Mellinger: Chiefs need to make fixes, but not at head coach

[FringeNC]

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/01/01...ennel-and.html

Chiefs need to make fixes, but not at head coach
By SAM MELLINGER

The Kansas City Star

DENVER | They are chanting his name in the locker room, over and over and over, the second time in three weeks they’ve busted out in beautiful, spontaneous, united success for the man they overwhelmingly want to coach them next year.

RAC! … RAC! … RAC! …

Those Chiefs players will almost certainly get their wish, and very soon, as general manager Scott Pioli is expected to make interim coach Romeo Crennel the permanent leader of a roster already dedicated to him.

Crennel deserves it. He’s earned it, removing the most reasonable doubts by beating the Broncos 7-3 here on Sunday. That’s wins over two playoff teams in three games for a man who embodies most of the characteristics the organization wants to project.

Three respected Chiefs players — Tamba Hali, Steve Breaston and Le’Ron McClain — agreed that Crennel has “overwhelming” support from the players. So the Chiefs are best served with him as the head coach, but only under the following condition:

They don’t get fooled into believing the rest of the fixes from a disappointing season are in-house.

Early indications are good. The coaching staff will undergo major changes, almost certainly with a new offensive coordinator and new special-teams coach.

Crennel would have final say in hiring assistants, and that includes Josh McDaniels, with whom he worked four seasons in New England and will reportedly be fired as Rams offensive coordinator. Chiefs fans have spent a lot of time agonizing over McDaniels, but a Chiefs source said he was not and will not be interviewed for the head coaching job.

That’s a good start, but not enough. The players seem to understand this.

“Yeah, you need to bring in some guys,” says Hali, who with a long-term contract and universal respect is among the Chiefs who can speak most freely. “We need some younger guys. Guys like Derrick (Johnson) and I, we are aging in this game. I do believe you need to bring in some younger guys to help us.”

Hali goes on. He says that “we have to make sure that (quarterback) position is solidified,” and that “nothing against our old coach, but Romeo’s a little older, experienced, he knows what he’s doing.”

There is more, and it is echoed throughout the locker room, with a season now officially over and the players as honest and reflective as the NFL and Chiefs culture allows.

Breaston talks of being proud that his team played hard, when it had nothing to play for and the Broncos had so much. He thinks that’s equal parts Crennel’s influence and what he’s come to think of as a unique vibe within the Chiefs’ locker room.

McClain talks of hoping to be back next year, so he can see this thing through, only without an absurd string of injuries that hampered so much of what would’ve otherwise been possible.

Changes will be made, of course, mostly because changes are always made in the NFL, but also because changes need to be made with the Chiefs.

Injuries have become a crutch for apologists, and this is counterproductive if it allows anyone to believe that a near-historic number of blowout losses can be fixed by a doctor.

The offensive line was perfectly healthy, for instance, and it stunk for most of the season. Same with the defensive line, though Allen Bailey’s emergence is encouraging.

The Chiefs’ decision-makers seem to understand this. You get that sense through private conversations, anyway, though there is enough deliberate ambiguity within the organization that it’s hard to tell for sure.

One of the most dangerous temptations is to believe that the Chiefs are this close to the playoffs because they weren’t eliminated until last week.

You can even point out that if Dwayne Bowe hadn’t dropped a touchdown pass against the Raiders, or if Ryan Succop had made one of those field goals, the Chiefs would be in the playoffs.

Except that’s not a reason to be comfortable; it’s the opposite. The Chiefs came within a game of the playoffs because the AFC West is worse than chicken pox. Failing to take advantage would be a shame — a fireable offense.

Realistically, the Chiefs quit against the Jets and Dolphins, lost by 27 or more points five times and actually got pretty lucky with a schedule that gave them a string of failing quarterbacks (including the Chargers’ Philip Rivers fumbling away a win on Halloween) and breaks in Chicago.

Just by virtue of medical technology, the Chiefs will be the AFC West’s most improved team if Jamaal Charles, Eric Berry and Tony Moeaki fully recover. There is no way to plan for a similar stack of injuries next year, but only fools would rely on duplicating the remarkably injury-free season of 2010.

Hali understands this. He talked for about 10 minutes as the locker room around him cleared out for the last time this season. He talked mostly about his coach, and about how Crennel is one of those “special people … almost like your father” whom players want to make proud.

“You know our league,” he says. “Some guys buy in, some guys don’t. It seems like a lot of guys have bought into Romeo. His philosophy and everything he wants to get done, we’ve bought into it.”

The Chiefs need to make that matter. But they also need to understand that to capitalize on a beautiful opportunity next year, many of the other needed changes must come from outside the organization.

[Reerun_KC]

Originally Posted by dirk digler

People have very short memories it seems.

Too many spend their time knee jerking off the flavor of the hour here..

Instead of looking at the bigger picture and the furture of this Franchise...

[dirk digler]

Originally Posted by Reerun_KC

Too many spend their time knee jerking off the flavor of the hour here..

Instead of looking at the bigger picture and the furture of this Franchise...

Yep. I don't see the future as bright if they hire RAC. JMVHO as long as the Hunts run the team we will never compete for a SB again.

[Reerun_KC]

Originally Posted by dirk digler

Yep. I don't see the future as bright if they hire RAC. JMVHO as long as the Hunts run the team we will never compete for a SB again.

Bingo... /thread

[Messier]

Originally Posted by BigChiefFan

Does everyone forget that Romeo was the D coordinator with some of the worst blow-out losses in the history of the franchise and now some want him to have even more control?

So not only do you not want him as HC, but you don't think he's a good coordinator either.

[Reerun_KC]

Originally Posted by Messier

So not only do you not want him as HC, but you don't think he's a good coordinator either.

Above Average...

Not the best ever, but good enough to win a superbowl with as history proves...

[Marcellus]

Originally Posted by Reerun_KC

Bingo... /thread

So what has Hunt done besides make Pioli the highest paid GM in the league and have one of the highest paid coaching staffs in the league?

Sign DJ, Hali, Flowers, JC, Succup (lol), etc......

You are going to say Hunt is cheap because he didn't sign x-players.

Who are those players? You think a RT or center was going to cost a fortune? $ wasn't the issue there, Pioli is.

You going to say they didn't want to pay a back up QB? Then they gave $2.6MM to Orton for 5 games?

You are entitled to your opinion but what has Clark ****ed up recently that doesn't point directly back to Pioli?

Hiring Pioli is his biggest sin, and that is something 95% of this place was ecstatic about.

Cheap owners let key players walk rather than paying them, I haven't seen that happen one time since Clark took over. I hope it doesn't happen with Bowe.

[Messier]

Originally Posted by dirk digler

Yep. I don't see the future as bright if they hire RAC. JMVHO as long as the Hunts run the team we will never compete for a SB again.

Then we should give up, because the Chiefs will always be owned by the Hunts.

[BigChiefFan]

Originally Posted by Messier

So not only do you not want him as HC, but you don't think he's a good coordinator either.

I think he's a pretty good coordinator, but I'm not going to ignore the huge blow-outs that happened under his watch.

A fair approach is to look at his ENTIRE body of work.

His defenses were taken to the woodshed in a few games, that's reality.

[ILChief]

At least Tamba mentioned that the QB position needs to be solidified. Maybe that will make it clear to Pioli and Hunt that the team is not drinking the Cassel Kool Aid any more

[DaKCMan AP]

FTR, if we're going after St. Louis Rams castoff coaches I'd rather have Spags @ DC than McDaniels @ OC but Spags will probably go back to the NFC East.

[ILChief]

Originally Posted by DaKCMan AP

FTR, if we're going after St. Louis Rams castoff coaches I'd rather have Spags @ DC than McDaniels @ OC but Spags will probably go back to the NFC East.

Look for Spags to PHI immediately

[RINGLEADER]

Originally Posted by FringeNC

I don't have strong feelings about RAC one way or another, but if Pioli does bring back Cassel, that will put a big damper on my enthusiasm for next year.

This is pretty much how I feel, though I'm not super-high on Romeo. Need to replace Muir and Cassel or there will be more tears in 2012.

[Reerun_KC]

Originally Posted by RINGLEADER

This is pretty much how I feel, though I'm not super-high on Romeo. Need to replace Muir and Cassel or there will be more tears in 2012.

Just Redzone Tears....

[Messier]

Originally Posted by Dexter Manley

Ah shut up and get back to hockey...


Chiefs have season ticket holders. They need to tell the Hunts that Pioli had his chance and doesn't deserve another season as Chiefs GM...

The fans don't Have power to tell Clark to fire GMs. Not renewing season tickets won't make Hunt say, It must be Pioli! I've got to get rid of him, fast! The chiefs need to be bad for awhile under Pioli for a move to be made.

Messier doesn't stand for Mark.

[RINGLEADER]

Originally Posted by ILChief

At least Tamba mentioned that the QB position needs to be solidified. Maybe that will make it clear to Pioli and Hunt that the team is not drinking the Cassel Kool Aid any more

How can they? The guy has one good game out of every four and then only against crap defenses. He's just not good. Everyone seems to recognize this except the powers that be Arrowhead.

I'm okay with Orton or Flynn or drafting someone with upside. Just no more Cassel.