Five Things We Learned This Season

by Casey Byron Adkins on Dec 24, 2011 10:45 PM CST

Sorry for not posting much. Work has been a pain.

Well that is it. Our season is as good as over.

Our season ended on the toes of Sebastian Janikowski's foot.

This has been a nice run and now my "Five Things".

Mr. Irrelevant is still Relevant- After week 3 we were ready to take Ryan Succop's head and plant it on a stake. Despite his two blocked this week (including one VERY questionable block), he had made 22 straight since that 38 yard miss. Most games, most of the points came off of his boot. Congrats to Succop.
Jackie Battle proved his worth- When JC went out, we thought our rushing game was done. TJ was doing his best LJ impression and Dex was too small. Out of the dust that is the Special Teams, Jackie Battle emerged. While he hasn't had a performance like his 119 yard day against the Colts, he has shown to be a valuable asset. Number 26 has shown that if you need a closer, he can get you that yardage. For a back his age, he actually has some tread left. I believe his lack of performing has to deal with him not being used to the work load since most of his carries come during preseason. As a third back, he could continue to be worthy.
This team can contend- Once we get back our three guys from IR, this team is deadly. The fact we can finish 7-9 after the hell this team went through is amazing. All seemed lost after we lost Tony 2, Eric Berry and Jamaal Charles in consecutive weeks. Some players developed into stars and they know what they need to do. I smell Super Bowl next year.
This defense is deadly- For a defense that lost its star player, it has shown that it takes crap from no one. With Justin Houston developing into the second coming of Neil Smith (yes I went there), QB's will fear he and the Tambahawk. Our secondary is stout (who knew Quickdraw made a difference) and our front three are one NT away from unleashing hell. DJ is a beast, Houston and Tamba Hali are going to be a duo, Kendrick Lewis has shown that he is a ball hawk and can make plays. People want to replace Belcher but I beg to differ. We could do worse and ILB is fine as is.
This is the Future- With all the short comings this season (blowouts, injuries, Todd Haley getting the boot), this team never gave up. The future is now and next season, Chiefs WILL win.

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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Haley did a great job conditioning

I hope Crennel or whomever takes over focuses on that also.

I think people forget what Haley had to work with when he got Herm’s team.

by MichaelMantastic on Dec 24, 2011 11:24 PM CST reply actions

We need some o-line beef!

Angry Red, 'nuff said.

by chiefsfan62 on Dec 25, 2011 12:12 AM CST via mobile reply actions

Mr Irrelevant – I always get a little queasy talking about placekickers. A kicker named Vinatieri split the uprights for the win, when Tom Brady delivered the perfect 3-play drive to within FG range. FGs are like an interruption in the game, where everybody stops, somebody throws down a blanket and they play dice for a couple minutes. It’s like it has nothing to do with football. All RAC had to do was beat the Raiders to keep his playoff hopes alive. It’s a shame that it came down to a 50-yard field goal attempt and wasn’t simply settled by scoring TDs much EARLIER in the game.
Jackie Battle – a reasonably fast 240-pounder, who plays behind his pads. Still waiting to see him throw a decent block for McClain on the turnabout.
This Team Can Contend – Sorry, but I think they’re somewhere between 50 and 100 pounds light on the OL. KC wins games when they’re winning in the trenches. They lose games when they’re losing in the trenches. They are NOT getting movement at the point. They’re very good at running around you, but not so much at you, and that’s a huge factor in the red zone. Sorry, but there are 2 guys in the middle who give up 40 or 50 pounds, and a lot of ground to goal line defenses. Lilja and Wiegs will get run over, assuming they’re quick enough to get in front of the DT.

But that last is a little unfair, because I do think they CAN contend if they address that size disadvantage. They can do that and still maybe be a player in the RGIII sweepstakes. This is a team that’s very much ready to give a good QB what he needs to take on all comers.

Regarding the 4th item, the return of Eric Berry is highly anticipated. Still, I wouldn’t mind a reasonably aggressive move at corner/safety. It’s a numbers game out there, and consistent pressure on the QB depends on being able to send as many hats as it takes, and STILL hold up on the back end. KC really could’ve used another blitzer. So, because the coverage couldn’t hold up, they kept an extra defender back, and gave Palmer even MORE time for the 1-on-1 mismatches to find their expression in open receivers down the field.

Al Davis’s spirit was smiling with the way the overtime went.

Not sure how to respond to your 5th item. The future is now, etc. The way I see it, they’re far enough ahead of where they started, that they only need a few pieces to round the whole thing out. I wanted to see a more rapid OL-build, and my fears were confirmed, when it took forever (and an injury) for Hudson to get on the field, and they did NOT have a younger guy contending for and seizing the starting C job by Week 4.

While there haven’t been but one or two OTs I’d’ve spent a franchise-OT kind of pick on, there’ve been quite a few SOLID G/C prospects in each of Pioli’s 3 drafts, and he’s added just 2, while Wiegs and Lilja, journeyman FA patches after an ABYSMAL 2009 season, were still starting in Game 16 of 2011, in other words, 3 years in, and still journeyman make-do on interior line. Wiegs and Lilja were a big help, giving KC big games against 2nd-tier d-lines and sucking against 1st-tier d-lines. The schedule was weak enough, this was enough for 10 wins.

Asamoah rode pine in 2010, Waters exited, Hudson was drafted, and HE rode the pine in 2011. And 5th-round project, Barry Richardson only got the starting job because Ryan O’Callaghan couldn’t stay healthy. That’s NOT what I call being pro-active in the OL group. What the hell good is continuity, when it means being as bad as you were yesterday? It takes about 3 years to overhaul an OL. About this point of 2011, they ought to be coming into their own, and instead, they just got reminded, AGAIN, that they can’t stand up to true d-line stout.

would of ≠ would've

by hmills110 on Dec 25, 2011 5:41 AM CST reply actions

Weig's consecutive snap streak was a ball and chain on our o-line rotation.

they did NOT have a younger guy contending for and seizing the starting C job by Week 4.

"An atheist is a man who watches a Notre Dame - Southern Methodist University game and doesn't care who wins." - Dwight D. Eisenhower

by electriclight on Dec 25, 2011 11:52 AM CST up reply actions

I'm like most around here and am ok with Succop. Battle is adequate to ok in the role he is in now.

A starter for the long haul, I think not. As for contending, not interested in just contending. We need a really good coach, not RAC, and we need a really good QB, not Orton. If you remember when we won the big prize we had a QB, now in the HoF and the coach too.
I see this team doing what it has for the last half century, give or take. They create a contender for a few years and sell tickets, then tank and ride the past “contender” till they need to sell tickets again. Until we get a franchise QB all we will do is whistle. Our D is improving but far from killer. Lewis is IMO not good enough to start, so we need to upgrade there.
To be fair we now have more play makers than I can remember having on both sides of the ball since the good old days. But we have to be able to play in the trenches better to let the play makers make plays. With the guys we have coming back, free agency and the draft we will have an enjoyable product to root for, but no serious chance for the ring, unless we find that elusive beast called Franchise Quarterback.

by dubld on Dec 25, 2011 6:13 AM CST reply actions