Arrowheadlines: Chiefs News 9/28

Good morning! It's Red Friday and we're kicking it off with your Kansas City Chiefs news from all around the internet. Here we go. Enjoy!

Once An Afterthought, Shaun Draughn Fills A Key Need For Chiefs from KC Star

One year ago, Shaun Draughn was about to take a job stocking shelves at the Wal-Mart in his hometown of Tarboro, N.C. Now he's the second-leading runner for the Chiefs, the NFL's top rushing team.

That dramatic improvement in fortune hasn't caused Draughn to forget his roots. He remembers going undrafted last year out of college at North Carolina, signing with and being released by Washington and then thinking his shot at the NFL might be over.

It's one of the things the Chiefs like about him.

Chiefs Searching For First Win At Arrowhead In 2012 from The Mothership

In week four, the Chiefs face the San Diego Chargers (2-1) at Arrowhead Stadium. Kansas City will be fighting for their first win at home in the 2012 campaign as well as a stake for first place in the AFC West.

Head coach, Romeo Crennel, is focused on improving the squad and clinching another win.

"Today, we start our preparation for our division game against the Chargers on Sunday. The focus and concentration is on getting better and trying to eliminate any negative plays that we had so that we can give ourselves the best chance in that game."

KCChiefs.com Video: From The Podium: Romeo Crennel 9-27-12

NFL.com Video: Preview: San Diego Chargers vs. Kansas City Chiefs

Chiefs' Crennel Welcomes Back NFL's Regular Refs from KC Star

"Those guys have good experience," Crennel said of the NFL's officials. "They do a good job at what they do so having those guys back will be good.

"They will be more definitive about the calls they make."

The Chiefs have yet to hear which crew will work Sunday's game. But the Chiefs have a familiarity with all of them and can prepare for Sunday's game accordingly.

Priest Holmes, Will Shields On New Hall Ballot from KC Star

Guard Will Shields, a finalist in his first year of eligibility last year, is among six players and two coaches with Chiefs ties on the ballot, which was released on Thursday...

...Also eligible for the first time are defensive tackles Warren Sapp and Michael Strahan, safety John Lynch, former Chiefs running back Priest Holmes and kicker Morten Andersen, the NFL's all-time scoring leader who spent 2002-03 with the Chiefs.

Other former Chiefs on the list include kicker Nick Lowery, cornerback Albert Lewis and quarterback Ron Jaworski, who finished his career with the Chiefs in 1989. Coaches Marty Schottenheimer and Dick Vermeil are also on the ballot.

Poll: Vote For The Greatest Chiefs Running Back Of All Time from KC Star

But what about Charles' place among the Chiefs' greatest running backs? Make your choice in our poll and we'll publish the results in Sunday's Sports Daily.

Chiefs, Raiders Avoiding Yellow from ESPN

The Chiefs are tied for the fewest penalties in the NFL with 12 and lead the league in least penalty yardage at 98. The Raiders are fourth in the NFL with 14 penalties and second at 102 penalty yards.

While the Chiefs' discipline is impressive, the news here is what Oakland is doing.

NFL Preview - San Diego (2-1) at Kansas City (1-2) from Sports Network via KC Star

The Chiefs and Chargers look like teams heading in opposite directions after their respective Week 3 results, but momentum is only as good as your last drive.

San Diego certainly has the defense to take away Kansas City's top weapon and will surely put it on Cassel to beat them.

Meanwhile, Turner and Rivers can talk all they want about cutting down on the mistakes, but it must be executed on the field. That should be easier to do this weekend against a Chiefs team that hasn't been able to force many turnovers.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Chargers 23, Chiefs 16

Chiefs' Charles Back In Charge After Knee Injury from The Associated Press via Sports Illustrated

"It was a hard time,'' Charles said "It felt like everyone forgot about me. I had to come out here and prove myself all over again. It was going through rehab, through physical therapy, and all that pain I went through. It was just a hard time for me, period.''

Charles wasn't alone in the rehab, even though at times he felt like it. Tight end Tony Moeaki and Pro Bowl safety Eric Berry, in a strange coincidence, had torn the ACL in their left knees the previous two weeks, leaving three of the Chiefs' best players to go through rehab together.

Still, watching Kansas City struggle through a rollercoaster season was mentally draining, and the uncertainty of what the future held for Charles was unsettling.

Chiefs Linebacker Houston Emerging As A Sack Master from The Associated Press via The Oklahoman

It wasn't until the middle of last season that Chiefs coach Romeo Crennel, the defensive coordinator at the time, finally saw the light come on for linebacker Justin Houston.

The technique, the scheme, the speed of the game - it all clicked one night in Chicago.

The third-round draft pick with the first-round talent finally secured his first sack in Week 13 at Soldier Field, and he hasn't stopped since. Houston had three that night, a couple more by the end of the year, and already has four sacks through the first three weeks this season.

Heard In Bonner: The Chiefs Are Coming from The Bonner Springs Chieftain

Bonner Springs Elementary School will have some excitement later this month - the Kansas City Chiefs will make a visit to the school Oct. 30. Every Tuesday of the football season this fall, the Chiefs Community Caring Team, consisting of players, team personalities, Chiefs Cheerleaders and KC Wolf, will make a visit to Kansas City-area schools that are selected as a Chiefs Play 60 School.

Chargers Prep For Chiefs And A Return To Winning from CBS Los Angeles

Given last year's road debacle at Arrowhead Stadium (23-20 OT loss), a game the Chargers seemingly were about to win on a late field goal before they turned the ball over, San Diego knows that winning games within its division will be crucial this year.

With all four AFC West teams seemingly on relative equal footing, it could come down to who has the better divisional record that wins the title at the end of the season. In the 2011 campaign, Denver squeaked out a division crown by going 9-7, while the other three finished at 8-8.

NFL Kickers Are Off To Their Best Start Ever from The Greenwich Time

NFL teams combined for a record 2,287 points in the first three weeks of the season thanks to a record 248 touchdowns.

Kickers have done their part in this proliferation of points, converting 182 field goal attempts and missing just 15 for a 92.4 percent clip - the best three-week start ever.

Jackson County Sports Complex Authority Suspends Maintenance Fund Payments from Kansas City Business Journal

The Jackson County Sports Complex Authority voted Sept. 18 to suspend payments from the maintenance fund for Kauffman and Arrowhead stadiums.

The move would seem to ratchet up tension between the county and the Kansas City Chiefs and Royals, which long have disagreed about how to set aside money for stadium upkeep, known as the repair, maintenance, management and operation (RMMO) fund.

One Guy To Watch from ESPN

Kansas City Chiefs, Justin Houston, linebacker: Can Houston make the same impact against San Diego as he did against New Orleans? If so, the Chiefs will be in business. The talented second-year player had three sacks against the Saints, including one for a safety as the Chiefs stormed back in a game they won in overtime. I can see Houston changing many games in his future.

NFL Game Picks: Predicting Every Week 4 Contest from The Huffington Post

San Diego Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs. Isn't the definition of good coaching getting the most out of your talent? Well... Chargers Pro-Bowl QB Philip Rivers and Chiefs not-quite-A-level Matt Cassel have the same passing average per attempt. That is not how those stats should look.

Kansas City's 7.8 yards per pass allowed should help Rivers pull it together. He should also have a stronger running game this week and the Chargers defense is turning in a quietly decent year.

The Chiefs best chance is RB Jamaal Charles, who is apparently recovered from his knee injury and ran for more than 200 yards in week three.

Prediction: Chargers by one.

Week 4 In Fantasy Football: Favorable And Unfavorable Matchups from The New York Times

Favorable Quarterback Matchups

Philip Rivers (SD) vs. Kansas City
 - The Chiefs should get some credit for sacking Drew Brees four times and limiting him to 240 yards last week, but the secondary still yielded three touchdowns, which puts them in a second-place tie for the most touchdowns allowed to quarterbacks this season with eight. Kansas City is allowing 29 fantasy points to quarterbacks a game on average heading into Week 4.

Film Session: Routt's INT vs. Brees, Saints from National Football Post

Let's go back to Kansas City's 27-24 OT win over New Orleans from this past Sunday and breakdown Stanford Routt's INT vs. Drew Brees. A good opportunity to talk route scheme and man-coverage technique.

Take a look at the breakdowns from the "All-22" film and then we will get into some coaching points.

Week 4 Start 'Em And Sit 'Em from CBS Sports

Philip Rivers (at KC): There's some concern with Rivers after getting two Fantasy points against the Falcons last week, and he now has two games with 15 Fantasy points or less to start the season. But there's a chance for him to rebound this week against the Chiefs, who have allowed at least two passing touchdowns to all three opposing quarterbacks they've faced in Matt Ryan, Ryan Fitzpatrick and Drew Brees. Rivers also has six touchdowns and three interceptions in his past four trips to Kansas City with at least 268 passing yards in all four outings.

Post-Practice Transcripts: Head Coach Norv Turner And Defensive Coordinator John Pagano from Chargers.com

On defending against running back Jamaal Charles:

"He's someone who's so explosive. And one thing about Kansas City is that they're so patient with their running game. We've got be sound in our gap control, set a new line of scrimmage and go tackle."

On the matchup with the Chief's wide receivers:

"Every week there are going to be those matchup situations. [Jon] Baldwin and [Dwayne] Bowe, they're very similar and they're playmakers. They're guys who go get the ball when it's thrown in the air. We have to be aggressive with them and take advantage of what they do.