Thigpen Throws Three Touchdowns in Thriller at San Diego
by Chris Thorman on Nov 10, 2008 8:01 AM CST
in 2008 Campaign
33 comments
via NFL.com
What can I say? I'm a sucker for alliteration...
Confidence returns to the quarterback position
I can't remember the last time the Chiefs got the ball late in the game down in the score and I felt pretty good about our chances to drive 60 yards for a score. I watched Tyler Thigpen yesterday and felt a confidence I hadn't felt in a Chiefs quarterback in a long time. Even though the Chiefs didn't convert the 2-point conversion to win the game (which they wouldn't have had to if we hadn't missed a PAT earlier), they came closer to their second win than the last two weeks.
Tyler Thipgen passed for 266 yards and three touchdowns. He completed 27 of 41 passes and ended the game with a 108 QB rating. Compared to his first three appearances, it's almost as if Thigpen and the Chiefs pulled a Rope-a-Dope on the rest of the league with this guy. I can't really explain his improvement any other way.
The injury bug got into the team's water
The Chiefs have achieved their recent "success" over the last three games despite sending guys off the field each and every game due to injury. Yesterday, RB Jamaal Charles tweaked an ankle sprain he suffered against the Bucs. Linebackers Donnie Edwards (who returned) and Pat Thomas both went down for a period of time. DE Tamba Hali suffered a knee injury. And even backup DE Brian Johnston went down with an injury.
Raise your hand if you ever predicted that the Chiefs depth chart would read Tyler Thigpen/Quinn Gray at QB and Dantrell Savage/Jackie Battle at RB.
Despite the injuries, the team played well and I'll agree with Herm Edwards and say that our injuries, especially to our defense, were a key factor in that late game 2-point conversion attempt.
Hello...second half?
Five straight punts in the second half is going to hurt you and the Chiefs desperately need to find a way to avoid these mini-meltdowns they've had the last few weeks. In the NFL, games turn on a small number of plays and the Chiefs simply have too many long streaks of poor play in their game to call them consistent. Even a field goal during that stretch of five punts wins the game for the Chiefs.
A defensive stand sets up the offense
The Chargers, after kicking a field goal to go up by one, got the ball back from the Chiefs with 4:31 left in the game. Herm Edwards chose to punt knowing he would have to rely on his defense on last team. And for once, they came through.
The Chiefs defense stuffed LaDainian Tomlinson twice for barely a gain and sacked (a sack!) Philip Rivers for a loss of seven yards to ensure a punt by the Chargers. The Chiefs first their first three and out on the Chargers all day long and did at the time when the pressure was the highest.
Turnovers are keeping us in games
One thing to keep in mind as we watch the Chiefs is that we have indeed come close to winning the last three weeks but we're +8 in turnovers during those three weeks.
+8. With no wins.
This team is improving but we're also being greatly helped by our opponents.
The quarterback makes it all better
If the Chiefs were fighting tooth and nail like they have been the last three weeks with a mixture of Thigpen, Huard or Quinn Gray, I doubt there would be as much anxious joy as there is right now in Kansas City. A quarterback playing well starts to ease the pressure on the offense, the head coach and even the defense. Problems that are still there are willing to be looked over a bit to celebrate the performance of the young Tyler Thigpen.
We're living in a bit of a fantasy world right now. We haven't won in three weeks but we're damn excited about it. The run defense showed up for literally one game and we're excited about it. I'm having a blast watching this team but we're far from fixed.
***
Now, when I talk to people about the Chiefs, it's not "My team may be the worst team in football" (that goes to the Rams now). I mention our quarterback. I mention our young team because with 19 rookies on the team, youth is damn near an excuse to lose.
But most of all, over the last couple of weeks, I mention how much fun it's been to watch this team. At the end of a long Sunday, before I head into the work week, that's all I really want to be able to say. I had fun. My team tried it's best. And the future is looking bright.
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Man I'm glad to see Tony happy =}
Go Red !!!
by GHOST OF DT on Nov 10, 2008 8:03 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
I love
Thigpen’s face too. He’s so excited.
by Chris Thorman on Nov 10, 2008 8:19 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
With one exception
No INTs the last 3 games…
by Joel Thorman on Nov 10, 2008 7:08 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Great post Chris!
I appreciate your willingness to answer questions about player performance for those of us unable to see the game. Over the last three weeks I have not been seeing much about the offensive line. I am assuming no news is good news about their play?
"But what do I know, I’m like an empty room with a large ECHO"
by Lanier63 on Nov 10, 2008 8:16 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
I think so
We’re down on the sacks, QB pressures seem to have lessened and our 2nd and 3rd string RBs are gaining yards when we need to.
by Chris Thorman on Nov 10, 2008 8:18 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
He had a god damned freaking pocket!
Blame my wife!
by sir eccles on Nov 10, 2008 9:38 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Yep, one problem
I noticed that Jones went down with a knee injury during the game. And it was in the later parts of the game that SD actually got pressure on Thigpen a couple of times. I hope this is not going to throw the O-line off its game again.
by tevans96 on Nov 10, 2008 9:48 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Saw a little of Herb Taylor on the right side to spell McIntosh.
I think that Mac is better at run blocking while Taylor is better in pass protection. We couldn’t get that much push with Niswanger and Jones against Jamal Williams, especially on short yardage.
Overall the line is starting to slowly come together, we had some nice pockets from which Tyler could throw. Thigpen would run out occasionally, but not like before.
by aPacificChief on Nov 10, 2008 2:52 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Agree
he stayed at home in the pocket much more this game
by PVChiefsfan on Nov 10, 2008 3:24 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Tyler has moved up to 24th on the QB stat chart
http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/statistics?stat=pass&sort=rat&league=nfl&season=2&year=2008
"But what do I know, I’m like an empty room with a large ECHO"
by Lanier63 on Nov 10, 2008 9:25 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
The one thing that might be overlooked
is that our long-snapper is kind of terrible. A lot of our problems at the game could be laid on the long-snapper’s shoulders. Not only did he throw a duck on the extra point, but I was watching him practice with Colquitt on the sidelines and he was only getting the ball above Colquitt’s knees about 1/3 of the time. A couple of Colquitt’s “average” punts were after bad snaps. I think a lack of confidence in the long-snapper could have contributed to Herm going for 2-points as well.
by JayrodT on Nov 10, 2008 10:04 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
Is it still Darche?
"But what do I know, I’m like an empty room with a large ECHO"
by Lanier63 on Nov 10, 2008 10:24 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
4th quarter heroics
without a botched PAT, TT would already have an improbable 4th quarter comeback on his resume…not to mention a win
by Kychief on Nov 10, 2008 11:36 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
I'm with Witlock
Perfect loss for the Chiefs. Except for all the injuries, KC played tough, kept us entertained to the last play, and still maintained position for a money draft pick. I hope the Chiefs do win a couple more though. We dont want the number 1 pick; too much pressure, Carl would find a way to mess it up. Pick 2-5 would be ideal.
by C-7PumpkinSmasher on Nov 10, 2008 11:52 AM CST reply actions 0 recs
Yabbbut!
tWhitlock wants to draft /another/ QB, to ensure another losing season. I don’t care if we drafted Joe Montana’s clone, we’d get another year of losing. It’s TT’s job to lose, now. He’s the future, barring a meltdown. Not a bad game at this point, mind, but playing like Croyle for the last 7 games, or something…
by Bleedingredandgold on Nov 11, 2008 12:52 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Interesting bit I just saw ...
We may not be ready to call him our Quarterback of the Future quite yet, but FoxSports is.
From FoxSports.com’s ‘What We Learned in Week 10’ (Item 4):
The Chiefs lucked their way into a franchise QB
To show how much confidence Chiefs head coach Herm Edwards has in his new quarterback, he actually put the ball in his hands for a potential game-winning two-point try at San Diego in the final moments. While it didn’t work for Kansas City like it did earlier in the season when Denver pulled the trick against the Chargers, it was revealing nevertheless. Tyler Thigpen was clearly the best football player on the field — in a game featuring future Hall of Famers Tony Gonzalez and LaDainian Tomlinson, plus several other Pro Bowl talents. Thigpen has come a whisper away from pulling off three upsets in a row, firing six touchdown passes against no picks in near shockers against the Jets, Bucs and Chargers — games the Chiefs have lost by a combined eight points.
I’m about two more weeks like this away from asking for a Thigpen jersey for Christmas.
by JacinB on Nov 10, 2008 12:37 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
can you get two and send me one?
"But what do I know, I’m like an empty room with a large ECHO"
by Lanier63 on Nov 10, 2008 2:55 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
That's a nice piece, but the offense is not a conventional system.
I guess Gailey knows a little something about catering to the talents on hand, but we’re too much in shotgun. People are gonna catch on sooner or later. We definintely need to build confidence, but ultimately are gonna have to play under center again, in a CONVENTIONAL system.
Dan Marino was an ace in the shotgun, we didn’t see him in to many championship games.
by aPacificChief on Nov 10, 2008 3:01 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
You know that's a valid assessment by pacificchief
I actually posted pro’s and con’s about running the spread. My major point is that time will tell and if other teams catch on and the spread fails then it’s bye-bye spread. However, the west coast offense didn’t catch on right away and was implemented later on by many teams.
We’ll see. Either way you need to give it time (rest of the season) to make an assessment.
Just keep matriculating the ball down the field boys.
by THE_TRUTH on Nov 10, 2008 3:28 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
I think they are easing Thigpen into the more conventional NFL offense
They’re going largely with his strength in the Spread, but I think as time goes by we will see more and more conventional NFL formations to kind of ease him into it, which is a smart thing. The spread is working well for us now, but its just a matter of time before defenses catch up to it.
by ChiefDJ on Nov 10, 2008 6:01 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Are you kidding me?
Why does convention have to be the thing to win Super Bowls and National Championships? The game has evolved over time, and now it is an entirely different NFL. As long as you have the personnel to run a system, no one system makes you more likely to win a Super bowl over another.
It would be stupid to try and force Tyler Thigpen to take a significant portion of his snaps from under center, because that isn’t his strength. Sure, I think that you can’t snap the ball every single time to the shotgun (in college, you can, and if I were an offensive coordinator that is exactly what I would do), but there is no problem in having 3/4 of your snaps coming out of the shotgun.
The major difference in Bones’ play these past three weeks has been the switch to the spread; why would you negate some of that improvement simply for convention’s sake.
Convention is overrated. Do whatever works for you and your personnel, who gives a shit about what has worked in the past.
And this is just a personal opinion, I know, but I am fairly confident that the spread is, by far, the best offense in the history of the modern game. If run correctly, and Bones is running it pretty damn well right now, it is damn near impossible to stop, and makes it easier to overcome talent deficiencies.
by rockchalk on Nov 11, 2008 12:13 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
New around here
but loving what I see from the site. My take:
First things first, Thigpen is playing great and is a lot of fun to watch. Reminds me a lot of Tony Romo. The way he plays and how he got into the league. Didn’t Romo play at some obscure school too? I’ll tell you one thing that Thigpen has done, he’s gotten me and friends to start discussing other options on 1st round pick. I know it might seem crazy, but the biggest reason behind it for me, is that I don’t see a franchise changing Quarterback in this years draft. People thought it might be Stafford, but he has cooled down considerbaly. There are still quite a few holes on this team, and the OT from Alabama is enormous and would look real good on our right side. Big 12 fans, how about Michael Crabtree opposite Dwayne Bowe? The possibilities are out there. Quarterback depth and competition could be acquired in another round also. If Freeman from K-State comes out, he’s projected as an early 2nd rounder right now, that is a big boy.
Our O-line is looking real good in pass-protection. I don’t know if it is just improvement, or the fact that they don’t have the pressure of their Quarterback’s career being over if they give up a sack, a la Croyle and Huard, but they are protecting much better. The run-blocking still needs work, but nothing a certain Alabama OT couldn’t fix.
The defense showed a lot of heart yesterday. There are still plenty of holes. The defensive line doesn’t get enough pressure, and the linebackers aren’t game-changers. An impact linebacker should be in consideration in the draft.
I loved that we went for 2 and the win. Me and some friends thought he would do it before the decision came about and were excited. If we would’ve lost games in overtime 2 straight weeks, I would’ve been much more pissed.
This team is playing hard, I see a lot of improvement despite A LOT of injuries, and I’m no longer ashamed to be a Chiefs fan. Let’s hope that we can win a couple more games and still get the 1st or 2nd pick.
by I need more Esteban on Nov 10, 2008 4:12 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
Posted this in an earlier thread, here's my take....
A MLB is not worth a top 5 pick, but we do need one. A LB who is big enough to take on blockers and be able to drop quickly into coverage are not easy to find either. This defense that we run is dependant on the quality of play from our LB’s. Rey M. (forget spelling his last name) is 260 lbs and relatively fast for his size, while JL is fast but smaller. We need someone to take on the blockers while at the same time be able to drop into coverage, so I favor Rey. I’m not too fixed on only a certain player, because that’s a recipe for disaster. But rather am open to several options that will improve the qualtiy of our defense. (MJ, RM, or JL in that order)
If I had my way I would see if Mike Johnson falls to us (if we are selecting in the top 3, ‘coz I think that’s what its gonna take for us grab MJ) If MJ is taken we trade down, hopefully picking up at least an additional 3rd pick, then take the best available MLB.
We need to address our QB situation, in round 2 I’m hoping that Harrell slips to us in the second round. According to ESPN’s draft crew he’s rated as the number 6 passer if the underclassmen declare. So there is a good possiblity of him dropping. Plus the fact that he runs in an offense that lines up primarly at shotgun leaves alot of question marks in the eyes of scouts, but the kid is a winner. Marino and Big Ben had the same labels put on them when they came out of college.
If Harrell is gone before the second round, I’d like to take John Parker Wilson out of Alabama in rounds 3 or 4.
by aPacificChief on Nov 10, 2008 4:20 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
I wouldn't mind if we could get Harrell late.
Alabama QB’s scare me though! Thanks Brodie.
by I need more Esteban on Nov 10, 2008 4:26 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
(Posted this again in an earlier thread) We shouldn't be gun shy to pull the trigger if the guy is legit.
John Parker Wilson has been healthy unlike Croyle.
2006 starter for 12 games
2007 13 starts
2008 10 starts and counting
So he’s alittle more durable and bigger he’s like 6-2 213lbs.
Plus he’s a Senior who’s had alot of game time experience, and he’s peaking right at his senior year.
by aPacificChief on Nov 10, 2008 4:29 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
I'd hate to burn a #1 on a back-up...
That’s assuming that TT plays well for the rest of the season.
A rookie would ensure that /next/ year would suck, you know? They never come firing out of the blocks. Well, almost never, considering Thiggy’s record after Atlanta. Thing is, if TT keeps it up, he’s poised for a good season, next year. Better to grab line help, and LB help.
by Bleedingredandgold on Nov 11, 2008 1:02 AM CST up reply actions 0 recs
We wouldn't use a number 1 on a QB, but rather on the BPA at DE &LB.
A QB would taken in the 2nd rd. A similiar principle taken by Green Bay when they didn’t know if Rodgers was their long term solution at QB.
And with the draft being as it is, where there are so many hit or miss propects a backup sometimes isn’t that bad. I would love a perennial pro-bowler with all our 1st rounders, but that’s next to impossible unless we just keep drafting the BPA’s regardless of position. So yeah I’d take a backup over a bust.
by aPacificChief on Nov 11, 2008 1:31 PM CST up reply actions 0 recs
Absolutely love the fact that his guy has played alot in college (seen alot of different defenses coverages) and he’s peaking at the right time (his senior year). He’s got his team ranked number 1 right now.
If we pick him up for only a 3rd or 4th rounder next year it could be a steal. Then we could concentrate our 1st and 2nd rounders on positions of needing an upgrade (DE, MLB, OLB, OL). That’s if Harrell is not available when we pick in the second round.
by aPacificChief on Nov 10, 2008 4:36 PM CST reply actions 0 recs
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