Arrowheadlines: Chiefs News 1/14

by NJ Chiefs Fan on Jan 14, 2011 5:54 AM CST in 2010 Kansas City Chiefs Season

Good morning Chiefs fans! We have another round of Kansas City Chiefs news for you. On the house! Please read responsibly.

The Committee of 101 has given Todd Haley the first of what may be several coach-of-the-year awards.

Haley was selected by the committee as AFC coach of the year. He will be honored at the annual 101 banquet March 5 at the Westin Crown Center Hotel...

...A national media committee, composed of 101 writers and broadcasters who cover the NFL, selected the award winners in each category.

Haley will be honored as AFC coach of year by Committee of 101 from KC Sta

No Chiefs fan can be too pleased with last Sunday's outcome. But despite Kansas City's lackluster performance against Baltimore in the wild-card round, there can be no question that a 10-6 record and the AFC West title were major positives for 2010.

The challenge for the organization going into last offseason was to become competitive. In that manner, the club exceeded all expectations. This offseason, general manager Scott Pioli and coach Todd Haley are tasked with taking that next step. So what are some of the issues standing in their way?

Chiefs have issues to address in order to sustain success from NFL.com

The honest truth is that apart from the club being relatively young and having won 10 games in 2010, there isn't a lot of reason to expect the best in 2011. The probabilities are against KC. In many ways, they will be swimming up stream.

Any objective analysis of the past season has to account for a number of things that went terribly RIGHT... things that almost certainly cannot be duplicated... things that were way out of the ordinary for what any NFL team should expect. Consequently, the purpose of this post is 1) point them out and 2) try to make some judgments about what a reversion to the mean will do to the Chiefs' record next season.

Chiefs: A Reason for Pessimism! from Upon Further Review

The Dallas Cowboys remain Oklahoma City's most popular NFL team, according to Nielsen ratings compiled for the 2010 season. The Cowboys averaged a 14.1 rating for 16 telecasts, down from 14.4 in 2009.

The Minnesota Vikings finished second with a 12.9 average for 10 telecasts, followed by the St. Louis Rams with a 12.4 average for 11 telecasts and the Kansas City Chiefs, an 8.1 average for eight telecasts.

Dallas Cowboys still Oklahoma’s favorite NFL team from The Oklahoman

Unfortunately for the Chiefs, there is a chance the Broncos could retain McCoy, especially considering today's announcement that John Fox will be the Broncos next head coach.

McCoy worked for Fox in Carolina so there is a familiarity there. If Fox decides he wants to work with his old mate then McCoy could end up staying in Denver.

Fox Hire Could Block Chiefs From Hiring McCoy from Arrowhead Addict

13. Priest Holmes, Kansas City Chiefs, 2001: The mere mention of Holmes' name should have a Pavlovian effect on any longtime fantasy football player. After back-to-back mediocre seasons with Baltimore, Holmes became a stat-mongering force in the NFL. He had at least 2,100 yards rushing and receiving for three consecutive seasons with the Chiefs, scoring 10, 24 and then 27 touchdowns before injuries started to pile up. While Holmes was clearly talented, he also benefitted from running behind one of the great offensive lines of his time and took advantage of the wide-open nature of the Kansas City offense.

Brees tops all-time best free agents list from Yahoo! Sports

Really tough choosing two from these four (and more). You have to have Hali in there as the guy who terrorized quarterbacks more than any other player; no one even came close to his 95 overall pressures (combined sacks, hits and hurries).

The 2010 ProFootballFocus.com All-Pro Team: Defense/Special Teams from Pro Football Focus

We admired what Charles did in half a season last year, and it was truly a case that the only thing that slowed him down this year was his head coach. It might be a good, sensible plan to keep Charles fresh, but it's a shame that we as fans don't get a chance to see just how many yards he can pile up. Charles is the kind of back that makes the most out of any space, and he's good enough to make yards after contact (only five guys finished with a higher average).

The 2010 ProFootballFocus.com All-Pro Team: Offense from Pro Football Focus

No Chiefs? So, OK, the Dallas Cowboys couldn't make it to the big (local) game, but what about a homecoming for the Dallas Texans, who for some reason insist on calling themselves the Kansas City Chiefs these days? That would have been cool. The Lamar Hunt back story would have truly been special for North Texas. But no dice. Neither the Dallas Texans nor the Chiefs showed up to play last weekend, giving a free pass to the Baltimore Ravens.

Editorial: Few story lines shaping up for local Super Bowl from The Dallas Morning News

There is no question that Scott Pioli's second Kansas City draft class has given the Chiefs solid ground to work on going forward, even after taking a beating from the Ravens in the first round of the playoffs last week. Safety Eric Berry is already becoming a star; Tony Moeaki gives the club an answer at tight end for years to come; and Javier Arenas, Dexter McCluster and Kendrick Lewis all contributed in their first years.

But perhaps more important to the breakthrough year for Pioli and coach Todd Haley was the explosion by the last draft class overseen by Carl Peterson and Herm Edwards.

Instantly, Newton is most intriguing draft prospect of 2011 from NFL.com

Charles will remain an integral part of the Chiefs' passing game in 2011, although I suspect that we'll see another player or two added to the receiving corps (would-be No. 2 receiver Chris Chambers wasn't even active for the playoff game). The continued growth of Matt Cassel and a more consistent downfield passing game will create huge running lanes next season. I suspect that some of those big runs on which he was caught in 2010 translate into touchdown sprints in 2011.

2011 Top 36 Keepers: Charles rates high from FOX Sports

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Always good work Nj

by Supersexy on Jan 14, 2011 6:25 AM CST via mobile reply actions

Ouch!

The combined average of these 19 teams who began with four (Chiefs), five or six wins is a -3.66 wins the following season. In the case of 10 wins (Chiefs) in year 1, that would mean 6.34 wins in year 2. There are only two gainers on this list and one that held its own. The other 16 teams lost anywhere from two games to seven games.

YAAAAAY! Now you go, lady!

by Tarkus on Jan 14, 2011 7:11 AM CST reply actions

good stuff, I love what Manley does with numbers

and in looking at the summary at the bottom, it looks like he’s figuring 2 fewer wins on average … ie, 8-8 as a realistic outcome (which is about what I figure)

something tells me he could be getting a lot of angry comments on that column, though :-)

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by upamtn on Jan 14, 2011 7:38 AM CST up reply actions

Just one of those "realists" who will be happy when we lose next season. ;)

Seriously, though, that’s a very good column (as usual). I was looking mostly at SOS, but he brought up a lot of other things that went the Chiefs way, that will be hard to repeat. The one advantage they have is their core is very young.

YAAAAAY! Now you go, lady!

by Tarkus on Jan 14, 2011 7:48 AM CST up reply actions

absolutely ... and with a few new top-talent rookies in 2011, I think by 2012 (with experience and toughening up) we make a real run at it

The one advantage they have is their core is very young

by upamtn on Jan 14, 2011 8:44 AM CST up reply actions

Optimistic...

I don’t see how everybody can discount the Chiefs just because of the strength of schedule. Like I saw another comment, these teams will not be the same. I was reading the SD Tribune this morning and they have a butt-ton of free agents this upcoming season. I’m sure a helluva lot of other teams will too.

2010 Tough Teams = / = 2011 Tough Teams

2010 Chiefs are on the rise. This is the most excited I've been since 'Nam...

by kcchiefsfan72 on Jan 14, 2011 1:17 PM CST up reply actions

Honestly, though ...

I’m not trying to be a rose-glasses, kool-aid drinkin’ optimist, but …

I fully expect that a lot of these teams that we look at on the schedule and count as losses aren’t going to be as good next year as we’re making them out to be. When I see our schedule, I see wins against Buffalo and Miami, Detroit and Minnesota, two more against Denver and splits with Oakland and San Diego.

That’s already eight wins.

If just two of those eight remaining games fall our way (if Oakland loses a lot of their free agents and we wind up sweeping them, for example, or if the Colts continue their drive off of the cliff), we’re back at 10-6.

I’m not saying it’s going to happen. But, I am saying that, with the improvements that we’ve made to the team and with the young guys that we have continuing to mature into true NFL stars, there’s no reason to think it can’t.

by JacinB on Jan 14, 2011 8:50 AM CST up reply actions

Did you read the article?

It’s about a lot more than strength of schedule, that went the Chiefs’ way in 2010.

YAAAAAY! Now you go, lady!

by Tarkus on Jan 14, 2011 8:57 AM CST up reply actions

Yes.

I read it. And I saw his stats, and his numbers and his blah blah blah.

Did we get lucky this year? Maybe. But, there’s no reason to think that part of our luck wasn’t self-created.

Did we have a lot less turnovers than our opponents? Yes. However, that’s part of our philosophy. And, there are a lot of team’s out there that focus on ball protection (no Shaun Smith joke intended) that regularly have a high, positive turnover ratio. Why can’t we?

Did we luck out on injuries? Maybe. But whose to say that part of that isn’t Haley’s tougher philosophies, too? We run a tougher training camp than we used to in order to get our guys reading for the grind. We have a mentality now that, if you sit out because you’re nursing a questionable “injury” instead of “playing hurt” you could lose your job, which motivates guys to get over those questionable injuries a bit quicker. Could that part of why we had so few guys sitting out games when they could contribute?

And as far as strength of schedule goes (which was another of his points), I’m saying that, just taking a look at our schedule, there’s no reason to think that 8 wins isn’t probable (which is where he had us, even with all of those other factors figured in) and that, if just a few things break our way again, 10 wins isn’t possible (which is what he implied with his “I want some of what you’re smokin’” comment).

by JacinB on Jan 14, 2011 9:44 AM CST up reply actions

Grr.

Grammar fail.

And, there are a lot of ~~team’s~~ teams out there that focus on ball protection (no Shaun Smith joke intended) that regularly have a high, positive turnover ratio.

But ~~whose~~ who’s to say that part of that isn’t Haley’s tougher philosophies, too?

This site needs a comment editting function.

by JacinB on Jan 14, 2011 9:46 AM CST up reply actions

Agreed on an edit button

by SCKSChief on Jan 14, 2011 10:02 AM CST up reply actions

Disagree on the editing button.

We all got you the first time, although I usually say something after my own more egregious errors. Fact is, folks are pretty forgiving, and virtually every time software developers add things to compensate for stupidity, the software is no longer very good. Please don’t make the software foolproof, or only fools will want to use it.

by hmills110 on Jan 14, 2011 8:25 PM CST up reply actions

Jacin, I'm with you on that ...

OTOH, if two of those other 8 fall theother way and we end up at 6-10 … no, I’m not “predicting” that, but it’s a possibility

and as Manley points out, there were very few injuries this year, and very few turnovers … will those trends continue? and if not, if injuries (for example) hit us harder than this year, harder than expected, what does THAT do to our production?

a lot of good points in there …

by upamtn on Jan 14, 2011 9:40 AM CST up reply actions

Good point

with injuries. We were VERY fortunate on that front. This is a fickle game when it comes to injuries. If we can stay healthy next season, we could get a few more lucky bounces. But, with injury trouble, this team will have serious stress. Heck, we missed two guys off our defense for one game and got lit up like a flashlight.

by SCKSChief on Jan 14, 2011 10:04 AM CST up reply actions

We could play the "IF" game all day..

so until I find out a few things, I will remain optimistic based off what we accomplished this season.

1. Will there even be football?
2. Acquisitions through FA
3. Draft picks
4. OC
5. Key current player signings (lookin’ at you, Hali)

2010 Chiefs are on the rise. This is the most excited I've been since 'Nam...

by kcchiefsfan72 on Jan 14, 2011 1:20 PM CST up reply actions

Sustaining Success article.

Similarly, don’t expect Charles to average 6.4 per rush next season, especially if Jones isn’t carrying the rock on obvious running downs.

I think we ought to factor this in when everybody’s bashin’ TJ. People wail about Jamaal only getting 10 carries in the Baltimore game, but if I remember correctly, he got the start, and, except for the one big run, the offense with Charles on the field wasn’t on the field much, itself.

by hmills110 on Jan 14, 2011 8:21 PM CST reply actions