Chiefs Coach Haley Talks About Decision to Release Mark Bradley

by Joel Thorman on Dec 24, 2009 8:52 AM CST in 2009 Kansas City Chiefs Campaign

In a somewhat surprising move, the Kansas City Chiefs released WR Mark Bradley on Tuesday afternoon. I say surprising because Bradley had come off of possibly his best game of the season. However, with the good comes the bad.

Bradley dropped some key passes on Sunday against the Cleveland Browns and was a victim of the Chiefs drop problem this season. As we've pointed out before, the Chiefs are nearing a NFL record for drops in a season.

Head coach Todd Haley said the move wasn't over anything specific but quickly started talking about drops.

"When you drop balls like we did on Sunday," he said, "and throughout the year at times, they cost us victories and an opportunity to feel a little better about ourselves - for the quarterback to feel a little better about what he’s doing, for the offense to feel better about what we’re doing."

After Sunday's game, Bradley told me and a group of reporters that the drops are "contagious" and you just have to fight your way through it.

"In talking to Scott [Pioli] we both said we’ve got to get this right. We’re trying to find the nucleus of guys we’re going to go forward with. Some of them are here and some of them aren’t here right now.

Bradley apparently isn't part of those long-term plans going forward. Haley said they've got to get an idea on some of these going forward sooner rather than later.

"We give guys opportunity to show that they can be a part of it. Sometimes they flourish and sometimes they don’t."

Basically, what I gather from this is that they pretty much knew Bradley wasn't going to be a long-term fixture as a Chiefs receiver and wanted to get some guys in there that could possibly fulfill that role going forward.

Haley also said that the numbers game is just the way it goes sometimes. Bradley wasn't always a starter so coming in cold doesn't work for everyone.

"It’s not an easy situation and it’s not for everyone," Haley said. "There are certain guys that have a mentality that they can do it and others it’s not a great spot for them. It’s an effort to try and find this mix.”

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I think you may have explained it...

“…Bradley had come off of possibly his best game of the season.” And “Bradley dropped some key passes on Sunday against the Cleveland Browns.”

When your best game of the season includes multiple key dropped passes it’s probably time to be cut, and try out for the Bucs or Lions. (And after they cut you, the Raiders)

Don't Fuccop Succop

by chicks_love_chiefs on Dec 24, 2009 9:06 AM CST reply actions 2 recs

Exactly

by SayHeyWerd on Dec 24, 2009 11:12 AM CST up reply actions

Well said

Bask in the glory that is Kwame Harris. Poor Alex...

by JHWK on Dec 25, 2009 12:12 AM CST up reply actions

The biggest thing is that they need someone to return punts

Mark failed at that against the browns and Q is getting another chance.

Predictions for 2009:

The Chiefs will regret cutting LJ

Bowe's numbers regress due to lack of decent QB play.

The D gets better in the second half but still is plagued by big plays

Cassel looks more like the guy Pioli almost cut in the '08 preseason instead of the franchise QB he hoped he would be when he traded him for

Chiefs 3-13

by bonesjackson on Dec 24, 2009 9:22 AM CST reply actions

Lawrence doesn't even belong on the roster in my opinion

They cut Bradley for dropping passes, but Lawrence has ONE catch and has dropped many more.

Is Lawrences upside really better than Bradleys? I don’t think so. All we hear about Lawrence is that he’s supposed to be fast, though we haven’t seen that yet. Bradley had the ability to get open, even if Lawrence could beat him in a foot race.

Bradley had one game to show if he could return kicks and he didn’t do a great job. Continues on with Haleys pattern of giving guys one shot and then discarding them rather than allowing them the chance to get used to the position.

In the end, Lawrence wins out because he was a Haley/Pioli pick and Bradley was not.

by ChiefDJ on Dec 24, 2009 12:23 PM CST up reply actions 1 recs

More important

More important than dropped passes, were the missed tackles on defense. Maybe Coach should be concerned about them, LJ is licking his chops! I only hope he reverts to touch and fall.

by Digital on Dec 24, 2009 9:34 AM CST reply actions

No more Excuses

That’s kind of the message I get from this, Drop passes come mainly from a lack of focus, and when your job is on the line that had better be where your focus should be. Everyone knew that no one on this teams job was safe even Cassel got benched, Bradley has had chances to prove himself and to make the plays. He just couldn’t maintain the focus and when asked about it came up with the lamest excuse possible. Hell fake an injury or something rather than to come out and say that drops are “contagious”.

The message is clear to me execute and don’t make excuses.

is it me? or isn't about time the Lamar Hunt trophy belonged to His team?

This Chiefs team is closer to a new expansion team than it is a playoff contender, your expectations should match that.

by KC Fanatic on Dec 24, 2009 9:35 AM CST reply actions 1 recs

I agree

Had his comments been different, he might still be a Chief today.

Not that I’m going to miss him…just sayin’. We’re looking for guys that have a certain attitude, and apparently Bradley didn’t have it. It couldn’t be 100% performance related…or we’d have to cut about half the team.

by Scott B. on Dec 24, 2009 9:56 AM CST up reply actions

I don't disagree with dropping Bradley, but if you're cutting WR for drops the entire corp needs to be sent packing

All I want for Christmas is a WR that can catch the damn ball.

I know everyone is talking about drafting a saftey or O-line in the 1st round, but every time the ball hits the turf I can’t help but wonder how good Dez Bryant would look in red.

10/19/09: The Chiefs are on their way to an 11-5 season...I think....
10/26/09: Okay, so it'll be 10-6, I can live with that...
11/9/09: So KC spots the league 7 games. 9-7 is respectable.
11/30/09: I'll consider 8-8 a success and move on
12/7/09: 7-9? Anybody?
12/14/09: 6-10 is a definite improvement over last year
12/21/09: All I want for Christmas is 5-11

by mushin on Dec 24, 2009 10:10 AM CST reply actions 1 recs

Really....

If you want to send a message to Bowe….draft Dez Bryant in the first round. Cassel needs some more weapons anyway and Chambers only has a couple yrs left in him. If Bowe feels threatened that he might not be “The Man” anymore, he might start focusing on catching the ball first.

by KCinAZ on Dec 24, 2009 3:43 PM CST up reply actions

It would have been great...

if Haley would have said " these sorta cuts could be contagious"..

by Sea of RED on Dec 24, 2009 10:12 AM CST reply actions 8 recs

nice

by mushin on Dec 24, 2009 10:14 AM CST up reply actions

speaking of that..

Bradley was the one who may have started it. And, being a slot guy, as Haley said, you don’t get 15 chances like Bowe will. You get a few chances to catch the ball. Dropping 1 out of 3 is a lot worse than dropping 1 or 2 out of 15 chances (like Bowe).

So if Bradley’s drops aren’t around, maybe the others won’t have anything to be contagious.

Happy Holidays!

by kc571 on Dec 24, 2009 11:47 AM CST up reply actions

After last week, I hope Clancy updated his resume……..

by Chris Olson on Dec 24, 2009 10:18 AM CST reply actions 1 recs

In talking to Scott [Pioli] we both said we’ve got to get this right.

Thought they hadn’t talked in weeks?

If someone asks you if you want extra mayonnaise you have to say yes, cus that's part of it.
-Jared Allen

by JComp11 on Dec 24, 2009 11:14 AM CST reply actions

Yet another reason why Mike Lombardi cannot be fully trusted...

Lombardi has a man-crush on Hoodie Bill, the coach he worked with as personnel director in Cleveland , but it seems like he cannot stand the man who did the personnel directing in NE. His stuff last year really downplayed Pioli’s role with the Pats, and talks (still) about how Bill is the center of the whole organization in Foxboro. It’s odd…

Lombardi and Bill. Pioli and Bill. Same jobs, different results.
Lombardi’s players weren’t so good. Pioli’s…hit or miss, but a lot better.
Bill got fired in CLE. He might get elected governor in MA.
Lombardi owns a website. Pioli? He’s getting roasted in KC, but he’s still GM.

…See why I don’t trust Lombardi’s Chiefs reporting??

"You've only got 10 fingers to stick in the dike. Is there a breaking point that pushes you over the edge?...Where's the limit?"

-Marty Schottenheimer

by go_saleaumua on Dec 25, 2009 7:12 PM CST up reply actions

Bradley was going to be a free agent, he wasn't coming back anyway

by FrankPitts on Dec 24, 2009 12:44 PM CST reply actions

"... Lawrence wins out because he was a Haley/Pioli pick and Bradley was not."

Bingo, they are trying to make a crappy draft look less so.

by FrankPitts on Dec 24, 2009 12:46 PM CST reply actions 1 recs

Cutting Bradley really makes no statement...

He sucked, get rid of him. If you want to make a REAL statement….Next time Bowe has a dropped pass the is catchable….bench his ass for the rest of the game. He has had too many chances to “play through it”.
When you cut the low man on the totem pole all you do is replace him with another low man on the totem pole. When you bench the star that is supposed to be not only catching the ball, but leading by setting the example,THAT sends a message that the coach aint fuckin around.

by KCinAZ on Dec 24, 2009 3:38 PM CST reply actions

equal for all

every time a player makes a mistake they should be benched. We’d find out in a hurry that the poor offensive play isn’t just the WRs.

While I don’t like watching dropped passes…I do watch enough NFL to see that it happens to every team in the league..even the best WR and QB tandems. This Chiefs team does seem to have a “Curse” or “Jinx” of dropping passes.

It can’t be a coincidence that every FA WR we’ve signed this season has had drop problems w/ this team. You think if the GM/HC saw these FAs play/try out and they had droppsies we would still sign them? There has to be a bigger problem here folks.

by Knocknheads on Dec 24, 2009 8:44 PM CST up reply actions

Maybe its the coaching....

Are they being asked to change the way they do things?….Ive noticed this yr, that when Wade came to the team, his first few games were good, then he started sucking and dropping the ball. This guy was the Vikings leading receiver last yr. Chambers first few games were great too…now all the sudden he is dropping passes too….Lance long showed a little spark as well, now you never hear his name during a game. As a long time receivers coach, this squad should be showing the most improvement in my opinion. Im not saying they should be elite, but the basic fundemental of catching the ball should show. He should be making these guys better receivers by NOW…14 weeks into the season. Not to mention he has a revolving door at TE, Cottam has not seen much playing time but showed the last few weeks that he should have been playing a whole lot more.

by KCinAZ on Dec 25, 2009 2:54 PM CST up reply actions

wonder what percentage each WR has in terms of drops ... though as RDO so elouquently pointed out, not all drops are drops

still … a % of drops to catches, or % to balls touched … something … that would give a better indication of how well or badly each player is doing would be nice … maybe Bowe is actually “dropping” a bigger % than Bradley or Wade … maybe Chambers is worse … who knows

Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisiton!

by upamtn on Dec 24, 2009 5:03 PM CST reply actions

Check this out

This site has a lot of detailed stats, including the leaders in dropped passes. The Chiefs have 4 Receivers with at least 7 drops and not one of them has played in every game.

Bowe – 10 drops
Bradley- 9 drops
Wade – 9 drops
Chambers – 7 drops

I’m sure glad our head coach was a receiving genius and is doing so much to improve them.

Can probably get targetted numbers from another site. I’ll have to dig it up.

by ChiefDJ on Dec 24, 2009 8:47 PM CST up reply actions

According to profootballfocus.com

Bradley was thrown at 44 times, caught 21 and dropped 6.
Wade was thrown at 63 times, caught 34 and dropped 7.

Bradley caught just 47.7% of passes thrown his way whereas Wade caught 54.0%. The NFL leader (with a minimum amount of catches to qualify) is Wes Welker at 81.4% to give you something to compare with.

by kc_radrh8r on Dec 24, 2009 11:07 PM CST reply actions