Just a few more thoughts about last night's joke of a game -- err -- joke of a second half of a game.
First of all we can yell at the receivers all we want, but in some very real ways it gets back to the coaching and front office.
Front office first, for not swinging that trade when we could have actually truly had someone like DeAndre Hopkins. Please, do you really think Hopkins wouldn't have jumped at the chance to play with Patrick Mahomes if we really meant business? Right now he is stuck on a woefully underperforming Titans team.
I do understand, however, Veach's reluctance to make a deal when he could have earlier. Looking at our receivers it really does look like they should be performing way better than they are. This leads to the coaching staff, because failures this glaring for a group of receivers who should be playing better has got to fall a lot on those whose job it is to give them the best opportunities for success.
For now?
1. Get them on the business end of those tossing machines 24-7. Really, in every situation with every kind of throw at every kind of angle... I just can't see how professional pass-catchers making a million dollars a year just to put a projected weird brown ball into your hands aren't doing that. It is your job. So coaches, how come they aren't out there practicing that thing a million times a day?
2. Get those routes right. That's on the coaches. When they aren't out on the practice field catching Jugs throws, they need to be in the film room with you guys.
3. I happened to see a tease for a sports talk show bit that had Kurt Warner telling us Mahomes is scared to throw the ball to these guys. Please. Coaches, if true, you need to drill deeeeply into Patrick's head not to worry about that. Just have him throw the ball. He can't control everything. He's just got to trust his receivers and keep throwing the ball where he needs to. If he overthinks this too much there won't be any passes heading downfield. He also can't be favoring guys too much just to favor them. He seemed to do that with Justin Watson, and while Watson made some fine plays, he also made some dumb ones, with drops and just not making his routes right.
4. Along with that idea, the receivers need to know not to worry about what happens besides catching the ball. It really does seem our receivers "hear footsteps," get freaked, and just blow up at the last -- mostly just flubbing up when that football could easily be caught no matter how they think they'll get hit later. This happened to Skyy Moore at the end of the Detroit game we lost when his catch could've got us into FG range, and it happened last night to Watson on a terrific throw to him at the first down marker on 4th-&-25 that would've kept a critical drive alive.
5. And lastly, coaches, mix things up. Do different things. Set all of them up for success. One thing that would seem to be worth trying is getting Kadarius Toney untracked. Get him downfield more and try throwing it to him there. On kick returns he jukes guys out of their shorts like no one I've ever seen. Why can't he do that to his cover guys on pass routes?
I happened to catch an NFL Throwback episode on YouTube, "Ugliest Wins Ever," featuring teams that sucked throughout the game but still ended up winning. Well, you know?
Last night's game could've been on that show.
The Eagles were, really, when you look at it, kind of sucky. They were sacked half-a-dozen times and were thoroughly stuffed by our defense -- their best receiver was a total non-factor. They got a nifty crazy long pass towards the end of the game setting them up perfectly for their tremendously annoying tush-push touchdown to put them ahead. Mostly they just got blessed by a Chiefs offense that has been absolutely atrocious in the second half for weeks now.
Finally, some history, for what it is worth.
I took a peek at the Chiefs in 1970, the year after their first Super Bowl win. Remember that, when they beat the heavily favored Vikings? Do you know who they played in the very first regular season game after that, there at the beginning of the 1970 season?
The Vikings. And they got squashed, 27-10. Funny, no one remembers that game, and no one will remember last night's game either. Only last year's Super Bowl counts for remembering, really, so keep that in mind when distressed by all the goofy trolling that Eagles fans are doing right now.
Know who the Chiefs played in their second game that season? The Baltimore Colts, in only the second Monday Night Football game ever. They pummeled them 44-24. The Colts, by the way, went on to win the Super Bowl that year.
Know who the Chiefs played in only their second interconference game ever (sixth game of the season)? (That Vikings opener was the first.) The Cowboys. The Chiefs got spanked in that one, 27-16.
Know what I noticed about each one of those games? Even the Baltimore one?
We sucked at scoring in the second half.
We scored 3 second-half points in the Minnesota game. We scored 13 second-half points in the Baltimore game (after scoring 31 in the first half). We kicked a piddly two FGs in the second half of the Dallas game.
Am I obsessed with looking for poor second-half performances just because of our total second-half ineptitude all year long this year? I dunno, just disconcerting what our team has been doing -- or of course not doing coming out of the locker at halftime.
Just gets back to the coaching, and the thought did cross my mind, it did: that Andy Reid has just somehow gotten back to his old ways of not making the adjustments he needs to make to counter their adjustments, and/or just sitting too comfortably on any lead he has and playing not-to-lose. Errgh.
Hopefully not. Hopefully it really is that receiver core situation.
But that is still a major ::Errck:: for all of us in the Chiefs Kingdom.
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