Seems like either one is wretched. Sure enough, if you were to apply that to seasons, the Chiefs got to endure both, consecutively, in 2012 and 2013. Two years ago the team was never in it, blasted away from day one. That was fun. Last year we were extraordinarily competitive for 16 and 3/4 of the games, until that traumatic 4th quarter in Indianapolis. That was just as fun.
So yeah, with apologies to Charles Dickens, it was the worst of years, and, um, it was the worst of years.
So here we have 2014, with hopes high because of that very strong 2013 regular season campaign. But then, our preseason showing this fall was abysmal, and the Chiefs franchise value has dropped from mid-pack to 24th. What's with this? Can we truly gauge the value of this team?
So without further ado, here's the Dave Beck take on the 2014 Chiefs. I do feel they are good enough to be 19-0, I really do. But then, sometimes I look at them and go, ergcck, they'll be 0-16. I'll write it all up side-by-side, covering five different categories.
Management
The 19-0 team.
Clark Hunt has been and still is an extraordinarily devoted owner, very active in the community, deeply interested in the prospects of his team and doing what it takes to get them competitive. Andy Reid is definitely one of the best pre-game arrangers and in-game adjusters there is. And John Dorsey is making bold moves, such as releasing super-Chief Brandon Flowers for the greater good of the whole team. He's brought a sense of stability and enthusiasm back to the front office, something the Chiefs have desperately needed for a long, long time.
The 0-16 team.
John Dorsey foolishly released their best cover-man, Brandon Flowers, when the defensive backfield is very thin to begin with. And is Andy Reid over-the-hill? Will he overcome his notorious reputation for messing up the last two minutes of every game? I really think The Curse had much more to do with the playoff loss than anything Reid did or didn't do, but when it comes down to it, Reid has to take the hit for not taking care of business when the Chiefs imploded late in that game. Last year when we shot out to a 9-0 record we got a lot of breaks in close games to teams fielding second and third string quarterbacks.
QuarterbackThe 19-0 team.
Alex Smith is now inked to a new massively loaded four-year deal, so he's on board for four years of blazing Chiefs glory. I know he can get us there, keep us there, get us to all revel in being there. He's experienced, smart, playing in his prime, and working under the brilliant guidance of quarterback uber-guru Reid. It's nice too that we've got a kid, Aaron Murray, who has the makings of a fine quarterback -- could it be??? A home drafted and developed guy who someday -- psyche! -- can actually win a Chiefs game? Wowwie!
The 0-16 team.
As fine as Smith is, he is still not a Chiefs drafted and developed guy. This woeful Chiefs plague carrying through the eons of history is indeed an essential part of The Curse, it just is. Smith is phenomenally talented, but the question still has to be asked: Will he ever get to the next level and be regularly spoken of in the class of Manning, Brady, Brees?.. And crap, look at that offensive line, rebuilt, unstable... and his receiving corp -- ::whimper:: If Smith has to keep scrambling for first downs no matter how spectacular his runs are, well, Steve Pelluer did that really well -- remember that? -- and, well, how many hundreds of Super Bowls did he lead us to?...
Trenches
The 19-0 team.
Dee Ford is a rookie stud. The little I saw of him in exhibition play -- raw, but fierce. Awesome. Tamba Hali still has some gas in the tank, and Justin Houston is just starting to be very, very good. With Dontari Poe anchoring the middle, I see Broncos and Chargers pockets collapsing like railroad trestles made of balsa wood. And DJ just never gets old, one of the best run-sackers in the league.
On the other side only four offensive linemen in the modern era have ever been picked No. 1 overall, and they all have gobs of Pro Bowls and are Hall-of-Famers and all that (Ron Yary, Jake Long, and Orlando Pace, BTW) That other guy? Eric Fisher, our guy. He's just getting going, and if he's even decent we'll be fine. Rodney Hudson is very good, Jeff Allen is coming around, and Jeff Linkenbach is a fine FA pickup.
The 0-16 team.
Those free agent losses are killers. Losing Branden Albert is crushing, even though my inveterate Chiefs fan uncle says "Good riddance." We've also lost Donald Stephenson for the first four games because of a PED penalty, and while that's only four games, we have to scramble the O-line and try and see where everyone fits and -- szhee, that's always a mess.
On defense, can we cover for the fine run defense of Tyson Jackson? Granted he was no great shakes -- speaking of which, now that Succop's been released, we now have no one on the team from that horrific 2009 draft class. That's very bad. Anyone decent from that class should be coming into their own right now, but -- there's no one. Not a single soul. And that was after a 2008 year when we were 2-14. Are you laughing and weeping at the same time right now?
Specialty
The 19-0 team.
Two words. Jamaal Charles. He's at the top of everyone's fantasy league draft classes, No. 1 pick overall. He should be. We've got terrific depth at running back, with Knile Davis, and Cyrus Gray is pretty good for a No. 3. The Chiefs run offense has never been an issue.
Dwayne Bowe's expressed a measure of renewed commitment, and could be very good in his last few years here as that go-to receiver. (And that one game suspension, not nearly as much of an issue in my mind as the Stephenson one.) Our tight ends are great, hey, Travis Kelce reminds me of Jimmy Graham, and he's not even the starter. De'Anthony Thomas looks like an even studlier scatback than Dexter McCluster.
Our kick return team is incredible -- I didn't even know this but I saw somewhere that our 2013 team set an NFL record last year with a 29-yard per return average. That's really cool. And on defense Eric Berry is one of the best safeties in the NFL.
And yes, can't neglect to mention our punter, Dustin Colquitt, one of the best ever, really. Yeah, he is the punter, but he does regularly pin the opponent deep and that helps the defense tremendously. This year Ray Guy was the first punter elected into the Hall of Fame, and I do remember back in the 70's just hating the way he was so instrumental to the Raiders winning all the time. He really was a factor.
The 0-16 team.
Our receivers. I'm afraid, I'm very afraid. They have shown a little bit in the preseason to give us a little bit of hope, but damn. I've railed and railed and railed about our woeful D&D quarterback misery, but you know? I've recently been thinking about something just as abysmal: our woeful drafted and developed WIDE RECEIVER misery. Not going to share it now, but I went back over all our drafted wide receivers, and you know what I found? Well, as I said, not for now -- not in mixed company. The guys out there this year -- gulp, here they are -- Donnie Avery, A.J. Jenkins, Junior Hemingway, Frankie Hammonds, and Albert Wilson (pictured). The last two were FA grabs who did stand out a bit in preseason, but that may mean nothing.Just so you know, just so there is no misunderstanding. I expect the very best from them. I'd like the think Alex Smith will go a long way to help make them better. I'd like to think our running game will set up the passing game, as it has always traditionally been. And no matter what, they're Chiefs.
Another factor in averting the 0-16 horror relates to two key elements of Jamaal Charles' game: one, he stays injury-free, and two, he gets used more imaginatively. With our receiving core like it is and our running back situation a shining lamp on a hill, why not use Charles in receiver mode waaay more often?
Intangibles
The 19-0 team.
The Arrowhead fans are back. It is good to see sold-out games again, our people setting the legitimate stadium loudness record (sorry, but the Seattle stadium boombox doesn't count). We've also got a few more primetime television appearances to polish our credentials.
I also like the way the team has worked in comprehensive preparation specifically to beat Denver and San Diego, teams with pocket quarterbacks who really need to be pressured -- ahh Tamba Hali Justin Houston and Dee Ford -- no way Manning and Rivers are going be able to get away with it this year.
And sorry, but an old-AFL team is due, is due for a good sustained run of Super Bowl greatness. The Chiefs are ready to take that mantle.
The 0-16 team.
We have a very tough schedule this year. Look at it. We play the NFC West in our interconference games. While we've been fantastic against the NFC teams of late, the Seahawks Niners Rams Cardinals are all now very good teams. We also have the AFC East, and the Patriots Dolphins Bills Jets always hammer us. Then there's the Horse Curse, meaning if our pass rush isn't beast-above-beast, Manning and Rivers are going to carve us up as they always have. Really, look at all that. That's reasonably 0-12 right there, I'm not kidding you.
Tough schedule? I'm great with that, though. If we're going to make winning mean something, we have to beat the better teams. Let's just get the hell out there and beat them this year with our fine management, coaching, talent, skill, drive, and passion. Wait, that's a 19-0 remark. Sorry.
Thing is, we'll need all that to beat The Curse. That's critical. Should we make the playoffs? We'll need the most beast team to do it, and winning with a blistering schedule may do the trick.
Will we get into the playoffs? This year is looking a bit like 2004 to me -- I hope not. But in 2003 we surprised everyone -- started 9-0 then too -- and stormed into the playoffs. But the following year we were horribly mediocre. 19-0? 0-16? Are we a bit of each and do we finish 9-7 if we try real hard?
Then a playoff game? Can we win at least one, for once?
So what is it?
I'll close with this. In the off-season I caught two brief Chiefs related things on television, you know, NFL Network type airtime fillers. One was a single play that I think pretty much encapsulated the Chiefs in the 70's and much of the 80's. A quarterback with No. 11 took the snap, stumbled, fell down, hopped back up, then threw a duck that was summarily picked off by a Raiders linebacker and run in for a score. I didn't even know who that quarterback was until I looked it up. It was Tony Adams in 1978, just FYI (I mean, I just had to look it up and find out). The point being that I think about what people think about the Chiefs and I wonder if it is really just one big massive plotz, like that play.
On the other far, far end of the spectrum was what I saw in a story I'd never seen or heard about before, the one about Charlie's Bar in Philadelphia. Seems like this is something that is quite the NFL human interest story, and one most would know about, especially if you're a Chiefs fan. Seems Charlie's Bar there in Philadelphia, is a haven for Chiefs fans, yes, the enthusiastic rooting for all things Kansas City Chiefs. Seems the bar owner many years ago just up and decided, "I'm going to be a Chiefs fan." And everyone came on board. Crazy thing is, I look upon that with great warmth, but also sadness. Our Chiefs have just not done that much to merit such heartfelt devotion. And yet, that warmth, that these people still find the best in a team that deserves that devotion, no matter how much The Curse has tried valiantly to derail that affection.
There is, as always, great pride the be had about this team.
And of course, there is Leon Sandcastle. I've been meaning to put this here, because it is so much fun. It'll be a fun season, and what better way to kick it off than to share those parts of last season when Sandcastle played so astoundingly. Splendid!
Can't wait for 2014!
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