Chiefs Fall to Chargers 37-7
NFL AUDIO FIELD PASS: Sign In |  Subscribe | Learn More

---

Join Chiefs365 | Insider Forum with Josh Looney - Talk it up!

Public Transportation Returns to Arrowhead on Gamedays

TWO INTERESTING INACTIVES
October 25th – 11:02 AM

The Chiefs inactives today may be the most interesting this season to date. S Jarrad Page is a healthy scratch today, immediately bringing his grasp on the starting free safety job into question. Jon McGraw received high marks in Page’s absence last week and it appears that he has wrestled the starting free safety job away from Page for the time being.

Another interesting twist are WRs Lance Long and Bobby Engram. With Long active and Engram out, the newest member of the Chiefs 53-man roster will have an excellent chance to stake his claim as the Chiefs every day slot receiver. Long can also play on all special teams units, something Engram cannot do.

Finally, the decision to rest Albert is not all that surprising. Judging by his ability to move during pregame warm-ups, he may have been able to play this afternoon - but it might have been pushing him. With the bye week looming, it’s probably best to give Albert extra time to heal. I’d expect him to return to the starting lineup at Jacksonville.

INACTIVES ARE IN
October 25th – 10:28 AM

CHIEFS
15           Matt Guttierrez - 3rd QB
20           CB Donald Washington
44           S Jarrad Page
76           T Branden Albert
84           WR Bobby Engram
85           TE Jake O’Connel
87           TE Brad Cottam
97           LB Pierre Walters

CHARGERS
6              QB Charlie Whitehurst (3rd)
29           RB Michael Bennett
41           S C.J. Spillman
61           C Nick Hardwick
69           G Tyronne Green
84           WR Buster Davis
92           DE/DT Vaughn Martin
99           LB Kevin Burnett

CHIEFS WORKOUT ALBERT
October 25th – 9:21 AM

Left tackle Branden Albert just completed pregame testing with strength coach Cedric Smith and head athletic trainer David Price. Albert went through blocking and agility drills as the two others watched intently. Albert seemed to be moving well on his injured ankle in drills, but still carries a slight limp as he walks.

His status is truly questionable and a decision will be made by 10:30 AM. The fact that the Chiefs have a bye next weekend may play a factor into sitting Albert an additional Sunday.

CHIEFS PROMOTE WR LANCE LONG
October 24th – 7:23 PM

The Chiefs have released 2009 sixth-round draft pick WR Quinten Lawrence and promoted WR Lance Long from the practice squad. Long originally joined the Chiefs developmental roster on September 16th. He was released by Arizona following the Cardinals Week One contest against San Francisco.

Long had been rumored to be in line for a promotion for several weeks, dating back as far as the week leading up to the Chiefs September 27th game at Philadelphia. The move became official Saturday night. Overall, Long’s promotion isn’t much of a surprise; especially considering the amount of repetitions he received in practice this week.

There is now an opening on the Chiefs practice squad, one that Lawrence could potentially fulfill. Lawrence will have to clear waivers before the Chiefs are able to make any further moves with the rookie.

MILITARY APPRECIATION DAY AT ARROWHEAD
October 24th – 6:28 PM

There are a number of special events planned for Sunday afternoon in honor of Military Appreciation Day at Arrowhead. Be sure to arrive early to pay tribute to our men and women in uniform.

Approximate times of events are as follows…

11:50 AM - US Army Recognition: Past, Present and Future Soldiers

11:54 AM - US Army Shout Out Video

12:01 PM - US Army Color Guard

12:02 PM - Flyover by 4 UH60M Black Hawk Helicopters

12:03 PM - Honorary Military Captains

Halftime - Military Tribute to Fallen Soldiers w/ a flyover by 4 T6 Aircraft, US Army Induction Ceremony

CHARGERS SIGN CASTILLE
October 24th – 3:09 PM

The Chargers announced a transaction on Saturday afternoon. San Diego signed CB Simeon Castille from the practice squad and waived CB Dante Hughes.

Castille is a second-year player from Alabama and will wear #26. He had been on the Chargers practice squad since the start of the season. Castille played eight games with Cincinnati in 2008 and is expected to be in uniform tomorrow at Arrowhead.

A PERFECT STORM?
October 24th – 6:25 AM

Kansas City Chiefs fans have witnessed a number of changes to their football team this offseason. A changing of the guards has taken place at the top of the franchise and a fresh set of talent evaluators are now charged with constructing the roster. The head coach fits this category and construction even surrounds Arrowhead Stadium as well. Phase one of The New Arrowhead is complete and the full unveiling is scheduled for 2010. Change is even occurring in the fashion sense as fans will even see a new uniform this weekend (one that is actually old – ironic, I know) for the first time in 47 years.

Most of the changes Chiefs fans have experienced revolve around off-field elements that directly affect the on-field product and gameday experience. A number of those changes haven’t been seen in Kansas City in nearly a decade or longer. But if you look at the Chiefs counterparts across the league, change throughout the organization has happened early and often. What’s new for Kansas City isn’t necessarily new for the rest of the NFL.

Such is the case for two hot topics currently surrounding this football team – the 3-4 defense and a head coach calling his own plays. Since we’ve spent plenty of time dissecting the nuances of fundamentals and responsibilities surrounding the 3-4 defensive scheme, let’s focus on the latter today.

A Head Coach Calling His Own Offensive Plays
• New for Kansas City
• Old News for Numerous NFL cities

The challenges surrounding a head football coach calling offensive plays has gotten major play in Kansas City this season. Rightly so. The ability to successfully think “big picture” as well as game scheme multiple plays ahead of the action is the ultimate multi-tasking job. When you’re asked to oversee overall game management, time constraints, sideline activity and the three phases of game communication as well (offense, defense and special teams), things can become hectic.

Difficult? Yes. Groundbreaking? Hardly.

For starters, the entire AFC West has head coaches serving as primary offensive play callers. Tom Cable does it. Josh McDaniels does it. Norv Turner does it. Kansas City was the last to jump on the bandwagon, but Todd Haley does it now as well. A year ago, the Chiefs were the only team in the division not to see its head coach call plays as former head coaches Mike Shanahan and Lane Kiffin both did it in Denver and Oakland.

Then there are others in the league. How about Ken Whisenhunt in Arizona, Brad Childress in Minnesota, Mike McCarthy in Green Bay, Sean Payton in New Orleans, Gary Kubiak in Houston and Jim Zorn in Washington? They all do it too. You get the point. Officially, 11 head coaches called served as their team’s primary play caller a year ago.

Oh yeah, and just for good measure, Wade Phillips (Dallas), Lovie Smith (Chicago) and Rex Ryan (Jets) all call their own defensive plays. Go ahead and throw Jaguars head man Jack Del Rio into that mix as well. At the end of the day, calling plays and serving as head coach isn’t anything new to this league, but it’s certainly something we’re not accustomed to seeing in Kansas City.

But what about the success rate? I mean, these guys are so over-worked, certainly the majority of them came up short of the ultimate goal. Well, take a look at these names - Bill Walsh, Dan Reeves, John Gruden and Mike Holmgren. They’ve all won world championships serving as both head coach and primary play caller.

So why does this topic continue to get so much play in Kansas City? Three reasons.

• One – It’s new.

• Two – The Chiefs made their move late, letting Chan Gailey go following the third preseason game.

• Three – The Chiefs are 0-4.

In 1999, Philadelphia Eagles head coach Andy Reid took over a franchise in a very similar situation as the 2009 Chiefs. Reid has bounced back and forth with play calling duties over throughout his tenure, but he thought it was imperative at the time that he built the team’s offensive base under his own guidance.

“I would say this,” Reid continued. “Todd is extremely good at what he does and when I was in his chair during my first year I absolutely did everything. I made sure that every play, every drawing and everything was the way that I wanted it. You build a foundation that way, just like he is doing. He is doing it his way, building a foundation that will strengthen him to have a nice, long career in Kansas City.”

Any successful leader (football or not) will tell you that success breeds from those that surround you. Haley’s first duty as head coach was to construct a coaching staff that maximizes returns for the Chiefs. In the end, Haley hand-picked a staff that boasts 46 years of coordinating experience at the collegiate and pro ranks, 44 years of NFL playing experience and six years of head coaching experience.

The expertise possessed and, ultimately, the trust that Haley has in his staff have allowed Haley the opportunity to do a few more things that a “coordinator only” coach would do.

“I feel like I’ve got a really good coaching staff that knows how to coach and win games. I made a little more concerted effort (Sunday) to spend some time with Matt (Cassel) in between, specifically at the end of our offensive series’ to bridge the gap a little bit there.

“It’s a work in progress for us, too, as a staff. We had a big discussion today on how we can become more efficient as a staff. We have to be better. It’s not going to stay the same, as I’ve said. We’re going to continue working it, working it until we got it in a spot where we’ve got it right in all phases.”

In the end, Haley made the choice to call plays based off of what he thought was the right thing to do. It was likely a very difficult decision to make with the circumstances surrounding the move. Doing what one thinks is right regardless of peer pressure or outside influence is commendable in any field. Haley did it with the eyes of thousands already watching his every move.

Oh yeah, one more thing. There have also been head coaches in this league who not only call offensive plays, but also oversee all of their organization’s player personnel duties as well. One of those men just left the AFC West last year with 138 career victories and two Super Bowl titles. Imagine that.