Is Belcher Broken?

An area of concern that almost every analyst has with the Chiefs is our inside linebacker position; more specifically our strong inside linebacker. The player that currently holds that position is Jovan Belcher, and I'm a little confused on why nobody seems to think very highly of him.

I understand why people would want an upgrade at the position, but realistically, you could upgrade at every position on the team. For people to call SILB a priority improvement for the Chiefs should mean that Belcher is incompetent at his position.

I just don't see that.

Let me give you some of Belcher's stats from his last two (first two) seasons: In his rookie year, Belcher had 47 tackles. That was while only starting three games and sharing time down the rotation order. In 2010, earning the starting role, Belcher made 15 of 16 starts and recorded 84 tackles, 1 sack and 1 forced fumble.

Although it wasn't as impressive as his teammate's near-Pro Bowl season, Jovan Belcher isn't the first-round draft pick that Derrick Johnson was. In fact, Belcher was an undrafted player out of Maine. Players like Belcher usually don't last long in the NFL let alone acquire a starting role. The fact that Belcher has done this, and has shown improvement in each of his first two seasons, is why I question the thought that we need to improve at the position.

And yet, the Chiefs bring in Brandon Siler to compete for the role. Brandon Siler, who in two more seasons of work only has 30 more tackles than Belcher. The analysts say that Siler is more fundamentally sound and can help stop the run better than Belcher can, so he should see some playing time this season. I don't think, however, that Siler should replace Belcher.

But there are plenty of Chiefs fans and radio commentators that wanted to see Belcher replaced by a big name free agent. Some of these names include: Nick Barnett, Lofa Tatupu, etc. Let's look at the stats some of these players would have brought to the Chiefs.

Nick Barnett is coming off an injury year in which he only played in 4 games and had 24 tackles. Before that, he had 100 tackle seasons in 6 of his 8 seasons with Green Bay, including in 2009. It's hard for me to argue that this wouldn't have been a good signing, but Barnett is 30 years old.

Lofa Tatupu, a Pro Bowler in his first three seasons, was a memorable part of that Seahawks Super Bowl team. However, Tatupu hasn't had a 100 tackle season since 2007, and it seems his career might be coming to an early end due to injuries. Tatupu still put up 88 tackles and 1 sack last year, but he is 5 years older than Belcher.

So, although there are upgrades available at Belcher's position, I want to see what the kid can do in his third year in the league. He seems to be only getting better and I think he's earned the right to prove to us he belongs as an NFL starter. So if it's not broke, why fix it?