You Make the Choice

Now, I've been getting some questions about why I'm leaving off some Pro Bowl seasons for players like Len Dawson and Otis Taylor. Here's the answer.

The NFL Pro Bowl had been in existence since the 1950s. The Pro Bowl that Len Dawson, among many others, went to was the AFL Pro Bowl, which is no longer in existence today after the NFL-AFL merger in 1970. So all the Pro Bowl seasons I am recounting are after 1970. That's why I only have one Dawson season mentioned when he went to 7 Pro Bowls. This is the simplest and less skewed way to go about it.

Now that I've done my disclaimer, I am on to my last 'You Make the Choice.' And no, I am not going to do offensive guards (poor linemen never get any love).

This post is on Safeties. Since Eric Berry got in to the Pro Bowl this year, I will be doing a comparison between safeties.

Unfortunately, Eric Berry is a strong safety. The majority of iconic safeties for the Chiefs we think of today (Johnny Robinson, Gary Barbaro and Deron Cherry) were free safeties. All made it to Pro Bowls multiple times.

So, out of laziness (if I included free safeties into the discussion, I would be talking about 13 different seasons), and some sense of not wanting to compare across positions, even as close as strong safety and free safety are (although in the picture above, I've included all the Pro Bowl safeties), Berry will only be compared to one player.

1986 - Lloyd Burruss: Burruss is the player I am talking about. He was a big part to the Kansas City Chiefs secondary in their lone trip to the playoffs in the 1980s. Burruss was often overshadowed by his teammate Deron Cherry, one of the greatest defensive backs in Chiefs history. Cherry had six Pro Bowl appearances with KC, including the same year as Burruss. Nevertheless, Burruss made a name for himself in the strong safety position for the Chiefs and helped the team go 10-6 and reach the playoffs that season. He had 5 interceptions, 3 of which were returned for touchdowns (and tackles were not recorded as a football statistic back then).

2010 - Eric Berry: Berry is the first Chiefs rookie to make the Pro Bowl since the late and great Derrick Thomas. Berry, a first round pick out of Tennessee, was an instant impact for the Chiefs, a team that struggled mightily in the secondary the year before. In his first season, he recorded 92 tackles, 4 interceptions, 1 forced fumble, 2 sacks, and one touchdown. These are great stats for a first-year player. I'm looking forward to see how he follows up this season.

If you've missed any of my 'You Make the Choice' posts, here they are: Quarterbacks, Runningbacks, Wide Receivers.