The Kansas City Chiefs have stripped the interim label from 64-year old Romeo Crennel’s job description and they have signed him to a new three year deal to serve as the head coach.  The Chiefs were 2-1 under Romeo Crennel this year after he took over from Todd Haley.  The Chiefs only scored 39 points in Crennel’s three games in charge, but they only gave up 33 points.  Romeo Crennel is now 26-41 (38.8%) in his first five years as an NFL head coach.  Maybe Crennel will be better in his second time around as a NFL head coach, as Bill Belichick excelled after he left the Browns.

The Kansas City Chiefs are sending 28-year old OLB Tamba Hali and 29-year old inside linebacker Derrick Johnson to the Pro Bowl.  Hali has played in 15 games for the Chiefs this year and he has 62 tackles, 12 sacks, 4 forced fumbles and 4 tackles for a loss.  Johnson has played in 15 games for the Chiefs so far this year and he has 126 tackles, 2 sacks, 8 tackles for a loss, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery, 2 interceptions and 9 passes defensed.  Both of these guys have really stepped up their games since the arrival of Romeo Crennel as the defensive co-ordinator a couple of years ago.

The Chiefs have fired 44-year old head coach Todd Haley.  The Chiefs are 5-8 so far this year and they are only averaging 13.3 points per game while allowing 23.5 points per game.  Haley is supposed to be a good offensive coach, but the Chiefs have been pathetic this year, which likely made this decision really an easy one for Chiefs’ management.  Haley finishes his career with a 19-26 (42.2%) during the regular season in his three years in charge of the Chiefs.  He was also 0-1 in the playoffs.  64-year old Romeo Crennel will take over as the Chiefs’ interim head coach.  Crennel has a 24-40 (37.5%) record as a NFL head coach (four years with the Browns).

The Chiefs have waived 25-year old OT Jared Gaither.  Gaither played in 10 games (0 starts) for the Chiefs this year.  He has now played in 43 games (28 starts) in his first five years in the NFL.  This will hurt the depth of the Chiefs’ O-Line a bit, but Gaither wasn’t playing too well this year for them.

The Chiefs have claimed 29-year old QB Kyle Orton off waivers from the Broncos.  Orton played in five games for the Broncos this year and he has completed 91 of 155 passes (58.7%) for 979 yards with 8 TD passes and 7 INTs (75.7 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 5 times for 17 yards (3.4 ypc) so far this year.  Orton has now played in 67 games (66 starts) in his NFL career and he has completed 1,225 of 2,107 passes (58.1%) for 13,753 yards with 79 TD passes and 55 INTs (79.4 QB Rating).  He has also carried the ball 104 times for 278 yards (2.7 ypc) with 3 TD runs in his career.  Orton is 33-33 (50%) as a starting QB in the NFL.  Orton is light years better than Tyler Palko and he should be thrown right into the starting lineup against the Steelers this Sunday Night.  Orton will get his shot at revenge on the Denver Broncos for cutting him on January 1st at Denver.

The Chiefs have waived 29-year old WR Keary Colbert.  Colbert played in 7 games for the Chiefs this year and he caught 9 passes for 89 yards (9.9 avg) without a TD catch.  He has now played in 73 games in his NFL career and he has caught 130 passes for 1,629 yards (12.5 avg) with 8 TD grabs.  This could be the end of Colbert’s NFL career and the Chiefs won’t miss him too much going forward.

Starting QB Matt Cassel is likely done for the season due to surgery on his throwing hand.  Cassel has played in 9 games for the Chiefs so far this year and he has completed 160 of 269 passes (59.5%) for 1,713 yards with 10 TD passes and 9 INTs (76.6 QB Rating).  He also has carried the ball 25 times for 99 yards (4.0 ypc) so far this year.  28-year old lefty slinging Tyler Palko will take over as the Chiefs’ starting QB for now.  He has played in 2 games for the Chiefs and he has completed 5 of 7 passes (71.4%) for 47 yards without a TD pass or interception (89.6 QB Rating).  Palko has also carried the ball 1 time for 8 yards so far this year for the Chiefs.  Palko has a weak throwing arm but he is accurate and he can move in the pocket or take off running.  If Palko falters, the Chiefs might turn to rookie Ricky Stanzi at QB.

The Chiefs have re-signed 25-year old TE Jake O’Connell.  He has played in 1 game for the Chiefs already this year and he has caught 1 pass for 15 yards.  O’Connell has now played in 20 games in his first three years in the NFL (all with the Chiefs) and he has caught 6 passes for 53 yards (8.8 avg).  The Chiefs released 34-year old TE Anthony Becht to make room on the roster for Jake O’Connell.  Becht played in 2 games for the Chiefs this year but he didn’t catch any passes.

The Chiefs have lost 24-year old RB Jamaal Charles for the rest of the year due to a torn ACL.  Charles played in 2 games for the Chiefs this year and he carried the ball 12 times for 83 yards (6.9 ypc).  He also caught 5 passes for 9 yards (1.8 avg) with 1 TD grab.  Charles has now played in 49 games in his first four years with the Chiefs and he has carried the ball 499 times for 3,027 yards (6.1 ypc) with 12 TD runs.  He has also caught 117 passes for 1,046 yards (8.9 avg) with 6 TD grabs for the Chiefs.  This is a huge loss for the Chiefs as Charles was by far the best RB on the roster.

The Chiefs have re-signed 25-year old safety Reshard Langford.  Langford played in 6 games for the Chiefs last year and he had 6 tackles.  This was a good move for the Chiefs as they suddenly need help at safety due to the season ending injury to Eric Berry.  Langford knows the system the Chiefs run, so he should be able to step in quickly if needed.