Arrowhead Pride: An SB Nation Community

Navigation: Jump to content areas:



Around SBN: Race to the BCS: rankings, in-game scores & blogs Bar-right-arrows



Free Agency -- Any Finishing Touches?

As OTAs start wrapping up soon, minicamp and River Falls on the way, we know now that 95% of the Day One roster is buried in the masses of 90-plus bodies that have shown up to OTAs in record attendance this year. This team, as young and promising and inexperienced and volatile as it is, is almost built for 2008.

But it is not completely built. As teams around the league start cutting players, the Chiefs are likely to duplicate what they did last year and scoop up a few of them (QB Tyler Thigpen, LBs Pat Thomas and Johnny Baldwin, CB Rashard Barksdale). It is impossible at this point to know who those players are.

There are a number of free agents available now, however (as Ty Law would love to remind you). Are any of those worth taking a look at, particularly at positions of need? Perhaps.

I realize that all these players have question marks. But this is a team of questions, taking a season to explore numerous options to see what's in store for the future. You've got to look for talent everywhere, and that includes the Pit of the Damned that is free agency in June.

List of players after the jump. Except for Chris Henry, who's more talented than all of them but I just absolutely hate the guy.

Star-divide

1. WR Koren Robinson, Packers. Age: 28.

Chris Henry is the greatest character risk in free agency. Close behind him is Koren Robinson. Robinson has faced suspensions before for DUIs, and he is an injury concern. He's also got three for five years left in this league if he rehabilitates adequately. He's also features above average speed and would be the only WR on the Chiefs to have a 1,000 season under his belt to start the season. It's fair to say that Robinson is not in Henry's league, and might be worth a shot if nobody can win that tricky slot position.

2. OT Shane Olivea, Chargers. Age: 26.

Olivea is good for one thing and one thing only: smashmouth run-blocking. He used to be a phenomenal right tackle for the Chargers, but for reasons that are unknown to me, his play declined (Chiefs fans remember Hali essentially owning Olivea the last couple seasons), and he's been released by the Chargers. To my absolute surprise, nobody is biting on him. Now he does have a bit of an injury history, but he is too young to stay out of the league for long. The Chiefs are going smashmouth now, and it might be worth examining Olivea to see if he can fit.

3. MLB Odell Thurman, Bengals. Age: 25.

Odell Thurman was a talented young linebacker for the Bengals who had all the promise of a long career. But like all Bengals, Thurman was a character concern to the nth degree, being essentially kicked out of the league for various reasons for two years. Having been reinstated, the Bengals questioned his work ethic to get back onto the field when he apparently skipped a practice to go to a close family member's funeral. Harsh. Nonetheless, Thurman's undersized and fast, and perfect for the Chiefs' Cover 2. If the worst is behind him (god knows if it is) and if he's in proper shape (god knows if he is), he could be a cheap acquisition this late in the offseason.

4. QB Byron Leftwich, Falcons. Age: 28.

We're all familiar with Leftwich's amazing fall from grace after losing his starting job in Jacksonville. In his limited time as the Falcon's stopgap, he raised no eyebrows. But Leftwich was a commodity in this league at one point. He is a strong quarterback, he was accomplished at some point, and is still fairly young. Of the pathetic QB crop left over in free agency at this point, he is bar none the best option, and at this point would happily sign somewhere for peanuts. Leftwich would easily be the #2 on this team.

5. DT Ethan Kelley, Browns. Age: 28.

Kelley was a full-time starter for the Browns last year, but due to durability concerns and a juicy trade market this offseason for DTs, Kelley has been left to the wayside while the Browns make a push for the playoffs. Kelley is your traditional run-stuffer, a gigantic 330 lbs, so his place in this defense is questionable. But the Chiefs have an iffy DT rotation right now, and Kelley could provide insurance as a backup, and a golden player to have around in goal-line situations and obvious run situations.

0 recs | Comment 21 comments

Read Related

Story-email Email Printer Print

Comments

Display:

Olivea's Interesting

If only because he’s only 26…but if his play’s been dropping for two years and nobody knows why that’s a good indicator that there are some undisclosed injury problems.

I think it was a bit b.s. the way Odell Thurman was cut, so he may be worth a waiver pickup. The funeral was for his grandmother who raised him, so basically it was the equivalent of his mom’s funeral and apparently he was the only one who could put it together. The Bengals actually may have violated some rules by cutting him since the only stuff he missed were voluntary workouts (typical of their screwed up personnel department). He’s stayed out of trouble for awhile now, so he may be worth the risk.

Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.

by UCrawford on Jun 1, 2008 6:33 PM CDT   0 recs

As for Robinson and Henry

Robinson’s done a lot to bring himself back and clean up his act, but I just don’t know that he’s good enough anymore to be worth playing over a younger guy. Plus, WRs are usually on the way out at age 30.

As for Henry, no way he’s worth picking up. That kid keeps getting in trouble, he keeps doing stupid things, and he’ll probably still do them if someone else gives him a chance. Kid’s an idiot…we don’t need him.

Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.

by UCrawford on Jun 1, 2008 6:35 PM CDT   0 recs

And No on Leftwich

He sucks and his attitude sucks. The Falcons decided they’d rather play Joey Harrington over him…that pretty much says it all.

Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.

by UCrawford on Jun 1, 2008 6:37 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Bye-ron

I’d rather have a sandwich at QB than Leftwich. He can throw the ball to China, but the guy needs 5 yards of clearance and 15 seconds to get the pass off. This ain’t MLB baby, you don’t have time to wind up in the NFL.

If we need a QB I say we wait till Tampa cuts Chris “the Spleeninator” Simms. He could have some good football ahead of him OR he could spontaneously combust on his first play from scrimmage. You just don’t know. He’s got Gump-chocolate-box syndrome.

by Ochophosphate on Jun 1, 2008 10:10 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

hmm...

I’ve been lobbying for Koren Robinson for a while… I don’t see him as a huge risk, if we mix him in to compete he’d probably pull his act together recognizing that if he doesn’t then we have other players that we can turn to.

Byron Leftwich I like too… he kinda got the shitty end of the stick over in Jacksonville, and i didn’t think he did that bad of a job being a leader on that team, if we were going to sign a QB to a one year deal or something like that… i’d take Culpepper over Leftwich for some reason… i just like him better. However, when it comes to the quarterback position… if Croyle’s not the answer, and Derek Anderson holds on to his starting position in Cleveland… I’m probably (definitely) going out on a limb here…. but what if we traded/made a deal for Brady Quinn next year? Just a thought… a very… unrealistic… thought….

by ManDude on Jun 1, 2008 6:43 PM CDT   0 recs

HELL NO to Culpepper

The problem with both Culpepper and Leftwich is they both have a history of injuries (which is not good if you want them backing up a starter that isn’t all the durible) and both still want to be the starter.

by ChiefDJ on Jun 1, 2008 6:46 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

shrug i don’t really think we need another QB. If we got one though… those two are the only names I can think of that are available. Chris Simms maybe? Vinnie Testaverde? laf

by ManDude on Jun 1, 2008 6:52 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Testes Verde

I think Testaverde just petitioned the league for the right to play QB in a href= “http://www.pridejazzy.com/”jazzy.

I’m with you on Simms!

Hell to the no on Culpepper and Leftwich. I need to see them play a full season without getting hurt or sucking hind teat before they’re allowed back in this discussion.

by Ochophosphate on Jun 1, 2008 10:19 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

well damn

I murdered my hyperlink…. which ruins my joke…

OR DOES IT!

http://www.pridejazzy.com">jazzy!!

by Ochophosphate on Jun 1, 2008 10:21 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Quinn

If Croyle does badly this year, I would have no problem trading for Quinn. I really think he was a much better prospect than JaMarcus Russell (who had Bowe and Doucet to make him look good). Quinn is also showing alot of maturity in his situation of thinking he might be the #1 overall and then falling to the 20s, THEN have the job he expected taken over by a former 6th rounder. Haven’t heard a negative peep out of him, unlike Lienart.

I really think though, that Anderson is going to prove to be a flash in the pan guy and will probably not do as well next year and Quinn will replace him in Cleveland.

by ChiefDJ on Jun 1, 2008 6:50 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

I'd Be Okay With That

As long as we could get him relatively cheaply, of course (2nd round pick or lower). Quinn’s going to be very unhappy in Cleveland if he’s not getting playing time after this year. His contract is pretty much all incentive-based and he’s going to start losing those endorsement deals if he isn’t a starter.

Also, I don’t think Derek Anderson’s going to end up being a flash in the pan. His numbers weren’t that out of line with what he produced in 2006 except for his TD/INT ratio (which usually improves as a QB gets playing time) so that doesn’t look like a fluke season as long as he doesn’t regress on the interceptions. He may not throw 29 TDs again this year, but it’s not out of the question. And if he replicates that performance I think it’s going to be very tough for Mr. Quinn to find his way off the bench.

Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.

by UCrawford on Jun 2, 2008 7:16 AM CDT to parent up   0 recs

So far

They say Anderson has been the bomb in OTA’s. Quinn isn’t even competing for the starting job… it’s Anderson’s to lose. After last year, I can understand why. There’s no reason not to throw your support behind him. They should be even better this year with Stallworth opposite Edwards. If Winslow gets/stays healthy, then they should have a dominant passing game again this year.

Here’s the kicker though. You can’t piss away a 1st round pick in Quinn. The kid has never seen the field so is someone going to give up a 1st to get him?? Turning Anderson would be a great return on investment. They would get great value from a once 6th round pick. But is this guy Cleveland’s Tom Brady? Could Cleveland actually be sitting on two potential franchise QB’s?? In either case, Cleveland is in an envious position.

I think the picture will be a lot more clear after this season. Beyond that, it’s going to be hard to keep both of em happy.

by Ochophosphate on Jun 2, 2008 11:42 AM CDT to parent up   0 recs

WHAT??

You don’t want to give up a 1st rounder for Quinn because hes never seen the field? Well what is the reasoning for drafting any QB in the 1st round? Quinn is one of those guys who was going to be a #1 overall pick the entire year and then the last week dropped out of favor.

He is a far better QB prospect than Matt Ryan and considerably better than Tebow or anyone else coming out in the next couple of years.

I don’t want to put the cart ahead of the horse, Croyle is still my guy. Im just saying, lets not lose our minds about a guys value just because through no fault of his own he has had bad luck without ever seeing the field. If you go just by what they did on the field their last time out, Quinn is still a fantastic prospect.

by ChiefDJ on Jun 2, 2008 4:58 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Yeah, But

If we wait until after this season it would work to our favor. We can evaluate Croyle to see what he’s got and by the end of the year, Cleveland’s going to be looking to get rid of one of their QBs. If Anderson simply matches last year’s performance, I’m betting that Quinn’s going to go relatively cheap, without requiring a first-rounder in trade.

If we gave up a first to get him, I wouldn’t be real unhappy with that, though…assuming he doesn’t have some kind of meltdown this season sitting on Cleveland’s bench.

Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.

by UCrawford on Jun 3, 2008 9:32 AM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Why a 2nd rounder?

He is going to be better than any 1st rounder we would get next year. I’d have no problem giving a 1st and probably another pick if we got a franchise QB (assuming Brodie doesn’t pan out)

by ChiefDJ on Jun 2, 2008 4:54 PM CDT to parent up   0 recs

well...

CP would play hardball, as he should… i think if the deal ever goes down, which it probably won’t… we would throw out a 2nd round and maybe a couple second day picks. i don’t think Quinn is worth a first round pick especially when rebuilding. look at it this way… he can’t beat out a 6th round pick right now… not outright…and he did slip…. and he isn’t starting… nor has he ever… he may be better than the majority of the kids coming out in the next year… but… Quinn remains unproven after 2 years and there’s other talent that will be out there in the first round at other positions, and the value of QBs in the next draft may end up being 2nd round at best… so i think we put out the offer of a 2nd rd. pick to the browns, (and this is a run-on sentence) and if they don’t bite then we just get one of the top end QBs in the draft early in the 2nd round… isn’t that where Quinn fell anyway?

is this just drunken and unrealistic banter? probably…

by ManDude on Jun 3, 2008 12:50 AM CDT to parent up   0 recs

A Player's Draft Position

only matters in the year he’s drafted, really. Derek Anderson’s a good QB who slipped through the cracks. Same as Tom Brady (also a 6th rounder). It doesn’t really detract from Quinn that in his first year he can’t beat out a guy who threw 29 TDs.

Supporting the lesser of two evils is still supporting something evil.

by UCrawford on Jun 3, 2008 9:34 AM CDT to parent up   0 recs

Only one that peaks my interest

Is Olivea and maybe Kelley for the DT rotation. I know nothing about Olivea and if he is the Chargers version of Will Svitek, then no thanks.

The rest do not interest me in the least. Robinson and Thurman have off the field issues and for a team that really really needs to be concentrating on what goes on ON the field, they don’t need the drama or distractions.

I have never liked Leftwich. It is clear now that he is what was holding the Jags back for so long. Extremely overhyped player for what he has done.

by ChiefDJ on Jun 1, 2008 6:45 PM CDT   0 recs

Nah...

The reason no one has signed them yet is that these guys are broken product.

I could easily see any one of them turning into a Kendrell Bell, Ty Law, or Eddie Drummond. No thanks.

TOUCHDOWN! KAN-SAH-CITY!!!

by TheScootness on Jun 1, 2008 7:01 PM CDT   0 recs

Sista Odell

I still can’t believe that guy literally just pissed away his career.

Good luck in division 2 Arena. Say hi to Quincy Carter.

by Ochophosphate on Jun 3, 2008 10:32 AM CDT   0 recs

Comments For This Post Are Closed


User Tools

Welcome to SB Nation's Kansas City Chiefs blog!

FanPosts

Community blog posts and discussion.

Recommended FanPosts

Dawesome_copy_small
Ask a Bills blogger
Csclogo_small
Ask Canal Street Chronicles!
Lanier_small
AP Draft Guide
Small
OFFICIAL Bones Bandwagon-'cause PARADE doesn't own "OFFICIAL" (updated 2)

Recent FanPosts

156_l_small
"Blitzburgh"
Chiefs_small
AP '09 Draft Guide: OLB
Pissontheraiders_1__small
CHIEFS BAR AND GRILL IN KC AREA
Small
Great Humorous NFL site
Football_season-044_small
QB comparison for the Bills game
Small
Roster Additions from the Mothership
Righthandside_small
Ending Chiefs’ losing streak is in players’ hands
Feb_8__2005_g_small
What are the Signs of a Bad Coach?
Small
Free Agents in the 2009 Offseason

Post_icon New FanPost All FanPosts Carrot-mini


Founder

Arrowhead_pride_small Chris

Editor

Small primetime 07

Contributors

Ajax_small ChiefDJ

Chiefs_small Direckshun

ad

Site Meter