Chiefs Whitlock- It’s OK to question Pioli and the Chiefs - Page 9

C-Mac · 03-08-2009, 08:16 AM

It’s OK to question Pioli and the Chiefs

Wednesday afternoon, on my drive on I-70 to watch the Tigers and the Sooners tangle, I passed the time listening to sports-talk radio.

I find one of our local stations unlisten-Neal-able, so you can assume which station and which show entertained me along the highway. And you can guess which host nearly made me drive off the highway.

The New Don Fortune expressed his disinterest in needing access and information from our New Carl Peterson, Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli. The New Don and his trusty sidekick, Mad Jack Harry, spent several minutes telling their listeners that we should trust Pioli implicitly and not waste emotion or energy worrying whether Pioli reveals himself, his plans or his players to the media.

Having worked in sports-talk radio, I’m aware the discipline requires a dramatic and healthy loosening of journalistic standards. But basic common sense and backbone are allowed and occasionally encouraged when hosting a radio show.

Supporting the new regime does not equate to rejecting the primary (and redeeming) role of the media.

It’s our job to acquire information and pass it along to you. Based on what we’ve seen from the Bill Belichick era in New England and our first two months with Pioli, gathering pertinent and enlightening information about the Chiefs is going to be rather difficult.

The Patriots, under Belichick and Pioli, reached the conclusion that too much media access disrupts locker-room chemistry and undermines the voice of the head coach. In New England, Belichick has turned the Boston media into an easy-to-play foil for his players.

He’s brainwashed his players into believing the media are evil, incompetent and stirrers of chaos. Obviously, we are not perfect. A collection of human beings cannot be flawless. There are instances when individual moments of incompetence make the media appear wicked or solely interested in controversy.

But overall, we attempt to be a watchdog of those with power. When we fail to play that role, generally speaking, terrible things happen. The Iraq War is a worst-case scenario. We trusted our president implicitly, led the cheers when we declared war on Iraq and declined to demand answers to difficult questions. Hundreds of billions of dollars later, and with our economy in collapse, we now blame poor, minority homeowners for the fall of our society.

I apologize. I digress.

Let me give you a worst-case scenario in the sports world.

If, in an attempt to duplicate New England’s three-Super Bowls dynasty, we neglect our journalistic, democracy-ensuring duty to challenge Pioli, there’s a far better chance that he replicates Carl Peterson’s Kansas City era than Belichick’s New England one.

Unchallenged leaders are dictators and quickly turn unethical.

For years, Kevin Kietzman and Jack Harry whined on radio that Peterson, in attempts to have them fired, harassed their former television bosses. Kietzman and Harry complained about Peterson’s heavy-handed tactics with players, their agents and their families.

Peterson acquired his nickname, King Carl, the old-fashioned way. We rolled over and gave him a kingdom. When he ushered in an era of winning after years of mediocrity, he treated the media as though his decisions and actions were above question. He became complacent and stale.

Scott Pioli is a human being. He’s capable of making the same mistakes as you, I or King Carl.

Sometimes people misidentify why they’re successful. Belichick and Pioli think the New England locker room is special partly because Belichick and the players have made the local media irrelevant. Belichick and Pioli believe in CIA-like secrets.

I’m sure there’s some value in all of it. But football isn’t all that hard to figure out. Find yourself a tough, talented quarterback who is willing to stand in the pocket and deliver the football under pressure, pray that he doesn’t get injured, and you’ll win a lot of games.

The Sixburgh Steelers won four titles with Terry Bradshaw and two with Ben Roethlisberger. They’ve had three different young coaches lead them to those six titles. John Elway took the Broncos to five Super Bowls and won two. Kurt Warner has played in three Super Bowls. Brett Favre played in two. Peyton Manning and Donovan McNabb win a lot of football games. Did I mention Joe Montana, Troy Aikman and Tom Brady?

In his first big decision as general manager of the Kansas City Chiefs, Scott Pioli traded the 34th pick in the draft for Matt Cassel, a backup in college and in the pros. Because New England slapped Cassel with the franchise tag, Clark Hunt is going to pay Cassel a lot of money in 2009 or give him a big-ticket, long-term contract.

Everyone pretty much agrees the move makes sense for the Chiefs. Pioli still needs to publicly explain it, and it’s our job to seek a detailed explanation. We shouldn’t accept a brief statement on a press release.

It is fun and fashionable to beat up on the media. In our arrogance, we have refused to adequately police, examine and reshape ourselves. We’re paying a heavy price for our failure. We’re losing credibility.

It’s in your best interest to demand better from us. Don’t be fooled into believing we should go away or act as a propaganda machine for some newly-elected, popular-in-comparison-to-Peterson (or Bush) leader.

Sweet Daddy Hate · 03-08-2009, 09:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaliforniaChief

I won three spider rings at Chuck E Cheese a couple of weeks ago.

I wonder how many tickets it takes to get the USFL ring?

Mojo Jojo · 03-08-2009, 09:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Darth CarlSatan

I wonder how many tickets it takes to get the USFL ring?

More than you will ever see.

Sweet Daddy Hate · 03-08-2009, 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

So you are saying it takes nothing to win a ring. Thanks, and I'm sure Scott agrees.

It sure as hell takes nothing but the worst kind of apathy to be the last 5 years of Carl ****ing Peckerson, and you can carve that on a stone tablet, put it Moses waiting hands, and send his old ass right on down the mountain with it!

CaliforniaChief · 03-08-2009, 09:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

So you are saying it takes nothing to win a ring. Thanks, and I'm sure Scott agrees.

Chuck E Cheese Spider Ring = 10 tickets

2 USFL Rings = 2 shits

3 NFL Rings = Priceless

Mojo Jojo · 03-08-2009, 09:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaliforniaChief

Chuck E Cheese Spider Ring = 10 tickets

2 USFL Rings = 2 shits

3 NFL Rings = Priceless

Hey CaliforniaChief....
How many rings...pro football or other sports...have you won? Be a man and bring it on.

CaliforniaChief · 03-08-2009, 09:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

Hey CaliforniaChief....
How many rings...pro football or other sports...have you won? Be a man and bring it on.

I know you are but what am I?

Mojo Jojo · 03-08-2009, 09:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaliforniaChief

I know you are but what am I?

Wow...welcome to the 4th grade.

Sweet Daddy Hate · 03-08-2009, 09:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaliforniaChief

Chuck E Cheese Spider Ring = 10 tickets

2 USFL Rings = 2 shits

3 NFL Rings = Priceless

Hey! Those Oklahoma Outlaws were the second coming of the Iron Curtain I tell's 'ya!!!

CaliforniaChief · 03-08-2009, 09:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

Wow...welcome to the 4th grade.

I only suggest this because I've had issues with mine...but you might wanna check the fluids on your sarcasm meter.

Mojo Jojo · 03-08-2009, 09:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Darth CarlSatan

Hey! Those Oklahoma Outlaws were the second coming of the Iron Curtain I tell's 'ya!!!

Never won a championship...and come on DCS...I said this before...you are better than this.

CaliforniaChief · 03-08-2009, 09:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Darth CarlSatan

Hey! Those Oklahoma Outlaws were the second coming of the Iron Curtain I tell's 'ya!!!

True that...Kinda makes me mad that we didn't trade our 2nd round pick for the rights to acquire Doug Williams and Efren Herrera. Our kicking problems would be solved for the next 10 years.

Mojo Jojo · 03-08-2009, 09:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaliforniaChief

I only suggest this because I've had issues with mine...but you might wanna check the fluids on your sarcasm meter.

Dude..question is... How many rings/watches ect. have you won? Please tell us all. Then you and I can get together and compare bling. Until then

!!!!

Mojo Jojo · 03-08-2009, 09:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaliforniaChief

True that...Kinda makes me mad that we didn't trade our 2nd round pick for the rights to acquire Doug Williams and Efren Herrera. Our kicking problems would be solved for the next 10 years.

Yet Jim Kelly and Reggie White came from the USFL....I'm sure neither one will make an impact in the NFL.

Sweet Daddy Hate · 03-08-2009, 09:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CaliforniaChief

True that...Kinda makes me mad that we didn't trade our 2nd round pick for the rights to acquire Doug Williams and Efren Herrera. Our kicking problems would be solved for the next 10 years.

Sweet Daddy Hate · 03-08-2009, 09:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

Dude..question is... How many rings/watches ect. have you won? Please tell us all. Then you and I can get together and compare bling. Until then

!!!!

Are you implying you play sports professionally, or are you in fact CP trolling CP?

03-08-2009, 08:16 AM
C-Mac Lurker Extraordinaire Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Wally World Casino cash: $-1146301	Whitlock- It’s OK to question Pioli and the Chiefs It’s OK to question Pioli and the Chiefs Wednesday afternoon, on my drive on I-70 to watch the Tigers and the Sooners tangle, I passed the time listening to sports-talk radio. I find one of our local stations unlisten-Neal-able, so you can assume which station and which show entertained me along the highway. And you can guess which host nearly made me drive off the highway. The New Don Fortune expressed his disinterest in needing access and information from our New Carl Peterson, Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli. The New Don and his trusty sidekick, Mad Jack Harry, spent several minutes telling their listeners that we should trust Pioli implicitly and not waste emotion or energy worrying whether Pioli reveals himself, his plans or his players to the media. Having worked in sports-talk radio, I’m aware the discipline requires a dramatic and healthy loosening of journalistic standards. But basic common sense and backbone are allowed and occasionally encouraged when hosting a radio show. Supporting the new regime does not equate to rejecting the primary (and redeeming) role of the media. It’s our job to acquire information and pass it along to you. Based on what we’ve seen from the Bill Belichick era in New England and our first two months with Pioli, gathering pertinent and enlightening information about the Chiefs is going to be rather difficult. The Patriots, under Belichick and Pioli, reached the conclusion that too much media access disrupts locker-room chemistry and undermines the voice of the head coach. In New England, Belichick has turned the Boston media into an easy-to-play foil for his players. He’s brainwashed his players into believing the media are evil, incompetent and stirrers of chaos. Obviously, we are not perfect. A collection of human beings cannot be flawless. There are instances when individual moments of incompetence make the media appear wicked or solely interested in controversy. But overall, we attempt to be a watchdog of those with power. When we fail to play that role, generally speaking, terrible things happen. The Iraq War is a worst-case scenario. We trusted our president implicitly, led the cheers when we declared war on Iraq and declined to demand answers to difficult questions. Hundreds of billions of dollars later, and with our economy in collapse, we now blame poor, minority homeowners for the fall of our society. I apologize. I digress. Let me give you a worst-case scenario in the sports world. If, in an attempt to duplicate New England’s three-Super Bowls dynasty, we neglect our journalistic, democracy-ensuring duty to challenge Pioli, there’s a far better chance that he replicates Carl Peterson’s Kansas City era than Belichick’s New England one. Unchallenged leaders are dictators and quickly turn unethical. For years, Kevin Kietzman and Jack Harry whined on radio that Peterson, in attempts to have them fired, harassed their former television bosses. Kietzman and Harry complained about Peterson’s heavy-handed tactics with players, their agents and their families. Peterson acquired his nickname, King Carl, the old-fashioned way. We rolled over and gave him a kingdom. When he ushered in an era of winning after years of mediocrity, he treated the media as though his decisions and actions were above question. He became complacent and stale. Scott Pioli is a human being. He’s capable of making the same mistakes as you, I or King Carl. Sometimes people misidentify why they’re successful. Belichick and Pioli think the New England locker room is special partly because Belichick and the players have made the local media irrelevant. Belichick and Pioli believe in CIA-like secrets. I’m sure there’s some value in all of it. But football isn’t all that hard to figure out. Find yourself a tough, talented quarterback who is willing to stand in the pocket and deliver the football under pressure, pray that he doesn’t get injured, and you’ll win a lot of games. The Sixburgh Steelers won four titles with Terry Bradshaw and two with Ben Roethlisberger. They’ve had three different young coaches lead them to those six titles. John Elway took the Broncos to five Super Bowls and won two. Kurt Warner has played in three Super Bowls. Brett Favre played in two. Peyton Manning and Donovan McNabb win a lot of football games. Did I mention Joe Montana, Troy Aikman and Tom Brady? In his first big decision as general manager of the Kansas City Chiefs, Scott Pioli traded the 34th pick in the draft for Matt Cassel, a backup in college and in the pros. Because New England slapped Cassel with the franchise tag, Clark Hunt is going to pay Cassel a lot of money in 2009 or give him a big-ticket, long-term contract. Everyone pretty much agrees the move makes sense for the Chiefs. Pioli still needs to publicly explain it, and it’s our job to seek a detailed explanation. We shouldn’t accept a brief statement on a press release. It is fun and fashionable to beat up on the media. In our arrogance, we have refused to adequately police, examine and reshape ourselves. We’re paying a heavy price for our failure. We’re losing credibility. It’s in your best interest to demand better from us. Don’t be fooled into believing we should go away or act as a propaganda machine for some newly-elected, popular-in-comparison-to-Peterson (or Bush) leader.
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