Meet the Gang, Part 10- The Big Finish

We're finishing off our introductions today with a look at the new quality control coaches. Although they go mostly unnoticed, it should be clear to Chiefs fans why quality control is an important focus this year. Allow me to introduce the men who will do their damnedest this year to disallow the same level of crap witnessed in years past.

Mark DeLeone- Mark comes to KC fresh off his first NFL season at the same position in New York. DeLeone coached for Temple, New Hampshire, Iowa and Florida U before making the jump to pro ball. Mark has laid claim to a plethora of job titles in his short career. In Florida, he worked alongside Urban Meyer to prepare wide receivers, offensive linemen and tight ends for SEC football. That year, 7 All-SEC players came from Gainesville. Prior to that, DeLeone began as a defensive assistant for Iowa in '07 and '08, then worked for New Hampshire in 2009 as the director of football operations and assistant offensive line coach. He also attends football camps in the off-season and plans to be heavily involved in the recruiting process. A seriously well-rounded football guy like Mark, whose dad is a former NFL assistant and current college coach, will be well-received here in Kansas City.

Andy Reid also brings with him his former coach's assistant, Corey Matthaei to assist in quality control. Andy also hired his son, Britt Reid, as a quality control coach. After a serious drug possession case, Britt has since cleaned up and engaged himself in football. He's spent three years as a grad assistant helping the offense at Temple, and now with the help of his dad, he gets his first chance at the professional level. Andy's son will likely analyze film and statistical data for the Chiefs in 2013.

And there you have it- that wraps up the new coach introductions for this year. This has been insightful and all that, but I'm ready to get back to the real football talk. When does the season start? September Nth? Oof. Thank goodness for baseball and March Madness. Yeah, I said it football fans. Baseball's great. Just embrace it.

Tomorrow, I'll start with free agency acquisitions. The Chiefs recruited a boatload of talent already, so I have plenty more introductions left to write. After getting to know 18 new coaches and coordinators (yeah, I think I miscounted the first time,) we already have four newly hired Chiefs to meet. Roughly four. So, I've still got a lot of work to do- and I'm excited to do it.

Meet the Gang, Part 9- Behind the Scenes

It's time to get technical, folks. We're going to appreciate the unappreciated. Today we're looking at the guys nobody ever thinks about. Here we have coaches that no one ever sees and no one ever acknowledges, but without them any team in the league could quickly become the Oakland Raiders. Since the Chiefs have flirted with such an abysmal fate lately, it's about time we met the guys behind the scenes and gave them some credit.

Mike Frazier- Statistical Analysis Coordinator- Mike was hired by the Eagles as their first full-time statistical analysis coordinator immediately after graduating Wooster College. This move joined Philly with other successful teams like Green Bay and New England who happily cut a check to someone for providing them in-depth mathematical breakdowns of the game. Not all teams in the NFL have succumbed to this growing trend. After Baltimore hired Sandy Weil to a similar position last year and used his input to win a championship, it just might start to catch on. Hopefully, Mike can bring KC the same kind of success with his number-crunching as Sandy did for the Ravens.

Barry Rubin- Head Strength and Conditioning Coach- Here's some exciting news- the Chiefs just hired a Hall of Famer to their coaching staff. Rubin was inducted into the USA Strength and Conditioning Coaches Hall of Fame in 2003. This came during a successful tenure in Green Bay where those who worked with him praised Barry's efforts in running the intricate strength and conditioning program and helping the medical staff with injury rehab. In 2010, his talents were wanted in Philly by, you guessed it, Andy Reid. Andy brings yet another former Eagles coach with him to KC, but since this time it's a guy with HOF stamped on his resume, the complaints should come few and far between. If the Philadelphia Chiefs are the most athletic team in the league, fans won't mind it one bit.

Rubin brings with him his former assistant in Philly, Travis Crittenden. Before joining the Eagles staff, Travis served as the director of football operations and general manager for Competitive Edge Sports. At this training facility in Atlanta, Crittenden supervised pro players through off-season training and groomed college players for the NFL combine.

Bonus Coach: Kevin O'Dea- Assistant Special Teams Coach- Since I wasn't smart enough to write about Kevin alongside his supervisor, special teams coordinator Dave Toub, let's learn about him now. Kevin spent four years in the Coast Guard before enrolling in Lock Haven University and beginning his coaching career as a wide receivers coach in 1986. From there, he coached at Virginia and Penn State in various positions until being hired onto the Chargers staff in '94. Since then Kevin has coached for five other NFL teams and even spent time in the UFL with the Hartford Colonials. According to Toub, O'Dea is an expert in the art of kicking, so while Dave supervises the return game, it looks like Kevin will keep his focus on Dustin Colquitt and Ryan Succop. 

Meet the Gang, Part 8- Meet the Defense

Defensive line coach Tommy Brasher and secondary coach Al Harris both bring proven success to KC, but they also bring two vastly different histories. By the time Harris was drafted by the Bucs in 1997, Brasher had already logged 15 seasons as a defensive line coach in the NFL. Brasher's career began as an assistant at Arkansas in 1970- four years prior to the birth of Alshinard Harris in Pompano Beach, FL.

Harris spent 14 seasons as a cornerback in the NFL, playing mostly with Philly and Green Bay. That's right- four years with Andy and seven with John Dorsey. With the Packers, Harris started 102 games and reached the Pro Bowl in '07 and '08. In 2009, Al blew his knee out and dramatically altered his future career path. Harris tore a lot of sciencey-sounding acronyms in his left knee and immediately had it surgically reconstructed. Al has fought to rehab the blown left knee ever since. During the 2010 season, Harris signed a 1-year deal with the Dolphins, but after just three games he suffered a season-ending hamstring injury. Shortly after being placed on the Injured Reserve, he was released. So, Al went back to the rehab program, this time for a blown hammy. He healed up fast, and only seven months after being released from Miami, Harris agreed to terms with the Rams. Nine games into his first season in St. Louis, Al's career was dealt its final blow when he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. After all that fighting to get back, Harris' season was ended early once again. This wouldn't keep him out of the league for long, though; Harris interned as a coaching assistant in Miami that following season. The work he did there, as well as his determination and affection for the game were enough to convince Reid and Dorsey to give him his first job as a full-time secondary coach. Along with his veteran knowledge from the DB position, Al brings a proven work ethic to a secondary with Pro Bowl-caliber youngsters on the roster. Although his work is being overseen by Emmitt Thomas, this tough, battle-wizened vet will get every chance to put his mark on the Chiefs secondary in 2013.

Facing adversity with toughness is definitely one the things these two men have in common. In 2001, Tommy Brasher received the Ed Block Courage award for his impressive determination shown during his fight against cancer. Brasher spent most of the '01 season battling to recover from surgeries in which 67 lymph nodes and a malignant tumor in one his salivary glands were removed. And oh, by the way, he continued to coach, and the Eagles defense ranked 2^nd overall that year. As Tommy battled through life-threatening illness, his team ranked 7^th in sacks, and his student, defensive tackle Corey Simon, recorded the second most tackles from any defensive lineman in the league. A strong mentality based on toughness and iron will is vital to creating a powerhouse defense. You can bet your ass Tommy Brasher will bring that to Kansas City.  

Meet the Gang, Part 7- Bob Sutton

In 1973, the release of Dark Side of the Moon was blowing the minds of hippies and rebels and flower children everywhere. Richard Nixon was still telling the press he wasn't a crook, The Exorcist was scaring everyone back to church, and Bruce Lee was finally karate-chopping bad guys for an American audience. In baseball, the American League began playing with designated hitter rules for the first time. In football, Dan Shula's Dolphins recorded the first and only perfect season in NFL history. Chiefs owner Clark Hunt was just an eight year old boy watching Len Dawson throw bombs to Otis Taylor.

What was Bob Sutton doing? Coaching football. What's he doing now? Coaching football, for the Kansas City Chiefs.

Sutton brings 40 uninterrupted years of coaching experience to KC's defensive coordinator position. He started his coaching career in 1973, serving as a grad assistant under legendary college coach, Bo Schembechler. After nearly two decades at various positions and colleges, Bob found himself coaching Army in 1991. There he stayed until the Jets hired him in 2000. In New York, Sutton worked at four different positions under four different coaches in 13 seasons.

Bob brings all the stout defensive mentality from New York, without the huge mouth or the drama. Sounds perfect for Kansas City. But, the statistics reveal some sub-par performance in recent years. Overall, the Jets ranked 18^th or lower in three of the last five years. Sadly, two of those crappy seasons outrank Kansas City's defense of the same year, and, not-so-sadly, the stats also show that when the Jet's D is good, it's really good. In '09 and 2010, the Jet's defense ranked 1^st and 5^th, respectively. Each of those years, New York sent two defensive players to the Pro Bowl. Tamba, Houston, Eric Berry and Derrick Johnson all went to Hawaii this year, and they aren't the only Chiefs on defense that will go in the future. With talent like this already in place, Bob Sutton should prove to be a good choice. Coaches and league experts praise Bob for his mentoring abilities and high football IQ. I've stated before that this team has all the pieces necessary for elite status. With any luck (no year-long injuries,) Sutton is the kind of coach that can make them a top-5 defense.

Meet the Gang, Part 6- Two Andys and a Chung

The season is officially over. Every NFL fan that wasn't rooting for the Ravens turns their focus back to their own team today, and wonders what could bring them to the next Big Game. Chiefs fans, however, are already accustomed to spending their days waiting and debating over major moves for their franchise. The upcoming weeks and months will be heavy with anticipation. All the stats and breakdowns and in-depth analysis in the world can never truly show fans what the Chiefs will be in 2013. There is plenty of content to analyze, plenty of moves to critique, but nothing will be known until Week 1 of the 2013 season. I wish I didn't use that line about holding your breath already. Is it too early to recycle that one?

In case you weren't paying attention, the Chiefs cleared house and rebuilt a coaching staff in a matter of weeks, with most of the moves coming before the legendary Har-Bowl. Let's look at the current staff in Philly for the sake of comparison:

On the team's website, the Eagles list Chip Kelly as their head coach, former Eagle Duce Staley as a special teams quality control coach, Ted Williams as the running backs coach and Keith Gray as an assistant strength and conditioning coach. That's it. The Eagles have so-far made moves to hire a head coach, a running backs coach and two other assistants. In that time, KC added 19 new members to the coaching staff and retained veteran coaches Emmitt Thomas and Gary Gibbs. It took the Chiefs four days to hire Andy Reid after Philadelphia let him loose. It took the eagles twelve days to find another head coach. After hiring Reid on the 7^th of January, the Chiefs took only four days to announce the hiring of a new offensive and defensive coordinator. The Eagles have yet to fill either position. Just seven days after choosing their new head coach, the Chiefs' staff listed a new GM, all new coordinators and a nearly full roster of freshly-hired assistants. Essentially, Kansas City rebuilt their program in a week. The process isn't completely over, but the bulk of the work was done before they crowned a champion in New Orleans.

The way Mr. Hunt dove into the market reveals a courage and wisdom for which Chiefs fans in the past gave him little credit. The work isn't over, but a positive impression has been made.

The exciting, confettiful ending to the Super Bowl marks a huge moment for Chiefs fans. At this very second, a Chiefs employee is on the phone with someone, somewhere, trying to bring Alex Smith to Kansas City. The fight is on between KC, Cleveland and other NFL bottom-feeders to find their new franchise QB. But, regardless of whether Smith starts for the Chiefs next year or not, the franchise knows it needs improved protection for the QB. The offensive line is loaded (with or without franchise-tagging Brandon Albert) with talent and youth, much like the rest of the team. All KC should need is a talented, young coach to mentor them, right? Let's hope so.

Andy Heck- this Fargo native offers 20 combined seasons of NFL O-Line experience- 11 years as a player for the Redskins, Seahawks and Bears, and 9 from a long tenure as the offensive line coach in Jacksonville. There, Andy did what the rest of the Jaguars did- he wallowed in mediocrity for most of a decade. The numbers aren't impressive. The Chiefs allowed 8 more sacks than the Jaguars did last year, but only Indianapolis allowed more hits on their QB. According to Advanced NFL Stats, the Jags' offensive line earned a lower overall ranking than the Chiefs' line for the last five years.

The stat's don't signify much of an improvement from this hire, but Heck's never coached an offensive line like the one taking the field for KC next year. Andy Reid shows a lot of faith here by hiring him from an almost-always-crappy franchise and giving him a chance to play a huge role in a totally rebuilt offense. While the two Andys prepare this offense for 2013, Chiefs fans and employees alike will simply have to trust the 'Stache with this odd decision. Maybe Reid just thinks he fits perfectly with the new assistant offensive line coach. Which is a totally smooth segue that brings me to...

Eugene Chung- here, we have another example of Andy Reid sticking with what's comfortable. New England drafted Chung 13^th overall in the '93 draft, and after three years with the Pats, Eugene played a season each with Jacksonville and Indy. From there, Chung went on to coach under Reid for three years as an offensive line assistant.

The Chiefs roster includes Pro Bowl tackles Eric Winston and Brandon Albert, as well as Jon Asamoah, Jeff Allen and Donald Stephenson- three raw, athletic, young linemen drafted no later than the 3^rd round. Those draft picks need to make a difference out on the field, and they need to do it this year. Chiefs fans should all be hoping beyond hope that these two coaches realize just how important their roles will be to the team's chances. It doesn't matter if we pick up Alex Smith or Colin Kaepernick or Tom Brady- if we can't keep our new quarterback safe in the pocket, this team will continue to fail.

Meet the Gang, Part 5- New Hope and New Help for QB

What separates the Chiefs from the two teams fighting to call themselves champions today? Lots of stuff. It may actually be simpler to count the things we have in common, but what is perhaps the biggest difference? The defense in KC isn't elite yet, but it certainly showed signs of improvement and clutch holding power. This is a good enough defense right now to be competitive if matched with even an average offense. So the offense is the problem- but, not all of it. KC ranked 5^th league-wide in total rushing yards this year, with Jamaal listed in the top five for season rushing yards, average yards per carry, average yards per game and total yards from scrimmage. Clearly, Jamaal has what it takes to be a winner and push the Chiefs toward the playoffs. #25 can only let this team down by getting injured.

So, the defense has hope and the running game is great- obviously not KC's biggest flaws. That narrows it down to the passing game. Neither team in this year's Super Bowl had incredible passing stats in the regular season; Baltimore and San Fran ranked 15^th and 23^rd in total passing yards, respectively. The Chiefs rank dead last, though. Anyone who watched the games each Sunday can clearly see that Kansas City needs to evolve on the offensive side of the ball. Compared to watching a game with at least one competent passing attack, the Chiefs' Sunday viewing experience felt downright juvenile. The rest of the league enlisted field commanders with rifle arms to bomb the opposition. Meanwhile, the Chiefs were playing around with Nerf guns and Super Soakers. While everyone rode around the neighborhood on their shiny, new ten-speeds, KC was pedaling away on one of those plastic, tricolor Playskool bikes.

Let me get to the point before my metaphors get any weirder. The QB crippled the Chiefs' chances to succeed last year. The last team to rank last in passing yards and still make the playoffs was the Ravens in '03. That Baltimore squad still ranked 8^th in overall offense, and its legendary defense featured several future-Hall of Famers like Ed Reed and the man of the hour, Ray Lewis. In the nine seasons that followed, teams that ranked last in passing yards averaged 4.4 wins per year and never recorded a winning season. Recent changes for the Chiefs will help them to avoid this fate.

Kansas City started the season by limiting their offense in order to cater to a limited QB. Whoever starts at quarterback next year will be an upgrade, but he'll need to deal with the struggles of learning a brand new offense. Because of this, and also because of the QB position's cerebral nature, this year's choice of a quarterbacks coach is crucial to future success. Andy Reid has yet again gone with a former assistant from Philly to bolster the coaching staff- shocking, I know. Before we lose ourselves to the bright lights and high drama of the day, let's quickly get to know the new Chiefs quarterbacks coach- Matt Nagy.

Nagy's resume is a quick read, but he brings hands-on QB experience and strong work ethic to his first quarterbacks coach position. After playing six seasons at QB in the AFL, Matt quickly started his coaching career by climbing the ranks in Philly under Andy Reid. After two years as a coaching intern, Nagy claimed a position as offensive assistant to begin the 2010 season. The next year, Andy upgraded his position to offensive quality control coach. I won't pretend to know much more about this guy. I have no idea what he brings to the table from an X's and O's standpoint. All that aside, I still really like this hire. Nagy offers, at the very least, a list of accomplishments based solely on his hard work and determination. Whoever the next Chiefs quarterback is, hard work and determination will be exactly what he needs to succeed. Other factors will influence this QB's chances considerably, but no other person will have more effect on KC's new big hope than Matt Nagy.

Meet the Gang, Part 3- Dave Culley

Boy, does Andy Reid love reunions or what? Yet again, the Chiefs make another hire that brings a former Eagles coach to Kansas City. I'm not complaining, though. Not yet. It's not as if trying to emulate a different franchise has ever bit this team in the ass before. Oh wait.

Yeah, sorry. I know it's all about hope and good vibes and cuddles right now, but do you remember all that talk about the Patriots of the Midwest? It all sounded great until Matt Cassel and Company proved it to be completely ignorant. Are you ready to aim towards being the Kansas City Eagles? So far, Andy Reid is following the same philosophy for hiring coaches that Scott Pioli used to screw this franchise up in the first place. Maybe I'm just paranoid. I hope I am. There's nothing to signify that these hires won't form the foundation of a perennial playoff contender. Until there's actual proof, though, I'll continue to chomp my fingernails into to a fine, bitter powder. Alas, there is hope to be found in every new member of this revamped Chiefs coaching staff, so let's get right into it. Without (too much) further paranoia, let's get to know Kansas City's new wide receivers coach- Dave Culley.

Culley brings over 30 years of coaching experience to this painfully unproductive offense. Dave began his career in 1978 as a running backs coach for Austin Peay. He then coached quarterbacks and wide receivers for numerous colleges until '94, when he joined the Buccaneers as their wide receivers coach. Culley spent two seasons in Tampa, then took a job at the same position in Pittsburgh. Under his supervision in '97, Yancey Thigpen gained the most single-season receiving yards in Steelers history.

Then, in 1999 Culley teamed up with Andy Reid in Philadelphia. Together, they ran one of the best offenses in recent history. With receivers like Terrell Owens, Desean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin, the Eagles passing offense ranked in the top ten league-wide from 2004-2011. So, the statistics show that whenever Reid and Culley have talent to work with, they produce an elite passing offense. The Chiefs has several talented skill players for the coaches to utilize, but will it be enough? With Dwayne Bowe's future largely undecided, and nothing but question marks at the quarterback position, it is too early to say if Culley can make a noteworthy impact. It's not insane to envision an elite passing attack taking the field at Arrowhead next year. It's not skeptical to think about how all this could go wrong, either. As with many things regarding Chiefs football nowadays, fans are left in anticipation to see which decisions make the team stronger, and which decisions will threaten its promising future.

Meet the Gang, Part 2 (of Many)

They've cleaned house in Kansas City, and the rehiring process happens fast. When a team cans all but two major members of the coaching staff, there's a lot of work to be done in a small frame of time. Thanks to the aggressive attitude Clark Hunt brought to this off-season, that time-frame is being used wisely. Already now, we have too many new names and faces to familiarize ourselves with in one comfortable sitting. I'll be back here daily to introduce the fans to a small portion of this busload of new assistants at at a time. Today, we'll start with two coaches hoping to improve this woeful Chiefs offense.

Doug Pederson- While the hiring of Dave Toub was an understated improvement, the impact of this signing may be underwhelming. Andy Reid already announced that he will call the plays in 2013. In truth, Andy will act as the full time OC for this team, and that's a very good thing. Dorsey will be determining the personnel side of the team, so Pederson will have little effect on who suits up on offense. To me, it seems that Pederson was hired on to fill some sort of supportive role with Reid, where-in he would be a teacher, a calm veteran voice, and a mentor to the next franchise QB hopeful. The experience that comes from playing behind guys like McNabb, Marino and Favre should be much-appreciated.

Eric Bieniemy- Here, we have yet another hiring that reunites Andy Reid with a former employee. Bieniemy played 9 seasons with four NFL clubs, including Andy's '99 Eagles team, as a slash back, kick returner and punt returner. He began his coaching career by returning to his Alma-mater for two years as the Colorado running backs coach. Eric was hired in 2003 to the same position in UCLA, and after three years in Los Angeles, he was offered the same job in the NFL by the Vikings organization. Under Eric's coaching, Adrian Peterson exploded onto the scene and quickly became the most powerful rushing force in football. After briefly returning to Colorado to coach the Buffaloes' offense, Eric now returns to the NFL to mentor another elite running back. The Chiefs roster also includes Shaun Draughn, Nate Eachus and Cyrus Gray- three young rushers with 2 combined starts and 71 combined carries.

Although Bieniemy can claim all the impressive achievements of Adrian Peterson as proof of his own coaching success, he still arrives in KC as an unproven coach with a short resume. Just like nobody can stop AD from being a beast, fans in Chiefs Kingdom know that Jamaal is going to be Jamaal. No running backs coach in the league is going to influence what he does on the field- nor should they. So, this means the attention turns to the aforementioned youngsters and the impact Eric can have on their productivity. That's where the unproven part comes in. The year before the Vikings drafted Peterson, Chester Taylor averaged 4 yards per rush with 303 carries. Then, AD took the starting job and became the engine of the offense for the rest of Eric's tenure in Minnesota. After Peterson's arrival, no other running back recorded more than 157 carries for the Vikings in a season.

There's nothing in the stats that definitively says Eric is a bad choice. But, there's nothing to say that he'll make a big impact, either. Andy Reid seems confident in Eric's abilities, but the rest of us simply have to wait and see. Fans will be waiting with excitement and hope as they put all their faith in Andy Reid. I have a feeling it won't be the last time I say that, either. Each one of these hires is a major test of Reid's ability to scout for talent at the coaching level. Building a franchise from the ground up like this is something I've never seen before. Both as a fan and an analyst, I'm excited to witness what happens next in this high-profile experiment. You should be too, so come back tomorrow for further test-study analysis.

Meet The Gang, Part 1: David Toub

 Clarke Hunt knows this league well. He knows the fast-paced and ruthless nature of the NFL, and he's reacting to it with impressive panache and decisiveness. With Reid and Dorsey's input, the Chiefs have hired new coordinators for the offense, defense and special teams, as well as two new offensive line coaches. Talk about clearing house, wow. These are a lot of changes to analyze. Let's get started today with a hire that may go under the radar, but may also be the upgrade that takes KC to the playoffs.

On the 15th, the Chiefs took another step in the rebuilding process by hiring Dave Toub as their new special teams coordinator. Toub had an impressive run with the same job in Chicago, where his group led the league in kick return TDs and total return yardage. This move reunites Dave with Andy Reid, who spent two years with Toub in Missouri and three more with him in Philadelphia.

Toub began his coaching career as a graduate assisant at the University of Texas El-Paso and immediately earned a job there as the strength and conditioning coach. Dave then spent nine years at a similar position with the University of Missouri, where he and Andy Reid first met. Reid then hired Dave on to his staff in Philly in 2001, reuniting Toub not only with Andy, but also with the team that selected him in the 9th round of the '85 draft as an offensive lineman. In 2004, Lovie Smith hired Toub to take control of the special teams in Chicago. Dave's contract was meant to retain him through the 2013 season, but Bears GM Phil Emery allowed him to interview with other teams. Sources from the Chicago Tribune explain that Toub didn't wish to work under a new coach while competing with him for the head coaching position.

At a glance, the statistics might make this look like a lateral move. After all, the Chiefs ranked in the top ten for kickoff and punt returns for the past five years, and two of those years they ranked higher than Toub's Bears. But, if you look closer, it becomes clear that this hire marks a significant improvement. During Toub's 9 year tenure in Chicago, the Bears totaled 19 return TDs, averaging 2.1 per season. During the same time, the Chiefs averaged only 0.67 returns per year, managing to score only 6 return touchdowns under 4 different special teams coaches. The Bears ran back 11 TDs in two years, from '06 to '07. The Chiefs haven't returned a punt or a kickoff for a score since September 13, 2010.

Maybe Toub can turn McCluster or Wylie or somebody into the next Devin Hester, maybe he can't. Either way, he brings consistency to a job where the talent is already established. All the tools are there, with all these young, athletic special teams guys, to bring back the X-Factor this team hasn't had since the times of Dante Hall. That's something for which we can all be truly excited.