Arrowheadlines: Chiefs News 7/8

Good morning. We've almost made it to the weekend and for our efforts, we have been rewarded with an interesting Kansas City Chiefs news day. We have reports that Vrabel might be coaching at Ohio State, a look at upcoming position battles, and a story on KC's tough times as a sports city. Lots of articles to discuss. Enjoy.

Two university sources have told CFT that, while it’s not a done deal, "there’s a very good chance" former Ohio State defensive lineman and current Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Mike Vrabel will fill the vacancy on the defensive side of the ball.  One source stated that an announcement could be made as early as this coming Monday.

'Very Good Chance' Mike Vrabel Joins Buckeyes' Coaching Staff from CollegeFootballTalk

Chiefs head coach Todd Haley begins his third year with the team in 2011, making him the eighth head coach in franchise history to head the club for a third consecutive season. While some Chiefs coaches have had their best year in their third season with the team, others have faltered so the question remains, what category will Todd Haley fall under?

Tracking Third Seasons at the Helm from The Mothership

The main focus is on today’s players and those that will come in the future. But players from the past want to be part of the solution as well, and they established this week that they are not happy with how they have been represented in the negotiations.

That’s why they filed a class-action complaint on Monday with the Federal Court in Minneapolis that is overseeing the so-called Brady v. NFL lawsuit. The action basically states that the currently decertified NFL Players Association has improperly represented the retired players. It also asserts that the players are "conspiring" with ownership to "depress the amounts of pension and disability benefits to be paid to former NFL players."

Sadly, just a few days later, one of their pioneers in the labor movement for NFL players passed away.

Paying the Past... Morning Cup O'Chiefs from Bob Gretz

We’ve yet to see the complete cast list, but that doesn’t mean competition won’t exist once the NFL Lockout ends.

Free agent additions and undrafted rookies will be added to the mix alongside members of the 2010 Chiefs re-inking contracts for 2011. There will also be those who seek new a home. Others won’t have a choice.

When football returns, the transactions will be fast and furious. An entire off-season of work truncated into an action-packed few weeks of activity.

Roster battles will ensue. Some of which we can predict; others of which we have no clue.

At the moment, these are some of the positions worth watching as Kansas City’s roster heads toward a post-lockout NFL.

Positions to Watch as Chiefs Prepare to Resume Football from The Mothership

A surety company has sued the Kansas City Chiefs and a number of contractors involved in the renovations to Arrowhead Stadium.

Developers Surety and Indemnity Co. filed its lawsuit June 28 in U.S. District Court in Kansas City. The California-based company claims it had to pay a performance bond on behalf of a contractor that misrepresented how much work it did on the Chiefs Hall of Honor. The surety company seeks $639,100 in penalties it paid related to the renovation work, plus other costs.

Developers Surety and Indemnity Sue Chiefs, Contractors for Arrowhead Work from The Kansas City Business Journal

Though the Chiefs faired better, I was surprised to see Kansas City finish just 21st out of 32 NFL teams for most amount of fans. Kansas City has around 460,000 fans between the two social media giants, predominately all of them via facebook. Dallas leads the way with 3.1 million fans, while the St. Louis Rams pull up the rear with just 106,000 fans.

Gauging Kansas City Area Teams in Terms of Social Media from SB Nation Kansas City

The fate of the Sprint Center is the latest bit of evidence that things have gone south on K.C.'s sporting scene: The once-great sports page at the Kansas City Star has been gutted, the Chiefs haven't won a playoff game since the 1993 season when Joe Montana was the quarterback, and, as Rany Jazayerli persuasively argued in Grantland the other day, over the past 25 years the Royals have been the worst franchise in all of professional sports.

These developments have added to Kansas City's longstanding and permanent inferiority complex.

Hard Times in the Paris of the Plains from Grantland

Mitch Holthus, the "Voice of the Kansas City Chiefs" and a Smith Center native, is scheduled to address the McPherson College fall athletes and athletic department staff at 7 p.m. on Aug. 14 in Brown Auditorium. Public tickets to the event are available through the McPherson College athletic department and at www.macbulldogs.com.

Holthus to Speak at McPherson College from The McPherson Sentinel

Several players from the AFC West received support in our sound-off question this week when we asked readers to name the best player in the division. However, the players who received the most votes were San Diego quarterback Philip Rivers, Oakland cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha and Kansas City running back Jamaal Charles.

Here are some of your responses:

Sound-Off Responses from ESPN

World-famous tenor saxophonist Clarence Clemons (6’4" and 193 pounds), a member of Bruce Springsteen’s E-Street Band, was a football star at Maryland State, which is known today as Eastern Shore. Oakland Raiders Hall of Famer Art Shell is a product of Eastern Shore. Clemons died June 18 at age 69.  Clemons had a tryout with the Kansas City Chiefs.

Sports Beat from LA Watts Times

Who says NFL players can’t keep busy during the lockout? In the course of one week, Eric Berry played in a celebrity golf outing in Knoxville, Tenn., jetted to Los Angeles to film an adidas 5-Star commercial [his network feature debut] and returned to the Volunteer State to host the Eric Berry Elite Defensive Skills Clinic at D1-Knoxville. STACK caught up with the Kansas City Chiefs Pro Bowl safety between group sessions, but not before the former Vol got in a quick agility and balance workout.

Check out excerpts from our exclusive one-on-one interview below:

Exclusive Interview With Eric Berry at D-1 Knoxville from STACK Blog