Now This Is Young

Jul 26, 2008, 5:52:53 AM by Bob Gretz - FAQ

RIVER FALLS, WI – It was just two years ago that the Chiefs were one of the oldest teams in pro football. At the time, newly hired head coach Herm Edwards said the roster had to get younger.

It has. Boy has it gotten younger.

When the Chiefs hit the practice field for the first time here in the northwoods on Friday, they had a roster that averaged 2.8 years of NFL experience and 25.05 years of age. They had just eight players who were 30 years or older and 44 players who had not yet celebrated their 25th birthday.

Coming into camp, the Chiefs had only five players who had been in the league 10 seasons or longer. The only team in the league with fewer grizzled veterans was Green Bay, with just three. The Chiefs roster had just 13 players who were in their sixth season or more; the Packers had 11. Indianapolis had five and 15.

And, the other end of the spectrum? How about New England. The Patriots pre-camp roster had 30 players in their sixth season or more. Houston, New Orleans and Tampa Bay had 28 and Oakland and Washington had 27. That’s where the Chiefs were two years ago. Their pre-camp roster for the 2006 season had 25 players that were six-year veterans or more and 11 veterans with 10 years or more in the league.

Right now, the Chiefs have 16 players on their roster who are 22 years of age or younger. That’s right, younger. A dozen of those players appear to be locks for the final roster. That’s been part of the team’s approach in the NFL Draft over the last three years; they’ve been looking for players without a lot of tread on their tires. Edwards wanted guys that had played a lot and had done it at a young age. It’s not hard to make that leap in the equation if they did it once – a quick transition from high school to college – they could do it again.

Now a lot can change over the five weeks of training camp and the pre-season. But the 2008 Chiefs will be the youngest or next to youngest team in the league this season, you can take that to the bank.

“I’ll be disappointed if we aren’t,” Edwards said this week.

Speaking after practice Friday afternoon, Edwards acknowledge how young his team has become and based on his past experience, he knows there will be “some ups and downs. But I think there will be more ups than downs. I know that because on previous teams we did this. We did this in Tampa. You’re going to go through some pain, but at the end you’re going to be better for it. You really are.”

How the babies on the Chiefs roster handle these growing pains will go a long way in determining what the team’s record will be this season. If the young players can’t learn from the mistakes they make and grow in their play and production as the ‘08 schedule plays out, it will be a bloody miserable season for anyone associated with the red and gold.

“That’s the boost you get from young guys,” Edwards said. “If they go out every day, every practice and try to make themselves better, they will see the growth and so will we.”

Sometimes youngsters walk into a pressure-filled environment like the NFL and it’s more than they can handle. The game is too big for them. The odds say that among the 36 rookies and first year players there will be young men who can’t handle the situation.

Edwards thinks the number will be quite low for the ‘08 Chiefs.

“From being around these guys, I don’t sense at all that they feel they can’t compete and succeed in this league,” Edwards said. “If they don’t make it in this league it will not be because it’s too big for them. It will be because they physically couldn’t keep up with the pace.”

The opinions offered in this column do not necessarily reflect those of the Kansas City Chiefs.

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A former beat reporter who covered the Pittsburgh Steelers during their glory years, Gretz covered the Chiefs for the Kansas City Star for nine years. He is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Board of Selectors. He has been the senior columnist for the Chiefs web site since its inception.