Arrowheadlines: Kansas City Chiefs News 9/5

Chiefs Face Difficult Roster Decisions Before Saturday's Deadline from The Mothership

There are 22 players currently on the Chiefs roster who won't still be there by Saturday at 3:00 p.m. CT, as that's the deadline for all NFL teams to trim their rosters to 53 players.

"We tell the guys the first day at training camp, ‘Make this as hard as you can on [John Dorsey] and myself,'" Chiefs coach Andy Reid noted. "That's what they've done. They've given everything they have and Dorsey and his crew have done a phenomenal job at bringing that competition in here.

"My hat's off to that crew. They're the ones out there beating the bushes and making sure they use all of the different avenues they've got to bring players and create good competition. They've done a very good job."

Husain Abdullah's Versatility is Key to Chiefs Defense from The Mothership

As one of the five players who played more 1,000 snaps for the Chiefs defense last season, Abdullah, through his versatility, allows the Chiefs defense to do so many different things.

Trying to find Abdullah on the field could turn into a strange game of "Where's 39?" on any given play because he's seemingly always in a different spot from one play to the next.

On first down, he may be lined up over the A-gap on the line of scrimmage between the center and guard. Just a play later, he could be 15 yards deep in a traditional safety look, and then on third down, he might move into the box like a linebacker would normally be positioned.

What We Learned from Andy Reid's Media Availability on Friday from The Mothership

Reid said that safety Eric Berry not playing in the game against the St. Louis Rams was his own decision.

"I honestly kind of gave it to him as an option with what he wanted to do there," he said. "He took a ton of reps this past week if you noticed. He was in all of the scout team, then he jumped in with the ones and did all that, and the twos, and was all over the place. He accumulated a ton of reps, so by the time we got to the game, he felt pretty comfortable with where he's at right now and how he felt.

"Some of that kind of stuff only a player knows. He's a veteran guy—he's not one that's going to try to get out of anything or tell you something. I've got a lot of trust in him. It feels like he's in a pretty good place right now."

Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid Talked Eric Berry, Cheeseburgers this Morning on Mike & Mike from The Mothership

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid appeared on ESPN Radio's Mike & Mike program this morning and he addressed a number of different items concerning the team headed into the 2015 regular season.

The first question from Cris Carter, filling in for Mike Golic Friday morning, brought up the infamous no wide receiver touchdown stat from last season.

"Yeah, see, that's a moldy cheeseburger, brother," Reid said to Carter. "That's a bad deal, but the good part was we had a lot of other guys score touchdowns."

It's the Final Weekend of Gridiron Glory at Union Station from The Mothership

"Gridiron Glory," a Pro Football Hall of Fame exhibition that has been open all summer long at Union Station in Kansas City, will close after this weekend on September 7.

"Gridiron Glory" is the largest and most comprehensive traveling football collection ever created and includes more than 10,000 square feet of the most iconic pro football artifacts of all time.

As Chiefs consider final cutdown, plenty of questions loom from The Associated Press via FS Kansas City

John Dorsey watched the Kansas City Chiefs play their preseason finale against the St. Louis Rams with a close eye, keenly aware that a game meaningless to many meant much to his players.

Like every other NFL team, the Chiefs will need to pare their roster from 75 players to the league limit of 53 by Saturday. But unlike many teams, Dorsey may be waiving numerous players who are picked up by other teams for the first time since taking over as general manager.

In other words, the pressure is on to make the right decisions.

"What's unique about that game is you want to continue to evaluate," he said. "You want to see those guys that have a chance to earn a roster spot. ... That's why it's so critical because there's four or five spots up for grabs."

Laurent Duvernay-Tardif pushing for Chiefs' starting right guard spot from Chiefs Digest

"A year ago, I probably couldn't have told you that that would happen," Reid said. "I'm a big McGill University fan, but the level of football there isn't as great as their academics if you understand what I'm saying. It's probably equivalent to maybe some of the upper-echelon junior colleges in our country here. For him to go out and improve like he's improved and attack it the way he has been, pretty good."

Duvernay-Tardif didn't play in Thursday night's preseason finale against the St. Louis Rams. But he started two preseason games, seeing significant playing time by recording 39 snaps against the Seattle Seahawks and 32 snaps against the Tennessee Titans. He logged 33 snaps in the preseason opener.

Starting line comes into focus, and Laurent Duvernay-Tardif appears to be part of it from ESPN

Reid wouldn't name the five starters. But he indicated Fisher, who missed the past three weeks because of a sprained ankle, would probably be ready to return this week. The Chiefs are pessimistic that another starter, Jeff Allen, would return this week. He has a sprained knee.

That would leave left guard for Grubbs, a former Pro Bowler acquired in a trade with New Orleans in the offseason, center for Morse and right tackle for Stephenson, who has been filling in for Fisher at left tackle.

Chris Conley could play a big role for the Chiefs from ESPN

Conley, the Chiefs' third-round draft pick, could play a big role for the Chiefs early in the season. Three of their wide receivers -- Albert Wilson, Jason Avant and De'Anthony Thomas, finished the preseason with injuries.

Conley could start when the regular season begins on Sept. 13, when the Chiefs play at the Houston Texans. He started against the Rams and caught three passes for 38 yards, including the touchdown.

"I've seen a couple of good things these last two weeks," coach Andy Reid said. "It looks like he's improving. I think he can help us."

Chiefs safety Eric Berry made decision not to play in St. Louis from ESPN

The Chiefs are comfortable with their starting safeties, Husain Abdullah and Ron Parker. Berry has been a backup who plays some with the starters in obvious passing situations.

His role is unlikely to change unless the Chiefs need him in their lineup because of an injury to one of their starters.

2013 'second draft' helped Chiefs build defensive depth from ESPN

At that time of year when NFL teams annually shed dozens of jobs, the Kansas City Chiefs were giving them away, seven of them to be exact.

It was 2013, days before the start of the regular season, and the Chiefs claimed seven players off waivers as they attempted to load up with talent after a league-worst 2-14 record in 2012.

Five of those players were still with the Chiefs two years later as they headed into the final round of cuts. All are defensive players and two of them, nose tackle Jaye Howard and safety Ron Parker, are starters.

No major surprises on final Chiefs roster projection from ESPN

Wide receiver (7)

Jeremy Maclin

Albert Wilson

Jason Avant

De'Anthony Thomas

Chris Conley

Frankie Hammond Jr.

Fred Williams.

Seven is a lot of receivers but the Chiefs might need all of them when the season starts. Wilson, Avant and Thomas went through the latter part of the preseason with injuries. Either Hammond or Williams could get trimmed but both players were impressive in training camp and the Chiefs are in no position to be releasing promising young receivers.

Are the Chiefs the best team nobody is talking about? from The Boston Globe

Their defense was No. 2 in the league in points allowed in 2014 (17.6 per game). They have a pass rusher who compiled a ridiculous 22 sacks last season. They have a potential MVP candidate at running back. And they have a coach who has made the playoffs in 10 of his 16 seasons.

No one is talking much about Andy Reid and the Kansas City Chiefs, but it's time to pay attention.

24-Karat Gold Socks From Young Hearted Socks Are Probably Too Expensive To Own, But They Sure Are Cool from Bustle

The fashion industry has a decades, if not centuries, old tradition of transforming quotidian necessities into luxury items with the addition of opulent materials. And the Young Hearted Socks company is founded on that exact principle, selling socks sewn with 24-karat gold to consumers willing to part with between $120 and $150 per lavish pair, Women's Wear Daily reports. Louis XIV would be proud.

The brainchild of Kansas City Chiefs footballer Sanders Commings, Young Hearted Socks is exactly the sort of luxury loungewear company that thrives in today's economy.

Hot Air: Cris Collinsworth says Cowboys may have lost their best defensive player in Scandrick from The Dallas Morning News

Asked on the conference call to name his favorite NFL stadium and fan base, Collinsworth, who in the spring earned his seventh consecutive Sports Emmy as a national analyst, declined.

"Every fan in America thinks I hate their particular team, so I think I'm going to take a pass and try and take a little pressure off," he Al Michaels and Michele Tafoya, Collinsworth's Sunday Night Football broadcast partner, had no such reluctance.

They agreed that AT&T Stadium and Packers' Cheeseheads are their favorites with Kansas City Chiefs' fans in the conversation.

Duvernay-Tardif seems to have its place in Kansas City from Le Journal de Montreal [translated from the original French]

Head coach Andy Reid said Friday that Duvernay-Tardif was doing a good job.

"Currently, it is one of the top five," noted Reid during a conference call, whose words were echoed by the newspaper The Kansas City Star.

"I would not have been able to say that last year."

Disastrous from RDS [translated from the original French]

Congratulations LDT

I take this column to congratulate Laurent Duvernay-Tardif has had a very good camp with the Kansas City Chiefs. His coach Andy Reid has even said it was part of his five best linemen. LDT did not play the fourth preseason game and usually the starters are left for this meeting.

Bravo to the young man who made a meteoric rise in just two years.