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

[C-Mac]

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.

[Mojo Jojo]

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

Because right now, if you say this is our guy, everyone knows, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you aren't taking a QB at #3. That's why.

It's all about posturing for the draft.

What do you have to lose?


If you say you want the QB and someone wants him more you win in a trade.

If you rally don't want him, but he is the best person on the board...you win. Someone will over trade or you have a QBOTF. See the New York Giants.


FYI when Carl did this the board went nuts.

[DeezNutz]

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

What do you have to lose?


If you say you want the QB and someone wants him more you win in a trade.

If you rally don't want him, but he is the best person on the board...you win. Someone will over trade or you have a QBOTF. See the New York Giants.


FYI when Carl did this the board went nuts.

No, Carl ran his mouth. See the 2007 draft.

"I guarantee Brady Quinn won't get past the Chiefs. hahahahaha."

That worked out well, huh?

So to answer your question, "what's there to lose?": a ****ing shit ton.

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

No, Carl ran his mouth. See the 2007 draft.

"I guarantee Brady Quinn won't get past the Chiefs. hahahahaha."

That worked out well, huh?

So to answer your question, "what's there to lose?": a ****ing shit ton.

Yep. Right now you gotta' keep it quiet, and rely on DCS's infallible killer instincts and mojo crystal ball to light your way in these murky times...

[Just Passin' By]

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

First of all nobody should be "forced" to answer a question, but it should still be asked. You weren't clear do you want 5 or 10 questions?

1. Who is the DC?
2. As of today who is the starting QB? (Last week it was an open job.)
3. 3-4 or 4-3? Follow up why?
4. Who will be calling the play?
5. And for Clark...Who is the Chiefs President?

Also, just to follow up with some pertinent information:

Regarding question 1:

Q: Where are you at on the defensive side? Is Clancy Pendergast going to be the coordinator?

HALEY: “We’re still in a state of flux. Once again, I’m trying to do my best to get as many good coaches into the building and on to the Chiefs staff as I can. There’s still a little a fluidity to the situation, nothing I can comment directly on right now, but I’m excited about the guys we’ve got right now. A bunch of guys I have some history with, and a bunch of guys I think are pretty good coaches.”

Q: So you’re not done on the defensive side?

HALEY: “I can’t say. Might be, but there’s definitely a couple more guys I’m doing my best to try to get.”

Q: How close are you to settling your defensive staff?

HALEY: “We still may add one or more pieces here. We’re working on it. We’re getting closer. Offense is pretty well set and defensive we may add one or two more pieces.”

Regarding question 2:

Q: Is Cassel in the competition or the starter on day one?

HALEY: “I just got off the phone with Tyler (Thigpen) and I told him that I’m a very selfish coach. I think that’s evidenced by Arizona and what we did. We’re going to play the guys that give us the best chance to win. I would say that Matt Cassel is coming in here to compete for the starting quarterback position.”

Q: But he wasn’t told officially that he was the starter?

HALEY: “No. We hadn’t any conversation like that.”

Regarding question 3:

Q: Where are you in terms of deciding what sort of defensive front you’ll go with?

HALEY: “Again, I think that it’s critical that we go through – and that’s their first assignment – was to go through our players, player by player, and not think about scheme, but let’s try to figure out what we have and what each player brings to the table. Until that’s finalized and we kind of have a feel for those guys and what they’re capable of – that’s not something you can wait two months to decide – we’ve gotta move here and we’ll be working hard to get those answers.”

Q: Does he give you more flexibility to go to maybe a three-four defense?

HALEY: “It’s something he’s played a bunch in and has been a successful player in it.”

Q: Have they indicated whether it will be a 4-3 or 3-4 defense?

VRABEL: “Everything that I know, I think that there is going to be a lot of flexibility there.

Regarding question 4:

Q: Have you had a chance to talk with Chan about who is calling the plays?

HALEY: “Again, I’m not even done trying to get the staff together. I think that is priority number one. Everything has to go towards that. We’ve started the evaluation of the team process. That’s all going to be part of i. I’m excited about having a guy like Chan Gailey with his experience. The more time I’m around him, the more I’m excited about what he’ll bring to us.”

So, 4 of your 5 questions have already been answered in one form or another. The fifth one isn't one that I have even the slightest interest in checking on.

[CaliforniaChief]

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

No, Carl ran his mouth. See the 2007 draft.

"I guarantee Brady Quinn won't get past the Chiefs. hahahahaha."

That worked out well, huh?

So to answer your question, "what's there to lose?": a ****ing shit ton.

This.

Scott Pioli is not an elected official. He's not responsible to answer your questions. He is responsible for fielding a winning product, and is accountable to Clark Hunt. Clark Hunt is responsible to the fan base or he won't sell tickets and will lose money. If Clark Hunt thinks that the secrecy inside Arrowhead is harming the fan base and affecting his product, then I'm sure Pioli will squeal like a junior high girl and have Mojo Jojo's heroes (Whitlock and crew) over for tea and scones....and spill all the dirty secrets.

I for one don't need to know if we're running a 3-4 defense, because I'm not sure I want other teams in the draft knowing how that might affect personnel acquisitions.

I don't need to know who's "calling the play" (Mojo's words) because I know Herm isn't.

I don't need to know who's the President of the team because it's irrelevant to 99.9% of people (Brian Waters and Mojo excluded) whether Dunny Thum or Donald Trump is overseeing the business operation of the team.

I need to know that Pioli's busier putting a football team together than wanting a report on the desk in Mojo's desk giving him all the information he wants.

[Mojo Jojo]

Originally Posted by Just Passin' By

Also, just to follow up with some pertinent information:

Regarding question 1:




Regarding question 2:


Regarding question 3:






Regarding question 4:


So, 4 of your 5 questions have already been answered in one form or another. The fifth one isn't one that I have even the slightest interest in checking on.

They have been answered without an answer. Thank you for doing my homework. The 5th question is about the Chiefs President. Clark want to make the GM and President two jobs. In any business world a GM will report to the President, so that is a very important question to any Chiefs fan.

[morphius]

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

What do you have to lose?


If you say you want the QB and someone wants him more you win in a trade.

If you rally don't want him, but he is the best person on the board...you win. Someone will over trade or you have a QBOTF. See the New York Giants.


FYI when Carl did this the board went nuts.

If you say QB then people try to jump in front of you, not trade with you. If the Chiefs said they are going to the 3-4, someone may try to jump us for the nose guard, etc.

[Just Passin' By]

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

They have been answered without an answer. Thank you for doing my homework. The 5th question is about the Chiefs President. Clark want to make the GM and President two jobs. In any business world a GM will report to the President, so that is a very important question to any Chiefs fan.

They weren't answered without an answer. They were answered. Just because you don't like the answers, you want to bring in the inquisition. As for the question of the President, it's not important at all. It's just a title. What matters is the powers, and those are none of your business.

You got stuffed into a lot of lockers in your youth for whining about stupid shit like this, perhaps?

[Mojo Jojo]

Originally Posted by CaliforniaChief

This.

Scott Pioli is not an elected official. He's not responsible to answer your questions. He is responsible for fielding a winning product, and is accountable to Clark Hunt. Clark Hunt is responsible to the fan base or he won't sell tickets and will lose money. If Clark Hunt thinks that the secrecy inside Arrowhead is harming the fan base and affecting his product, then I'm sure Pioli will squeal like a junior high girl and have Mojo Jojo's heroes (Whitlock and crew) over for tea and scones....and spill all the dirty secrets.

I for one don't need to know if we're running a 3-4 defense, because I'm not sure I want other teams in the draft knowing how that might affect personnel acquisitions.

I don't need to know who's "calling the play" (Mojo's words) because I know Herm isn't.

I don't need to know who's the President of the team because it's irrelevant to 99.9% of people (Brian Waters and Mojo excluded) whether Dunny Thum or Donald Trump is overseeing the business operation of the team.

I need to know that Pioli's busier putting a football team together than wanting a report on the desk in Mojo's desk giving him all the information he wants.

Have you never been in business? You don't have a clue how the real life works. If you just to be a fan then say so...if not let the adults do the work and you can play in your room.

[Mojo Jojo]

Originally Posted by Just Passin' By

They weren't answered without an answer. They were answered. Just because you don't like the answers, you want to bring in the inquisition. As for the question of the President, it's not important at all. It's just a title. What matters is the powers, and those are none of your business.

You got stuffed into a lot of lockers in your youth for whining about stupid shit like this, perhaps?

Would you let Carl get away with those answers? It is a yes or no question.

[Chiefless]

I didn't go through the entire thread to see if someone posted it already, but this piece of "reporting" deseves the Billy Madison clip. Top to bottom, among the dumbest things ever written.

[CaliforniaChief]

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

Have you never been in business? You don't have a clue how the real life works. If you just to be a fan then say so...if not let the adults do the work and you can play in your room.

I'm not familiar with the "real life." I just to be a fan? You comfort yourself with a Jason Whitlock blow-up doll coated in barbeque sauce and wet wipes. You send autograph requests to Denny Thum and send private e-mails to Adam Teicher. You take video tapes of Nick Athan and dream of the day where you can use it as blackmail against someone. You wack off in a musty basement to thoughts of telling your grandchildren about all that "tape" you broke down in the ESPN truck.

Have fun in your "real life." And if being in business involves pagers, Camaro's, and 55-year old trailer park retreads...well then no I've never been in business.

[ShortRoundChief]

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

Have you never been in business? You don't have a clue how the real life works. If you just to be a fan then say so...if not let the adults do the work and you can play in your room.

He's absolutely right and you're absolutely bitter.

[FAX]

Originally Posted by Mojo Jojo

I would agree, but why won't the Chiefs say it? Once again another Carl trick that is too cool because it is Scott and Todd are doing it now.

What you are implying is spectacularly absurd.

FAX

[CaliforniaChief]

Originally Posted by FAX

What you are implying is spectacularly absurd.

FAX

But unless you have a USFL championship ring and have videotape of Nick Athan sleeping at a Chiefs press conference YOU haven't lived. LOL.

I think he's drunk.