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Senior Bowl Week: Thursday Observations from The Mothership
3. Most talked about quarterback this week was North Dakota State's Carson Wentz
Entering Senior Bowl week practices, the most talked about player was North Dakota State quarterback Carson Wentz. Wentz had a good week, showing arm strength, poise and accuracy. By being on the North team, he spent the entire week with Cowboys coaches, led by head coach Jason Garrett.
The Cowboys select fourth in this year's 2016 NFL Draft.
Sheldon Rankins and the Defensive Line Talent is Shining at Senior Bowl from The Mothership
Rankins is a player who came into Mobile as a projected first-round pick already, and he's done nothing this week to dissuade any of that talk.
Over the past two seasons at Louisville, Rankins had 26.5 tackles for loss and 14 sacks.
"I wanted to show people that I'm a complete player," Rankins said of accepting his invite to the Senior Bowl. "Obviously, I think my body of work speaks for itself. Being able to test your chops against guys like (Louisiana State OL) Vadal Alexander, (Arkansas OL) Sebastian Tretolaâbeing able to test my worth against those guys.
"It was a no brainer coming out here."
Chiefs Season Was One for the Record Book in Many Ways from The Mothership
"We saw a lot of success throughout 2015, both on and off the field," Chiefs President Mark Donovan said. "Away from the field, the Chiefs Community Caring Team once again had a tremendous year supporting those in the Chiefs Kingdom. We take pride in our ability to unite and inspire the people of the community where we live and work and we look forward to more outstanding service in 2016."
As Donovan alluded to, the on-the-field achievements only tell part of the tale about the Chiefs remarkable season.
In many instances, those same players that shined on the field for the Chiefs on Sunday did so throughout the Chiefs Kingdom during the week as well.
Nine Records the Chiefs Set in 2015 from The Mothership
3.
Derrick Johnson became the all-time Chiefs tackle leaderDuring the Week 3 Monday Night Football matchup against the Green Bay Packers, linebacker Derrick Johnson recorded the 1000th tackle of his career, breaking Chiefs great Gary Spani's all-time franchise tackle record of 999.
Johnson had 8 tackles in the game and finished with 116 tackles (95 solo) on the season.
Chiefs' Travis Kelce hoping to find match on reality TV show from Chiefs Digest
The 25-year-old Kelce will have his own reality television show, "Catching Kelce," airing on E! later in the year with eight episodes dedicated to Kelce's quest to find love, as first reported by deadline.com.
Kelce's agent, Greg Diulus of Vantage Management Group, confirmed when reached by telephone Thursday evening that his client will participate in the show.
Diulus, who is in Hawaii with Kelce for Sunday's Pro Bowl, didn't have the particulars of the program, which will be taped during the offseason.
But he stressed the TV program would not interfere with Kelce's responsibilities with the Chiefs.
Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce to have his own reality TV dating series from ESPN
"On top of being a well-respected athlete, Travis has a fun-loving, over the top personality that draws people to him, and we are excited to give our viewers an up-close look at his search for love," E! executive vice president Jeff Olde told deadline.com.
It'll be Chief vs. Chiefs at the Pro Bowl from The Kansas City Star
The Pro Bowl draft was held on Wednesday night ahead of Sunday's game in Honolulu, and the Chiefs players were all on the same team, except for one.
Chiefs linebacker Derrick Johnson was chosen to play on Michael Irvin's team. While former Kansas State/Olathe North star Darren Sproles, who is with the Eagles, is on Johnson's team, the four other Chiefs are on Jerry Rice's team.
Driving Peyton Manning from the game was a highlight of Chiefs' season from ESPN
They were already well on their way to victory on Nov. 15 against the Broncos in Denver when in the third quarter defensive back Ron Parker intercepted a pass deep down the right sideline from Peyton Manning.
The play, and particularly what followed, was a victory in its own right for the Chiefs.
The Broncos on their next possession pulled Manning from the game in favor of Brock Osweiler. The eventual Hall of Fame quarterback, who entered the game 14-1 against the Chiefs and 7-0 since he joined the Broncos, was being benched.
Don't underestimate the power that fact carried afterward in the Chiefs' locker room. Manning had tormented the Chiefs all these years and yet here he was being yanked from a game in favor of the untested Osweiler.
Chiefs mailbag: Looking ahead to the offseason from Chiefs Digest
The Chiefs indeed have a long list of pending unrestricted free agents: Safety Eric Berry, linebacker Derrick Johnson, cornerback Sean Smith, guard Jeff Allen, defensive end Jaye Howard, quarterback Chase Daniel, offensive tackle Donald Stephenson, wide receiver Jason Avant, safety Husain Abdullah, safety Tyvon Branch, defensive end Mike DeVito, linebacker Frank Zombo, cornerback Jamell Fleming and linebacker Dezman Moses.
And the group doesn't include outside linebacker Tamba Hali, whose contract can be voided after the Super Bowl.
There are a lot of hard decisions to make leading to March 9, the start of the league's new calendar year.
Coach Andy Reid, however, appeared optimistic during his end-of-season press conference that not everyone will leave via free agency.
RANKING THE SUPER BOWL MVPS from ESPN
38 LEN DAWSON
QB, Kansas City Chiefs
Super Bowl IVDawson's 46-yard touchdown strike to Otis Taylor in the third quarter helped the Chiefs post a 23-7 victory as 12-point underdogs against the Minnesota Vikings. Dawson completed 12 of 17 passes for 142 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He was 4-of-5 for 66 yards and a touchdown against the Vikings' blitz. The Chiefs ran the ball 42 times for 151 yards, but no individual runner had more than 39 yards on the ground. Kansas City's Willie Lanier, Emmitt Thomas and Johnny Robinson all had interceptions in the fourth quarter to keep the score lopsided.
Great players from Chiefs' Super Bowl win being lost to history from ESPN
Here's yet another reason the Kansas City Chiefs need to finally win another Super Bowl: Their one and only victory is getting lost to history.
The board of selectors for the Pro Football Hall of Fame chose its all-time Super Bowl team and no Chiefs were on it. ESPN picked its top 50 all-time Super Bowl performers and the Chiefs were shut out on this group as well, though I'm told Len Dawson was on the list of 120 that was later whittled to 50.
E! Greenlights Dating Competition Series With NFL Star Travis Kelce from Deadline
In his first full year on the Kansas City Chiefs, Kelce had 67 catches, 862 yards, and five touchdowns to lead all the Chiefs, while his 503 yards after catch led all NFL tight ends. In 2014 and 2015, Kelce was a top vote getter for "Touchdown Dance of the Year." Off the field, the NFLPA has named him one of their "Community Players of the Year." Dedicated to his charity Eighty-Seven & Running, Travis spends much of his time working with less fortunate kids throughout the city.
Chiefs TE Travis Kelce is getting a reality dating show with 50 women from CBS Sports
The ladies in the house will get to vote on who goes on group dates with Kelce, so they're could be some serious backstabbing, which is always a plus in any reality dating show.
Unfortunately, it doesn't sound like Kelce will be giving out footballs or game tickets instead of Bachelor-like roses.
What Michael Phelps has to do with Jared Allen and Peyton Manning from ESPN
Carolina Panthers defensive end Jared Allen dressed up as Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps for Halloween in 2004.
Confused? Wondering what this has to do with Allen's preparation for Super Bowl 50, which will be played in Santa Clara, California, a short drive from his childhood home in Los Gatos?
Everything, in a roundabout kind of way.
Allen wore the costume as he left the Kansas City Chiefs locker room after making his first career start, against arguably the best quarterback in the NFL at the time, Indianapolis' Peyton Manning.
Manning, now with the AFC champion Denver Broncos, also could be the last quarterback Allen faces. Manning, 39, is contemplating retirement and Allen, 33, is unsure of his future.
Panthers' Cam Newton blazing NFL path for QBs like Dak Prescott from USA Today
Depending in part on how things play out with pending free agent Sam Bradford" culang="en">Sam Bradford, it's worth keeping an eye on the Philadelphia Eagles and quarterback
Chase Daniel , who spent the past three seasons as the Kansas City Chiefs' backup while new Eagles coachDoug Pederson was the offensive coordinator there. As his 30th birthday approaches, Daniel may not have a better shot to compete for a starting job. At minimum, he'd be a valuable guy to have as Pederson teaches his offense.
Grant Cohn: A draft game plan for 49ers and GM Trent Baalke from The Santa Rosa Press Democrat
With your fourth pick, take a wide receiver. Anquan Boldin is a free agent who probably wants to sign with a contender, like the Kansas City Chiefs, Pittsburgh Steelers, New England Patriots or Carolina Panthers.
Even if Boldin were to re-sign with the Niners, San Francisco would have only two starting wide receivers â Boldin and Torrey Smith. The new head coach primarily uses three receivers at a time, which means you need to find a third starter.
1970s Steelers steal the show for Super Bowl 50 Golden Team from Inforum
At punter, Guy might seem to be an easy pick for his three games, but Jerrel Wilson of the Kansas City Chiefs is more than a footnote in Super Bowl history, averaging 46.5 yards per boot.
However, Guy gets the nod for his memorable performance in Super Bowl XVIII. One play was the single most spectacular punt in Super Bowl history. On a high snap, Guy soared to make a spectacular, one-hand grab (later to be measured 12 feet off the ground). He then boomed the punt 42 yards for a touchback. Guy punted seven times for 299 yards (42.7 average) and planted five of his seven punts inside the 20.
Reasons for hope for every non-Super Bowl team from NFL.com
28. Kansas City Chiefs: There's plenty of hope for a defense that helped the Chiefs to 11 straight wins. Fifth-year end Jaye Howard and third-year pass rusher Dee Ford add strength to an enticing front seven, while Defensive Rookie of the Year candidate Marcus Peters gives Andy Reid one of the AFC's most promising young cover men.
The magical journey of Laurent Duvernay-Tardif from ICI Radio-Canada [translated from the original French]
Duvernay-Tardif was drafted at 200th rank in 2014. His rise in the powerful NFL is not trivial.
"I remember when I arrived, I was considered the Frenchman who do not really know how to play football. And now I'm the doctor who is on the line and who knows to do good consistent performance. "
The name of the doctor comes from hobby Duvernay-Tardif during the off season. This exchange ideas by studying medicine.
It gives a small beneficial two-week break and then resume the necklace internal medicine at the Montreal General Hospital. A way for him to remain humble and down-to-earth in the wealthy world of NFL players.