Ten Things About Today's Game

[gblowfish]

Ten Things About Today's Game

10. Took me awhile to sit down and compose my thought tonight. Mrs. Blowfish is not feeling well. She went to the game today -against my advice- and tonight she is paying for it. Nothing too serious, but I appreciate all the good thoughts sent her way. She didn't want to miss this game. This was the biggest upset of the NFL season, and a great example of why I never bet real money on NFL football. Needless to say, the 35,000 plus Cheese Heads in attendance were sent home with a taste of Arrowhead Magic Limberger. I actually like Packers fans. I admire them, they're not dill holes like Donk fans and not criminals like Faider fans. They're generally good folks and I didn't see any problems in the stands today. It was just a good hard fought game, and a big huge upset for the "home team."

9. I've been watching the replay of the game, and I can tell you first hand, this game was poorly officiated for both teams. For the Pack: The second OPI penalty on Nelson was total BS. And Pope may have fumbled a ball out of the back of the end zone. Packers should have red flagged that play and checked it closer. Chiefs were flagged more than the Packers. Packers should have been called for holding and hands to the face on both Hali and Houston or five or six different occasions. The holding on Hali was extreme and obvious all day long. Hali still managed to get three sacks, and he was a disruptive force all day. Orton was hit late several times, especially on the third and goal play that led to KC's first field goal. Matthews hit him real late on the pass to McClain, and the ref looked the other way. If we hit Rodgers like that, it's a sure roughing penalty, no doubt about it.

8. The Chiefs did some pretty stupid stuff today. Roughing the punter, twelve men on the field to give a second FG attempt -Crosby missed them both-, and leaving Finley open all day. Finley was thrown ten balls and only caught three. It could have been much worse. Finley had Slappy Pistachio beat in the end zone and just missed him by a finger nail. I know Jennings was out, but Driver is an All-Pro guy. KC's corners played tough man to man all day long, and made it work. Big props to our Brandons. They played one Hell of a game today.

7. Tamba Hali is the best rusher we've had since DT. He is relentless and he gives you everything he's got every week. I have come to really admire him as one of the greats. He'll be a ring of honor guy. DJ was outstanding stopping the run. Both of these guys should be All-Pro for 2011. Houston has a lot of work to do on pass coverage. But he should come a long way next year. If we can upgrade Belcher, we could have one of the best sets of four linebackers in the AFC next season. Belcher got pushed around today, and Grant ran right past him several times.

6. I'll admit I really didn't like it when Pioli signed Orton. He's an ex-Donk. I hate Donks. But he is a legit NFL veteran QB, and he played a gutsy, inspired game today. I tip my hat to him. I think since he was a former Bear QB, he's used to seeing Green Bay, and it's no big deal for him. On the sideline he showed some fire. He went to all the B's -Bowe, Breaston and Baldwin- and talked with them all during the game about routes, and what was going on from series to series. He was much more involved than Cassel. During the season, Cassel would always come to the bench, look at the end zone still pictures with Zorn, and rarely speak to any of his receivers. The other thing was Orton was on target. He hit guys between the numbers, or hit them in stride. He hit Pope wide open twice for 72 total yards; hit Becht for a big drive sustaining pass on the TD drive late, and guys like Bowe and Breaston fought for yards after the catch. Ten different Chiefs caught passes today. This game was important to Orton's future, as I'm sure he wants to improve his free agent stock with an eye towards 2012. Whether he stays or goes, he earned his money today with a truly memorable performance.

5. Whoever was calling the plays today, whether that was Grandpa Muir or Zorn, KC did a much better job making positive yards on first down. We were at second and six or second and five a bunch. KC got 23 first downs. With Palko, we've been constantly in second and nine or ten or worse, Better success on first down was key to the Chiefs drives. And since the Chiefs rarely went three and out, the defense was able to rest, and shut the Packers out for the first half for the first time this season. KC was only forced to punt twice. Today was Rodgers worst season day for passing yards (235 total yards) and the season's lowest QB rating at 80.1. He didn't get a lot of help early, Packers receivers dropped five passes in the first half alone.

4. Special teams were a bit of a mixed bag today. On the plus. Succop was money. He was four out of four, including a tough 47-yard line drive after a dangerously high snap from Gafford. Arenas misjudged a punt that ended up being a 71-yard roller for Green Bay, and KC still seems to hold on punt returns over and over again. This is all not to mention Horne's roughing the punter penalty. How in the Hell did he miss blocking that ball, anyway?

3. From my seat on the sideline, I can tell you who is into it and who isn't. Today I saw tremendous fire from Brandon Albert. I think he realizes that pretty soon he's going to be the old man on the line. Next year Lilja and Weigman will probably be gone; Richardson will be gone or a backup. Hudson will be center, and we'll probably have a rookie or free agent tackle and guard in the mix. Albert needs to be a leader. I think he gets that now. Breaston played with a lot of heart for yards after catch. Bowe was blocking downfield. I think these guys wanted to show Romeo and the rest of the NFL that they were pros, and that Arrowhead is our house -even with 35,000 Cheese heads in the stands.

2. Romeo got a Gatorade bath from Hali and Houston. I saw a lot of joy on the sidelines. I think the guys really wanted to win this one for Romeo. I also noticed the coaches on the sidelines were much more engaged and hands on during this game. I think Emmitt Thomas and some of the other defensive coaches were stepping it up with the defensive guys because Romeo now has a lot more on his plate. Should Romeo be our head coach next year? Jury is still out, but this is a great opening act, that there is no denying. I worry about Romeo's age and health.

1. It might be a good thing for the Packers that they finally lost one, The undefeated pressure is now off of them. The Packers have a lot of problems. They can't stop the run. They lost two starting offensive linemen today, and once those guys went out, Rodgers was running for his life. Green Bay will probably be the number one seed in the NFC, but they need the next two weeks to heal up. It wouldn't surprise me if they lose another one before the playoffs start. BTW: KC is very good against the NFC at Arrowhead, and this year, we went 3-1 against the NFC North, only losing in Week Two to Detroit on the road. Maybe the AFC West isn't so awful after all? Also, remember back to pre-season, and how bad the Packers made the Chiefs look in September? So sweet to beat them when it counts, and to ruin their perfect season. Christmas Eve against the Raiders now has some real meaning. I hope the Chiefs faithful will pack the house. We owe the Raiders after losing to them here in Arrowhead the last couple years. Sweeping them would be as sweet as the win today, maybe even sweeter.

[btlook1]

Excellent write up as always!!! I to look forward to reading each week, take good care of the wifey!

[johnny961]

Originally Posted by Phobia

I think it's great the players tried really hard for Romeo today... But I disagree with the notion that makes it a good reason to retain him as head coach in 2012 for the following reasons:
1. Players are paid premium dollar to play hard every Sunday. If a guy isn't trying hard, get rid of him. He's not part of the right 53.
2. Anybody can get players to play hard for game #1. Doesn't mean those same players are going to put it all out on the field for game #28. Sustain that motivation in years 3, 4, 5 and 6. How are you going to do that, Romeo?

I was kinda leaning towards the "Hiring Crennel as permanent HC" notion before todays win. Not that there aren't other coaching candidates I would like to see here. But I think he's probably one of the best choices that Pioli would be comfortable with.

[Otter]

7. Tamba Hali is the best rusher we've had since DT. He is relentless and he gives you everything he's got every week. I have come to really admire him as one of the greats. He'll be a ring of honor guy. DJ was outstanding stopping the run. Both of these guys should be All-Pro for 2011. Houston has a lot of work to do on pass coverage. But he should come a long way next year. If we can upgrade Belcher, we could have one of the best sets of four linebackers in the AFC next season. Belcher got pushed around today, and Grant ran right past him several times.

Couldn't agree more. That guys motor is incredible.

[scho63]

Originally Posted by gblowfish

Ten Things About Today's Game

10. Mrs. Blowfish is not feeling well. Hope she feels better-winning can do that!

9. I've been watching the replay of the game, and I can tell you first hand, this game was poorly officiated for both teams. Every year we all pick on the refs but I agree, this year as a whole has been awful. I think replay plays a role in it.

8. The Chiefs did some pretty stupid stuff today. How many roughing the punters and crappy penalties on 3rd and long to prolong the opponent's drives are we going to have this year? This is an area I want and demand improvement with

7. Tamba Hali is the best rusher we've had since DT. No doubt! (There was a guy here for a while named Jared Allen-LOL)

scho63
12-07-2009, 06:30 PM
With all the misery and aggravation we are suffering (again) as a Chiefs fan, one of the bright spots for me has been the transformation of Tamba Hali. When I see his quick move and bull rush with the big underarm movement getting around the corner just like DT used to do, it's one little bit of positive in a year of too many negatives. Hopefully next year he will only get better.

6. I'll admit I really didn't like it when Pioli signed Orton. I wasn't sure what to think but boy does he look like a great pickup today. He hit the receivers better than anyone this year as our QB and he can put some mustard on the ball.



2. Romeo got a Gatorade bath from Hali and Houston. I saw a lot of joy on the sidelines. I think the guys really wanted to win this one for Romeo. I am really stunned as to how much it appears that our guys really disliked Haley and couldn't care less that he was fired. Plus, our defense had to jump for joy today not being on the field all day with a 3 and out offernse

As always, your review is excellent!

[Buehler445]

I've been thinking about the officiating during the game. Blowfish has said over and over, 'win and you get the calls,' or some or something similar. But that wasn't really the case, in fact, I commented in the chat that maybe Mercury Morris paid off the refs. Hali got held bad, like usual, but that's really the only bad call going our way that I can remember. In fact, the OPI calls going against Green Bay were bad. Really bad.

It was really weird. Normally we can count on bad calls at opportune times, like the OPI calls, or roughing the passer against a big time QB, or defensive holding or some crap.

Not saying I'm ready to go all tin foil hat, but it is definitely a dissent from what we are used to.

[gblowfish]

I want to see how we do vs the Raiders and Donks in our last two games before deciding whether Romeo should be the guy, or if we should broaden the coaching search. I think Romeo would be OK, but I worry about his age and health. He's not in as bad a shape as Charlie Weis, but pretty close.

[mesmith31]

:I may not be as good as I once was, but I am as good once as I ever was" What is there to make us believe that Romeo isn't the same guy who finished 4-12, 4-12, 6-10, and 10-6 in Cleveland. He is a great Defensive coordinator, but what evidence is there that that translates into a good HC. Yesterday was an amazingly called game. Possibly the best executed gameplan by the Chiefs in years.

If they win out, it is going to be tough not to give him the job, but even so, Carson Palmer and Tebow aren't the best measuring sticks. I am pulling for him.

[FAX]

Originally Posted by mesmith31

:I may not be as good as I once was, but I am as good once as I ever was" What is there to make us believe that Romeo isn't the same guy who finished 4-12, 4-12, 6-10, and 10-6 in Cleveland. He is a great Defensive coordinator, but what evidence is there that that translates into a good HC. Yesterday was an amazingly called game. Possibly the best executed gameplan by the Chiefs in years.

If they win out, it is going to be tough not to give him the job, but even so, Carson Palmer and Tebow aren't the best measuring sticks. I am pulling for him.

... that Romeo frankly admitted he had little or nothing to do with. Of course, that could be false humility.

I like Romeo. If he can string just a couple of wins together, he'll probably be our next HC since he's one of a very few people who fit the criteria people are assuming Pioli will require.

But I think the Chiefs need a young head coach who can grow and stay with the team for a sustained period of time. My only problem with Romeo is that he's old. And round. Very, very round.

FAX

[gblowfish]

Originally Posted by FAX

My only problem with Romeo is that he's old. And round. Very, very round.

FAX

He's calorically challenged.

[mesmith31]

Originally Posted by FAX

But I think the Chiefs need a young head coach who can grow and stay with the team for a sustained period of time. My only problem with Romeo is that he's old. And round. Very, very round.

FAX

How do you feel about Jay Gruden?

[DaKCMan AP]

Originally Posted by Buehler445

The biggest thing I took from this is that Orton is average. Mediocre. Not really special. However, he is so much better than anyone we've trotted out this year it is damn embarrassing. We picked up a scrub off waivers after 2/3 of the season and he is lightyears ahead of our $60M starter. Embarrassing.

Embarrassing, yes. However, I'd take Orton over at least 14 Week 15 starters in the NFL. The entire league is suffering from a severe quality-QB drought.

[PunkinDrublic]

Originally Posted by FAX

... that Romeo frankly admitted he had little or nothing to do with. Of course, that could be false humility.

I like Romeo. If he can string just a couple of wins together, he'll probably be our next HC since he's one of a very few people who fit the criteria people are assuming Pioli will require.

But I think the Chiefs need a young head coach who can grow and stay with the team for a sustained period of time. My only problem with Romeo is that he's old. And round. Very, very round.

FAX

I know a lot of people are concerned with Romeos age but I think one difference may be that this team is very assistant coach heavy. I believe Romeo made some good fundamental changes in the team during the week that helped the team. I think Romeo can succeed if he isn't burdened with too much coaching responsability.

[Caseyguyrr]

Team played their ass off for a coach they respect. I hope pioli finally gets that

[gblowfish]

The Chiefs front office has already been accused of age discrimination, so hiring old guys doesn't match their corporate culture right now. They might be forced to make an exception in this case.

[FAX]

The warm glow of victory is like unto an airbrush filter which masks the ugly wart of reality on the tittah of truth. Remember that, guys. It will serve you well.

When the offense gets first downs, the defense can rest. When the defense rests, the defense doesn't get as tired and can bring the freaking pain. When the offense scores points after time-consuming drives, it gets even better.

I give this game ball to Orton, frankly.

FAX