Chiefs n' Chambers Stuck to the Gameplan Against the Steelers

by Joel Thorman on Nov 23, 2009 3:17 PM CST in 2009 Kansas City Chiefs Campaign Comment 36 comments

Chris Chambers' reaction to the news that before yesterday the Kansas City Chiefs had not won a game in Arrowhead since September, 2008:

"Whoa."

Chambers was a big part of the Chiefs success leading all receivers with 119 yards including a 61 yard reception in overtime that was effectively the game winner. There was one question though following the game - Why didn't Chambers cut his run back inside for a chance to score?

"The play before," he explained, "the guy landed on my shoulder and my chest. I had the wind knocked out of me. I didn't play for the next 10-15 minutes. I tried to tough it out and that's one of the reasons I ran out of bounds. I didn't want to get hit."

Fair enough. Chambers play, including another 47 yard reception, was a big part of the Chiefs success. He said the Chiefs had a great gameplan and, despite being down by two scores at one point, didn't make any halftime adjustments.

"We didn't make too many adjustments," Chambers told reporters after the game. "We pretty much struck to the game plan."

"This offense has been progressing. I came at the right time where some things had been tweaked over the last six or seven weeks. We're trying to find an identity of what we can do. It takes a little while but guys were able to step up and make plays."

Chambers credits the work put in during the week, and camaraderie of the group is reasons for the team's success.

"We carried it over to practice, the weight room....we have great tempo. I think that's a great thing about this team."

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So he didn’t want to get hit just because he had had the wind knocked out of him or because he hurt his shoulder? Seems like his shoulder got busted up. I hope I am wrong cause we need that guy 100% against the Dolts.

by augmental on Nov 23, 2009 3:20 PM CST reply actions

Yeah I think he was a little banged up

He was off the next series after the injury happened.

Arrowhead Pride

by Joel Thorman on Nov 23, 2009 3:21 PM CST up reply actions

I damn near ready to eat crow on the Chambers signing.

Dude looks great.

"What?!?! I aint no Obama for the weed!"
-Turk McBride

by HIV 2 Elway on Nov 23, 2009 3:22 PM CST reply actions

as a chief fan in san diego, I was shocked that the guy got cut... I mean...

they gave up a 2nd for him after buster davis was just that, a bust, and now we have Bowe(Davis’ college teammate) and Chambers who at 31, can totally be an eddie kennison for 2-3 more years and post 50 catch seasons late in his career…To get him, sure at 2.5 mil or whatever…is a steal..he wouldnt have signed with us had he cleared waivers, so im glad we nabbed the guy…

lets face it, long/chambers/wade all picked up DURING the season and they are our top 3 WR’s, infact go further to TE, and we picked up pope mid season….our top 4 recieving targets…since charles I wont count altho he is one of the better ones, and bradley…Ive soured on bradley…

by SDChief on Nov 23, 2009 3:40 PM CST up reply actions

Chambers was cut because he’s old and was the fifth best receiver on the Chargers.

Bolts from the Blue // "Game over." - Jamal Williams
Bloody Elbow // "Every normal man must be tempted at times to spit upon his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats." - H.L. Mencken

by Richard Wade on Nov 23, 2009 3:56 PM CST up reply actions

Start eating...I too was hesitant on him making an impact.

Gobble….gobble…gobble!

by casselreadychiefs on Nov 23, 2009 3:48 PM CST up reply actions

Uh ...

Crows don’t gobble. You got the wrong bird, man.

by JacinB on Nov 23, 2009 4:12 PM CST up reply actions

I don't know if this is true or not but...

the Chiefs, yesterday, seemed to be playing…a lot less wound up if that makes sense? It seemed like as a whole the team had taken a collective sigh and came out looking a lot lighter (from a mental perspective) and more focused then in the past. As if they were playing like they truly enjoyed playing football just for the sake of playing it…More confident if you would.

by butchcassidy on Nov 23, 2009 3:30 PM CST reply actions

supposedly

Haley said he’d yell less, and coach more. That’s prob why he didn’t go for it on 4th and 1.

by kc571 on Nov 23, 2009 3:41 PM CST up reply actions

Needless risk in that situation

As a veteran, I trust Chambers ability to assess how his body is and make the right decision. Especially with our reduced receiving corps, we can’t afford to lose another player.

Plus we have a dependable kicker, so it’s nice that you don’t have to risk it just to ensure the victory. There could have been an injury OR fumble or something unseen.

And this is coming from someone who has Chambers as a starting WR in fantasy football.

by Boots 58 on Nov 23, 2009 3:33 PM CST reply actions

I do believe that we are seeing the effects of Haley's tough training program and weight loss.

In the fourth quarter and OT, KC was much stronger and the Steeler’s were sucking wind. Also, a younger team has more energy. Did anyone else see it this way?

by jcox31mc on Nov 23, 2009 3:34 PM CST reply actions

definitely, we're usually the team getting beat for 61 yards to finish a game...now we're the team running past people, making them look tired...some can blame him for bowe, whatever...but what about all the rest of these guys...some point to hali as

a herm player…yes…he was…but he also dropped weight under haley and made the transition to OLB t hat few felt he could make…Albert looks BETTER more comfortable at his new weight…its just all about time…its so wonderful to see coach haley getting results and his third win(whitlock) by the 10th game

by SDChief on Nov 23, 2009 3:37 PM CST up reply actions

I think that's a pretty good point.

I call it the “ebb and flow” of the game. It sure looked like the longer the game wore on, the stronger the Chiefs got and the weaker the Steelers got.

No question. Otis Taylor should be in the Hall of Fame.

by hmills110 on Nov 23, 2009 5:43 PM CST up reply actions

The adjustments were made on a personal level. Guys getting their heads into the game.

Early on, some guys were making mistakes but seemed to snap out of it as the game progressed.
Belcher, for instance, wasn’t staying true to his gaps. Early in the first quarter Pitt gashed a big run up the middle and from the camera angle you could see that the gap was Belcher’s but he was about 3 yards to the left, leaving a hole about 5 yards wide.
Later on, he made that clutch tackle for loss by owning his gap.

I really believe hmills called it on this one. He said we needed to play a lot of gap-sound to win the battle at the line and have the best chance to win.

I've been rapping for about seveteen years okay? I don't write my stuff anymore I just kick it from my head you know what I'm sayin? I can do that. No disrespect but that's how I am.

by soybon on Nov 23, 2009 3:38 PM CST reply actions

You're not supposed to read my stuff.

I just write it for therapy, and it seems to work. My murder spree ended months ago.

I thought that Big Ben was STILL finding escape routes, but Pendergast had enough balls to send enough hats that even when he did, he was still being harassed. But he still scored an easy TD pass, taking advantage of Hali’s outside move to slide left and find Ward for the dink pass.

No question. Otis Taylor should be in the Hall of Fame.

by hmills110 on Nov 23, 2009 5:36 PM CST up reply actions

Need to hang on to that guy

We missed a loooot of opportunities to put him down, and we couldn’t until DJ had to do it while stood up airborne by an RB trying to block him. Our front seven needs to be better with tackling through blocks and getting those arms out to grab a fistful of jersey when the QB tries to squirt out of the pocket.

"The first step to penetration... must not be lateral"
-Confucius, in contrary to Glenn Dorsey lining up in the 2-tech

by ArrowSpread on Nov 23, 2009 6:36 PM CST up reply actions

Chambers

I tried to tough it out and that’s one of the reasons I ran out of bounds. I didn’t want to get hit."

As much as I’ve loved his acquisition, there were two plays besides this one, that bugged me. One, last week a Raider jumped over his back to grab the INT. It didn’t appear that Chambers fought enough. This week, his mistimed his jump again, and didn’t seem to “fight” for the ball. Then, instead of scoring the GW touchdown, he ran out at the 5. Luckily we’re smart enough to not chance a snap to Cassel or handoff to JC.

by kc571 on Nov 23, 2009 3:41 PM CST reply actions

that doesn't bother me

I think when you have a chance to win a game, you don’t take unnecessary chances…

just ask MJD… he kneeled instead of scoring a TD a couple weeks ago… just to secure the win

* "I doubt anyone will miss Connor Barth except UCrawford"
* the LB corps may become the biggest strength of the Chiefs in 2009
* The OL is NOT as bad as you think it is... give it time, and you'll see improvement this season
* Stats are for losers

by stagdsp on Nov 23, 2009 3:59 PM CST up reply actions

Just the fact that he CAN get down the field and WILL make the catch is HUGE for this squad.

But I think the successes on offense, even though limited, were a combo of the threats by Charles and the passing threats, feeding off each other. With good enough execution, the Chiefs were able to catch the Steelers wrong-footed JUST enough to squeak out the win.

I was disappointed in Bradley, though. I keep hoping he will marry up his speed and size and turn into a real gamer, but he just disappears.

No question. Otis Taylor should be in the Hall of Fame.

by hmills110 on Nov 23, 2009 5:41 PM CST up reply actions

But you're right about letting the defender go after the ball at its highest point, when Chambers mistimed his own jump.

No question. Otis Taylor should be in the Hall of Fame.

by hmills110 on Nov 23, 2009 5:45 PM CST up reply actions

At the time

I was like what the hell why did he not cut back in? He could of easily got the TD and the secure automatic win. Although I still wish we had the touchdown I’m glad he did that for his safety and well-being and not just coming with an excuse like well I didn’t want to rub it in. But hey, we won.

See ya Later Larry Johnson, or now forever known as "2.7"

by KC Nate on Nov 23, 2009 3:46 PM CST reply actions

Road to Respectability!

I am still flying high after a great second half by the Chiefs! Haley had some really good play calling. Not having LJ run between the tackles and having a zero effect has really helped this team IMO! Charles is really stepping up and the D is getting pressure. Just think, this team could be .500 right now at 5-5. If we would have beat the Raiders and Cowgirls. The Redskins are a little better than we think, beat the Donkeys by 10 and almost beat the Cowboys yesterday. We all needed the positives to come our way!

by casselreadychiefs on Nov 23, 2009 3:53 PM CST reply actions

Last time he was traded mid-season, he performed better the rest of that season than he had in his entire career to that point.

Also, Chambers felt that part of his problem was that he needed to be targeted more to get in a rhythm or something to that effect. He’ll have less competition for receptions in KC, so that might help him get back to form.

Damn. I was just trying to be nice when I said that.

by Richard Wade on Nov 23, 2009 3:59 PM CST reply actions

The irony will be if it comes back to bite you in the ass this week

by Lebensraum on Nov 23, 2009 4:34 PM CST up reply actions

Indeed.

Save some crow for Mr. Wade guys, just in case.

by Archyrr on Nov 23, 2009 6:23 PM CST up reply actions

Great sign!

We needed a guy that could just make the easy catches. Dwayne Bowe can make the big plays, but he would have probably dropped a few of those that Chambers caught — including the game-winner. Conversely, Bowe probably would have made a few of those jumpball catches that Chambers has missed. We needed the right balance at WR and I think we have finally found it. Cassel just needs to adjust his throws — take something off on his short throws to Bowe so it doesn’t bounce off his hands and lead Chambers more instead of giving him jumpballs. That will come with more time and repitition though, so I am not worried.

Chambers gives us a legitimate #2 receiver and the Wade/Long rotation at slot is solid as well, and Mark Bradley gives us good depth at all three positions. I supported the Chambers signing from the beginning and he has really stepped it up.

by Nick Britt on Nov 23, 2009 4:01 PM CST reply actions

Chris Chambers is this seasons Mark Bradley

I knew the fool had hands, loving it that he’s making an impact

Welcome to Chiefs REBUILD - Version 2.0 /The Clark Hunt Edition
Chiefs will be lucky to go 4-12 in 2010

by KansasCityShuffle on Nov 23, 2009 4:01 PM CST reply actions

Except more talented

"The first step to penetration... must not be lateral"
-Confucius, in contrary to Glenn Dorsey lining up in the 2-tech

by ArrowSpread on Nov 23, 2009 6:38 PM CST up reply actions

Im curious to know what he thinks of Kansas City. After playing against them and now hes playing with them.

I wonder what he thinks of the fan base, the team, etc. I also wonder if he likes it better here in KC rather than SD. And hopefully he will be playing with a chip on his shoulder when we play SD.

by Wrestler189s on Nov 23, 2009 4:04 PM CST reply actions