Why we're not so good

by SillyHatDay on Sep 21, 2009 2:49 PM CDT Comment 20 comments

I'm going to offer a reason for why the Chiefs are not as good as they should be, in spite of the talent we have.

Our two biggest problem areas are the lines on each side of the ball. consider this fact, a large number of our guys are playing out of position.

Glen Dorsey drafted as a RG. We had a Pro Bowl RG so we stuck him at RT

Rudy Niswanger is a G playing C

Andy Alleman is a C/RG playing LG

Wade Smith plays every position along the line

Ike Ndukwe is a LG playing LT

you can say C to G is nothing but C is responsible for line calls so he needs to be able to read a defense like a QB

Thats 5 of 8 OL guys spending at least some time out position. that is 3 or 5 starters

now on the Defensive side

Glen Dorsey was drafted as a DT and we have him at DE

Alex Magee was drafted as a DT and is playing DE

Tamba Hali is a DE playing OLB who is awkwardly sized for both. he is probably best as a 4-3 DE

Andy Studebaker is a DE playing OLB

Peirre Walters in a DE playing OLB

Demorrio Williams is an OLB playing ILB

If we just played guys at their natureal positions, we would probably get more out of them. This is my suspicion why there is underperformance along the lines, especially from Dorsey and ALbert.

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Arrowhead Pride's writers or editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of Arrowhead Pride writers or editors.

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Brandon Albert

im sure is who you meant at RT but i think we had to change them from naturnal position bacuse most of those guys were not performing at thier naturnal position with the exception of albert and magee who we have never seen at naturnal position and dorsey we dont know how good he could have been but he did look good yesterday, i think overall d line yesterday played great

by bflowers24probowl on Sep 21, 2009 2:56 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Here is why

Most of them suck. That is why.

D-Bowe, Mark Bradley, Bobby Engram and Turtle. Four Chiefs WRers. 4 Pro Bowlers.

by Patrick Allen on Sep 21, 2009 3:20 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I think

Tamba looks pretty good where he’s at. The reason we are not that good is, we lack killer instinct to finish the fucking game in the clutch IMO.

by GHOST OF DT on Sep 21, 2009 3:22 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

too simplistic

interesting theory, but I disagree.

Some of those guys are better (or will be better) at their new positions : Hali, Dorsey

Others, it’s a wash…
but, I have to agree with the Ghost (above)…
they keep putting more of the pieces together, but just can’t finish.

* "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

by stagdsp on Sep 21, 2009 3:40 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Magee

Was drafted as a DT/DE…..he was never thought of as a pure DT. He can play both, that is why he was highly touted by Pioli.
Hali is a really good player….but I agree he cannot play OLB. He does not have the speed needed. He is pretty quick on his feet but lacks pure LB speed. He is also not very athletic.

This is just two games in the season…just wait.

"Hell yes I love my truck, but I want you to know, honey I love your love the most" - Eric Church

by Matt_Grbac on Sep 21, 2009 4:38 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Magee is perfect fit

For DE in the 3/4 as both are top picks I am very satisfied with. Jackson is quickly getting better and Magee looks like a monster when he is on the field.

by kcchiefstd on Sep 22, 2009 3:47 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

"Glen Dorsey drafted as a RG. We had a Pro Bowl RG so we stuck him at RT"

Please revise…thank you

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by woodman212 on Sep 21, 2009 5:23 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

You mean DT moved To RE

Albert was a LG moved to LT please do your homework first.

by kcchiefstd on Sep 22, 2009 3:48 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

The only pro bowler we have on O-Line

Waters LG get it right or don’t comment please.

by kcchiefstd on Sep 22, 2009 3:49 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Sorry "Chief STD"...

I was grumpy….and pointing out the variety of errors in the post…

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by woodman212 on Sep 22, 2009 5:20 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'm not sure how much creedence to put into your evaluation

When you seem misinformed about so many things.

I can only assume you meant Brandon Albert on your first note, not Glenn Dorsey. Albert played Left Guard in college, not RG. And Guard is NOT his natural position. He is a Left Tackle. Its the position he played in High School, its the position he played in college.

THE ONLY reason he was playing Guard was because Virginia already had a blue chip recruit in D’Brickshaw Ferguson (who was a top 5 pick by the Jets) and Eugene Monroe, another top recruit, was going to be around longer than Albert. Al Groh, the Virginia head coach has already said that Monroe was not necessarily a better LT than Albert, but that he left Albert at Guard for purely continuity reasons so that he didn’t lose Ferguson then have Albert one season before he goes pro, then have Monroe one season before he went pro. He decided that was too much turnover at the critical LT position so he left Albert at Guard for his last year.

Branden Albert is a very good LT. There is absolutely no reason to talk about moving him. Stop obsessing about this.

Niswanger has ALWAYS played Center. It is the position he played in college. He played a couple of games at Guard for the Chiefs before being injured.

Alleman is yet to even play in a game yet.

Magee was drafted to play DE in the 3-4. He was not drafted to play DT in the 4-3.

It’s true that some guys are not playing their natural positions right now. Dorsey is playing DE and not DT. This is because we are not playing the 4-3 right now and there IS NO DT position. So he either learns to play DE or he doesn’t play at all.

Same goes with Hali and Studebaker.

The changes in position on the defensive side are scheme oriented and there is nothing that can be done about it.

For the offensive line changes, Albert is going to be a fantastic LT. He was drafted to be a LT, not to be a Guard. As far as the Guards and Centers, they are interchangable and not a big deal.

by ChiefDJ on Sep 21, 2009 5:23 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Thank you for all of this....

I don’t agree with you all the time…but all of this is good…lol

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by woodman212 on Sep 21, 2009 5:24 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Thats right

I only talked about moving Albert for the sake of maybe bringing in Levi Jones

by kcchiefstd on Sep 22, 2009 3:51 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Why this post is not so good

There’s a guy that doesn’t understand that a position player college is different from the NFL. It happens all the time on almost every team. Maybe silly hat day is out of position as a blogger

by Trapped in Donkeyland on Sep 21, 2009 7:01 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

+1

And lots of confusion here between the right and left sides of the line.

Bottom line is that we WANT players that are diverse. That much is very clear. Of all the players mentioned in this post, I can’t see where any of them are struggling more than they were at their “natural positions”.

by 3GChief on Sep 21, 2009 8:09 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

There's some truth to what Silly's saying, although there're some glitches that should be revised.

and can easily be revised, in a FanPost.

Reason I’m replying to you, though, 3G, is you hit on the “versatility” aspect. Fact is, Magee WAS drafted to be a swing player, although most likely a 3-4 DE. But he has the measurables and football smarts to play at any spot along the line, 3-4 or 4-3, in a pinch. Guys like Magee, thrown in with the guys we HAVE, and this team may even be able to run 4 true bigs in a VERY convincing 4-3…

Back to Silly, you can see some positions that are currently less-than-pro-bowl caliber on the O-Line. And a GREAT left tackle beats a GOOD left tackle, ANY day. Albert was and is GOOD, but all it takes is one blown assignment or one false start, and he’s hurt your chances to win. If a GREAT LT came along, Albert would quickly find a home elsewhere on the line or be traded. So far, he hasn’t been GREAT, and that’s what you want at LT and (pretty much) what you NEED to have a shot at the Lombardi Trophy.

O’Callaghan is a pure Right Tackle. He hasn’t seen any playing time. Best-case scenario, Alleman and Ndukwe push for playing time at C/RG. Replacing the C too soon looks to be a tough proposition, with RT and RG in flux. If/when things solidify at those two spots (and they’re incrementally better than last year, as is), Niswanger is likely to see a lot more competition at C from Alleman/Ndukwe/Goff? I think Wade’s just happy to be in the rotation at G…

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

by hmills110 on Sep 22, 2009 8:06 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

just curious...

but when is ones postion determined for the rest of their career? 1st yr Pro? Junior yr College? HS?….I’m sure almost every player in the NFL has played a different position at one point. What if our waterboy played RB in Pee-Wee…should we pop him in for LJ? Too much is read into ones resume….let the coaches fill the wholes the best they can with the available players.

"The receivers are an integral part of the passing game." - Hank Stram

by kcfansinceakid on Sep 21, 2009 9:00 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Sometimes Never

Harris Barton for the 49ers had a very long and excellent career playing pretty much every offensive line position.

Moderator - Arrowhead Pride
Predictions for 2009

1. Todd Haley's going to struggle with managing his staff in his rookie year as head coach.
6. The Chiefs will go 7-9 in 2009, good for 2nd in the AFC West. Revision: We go 5-11 and finish behind Oakland.
7. Ryan Succop will not perform better in 2009 than Connor Barth did in 2008.
8. The Chiefs will have a bottom 10 defense this year.
9. RB will be a problem area this season on offense.

by UCrawford on Sep 22, 2009 10:15 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Wrong on most of your points

Albert plays LT and getting better. Dorsey is at the position that fits him best in the NFL, as he was almost undersized for 4/3 DT. Hali looks better at 3/4 OLB than he ever did at 4/3 DE. Niswanger is a very inteligent person and that is def not the prob with him he makes the right calls. Ndukwe will prob move to guard next year but looks solid at RT. Williams, Johnson or Mays would probably be more effective than Vrabel at OLB, but would they be in the right place? Thats the only change I do want to see, Vrabel is excellent with technique but he is to slow.

by kcchiefstd on Sep 22, 2009 3:44 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

I think Vrabel's more than OK, too.

Agree on Hali, although he’s largely playing an upright DE in this hybrid D.

Still, he also has that bit of LB in him, when he loops behind the d-line and pursues to the strong side.

I don’t think KC has a better SOLB than Vrabel. I just would like to see him playing more of a Hali style on the strong side. Drop in coverage only as a change-of-pace after the relentless and disciplined 5-man blitz is established as an every-down proposition. When the offense starts cheating a RB to help the TE against Vrabel is when Mays can make his bones with an inside move, and Vrabel can drop into shallow zone and mess up the hot read.

I agree with what you say about Niswanger, and I really expect to see the right side go through at least one more evolution, before things will settle down enough for them to get serious about swapping-out the C. I hear NOTHING about anybody really challenging Niswanger, at this point.

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

by hmills110 on Sep 22, 2009 8:16 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs