Chiefs at Cardinals - Week 14 - Record: 7-6

Ya know, it's funny (if you want to call it that) that I'd mentioned in an earlier post that this season was looking a bit like 2006. We actually played very well in a number of games that year, but other games, well...

And then there were those games like this one.

Back in 2006 there was that Sunday night game against San Diego that we really should've won. In that game there was that punt we blocked that went completely idiotic: this happened and that happened until... the Chargers had the ball again 1st-&-10. Guh? The very next play Tomlinson takes a hand-off to the house for a TD, the difference-maker.

I remember just being incensed about it, that we'd made a genuinely good play annnnd, it just turned into crap. Funny thing is that I watched all of it on the TV at the home of a Christmas progressive dinner host, an event my wife's family has every year around this time.

Well, today the same kind of idiotic thing happened in the Chiefs game today, just before we enjoyed this year's progressive dinner event. Again a game we should've won but lost because of astounding stupidness.

Today's idiocy:

The Chiefs are down by three in the 4th quarter and Smith hits Kelce with a sweet pass that Kelce carries deep into Cardinals territory. After the tackle the ball slips from his hands, and a Cardinals player just happens to pick it up -- this after everyone has stopped playing the whistle having been blown.

The Cardinals coach throws the red flag and I'm thinking, "Are you kidding me? What are you looking at? He was clearly down years before the ball slipped out."

The replay shows that just before Kelce went down, the ball did move around in his grip, but when he went down he regained possession and he was down down down. Kelce even flipped over, holding the ball firmly in his hands before the defender batted it away as he was flat on his back.

Travis Kelce firmly holding the football

Of course you know what happened. These officials. That nfkning curse.

They should have said, "The replay shows that while the runner did fumble the ball before going down, it was clear that he had regained possession before the defender jarred it loose. Chiefs ball, 1st down."

Did the official say that, say the correct and proper ruling? Did he do that? Of course not. This is the Chiefs.

I'm sorry, but this kind of stuff is preposterous. And I'm sorry, but we Chiefs fans just take this stuff with a kind shrug and golly-shucks. This is one reason the curse just kills us. And I just don't look around at the web stuff said about it because I have to maintain my sanity, but really -- what if I did look at the Star, or Arrowhead Pride, or any other site or blog that gets into Chiefs things? Who's really going to step up and say we got thoroughly crapped upon? What happens is no one ever does with great conviction and vibrancy because we seem to be so afraid of sounding like it's sour grapes or that we're whiners or something like that.

I dunno. Maybe people are saying something. I don't look at any of it simply because I just wouldn't be able to handle that absence of people insisting it was a crappy call, one that cost us the game. We're a piddle little midwestern town to the powers-that-be anyway -- if this kind of thing happened to the Dallas Cowboys or New York Giants or New England Patriots it'd headline every news report, there'd be outrage, there'd be an investigation.

And all that is not the goofiest thing. The Cardinals kicker boinked not one but two field goal attmepts off the upright. How on earth can they do that and still win the game?!! Ahhh, forgot, that curse thing, errrrgh...

Thing is, we still haven't gotten into the contender class yet. Even with the curse idiocy of the day's game, we still aren't a playoff caliber team. Yeah, call it brazen resignation, but really, it's been a nice season. I know I said that in 2006 at about this time, and there was the miracle playoff qualifying, but we lost the first playoff game that year too. What's new.

We could get in this year also, but so what. We don't have the team to make any kind of run in the playoffs. Oh we've got talented players, and good coaches, yeah, but we have a curse shredding this team that causes the stupidest things to happen to us in spite of those things, and -- oh yeah, here's the thing. Do I have to spell it out in big bold letters?

WE HAVE NO PASSING GAME.

For those of you touting those few times we make plays with the pass -- hey, nice leapfrogging play by Bowe to lead to one of our touchdowns, hey, nice catch and run by Jamaal scoring that TD, hey, nice catches by Kelce still the same, hey, nice work by Albert Wilson and Jason Avant some of the time -- you have to remember that except for those nice plays which is only about a third of the time, except for that, Alex Smith is doing nothing with the pass.

Sure he can run, but dammit he looks like Steve Pelluer out there. Pelluer could run like the daylight, but he never won for us and was never going to.

Remember when I said in that pre-game note that Alex Smith would get sacked four times today. He did. Four times. Okay, guess that's how things go. But did he make up for it by doing the scrambly thing to make things happen the other times? He didn't. Predictably, regrettably.

In fact there was one time the play broke down, and sure enough he's running around in the backfield, running around, running around... and sure enough, he hits Jason Avant with a big gain to get us into field goal range. There it is, the genius of that play! Buuut then right after that he throws another pick at the line of scrimmage just like he did last week against Denver. Dang it Andy Reid will you get Smith to take that deep drop?!!

See this is the thing. I'm beginning to believe that the reason we don't have a passing game is not because of our receivers, but because of Alex Smith and Andy Reid. I'm sorry, but I'm starting to think about the tremendous liabilities of the "Alex Smith conservativeness." Come on, think about it. He's been with us a good near-two years now, and he simply can't make that rifle throw on target in traffic? Down the freenkin' football field? He's too afraid too! We always call it "being conservative" and excuse it away.

But dammit (there I go again -- just the frustration speaking) if Smith doesn't step it up and start throwing more fine accurate darts to receivers -- and throwing down the field for cryin' out loud -- we're going to be waiting a long three more years after this for that (oh I pray oh I pray oh I pray) (dare I say it) that drafted and developed quarterback of our very own to emerge. And then we have to wait a few more years for him to grow into the contending team quarterback.

Yes, I know, resignation resignation resignation. Just feeling it, sorry.

One more thing, just have to mention this because I did note it, another key to why we lost today. You know what it is. Maybe they'll do something about it. I don't know, maybe, maybe not.

But we just can't intercept the damn football.

Sure enough our failures in this area were just as glaring today, and indeed did cost us dearly. Here're the four missed picks, I actually noted them: Sean Smith, I think that failure led to a Cardinals FG but I'm not sure. Phillip Gaines in the endzone, but that one was just before one of those boinked FG's, but still. Josh Mauga  dropped one that did allow Arizona to get a FG (see how it kills us!) And Husain Abdullah had to reach for one and couldn't quite pull it down, but that's no excuse.

Thinking about my pre-game note, my concerns about our run defense weren't as justified, but then I discovered they were without that main running back, Ellington (sorry don't remember his first name). On the other hand, the Cardinals were still able to run the ball and their second-string QB helped them make those key plays when they needed to, so the spirit of the pre-game note still materialized in today's game.

Sure enough, here we are at 7-6, needing a prayer.
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