Todd Haley 'Pleasantly Surprised' By Chiefs Secondary

Brandon Carr. Brandon Flowers. Eric Berry. The future of the Chiefs secondary.

On Tuesday, Todd Haley named the secondary as a unit with which he was pleasantly surprised.

"There are a lot of areas that I'm encouraged about but I think our secondary, to this point, and one of our best players hasn't been out there and he's a player I'm really excited about, Brandon Flowers," he said.

Flowers has a shoulder injury that's holding him out for precautionary reasons. He's arguably the best player on the team and, entering year three, the leader of the Chiefs secondary.

Similarly, Haley singled out Brandon Carr as another player that seems to get it. Year three is generally considered the "leap year" in which players are expected to take a big leap after two years in the system.

"This is about our team as a group but Brandon Carr, to me, is a guy who has come in with his head down working hard," he said. "He came in a little ahead of when the actual weight program began and he was here ahead of time and has really worked hard. It looks like it has translated out to the field. He is gaining confidence and he is a big, fast corner. He is a player that I am keeping my eye on and I am hoping that this progress continues."

I think it's important to point these two players out. Haley doesn't single out players too often so the fact that he did that with both Flowers and Carr is a sign that he likes what he sees. It's also "encouraging", as Haley would say, that the strength of the team is turning out to be the secondary as the NFL is transitioning into a pass-heavy league.