Arrowheadlines: Chiefs News 3/12

Happy Friday, AP. Here's today's Kansas City chiefs news. Once again we are tweet-free. I'll pick that up again over the weekend. Enjoy.

On Friday the NFL will announce a contest in honor of the 75th NFL Draft that will be held in April.

They are going to ask fans to vote on the 75 best draft choices in league history. Fans are asked to go to NFL.com where they will find a list of 320 players. From that group, they are asked to select 75 choices as the best of all time. The top 10 choices will be announced on April 22nd during the first round of the 2010 Draft.

Voting begins on March 12th and will run through April 18th.

We know a good idea when we hear one, so here’s a chance for Chiefs fans to pick the best draft choices in their favorite team’s history. We aren’t going to ask for 75; that might be hard to fill out that field!

The Best Chiefs Picks … Weekend Cup O’Chiefs from Bob Gretz

There were times last year, particularly before the Chiefs signed Chris Chambers and during Dwayne Bowe’s suspension, that Todd Haley faced a dilemma about which wide receiver to play.

The Chiefs were that thin on their bench. They hope they addressed that problem Thursday by signing Jerheme Urban to a two-year contract.

Urban, 29, is 6 feet 3, 207 pounds and attended Trinity (Texas) University. He has played seven seasons in the NFL, the last three with Arizona.

His familiarity with Haley, the Cardinals’ offensive coordinator in 2007 and 2008, will give Urban strong consideration as the slot player when the Chiefs go to three receivers or even as a starter if Chambers or Bowe falters.

Chiefs sign wide receiver from KC Star

On his preparation: "I really believe in my preparation. Obviously God has blessed me, kept me healthy and he gave me the will to do what I’ve had to do. I’ve had a lot of adversity I’ve had to overcome and God has blessed me by keeping me levelheaded and keeping me hungry. I do think I’ve definitely worked as hard as I can in the training room and the weight room to maintain my body, cleaning up any type of injuries I may have had so I can be fresh for the next week. I watch a lot of film, so I’m prepared and I know what to expect on Sundays. I think there are a lot of different things mixed together that have helped me be successful over the past four, five years, and I’m definitely not going to stop those things now."

Getting To Know: Thomas Jones from Bob Gretz

Jerheme Urban is about to begin a new chapter in his professional football career.

Urban signed a two-year contract with the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday after playing wide receiver and on special teams for the Arizona Cardinals for the last three seasons.

Urban, a Victoria native, became a free agent when the Cardinals decided not to tender him an offer.

Urban leaves Cardinals for Chiefs from The Victoria Advocate

The Chiefs are dangerously thin at nose tackle with only returning starter Ron Edwards as a factor. After the Chiefs traded Tank Tyler to Carolina last season, Edwards was forced to play much more than the coaching staff wanted. No other players the team brought in could stay healthy or be remotely productive. At worst, Smith should be an upgrade as a back-up nose tackle. At best, he’ll take over at starter. And, at age 28, he’s entering his playing prime so if he’s ever going to be a factor in the NFL, the Chiefs will have him under contract.

Chiefs sign free agent defensive tackle Shaun Smith from Cincinnati from Examiner.com

Port Arthur native and NFL running back Jamaal Charles, the Kansas City Chief's 2009 MVP, will be honored by the Port Arthur Historical Society at 1 p.m. Friday, with his induction into the Sports Legends Gallery at the Museum of the Gulf Coast, 700 Procter St. in downtown Port Arthur.

Charles graduated from Memorial High School in 2005 after a stellar gridiron career that included two-time All-State and District 22-5A Player of the Year honors.

Kansas City RB Jamaal Charles will join Sports Hall of Fame at PA museum from KFDM.com

1. Jamaal Charles, Kansas City Chiefs
The team recently had great success with Priest Holmes, an unheralded former Texas Longhorn. So why not another? If you didn't watch Kansas City over the second half of last season, you missed out on why Charles leads this list.

In the final eight games, Charles rushed for 968 yards on 161 carries, an average of more than six yards per attempt. He also showed his versatility by scoring on a reception and a 97-yard kick return.

Chiefs' Charles to lead charge of breakout backs from The Sporting News

Merlin Olsen, the Hall of Fame tackle who anchored the Los Angeles Rams’ Fearsome Foursome, the line that glamorized defensive play in the National Football League, died early Thursday at a hospital in Duarte, Calif. He was 69..

...Olsen was one of three brothers who played in the N.F.L. Phil Olsen was a teammate, playing defensive tackle for the Rams from 1971 to 1974 and later playing for the Denver Broncos. Orrin Olsen played center for the Kansas City Chiefs.

Merlin Olsen, Football Star, Commentator and Actor, Dies at 69 from The New York Times