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A LONG DAY
November 18th – 6:02 PM

We started the day out with Lance Long, so (pending breaking news) let’s close the day out with a dose of L.L. as well.

The Lance Long/Wes Welker comparisons have run rampant since Long arrived on the Chiefs receiving scene (as many of you have pointed out in emails, tweets and on the message boards). The two share similar traits to say the least, but obviously Welker has much more body of NFL work to draw from. Despite that fact, Chiefs QB Matt Cassel was asked today about the similarities of Long and, Cassel’s former favorite receiving target, Welker.

“I think it’s unfair right now at this point, to be completely honest,” Cassel said of the comparisons. I think he’s a slot receiver and he’s trying to find his identity and he’s doing a great job for us right now, but Wes Welker has been doing it for a long time and he’s a Pro Bowl receiver. To make those comparisons is kind of unfair to Lance right now in his career.“

That’s a very fair statement that I think everyone, including Lance Long, can agree with. There’s another thing everyone seems to agree on when discussing Long as well - his work ethic.

”Lance has had to work for everything he’s got,” Cassel said. “Through his hard work it’s paid off and now he’s playing and he’s doing a great job for us. I definitely appreciate that coming from the background that I did, and the more you’re in the NFL, the more you meet people on a daily basis that have an amazing story on how they got here and he’s definitely one of them.”

STEELERS BLUEPRINT
November 18th – 4:14 PM

Want a blueprint for success in the NFL?
Take a look at the Pittsburgh Steelers.

This is a franchise who has consistently found ways to compete for championships year-in and year-out dating back to the days when Todd Haley was a ball boy on the Steelers sidelines. The secret to building a disgustingly physical, athletic team that has been able to sustain success as football has changed throughout the decades really isn’t that difficult. Pittsburgh has been able to evaluate, acquire and groom talent. After that, the organization simply lets its players do what they do best - play football at a high level and win.

”I think that this model would be a great one to follow as would some other teams obviously,” Haley said of the Steelers organization. “New England being one of those teams and Indianapolis, Philadelphia. These are teams that have been able to sustain through different players. That’s the key. As players come and go they continue to have guys ready to go and step in and fill in. That’s something you’d love to down the road aspire to be like. I think that’s how you get good: staying the course.“

Staying the course starts with drafting the right players to fill the void when each departing player leaves a vacancy.

”I think that’s the key: they know what they want to put out,” Haley said. “They know the mold and, while I won’t speak for them but in generalizing, as you become a consistent organization you know what you want and it’s so important that the coaching staff and personnel department are on the same page. If there is one thing that I’ve taken out of my time in the league and also my personal experience growing up that is the key. If the personnel and the coaching staff know what they want – and it works both ways – then you have a chance. You continue to add players that fit how you want to play.“

Unfortunately, this is something that the Chiefs organization has failed to do over recent years. When RB Larry Johnson was released last week, he was the final hint of any draftee before 2005. Just five years after the 2004 draft, the Chiefs have no players remaining on their roster from that year or before. That’s about as massive of a red flag that any organization can raise.

The Steelers, on the other hand boast nine players drafted by the organization from 2004 or before. Who are some of these players? QB Ben Roethlisberger (2004), T Max Starks (2004), S Troy Polamalu (2003), DT Casey Hampton (2001), WR Hines Ward (1998) and others. You obviously don’t have to be a Steelers fan to look at these names and realize why Pittsburgh is continually a contender.

The good news, however, is that the Chiefs are starting with a clean slate from 2009 going forward in regards to draft choices fitting in with the club’s plans long-term. If the Steelers are a blueprint that impresses you, then you should have faith that Kansas City will make the right choices to build the franchise going forward. I mean, the father of Chiefs head coach Todd Haley was Dick Haley - the former personnel man of the Steelers, and the man who drafted Lynn Swann, Jack Lambert, John Stallworth, and Mike Webster.

”I think for the Steelers this has been a long time in the making,” the younger Haley said. “This is something that was established back in the ‘70s and a blueprint they set about for the entire organization.

“I’m thankful to have been a part of or had a little piece of,” Haley continued. “But having that inside knowledge of a lot of the stuff that was going on, I know that they set the stage for what they’ve stayed for a long time. They’re consistently in all areas – personnel, how they draft, all areas, they’re very consistent in nature. They don’t panic. If things don’t go real well early they don’t panic; they’ve proven that over the years.”

LIFE WITHOUT BOWE
November 18th – 3:16 PM

QB Matt Cassel and the rest of the Chiefs offense is preparing for life without WR Dwayne Bowe this weekend. This Sunday will mark Cassel’s second game without his top receiving target since he arrived in Kansas City via trade last spring. That’s too bad considering the two seemed to be developing the relationship necessary between a quarterback and a go-to receiver over the past few games. In Cassel’s previous stint without Bowe in the lineup (9/27 at Philadelphia) he threw for just 90 yards, his worst output as a Chiefs starter.

”I think that Dwayne and I gained some confidence and we started to build a good relationship and some rapport on the field,” Cassel said today. “He had some great plays last week. Like I said, am I going to miss him? Of course I am, but at the same time, it gives these other guys an opportunity to step up and step into that role and hopefully fulfill that roll.“

Part of Bowe’s emergence over the past few games has been partially due to the arrival of WR Chris Chambers. Chambers has stepped in and fulfilled the role of the team’s number two receiving seemingly overnight. His ability to make opposing defenses account for his ability to get vertical has loosed up double teams on Bowe. As a result, Bowe has turned in more than 30% of his total receptions and receiving yards over the past two games with Chambers in the line-up. Now, it appears Chambers will need to chip in at filling the void in Kansas City’s receiving core left by Bowe.

”It gives these other guys an opportunity to step up,” Cassel said. “Unfortunately, we’d love to have Dwayne here, but he’s not going to be here the next four weeks. These guys have been working hard all year and it just gives them another opportunity to step up and show that they can make plays and help this offense.”

POLAMALU STILL OUT…
November 18th – 3:01 PM

Steelers defensive wild card, S Troy Polamalu, missed his second consecutive day of practice this afternoon with a left knee injury. Past Polamalu, however, Pittsburgh seems to be getting healthier as WR Mike Wallace, WR Hines Ward and LB James Farrior all returned to full practice participation. Wallace was ill yesterday, while the other two players missed practice for non-injury related matters.

If Polamalu misses this Sunday’s game, which seems to be expected, Chiefs QB Matt Cassel still isn’t jumping for joy. Cassel is also preparing for the style of play that Polamalu’s back-up, Tyron Carter brings - a style that is similar to Polamalu’s.

”Troy is a great player, he really is,” Chiefs QB Matt Cassel said today. “I went to college with him. He’s obviously had a great professional career. He’s a special, special player. The guy that fills in for him, I believe it’s number 23, S Tyrone Carter, is that right, he has a similar style of play and he’s a good player as well. Within that system itself, not having Troy out there, I don’t know how much that would help or hurt us. I don’t mind that he’s not playing, at the same time, you never like to see somebody out because of injury.“

RB Carey Davis (hamstring) was upgraded to a full participant, while DE Travis Kirschke (calf) was downgraded and was the only other player besides Polamalu to miss today’s practice out east.

In Kansas City, LB Justin Rogers (thigh) appears on the practice report as a new face listed as limited. An extended practice report for the Chiefs can be found below filed under “Thursday Practice Report.”

CONTINUING THE THEME…
November 18th – 2:44 PM

The theme of today is about the long shots. WR Lance Long’s story was told in the day’s first blog entry. This afternoon, Chiefs head coach Todd Haley commented about another long shot on the Chiefs roster. This time, the player resides on the other side of the football.

We’re talking about another rookie free agent and the same story of fighting an uphill battle. This player, unlike Long, didn’t play at an SEC school or even a division one school for that matter. This guy was a 1AA player. This guy is a “Black Bear.“

Yep, LB Jovan Belcher of the fighting Maine Black Bears draws our attention this afternoon. After entering training camp as an undrafted rookie this past July, Belcher didn’t waste any time making his presence felt. Belcher showed the ability to run sideline-to-sideline with the best of any linebacker on the Chiefs defense. He also showed that he liked to hit. Those two qualities put Belcher on about every single special teams unit, where he ultimately excelled and made the Chiefs roster.

“He’s a run-and-hit linebacker,” Chiefs head coach Todd Haley said to describe Belcher. “He’s sideline-to-sideline. He’s got a natural explosion when he hits. Some guys just have that natural hit role and explode into you. When he hits you hear it.

“I think he can run,” Haley continued. “He’s playing a new position and very early on you saw that he had very good instincts. I think that is what has accelerated his learning and his ability to step in and start playing. Like I’ve said way back, he’s a player we’re all excited about him as we go forward.“

Eventually Belcher became more than just a special teams player. The rookie linebacker didn’t see a single defensive snap over the first two games of the season, but an injury thrust him into the lineup in Philadelphia and Belcher logged 20 snaps. From there, he’s earned more playing time each and every week. Belcher is now a mainstay at middle linebacker when the team goes into their nickel package.

”He had a very good game on special teams last week – very good,” Haley said today. ”Made some really big plays for us and that’s an area that early on he probably thought was where he would contribute solely but he’s turned it into a little bigger job. I think a young guy playing like he’s played and coming from where he’s come from, the position he was playing, we’re excited as we go forward.“

Check out #59 on Sundays. You’ll be impressed with his ability to move and fearless attitude on both special teams and in pursuit of the football.

Another long shot, LB Pierre Walters from Eastern Illinois also got into the act this past week as he was active for his first NFL contest. The former collegiate defensive end saw two defensive snaps and took over the special teams role of the injured David Herron.

THURSDAY PRACTICE REPORT
November 18th – 11:52 AM

LB David Herron looked to be making strides in recovering from his knee injury yesterday when he was jogging on the sidelines. Today, Herron returned to the practice field for the first time in nearly two weeks since injuring his knee in Jacksonville. The three other Chiefs listed on the club’s injury report yesterday were all still held out from the early portion of practice - LB Mike Vrabel (knee), RB Dantrell Savage (ankle) and G Andy Alleman. LB Andy Studebaker and utility lineman Wade Smith filled in with the respective first teams.

It also appears like CB Travis Daniels may be seeing some time at nickel this week. He was working in with the first team over CB Mike Richardson this morning.

HEY ROOMIE
November 18th – 9:46 AM

Whether or not Steelers all-everything S Troy Polamalu suits up to play this weekend, there is no need for him to get acquainted with Chiefs QB Matt Cassel in the backfield. This is a good thing for the Chiefs, as Polamalu has introduced himself to opposing quarterbacks far to many times over his seven-year NFL career (wow, it’s been that long?) whether it be by land or air. Luckily, Polamalu and Cassel are already familiar with each other.

”We were (at USC) for three years together,” Cassel said. “We actually roomed together in the same house at one point.“

The two former roommates have squared off once before, with Polamalu getting the upper hand. Last year, Pittsburgh traveled to New England and gained a 33-10 victory over the Patriots. Polamalu picked off Cassel in the meeting.

”We talk a few times a year and then I get to see him on the field,” Cassel said. “I keep in touch with him. Like I said, he’s such a great guy, so it’s always good to keep in touch.“

Cassel remembers Polamalu as a very clean roommate, who wasn’t as quiet as most NFL fans know him to be today.

”When you get to know him on a personal level, he really is a great guy,” Cassel explained. “He’s got a quiet presence about himself, but he’s definitely a special person.“

Another little-known fact is that Cassel actually played tight end briefly while at USC. The brief stay at that position, however, didn’t yield any one-on-one battles with Polamalu on the practice field.

”He’s lucky though,” Cassel said of Polamalu not meeting him in the open field in pass coverage. “I swear he’s lucky I didn’t bring it to him.”

LONG SHOT
November 18th – 5:59 AM

September 13th, 2009 was Opening Day for the defending NFC Champion Arizona Cardinals. University of Phoenix Stadium was buzzing with the excitement and anticipation of another Cardinals run at a Super Bowl. WR Lance Long was buzzing with excitement and anticipation as well; Long was on an NFL active roster for the first time in his career.

The excitement in Arizona came and went as the Cardinals were upset 20-16 by the 49ers. For Long, the excitement came and went as well. He was released the following day. Two days later, Long was signed to the Chiefs practice squad. His NFL process had taken a huge blow. It was back to square one for Long once again.

Long entered the league as a long shot – a rookie free agent to be more specific. Not only was he a rookie free agent, but he was an undersized receiver trying to make his way onto a roster that featured Larry Fitzgerald, Anquan Boldin and Steve Breaston (My initial thought – Yikes, good luck with that). Oh, he also had to impress the watchful eye of Todd Haley while going up against these NFL playmakers. Oh, and he also only started seven college games and scored one TD at Mississippi State.

“Lance was a guy in Arizona that I think we got for about $500 right after the draft,” Haley explained.

(Random Timeout – yes, there have been a lot of them this week – earlier in the off-season, Fitzgerald had signed a $40 million contract. Long was guaranteed exactly .0000125% of Fitzgerald’s deal).

“One of our coaches on the staff had been a college coach of his and he knew him,” Haley continued. “Lance doesn’t have a lot of college career catches but he knew him and said he would be a great guy for camp. He’ll come in and give you an honest day’s work and when the draft ends that’s always a tough deal where you’re scrambling trying to find enough guys. You have holes at certain spots. I really didn’t have any expectations for Lance and really tried to run him off for the first month [in Arizona] or so. He’ll probably attest to that.”

The offensive coordinator at the time just admitted that he had zero expectations for Lance Long as a football player. He even tried to run Long off the team during those early days in Arizona. This sounds like the storyline of that show on MTV, “Made.”

With that said, how in the world did Long overcome these type of odds?

“As time went on you could tell this guy wasn’t going away,” Haley said. “His role early on and for most of the year was just a show-team player. But every day the guy made plays and the defense didn’t like him and you take notice. That’s the way guys make it and there’s never going to be a day he can ever take off. But he’s quick and he’s tough and he goes a hundred miles an hour all the time. That’s what got my attention.”

Getting Haley’s attention ultimately landed Long on Arizona’s practice squad for the entirety of Arizona’s Super Bowl XLIII run a year ago. Gaining Haley’s attention also won him an opportunity to make the Cardinals at the beginning of this year and, eventually, placed him onto the Chiefs practice squad in September.

Six weeks later Long was back on an active roster, this time it was with the Chiefs. He was on the field against another California foe this time as well, but his status was up for grabs following the October 25th contest against the Chargers once again. This time, Long recorded statistics (two catches for 12 yards), but he also had to leave the game with a “head trauma” after being leveled on a crossing pattern by LB Tim Dobbins.

The trauma was nothing serious, but the fact that he had to leave the game was. There are no guarantees in the NFL, especially if you are a player like Lance Long.

Long, however, did make one play (err…almost made one play) that earned him yet another look in a Chiefs uniform. Surely you remember it; the deep ball in the end zone that Long went air-born, fully-extended for and came up just millimeters short of the TD. That play was enough to get fans excited about this long shot and it had to have helped him in the film room. The kid was gritty.

“We brought him here for a reason,” Haley said. “Lance has some unique skill to him. I had some familiarity with him but, again, he’s a young receiver in the league that doesn’t have a lot of experience. He wasn’t a highly productive college receiver but is a guy who’s kind of come on, works hard. It’s really hard to out-work him. He’s out there running routes ‘on air’ by himself in practice. This kid works and he has some unique skill. We’re just trying to find out what we have as we go forward.”

In his second-chance with the Chiefs Long impressed the city and his teammates in a big way. He drew the primary job at slot receiver and his arrival onto the scene ultimately drove veteran WR Bobby Engram out of that role. In his first game of extensive action, Long was targeted a team-high 11 times and finished as the Chiefs leading receiver at Jacksonville (eight catches for 74 yards). He followed up that performance last week with a two-catch, 18-yard effort in Oakland.

That brings us to where we are today. Today, Long happens to find himself in yet another situation of opportunity. With the Chiefs primary target, WR Dwayne Bowe, suspended for the next four games, there are plenty of opportunities for others to make big plays. Another challenge has been issued and, not just Long, but each member of this entire receiving core has the chance to do themselves a lot of favors in regards to their future in Kansas City.

“I feel like it’s a great opportunity,” Long said of joining the Chiefs. “I feel like just in the last few weeks, with me being able to play a little bit more, it’s just been a blessing. I’m trying to make the best of this opportunity.”

“I feel like I’m doing a lot,” Long continued. “Each day I’m trying to just take one thing that I need to work on and get better at it each day. I feel like that’s all that you can do. Just treat every day like it’s your last day.”

That line of thinking has served Long well thus far in his long shot NFL career. He knows, however, that nothing is secure.

“I think he’s shown enough to continue trying to work him in,” Haley said. “He hasn’t been perfect, the out-of-bounds [play vs. Jacksonville] being a big thing and last game he missed a big block late in that game that might have given us a chance to keep the ball at the end. But again, with each guy you’ve got to take in account all the variables and this is a guy who does not have a lot of experience. We’re trying to give him on-the-job experience; that’s the best way to describe him.”

Long’s run with each shot he’s been given. We’ll see how he handles this one.