Chiefs Coach Haley Reflects on Loss to the Bengals

by Joel Thorman on Dec 27, 2009 5:41 PM CST in 2009 Kansas City Chiefs Campaign

"With a lot of distractions this week, they came on the road against a very good team, which is now a playoff team, and we had every intention of keeping them out of there. And I thought we could do that up until that final drive." -Chiefs head coach Todd Haley

The Chiefs were tied with the Bengals up until that final drive, which shaved 7:18 off the clock over 14 plays and 98 yards. It left the Chiefs with just 2:03 to operate.

You know the story by now. The Chiefs couldn't take it the length of the field for an opportunity to tie the game. Todd Haley met with the media following the game. Here are a few highlights:

"We have some players battling injuries who played their hearts out."
"Jamaal Charles was right around 100, I don't know if he got it, but this has been a very good run defense. They're third in the league and really the last half of the season they've been very difficult."
"Defense pulled together and played their hearts out. We just needed a stop on that final drive."
"The two turnovers cost us because we were able to move the football a little bit."
"Special teams were real good in some areas. The snap is something we absolutely can not have and it ultimately cost us three points."
"There are no moral victories here but I think it was important for us to come out and compete against a good team."
"This quarterback is continued to make strides. Would he like to have two balls back? I'm sure of that because he's very difficult on himself. These guys are starting to find an identity. We went in there against a pretty good defense."
"I think the guys are encouraged. I think they understand we have to execute."
"I know we didn't have a lot of minus plays today. I don't know what the number was."

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Flowers played a sloid game

and came back in after hurting his shoulder again. He made plays all game

by KCCheeze on Dec 27, 2009 6:16 PM CST reply actions

sloid=solid

lol

by KCCheeze on Dec 27, 2009 6:22 PM CST up reply actions

I didn't get to see most of the game

How did Cassel do?

Predictions:

Kansas City will not win more than four games in 2009
Kansas City will have a new OC and DC in 2010
Kansas City will win at least seven games in 2010

by jmcgoblue on Dec 27, 2009 6:24 PM CST reply actions

not bad

i was really impressed by his toughness.
He was banged up on the last drive in the first half, visibly limping…
not only does he stay in the game, but he scrambled for about 10 yds and took another hit
and lead the team to a FG to tie the game

At the end of the game, he did have the team moving in the 2 minute drill, but threw an INT…
it was a ball that could have been thrown better, but Chambers had a chance to make the play or break up the pick, just couldn’t do it.

The other INT was a long pass down the middle to Bowe… it was high, but Bowe didn’t even jump for it. If he makes an effort, he may not catch it, but the defender might not either.

overall, he did fine… oh, and that TD pass was friggin sweet

* "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 Dec 27, 2009 6:27 PM CST up reply actions

Good to hear

His stats certainly weren’t good, but that doesn’t usually tell the whole story. It does look like the D stepped up, at least.

Predictions:

Kansas City will not win more than four games in 2009
Kansas City will have a new OC and DC in 2010
Kansas City will win at least seven games in 2010

by jmcgoblue on Dec 27, 2009 6:31 PM CST up reply actions

Bull..Cassel didn't look very good today.

He was way off on too many of his throws, including his 2 picks. Bowe couldn’t have broken that up. His TD was a nice toss, but with 2 minutes left he threw another pick to seal another loss.

Don't Fuccop Succop

by chicks_love_chiefs on Dec 27, 2009 6:37 PM CST up reply actions

His passer rating was 58.4 for what thats worth

Don't Fuccop Succop

by chicks_love_chiefs on Dec 27, 2009 6:41 PM CST up reply actions

he wasn't spectacular

but he wasn’t bad either

by stagdsp on Dec 27, 2009 6:43 PM CST up reply actions

cassel was meiocre at best

The second pick was underthrown. The first pick was way overthrown but Bowe could have made more of an effort. The TD was a nice play. Apart from that very up and down play from Cassel

by golfbard on Dec 27, 2009 6:46 PM CST via mobile up reply actions

made more of an effort, he didnt even try

he didnt even stick his hands up and try at all. I agree the pass was over thrown but if he atleast tries he would have deflected it and it probably wouldnt have been picked.

by banshee_01 on Dec 27, 2009 7:10 PM CST up reply actions

That ball should never have been thrown into double coverage and...

Cassel put where really, only the defender had much of a chance at it. He should have found a different outlet receiver on that play. There was over a minute left and it was only 2nd down. That’s why people have been hard on Cassel because he’ll play okay for a while and then throw out a duck like that.

by Chiefsfan1970 on Dec 27, 2009 7:34 PM CST up reply actions

People forget

what Cassel really is: a late round QB prospect. He’s getting paid the long-term starter money (note that I did not say “franchise quarterback money”) because he played well – in an ideal situation – for one season.

Here’s what he really is: a guy who hasn’t started since high school, but had the good fortune to have Scott Pioli take an interest in him.

Does that mean he can’t be the long-term answer at QB? No. But it does mean there’s going to be a learning curve, and exactly the kind of spotty performances we have seen.

Remember… most everybody else who gets drafted in late rounds at least started for a few years in college. If Cassel had that experience, he’d probably make a lot fewer mistakes than he does now. But then again… if that were the case, somebody other than Scott Pioli probably would have drafted him, and he’d be holding a clipboard as the emergency quarterback for some other team.

The only reason Pioli even knew about Cassel is that one of his rules in NE was that there had to be a scouting report for every single senior at the signficant schools. Nobody else was interested for one simple reason: there was no game tape to watch. But since Pioli had scored big with Brady – a guy with a similar background – he knew that it was possible to score big again.

In short, he’s a perfect match for his head coach… a guy who’s been thrown into the fire without the same experience most guys in their positions have. Both of them may yet turn out to be great.

Or not.

John

"Gentlemen! You can't fight in here. This is the War Room!"

by RDOGuy on Dec 27, 2009 7:59 PM CST up reply actions 2 recs

Another Astute Observation by RDOGuy

by 65tosspowertrap on Dec 28, 2009 5:33 AM CST up reply actions

Nice matchup to face when you're thinking about who stays and who doesn't.

Only the good teams tell you that, with much reliability. And the Bengals are good, although I think they’re dinged-up in the trenches. Says something about their depth that they’re as good as they are.

Prediction for '09: Chiefs are looking like a .500 team, especially considering Denver's inattention to D-Line, Chokeland's disarray, and a San Diego team that looks like it's on the decline. With a weak schedule, Chiefs steal a few and win between 7 and 9 games, and if .500 or better, will contend for supremacy in a weak division.

by hmills110 on Dec 27, 2009 6:39 PM CST reply actions