Just How “Patriot”-otic Can The Chiefs Get?
Okay. I’ve stood by and watched my Kansas City Chiefs go from a ship without a rudder to the Patriots version 2.0.
Am I happy?
No.
Here’s why. Let’s breakdown the Patriots of the 2000s with the Chiefs of the 2010 variety.
- Head coach. Haley v Belichick.
- Haley. 1 Year as Head Coaching Experience. Wasn’t a triumph in any means, which included cutting a player that wound up having a better year than any of his replacements (safety).
- Belichick. 4 years head coach with the Browns (91-95). Worked directly under one of the best coaches ever (Parcells) for many, many years (Giants, Jets). Became Patriot head coach in 2000.
- GM. Belichick v Pioli.
- Belichick. Took over GM duties as well as head coaching duties when he came to the Patriots in 2000. Many, many years of learning what it takes, inside and out, for a team to win since he held multiple positions for multiple teams (losing and winning ones). Had head coaching experience previously.
- Pioli. Pro Personnel director for the Browns/Ravens (moved) and the Jets before moving on to GM duties with Belichick in New England. Has a great eye for talent. KC seems to be lacking that…
- Defense. Belichick v Crennel.
- Belichick. Knows how to run a defense. Won a superbowl with the Giants as he was their head defensive coordinator. Hired Crennel in 2001 to run defense, and did so until 2004, when he left to become the head coach of the Browns.
- Crennel. Ran Belichick’s defense in New England from 2001-2004. Coached the Browns for 4 years, leaving with a 24-40 record. Cleveland sucked.
- Talent. New England in 2000 v Chiefs 2010.
- 2000 Patriots: Drew Bledsoe (QB, “The Statue”), Kevin Faulk (RB), Troy Brown/Terry Glenn (WR), Adam Vinatieri (K), Lawyer Milloy/Ty Law/Tedy Bruschi (Defense). Oh, and they had just drafted Tom Brady in the 6th round.
- 2010 Chiefs: Matt Cassel (QB), Jamaal Charles (RB, “Speed Demon”), Dwayne (“Iron Hands”) Bowe/Chris (“I was released why?”) Chambers (WR), Ryan (“I don’t”) Succop (K), and, uh, on defense… Yeah. Tamba Hali is okay, and Brandon Flowers is getting there, but, yeah. If there aren’t major changes on the 2010 Chiefs Defense, this team will really blow again.
- Owners. Kraft v Hunt
- Kraft. Best in the business. Simply put. He made a dynasty.
- Hunt. Son of Lamar Hunt took over, and the jury is still out. Though, at least he”ll pay big bucks for coaches. Yet to be seen on whether any real talent comes into KC via free agency. Not exactly the “big spender”.
So, what’s to learn? The Patriots of 2000 were setting themselves up for greatness. Talent was there, and an eye for talented existed, as the next few drafts showed. (Tom Brady – 2000, Richard, Seymour – 2001, Asante Samuel – 2003) Even bringing in free agents was a thing that Belichick and Kraft did well. (Corey Dillon, Wes Welker, Randy Moss, Rodney Harrison) What has Pioli/Hunt/Haley done? Uh, Matt Cassel, which has yet to pan out to be a franchise quarterback, mainly because he has no offensive line or receivers that prefer to catch the ball instead of doing their best Iron Man impression with it. Jamaal Charles is the only legitimate star on Kansas City, but will he fizzle out as quickly as he arrived in 2009? That will be the question to begin the 2010 season.
Are the Chiefs headed in the right direction? Grade: D. Could be worse, but not much.
Coaching staff of the Chiefs: Grade: C-. Below average, since we now have 2 fired head coaches on our staff as coordinators, both of who used to be higher up on the food chain than Haley when they were all together.
Owner: Grade D. Slowly opening the purse strings to his golden coin pouch. I won’t upgrade this until Hunt signs a free agent that can make an impact. Drafts don’t count, as that is more about talent evaluation.
Here’s hoping that at least 6 games won in 2010 is a realistic thing. 4 games were LUCKY in 2009. It should have been 2, possibly 3 depending on Cleveland. Not like we need a higher draft pick though, since those top 5 picks have worked out so well for Kansas City in the past…?At least LSU doesn”t have a “potential” top 5 pick this year, or else they might just rename LSU to “Goin” to Kansas City” roster.
