Let's get the ugly out of the way first. The Tyreek Hill situation is still in a holding pattern, with only the fact that at this moment Hill is not involved in any Chiefs activities. In the meantime everyone with an interest in the Chiefs or the American professional football world is spitting up their thoughts about it all.
I've seen the ghastliest tomes about how evil the Chiefs are for this. Yes, pundits who think they have an ounce of intelligence or integrity are blaming the Chiefs. Please. How many NFL teams have a few miscreants on them, individuals who'd be just as easily skewered by the court of public opinion if their gruesome peccadillos were put on full display. I'd say, ohhh, every team.
This is not in any way to excuse anything Hill has done or may have done. What we know he has done? Had a viciously nasty conversation with his girlfriend recorded by someone then broadcast by some television station. What may he have done? Wounded his small child, yes, we're all aware of that. But the fact is we don't know that.
These idiot sportswriters spout about how the Chiefs or whoever are so blameworthy when, here's the bottom line: If you commit a crime you should go to prison. The investigators in the Hill incident simply do not have enough evidence to prosecute, so then what? The NFL is not the government. It is an entertainment enterprise seeking to put at least slightly respectable men on a field to throw a ball around. I hear so often how "The NFL must do this" or "The NFL must do that." How about prosecutors just do their jobs, and if there is enough evidence, then let a jury of one's peers decide? Not you, not me, not some bozo who somehow gets to have his brainless plap put on the web, not TMZ, not some NFL PR expert. Let's let presumption of innocence prevail, something we all value.
To protect its image, really, the NFL may do whatever it wants to with Hill. They certainly should suspend him for some time, they could even ban him from the league for life. That's their full prerogative. My preference is that they suspend him and have him make firm commitments to counseling and something measurably positive for him, the mother, and the boy. Give him a chance to demonstrate he can be a decent person and maintain his livelihood in pro football.
Just don't be unjust. Just don't force the Chiefs to cut him so they can be made to look holier-than-any-other-NFL-franchise then watch him zip off to sign with someone else, like what happened with Kareem Hunt. That's just wrong, and for all that I loathe about the NFL, it is looking like they may move towards doing something more reasonable with Hill.
Meanwhile, I haven't put in a post about the draft picks we got. As I'd already noted with a distinctive measure of pessimism, the instant the Chiefs selected Mecole Hardman with their first pick we all knew it was insurance in case the Hill predicament eventually goes really sideways.
Sure enough, as much as I don't want to see this stuff (my fears about an excruciatingly disappointing 1998 rerun) it seems everyone and his uncle are putting the Chiefs at the top of their power rankings. The latest was uber-NFL'er Peter King of SI ranking the Chiefs the best. Yes, I do keep my expectations in check, very much so. ::Pant - pant - pant ...::
But yeah. I can't deny that the excitement of this season is quite enjoyable. It isn't just the anticipation to see what Patrick Mahomes does this year, but it is the enthusiasm over the authentic hopes for a blistering defense that has been completely rebuilt, top-to-bottom. The "rebuilding" part can be scary, but Brett Veach has really done some heavy lifting and brought in some quality players -- Tyrann Mathieu and Frank Clark the headliners. It is interesting that this Chiefs defense looks absolutely nothing like it did just two years ago.
The question is, can they gel? That is the key for any NFL team, you've really got to have guys who've worked together for a bit and have the system down. I'd like to think that being the pros that they are, and under the fine coaching led by Andy Reid and our new very respected D-coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, we should be okay.
Here's to more fun Chiefs preview posts!
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