Larry Johnson

Everyone says he can not be traded because of the cap hit.  Let's take a look at why this is true.  Here's the breakdown of the hit we would take if we traded him before the week 6 deadline.

Prorated 2008 salary: $1.7 million

2009 salary: $4.55 million

Prorated Bonus ($12.5 million over 6 years and prorated in 2008): $9.68 million

Total Cap Hit in 2009: $15.93 million

This is my understanding of the cap hit we would take if we traded him.  Of course, after 2009 that number would drop drastically.

Tony Gonzalez

This is intriguing but only because we know Tony still has it.  The facts are, though, that he's 32 years old and hasn't committed to playing beyond 2009.  I could see him being sent to a contender looking to be pushed over the hump.

But would the Chiefs do it?  Unlikely.  Right now he and Bowe are our only consistent offensive threats in the passing game.  And our passing game sucks so we need Tony more than anyone else.

Damon Huard

Believe it or not, Huard has some value.  He's a proven back up at the most important position in the league.  Unfortunately for us, like Tony we need him more than anyone else.  We can not, repeat can not continue this season without Huard.  Croyle is unlikely to stay healthy for the next 11 games which would leave Tyler Thigpen or someone off the street to lead our team and we've seen how catastrophic that can be.

Patrick Surtain

I'm down for moving him.  He's in the 4th year of a 7 year deal signed in 2005.  Brandon Carr has proven he can hang in the secondary so Surtain seems to be a stop gap until the rookie is ready to take his spot full time.  On top of that, there's been talk of Carr taking Surtain's spot at some point this season anyway.

So, here's the deal. The feelings regarding our quarterback situation are mixed. However, I feel that a majority of folks are looking to make a change and then some of that group wants to make a change NOW.

I'm on record as saying there's nothing we can do to better the quarterback situation now.  Trade scenarios, while always an interesting discussion, almost never come to fruition.  There's a reason talented quarterbacks never hit the open market.

Below is a list of quarterbacks who are currently free agents.  Keeping this list in mind, I want to hear real solutions to the quarterback problem. Pretend as if trading is not an option (because realistically it's probably not).  Anyone can say 'Hey it's not working dump 'em all!'  But that's not the way it works. 

Tell us who you want and WHY.  The latter is key.  Would any of these players help us now?  Do we currently have the best options on staff?

Player Name	Years Experience	2007 Team
Daunte Culpepper	9	Raiders
Bruce Gradkowski	2	Bucs
Tim Hasselbeck	6	Cardinals
Kelly Holcomb	11	Vikings
Jared Lorenzen	3	Giants
Jamie Martin	13	Saints
Craig Nall	6	Packers
Tim Rattay	8	Cardinals
Lester Ricard	1	Jaguars
Brian St. Pierre	7	Jets
Chris Weinke	8	49ers

[Ed. Note: I've put up a FanPost over at Cat Scratch Reader so we can have a place to ask each other questions, etc.  I think it worked pretty well last week with Mile High Report and was a lot of fun.  So head on over there and let's show them why AP is SBN's best community.  -Primetime]

The Kansas City Chiefs will make their second visit to Carolina on Sunday to face a Panthers team sitting atop the NFC South with 3 wins and 1 loss.  Let's take a look at their numbers to see what we're dealing with.

Jake Delhomme: 72/120, 860 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT

The offense isn't designed to go through Delhomme but he's done an outstanding job of maintaining the offense.  His best game of the year came last week against the Atlanta Falcons in which he put up 294 yards on 20/29 passing and 2 TDs.

DeAngelo Williams: 55 carries, 201 yards, 0 TDs

Jonathan Stewart: 45 carries, 197 yards, 4 TDs

These are the players we hope not to see very often.  The Panthers like to establish a lead and then grind the clock out with the running game and play solid defense.  Sound familiar?

Muhsin Muhammad: 22 rec, 287, 1 TD

Steve Smith: 10 rec, 166 yards, 1 TD

Moose was a member of the Panthers from 1996-2004 where he had his last Pro Bowl berth.  He's putting up good numbers thus far but that is partly skewed due to the fact that Smith missed the first two games of the season for punching out Ken Lucas.

How can we beat the Panthers?

The Minnesota Vikings presented a nice avenue to success when they beat the Panthers 20-10 in week 3.  The Vikings had a solid day running the ball while career journeyman Gus Frerotte manned the passing game to a Damon Huard-like 204 yards and 1 TD and 1 INT.

The Panthers jumped out to a 10-0 lead before Minnesota scored 20 unanswered points.  Highlights included a Jared Allen and Kevin Williams sack and an Antoine Winfield sack/forced fumble and touchdown.

Highlights of that game can be seen here.

The Panthers by down:

1st down

54 rushing plays (3.59 average), 51 passing plays, (5.25 average)

2nd down

42 rushing plays (4.0 average), 41 passing plays (10.07 average)

3rd down

16 rushing plays (2.62 average), 35 passing plays (3.34 average)

4th down

0 rushing plays (0 average), 3 passing plays (2.33 average)

One thing I like to do after a sweet, sweet victory such as our Kansas City Chiefs' last night is go back and review what we thought needed to happen in order to win versus what really happened.

Go back to this post and review what everyone thought needed to happen.  I'd say we were spot on with a few of them.

We Must Protect This House!

Protect Arrowhead we did indeed.  I suggested the crowd wouldn't play much of a factor in the game considering the lack of impact it had on the first game against the Oakland Raiders.  However, at least from the TV broadcast, it appears that the crowd got into it and created some noise despite the level of attendance.

The Mike Shanahan coached Broncos moved to 3-11 all time at Arrowhead as we furthered our dominance over them at home.  For whatever reason, we've got the Broncos number when they come into Arrowhead.  We avoided the 3 year sweep with this victory and reaffirmed my belief that Arrowhead is the toughest place to play despite the team on the field.

Larry, Larry, Larry!

Dead on.  LJ started early with a 60+ yard run on the second play from scrimmage and continued to beat down the Broncos defenders all the way into the 4th quarter.  This moved him just 7 yards from the season rushing leader through 4 weeks.

LJ's performance was a great reminder that when it really comes down to it we're only going as far as he can take us.  Our quarterback situation combined with our less than innovative offense makes LJ moving the chains a necessity and he did that today.

He took the pressure off Damon Huard and the rest of the offense.  Just as importantly, he allowed us to hold the ball for over 33 minutes and I think we saw the advantage that created for our defense.

Early and Often

This was true to an extent.  We didn't get behind early but the Broncos gave us EVERY opportunity to pull away and we wouldn't take it.  We led 6-0 after the 1st quarter, 13-10 after the 2nd, 16-13 after the 3rd, and finished the game with a 33-19 advantage.

What I'm really excited about is the 4th quarter points.  When the pressure was put on and the Broncos pulled to within one score in the 4th quarter our offense responded big time on the shoulders of LJ.

Here are a few predictions from your fellow APers:

"What is success this week? Offense breaks 20 points and we lose by less than 10pts?"

"I can’t stress this enough – Damon Huard staying in the whole game and not being pulled is a big key."

"I cannot wait until Sunday so people might actually remember that Damon Huard is a pathetic quarterback. Thigpen is awful. Huard is pathetic."

Put me on board with that first comment.  I would have been happy to cover the spread but we did oh so much more than that.

So we know what we thought would happen.  Now that we look at what really happened, whose performance surprised you the most?

* End of the longest losing streak in Chiefs history.

* The players made plays.  Larry Johnson 7.1 yds/carry.  Dwayne Bowe 7 Receptions 81 yds.  Tony G 3 receptions 47 Yds.  Damon Huard 75% comp % with no INTs.  Derrick Johnson 1 forced fumble, 1 int.  Dorsey and Tank Tyler stuffing the middle.  Herb Taylor filling in for Brandon Albert.

* Kolby Smith doing the Tomahawk Chop

* Young Chiefs Defense becoming ball hawks.  Every play the Chiefs defense was ripping at the ball.  The result was two fumbles recovered and two interceptions.

* Our young CBs holding their own.  Carr had 2 Tackles, 3 passes defended, an interception and a fumble recovery.  Flowers had 7 Tackles, 2 passes defended and a fumble recovery.  Dmitri Patterson had 8 Combined Tackles.

* Larry Johnson runs for 198 yards and 2 TDs

* Arrowhead Stadium rocking the whole game instead of booing.

* Chiefs score 32 points.  (what is this?  the arena league?)

* Herm going on the field to check on Tony G when he was hurt (which he NEVER does)

* Denver Broncos only had 94 yards total rushing.

*Dantrelle Savages 51 yard Kickoff Return when we needed it most.

* LJ smiling

• Huard, in typical veteran fashion, is not saying whether his benching against the Raiders was fair.
• Arrowhead Addict has an idea for this Sunday's game and it involves paper bags.
• Adam Teicher looks at what's next for Tyler Thigpen.
• Damion McIntosh knows he's the old guy on a young guy's team.  [Ed. Note: More info on McIntosh here.]
• Bob Gretz makes a case for this year's version of the Broncos being the best yet.
• Good news for the health of our quarterback: Broncos search for sacks
• From the mothership: Damon Huard and Herm Edwards interviews.
• Mile High Report Chalk Talk Part 1 and Part 2.
• Herm Edwards would be wise to mimic Shanahan and his quarterback.

More to come later today APers.  Don't forget about the Game Day Thread on Sunday amongst other items this weekend.

 

 

I got sentimental when I read this post at Arrowhead Addict and decided we needed to have a long overdue caption-this post. You provide the caption to the photo below.

via www.thedashow.com

"Hey Trent, we're going to be together forever, aren't we Trent?"

"We sure are Damon. We sure are."

A quick note from Adam Teicher at The Red Zone:

Herm Edwards said the Chiefs haven't decided whether Tyler Thigpen or Damon Huard will start at quarterback Sunday against Denver at Arrowhead Stadium. It won't be Brodie Croyle, who most likely won't play until Oct. 19, when the Chiefs play Tennessee at Arrowhead.

Herm has to be doing this out of deception, right? The equivocating by the Chiefs coaching staff is really making them look like amateurs. On a side note, do you think that this waffling on the QB decision the last two weeks is part of some power struggle in the front office? I haven't heard anything even remotely about that but it helps explain some of Herm's behavior.

****

In other Chiefs news, the Star has a clip of Tony Gonzalez after yesterday's game. He's pretty frank about his frustrations with the offense but he still manages to do it without sounding like he's complaining.

Herm's thoughts on the team's performance yesterday:

"I don’t know. I think we went in phases. We battled back in the second half. We made it kind of interesting but they drove right down the field after a long kickoff return and that got us out of the game. We came back twice but we couldn’t put any points on the board."

Herm needs to stop trying to act calm and collected like his best bud Tony Dungy. We're not winning. Get fired up about it.

Poll

Who will the Chiefs start at quarterback this weekend?

• Damon Huard
• Tyler Thigpen
• Ingle Martin
• Marques Hagans

  308 votes | Results

(Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

Despite going 4-12 last season like our beloved Kansas City Chiefs did, Atlanta Falcon fans are feeling pretty good about this game. You know when your team isn't very good and a worse team comes on the schedule and you're like, "Finally, we'll get back on track this week"? That's the Chiefs this week for the Falcons.

Beyond just "The Chiefs are a bad team" reasoning, the Falcons also have another very good reason to assume confidence this weekend - DE John Abraham and the Atlanta pass rush.

John Abraham, formerly coached under Herm Edwards in New York, already has four sacks on the season and is undoubtedly licking his chops to get after Tyler Thigpen this weekend. As Bob Gretz noted, the Atlanta pass rush is a major reason why Tyler Thigpen is getting the nod this weekend over Damon Huard.

Let’s be honest, if they move Abraham over to the left side and have him rush against RT Damion McIntosh, then whoever is playing quarterback for the Chiefs is in trouble. Better to have somebody with some mobility, who can get away from that kind of pressure. Huard can’t do that. Thigpen can.

Thigpen, despite his other shortcomings, is relatively more mobile than Damon Huard meaning he can avoid the pass rush. Then again, who isn't more mobile than Damon Huard?

Let me take one second to talk about Thigpen's touted mobility. I guess I don't see why it's such an asset for him. Thigpen did make a few plays with his legs last week against the Raiders (1 rush for 6 yards and a few dodges) but I would hardly call him a mobile quarterback. He's only seems "very" mobile compared to Damon Huard, who is practically a statue in the pocket. Compared to Huard, Thigpen is younger and less stiff. Croyle has a bit of mobility too when he needs to use it. Thigpen isn't Donovan McNabb or Michael Vick when it comes to running the ball. He's more like...Steve Bono.

Plus, does mobility matter if the pocket dissolves a half second after snapping the ball?

Abraham will have his choice of going up against Branden Albert on the left side of the line or Damion "Sackintosh" McIntosh (I hate nicknames like that but this one is too good) on the right side. Albert should be able to at least partially contain Abraham but I'm quite concerned about Abraham literally running past Damion McIntosh on the right side of our line. We saw the Raiders' defensive ends do it last week and I don't think McIntosh has improved much from last week to this week. The man is Chris Terry version 2.0 and I don't want to remember those visions of last season.

Abraham's three sacks in the Falcons opening game against the Lions was undoubtedly bolstered by the fact that the Falcons got up 21-0 on the Lions within twelve minutes of the game and forced Detroit into passing attack mode. But a quickly declining Damion McIntosh won't be much of a match for John Abraham. The Chiefs will need to set up more help on the right side of the line for McIntosh and that will have a serious affect on their game plan. We will have to either put another tight end on the right side or commit fullback Mike Cox to that side on almost every down. The Chiefs are already short on talent and to have to overcompensate on one side is a terrible point to have to concede to he Falcons.

The game changes necessary for the Chiefs to contain the Atlanta pass rush will spell bad news for KC. I predict that the game will be won or lost on the right side of our offensive line. And right now I don't have much confidence the Chiefs will win that battle. Thigpen's mobility will not be as big of an asset as people are making it out to be and the Chiefs will suffer dearly on Sunday.

To sum up this rambling, Tyler Thigpen's mobility is overrated and will hardly help him avoid a solid Atlanta pass rush. I hope I'm wrong.

Poll

What do you think about Tyler Thigpen's mobility?

• Overrated
• He's got some moves that we should respect
• He hasn't been unleashed yet!
• Doesn't matter with the curent o-line

  297 votes | Results

**UPDATE SAT. 5 PM** Final cuts have been made. Head here.

Of course, the 53 players on the team after 5 PM central time tonight won't be the exact roster for opening day. After the NFL roster deadline hits this evening, expect the Kansas City Chiefs to pick up one or two players off of the waiver wire.

I've run through the roster and made my decisions on who I think will be cut. Interestingly enough, while researching this and reading others cut lists, most of them are in agreement about 95% of the time.

The only differences I've seen in people's cut lists are the tail ends of the linebacker and line rotations. A little LeRue Rumph here. A little Anthony Alabi there. Maybe throw in some Sippio. (Update: Sippio apparently has been cut)

There isn't anything groundbreaking in this post because it's pretty easy to pick about 90% of this roster with about that same certainty.

QB: Brodie Croyle, Tyler Thigpen and Damon Huard

No surprises here. The Chiefs will carry three quarterbacks on the final roster no matter what and these are almost assuredly the three they will keep.

Cut: None

RB: Larry Johnson, Kolby Smith, Jamaal Charles, Jackie Battle and Dantrell Savage

Dantrell Savage hopefully makes this team as a kick returner but I've included him in the running backs section. LJ, Kolby and Jamaal Charles are all 100% safe. Battle may not make it because of roster numbers but he's probably safe too.

Cut: None

WR: Dwayne Bowe, Devard Darling, Will Franklin, Maurice Price and Jeff Webb

Despite not catching a pass this preseason, Devard Darling is still accomplished enough to get the nod over Arthur, Joachim, McMahan and Sippio. If you make an argument against Darling, you have to make an argument for one of those guys making the team and I don't think you can. Maybe you can make an argument for Bobby Sippio but I think you're splitting hairs at that point.(Update: Sippio has apparently been cut)

Cut: Jabari Arthur, Sergio Joachim, Kevin McMahan and Bobby Sippio

FB:Mike Cox and Chris Manderino

Word on the street is that the Chiefs like Manderino's special teams play, which is great for him because Mike Cox has the starting fullback spot nailed.

Cut: None

TE: Tony Gonzalez, Brad Cottam and J.P. Foschi

TG and Cottam are locks to make the roster and we'll give Foschi and his GA Tech roots the nod over the injured Mike Merritt and Michael "What happened to people being excited about me?" Allan. Allan may spend his final year on the practice squad before permanently falling off into obscurity. My future money says this is another D3 experiment that will not succeed.

Cut: Michael Allan and Mike Merritt

O-Line: Branden Albert, Brian Waters, Rudy Niswanger, Adrian Jones, Damion McIntosh, Herb Taylor, Barry Richardson and Wade Smith

I think those first eight offensive linemen I listed are definitely going to make the team. Beyond that, I think we could see another player dropped at a different position in favor of another offensive linemen. That linemen may not even be on the team right now and there is no way the Chiefs are satisfied with the depth they have on the offensive line.

Cut: Travis Leffew, Tre Stallings, Will Svitek, Anthony Alabi, Edwin Harrison and Rob Smith

D-Line: Turk McBride, Tank Tyler, Glenn Dorsey, Tamba Hali, Alfonso Boone, Ron Edwards. T.J. Jackson and Brian Johnston

After Ron Edwards, you're entering a pretty blurry area on the defensive line. TJ Jackson and Brian Johnston both had their names called more than a few times last Thursday against the Rams and that may be enough to distinguish themselves from the other defensive linemen.

Cut: Johnny Dingle, Jason Parker and Derek Lokey

LB: Derrick Johnson, Pat Thomas, Donnie Edwards, Demorrio Williams, Weston Dacus and Nap Harris (Int'l player Aden Durde will be on the practice squad but not count for a spot)

Nap Harris seems to be on everyone else's cut list and he certainly is a possible roster casualty. One of the cuts listed below could out value Harris on special teams, making the decision to keep him even more difficult. Donnie Edwards of course makes the final cut but how durable will he be in his 13th season? He's already tweaked a hamstring.

Cut: EJ Kuale, Steve Octavien and LeRue Rumph

CB: Patrick Surtain, Brandon Flowers, Brandon Carr, Dimitri Patterson, Tyron Brackenridge and Maurice Leggett

The first four CB spots are taken with Brackenridge, Barksdale and Leggett battling for the final one or even two spots. Can't say I've seen much of any of those three this preseason, making my analysis a bit strained. Brackenridge will probably get the nod because the Chiefs liked him enough last year as an UDFA to play him a bit and neither Barksdale nor Leggett has distinguished themselves.

Cut: Rashard Barksdale

S: Jarrad Page, Bernard Pollard, Jon McGraw and DaJuan Morgan

The safety position isn't difficult to figure out. Page and Pollard will start with McGraw and Morgan rotating in and out. The Chiefs don't need five safeties on the team.

Cut: Khayyam Burns

Special Teams: Nick Novak, Dustin Colquitt and J.P. Darche

Again, no surprises here. The Sams v. Savage competition is pretty much even but I'll throw my support behind the younger, less Drummond-like Dantrell Savage. My gut says Sams makes the team though but I can't bring myself to post that.

Cut: BJ Sams and Connor Barth (he's still on the roster so we'll include him for good measure)

We've already had a few threads about the roster cuts so use this spot to make any last minute predictions. I'll update you on the cuts as soon as I hear about them.