Arrowheadlines: Kansas City Chiefs News 12/3

Crennel's Personality Perfect For This Situation from KC Star

He's worked for and around screamers, from Bill Parcells to Bill Belichick, from Charlie Weis to Todd Haley. Those men scream and they curse. Romeo has always smiled and hugged. This is his way. Always has been, even when people have wondered if a man can really make it in football without being an ornery old cuss...

...As it turns out, his even spirit and gentle soul made for the perfect man in an unthinkable situation.

Romeo Crennel's finest hour of the season came from the darkest moment of his life.

Friends Of Kasandra Perkins 'Don't Want Her To Be Overshadowed' from KC Star

For friends, what's important now is the young woman they called Kasi. People need to know about her, they insist, and how she hoped to be a teacher one day. How if friends were having a bad time, she'd ask them out to lunch or sit and listen to their problems.

The young woman also volunteered in the community as part of the Chiefs Women's Organization, and Chiefs owner Clark Hunt said Sunday she was well known and loved and considered a part of the team's family. Cornerback Brandon Flowers added: "Kasandra was like a sister to us."

And as more details about the tragedy are likely to come, friends say what can't get lost is how Perkins loved her life as a mother. A life that ended just as it was beginning.

Quinn Carries Chiefs To Victory Over Panthers from KC Star

Quinn carried the burden from the events of the day before, when teammate Jovan Belcher shot his girlfriend to death and then ended his own life.

Quinn spent much of the time leading up to Sunday's game wondering what he could have done to prevent the tragedy. He then wondered on the eve of the game how he could possibly prepare himself to play.

He responded with one of the best games of his career, completing 19 of 23 passes for 201 yards and two touchdowns. When it was over and he finally joined the celebration, the gravity of the situation finally hit him.

Chiefs Overcome Heavy Hearts, Panthers from The Mothership

Rallying the Chiefs, the Kingdom noise erupted as Newton heaved a 53-yard pass that was caught by WR Steve Smith on the eight-yard line as time expired. With that pass, the Panthers' hopes for a comeback also hit double zeroes.

What began as a very tragic weekend, ended with a Kansas City Chiefs team rallying around its city, its fans and each other to leave Arrowhead Stadium with its first victory of 2012.

Chiefs Were United In Desire To Play Game from KC Star

While the court of public opinion was split down the middle, the Chiefs - galvanized by the tragedy - were united in the desire to play as scheduled.

Ultimately, that's the opinion that mattered most to the NFL after consulting Chiefs owner Clark Hunt.

Chiefs Chairman & CEO Clark Hunt Postgame Comments from The Mothership

What can you do for Romeo Crennel, Gary Gibbs and Scott Pioli to assist them with what they witnessed? "Counseling services will be available to them as well. As an organization, we really want to make sure we stay focused on them. They went into the mode of, ‘Hey, we have to play a game tomorrow and we have got a job to do,' but I also know they have a lot of pain on the inside and we need to be attentive to that and make sure it is being addressed."

Romeo Crennel Postgame Comments from The Mothership

"I want to start with yesterday's tragedy and remind everybody that it involved two families. Our prayers go out to the family of Kasandra Perkins. They are grieving and we send our condolences to that family. Our prayers and condolences go out to the family of Jovan Belcher; they are also grieving. Our prayers and hopes go out to three-month old, Zoey, a little girl who will never get to know her mother and father. So, we're grieving for all involved. It's tough when circumstances happen that you can't undo, so you have to rely on each other, rely on your family, your friends and your faith. That's what, as a team, we tried to do today, try to work our way through the tragedy, knowing that it's not over today, it will still go on the next day and the next day. But life is going to go on as well, so we have to work through it. That's what we're going to try to do."

Brady Quinn Postgame Comments from The Mothership

What are you guys going to do for Jovan's daughter? "We are going to try to put together a fund for her. Obviously, without having either parent in her life now I think it is important that she understands what type of love that she should get from a family, and Jovan was part of our family. We make sure to take care of our own, so we want to try to put together a fund and we will have more information and details as to where you can go to donate, but we just want her to understand. You know, at one point in time she might have some questions in life and we want her to understand how much she is loved and not reflect back on a thing like this and look on it in a negative way. Hopefully she can understand, try to find a peace with it and move forward with her life."

Derrick Johnson Postgame Comments from The Mothership

People think you guys are tough guys, don't talk about your feelings. Does this change the way you talk? "It does. This situation shows that we need to talk to each other more as men, not just as football players. Generally men don't really show their feelings, we don't talk about what's going on and don't show emotion. To have an act like this to go on that could have been avoided and as a teammate we need to do more making sure the teammate is ok. Jovan was a perfect teammate."

Silar Assumes Role In A Way He Never Expected from KC Star

As he was working through the day's events, Siler had to prepare for his first start of the season. He had missed 2011 because of an Achilles' injury and made his first start since 2010 when he played for the Chargers.

Siler was credited with two tackles on a day he made the defensive calls.

Defense Rises To The Occasion For Chiefs from KC Star

"It was tough for me in the first half," Houston said. "I was struggling hard ... I wasn't in the game at all. It was hard for me to think.

"But I had my other brothers in here to rely on. I was telling them on the sidelines, it's hard for me to focus, and they told me, ‘Focus on the game, and we'll talk about this after the game.' It helped me clear my mind and got me to focus on football."

Houston wasn't alone.

Baldwin, Moeaki, And Hillis Contribute To Win from KC Star

For 11 weeks the Chiefs patiently waited for help from three of their most underachieving players. Then, in Sunday's 27-21 victory over Carolina at Arrowhead Stadium, Jon Baldwin, Tony Moeaki and Peyton Hills all delivered.

Baldwin caught a 34-yard pass that set up the Chiefs' first opening-drive touchdown in two years. Baldwin later caught a 3-yard touchdown pass, his first score of the season.

Postgame Notes: Chiefs vs. Panthers from The Mothership

Charles Moves Up Scrimmage Yards Chart: With 138 scrimmage yards (127 rushing, 11 receiving) in today's contest, RB Jamaal Charles now has 5,328 career scrimmage yards to rank 13th in team history. He passed RB Christian Okoye (5,191) for 13th.

Bowe Moves Up Career Reception Chart: WR Dwayne Bowe caught four passes for 64 yards (16.0 avg.) in today's contest. With those four receptions, Bowe now has 413 career receptions to rank third in team history for most receptions, passing WR Otis Taylor (410) for third.

Morning Rush: Victorious Chiefs Make No Effort To Hide Pain One Day After Tragic Events from Yahoo! Sports

Standing alone at his locker Sunday afternoon in the wake of perhaps his most impressive performance as a pro, the Kansas City Chiefs' emotionally drained quarterback understood the temptation to overstate the significance of his team's 27-21 victory over the Carolina Panthers. Given the game's tragic overtones, with Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher having killed his girlfriend and taken his own life the previous morning in the shadow of Arrowhead Stadium, many observers were eager to cast the home team's crisp, resilient effort as a stirring salve for a grieving community.

Quinn, however, felt anything but victorious - and made no effort to conceal his pain.

Day After Murder-Suicide Rocks KC, Chiefs Beat Panthers 27-21 To End 8-Game Losing Streak from The Associated Press via The Washington Post

Romeo Crennel stood in the middle of the Kansas City Chiefs' locker room Sunday, the emotion threatening to overcome the good-natured coach.

Chiefs owner Clark Hunt was at his side, offering support. Members of the team hugged each other, the mud smearing with tears on their cheeks. And over along the wall stood the empty locker that once belonged to Jovan Belcher, his jersey still hanging from a hook.

How The Kansas City Chiefs, And NFL, Are Coping With Tragedy from TIME

Belcher, 25, is the fourth current or former NFL player to commit suicide since April. The others were Junior Seau, best known for his years with the San Diego Chargers; O.J. Murdock of the Tennessee Titans; and the long-retired Ray Easterling of the Atlanta Falcons. Easterling's and Seau's deaths have been widely blamed on [dementia are resulting] from football-related concussions. Murdock's and - so far - Belcher's deaths are more of a mystery.

Chiefs' Win Doesn't Answer Questions from FOX Sports

What could anyone really say? The Kansas City Chiefs had just won their second game of the year, 27-21 against the Carolina Panthers, but then what? You celebrate? You don't celebrate? You focus on football despite what was on everyone's minds? Or do you focus on the dead and the grief and the anger?

Kansas City head coach Romeo Crennel focused on all of it.

'Normal Couple Stuff' Before Chiefs Murder-Suicide from The Bradenton Herald

"It doesn't seem that that would be the end of their story," York said. "It just seems like if things didn't work out, they would have gone their separate ways. I would never have thought that this would be how it ended."

York said that sometime after Halloween Perkins had gone to visit her family in Texas. Perkins also briefly stayed with her cousin, who is married to Chiefs player Jamaal Charles. Belcher and Perkins met through Charles, York said.

A message left for Charles and his wife through an assistant was not immediately returned.

Kansas City Chiefs Tragedy Won't Stop NFL from San Jose Mercury News

Pioli, according to reports out of Kansas City, is very emotional in the wake of this tragic incident. Of course he is. Crennel, too. They just watched the violent, instant death of a man Pioli not only knew but signed to a playing contract. How could anyone with an ounce of humanity shrug and go back to breaking down game video?

I understand the NFL is where men are unwilling, maybe even afraid, to admit their feelings, much less share them. Pain and misery are part of the fabric.

An enduring mantra within a league where injuries are frequent is "next man up." And sometimes it's all too literal.

Kansas City Chiefs Fan Surprised Team Is Playing Panthers A Day After Linebacker Jovan Belcher Kills His Girlfriend And Then Take His Own Life from NY Daily News

At 9:06 a.m., Chiefs coach Romeo Crennel drove his black Explorer into the lot. A security guard rushed ahead of him to remove an orange cone that reserved his space. The coach stepped out his car in a red jacket and dark shades.

"That guy's had a rough go," said Matt Underwood, a father taking his son, Noah, to his first NFL game. "I'd hate to have his job."

He paused.

"I'm surprised they're playing the game," Underwood said. "That poor daughter."

Chiefs Take First Step Toward Healing from ESPN

It didn't matter what the Arrowhead Stadium scoreboard showed on Sunday afternoon. It only mattered that the Kansas City Chiefs were bonded, focused and helping each other cope with an unimaginable tragedy. The debate about whether they should play the Carolina Panthers just one day after linebacker Jovan Belcher killed his girlfriend and himself had raged before that point.

Now we know why the Chiefs chose to keep their schedule intact: They needed to be together.

Thoughts For The Kansas City Chiefs' Moment Of Silence from Forbes

We Internet writers work in the trade of distillation. If we do our job well, we sharpen our points to pencil tips, keep them brief and clear.

The death of Kasandra Perkins by the father of her child, and his subsequent suicide, won't allow it.

No single point will explain the loss of her life, nor the horrific vision that Kansas City Chiefs coach Romero Crenell, general manager Scott Pioli and several other Chiefs staff must now live with the rest of their life.

Psychologists: Playing Can Be Therapeutic, But Counseling Is Key from USA Today

"It's hard to fathom how they go play tomorrow, but people grieve in different ways," Dr. Joel Fish, director of the Center for Sport Psychology in Philadelphia, told USA TODAY Sports. "Sometimes getting back on the horse right away is actually helpful to allowing players to literally move on.

"I couldn't play tomorrow. But grieving doesn't mean just shutting down, taking a week off. I'm not surprised that they're playing. Typically in a situation like this, there will be choices given. People have different ways to grieve, make sense of the trauma and move on."

Chiefs Pay 'Tribute' To Belcher After Murder-Suicide from USA Today

Belcher was not honored publicly Sunday at Arrowhead Stadium, a day after police said he fatally shot his girlfriend, Kasandra Perkins, and then himself. But privately, Belcher's absence was not ignored, even as his teammates struggled to deal with why and how he died.

"I don't know if it's a shrine, or whatever you want to put it. It's a tribute," offensive tackle Eric Winston said. "He was a player on this team. We're all struggling to reconcile the conflicting emotions we have about a family member, a teammate and the tragic events that took place yesterday. It's hard."

Sorrow, Anger After Chiefs' Murder-Suicide from The Indianapolis Star

"We wanted to show our respect for a player who's played for us well over the years," Kurt Grant said. "Not to excuse what he did but to pay respects and thank him for the four years he did give us."

Some of the most loyal Chiefs fans decided to cancel their normally festive pregame activities.

"We felt it was disrespectful to the organization and to the victim's family," said Chiefs fan Brent Cable, a veteran tailgater. "I feel bad for Mr. Pioli and Crennel and the baby. It was just selfish. We feel remorseful that this happened, but we don't feel it's appropriate for them to memorialize them in the stadium or anything. After all, he did commit a murder."

Ron Rivera: Romeo Crennel 'Real Emotional' Before Game from NFL.com

"I ran into Coach (Romeo) Crennel before the game, and I could tell he was really emotional," Panthers coach Ron Rivera said Sunday in a postgame phone conversation. "I told our guys that it was going to be an emotional game for them, and we had to match their emotional energy with our own emotional energy. That's definitely what we saw from them. Kudos to them."

The Chiefs won 27-21.

KC Star Photo Gallery: Chiefs 27, Panthers 21

KCChiefs.com Photo Gallery: Game Highlights Chiefs Vs Panthers

KCChiefs.com Video: Postgame Speech

KCChiefs.com Video: Chiefs vs Panthers Hightlights

KCChiefs.com Video: From The Podium: Romeo Crennel

KCChiefs.com Video: From The Podium: Brady Quinn

KCChiefs.com Video: From The Podium: Derrick Johnson

KCChiefs.com Video: Inside The Locker Room: Week 13

KCChiefs.com Video: Postgame Wrap Up With Mitch Holthus