Chiefs vs Patriots - Game 1

Sep 01, 2008, 9:58:15 AM by Pete Moris

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KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (0-0)
VS.
NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS (0-0)

REGULAR SEASON GAME #1
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2008 – 12:00 PM (CENTRAL)
GILLETTE STADIUM, FOXBOROUGH, MASSACHUSETTS

BROADCAST INFORMATION
CBS Regional Coverage KCTV-5 (CBS in Kansas City) Play-by-play: Greg Gumbel - Color Commentator: Dan Dierdorf

National Radio Coverage Westwood One Play-by-play: Bill Rosinski - Color Commentator: Dan Reeves

Chiefs FOX Football Radio Network - KCFX-FM (101.1 FM in Kansas City - Affiliates) - Play-by-play: Mitch Holthus - Color Commentator: Len Dawson - Sideline Reporter: Kendall Gammon

THE MATCH-UP

The Chiefs open the 2008 regular season with a trip to Gillette Stadium for an Opening Day match-up vs. the New England Patriots. Sunday’s contest will mark just the third time these two original American Football League adversaries will square off on Opening Day. The only previous time the Chiefs began the regular season at New England was in ‘77. The two squads also met in the ‘62 AFL opener when the Dallas Texans hosted the Boston Patriots.

Kansas City head coach Herm Edwards is well acquainted with New England after spending fi ve seasons as head coach of the N.Y. Jets (2001-05). The Chiefs will face a Patriots squad that has won six straight home openers. However, the last squad to upend New England in a home opener was Edwards’ Jets squad, which registered a 10-3 win at Foxboro Stadium (9/23/01). New England has won 19 consecutive regular season contests, including 11 straight at Gillette Stadium. The Patriots advanced to Super Bowl XLI in 2007 after compiling a 16-0 regular season record.

The Chiefs have made dramatic changes to their roster entering the 2008 campaign. Kansas City currently has 10 selections from the 2008 NFL Draft on its 53-man roster. The Chiefs ranked in the NFL’s top fi ve in nine different defensive categories in 2007, leading the league in thirddown defense (31.3%) and ranking second in the Red Zone (14.5 TD %).

New offensive coordinator Chan Gailey is implementing a revamped offensive scheme. Third-year QB Brodie Croyle (D3-06) calls the signals with nine-time Pro Bowl TE Tony Gonzalez and two-time Pro Bowl RB Larry Johnson at his disposal. Johnson (4,764) needs just 94 more yards to bypass RB Christian Okoye (4,897) as the second-leading rusher in KC history. Gonzalez (9,882) is 179 yards away from overtaking TE Shannon Sharpe (10,060) for the most receiving yards in NFL history by a TE.

Kansas City makes its 2008 regular season debut at Arrowhead Stadium with a home date vs. Oakland (9/14), while New England travels to the N.Y. Jets (9/14) next week.

THE SERIES
The Chiefs hold a 16-11-3 (.593) all-time edge in the 30 previous regular season meetings against the Patriots. Kansas City won its last match-up against New England by a 26-16 count at Arrowhead (11/27/05). New England’s three-game winning streak from 2000-04 is the longest by either team in the 49-year history of this series that dates back to the American Football League’s inaugural season in ‘60. New England’s last victory vs. the Chiefs was a 27-19 win at Arrowhead (11/22/04).

The Patriots are 5-2 all-time in regular season games against the Chiefs played in Foxborough (1-0 at Gillette Stadium, 4-2 at Foxboro). The Chiefs will be seeking their fi rst win at New England since claiming a 37-7 win at Foxboro Stadium (12/2/90). Each of the last fi ve games between the teams has been settled by eight points or less. The initial meeting between these two squads at Gillette Stadium was a wild one as the Chiefs rebounded from a 14-point fourth-quarter defi cit to send the game into an extra session. However, NE won the toss and registered a 41-38 OT victory on a 35-yard FG (9/22/02).

Kansas City is 6-8-2 (.438) all-time vs. the Patriots on the road and is 10-3-1 (.769) all-time in home contests. The Chiefs are 5-4 against New England dating back to ‘90. Patriots head coach Bill Belichick is 3-1 against the Chiefs since taking over as that New England’s head coach in 2000. Three Chiefs-Patriots games have ended in ties, more than any other opponent Kansas City has faced in its history.

Interestingly, the Chiefs and Patriots have never faced one another in postseason competition. Kansas City has faced every other original AFL team in the playoffs except for New England.

Complete 16 page Release (PDF)

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

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A 15-year veteran of the Chiefs, Moris is the associate director of public relations for the team and contributes an in-depth examination of each upcoming game Tuesdays in-season.