And It's Gone ... Notes from the Chiefs-Rams Game

Just as quickly as it came, it is now gone.

The Governor's Cup is now in the hands of the 'other' Missouri football team. The Chiefs had plenty of opportunities including two possessions within St. Louis's 10 yard line, but just couldn't convert more than a measly field goal. In fact, it's these missed opportunities and mistakes that the Chiefs made that upsets me much more than losing the Cup.

What the Chiefs Did Right


Just like with all preseason games, you have to look at what's important, and that is staying healthy and giving every player a chance to prove himself. The latter is especially stressed because of the roster cuts that have to be made. The first cut being August 30th, in which the roster has to be reduced to 80, and then on September 3rd, where the final 53 man roster has to be determined.

With these prerequisites, the Chiefs were successful. Only one player left for injury - rookie Jalil Brown - but he would return later to re-enter the game. And as far as playing time, everyone on both teams seemed to get some sort of playing time. And although the Chiefs seem determined to not win a game, we have to remember it's not necessarily for the fans, these games are for the players.

Outside of that, I like the depth the Chiefs have at OLB. Cameron Sheffield had a QB hit late in the fourth to force an incompletion, and Justin Houston continues to impress, with a pass deflection and a tackle for no gain on third and short to force fourth down, not to mention the pressure he put on Sam Bradford to force an incomplete pass that was very close to being a sack/fumble. Outside of Tamba Hali, I think that Justin Houston has the most talent at the OLB position and I'd have no problem with him starting over Andy Studebaker (although I know that's a long shot at this point).

Speaking of talented linebackers, Derrick Johnson had the best game of anyone on the team in my opinion, finishing with 8 tackles, a sack, and a goal line interception. Johnson and Dustin Colquitt (probably because he's unfortunately gotten lots of practice) look to be in mid-season form, and Ricky Stanzi, given the opportunity to work with the second team offensive line, looked like the best QB on the team. Stanzi would finish 8 of 14 for 121 yards and the team's lone touchdown (and a 109.5 QB rating). Although Stanzi was 1/4 on third down with a couple of drops.

What the Chiefs could have done better


Well, they could have won, but that aside, there were plenty of areas the Chiefs didn't look good at. And like the game of modern day football, it all begins with the quarterback. Matt Cassel, who has perpetually struggled in the preseason, continues this trend with a 6 of 13, 59 yard performance (59.5 QB rating). He was also 1/3 for 2 yards on third down. These are not numbers you want to see from your starting quarterback. At no point during this preseason have I thought that our offense has looked in sync and that's mostly because Cassel hasn't been sharp, forcing a lot of passes that shouldn't be made. He did avoid a couple of sacks which was impressive, but his completion percentage continues to be below 50%, which is not where anyone wants it to be.

Once again, the Chiefs offense was given the ball in the opposing team's red zone, and once again, the Chiefs squandered their opportunity and had to settle for a field goal. The most depressing part is that both times it occurred with the Chiefs starters on the field. If we can't punch it in from within the 10, what can we do?

I'm not going to say that the playcalling was bad, but it wasn't good. Whether it be to questionable calls in the first half, to three straight passes in a goal line situation which lead to a blocked field goal attempt. I know that the Chiefs have bigger concerns than winning preseason games, and they might not be scripting out their playcalls yet, but it just seems that we are either not wanting to show much during preseason regarding our new offense, or we just haven't figured out how to use it.

While our first round draft pick didn't play in the game due to a injured hand as the result of a fight, St. Louis's first round pick, Robert Quinn, finished with 3 tackles, a sack, and a blocked field goal attempt.

And I will end with the play of our offensive line. Our offensive line was getting called with holding penalties the entire game, one that took away a Jamaal Charles touchdown run was the result of rookie Rodney Hudson. Hudson was filling in for Ryan Lilja in the game and is a rookie, but what isn't excusable is Barry Richardson. He was called for three holding penalties, two of which occurred on third down. And those last two were against second string players. I'd say he better be concerned for his job, but Jared Gaither was also flagged for a holding penalty; Gaither of course having the possibility of moving over to the right tackle spot and supposedly upgrade the position over Richardson.