Sometimes the good die young | SI.com (Originally published 11/7/83)
There was a huge hole there, carved out of the earth some time ago. The hole had filled with water, and three boys waded in. They didn't know it, but a short way out the bottom dropped off precipitously, and suddenly the boys were in over their heads and thrashing and screaming. There were all sorts of people around, but only Joe dashed to the pond. There was a little boy there. "Can you swim?" he asked Joe.
"I can't swim good," Joe said, "but I've got to save those kids. If I don't come up, get somebody." And he rushed into the water.
One boy fought his way back to the shallow part. The other two didn't. Neither did Joe Delaney, 24. He was hauled out a few minutes later, dead. He gave his own life trying to save three others.
John Dorsey Dismissal: Where It Went Wrong for Chiefs | The MMQB with Peter King
Others in the building saw signs of decisions becoming less collaborative, and more centered on Dorsey’s instincts. It also didn’t go unnoticed that Dorsey’s draft picks, like Fisher and Duvernay-Tardif, were the ones getting paid early. And the way the Jeremy Maclin release was handled—key members of the staff didn’t know until after it became public—didn’t help squash the internal whispering.
Chiefs' next GM should be Brett Veach | The Kansas City Star
Let’s put it another way, too: the Chiefs owner should promote Veach to GM.
Part of this is Veach’s own reputation. He has been, basically, the front office’s No. 3 personnel man. So this would be a jump. But personnel folks around the league are unanimous in their praise. The Bills made him a candidate for their own GM opening recently.
Veach spent six years with Andy Reid in Philadelphia before coming to Kansas City, where he’s been an important part of building one of the league’s best and deepest rosters. He also played college ball with quarterbacks coach Matt Nagy.
Matt Miller's Scouting Notebook: Is Paxton Lynch Ready to Start for the Broncos? | Bleacher Report
It's also worth noting that Veach played college football with current Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy. There are a lot of dots to connect here, but maybe the one carrying the most weight is that both Veach and Reid are represented by Bob LaMonte.
Kansas City’s front office shuffle | The Ringer
Each of Dorsey’s first four drafts netted the Chiefs at least two key pieces, including several flourishing young players who’ve already been signed to extensions. Tight end Travis Kelce (2013), left tackle Eric Fisher (2013), pass rusher Dee Ford (2014), guard Laurent Duvernay-Tardif (2014), and cornerback Marcus Peters (2015) are all products of the Dorsey-Reid era in Kansas City. That haul measures up to any in the league over that period, even before considering what 2016 draftees Chris Jones and Tyreek Hill contributed on the field as rookies.
The most underpaid veteran on each team | The Ringer
Johnson’s been one of the league’s best linebackers over the past decade, but with age and injury concerns going into 2017 (he’s coming back from a torn Achilles), the Chiefs asked him to take a pay cut in March. Assuming Johnson’s able to get back to full health (as he did following a torn Achilles in the 2015 season when he registered 116 tackles), the wily veteran’s going to represent a steal for Kansas City’s rugged defense. Johnson’s long been one of the league’s best coverage linebackers, and even at 34 years old in 2016, he graded out as the fifth-best inside linebacker against the pass, per Pro Football Focus.
I’ve also played golf with Tony before he was, before he was Tony. Before he was Tony, I played golf with Tony Romo. He talked about during the round about how the Cowboys had had an interest in trading for Favre late in his career when he was available, Parcells was the coach.
I said, “Oh yea, I kind of heard that.” And he said, “Well you know, the deal went dead when the Packers asked for me to be in the trade.”
And now I’m like, “Oh really the Cowboys didn’t trade for Favre because they didn’t want to give you up?” And maybe it was true as it turns out, right? He was good enough as it turns out! He had a hell of a good career!
The Franchise QBs -- Final rankings of the top signal-callers in Kansas City Chiefs history | ESPN
The one thing that jumps out about this list is that none of these five quarterbacks were drafted by the Chiefs. Each arrived in Kansas City after being discarded by another team, which tells the story of the Chiefs' inability to draft and develop their own quarterbacks. One surprise is Montana at No. 2. He played only two seasons for the Chiefs and wasn't spectacular in either, though he did quarterback the Chiefs into the 1993 AFC Championship Game. Elvis Grbac is an omission. He had a big season for the Chiefs in 2000.
The NFL has ruled on David Irving’s appeal of a suspension for an over-the-counter supplement, and the news is not good. Irving will be suspended for the first four games of the 2017 season. He will miss games against the New York Giants, the Denver Broncos, the Arizona Cardinals and the Los Angeles Rams. Irving will be able to return for the Week 5 game against the Green Bay Packers.
Eric Stonestreet: He’s heard me say it before, I am a massive football fan, I am a Kansas City Chiefs fan. That’s another thing he and I have in common is our pure athletic ability. That’s why we came together, right? The Chiefs play Dallas November 5 and I told him in the interview that I root for him to have a very healthy game and put up 400 yards and no touchdowns. I’m fine with that.
AFC West Q&A: Which rookie will have a surprising impact on the division? | ESPN
Kansas City might again have landed a hallmark rookie in running back Kareem Hunt, a third-round pick in this year's draft. He came into the draft with some questions, after being suspended for two games in 2015 and battling injuries. Hunt turned in a 4.62 40-yard dash at the combine. If he can show similar ball instincts to last season and be a little more decisive getting up the field, he could do plenty of work for the Chiefs in 2017.