Chiefs Coach Talks About GM Pioli and the Rotating Roster

by Joel Thorman on Nov 25, 2009 11:50 AM CST in 2009 Kansas City Chiefs Campaign

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Todd Haley appeared on Sirius NFL Radio yesterday morning with Adam Schein and Rich Gannon to talk about the constantly rotating roster of the Chiefs and preparing for the San Diego Chargers.

Haley said it can be difficult at times with the Chiefs players because there are so many moving parts. As he's said before, though, players that can handle that type of adversity are the types of players the club, and GM Scott Pioli, is looking for.

"Scott does a great job for us," he said, "and he's great to work with just for that reason. If there's something we feel we need to improve the team, he's there for us."

Video can be seen at the Mothership. I've collected a few quotes after the jump.

Haley also said that there was no second guessing the signing of Chris Chambers when his name floated across the waiver wire four weeks ago.

"That was a decision that, as an organization, we didn't hesitate on," he said. "It's obviously paid off for us. Chris is an experienced guy who has done a good job of taking care of his body through the years. He got beat up in the game and fought to get back onto the field in overtime."

He was also asked about the week's most popular player: Andy Studebaker out of little Wheaton College.

"Venice Beach," he said laughing when asked about Studebaker. "He's a great example for us because he's a guy that's done everything we asked him to do in the offseason dating back to March. Running, lifting and doing everything he can to play. "

He says Studebaker "played a really good game with the big plays not withstanding."

The Chiefs now turn their focus to the Chargers, headed by Philip Rivers.

"We get done with one game and it's onto the next. It's a hot team and he's a hot quarterback. They've won five in a row and I think they've got the running game going now. When we first played them it wasn't quite where it's at now. I think No. 21, LaDainain, is going again but the quarterback makes it go. He's capable of making plays all over the field and we'll have our work cut out for us again."

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I don't have a problem with swapping players in and out this year

I know working with the same people consistently helps build cohesion and is more important for some positions than others, like linemen and QB/WR tandems, but this is the first year under a new owner, GM, and head coach. They were unquestionably going to make a lot of roster changes to reflect the new mindset and gameplan of the team, and there was simply no way this team was going to be a competitor this season anyway. Getting rid of dead weight or guys who don’t fit the new system and bringing in guys who can help the team in the long run makes sense to me right now. It’s like a batting order in baseball. We’re shuffling players around and trying to put them in positions where they can help the team the most, and it looks like we’re starting to answer some of the questions around our team.

Hopefully by the end of this upcoming offseason, our roster will be much more solidified. I want fewer roster moves in years to come, but I don’t want the front office to get complacent either. They will strike a balance between roster consistency and acquiring new talent to fill holes on the team.

by Soria's Unibrow on Nov 25, 2009 12:27 PM CST reply actions

I think with Pioli you'll continue seeing the oft-quoted by me...

… churning of the bottom of the roster. But it SHOULD settle down, somewhat, down the road, as the top spots are filled with players with whom nobody comin’ down the waiver wire compares to what’s on the roster. But make no mistake. KC did not at all finish upgrading the roster in one offseason, or by workin’ the wire during the season.

What I really respect about Pioli’s modus operandus is that he made his moves where others didn’t, leaving himself options other teams didn’t enjoy. I didn’t like the failure to decisively address O-Line, for instance, but OL and WR, the two areas where he did NOT spend high draft picks, were precisely the position groups where other teams DID invest a lot of coin and draft picks, so at #3 on the wire, the Chiefs virtually had the run of the place in position areas where no one else was looking, or, if they were, were too far down the list to beat KC to the punch.

Were the league leavings optimal? I reckon not, but this was close to an optimal strategy, in terms of where the Chiefs were and where they wanted to end up. Aggressive, decisive moves at QB and DL (whether you liked it or not), followed by “roster churning” thenceforth.

In the future, with more pieces in place, this churning WILL decrease, as it gets tougher and tougher to see any obvious upgrades comin’ down the wire, and, quite frankly, KC doesn’t expect to have such prime position in the future. And if they do things right, they simply won’t

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

by hmills110 on Nov 25, 2009 10:40 PM CST up reply actions

What's striking about this year, and that we don't expect to see down the road,

are all the players coming directly onto the field immediately after being snapped up. Clearly, OL and WR were the weakest areas that were most likely to see improvement by personnel changes, and KC didn’t hesitate a minute to get Wade, Long, Chambers, Ndukwe, O’Callaghan onto the field.

The next time you want to diss Pioli for not being aggressive or the coaching staff for taking forever-and-a-day to work someone into the lineup, remember the ’09 season, when there was very little confidence in the guys they had on the field and they ~~BOOM!~~ threw the new guy into the mix.

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

by hmills110 on Nov 25, 2009 10:44 PM CST up reply actions