious upgrade from Derrick Johnson, they should do it.

Ah, behold the power of meaningless truisms.

Conversely, Dick Butkus', Mike Singletarys' and Pat Willis' don't grow on trees either. And, as people have pointed out, unless you upgrade the NT position, you are going to need a ILB of that caliber to effectively reach the goals/performance you are envisioning for this defense without a decent nose.

Johnson and Belcher showed a lot with not a lot of consistent production in front of them. You get some guys up there that can keep the offensive line guys from getting into the second level and they will have even better years than what you saw last season, which, in my opinion, was pretty damn good by both players.

Kyle Williams, who is currently the best nose tackle in the NFL, was a fifth rounder in 2006. You got to be a little lucky, but you also got to be good. There will be some guys at that area that might have a little Kyle Williams in them. The Ian Williams guy from Notre Dame and Sione Fua from Stanford should be there in the mid-rounds because they don't fit "the prototype" in terms of size, but both were very productive in college as nose tackles.

Uh huh, nice way to bolster your claim, Counselor.

But you're right: Belcher was awesome in 2010 and the Chiefs shouldn't even consider upgrading the position.

My bad.

Yeah, he clearly has shown that he's an amazing ILB that quickly sheds offensive lineman and makes tough tackles in the run game.

I couldn't believe his effectiveness against Darren McFadden and Knowshon Moreno. He was practically the defense in those games.

Yeah considering the top 3-4 defenses are built around no-name NT's. :shake:

Do you believe Derrick Johnson fits that classification?

I know he had a great first 4-6 games of the season, then was prone to long stretches of being invisible or flat out ineffective from that point forward.

Either you believe Johnson was an elite ILB last season (who can't shed blockers, I must add) or you are applying an inconsistent standard to the respective players.

Johnson is playing the Mike position and it's his job to make tackles. As a matter of fact, he had 121 tackles this past season, so I'd say he's doing his job.

And yes, I thought he was among the league's better ILBer's. I don't know how that can be disputed but I'm sure you'll try.

The fact is that most 3-4 defenses in the league not only have a solid NT. They have 2 good ones, and both of them are not very highly paid. Like Center and Running Back, despite being very important positions, those positions aren't drafted until the 2nd or 3rd round. And you can easily find gems in the later rounds as well. The skill set for the position isn't all that difficult.

I'm not saying you don't try hard to find a NT. I'm just saying it's wrong to say that it's this impossible position to fill and that we're screwed because we can't get a Raji or a Ngata.

The reason the Chiefs don't have a Nose Tackle today is because they haven't even remotely tried to get one. If the Chiefs bring in Solilai and draft a 2nd or 3rd or 4th rounder (assuming they do good advanced scouting), they could very, very easily be secure at the NT position.

Your position is essentially that our interior defense was bad last season and since we can't upgrade at NT, we need to upgrade somewhere.

So if a better sideline to sideline backer shook free, shouldn't the Chiefs be compelled to 'exercise their due dilligence' and upgrade?

JFC, you love to argue.

The TED backer and NT NEED to upgraded. Nowhere did I state ANYTHING about Derrick Johnson or his play and I think it's ludicrous to suggest that he's going ANYWHERE after the extension he just signed.

But if you think that DJ needs to replaced, by all means, let us know why.