Arrowheadlines: Chiefs News 12/11

Good morning, Chiefs fans! Another daily dose of Kansas City Chiefs news for you. Playoffs, Croyle, and Charles are the topics of the day. Here's a question for you: How does a team (Chargers) that needs other teams to lose multiple games to make the playoffs control its own destiny? Tired of reading this.

Croyle was 0-9 with the Chiefs as their occasional starting quarterback in 2007, 2008 and 2009. But the Chiefs were often miserable as an offense and a team during those seasons.

Now, he will take over a team that leads the NFL in rushing yardage and is ninth in scoring.

"This is a very good offensive team," Croyle said. "We’ve got a lot of guys making plays. If I get the opportunity to play, it’s just (a matter of going) in there and continuing to get the ball to the guys that have been making them."

In San Diego, the Chargers followed the Chiefs’ quarterback saga with interest. But San Diego coach Norv Turner said he expected the Chiefs to run the ball no matter their quarterback.

Chiefs preparing to play with Croyle against Chargers from KC Star

Matt Cassell is officially described as "doubtful," and what that means exactly is that he's not dead.

The Kansas City Chiefs' regular quarterback is recovering from a Wednesday appendectomy, is not known to have practiced since that procedure, and may ultimately be withheld from Sunday's game against the Chargers.

But maybe not. The National Football League's "doubtful" designation leaves room for doubt, as well as deception, and modern surgical techniques have sliced the primary appendix scar to less than half an inch.

Will Chiefs stomach risking their No. 1 QB? from The San Diego Union-Tribune

NFL.com Video: Can the Chiefs win without Cassel?

"I don’t know that people expected him to make the plays that he made last week," Crennel said, "but we knew that he had that kind of ability, and he stepped up. He was challenged; he accepted the challenge and made the plays. I think that he is a better player as a result of that, and I think he has more confidence too as a result of that."

Chiefs notes: Brandon Carr steps up his game from KC Star

It's also possible the Chargers thought they had the division in the bank and simply overlooked the Raiders. But, one thing for sure, they know now that they have to beat the Chiefs. If they should lose, their only chance would be to go 3-0 and hope the Chiefs go 0-3. When any team's back is this much against the wall and they are at home and they are almost always victorious in these situations... the Chargers will win.

Chiefs: Beating the Chargers? from Upon Further Review

San Diego Chargers wide receiver Vincent Jackson made progress this week from a calf injury and is expected to play Sunday against the Kansas City Chiefs. Jackson practiced Friday for the second consecutive day.

Tight end Antonio Gates didn't practice Friday because of injuries to both feet, but earlier in the week said he would play Sunday. Running back Darren Sproles (concussion) is questionable, and wide receiver Legedu Naanee (hamstring) is doubtful.

Injury update: Vincent Jackson ready for Chargers from Sporting News

Realistically speaking, when you try to build something you need a plan of action. Once you have that outline, you stick to it and take the proper steps to accomplish it. Those steps are the process. Easy enough.

But the term gets old. An overused adage so that when things don't work it becomes an excuse - a coach's crutch. Often times, to justify losing the coach chalks it up to the process. Royals fan know that pain all too well. Soon losing becomes the norm and the process is no longer a process, but a problem.

And so lets do away with the word. Most of us are all reasonable fans who understand that building a winner takes time, so we don't need the coach telling us that a loss is just another step in a long process.

Respect the process of sports from The Leavenworth Times

Regardless of the likelihood they won't be facing Chiefs starting quarterback Matt Cassel, who is highly doubtful after undergoing an appendectomy on Wednesday, the Chargers believe they know what to expect.

"The offense is not going to change," Jammer said. "... They are going to run, and they are they are still going to try to get the ball to Bowe."

With the Chargers likely going with eight (or more) players in the box on a fair amount of plays, it truly will be mostly up to Jammer and Cason to stop him.

Chargers corners face test in Bowe from The San Diego Union-Tribune

Trying to sort out the NFL's playoff picture? Good luck.

There's a lot of football left.

Just one first-place team, Kansas City, has a lead of more than a game, while a mere two games separates teams currently holding the No. 3 and No. 8 seeds - in the AFC and NFC. So much for the typical December talk about the wisdom of resting starters.

As Bill Belichick put it, "There's still a quarter of the season to play."

Even so, as the stretch run commences, here are 12 games that may matter most:

As NFL's playoff race heats up, these games could matter most from USA Today

The Chiefs have a shot because the Chiefs have the league's best rushing game. And if San Diego couldn't stop the Raiders' running attack, tell me how it will stop Kansas City's.

I don't know that it can, especially when I see Jamaal Charles averaging a whopping 6.2 yards per carry. But the Chargers will try and they must -- they absolutely must -- succeed. Because let's be honest: If you can neutralize Charles and Thomas Jones, you force Croyle to beat you. And he hasn't beaten anyone in his career.

Peek at the Week: Bears hope to cool off smokin' Pats from CBS Sports

Missouri, the Show-Me State, has become the NFL's Turnaround State. One year after the St. Louis Rams and Kansas City Chiefs each finished last in their divisions, each has positioned itself to make the jump from worst to first. At 6-6, the Rams already have equaled their win total in 2007-09, and before the season is over, the Chiefs might do the same. The 8-4 Chiefs need two more wins to match the number of wins they compiled the past three seasons (10-38). This NFL postseason, Missouri could have something other than college basketball to follow.

How might Heisman contenders fare? from ESPN

Tamba time: Every few weeks I'm contractually required to remind my readership that the Kansas City Chiefs' Tamba Hali is a dangerous man and should be owned in many more leagues. With a nice finishing stretch, he could sneak up and steal the sacks crown before it's all said and done.

D Up! Top IDP help for playoffs from ESPN

If the Chiefs win the AFC West, is it time to give running back Jamaal Charles some love in the MVP voting? Probably not, since he's part of a running back platoon and Kansas City's passing attack has really risen up lately. But it's certainly past time to recognize Charles as one of the NFL's best backs - he ranks second in the NFL behind Houston's Arian Foster in yards from scrimmage with 1,516, and he is the league's most efficient running back on a per-play basis. The Chiefs have worked Charles into their outside zone blocking to perfection, and it's really paying off.

Week 14 NFL preview from The Washington Post

Most of the kickers, like Moseley, booted in a straight-on style, which presented less room for error than the emerging soccer-style approach, in which the ball came off the instep. The best of the new kicking breed was Norwegian native Jan Stenerud, whose brilliance with the Kansas City Chiefs in the '60s and '70s, before he moved on to the Packers and the Minnesota Vikings, would lead to his induction into the Hall of Fame, the only pure place kicker ever to have received the honor.

Kicked around: Inside football's loneliest position. from The Washington Post