Yahoo! Sports picks Chiefs as one of 5 possible cinderella Super Bowl contenders

[Nel Toille]

Texans, Redskins poised to be next Cards - NFL - Yahoo! Sports

5. The Kansas City Chiefs

Offense: It sounds insane to even have the Chiefs on this list, considering the franchise only won two games last season. But the utter disrepair that occurred under former coach Herm Edwards had a lot to do with two things: the quarterback and the discipline. And general manager Scott Pioli took major swings at both of those problems by replacing Edwards with Todd Haley, an offensive mind who is a strict disciplinarian, and trading for quarterback Matt Cassel, who has the potential to immediately solidify this unit. Despite the lack of success, it is not an offense that lacks talent. Running back Larry Johnson, when properly motivated, is still a top-10 talent at his position. The offensive line already has its young franchise left tackle, Branden Albert, in place. And the skill positions are good enough to offer a serviceable passing game with the likes of tight end Tony Gonzalez and wideouts Dwayne Bowe and Mark Bradley. In short, it’s a unit that isn’t completely starting from scratch. It should be good enough to be middle of the pack as it is, and could be exponentially better if Johnson remains on the roster and can be brought around by the motivation tactics of Haley and assistant coach Maurice Carthon.

Defense: There still isn’t an official defensive coordinator, but there continues to be speculation in personnel circles that former Browns coach Romeo Crennel could eventually get the nod. If that doesn’t happen, it could go to Clancy Pendergast, who is on staff but hasn’t been given an official title yet. Without Jared Allen wreaking havoc on the other side, defensive end Tamba Hali was an utter disaster last season. The new coaching staff has to determine if that was an aberration and whether the former first-round pick can be salvaged by putting better pieces around him. Defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey had a lukewarm first year, but like most dominant interior linemen he should see dramatic improvement from this point forward. Linebacker Derrick Johnson should be very solid if he stays in the middle, particularly with Dorsey improving in front of him. The addition of linebacker Mike Vrabel will provide some desperately needed leadership amongst the front seven. Without Allen’s emotion, it was simply a flat group last season. Cornerback Brandon Flowers was a nice young addition who should fit well with the new regime.

Work to be done: Where to start? There is a ton of shuffling yet to be completed. Many of the coaches on staff still don’t have a title, and Haley is believed to have just recently finished his film evaluation of the current roster. That means virtually everything is still in flux, including the team’s base defensive alignment. Indeed, there are more questions than answers right now. But the top three to be figured are: (1) Find a defensive coordinator with whom both Haley and Pioli are comfortable, and take a hard step forward with the scheme. (2) Settle on the third overall draft pick, which could be traded or used on Wake Forest linebacker Aaron Curry, who would go a long way toward helping shore up the team’s front seven. (3) Make a decision with Larry Johnson, whose status is still up in the air.

Bottom line: It would be staggering to see this team turn it all around in one season, and mind-blowing for a Super Bowl run to occur. But the team does have a nice talent base to work with, and Pioli has shown the ability to go on amazing hot streaks where talent acquisition is concerned. If Cassel solves a lot of the offensive problems … and Larry Johnson gets his head screwed on straight … and Haley and Pioli get this team disciplined quickly … who knows what can happen. Especially considering the ties of Haley and Pioli to the school of Bill Parcells, whose methods worked wonders in only one season in Miami.

What do you guys think? Can the Chiefs pull off one of the biggest turnarounds in NFL history? It might not be a bad idea to put money on it considering the 100-1 odds.

[bigpoppachief]

I think this guy is giving Pioli a little too much praise. The guy has just started his first gig as GM. To automatically think that he is guaranteed to be an instant success is unfair. I hope Pioli can eventually bring the Chiefs to the promised land. But in one season?

I don't think the Chiefs were as dysfunctional as what the author claims on offense. After Gailey fit the offense to Thigpen the Chiefs were pretty much in every game except the Buffalo game. The front seven of the defense are what cost the Chiefs most of those games. The only reason the opposing QB needed to wear a helmet was so he could get the plays from his OC.

A huge part of the Chiefs lack of success was injuries as well as the large amount of first year players. Maybe Herm was a terrible coach too, who knows. But I think most teams would have struggled using as many rookies and having to start as many second and third string players as the Chiefs had to last season.

True but people aren't putting us there they are saying that it is a possibility I mean you think of all the close games we lost last year we would of been 9-7 which means we would of won our division. I personally liked Herm but he is a players coach we need someone in KC that MAKES the players do what they are supossed to not sya good try but you messed up just try harder. NO you sit them on the bench and put someone who wants to no matter how much they cry. Hail Piloli ! and I will say that unless he makes us worse and in my opinion thats just about impossible.

[okikcfan]

Bottom line: It would be staggering to see this team turn it all around in one season, and mind-blowing for a Super Bowl run to occur. But the team does have a nice talent base to work with, and Pioli has shown the ability to go on amazing hot streaks where talent acquisition is concerned. If Cassel solves a lot of the offensive problems … and Larry Johnson gets his head screwed on straight … and Haley and Pioli get this team disciplined quickly … who knows what can happen. Especially considering the ties of Haley and Pioli to the school of Bill Parcells, whose methods worked wonders in only one season in Miami.

What do you guys think? Can the Chiefs pull off one of the biggest turnarounds in NFL history? It might not be a bad idea to put money on it considering the 100-1 odds.

YES WE CAN, U just gotta Believe!!!

[Hayvern]

True but people aren't putting us there they are saying that it is a possibility I mean you think of all the close games we lost last year we would of been 9-7 which means we would of won our division. I personally liked Herm but he is a players coach we need someone in KC that MAKES the players do what they are supossed to not sya good try but you messed up just try harder. NO you sit them on the bench and put someone who wants to no matter how much they cry. Hail Piloli ! and I will say that unless he makes us worse and in my opinion thats just about impossible.

I have to agree with BigPoppa here. I am glad Edwards is gone. He was an enabler, he was the kind of coach that let things going on like Johnson's escapades. Yeah, after they happened he might have had some harsh words, and Johnson might has spent some time on the bench here and there, but Edwards really did not do a lot to get these whiny babies in the game.

I just cannot say enough bad stuff about Herm Edwards, he has to be by far one of the worse coaches to ever grace the football field. All we can do is hope the Broncos, Raiders or Chargers hire him at some point in the future.