Bernard Pollard gets cut and mass panic ensues from some Chiefs' fans. Before we get too far ahead of ourselves we need to ask this, "Could it be that we as fans get attached to a player for whatever reason and they might not be that good?"  Or do you keep a player who doesn't fit with your team's scheme and isn't coachable?

During the Rams preseason game, Pioli made mention during his interview with the Chiefs' TV crew that they would be keeping the best players for the team not necessarily the most talented. What good is talent if you don't have the Football IQ and willingness to do what the coaches want you to do?

Many people are stating that we should've kept Pollard for trade purposes. The problem is the Chiefs did attempt to trade Pollard but apparently they didn't receive any offers. You can't just keep Pollard around hoping that someone will come calling for your third string safety later in the year.

But let's go back to the assumption that maybe we as fans overvalue talent especially in regard to scheme. We think that McGraw, Brown and Morgan are a level below Pollard but look at what Haley said regarding the competition in the secondary:

The defensive backfield as a whole, I think, there’s excellent competition,’’ Haley said late last month when asked if Brown had pushed Pollard for the job. “I don’t think there’s anybody who feels real comfortable. Mike’s one of the reasons for that but I think that’s the way it is across the board there. Those guys know there is somebody right behind them that could be playing just as well as them. That’s how you get your team good.”

Biggs: Chiefs exploring trade options with Pollard

 Could it be that because we didn't watch all of the training camp sessions and weren't in the team meetings, we might have missed a few items regarding Pollard and for that matter the some of the others? Also doesn't this mesh with the underlining assumption of Coach Haley that when a team is 2-14 no one is safe? We fall in love with measurables but if they don't follow direction it will only lead to frustration. As Haley points out:

 I’ve got to go by what I see and not go by what I hope. I would never have fun with somebody not playing that I think can be a pretty good player or is kind of wasting our time and his. That would never be fun for me. I want us to be good and everything I do has to be thinking about that.”

Q&A with TODD HALEY - 9/1

It's also become painfully obvious that between the change in scheme and the poor drafting / FA pickups of Carl Petersen our football IQ level is what are record says it is. Pioli doesn't need the most talented player rather he needs those who fit the scheme and put team first. Now in an ideal world you get a mix of both (i.e Tom Brady, Mike Vrabel, etc). The next couple of days will be very interesting because I think you will see more cuts from our roster and you might even see a trade because I think it is safe to say that even the 55th best player on the Steelers, Ravens, Patriots, Chargers, etc could be a better fit than our 45th roster spot (as an example). It's all about finding the blend of talent, football IQ and scheme fit. If it's one thing we know, Pioli will be very active in trying to find the right fit but he won't panic and that something we need to remember when a player we really liked winds up somewhere else.