The Perils Of Youth

Sep 02, 2008, 8:56:41 AM by Rufus Dawes - FAQ

This idea of a younger Chiefs team is one that can no longer be denied given the reports of the makeup of the 2008 opening roster (see Gretz, When Herm Speaks, You Better Listen, Edwards Q&A, September 1, 2008). In such a predicament that Kansas City finds itself in the roster is sure to remain fluid as players will likely come and go over the next couple of weeks.

While the public has come grudgingly to accept this idea of rebuilding – could Herm Edwards or one of his minions have made it any clearer in their comments over this past year? – many are sure to abandon it if the team gets off to a slow start which young teams usually do.

With a match-up on the road against a team that managed to go undefeated during the regular season last year and two quick division games against long-time rivals, a final verdict on the team’s chances is sure to be in from some circles well before the league hits the mid-season mark.

So be it. “We don’t know about how a lot of these guys are going to react in a real game,” Herm Edwards readily admits. Therefore, any conclusions at this point are meaningless. As fellow Web columnist Eileen Weir reminded me in an email the other day, why was it that every win in the pre-season was meaningless while every loss a major setback to team hopes, or so the mainstream media seemed to report? And that was just the pre-season. To be frank, the notion of a floundering Chiefs team coupled with a disappointing Royals club will be too much for even the most objective of local media to pass up noting more than once. Like it or not, the facile conclusions of the media are meant to delight the cynical crowd more than any serious inquiry.

While there is substantial evidence that youth will not necessarily doom a team to failure given the Cowboys were the youngest team in the NFL in 1992 and won the Super Bowl, the Colts were the youngest team in the NFL in 2006 and won it, and Green Bay was the youngest team in the NFL last year and went 13-3, all those teams had what can be called a franchise quarterback.

The young Chiefs, at best, will be playing the role of the young Sarah Palin, the youthful choice as the Republican running mate with John McCain. Some initial excitement from the public early, more criticism or palpable apprehension from the media as time passes. All the excitement of the recent draft will quickly pass away as the new Chiefs players figure out how to play as pros. After the first kickoff, the Chiefs newcomers will find themselves swimming in waters infested with sharks. Every loss will be magnified by a credulous and complicit media. “When the season gets going, it’s how you deal with setbacks,” Edwards said at the beginning of the week, “things that happen to you, whether the loss of players or a tough loss – how do you react. The good teams with tough-minded players react in positive ways.”

But the Chiefs are a young team and everyone associated with a team so young will be hard pressed to keep their cool. Players will have to show improvement – no matter how small – as the season progresses. They cannot become defensive or look to shy away from the tough questioning of media and the criticism of fans. The goal should be to under-promise and, if lucky, over-deliver.

There will be rocky moments and you will read and hear about every one of them in detail. But they will fade if everyone lets the young players’ journey take its natural course over the next four months. “As these guys mature they’re going to get a lot better,” Edwards believes, and quickly added this reminder case anyone forgot, “this is the future of our football team,” like it or not.

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

---

Prodigiously well-researched, informative and opinionated, Rufus Dawes examines media coverage of the Chiefs occasionally throughout the year.