The Chiefs played this football game very close to the vest but it didn’t matter because they won the game.  Brodie Croyle was effective completing 3 of 4 passes for 42 yards.  Damon Huard completed both of his pass attempts for 6 yards including a TD pass to WR Bobby Sippio.  Tyler Thigpen looked terrible again as he didn’t complete a pass in six attempts.  Jackie Battle led the Chiefs in rushing in this game with 55 yards on 9 carries (6.1 ypc).  Jamaal Charles was also effective carrying the football 6 times for 43 yards (7.2 ypc).  Kolby Smith was very tough in this game with 38 yards rushing on 6 carries (6.3 ypc) with 2 TD runs (4 and 14 yarders).  Dantrell Savage did not have a good game as he rushed for 21 yards on 11 carries (1.9 ypc).  The Chiefs finished up with 157 yards rushing on 39 carries (4.0 ypc) and they also completed 5 of 12 passes for 48 yards.

Rookie safety DaJuan Morgan led the Chiefs in this game with 6 tackles and a interception.  The Rams finished up with 106 yards rushing on 26 carries (4.1 ypc) and they also completed 24 of 40 passes for 199 yards.  The Chiefs finished up with a 2-2 record this preseason which was a solid one for them.

The Chiefs reverted back to the awful, too conservative offense last Saturday Night and the result was a shutout at the hands of the pitiful Miami Dolphins.  Brodie Croyle started the game and he was awful completing 12 of 21 passes for 110 yards with 1 interception.  Damon Huard wasn’t much better completing 3 of 7 passes for 26 yards with 1 interception.  Tyler Thigpen was really pathetic in this game as he completed 1 of 5 passes for -5 yards with a interception.  Larry Johnson led the Chiefs in rushing in this game with 36 yards rushing on 13 carries (2.8 ypc).  Dantrell Savage had a solid game with 29 yards rushing on 4 carries (7.3 ypc).  Kolby Smith was busy in this game as he carried the ball 4 times for 10 yards (2.5 ypc) and he also caught 4 passes for 38 yards (9.5 avg).  The Chiefs rushed for 90 yards in this game on 25 carries (3.6 ypc) and they also completed 16 of 33 passes for only 99 yards.

Safety Bernard Pollard, cornerback Brandon Flowers and linebackers Pat Thomas and Derrick Johnson each had 4 tackles against the Dolphins to lead the way for the Chiefs’ defense.  The Dolphins finished up with 164 yards rushing on 31 carries (5.3 ypc) and they also completed 13 of 22 passes for 108 yards.  The Chiefs can’t afford to play conservative like they did in this game or they will lose another 12 games in 2008.

The Kansas City Chiefs looked pretty good on offense for the most part last Saturday Night against the Cardinals.  Brodie Croyle was so-so as he completed 7 of 13 passes for 38 yards.  Tyler Thigpen was pretty impressive except for one pass that he threw to CB Dennis Keyes of the Cardinals who returned it 84 yards for a TD.  Thigpen completed 16 of 27 passes for 174 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 interception.  He also carried the ball 5 times for 35 yards rushing (7.0 ypc) against the Cardinals.  Larry Johnson looked sharp as he carried the football 14 times for 61 yards (4.4 ypc) on Saturday Night.  Kolby Smith was also very impressive against the Cardinals with 37 yards rushing on 4 carries (9.3 ypc).  WR Kevin McMahan led the way for the Chiefs in this game with 41 yards receiving on 3 catches (13.7 avg).  Fellow WR Maurice Price also caught 3 passes for 34 yards (11.3 avg).  The Chiefs finished up with 153 yards rushing on 29 carries (5.3 ypc) and they also completed 23 of 40 passes for 192 yards.  The Chiefs controlled the football for 34:07 last night as they looked solid again on offense.

Linebacker Weston Dacus led the way for the Chiefs defense with 5 tackles on Saturday Night.  DT/DE Turk McBride also had a solid game with 2 tackles and 2 sacks.  Overall the Chiefs defense played pretty well against the Cardinals.  They held the Cardinals to 76 yards on 21 carries (3.6 ypc).  The Cardinals also completed 18 of 25 passes for 139 yards as they held onto the ball for 25:53.

After watching last season I wonder if Herman Edwards really still “Plays to Win the Game”?  Edwards never took the training wheels off of the offense and the result was a 4-12 season.  I know that the Chiefs’ defense wasn’t any good and Edwards wanted to keep them off of the field but if you’re too conservative in the NFL you wind up losing a lot of football games.  It will be interesting how much patience the front office has with Edwards if the team has another awful season like 2007 and they certainly have that potential.  Edwards has been the head coach of the Chiefs for two years now and he has compiled a 13-19 record (40.6%) during the regular season and he has a 0-1 post season record.  It’s not as if Edwards had much of a resume’ coming to the Chiefs as he wasn’t a good coach with the Jets either.  Edwards has now been a NFL head coach for 7 years and he has compiled a 52-60 record (46.4%) during the regular season and he is 2-4 in the playoffs.  Look for Edwards to have some colorful press conferences this season as the losses pile up for the Chiefs in 2008.

Was I seeing things last night or was this a Herman Edwards’ led team.  The offense looked wide open for the Chiefs and they scored enough point to win……imagine that!  Brodie Croyle started off the football game and he was solid connecting on 6 of 10 passes for 82 yards.  Damon Huard followed Croyle in the game and he was very effective completing 6 of 8 passes for 77 yards with 1 TD pass and 0 interceptions.  Tyler Thigpen finished up the game strong for the Chiefs completing 8 of 16 passes for 113 yards with 1 TD pass and 1 interception.  Dantrell Savage led the Chiefs in rushing with 30 yards on 5 carries (6.0 ypc).  Larry Johnson also got some work in carrying the football 8 times for 18 yards (2.3 ypc) and scoring a TD on the ground.  Bobby Sippio had a solid game for the Chiefs with 3 grabs for 57 yards (19.0 avg) with a 27-yard TD reception from Tyler Thigpen.  Maurice Price also had a decent game catching 2 passes for 33 yards (16.5 avg) with a 8-yard TD grab from Damon Huard.  The Chiefs finished up with 83 yards rushing on 25 carries (3.3 ypc) last night.  They also completed 20 of 34 passes for 254 yards last night.

The defense was pretty awful for the Chiefs last night.  Linebackers Derrick Johnson, Demorrio Williams, E.J. Kuale and DE Jason Parker led the way for the Chiefs with 4 tackles apiece last night.  The Bears rushed for a stunning 175 yards on 29 carries (6.0 ypc) last night.  The Bears also completed 20 of 34 passes for 187 yards which is terrible for the Chiefs when you consider who was throwing the football for the Bears (Kyle Orton, Rex Grossman and Caleb Hanie).  The Chiefs have some work to do on defense but they need to keep the offense wide open like it was last night.

The Chiefs will have a battle between two kickers who didn’t play in the NFL last season.  26-year old veteran Nick Novak appears to have a small edge heading into training camp but he’s not a slam dunk to win the starting job.  Novak has played in 16 games in his NFL career and he has made 13 of 20 field goals (65%).  He has converted all 25 of his extra points which is a bright spot for him.  Undrafted rookie Connor Barth will battle Novak for the starting job but either way the Chiefs lose.  One day they will take the kicking job seriously……likely with the next head coach in 2009.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  F

32-year old Tony Gonzalez proved that he has a lot left in the tank last season for the Chiefs.  He played in all 16 games for the Chiefs last season and he caught 99 passes for 1,172 yards (11.8 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  With young Brodie Croyle the likely starting QB this season for the Chiefs Tony Gonzalez should have another good season as the kid’s safety net.  Gonzalez has now played in 174 games in his NFL career and he has caught 820 passes for 9.882 yards (12.1 avg) with 66 TD grabs.  He also has carried the football 2 times for 14 yards (7.0 ypc) in his career.

6’8″, 270 pound Brad Cottam was drafted last April to back up Gonzalez.  He has had huge problems staying healthy at Tennessee which caused a lot of teams to cool on him last April.  Cottam played in 38 games (7 starts) in his career at Tennessee and he caught 21 passes for 341 yards (16.2 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Don’t expect miracles out of Cottam in the next few years.

24-year old Michael Allan will likely be the #3 TE for the Chiefs.  He did not even take one snap with the Chiefs as a rookie last season.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  A

The Chiefs look very young at WR heading into the 2008 season but that’s not necessary a bad thing as they have speed to burn.  2nd year receiver Dwayne Bowe was awesome last season for the Chiefs.  Bowe is a big guy at 6’2″, 221 pounds and he’s really fast.  Bowe played in all 16 games for the Chiefs last season and he caught 70 passes for 995 yards (14.2 avg) with 5 TD grabs.  Look for him to have even better numbers this time around for the Chiefs as long as they get better play from the QBs.

26-year old Devard Darling never lived up to his potential in Baltimore but the Chiefs hope a change of scenery will jump start his NFL career.  Darling played in all 16 games for the Ravens last season and he caught 18 passes for 326 yards (18.1 avg) with 3 TD grabs.  Look for Darling to have a decent season with the Chiefs but he will have to hold off Jeff Webb and rookie Will Franklin for the starting job opposite Dwayne Bowe.  Darling has now played in 19 games in his NFL career and he has caught 20 passes for 331 yards (16.6 avg) with 3 TD grabs.

6’2″, 211 pound Jeff Webb will try to expand his role on the Chiefs’ offense in 2008.  He has made most of his money on special teams in his career to date.  Webb played in all 16 games for the Chiefs last season and he caught 28 passes for 313 yards (11.2 avg) with 1 TD grab.  He also carried the ball 1 time for 5 yards last year.  Look for Webb to push Darling for the starting job this season.  Webb has now played in 26 games in his NFL career and he has caught 31 passes for 336 yards (10.8 avg) with 1 TD grab.

6’2″, 205 pound rookie Will Franklin can really fly (4.4 40) and he can move right up the depth chart with a solid training camp.  Franklin played in 14 games (all starts) at Missouri last season and he caught 49 passes for 709 yards (14.5 avg) with 4 TD grabs.  Look for Franklin to be no less than the #3 WR on the Chiefs by the middle of the 2008 season.  Franklin finished his career at Missouri playing in 48 games (36 starts) and he caught 143 passes for 2,125 yards (14.9 avg) with 14 TD grabs.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2008 SEASON:  C-