So… Chiefs vs. Patriots today, a mismatch on paper if ever there were one. With that Patriots riding an eighteen game regular season win streak, and the Chiefs coming in on a nine game regular season losing streak, this didn’t figure to be pretty.
But Herm Edward’s team is almost entirely new. With 30+ players under age 25, the Chiefs are as young as they come. So who knew how they’d respond?
Turns out… pretty well. They hung in there with the Patriots today, and actually had a chance to tie it up with less than a minute left in the fourth quarter. Four chances from five yards out… and couldn’t seal the deal with a TD. So close… yet still so far away. Only one of four plays had a realistic chance of success, and that one would have paid off had Dwayne Bowe held onto the ball.
So, what do we know?
Not much. Brodie Croyle went out in the third quarter, so the words “injury-prone†will ring even louder this week. Huard performed quite well in relief, although his interception thrown into double-coverage was a VERY poor decision. I still wonder, if this season is all about finding out what we’ve got in our young players, why not go with Tyler Thigpen as the backup so he would have been available for relief? Hope someone asks Herm that question this week.
As for the other young players? It’s hard to tell. Bowe, our second year phenom receiver, had several dropped passes. And the other young players? To be honest, I didn’t even really notice they were out there. I suppose that’s good on one hand, but on the other… shouldn’t they have stood out a bit if they performed well?
In other words, we’ll just have to wait and see as this season unfolds how the Chiefs’ youth movement works out. Here’s hoping our home opener versus the Raiders results in a ‘W’.
John-
I’ve got to admit that Croyle getting injured makes me shake my head. The Chiefs really should have expected that. The only thing I’m surprised at is that it was an actual hit that hurt him rather than him just coughing too hard.
The 4 plays at the end zone intrigue me, though. I like that the Chiefs were willing to put it into the air there, but as I understand it (I couldn’t watch since I was at church) they threw 4 straight times. Is that correct? If so, while the throwing is a nice addition after last year, it seems to me that LJ should have at least gotten a look, don’t you think?
All things considered, I’m with you, it was a bit of a surprise to me.
Come on, Micah… you’re being a bit hard on Brodie. His shoulder got driven into the ground on that play by 250 pounds of linebacker, and I’m not sure any amount of toughness, training, or the like would have prevented him getting knocked out. I think the guy just suffers from a severe case of bad luck… always getting hit in the wrong way. Perhaps it’s his fault that he doesn’t know how to prepare for a hit so that he doesn’t get hurt going down. If memory serves me correctly, almost every time he’s gotten hurt, it’s because he came down on his right shoulder.
Of course, behind this offensive line, I’m not sure ANY QB will make it through an entire season. That’s where a running QB like Thigpen makes loads of sense.
In regard to LJ… he’d gone nowhere all day. He got one rush in the goal line situation, and, predictably, got about 1 yard.
Like I said, out of the four plays they called, the first one was the only one where they really gave themselves a chance. It was a nicely thrown jump ball to Dwayne Bowe… hit him in the hands and he dropped it. They should have went back to him three more times… he would have come down with it once for sure. Big mismatch there with the CB… he outsized him by quite a bit.
Oh well… bottom line is no one expected them to even come close to giving New England a game. Can’t be too upset at losing by 7 on the road to a team that’s now won 19 in a row in the regular season.
John-
I’ll take your word on the red zone philosophy and I agree that you should be pleased about the showing, but I’m not even close to with you on Brodie.
While today might have been an injury that anyone would have experienced, it was just a matter of time. I’ve been watching Brodie since he was a senior in high school in Rainbow City, AL. He was a pretty heralded guy because of his father and so I followed him and he’s been prone to injuries since then. I think you’re being overly generous to him, but that’s just my opinion.
I can’t argue with the fact that the guy is injured a lot. Where blame falls for that is something that’s awfully hard to argue over. What you imply is basically that he’s just a whining wimp that comes up hurt at the slightest opportunity… I’m just saying when the guy’s shoulder is separated and he can’t move his arm, or if he’s got cracked ribs, or an ACL tear (some of the various injuries he’s had through college and NFL), you really can’t expect him (or anyone in with similar problems, for that matter) to play.
John-
You should know better than to assume what I’m implying. I like Brodie. I hope he succeeds. He’s a strong believer from the SEC and so I want to see him do well. I absolutely am not implying that he’s a whining wimp. I am certainly implying that he is injury prone. There’s a huge difference.
I’m a big Ken Griffey Jr. fan. I love watching him play. He’s a tough guy who plays well. Unfortunately, over the past 6 years, I’ve gotten to the point where I expect him to be injured over and over – the same with Mike Sweeney who I also like – and it has nothing to do with them being whiny or a wimp, it’s just a physical reality.
Micah,
If you like the guy and hope he succeeds, and your only point is that he’s injury prone, why throw out stuff like “the only thing I’m surprised at is that it was an actual hit that hurt him rather than him just coughing too hard”? And why state that I’m being “overly generous to him” about his injuries, when no one would play through the stuff he’s gone through?
I’ve never said he’s not injury prone… all I’ve said is he sure seems to have a case of bad luck in getting hit and frequently coming up hurt.
John-
My point is not that I dislike the guy, my point is exactly what I said previously. He is injury prone. My statement about “coughing” was an intentional overstatement on my part to emphasize the fact that he has started 7 games and has 3 significant injuries in the NFL and that’s not even talking about his college days. The guy can’t remain healthy.
My point about you being “overly generous” was made because it seemed to me, at least early in the conversation, that you were trying to explain away his injuries as if he wasn’t injury prone. You’ve since clarified that so I stand corrected, but I’m not trying to tear the guy up I just think he can’t stay healthy.
btw, if it’s any help I think the same thing about my own qb, Aaron Rodgers. I’m terrified that he can’t finish a season either. We’ll have to see what happens.