Chiefs News Etc 8/17/12
 

Slow day so far. Heard Sean Salsbury on the radio talking about the QB situation in KC and ATL. Sean said Matt Ryan is on fire again and the Chiefs will have their hands full from the very first game this season.

Then, they put on a couple of Chiefs cheerleaders and interviewed them. The cheerleaders said they have to pass a "football test" and one of the questions was "align each team logo with it's proper division". Like I said, slow news day.


So, here's a piece written for the Chiefs' site;






Running back has factored into Kansas City’s offense this preseason


http://www.kcchiefs.com/assets/image...50_8_16_12.jpg


St. Joseph, Mo. – If things went as planned, Shaun Draughn would probably be in Redskins camp right now.

That’s where he was at this time last year, eyeing a spot on Washington’s 53-man roster.

But things weren’t meant to be in Washington. Draughn received limited opportunities – just 11 preseason carries – and his 1.7-yard rushing average didn’t do the undrafted rookie any favors.

Shaun Draughn was just another name looking for work by the time September rolled around.

“I came up the rough side of the mountain,” Draughn said. “I was cut last year and had to come to a new team as a member of the practice squad.”

Draughn remained unemployed until early October when Kansas City took a midseason flier on the former North Carolina Tarheel. Rookie offensive lineman Butch Lewis was traded out for Draughn on the Chiefs eight-man practice squad.

It was on Kansas City’s practice squad that Draughn’s NFL career began to turn in a new direction.

“Actually, it was probably a blessing in disguise to go the practice squad route,” Draughn said. “I feel like I got so much better just practicing against our defense and learning form guys like Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones. Thomas was a big mentor to me last year and was always encouraging me to keep pushing forward.”

He listened and kept working, running opponents’ offensive plays for the Chiefs scout team. It wasn’t long before Draughn started to get noticed.

Draughn’s practices became impressive enough that defensive line coach Anthony Pleasant sought out assistant head coach Maurice Carthon to make sure the former NFL running back wasn’t overlooking Draughn’s scout team production.

“Our defensive coaches were really impressed with his work on the scout team,” Carthon recalled. “Every other day Anthony Pleasant was saying, ‘hey, did you just see the move that kid made?’ So I started to take a closer look at him. He’s flashed throughout OTAs and here in training camp. Now I hope that he continues to grow.”

The Chiefs promoted Draughn to the active roster prior to last year’s regular season finale when Jackie Battle landed on injured reserve. Draughn would only play special teams against the Broncos, but it ensured him a spot on the Chiefs roster for at least the 2012 offseason program.

“It’s was a blessing,” Draughn said of the promotion. “I’m thankful for the organization giving me a chance. My approach has been to just keep doing what I’ve been doing. I’m focused on improving every day and trying to make this team.”

With Jamaal Charles, Peyton Hillis and sixth-round draft pick Cyrus Gray all competing for time in Kansas City’s backfield – not to mention a possible cameo from Dexter McCluster – Draughn slid under the radar for much of the offseason. But fans and media started to take notice during open training camp practices.

Draughn began stringing big plays together one after the other and scored a touchdown in last week’s preseason opener against Arizona.

“It was crazy when I scored,” Draughn said. “Even when I was in college I never heard the crowd. You kind of zone out when you score, but that time I kind of took it all in and took my time getting to the sideline. I wanted to stay out there as long as I could and celebrate with my teammates.”

Camp is closing and it’s been a successful three-week run for Draughn. He’s put himself in position to make a solid run at a roster spot over the final three preseason games. The Chiefs have given him looks running with the first-team offense and he’s already logged more carries than he did all of last preseason with the Redskins.

Saturday night represents another big test in St. Louis. Gray is sidelined with a hamstring injury, leaving Draughn with more opportunities to show his progression. He’ll also be running on multiple special teams units in addition to an expanded offensive role.

“I just feel like I’m doing what I’m coached to do and when I get my chance I try to shine as best I can,” Draughn said. “What people don’t notice is that I probably go harder in special teams than anything else. That’s how I’ll make this football team. It’s going to be a big role that I’ll have to play.”

Kansas City’s backfield now appears more crowded than it did entering training camp. Carthon says it’s the deepest group of backs he’s coached since joining the Chiefs four seasons ago.

“I wish I could keep them all, not just four,” Carthon said. “They are all great guys, good people and are working hard. That’s exactly what they are and it’s good as a coach. It’s like being a kid in a candy store. You go in the morning and those guys are there mentally, you don’t hear too much talk-back from any of them and they are always ready to focus on the task at hand.”


http://www.kcchiefs.com/news/article...b-c9c4e63e222b

New day, new news thread.

I love it.

rep

Kid's gonna get a bunch of carries this week. If I'm not mistaken, Gray won't play.

Ryan definately looked good last night. He started 11 for 11 and finished 18-21 for 174 yards and a TD. Not bad for a quarter and a half. We are going to have to get pressure on him or he will kill us.

Agreed. This is so much better.

Keeping four, he will make the team.

If there's a god, Flowers will be ready.

Atlanta will be a good matchup, they have so many weapons. I agree, the key will be getting pressure on Ryan and not letting the recievers have time to get downfield. I can forsee us losing in a close game with the difference Bowe and Cassel not being on the same page and two penalties by Routt. But then again we have as many weapons, really more, than them and our D should be better than theirs.

I don't understand.

This thread doesn't have an argument about Stanzi. Isn't this an infraction of the terms of use?

No, but it should be.

Another thought is , if their QB goes down their chances of winning goes down. If ours goes down our chances of winning go up.

No arguing on Fridays it's all peaches and lollipops.

run baby run .....

No doubt about it. I expect to see that sub-package (Berry at the Joker spot) quite a bit in that game.

Yup, 6 db's for the win. Play him like we did Rodgers last year.

Falcons run game is not at all dominant, and our run d is. I think we pick him twice.

Ryan always looks good at home.

His problems start when he is playing on the road.

We will need at pressure him al lot and when we have the ball, we need to run it down their throats.

4 sacks and a bunch of hurries on d and 175+ rushing will win the game.

175 is quite a bit. Especially out of the gate.
The year we lead the league in rushing we didn't put that many yards together until the 3rd week of the season.

And ATL's got a Top 10 run defense.

McCluster won't see time at RB this season.

Only time he'll run the ball if it's on a WR reverse etc.

What makes you so sure about that?

I think both of those marks I posted are not only possible, but probable.

Our run game should be in beast mode...our line and backs might be the best in the league and our receivers are good enough to prevent Atlanta from stacking to stop the run.

As far as the sacks go, our pass rush should be able to overwhelm Atlantas OL and hopefully gets in his head and makes him force passes that fruit us a couple picks.

We REALLY need Flowers out there, though...otherwise, Julio Jones is gonna torch Brown.

On paper, sure.
Unfortunately there's no way to know how good this backfield will be.

The #1 run game of 2010 didn't post 175 yards on the ground until Game 3.
I think that's ALOT to expect any team to put together in the opening week of the season.

And again, that Atlanta run defense is pretty stout.
They didn't surrender 175 yards on the ground to ANY team all last season.

175 is ALOT to ask for in the opener.
Especially with Charles and Hillis both coming back from injury.
I doubt seriously that Daboll loads either of them up with a bunch of carries in Game 1.

I'm confident about the first game. We should be able to control the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball. They won't be able to run against us with their shaky offensive line and we should be able to run up and down the field on them with the improvements we've made. Their secondary is swiss cheese so Cassel should be able to find the open WR. We shall see though. Lots of "shoulds." But I'm confident though.

the more success DMC has at WR the less likely they are to use him at RB. IMO

also we have so many more options at RB that i'm not sure there's room for him.

Charles
Hillis
Draughn
Gray

who would you suggest be replaced by McCluster?

Jessie Haynes?

The Falcons secondary, is most certainly not swiss cheese. The Falcons are a really solid, well put together football team.


Gonna be a good tough test for the Chiefs to gauge where they are.

Yes, it is. Grimes is the only concern I'd have, but that's it.

Well I think if it's close, and it should be, they more dynamic offense will have the advantage down the stretch. I bet we lose a close one. Should be a good game though.

I don't think we'll see him lining up back there frequently, but I wouldn't be at all surprised to see them line him up at WR and then motion back to RB on occasion. It seems like Dabol wants to incorporate a bit of the Saunders trickeration, so I'm sure McC will end up back there from time to time just to throw defenders off.

Because we're keeping 5 backs if you include Bannon and he hasn't played any snaps at RB?

Ok so a gimmick play.....like a WR reverse ...are the only times DMC will be carrying the rock.

That and Wildcat looks like the only times. We'll see though.

Agreed as well.

I guess Denver better prepare for Clady to retire. Hali is ending careers. Everyone knows how bad Hali owned Clady.

backup OL for KC is like finding a drummer for Spinal Tap

Dexter hasn't worked at RB any this year. Solely at WR, and has had a good camp at WR.



On the other hand, we have 4 RB"s who have had a really good camp and are fighting it out for carries. Why would Dexter take carries away from one of them?

Saying the Falcons suck on the road because of the past few years is like saying we suck period because of the last few years.

They've never won at Arrowhead, it isn't going to start now.

They didn't look very stout against the run. I'm sure they'll fix that before they get to Arrowhead though.

Until the Falcons actually win something, they're just a mediocre team.

If they were a great or "feared" team, they wouldn't have needed to replace both coordinators this off-season (and before you say "Mularkey was hired by Jax", the Falcons were going to replace him, regardless).

There was a lot of (radio) talk on Ricki Stanzi this morning. Word is, Stanzi is having trouble reading defense and adjusting pre snap. I saw the same when at TC this year, at one point Romeo raised some hell with Stanzi after a play and it looked like Stanzi made the wrong call and didn't know it. He's struggling to get it all going on the field this season. Tomorrow could be an indication of this, he will likely get to field the #1 offense during some of the game. Salsbury made the point some QB's don't practice as well as they play, could be Stanzi.

Matt Ryan is 13-10 outdoors with a qb rating of 82.3
He is 30-11 indoors with a qb rating of 91.4

Being at Arrowhead bodes well for us in many ways

KC got torched through the air last year by Fitzpatrick, Moore and Sanchez, yet KC fans are selling Ryan and the Falcons short?

I don't think he needs to be carried as a RB to be used as one.
In fact, that makes him all the more valuable to the offense.
His ability to be used in different ways.

Why does his being a WR, in name, mean he can't be used in the backfield at different points throughout the season?

KC also dominated Aaron Rodgers, so...

We are gonna have to play really well to beat the Falcons. Cassel is gonna have to not shit his pants and have a good game, er, good season.


The Falcons aren't the pushover some think they are.

It was the best game KC played all year, but they were helped by the Packers receivers getting all Bowe/Baldwin with stone hands.

Rodgers doesn't complete 48% of his passes because of the receivers. They may have dropped a couple easy ones but he still has by far his worst game last season against the Chiefs.

why would you want to use McCluster at RB at all?

what does he do that another RB doesn't do better?

Charles - better RB, better 3rd down back,better receiving back, better blocker
Hillis - better RB,better power,better receiving back,better blocker
Draughn - looks better at everything too so far
Gray - looks better at everything too so far

hopefully DMC can find a home at WR and be productive, but i don't need to see him at RB ever again ... ever.

Don't need to see him at returner either.

Arenas/Wylie > McCluster

apparentl Cyrus Gray is a quality special teamer and returner as well and he is actually big enough to cover on kicks too.

The only runs McCluster is going to get is on end arounds.

Because it creates a mismatch defensively.
If he's a WR and you see him lined up in the backfield, it'll be tough for a defense to know what to expect from him.

I'm not arguing that he should be carried as a RB.
I'm not arguing that he's better than any of the RB's we expect the Chiefs to retain.

I'm arguing purely from a matchup/scheming standpoint.

To say he won't be used in the backfield at all this season is a stretch.

How exactly does that create a defensive mismatch? Teams know what he brings as a RB and it's probably not too frightening.

Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo


that's a dam myth

who would you rather have catch a pass out of the backfield?

(ranks them 1 thru 3)

Charles
Hillis
McCluster


if DMC isn't 3 then you're a liar

Charles better at making people miss (by a mile)
Hillis is better at running through tackles (by a mile)

both Charles/Hillis are legit threats to run the ball as well as catching a pass. DMC can't pass block and isn't much of a threat to run so teams know he's out there to catch a pass.

give it up to DMC though ... he's best at getting blown up and not dying. He's a tough little ****er.

Dex has looked better as a WR this offseason. Just leave him there, let him get his 2 or 3 touches per game and move on.

I misspoke. Forget the word "mismatch".
It 'potentially' creates an offensive advantage. Better?

Or shall I just adopt the company line that he's a piece of shit who can't help this football team?

I don't think he's worthless, I think he can be somewhat dynamic as a WR.

sure he can help ..... AS A WR.

every chiefs fan needs to cross their fingers and hope that DMC can use his quickness to be our wes welker or Desean Jackson.

leave all the RB stuff to the good RB's

Not like you couldn't have both he and Charles in the backfield.
But okay.
:rolleyes:

As a RB Dex offers very little.

As a slot receiver he ran some nice routes last week.

I personally wouldn't minimize him in anyway.
He averaged 4.5 ypc last season.
Why limit him?

Would I give him 10 carries per game? No, but I also wouldn't box him up.

or you could have Hillis and Charles both in the backfield

one power
one quick
both catch
both run
both block

McCluster is never going to be DeSean Jackson. He's not nearly fast enough.

Dexter can be utilized as the 4 WR. Now you can argue that the 4th wr in a run happy offense won't get much thrown his way, and I'd agree.



But I tend to think we are a little more pass happy this year than we previously have been.

Or you could have multiple two back sets, with interchangeable parts.

why?

why use a lesser player when you have two better players available? Maybe even more than two better players.

unless there is an injury, DMC shouldn't see a single snap at RB.

i suppose you can pretend to have him RB and then motion him to WR to have an extra WR. But only for formation purposes.

Oh I don't know...Because we're going to use more than Charles and Hillis in the backfield anyway?

You can argue that he SHOULDN'T get carries, but the idea that he won't because there are two better backs in front of him is...well...silly.

He got carries in his rookie season with two better backs in front of him (as a WR).
Why wouldn't he this year?

There is better depth right now (per 1 preseason game and camp reports).

Hell of a sample size.

Because there aren't 2 better backs in front of him, there are 3 maybe 4.


You think he's better than either of the 4 we have out there right now?

Based on training camp and ONE pre-season game?

and using your 3rd,4th,5th best RB when you have so many other options is...well...a complete waste.

let's just run our 4th string QB out there in every game just to use them and not be 'silly'

you play your best players on ever snap unless they need a break ... we have plenty of RB's that can keep Charles fresh without using DMC.

The argument here is that no play should go to anyone other than your very best skill players at the position.

So Devon Wylie will just have to understand when Cassel looks to Bowe and Breaston on every offensive pass play.
:rolleyes:

And the fact that our RB coach said we were keeping 4 RB's and Dexter hasn't had one carry this TC or preseason game.

of course things can change

maybe it was a one game fluke and the whole team turns to shit

but as of right now .......


there is no reason to use DMC at RB at all.

You know that Draughn and Gray are better today.
I don't. I believe they will be, but I haven't seen either of them produce in a real game. Until such time...there is ZERO reason to strike McCluster from the conversation.

Hell I'm not even arguing he should get 50 carries this season.
I never set a number to it. I just think it's a little crazy to think he won't get any carries from the backfield this year. He has the skillset. Why wouldn't they utilize it every now and again?

Yep, exactly the same thing.



Nice edit, btw.

I realized I hadn't made an equal analogy.
Sue me.

End of the day... In his rookie season, he got 1 carry a game, as a WR.
He had two better backs ahead of him then...
Why are you certain that won't happen this year?

that's not the same and you know it


when you send multiple receivers out then you find the open guy


but sending your 3rd/4th/5th string RB out there 'just because' is silly.


you don't get enough offensive snaps to just run guys out there.


hey ... maybe we will have a dominant offense and DMC can gets some carries in the 4th quarter when we are up by 40.

But tbh even then i would probably give Gray the leftover stuff.

Because I believe we have better guys in front of him at running back that should take that carry.



I have no problem using him in the slot. I think he has looked pretty good in that spot this year.