What If?

Well, here's another one of my 'What If's,' and I'm sure that I'm probably the last person in the world to see what I'm about to show you.

 

These images were leaked on the internet almost a year ago. They were supposed to be the new Nike Combat Uniforms for the teams, since the NFL apparel is switching from Reebok to Nike next season. The two images above are those of proposed uniform changes to our beloved Chiefs.

Now, if you've never seen these pictures before, I recommend just taking a second to calm down and take a deep breath.

As has been discovered since the time these pictures came out, these proposed uniforms are all fake and are not connected to Nike whatsoever.

However, we are talking about Nike here. They like to put their imprint on everything they do. And although these uniforms have been discovered as being fake, it shouldn't be crazy to think that Nike will try to bring some of their own designs to the NFL like they did with college football.

Remember These?

Now, you might be thinking that there is no way that NFL teams switch their uniforms, especially teams like the Kansas City Chiefs, whose uniforms have never seemed to change. However, imagine the amount of money teams would make from fans buying new uniforms if that team switched designs. Everybody would want the new uniform design, no matter how much they don't like the switch.

So, what if the Chiefs switched their uniform design before the season? What would you think? What would you do? Just something to think about.

Common Sense

It seems that the NFL lockout has caused many things to go out the window: free agency during the summer months, signing rookie draft picks for ungodly amounts, and a little bit of common sense.

The notion of there not being football next year is scary (it often haunts my dreams), but it seems that some people are using it as a basis for fundamental and political ideology debates. And the sad thing is: nobody seems to be catching on.

I didn't realize how bad the situation had become until receiving a tweet today from Kansas City radio host, Nick Wright. First he tweeted : "Brian Waters might be out in KC... Of course he will be! He's a union rep, ya'll... The Governor of Wisconsin nods approvingly at Clark Hunt." And then he asked for his viewers to send him pictures of Clark Hunt as Scrooge McDuck to use as his Twitter avatar.

If Nick Wright is just trying to be humorous and controversial to attract more viewers, then more power to Nick. But I believe that behind his sarcasm lies ideological motives; I believe that he is trying to use this NFL lockout as a discussion about a increasingly political topic: Capitalism.

And Nick Wright is not alone.

I have not spoken out for or against either side during this lockout. I simply want football back. I want the sides to resolve their differences, get their acts together, and get football rolling again. However, some people like Nick have been vehemently against Clark Hunt and the other team owners since the lockout went into effect. I feel like I should have my say now.

Why shouldn't they criticize? After all, this is a lockout and not a strike. It was the owners that forced this confrontation. It is the owners that bailed out of the previous 2006 agreement. Right?

The owners should absolutely be criticized by fans about the situation of the lockout, but not because of the morals of the lockout.

The NFL is a business. The owners are the bosses and the players the employees. DeMaurice Smith calling the owners and the players "business partners" is about as accurate of a statement as me saying that my boss and I are business partners. Which means not very accurate at all.

The NFL is a players sport. The fans worship the players of their favorite team, and because they watch them every Sunday and buy their jerseys, the fans feel a special connection to the players.

What goes unnoticed are the owners. It is the owners that make the NFL possible. It is the owners that allow your favorite team to stay in your city. It is the owners that run the business that is the NFL. Without the owners, there would be no players; without the boss, no employees (and if it wasn't for football, what would many of the players be doing with their careers?).

And maybe that's why it's easy to hate the owners, because they are bosses. I'm not that fond of my boss, just like most of you out there. However, at the end of the day, my boss is still my boss. They can make calls that I can't, they have privileges that I don't, they make more money than me. That's because they are the boss.

What people like Nick Wright are doing is smearing all of the owners as one giant lump of greedy and narcissistic individuals that only care about money. I do believe that owners care about money, but not in a greedy, Scrooge McDuck type sense; I believe they care about money just as much as any other boss would, as any other business owner would. Just because they have money doesn't mean they're Gordon Gekko (Wall Street reference).

To suggest that Brian Waters will not be coming back next season to the Chiefs solely because he is a union representative (and not because he is 34 years old, near the end of his career, would open up cap space, and we seemingly have his replacement ready) is feeding the fire of hatred towards the owners of this business. This is a popular thing to do when the economy is bad and people are looking for someone to blame for their financial woes.

When Roger Goodell stood on the stage to announce the 1st round of the 2011 draft, he was booed so viciously, that it was hard to even hear what he was saying. Why was he booed? Because he represents the NFL owners? Because he's responsible for the lockout? He is no more responsible for the current state of the lockout than DeMaurice Smith, head of the NFL Players Association. Neither side could resolve their differences during negotiation and mediation, and yet it was Goodell who gets booed. Why?

I ask you to use some common sense. Blame whoever you want for the lockout, just know the reasons for why you're blaming them before you do, that's all I ask.

Well I'm Back

If any of you have been wandering why I hadn't posted for a while, there are actually three significant reasons.

1. I was in Europe for a month and the internet over there is not quite what it is here in America. Also, I spent too much money on the trip not to take in all the sights London and Paris had to offer.
2. I live in Joplin, Missouri, so my mind was a little preoccupied on life back home when I was in Europe. I learned about the devastation of the tornado and was shocked. Luckily, I didn't personally know any of the victims of the tornado, but I did know many, many people who lost their homes and all of their belongings. My house was about a mile from the carnage, so I consider myself very lucky. Joplin looks like a war-zone here and portions were impossible to recognize when I returned home (which leads me to thank anyone who has donated any sort of aid or volunteered to clean up Joplin. And I was especially happy to learn that the Chiefs, and several other NFL teams, were donating money and supplies. Joplin needs all the help it can get, but because of these donations of time and money, it makes the job a little bit easier).
3. Finally, another reason why I haven't posted anything is because, well, there wasn't really anything to report on.

With my excuses out of the way, I want to get to the point of this post: my impressions of the Chiefs from over the past month. Besides the fact that our tight-end Leonard Pope rescued a boy from drowning recently, I want to talk about the development of our team during this locked-out offseason. 

Say what you want about certain players on our team (I know I have in previous posts), but we have some pretty good leaders on our squad. 

Matt Cassel has recently organized a team practice, and has been out their with the team scrimmaging on a high school football field for the last couple of days. Every spectator there said that Cassel was clearly in charge. It is clear that Cassel wants the best for his Chiefs, and organizing these practices is symbolic of how passionately he takes his job and how seriously he wants to win. 

Earlier on in the offseason, Cassel was letting receivers stay (and basically live) in his house so that they could play catch during the day. Cassel got rookies Ricky Stanzi and Jon Baldwin to come out and practice with him, even though they haven't even been signed yet. 

If some of you had doubted Cassel's leadership ability prior to this offseason, I say you have no reason to doubt anymore. 

And it's not just been Cassel. Players of all ages, from rookie to veteran, seem invested in the Chiefs will to win next year. These players have had a taste of success, and they don't want to lose it. They are a young team, and they know that; they know that if they don't work hard now, and as a team, then it will be hard for them to have the same kind of success that they did last season.

These players want victory, they want another playoff appearance. They are not just going to sit back and relax as the NFL and NFLPA negotiations drag on. They want football, and they want to be good at it. They have bought in to the plan, and with the Chargers breathing down their neck, they know they have no room for error. 

This offseason has shown why it is great to be a Chiefs fan.