Chiefs CB Brandon Carr: A View From the Stands

In the 10th installment of this series, it's time to focus on Brandon Carr. Carr is unheralded in many NFL circles, but has garnered quite a loud following among Chiefs fans. He was inconsistent his first few seasons but last year was almost unbeatable. Which Carr shows up this year?

Brandon Carr was drafted in the 5th round in the 2008 Draft out of Grand Valley State, a D-II school. From his first training camp, Carr grabbed the coach's attention and became a starter as a rookie. At 6'0'' and 207 pounds, the fourth year man is one of the biggest corners in the league.

Early in his career, Carr flashed a ton of potential but was often overshadowed by his counterpart with the same name. However, in his second season he struggled mightily. Kansas City fans were frustrated by Carr's pension to not turn his head and waste what was normally pretty tight coverage. It seemed as though the Chiefs would have to look in a different direction for the position.

Then Emmitt Thomas was hired. The Hall-of-Fame defensive back came in and coached up one of the youngest groups in the league, and nobody benefited more than Mr. Carr. Carr went from question mark to unquestioned in his third season. In one game against Denver, Carr completely shut down Brandon Lloyd, the man who led the league in receiving yards. Carr looked better and better as the season went on, and blanketed Baltimore receivers in the playoff game.

The question isn't whether Carr is good, but can he become elite on a consistent basis?

My Verdict: As long as he remains next to Brandon Flowers, he can. Many people this off-season have talked about Carr possibly being better than Flowers and I have to disagree. While Carr is excellent, Flowers is virtually unbeatable when healthy. Kansas City knows they don't ever have to roll coverage towards Flowers, which means help for Carr. With that help over the top he can be more aggressive which feeds into his style.

Don't get me wrong, Carr can play on an island and be successful, just not all the time. He doesn't possess the quickness necessary to stay with speedy wide-outs. The Chiefs don't need him to though because Flowers can take that man. Carr ends up guarding the bigger, more physical type of receiver that he matches up against.

If he were to leave Kansas City after this season to become a number one corner I don't think he would live up to the billing. He and Flowers compliment each other so well, and after playing together for three years have developed a great understanding of one another. The Chiefs have a distinct advantage over so many teams because of the tandem. They can blitz if they choose, or just stack the box and have Lewis or Berry play "center field".

Kansas City looks to have a very bright future, hopefully Carr sticks around to be part of it.