Go Ahead and Hold Your Breath

Pardon me for sounding cynical, but this week's post won't be an unbiased look at the X's and O's of today's game in Denver, because this game is almost entirely meaningless to me. This year, Peyton's offense outscores their opponent by 10.4 points on average. This season's average Chiefs game is an 11.9 point loss. A Chiefs fan might be better off rooting for the Jaguars this Sunday, more-so than their own own team. So, let's think about the future (some more) in order to keep this topic from getting depressing.

First, a much-needed dose of positivity: Jamaal, Tamba, Derrick Johnson, and Eric Berry are all Pro Bowlers entering the primes of their careers. Unless KC wins today, overcoming a 16 point spread and the inescapable malaise of a lost season, the Chiefs will have the first pick of the draft to rebuild around. There it is again: rebuild. That dirty, dirty word. I suppose that brings us to the big pile of negativity we have left to pick away at throughout the off-season.

Well, nobody came here to read a book, so I can't even list all the problems here at once. I'll be happily going into depth about all these issues in the coming months, but for now I'll be brief in addressing the most dire and immediate needs for this franchise. I'm not breaking any news or making a lot of bold statements here; the changes that need to take place are obvious to anyone paying attention. The real question- the variables up for analysis here- aren't about whether or not they should happen. Most of the issues now revolve around the If's and the When's. The off-season is really just a different season altogether, with different players playing different games while still hoping to reach the same successful outcome. So please, before the new (off)season begins, let's just try to get our ducks in a row here.

Let's start with an easy one; Matt Cassel's starting days in KC are over. I don't need any more proof of that after seeing him holding a clipboard while a career back-up took the reigns of the offense that was built around Cassel before this season began. Management made it very clear that Cassel had to really, seriously suck to lose his starting job, and that's exactly what he did. Keeping a guy like that around doesn't seem beneficial, and Matt probably wants out at this point, too. Whether Brady Quinn is a reliable back-up is an entirely different discussion, but it's low on a very long list of priorities.

So, who's next then? Let's go ahead and assume we'll be spending that draft pick on a QB, considering that to be the most obvious hole in the team. Thanks to our league-leading volume of failure, we've nearly ensured the first pick now, so all my hypotheses about Jason Campbell and Alex Smith and Michael Vick are officially going on the back-burner. For now. There will be plenty of time to break down Geno vs. Barkley, but today I'll only say that I'm leaning towards the freakishly athletic guy with a great arm over a product of a system that churns out perennial under-achievers like hotcakes. Neither one of them has been properly tested. Neither has shown signs of being Joe Montana or Tom Brady. Neither one has even played well against elite college defenses. There are no guarantees that we'll even go for these two guys. Why not go with a proven winner like AJ McCarron from Alabama? Why not pull one of those previously mentioned veteran QBs off the back-burner, then draft Manti Te'o to play next to Derrick Johnson and terrify offenses for years to come?

There's just too many options right now for me to have a strong enough opinion on the whole thing. I know I'm supposed to figure out my opinion and explain it passionately, but what can I say? The variables are countless, and the (off)season has yet to even begin. That's my opinion. These upcoming months will be long ones for Chiefs fan, but they will also be extremely intriguing. For that, I am totally passionate. I might dare say, hopeful.

I wish I could just end the article on that note. I wish I could sit back and dream about the pieces we have here, and allow that to give me enough hope to start theorizing about next year's epic journey to the Super Bowl. The unavoidable truth, though, puts all that hope in jeopardy. None of those pieces matter if they aren't properly utilized, and that will not happen unless the second and third most powerful men in the franchise are fired. All of these variables rest in the hands of someone who may or may not be in power for a week, a month, or five years. Everything hinges on the decision to fire Scott Pioli and Romeo Crennel, and only one man can make that decision. I don't know what Clark Hunt wants to do, and I don't know if he knows what he wants to do. Every moment the new beginning doesn't come is a waste of time, so these decisions need to come quickly, just to get the whole damn organization out of football Limbo.

Coach Crennel has to go. In a business where winning means everything, the men in control of the business have to cut their losses when no proper explanation for failure has been given. I need more than just my fingers and toes to count the times Romeo told the press "I don't know" when they asked him what went wrong, following one embarrassing loss after another. That's an irreparable problem. Or rather, it's an easily fixable problem involving an irreparable relationship between a coach and his beleaguered, deflated team.

Scott Pioli is the decision-maker behind every decision you hate as a Chiefs fan. Matt Cassel was unfairly presented as a franchise quarterback, and then lambasted accordingly. That was Scott Pioli's call. The overall discomfort and inconsistency that came from changing coaches and coordinators has crippled the team beyond comprehension. Every firing and every rehiring was a choice that Scott Pioli made. Maybe I'll have lots of time to explain why he should lose his job. Or maybe, he will be fired, quickly and mercifully at the season's end, and none of my complaints will matter anymore. We as fans can only hope, as Clark Hunt sits and thinks.

The way Romeo dealt with, and will continue to deal with witnessing his own player pulling the trigger on himself is just as commendable and inspiring as anything ever witnessed in professional sports. The same goes for Scott Pioli- someone for which I simultaneously harbor venomous resentment and the utmost moral respect. Although this game is capable of inducing powerful, raw emotion, the game, itself, is emotionless. At its core, it is a business. The business plan for the Chiefs' franchise isn't working properly with either of them in their positions, so they absolutely have to go. Speaking of Romeo, I like the man, but nobody likes the product he's provided, so you won't find many people disagreeing with the sentiment to replace him. Not as many seem sure that Hunt is willing to fire Pioli that quickly. If I were in the owner's shoes, I'd feel like I'd be doing the guy a favor by letting him go. Does Pioli really want to be here? Does this embarrassment help anybody or anybody's career?

So here we are, with few answers and countless questions, waiting for the ball to drop. After the regular season's final game, that totally different game begins, but until decisions about Romeo and Pioli are made, the Chiefs organization doesn't know how to play the game. They don't even get to read the rulebook. Without making the changes, nobody knows where they want the team to go, so until the moment changes are made, they're losing the game already.

My plea to Mr. Hunt is simple: don't make the mistake of waiting any longer than the end of the regular season. If he can't make the decision as early as many fans and myself would like, it will hurt, but not as much as if he made the wrong decision and Pioli was contracted to call the shots next year. It would hurt in the short term to waste time with deliberation, but making the wrong choice means crippling the organization long into the future. I guess I'm saying if it takes too much time to change what has to be changed, but it still happens, I'll save my tears for a later time.

We would all rather see Christmas come late than not come at all.

And Then Things Got Worse

So here we are, everyone- the mid-way point of the season. Usually, I feel nostalgic and wistful, a bit sad even, at this time of the year. In years past, as I looked back at the 8 games of competitive football gone by all-too-soon, one might find me gazing longingly into the sky, trying desperately to cherish every game-winning drive and clutch defensive stop while it was all still fresh in my memory. One might even catch me in a state of semi-mourning of all the good football gone by. I can hear it now, a younger me, saying that sentence for what must have been the hundredth time-

“ Is the season really half-way over?”

There was a much different feeling about that sentence back then. It was a feeling of loss, a reminder to appreciate what you had when you had it, and it made me thrilled to see what the rest of the year had in store for my beloved Chiefs.

It's not like that this year. Not at all. Way back in the ancient time of 2005, a guy named Trent Green had a 4,000+ yard season. Larry Johnson was turning into an elite running back, long before leaving football for a full-time career in being sleazy and offensive. Point is, there were plenty of good moments to look back on from those years. And what do I have to reminisce about this year? Every single second that resulted in a non-stop, record breaking streak of football inadequacy. You must have heard that stat by now, about the Chiefs going the longest time without a lead since 1940. The first time I heard it, I thought “Wow, that's awful. I wonder what crappy team sucked harder than us, back then in the freaking FDR years, a year before the attack on Pearl Harbor.” But, stupid me, turns out 1940 is actually just the time they started keeping track of that kind of stuff. There aren't any statistics for that kind of thing before 1940.

Do you get what I'm saying here? Did you catch the levity of all that? There is no record of any football team ever sucking as hard as the Chiefs have sucked this year. That is now an inarguable fact. Thanks for the memories, Pioli.

So forget looking at the recent past- let's try to be optimists here, and look into what could go right in the upcoming future. It's time for me to start tackling all the what-ifs and fan hypotheses swirling about, concerning what's going to happen to this sinking ship, after the tsunami of this season is done with it. What parts of it will be salvaged, if any, and how should the full restoration be constructed? Most, if not all of these conversations and debates revolve around four broad questions:

Who will the general manager be?

Who will the head coach be?

Who will the starting quarterback be? AND

When will these changes/decisions be made?

Now, I won't try to tackle everything right now, that's crazy. That would be a book, not an article. My love for this team knows no bounds, but I think I'll save the novel for a winning season- or at least not a historically bad one. Also, spending all my positive energy to pontificate all that at once would be wasteful, not to mention exhausting. So for both of those reasons equally, I'll take on a little bit of one big topic at a time. This week, I'll look at the quarterback situation, examining one potential QB scenario at a time. If that seems lazy or half-assed, please try to remember that I have two reasons for this, and only one of them is selfish. We're going to spread the hope thinly, folks. We're running low, nowadays.

In critiquing and theorizing on these QB possibilities, I want to ask the important questions. Yeah, more questions, I know. What can I say? In a season like this, there's lots of questions, and the answers seem extinct. Just ask the coach, “I Dunno” Romeo. Anyways, in these segments I'll try to answer a series of questions regarding each prospective QB, in order to assess if he would be a good fit. Then I'll tell you whether I think he'll be a good fit or not, just to be condescending. These are, generally, the questions I'll be trying to answer:

Is he an upgrade? This basically asks if he would be better than Cassel, since I'm sticking with the worst case scenario until anything better than that actually transpires. I also don't think Quinn will/can be better than Cassel, but since we have eight more games to test that theory, the definition of this one is subject to change.

Can he take the Chiefs to the playoffs? Here, I'll make my prediction as to if the QB can take the Chiefs to a divisional title or a wild card berth, and when they could do it.

Is he/ can he be elite? A commonly used and commonly argued about term, here I'll try and predict if the quarterback can ever be one of the very best.

For today, we'll keep our expectations low and examine a scenario where next year's starting QB does not come from next year's draft. We'll keep the Geno/Barkley/Whoever talk for later in the season, when I can better gauge whether or not the Chiefs will suck enough for a top 5 draft. For now, let's take a look at a guy with starting QB experience that is en route to free agency in 2013.

Jason Campbell-

This guy's name is destined to come up often in Kansas City this year. After his appearance in this week's Sunday Night Football game, I probably wasn't the only Chiefs fan typing that name into a search-bar. And since the Bears only signed a one year contract with Campbell, he fits right into the discussion. So hey, he was a career starter until this year, right? And did you see the bomb he threw to Brandon Marshall? Can you even remember Cassel throwing a pass like that? Do you even think he can? Okay, enough questions, it's time for....shit, more questions. Sorry.

Is he an upgrade? Yes, but only by the teensiest margin. His career numbers are slightly better than Cassel's in almost every category. Cassel averages 174.3 yards a game over 76 games played. In 75 games, Campbell averages 193.5 yards a game. Matt has 56 picks and 18 fumbles to remember begrudgingly, while Campbell has recorded 50 picks and 14 fumbles. And, like I mentioned, his arm strength is an upgrade from the current QB, but I dare you to find me a guy not named Pennington that isn't. So, if we can assume Cassel is the unofficial starter for the rest of this bogus season, or we can at least assume Quinn isn't himself an upgrade at QB, this is an improvement. An itsy bitsy improvement.

Can he take the Chiefs to the playoffs? Yes, but not in one year. It would take time, but I have faith that under the right management and coaching, any middle of the road quarterback can take this core group to the postseason.

Is he/ can he be elite? No, and the same will apply to most of these guys we would hypothetically get via trade or free agency. If you want an elite quarterback, you have to draft him. Pioli.

Will he get the fans excited? More excited than seeing Cassel? Let's go ahead and assume that's automatic for everyone I discuss here. Since that shouldn't be the bar we're setting, no, this would be way too slight of an improvement to give the fans any serious hope for the future. Picking up Campbell means looking for hope in the 2014 draft. Awful.

Is he a good fit? No, but it's barely his fault. I feel like he could take a different team to do good, not great things. But, combining his lack of confidence based on a shaky history- a history that shows that he's unable to reach the upper echelons of NFL quarterback- and a mixture of the Chiefs' own inadequacies and self-loathing would give Campbell all the opportunities necessary to fail.

I'll have more prospective QBs coming up, but for now I'll end this exceedingly long post with my five predictions for tonight's prime-time match-up against the Steelers. Yep, thing should get ugly.

1. Pittsburgh has an elite defense and a Todd Haley-built passing attack that ranks 9^th in the league in yardage. The Kansas City offense is hobbling and confused, and a normally underrated defense is showing signs of either fatigue or resignation. There are also more holes in the secondary now, especially with Arenas making his first start at the #2 cornerback spot. Maybe some people think this will turn out like the Packers game last year- an unexpected win against a powerful opponent to raise morale, just when things can't get any worse. Things will get worse, trust the pattern. Chiefs lose in a blowout, 34-13.

2. Cassel will have to pass it around to avoid this harsh Steelers run defense. Expect at least three more pass plays than run plays total, which means at least two turnovers.
   
   
3. With a banged up front line, the Steelers pass rush will make things difficult all day long. Cassel gets knocked down at least 7 times, and gets sacked at least twice.
   
   
4. Edgar Jones has done serious work as a relative nobody on the special teams squad. Look for all 260 pounds of him to come barreling down the field for two more tackles on punts today. There will be plenty of punting, so he'll get his chances.
   
   
5. Jamaal Charles' head falls off his shoulders in between plays. Just falls right off. Seriously, if I once again find myself wondering what else could go wrong, fate may do it to spite me.

The Raider-Hater's Realization

 So after the most embarrassing loss of the season (so far), the Chiefs make the change to Brady Quinn, bringing an end to the frustrating Cassel Era. Also, the flimsy rumors about the Chiefs offering Pioli a contract extension, at exactly his lowest point of fan popularity, have all been vehemently denied by the organization. On top of these nuggets of good news, we have a winnable game against the always fun-to-hate Raiders at Arrowhead this week. So, are you excited?

I can tell what you're thinking, and I know. I know, I know, I know. The season's over, the team sucks and they should just keep losing so we can draft a real quarterback next year. How can I be excited about this crappy team? How can I even be expected to care?

Well, truth is that I'm not here to spread hope and joy. I'm not a professional, I'm just a fan, and I'm just as upset as all the other fans. My objective today isn't to fart rainbows into your morning coffee- not only because that sounds really gross and frightening, but also because I'm fully aware of how hopeless this season feels. But even after such disappointment, there is reason to be excited for this game. Problem is, the reason to be excited is, itself, disappointing.

By now, you've either noticed a lot of Chiefs fans that want the team to suck in order to improve the draft position, or you've become on of them. Whether you want the team to lose enough to pick up Geno Smith next year, or you're holding onto hope and still rooting for a wild card spot, you'll soon be disappointed. The simple truth is, this team has way more talent than the average NFL bottom-feeder, and winning a few more games is inevitable. The Chiefs still have two Raiders games on their schedule, as well as home games against the Panthers and Colts, and a very winnable game in Cleveland. With a schedule like that, they'd have to be trying to lose in order to avoid three or four more wins. That puts the Chiefs at 4-12, at worst. Other teams with tougher schedules will have worse records than that by season's end, putting them ahead of Kansas City in drafting order. That means no Barkley, no Geno, no elite quarterback for the Chiefs next year.

That's right folks- the Chiefs will even suck at sucking. Doesn't it all sound like a bad joke? Cheering for KC is so awful that they can't even make us happy when we want them to be terrible. So, why be excited about a meaningless game against two awful teams in the middle of hopeless seasons? Because an exciting game against a hated rival is all we're going to get, and hope is still a distant speck on the horizon. There will be no losing hard enough to ensure getting our pick at QB next year, and with Cassel being benched that means it's time for some *gulp* rebuilding with a new, mediocre quarterback.

This is assuming Scott Pioli won't trade up in the draft, which to some would seem like an unfair assumption. Many have hope, even automatic confidence that he'll make moves to get the #1 or #2 quarterback in the draft. I'd love to have that kind of faith, but until Pioli employs anything more than his usual boring, conservative tactics, I'll keep on assuming. So now, we're talking about these Jason Campbell, Matt Flynn, Kevin Kolb kind of guys that are happy to be starting anywhere, so long as they aren't the guy holding the clipboard. That may be fun for a while, but it will be a Band-Aid on a bullet wound to the stomach. So, let's just sit back and enjoy the aura of mystery surrounding Brady Quinn this week. Savor that new QB smell for a moment, before he explains to us all why he failed to win a starting job anywhere else. For this week, he gets the Rich Gannon treatment. It's all the fans' what-if's and pipe dreams, suddenly becoming a reality. With little to root for these days, that should be something we can all embrace and enjoy, at least for a day. Because, who knows? Maybe he's the guy, this determined, studious 1^st round draft pick. There's no knowing for sure until he gets a chance, and today is the day he gets it. So yeah, there's reason to be excited. Hope is gone, but today there's potential for some serious entertainment. Isn't that all you can hope for, after the games become technically pointless because all hope is gone? So please, appreciate the game this afternoon, and don't let this cloud of disappointment ruin today's entertainment. It's the Raiders at Arrowhead and we've got a new QB. Enjoy it.

Until then, let's take a closer look at today's competition- the Joker to our Batman, the Ivan Drago to our Rocky Balboa, the reviled, revolting Raiders.

This Oakland team is erratic and unpredictable. With a competent quarterback to run the show, the Raiders offense is clearly more potent than it's been in prior years. Their offense is 9th league-wide in passing yards, but their rushing attack is second to last behind Darren Mcfadden. Oakland's offense showed potential in their 34-31 win against Pittsburgh, in which Palmer completed 70% of his passes for 3 TDs and Mcfadden averaged 6.3 yards a carry. But, they showed inconsistency in Miami, where Mcfadden had 11 carries for 22 yards, and Denver, where the Raiders scored only two field goals. Their secondary is struggling, their rushing defense ranks near the middle of the pack, and the defense has mustered only 7 sacks in 6 games. There is admittedly more talent in black and silver than we have seen for several years, but nothing extraordinary is happening in Oakland. New coaching, new quarterback, same old mediocrity for Raiders fans.

Usually this would be my time to poke fun, to use demeaning nicknames and make crude jokes about our bitter rivals. At this point, though, I could go to a bar in Kansas City, overhear a drunk guy talking about how his beloved Raiders suck year after year with no hope in sight, and easily mistake him as one of my own. That is the ultimate fear. Only after looking deep into the soul of your enemy can you truly understand yourself. I think some smart, famous person said that, I'm not sure, but it's applicable to this situation. Look hard at the past few years of Raiders football. Since 2007, they have 30 wins in total. Now, look at that same time-frame for the Chiefs. Go ahead, count 'em up. That's 27 wins. 27 wins in five years. Let me put it another way: the Kansas City Chiefs, UNDER SCOTT PIOLI'S COMMAND, spent the last five years sucking more than the Raiders. Hell, that's not the ultimate fear. The fear has become reality, and now it is the ultimate evidence of how awful the Pioli Regime has been for Kansas City.

A few weeks ago, following a loss against the Chargers, I shared an opinion on this blog that a particular point in that game was the worst moment for fans since Pioli took over. While that was not untrue at the time, I learned a valuable lesson from saying something that weighty so early in the season. Honestly, every moment since then has been worse. The bad play makes the constant bad breaks all-the-more jarring, and vice versa. Trying to think of a single moment so far seems pointless, but it makes me wonder; could anything be worse than a loss this week, at home against the damn Raiders? It would be bad, but at least now I'm wise enough to say that it couldn't get worse. Hopefully, this newly found wisdom will aid me this week in my commonly unsuccessful five predictions.

1. I refuse to believe this team is mentally downtrodden enough to play lazy against the Raiders. With only a few practices to prepare him, Quinn fights through a shaky defense with a wobbly offense and wins a close game, 27-23. The Chiefs defense makes a big hold late to end it, giving Arrowhead a reason to really explode for the first time this year.
   
   
2. Oakland is trying to avoid their ugly traditions by avoiding penalties and limiting turnovers. The Chiefs haven't won the turnover battle in a single game this year, and only last week against the Bucs could they keep the ratio even. Look for these disturbing trends to continue with the installment of a new Chiefs QB. Kansas City ends the day with a -2 turnover ratio, and still wins.
   
   
3. Javier Arenas is making me complain about him much less nowadays. Look for him to improve his average yardage this week with some broken tackles on punt returns. I'd still put Devon Wylie in his place, though.
   
   
4. With all the magical possibilities that come with a new starting QB, there come twice as many possibilities for disaster. Expect at least one interception from Mr. Popular today.
   
   
5. In the name of tradition, the Raiders commit at least two egregious penalties to continue drives for KC. You still suck, Oakland. Don't ever forget it.

Arrowhead Angst

 Last Sunday's game against the Chargers was an important moment in Chiefs football history. It wasn't pretty, but it was definitely important. The exact moment came with about three minutes left in the second quarter. The offense was succeeding only in giving the bad guys the ball, and the defense was getting gouged for huge pass plays. Three turnovers prior to this point, including two from the team's savior Jamaal Charles, guaranteed an uphill battle.

Then Matt Cassel throws another bad pass that's tipped for another interception, his second of three in the game. Donald Butler runs the pick back for a 21 point lead, and every heart in Chiefs Nation sinks.

This moment marked the lowest point for fans in the Scott Pioli era. Firing Todd Haley mid-season brought plenty of fear and uncertainty to a justifiably cynical fan-base, but it was matched almost immediately with hope for the future. That hope has now been extinguished with a miserable start to a critical season. By starting the year with three embarrassing losses in four games, the Chiefs have made the reality of their incompetence painfully clear.

The upcoming weeks are going to be nasty. Most of the reporting on defensive schemes and rookie progress will be overshadowed by rumors about the most important men in the franchise getting fired. Talk will shift from “Will Devon Wylie ever be a key contributor to this offense?” to “What does Romeo/Pioli/Cassel have to do to keep his job?” and then, possibly, to “Would Bill Cowher coach here?” Fans will spill their hatred out onto the forums with no remorse. The online petitions to “can Cassel” will be innumerable by season's end. And here's the worst part about all the hate: nobody can blame Chiefs fans for a second.

At some point in the coming weeks, depending on when and where Clark Hunt makes major changes, the chatter about firing this guy and hiring that guy will begin. Eventually, someone will say the two most obscene, vulgar words ever heard in Kansas City- "rebuilding process." It hurts my soul just to type such an awful phrase. The process means bad football for at least a full season. It means new coaches arguing with new coordinators, and most importantly, it means wasting the primes of this roster's most talented players. Chiefs fans have been waiting patiently through these processes since Scott Pioli's arrival. This isn't baseball- an NFL franchise cannot spend five years rebuilding without losing fans. Paramount to all other concerns is the sickening silence in Arrowhead to start the second half last week. Fans weren't exactly satisfied with the product on the field last year, but the home crowd was still rarely quiet. At least they cared enough to boo with enthusiasm.

So before everyone dives into the non-football football talk, let's take a minute to look at the game that put Kansas City in this very uncomfortable position.

Sunday's game against San Diego was not a blowout, and that is what makes it the ugliest game of the season so far. The story begins and ends with turnovers, with two fumbles from Jamaal, one from Shaun Draughn, and three interceptions from Matt Cassel. The first three turnovers, including a pick thrown by Cassel on the opening drive, came in the first 21 minutes of play and gave San Diego the ball within the KC 30. The fourth was a pick-six. What followed should have been another boring blowout, but thanks to an exhausted Chiefs defense making stop after stop, Kansas City found themselves in perfect comeback position in the second half.

This defense limited the damage from five first-half turnovers, then forced three consecutive 3-and-outs in the 3^rd quarter to give the offense great field position and several opportunities to close the gap. Then, with inaccurate passing and his signature 4 yard throws on 3^rd and long, Matt Cassel handed the ball over to Philip Rivers' offense, over and over and over again. This pattern of the offense flopping after the defense holds strong for them isn't something only an expert can see. It's the same formula for bad football this Chiefs franchise has shoved down their fans' throats all season long. And it all comes back to Matt Cassel.

Cassel has problems finding wide open receivers, and when he does, he overthrows them. He can't handle pressure and he loves to check it down on long 3^rd downs. When coaches are asked about Cassel, they spend the majority of the time politely commenting on his ability to manage the game and avoid turnovers. This year, he's guilty for 7 picks and 3 fumbles in four games. Everything about Matt Cassel makes him unqualified to lead this offense. And yet, Scott Pioli insists he's the man to take Kansas City to the Super Bowl.

After firing two head coaches and decimating the Chiefs front office, Cassel is still Pioli's Golden Boy, completely untouchable, regardless of how much he holds this team back. I'll have more on Pioli later this week; the ugly situation he's putting this entire franchise in deserves its own article. So, before I start demanding heads on pikes, let's take a look at the upcoming action on the field. If you think this tough match-up against Baltimore comes at the worst possible time, you aren't alone.

The Ravens are an evolving team, what with Joe Flacco showing huge improvement and the notoriously dominant defense growing old. Baltimore sits at 3^rd in the NFL in yards gained, and Flacco is 3^rd among all quarterbacks in total passing yards. But, the once-terrifying Ravens D is 23^rd in overall yards allowed and 29^th in passing. Unfortunately, since Cassel only trusts himself enough to consistently target two guys on the field (Bowe and Charles), that shouldn't matter much. Let's take a look at my five reasonably cynical predictions for Sunday.

1. Chiefs fans in Arrowhead can only shake their heads in shame, as Flacco burns the defense down the middle (another disconcerting trend), and Ray Lewis turns Cassel into blood-soaked, flesh-colored jelly. Maybe that last part is my repressed rage surfacing as macabre daydreams, but you get it. Chiefs lose, 37-16.
   
   
2. This game looks to be one-sided, and an early deficit will make the Chiefs way more pass-happy than anyone would like to see. This means Cassel spends the day throwing into the teeth of a cover defense while avoiding a heavy blitz on passing downs. That means turnovers. Plus, have I mentioned how Matt Cassel stares down his intended receiver every single mother-flopping time he throws the ball? Yeah, it's a problem. The Ravens have forced six fumbles and four picks already, so expect Matt to continue his crappy year with two more costly turnovers.
   
   
3. Eric Berry had an awful time covering Antonio Gates last week, and was called for blatant interference in several key moments of the game. Look for the similarly beefy Dennis Pitta to give #29 fits and record his fourth game with five receptions this season.
   
   
4. Tamba Hali gets pumped up in games like this, when all seems lost and the Chiefs are the town's laughing stock. Not even Sandra Bullock can save Michael Oher from Hali's blitz today. Tamba gets at least one sack and four hits on the quarterback.
   
   
5. I'm putting the over/under for Bowe pointing to his own name at 1.5 for the season. Since I expect a bad loss, there should be plenty of garbage time for Bowe to rack up stats, so today I'm going with over. The team's 1-3 you idiot, knock it off.

Not many uplifting predictions, I know. It's not a very uplifting season either, damn it. But if all this disappointment seems like too much to take, do me this favor:

Relax, take a deep breath, and say Ropati Pitoitua five times fast. Seriously. It helps. Don't judge me until you've said it out loud.

High Hopes Heading Home

So the Chiefs are losing in New Orleans, 17-6, with six minutes and change left in the third quarter. Matt Cassel drops back to pass, and stares himself right into a bad interception. Saints ball, 1st and goal on the 7. One can almost smell the dread at this moment. Saints hike the ball. Touchdown. No hope. Season over. All is lost.

Shaun Draughn returns the following kick to the nine yard line, and Matt Cassel takes the field again. Great.

First play is a hand-off to Jamaal, left side. He's got a hole. A big one. The blocks are all setting up.

Uh-oh.

Like a flash, 25 is off to the races. He blows past the Saints secondary for 91 yards and the score. Touchdown. 24-13. Brand new game.

Just like that, hope sprang anew. The game wasn't over, the season wasn't over, and everybody knew that Jamaal was officially back. It brought life to a lifeless Chiefs fan base, and may have kept some fans from burning their jerseys and finding a new team to root for. So who deserves the credit for this riveting victory? Who besides Jamaal, obviously?

Well, you'll still hear harsh and hilarious jokes about this Chiefs defense for weeks to come, regardless of what they do this Sunday. But, with flaws abound, many fans are solely blaming the defense for a disappointing 1-2 start. There aren't nearly as many fingers being pointed/ curse words being shouted at the guys on offense, especially after last week's 500+ yard performance. And have you checked the stats lately? The Chiefs are the #1 offense in football, right?

Let's settle down on the "best offense in the league" talk for a minute. Yes, the Chiefs do have the league's highest yardage total, but let's put that into perspective: Jamaal Charles had 288 total yards last week.  He's averaging 107 yards on the ground. His performance paired him with Jim Brown as the only men in NFL history with 250 rushing yards and 50 receiving yards in a single game. Dwayne Bowe has 234 receiving yards, many of which came too late in the blowout in Buffalo.

 The rest of the offense? Meh. Hillis has 126 total yards this season. The passing game is 16th in the NFL, the exact middle of the proverbial road. And if you've watched Matt Cassel play, you know he's not bailing the Chiefs out of any games this year.

Cassel doesn't have any embarrassing stats to point and laugh at, but just watching how he operates under pressure leaves many Chiefs fans hypothesizing about Brady Quinn. Every game makes it more evident that this offense is held back by the guy playing the most important position. The dream of Cassel coming to life in an offense that's custom-built to his limitations is over. The idea of him spreading the ball all over the field to these talented skill-players will never be a consistent reality. He realizes this, the team realizes this, and thankfully, Daboll realizes this. So instead of putting the game in Cassel’s hands, Jamaal has 33 carries and 6 receptions. Giving Charles that many touches is asking for disaster, which Daboll probably understands. It will be one hell of a task to get this offense going next week, especially with the current injury problems; Breaston, Bowe, McCluster and Wylie are questionable to start, Hillis is doubtful, and Boss is out. Add losing center Rodney Hudson for the season, as kind of a fart-flavored cherry on top, and the offense should be expected to falter often against San Diego. The franchise adjusts to Cassel’s mediocrity by giving him plenty of short-field options to throw to, and without many of them, his play could go from subpar to awful quickly.

So don't be fooled by one legendary game from #25. This offense is not stellar, and they will have plenty of ugly moments to struggle through in coming weeks. Sorry to spoil the party. So, why is everybody still so happy? Why is there still hope? It's not just dementia brought on by watching a thrilling overtime win after two miserable blowouts. It's the defense. Yeah, I said it. It's the defense that held a determined Drew Brees scoreless for 38 and a half minutes. It's Justin Houston, making some memories and developing into a serious weapon. By the time you realize Buffalo's run game is legit and Atlanta may be Super-Bowl bound, the thorough beatings KC received against them seem less painful in hindsight, at least somewhat. So one starts to wonder- are we looking at a good defense here?

Not yet, if you look at the numbers. Still a lot of yards allowed, still giving up too many points. But seeing the game last Sunday, anyone would agree that the defense bailed the offense out not once, but many, many times. People may forget it after such an ugly start, but this is not a bad Saints offense. In week 1, New Orleans scored 34 against Washington, despite having 3 turnovers and 12 penalties that resulted in 107 squandered yards. Their points total is 9th in the league. To shut down Brees in so many consecutive huge moments takes consistent execution. Crenell's job depends on whether or not he can make the defense execute the game-plan consistently, so this performance was a big step in the right direction. The signs are there that, in time, we will see a top-shelf defense take the field each and every Sunday. Because of a front line that cannot apply pressure by itself, and a secondary prone to deep attacks in the middle of the field, we're talking about the future, and not the present. But the signs are there. Didn't you enjoy seeing the standings this week and realizing it still matters? If this defense continues to play like it did in that second half in New Orleans, fans may spend a lot more time checking the standings throughout the following months than we ever thought possible two weeks ago.

            That brings us to, well, today. A win at home against the Chargers ensures a tie for the lead in the division. Imagine how far-off 1st place felt after the Chiefs got stomped in Buffalo. It's right there, up for grabs in this game. A loss ensures that the sky comes falling down, all over again, in Chiefs Nation. At least that's what many fans will be feeling.

San Diego has loomed as a divisional front-runner for years, with the whiny but talented Philip Rivers leading the way.  But this year, the Chargers have nothing particular to be confident about. Sandy Eggo started the season by losing to the Raiders, scoring 18 points against a team that's 26th in points allowed. The Bolts followed this up with their one and only solid offensive performance. They put up 38 against the Titans, who have given up the second most yards in the league and the most points, averaging 37.7 per game. Remember that shaky Chiefs offense from a few weeks back? They scored 24 points against the Falcons. The Chargers scored 3 points and lost by 24. While their mediocrity may stir up some feelings of hope yet again, the Chiefs have only proven that they need a 288 yard performance, 5 overturned challenges, 6 field goals and 8 and a half minutes of overtime to beat a struggling, decimated Saints team.

Before the game today, take a deep breath and enjoy that Saints game in your head for a minute. That was a fascinating, exciting moment. Sadly, it may have been the best moment of this Chiefs season. Here's to hoping I'm wrong. And to prove that I often am, here are my five predictions for today:

1: While the Chargers aren't the Chargers of Years Past, they're still better than the Chiefs of Right Now. Another strong outing from Houston and the rest of the defense keeps it close, but Rivers finds too many holes in the secondary for the Chiefs to survive. Bolts win, 23-19. Also, expect at least three moments where Rivers bitches at a ref for no reason, and at least two moments when he quite visually calls out a teammate. What a big baby.

2: As I mentioned, giving Jamaal the ball in Priest Holmes-like proportions is bad news, and Daboll is (hopefully) well-aware of this. Expect Jamaal to have his carries limited to around 20 or 25. And he'll still finish the day with triple-digit yardage.

3. Kansas City relied heavily on Jamaal, not just later in the game when he went bonkers, but right out the gates on the opening drive. He helped move the ball into field goal range, where Succop landed his first of six field goals. This broke a league-leading 19 game streak of failing to score on the opening drive. Look for Daboll to finally come out with a good plan for a game-opening drive, allowing the Chiefs to start a new streak. No touchdown, though, just a field goal. Baby steps, damn it.

4. The Chiefs will want to keep the clock running today, in order to keep the defense fresh. With a run-happy, time-managing offense like this, they will do so successfully. Expect the Chiefs to have at least 8 more minutes' time of possession.

5. Here's a weird one: Dustin Colquitt shanked a punt last week, a really ugly one that rolled off his foot for 24 yards. Colquitt, being a punter, isn't talked about too much, but he really has been one of the most consistent performers on the team in recent years. Expect 24 yards to be his season low.

For more Chiefs info, check in later this week. Maybe I’ll write a whole article about punters! (I won’t).  

Not All Hope Is Lost...I Think

I wanted to write an article earlier this week. I wanted to give my response to several interesting things I've read since the meltdown last Sunday, and offer my own take on whether or not this team has lost all hope. As you can see, I didn't. Sure, I had it on my mind all the time, and I spent much of the week trying to make sense of what happened in Buffalo. But despite my love and commitment to reporting on the topic of Kansas City football, I spent plenty of my week (way more than usual) trying to get my mind off the Chiefs.

Have I explained my “sad-naps” before? Well, I could probably write a college midterm on the subject, but I'll try to keep it brief here, so as not to bore you with my psychological babble (much). Essentially, any time the Chiefs (or Royals) lose a big game, be it a back-and-forth heart-breaker or an embarrassing blowout, my dejected, mopey ass falls asleep shortly thereafter. That means if the disappointment begins at a noon kickoff, I'm passed out by 4, and there's not a damn thing anybody can do about it. If we lose bad enough, I miss the rest of the games that day. I've gotten so used to it, I look ahead on the schedule, and record the other games on DVR that day if I think we're going to lose.

“ Going into Philly this week? Sweet. Where's that damn remote?”

There is no, “ Forget it, man. Let's get out of here and blow off some steam.” No. My mind feels soggy and limp as the constant visions of a 3-11 season assault it like a heavy rain, and it refuses to let this body take one step further. Unless that step brings me closer to my bed. The response I have for my friends is never that flowery, though.

Usually I just say, “ Whatever dude. I'm taking a sad nap. I'm sorry.”

And I am.

Needless to say, I couldn't be more ready for slumber after Sunday's stinker in Buffalo. Did you catch that Cowboys game? I sure didn't. But, now that I can count the hours until kickoff, I've drug myself out of football hibernation, just in time for a little pre-game analysis. Now that we have a game in New Orleans to speculate about (notice I didn't say “look forward to”), I feel like we can all put that drudgery behind us and really move on. So enough about me and my symptoms of chronic depression, let's talk about the game!

Last week, I basically made a point that no matter what happened against the Bills, this season would be far from over. That remains true, despite what fans are feeling nowadays, or what they're reading in the papers. Here's five reasons why, or rather, five things to think about when it feels like all hope is lost.

1. Like I've said before, there's too many spots on the roster filled with impressive talent to be totally down on this team, at least in the long term. Even if we're talking about the worst case scenario, some of the most important contracts should outlast this Pioli/Cassel Era (more on that at number 4).
2. I know it sounds like a cliche excuse, but we're two games into the first year with Daboll as the OC and Romeo taking the reigns as head coach. Two games, people. Two embarrassing, awful games I know, but only two nonetheless.
3. Jamaal Charles had six rushes for 3 yards. He was pulled from the game early, after many on the sideline watched him limp back to the huddle. Crenell told the press this week that Jamaal wanted back in the game, and that he'll be ready to go against the Saints.
4. Maybe not one that will effect this season, but Clark Hunt has already shown that he's more open to change than his father, Lamar. By booting King Carl, or Crazy Carl, or whatever mean name for Carl Peterson you like most, Clark made at least one Chiefs fan confident that he's willing to make big changes when things look bad. And looking ahead on the schedule, things may look really, really bad by the end of this season.
5. The New Orleans Saints. They're 0-2, right?

And that brings me to this Sunday. “The Brees-y Boys,” as they're unfortunately called by some on the internet, are indeed reeling from an 0-2 start. With rumors and talk about Bounty-Gate and the following suspensions swirling around, the Saints lost two games to quarterbacks with a combined one year of pro football experience. They've given up more yards on the ground than any other team, and the Saints and Chiefs share the pride of allowing the most points in the league so far. The Saints aren't getting nearly enough pressure on the quarterback, having recorded only 3 sacks this season. The defense has only forced a single turnover, and Brees has thrown two picks in consecutive games.

That all sounds very ugly, or very encouraging, depending on who you root for. But who really thinks that offense isn't going to be good, and who thinks that defense can be that terrible the whole season? Not this guy, and not this week. Here's my five predictions for the game.

1. Those stats I mentioned about the porous Saints defense are sounding pretty good, right? Starting to get a little hopeful, are we? Stop it. I expect the offense to show up against a struggling defense, and I expect a secondary that's gotten burnt in big situations in back-to-back games to improve after another week of practice together. But I still expect Drew Brees to use us as his springboard back to a successful season of football. The Saints offense gives Jovan Belcher nightmares for weeks to come, and the Chiefs lose again, 37-27. I can feel the silky comfort of my bed sheets melting the sadness away already.
2. This offense loses its biggest weapon when they're down on the scoreboard. Jamaal Charles is a freak, a man on a mission, returning from a year-long injury hell-bent on being even more awesome than before. Because of two blowouts, his awesomeness has been greatly limited, and Chiefs fans have gotten far too few chances to howl his name at their TVs. If Kansas City leads the Saints for more than 12 minutes, expect 100 yards or more from Jamaal. If they don't, expect less than 50.
3. Matt Cassel has some serious happy-feet in the pocket. Blame it on the offensive line if you wish, who look like they're getting beat in the trenches nearly every play. The Saints pass rush is unimpressive right now, so look for him to settle down, find some time and finish the game with a completion percentage above 65.
4. We will have problems defending the middle of the field. Expect Darren Sproles to get 8 receptions or more, many of which will have you screaming “THE MIDDLE OF THE FIELD IS WIDE OPEN! WHAT THE HELL?” until your friends tell you to relax. That's been a bit of an issue this year.
5. If the Chiefs lose, expect Romeo to show up to the next Q&A and bore at least one person to sleep in the press room.

As we look ahead to this Sunday's game in Buffalo, ask yourself this: what would a win against the Bills tell us about this Chiefs team? Obviously, getting the W is what's most important, but how we win could be very telling of how this year's team will match up with later, tougher opponents. And, if we don't win, we'll have a lot more discomforting questions to answer.

This early in the season, fully understanding a team's identity is next to impossible. Last year, Buffalo went 6-10, with a middle-of-the-road offense and a defense that gave up the fifth-most rushing yards in the league. Only Tampa Bay and Minnesota gave up more points per game on the ground, and the passing D was similarly crappy. Actually, almost exactly as crappy; again, only The Vikings and Bucs gave up more passing yards. So with the Chiefs' arsenal of offensive skill-players, and with Jamaal going right back to being Jamaal (at least when the line holds up for, like, half a second,) Chiefs fans could easily get caught sitting back and licking our chops. The Bills' season opener against the Jets- a 48-28 blowout in New York- does little to slow the salivation.

So we can be somewhat confident on the offensive side of the ball, much to the chagrin of the organization that fired Chan Gailey. Though if you saw any five minutes of that Falcons game, you know damn well Romeo isn't losing any sleep worrying about the offense; it's the defense that garners most of the negative criticism lately, and rightfully so. Atlanta scored on their first eight possessions last Sunday. Falcons coach Mike Smith told reporters after the game that it "might be the best game" QB Matt Ryan has ever played. Julio Jones, Roddy White, and Tony Gonzalez- three guys the defense should have been gameplanning for all week- caught at least five passes each. There's plenty of ugly stats to go along with that game. I could go on. The only stat that matters, though, is 40 points. In last year's regular season, a team allowed 40 points or more 25 times, and only one of those teams came out with a victory. The Chiefs haven't scored 40 points in a game since week 7 of 2010.

While Ryan Fitzpatrick won't scare secondaries like Matt Ryan will for the next decade, he's no slouch, either. He did throw for 3 TDs against a Jets defense that ranked fifth last year in passing, and could've had more if not for throwing three picks. CJ Spiller, the second-stringer filling in for an injured Fred Jackson, ran for 169 yards. Stevie Johnson is only going to get better, and if he's double-teamed by the hopefully-healthy Brandon Flowers and a safety, it leaves the field wide open for 7-year vets Ruvell Martin and Brad Smith. Fitzpatrick targeted Bills not named Johnson for 14 passes last week against the Jets, so shutting him down isn't enough to ensure a win.

The more you look at it, this could be a close game. Apparently, this is supposed to be a much-improved Bills defense, strengthened by the hefty acquisition of Mario Williams, as well as another defensive end. The Bills hoped to improve their secondary as well by drafting CB Stephon Gilmore tenth overall. Those pickups didn't stop Mark Sanchez from scoring 48 on Buffalo last week, but one game cannot prove what this young and talented defense will look like next Sunday.

So, if we stuff the run and put up 40 points, we can have some hope for the Sunday after this, when we play the Saints in New Orleans. But will we really be confident in stopping that high-powered offense? The Bills could play their best game on both sides of the ball and still be nothing compared to what we'll face in week 3.

If we lose a heart-breaker, will you have lost all faith in Romeo Crennel and his defense? Would you really have no hope for Justin Houston? Would you scoff at Derrick Johnson, or deny all of Eric Berry's talent? No way, man.

I guess my point is, no matter what happens this Sunday, the season is far from over, and this team's identity will not be set in stone. Beating the Bills by 30 points would feel great, but beating Buffalo is not like beating the Saints. There would still be plenty of questions about the defense if the score's 38-35, and just as many about the offense if we won 13-3. Losing a game like this, on a schedule like this, would be bad news- it goes without saying. But, to think a loss here equates to an entire season of failure would be going a bit overboard. The Hunts trust that Romeo is building a foundation for a long-lasting, powerful, studly defense. That means Chiefs fans have no choice but to trust him, too. This Sunday, we'll get some clues as to whether or not that foundation was finished in time for the 2012 season, or if it's still under construction.

The franchise has also fully commited to Matt Cassel and his ability to manage the game. Turnovers are crucial, and the Chiefs know this. In an effort to make an unpredictable game less-so, Scott Pioli has given Cassel the keys and built an impressive-looking offense around him and his skill-set. However successful Cassel is at protecting the ball, Sunday's game still looks to be hard to predict. Nonetheless, I have five predictions for this upcoming Sunday. Call me crazy.

Five Predictions for Sunday-

1. Buffalo and Kansas City had oddly similar starts to their seasons last week. Both teams lost in blowouts that could have been competitive if not for a -3 turnover ratio. This week, the Chiefs D revels in having their blitz game back, and pressure from Tamba and Houston will force some turnovers. Cassel holds his poise better than  Fitzpatrick, and his efforts to keep the ball safe and manage the game pay off. Kansas City wins the all-important turnover battle, and the Chiefs win an ugly one, 26-24. A key turnover will make all the difference. Expect the offense to look erratic, almost bipolar. Much like last game, this system built around Cassel will make you grin with smug confidence through one set of downs, then make you shout obscenities and scratch your head through the next. Expect the defense not to suck (fingers crossed.)

2. Tamba forces pressure all day, but the Bills plan for it. So on the other side of the D, Justin Houston breaks loose and gets at least two sacks and several hits on the quarterback.

3.  Fitzpatrick is known to get a little wobbly after a few good knocks. If the defense gets pressure on him, expect at least two interceptions. And like I said, they'll be crucial.

4. McCluster was Cassel's favorite target, last week and throughout the preseason. Look for #22 to make two or three third down conversions that make everyone remember how much ass he kicks.

5. Javier Arenas starts another pointless slap-fight, after returning a punt for 2 yards. Book it.