Arrowheadlines: Chiefs News 9/21

Good morning! The 'Headline of the Day Award' goes to The Los Angeles Times. Made me laugh, and that's saying something. So read on for that and the rest of today's Kansas City Chiefs news.

Through two games this season, no team has been more inefficient than the Chiefs. Yet to enter October, the Chiefs have already eclipsed more than half of last season’s giveaway total.

Why?

"The majority of the time its technique that wanes for one reason or another," Chiefs head coach Todd Haley diagnosed for the team’s fumbling issues this season. "If you’re carrying the ball the proper way, you should not turn it over, in most cases."

Finding Fundamentals Top Of Chiefs List from The Mothership

James Gladstone is an assistant professor of orthopedics at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York. He said it’s tempting to think the lockout or Haley’s preseason strategy contributed to the Chiefs’ misfortunes. Instead — and for better or worse — there was little the team could’ve done to prevent those injuries, he said.

"A lot of bad luck, basically," Gladstone said. "Even the most well-conditioned athletes, doing the best preparation imaginable, get ACL tears."

Decimated By Knee Injuries, Chiefs Embark On Joint Recovery from KC Star

The Chiefs coach was on the short list of just about every award after taking a 4-12 team his first year to a 10-6 finish last season. With emerging stars such as Jamaal Charles and Eric Berry, Kansas City won the AFC West and was thought of as a team on the rise.

Well, Charles and Berry are out with torn ACLs, along with tight end Tony Moeaki. The Chiefs are off to one of the worst starts through two games in NFL history, getting blitzed 89-10 by a pair of teams that won just 10 games last season. And all the positive vibes that come with success are but a distant memory for an angry fan base calling for Haley's job.

Haley Lands On Hot Seat; Chiefs 'Suck for Luck?' from CBS Sports

Certainly, Matt Cassel isn’t totally to blame for the wretched start. He needs better protection, more reliable receivers and a defense that can create decent field position.

But it may be time for the Chiefs to grow their own.

This is an organization that has never drafted and developed a franchise quarterback. In fact, in the 36 years since Len Dawson retired, the Chiefs have selected a quarterback in the first round only twice _ Steve Fuller in 1979 and Todd Blackledge in 1983. Both were busts.

Now May Be Time For The Chiefs To Grow Their Own QB from KC Star

Player to watch: Dwayne Bowe, WR – The Chiefs suffered a huge loss last week when RB Jamaal Charles tore his anterior cruciate ligament. That puts an onus on Bowe to be the Chiefs' main playmaker. He finished with five receptions for 102 yards against Detroit. Charles' absence makes it harder for the Chiefs to sustain drives, making big plays in the passing game key to the team's success.

Chargers: Scouting the Kansas City Chiefs from The North County Times

Apparently the Chiefs aren't a great draw in San Diego.

The Chargers said late Tuesday that about 4,600 tickets need to be sold by 1:00 pm Pacific time Thursday to lift the local television blackout of Sunday’s game between the Chargers and Chiefs at Qualcomm Stadium.

If You're In The Neighborhood In San Diego from The Red Zone

The Chargers are 1-1 and looking to take the AFC West crown.  They love to pass the ball.  In fact, they might lean a little to much on the great passing arm of Philip Rivers from time to time.  The Kansas City Chiefs are 0-2 and looking to get out of the basement of the AFC West.  They love to run.  In fact, they might not be able to throw as much as needed when they get behind in a game.

All this makes for some interesting match-ups.  Let’s take a look at them…

Chiefs vs Chargers Preview: Week #3 Matchups from Pro Football Spotlight

Kansas City ended San Diego’s four-year run as AFC West Champions in 2010 with a 10-6 record. The Chiefs held off a late run from the Chargers a year ago, as San Diego won seven of its last nine games to end the season with a 9-7 record. Both teams are coming off of road losses from last weekend as Kansas City dropped to 0-2 on the season and San Diego fell to 1-1.

Chiefs vs Chargers - Game 3 from The Mothership

Ah, the weight of high expectations blowing up in everyone’s face. Gosh it’s nice to know this happens to other teams too. What’s going on in Kansas City right now reminds me of the 2008 Cleveland Browns, my favorite season ever.

The Chiefs are in trouble. They are 0-2 this season, skinned alive by the Detroit Lions to the tune of 48-3, and the Buffalo Bills 41-7. I love the Lions and Bills as teams on the rise like everyone else, but they just demolished the Chiefs like they are the Patriots and Packers, and they’re not the Patriots and Packers.

Around the NFL: Kansas City Chiefs' Debacle Reminiscent of 2008 Browns from Dawgpound Daily

The Kansas City Chiefs’ secondary is struggling to say the least.

In two games, the team has allowed 89 total points to the Detroit Lions and Buffalo Bills. This has resulted to two brutal losses by 40 points or more.

Chiefs cornerbacks Brandon Carr (of Flint) and Brandon Flowers are starting to feel the heat.

After Sunday’s loss to Detroit in Ford Field, the pair admitted that the absence of their All-Pro safety Eric Berry is making an impact on their effectiveness as a unit.

Flint's Brandon Carr and Brandon Flowers Are Still Adjusting To Life Without Their Kansas City Chiefs All-Pro Teammate Eric Bery from The Flint Journal

Detroit’s punishment was levied via the 2011 draft, as the league took away the Lions’ seventh- round pick and forced the two franchises to switch fifth round selections (which moved Kansas City up 14 spots). Haley and Pioli haven’t made many friends in Kansas City, and it seems as if opposing teams aren’t shy about exacting their revenge against the Chiefs on the field.

Surpassing Numbers From Tom Brady And Cam Newton from The New York Times

I asked safety Louis Delmas if Cunningham had broken down emotionally when he thanked the team in the postgame locker room, knowing full well that's sort of like asking if the mother of the bride cried during the wedding.

"Man, let me tell you something: Gun always breaks down," Delmas said. "Gun might be the biggest baby I know. But he's very passionate about the game, and when you see your kids -- for lack of a better word -- going out there and playing the way you teach them to play, it's very satisfying."

Satisfied is an understatement, though, and Delmas knew it.

Lions' Win Soothes the Sting for Gunther Cunningham from The Detroit News

While Jones will likely get the majority of carries, the player who should benefit the most in Kansas City is Dexter McCluster. He most closely resembles Charles in size and speed, but he can only be added in the majority of leagues on CBSSports.com as a wide receiver because that's the position he was assigned this year by the Chiefs.

Waiver Wire: Finding Fantasy Life After Charles from CBS Sports

"We've got to put this behind us," Carr told the Flint Journal after falling to the Lions. "We're going to get bashed and I know that. We've been giving up 40 points two games in a row as a defense, but we've got to stick together.

"We're only 0-2. We can turn this around easy."

Week 2 Roundup: Brandon Carr Hopes Chiefs Turn It Around After Blowout Loss To Lions from The Flint Journal

You know it's grim when you lose more starters than ballgames. But give these guys time. They're going to lose a lot of ballgames, too. In two games they've been outscored 99-10, and, yes, that's a sign of how bad it is at Arrowhead. So what happened? Well, look beyond the injuries to turnovers. The Chiefs have a zillion of them. In fact, through two games they have nine. Nobody has more.

Lucky Losers: Take Two from CBS Sports

Kansas City Chiefs (Matt Cassel and Tyler Palko), 93 points: Remember when Matt Cassel was Tom Brady light in New England? Now he’s in Kansas City and has led the Chiefs to a 0-2 start in which they have been outscored a combined 89 to 10. The Chiefs were a savvy pick in the BQBL; after Cassel threw three picks and lost a fumble Sunday, he was benched and Tyler Palko took the field. If you think Palko’s name sounds familiar, you are either a big fan of the California Redwoods or you have him mistaken for an extremely entertaining game played on The Price Is Right.

The Bad Quarterback League: Week 2 Scores from Grantland

NFL fans in Kansas City and Jacksonville may find this hard to believe, but there has been a record number of touchdowns scored so far this season.

Teams have combined to score 172 touchdowns, the most ever in the first two weeks of the season.

NFL Setting Records On Offense (Despite the Chiefs and Jaguars) from The Los Angeles Times

Matt Cassel, quarterback, Chiefs. Like McCown, Cassel is a victim of circumstance. He's also a grown man, an NFL quarterback and Pro Bowler so he should be able to handle the criticism, particularly after what the Chiefs have perpetrated against the game of football in recent weeks. Head coach Todd Haley, once hailed as an offensive mastermind, looks more like a guy just back from an alien abduction that has been programmed to set offenses back 100 years.

Haley's also the man who commandeered play-calling duties from offensive coordinator Charlie Weis before last season's playoff loss to the Ravens, an ugly game that foreshadowed life without Charlie, who bolted for the University of Florida in January. Now, two games into 2011 and the Chiefs are, by any measure, the worst team in the league.

Coach Killers, Week 2: McCown's Magnificent 1.8 from CBS Sports