The Chiefs Off Season.

If you heard there was a team in the NFL, ripping out a good portion of their defense and replacing them with new players, you may have pictured a team who just suffered a rough season. If you further heard, that they traded their quarterback of five years, and plan to start a rookie, you would have thought it a team under serious renovation, a process which is not completed during one off season. What you would not have thought, is that the team in question had a 12-4 season in 2016 and a 9-6 season in 2017 and is the current back-to-back AFC West Champs. But whether you quite realize it or not, this off season has been a whirlwind of trades, cuts and signings for the Kansas City Chiefs.

The accomplishment of back-to-back division titles was widely celebrated all around Kansas City, so you can imagine the disappointment at the stunning and heart wrenching loss to the Titans in the first round of the playoffs in what I will always refer to as the “forward progress game” (for further reading on that game, please see my blog post “Forward Progress Was Stopped”). For many days, possibly even weeks after the loss, we Chiefs fans hung our collective heads awaiting the fates of some of our favorite players.

Defense was the greatest question, as was the Defensive Coordinator. I heard many screaming for Bob Sutton’s head. Indeed, a few torches were lit for that lynch mob, but those notions were quickly put to rest, not long after the Titan’s loss. A defensive overhaul, most definitely, but firing the DC, absolutely not. What would follow was what I can only describe as a defensive purging in which the Chiefs would cut or trade some of the most well-known stars of the defensive side of the ball. However, I am getting ahead of myself.

Before the many defensive changes can be discussed, we must first shine a light on a trade that has been in the winds for almost a year, but still caused the heart of this Chief’s fan to drop ever so slightly. I was at home, playing on the floor with my baby girl, when the well-known Sports Center sound effect, sounded from my phone, notifying me of an update in the wide world of sports. I wrenched my phone from my pocket, and listened as my screen reader on my phone told me that Alex Smith (#11), Chiefs QB for five years, was just traded to the Washington Red Skins for a cornerback by the name of Kendall Fuller and a couple of draft picks. Along with just about every Chiefs fan in Kansas City, I knew this day would come, knew it as soon as the Chiefs moved up 16 spots in the 2017 draft to select Patrick Mahomes, but I still felt a frown cross my face, for I would miss my quarterback Alex Smith. Having only been a football fan for the last year and a half, Smith was the first football player I ever truly became a fan of, but I knew this was not a time for sentiment. The trade of Smith had been inevitable, and it was just the beginning.

Smith was the first domino to fall in what would turn out to be a cascade of trades, cuts and acquiring of new players, mostly on the defensive side. Many would leave some Chiefs fans scratching their heads, perhaps some even swearing that they would not be Chiefs fans any longer. “Don’t ever get too attached to a player,” said a good friend of mine who has been following football since before I was born. The following month, two of the Chiefs main staples and fan favorites, inside linebacker Derrick Johnson (#56) and outside linebacker Tamba Hali (#91) were both cut. Ron Parker (#38) and Phillip Gaines (#23) would be cut as well, but perhaps the most controversial move, which came in a form of a trade, was that of cornerback Marcus Peters (#22). The trade of the two-time Pro Bowler (2015-2016) to the Rams for a couple of draft picks left much puzzling and pondering, and the Chiefs staff had some splaining to do. Some were outraged by this cut, some said good riddance. Others questioned the motives, whether or not it was truly a pure football decision and nothing more. It is a known fact, that Peters is one of the few Chiefs players, that still refused to stand for the National Anthem. Chiefs owner Clark Hunt was outspoken against this stance but still, Peters refused to conform. Hunt and Peters would come to an agreement that Peters would remain in the locker room until the anthem had ceased. This was not the only piece of controversy surrounding Peters. The cornerback had what I have heard referred to many times as a tumultuous season in which his behavior was called into question more than once. There were incidents of lashing out at fans and officials, including during the Chiefs vs. Jets game. Following a frustrating holding call, Peters picked up the penalty flag and chucked it into the stands. Peters then walked off the field believing he had been ejected only to return minutes later not wearing any socks under his cleats.

Because of these reasons and others, it has been hotly debated in the newspapers, on air waves, bar stools and my own place of employment, just why Peters, a two- time Pro Bowler and defensive force to be reckoned with would be traded for nothing more than a couple of draft picks. I remember when the trade was released, but the compensation had not yet been made clear. “Well surely we got some star player of the Rams roster,” was what I continued to hear and I admit that I believed the same thing. So you can imagine my surprise, and the surprise of others, when the compensation was released. It will always be a matter of strong debate on why the Chiefs would be content trading one of their star players for such a small amount. Was it truly a football decision, or was Peters a disruption in the locker room as some have suggested? That question will probably never be answered, but one of the facts that did surface not long after the trade, is that out of 31 other teams, it was reported that 29 of them were not interested, leaving only the 49ers and the Rams at the bargaining table. So, with a three year career in Kansas City, and indeed in the NFL (2015, 2016 and 2017) Peters will be heading to LA to join the Rams for the 2018 season.

Over the course of the next month and well into free agency, the Chiefs would acquire several new players, to fill the gaps of the players that have departed. Anthony Hitchens (#53) was selected to fill the void left by the departure of Derrick Johnson at inside linebacker. Johnson having been one of Hitchens’ idols in his college football days as an Iowa Hawkeye. Most recently, the Chiefs acquired Northern Iowa nose tackle Xavier Williams from the Arizona Cardinals. One of the more exciting acquisitions of free agency, was that of Sammy Watkins (#14), wide receiver out of Clemson. Watkins had been drafted by the Buffalo Bills in 2014, and has been referred to by some as a “speed merchant” back in his days as a Clemson Tiger. This provides just another exciting addition to a Chiefs offense that is on the verge of becoming explosive, provides excitement to Chiefs fans and gives just one more target for our gun slinging new rookie quarterback. With wide outs like Tyreek Hill (#10) and Sammy Watkins, both providing a deep threat, a tight end like Travis Kelce (#87) and a backfield loaded with running backs, including the lead rusher in the league in 2017, the possibilities for Mahomes are endless. When you’re an opposing team, and you have two wide outs in Watkins and Hill, a tight end like Kelce to contend with, and the always present threat of the league’s leading rusher in Kareem Hunt (#27) blasting out of the backfield, you will constantly be having to ask the question, “Just who do we cover, and with how many players?” And, just to put an exclamation point on what I have been writing about, as I write this post, I have received news that the Chiefs are expected to sign running back Damien Williams, who spent four seasons with the Dolphins. This will add even more depth to an already stacked backfield with Kareem Hunt and Spencer Ware (#32).




With the defense under construction, and the offense looking more and more explosive all the time, it is this humble sports writer’s opinion that Chiefs fans have a lot to be excited about. New GM Brett Veach has been very proactive in building a new Chiefs team. It usually takes several losing seasons and a failing franchise before a team is rebuilt. High praise goes to Veach for beginning that process before it gets that bad. When asked about this process and his motives for doing so, Veach has stated that the Chiefs are not interested in winning a Super Bowl in four years, but looking to make that a reality immediately. The draft still awaits, and it shall be interesting to see the choices that are made when the Kansas City Chiefs are on the clock.

Letter to Alex Smith

Below you will find a letter I wrote to Alex Smith, not long after he was traded to the Red Skins for 2 draft picks and Cornerback Kendall Fuller. I did not write this letter as an amateur sports writer, but as nothing more then a true fan.

Dear Alex Smith.

                I’m sure you receive a large amount of mail from fans, and I am not even certain if this will reach you, but I wanted to try. My name is Cameron Black. I moved to Kansas City about a year and a half ago, with my wife Kat. I will not bore you with my life story, but I would like you to know this much. I am now 29 years old, and for the first 27 years of my life, I cared nothing about football or any other sport. This was not because I didn’t like it or had anything against it, it is because I was borne completely blind. As a blind man, I thought such a visual sport as football to be something completely out of my reach and realm of understanding, so I never even tried.

                Upon moving to Kansas City, I knew I was moving into a sports town, but primarily a football town, so I had my father, who is a huge football fan, tutor me in football. I apologize sir, I have a tendency to ramble, but here is the point. I became a passionate fan of football. I now follow all football religiously, but none more than the Chiefs. The Chiefs were the first team I have ever became a true passionate fan of in my life, and you are the first football player I have ever became a true fan of. I like all the other Chiefs as well, but you, you are my quarterback. When I first moved here, my Dad told me, “Your quarterback is Alex Smith. That’s the guy you need to learn about.” So I did.

                I am a huge fan of you as a football player, but I admire you as a person. I watch you in your interviews, and you seem so down to earth, you seem so humble, you seem so human, which is a quality that is not always visible in a pro athlete, and I respect it immensely. Several people have played a part in a blind man being able to see football, and you are one of them. It is because of you, that I have become a passionate football fan and a die-hard Chiefs fan. It is because of you that I as a blind man, am able to be a part of something that I thought permanently out of my reach, and I just wanted the opportunity to thank you.

From my heart, thank you Alex for doing that for me, and thank you for being my quarterback, and the first football player I ever became a fan of.

                When I saw the news that you had been traded, I had heard that it was probably going to happen all season, so I was not surprised, but I was disappointed. I understand everything behind it. I understand that it is a football decision and a business decision, and I am probably to sentimental about it. I’m sure the Chiefs are in good hands, and I’m sure Mahomes will do a great job, but for me, you will always be the quarterback of the Kansas City Chiefs.

                I’m a collector of football memorabilia, and I have been scouring the stores in search of a #11 jersey to add to my collection, and I shall continue to do so until I find one. I have tried entering the raffles on chiefs.com to win a jersey, but to no avail. When my daughter was borne, in late November of 2016, she was only about a little over a week old, when the Chiefs faced the Raiders, in Arrowhead on Thursday night football. “That’s Alex Smith, #11, he’s our quarterback.” I told her as I held her in my arms.

                I will stop rambling now sir. I always hoped I would get a chance to meet you, so I could tell you in person what you playing for the Chiefs has meant to a young blind man and his family. I wish you and your family the absolute best, wherever your career may take you, but for me, no matter who takes the snaps for the Chiefs, you will always be my quarterback. You will always be the Quarterback of the Kansas City Chiefs to me.

Your faithful fan.

Cameron Black.

Forward Progress Was Stopped.

This blog posting is actually a piece I wrote back in January, right after the Chiefs lost their home playoff game to the Titans, after blowing a huge lead at half time, in what became known as the "forward progress" game.

                The stage was set, the stadium was filled, and as Alex Smith dawned his number 11 Jersey and helmet, for what was almost certainly his last game in Arrowhead Stadium, I once again located my radio frequency for KCFX 101 the Foxx, and the booming, jovial voice of Mitch Holthus and his fast talking partner, color commentator Kendall Gammon, filled my living room once again. The game was on my television, being broadcast by ESPN, but the TV was in its perpetual state of mute, for the visual aspects of the fast moving plays were completely lost on my blind eyes, but throughout the afternoon, my ears would not miss a word of Mitch’s exact and precise description of the game, and my brain, which has a full playbook of all formations and plays inside it, would absorb every last pass, catch, tackle, formation and play, both offensive and defensive.

                During the relatively short time I have been a football fan, I have made it my passion to have as deep and complete an understanding of the game as a sighted fan. I have carried out this task, by endlessly and tirelessly acquiring knowledge of the different plays and formations in football, and teaching myself how to visualize them in my head as they are happening. I cannot see the formations on the TV, or what plays are being run out of them, but in my mind, I have a playbook, filled with diagrams which I can visualize, of formations and different plays. To balance my practice of constant visualization, of the game I have never seen but love so much, is the ever present voice of football, Mitch Holthus, letting me know exactly what formation is being assumed, what play was just ran out of that formation and the result of that play, for better or for worse.

                So, with the voice of the Chiefs in my ear, and the Wild card matchup between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Tennessee Titans on the line, Mitch informed me that the Titans had won the coin toss and elected to defer and the Chiefs would be receiving the ball to start the first quarter, and I opened the playbook in my head to offensive formations and plays. Mitch’s first explosion of excitement came not long after kick off, in a 46 yard catch and run by Tyreek Hill, shortly after Mitch had described, in a deadpan tone, Hill’s two drops prior to that. I would not have to wait long to hear the words I long to hear, that were screamed by Mitch at the end of a 13 yard pass from QB Alex Smith to Tight End Travis Kelce, “TOUCHDOWN KAN ZUZ CITY!!!”

                The game continued in this manor for almost the entire first half. Mitch telling me, that Alex Smith was going for a play action Pass, and in my head, I visualize Smith, faking the ball to Kareem Hunt,, as he drops back in the pocket, and lobs the ball deep to an open receiver, usually Albert Wilson or Tyreek Hill. Once Mitch even stated that Smith tossed the ball to Hunt, who then tossed it right back to Smith, who then threw a dart towards Hill, and I visualized the “flee flicker” play, right before Mitch announced to his radio mass’s, that it had been a flee flicker, but had been all for not, as the pass went through the hands of Hill. The only play that would come to confuse and befuddle me, not being able to see it, was when Titans QB Marcus Mariota was sacked, the ball was fumbled and number 50 Justin Houston, swooped in to recover the fumble. The description of this play, was easy enough for me to follow in my head, so you can imagine my surprise and confusion, when Mitch told me it was being reviewed. “Reviewed for what?” I asked myself. Mitch went on to explain to me, that it was being reviewed, to determine if forward progress had stopped, and that the play was considered dead by the time the ball was recovered by Houston. This is something, that with all my knowledge and visualization, I fail to understand, and it would not be the last time. Mitch’s voice, as he described the circumstances surrounding the “forward progress” seemed as befuddled as myself, making me feel better that my constant voice of football, had no more of an idea then I did.

                The Chiefs went into half time, leading the Titans 21-3, making a Chiefs victory, and progression to the divisional game all but a certainty. Chiefs Tight End Kelce had suffered a head injury near the end of the first half, and was now in concussion protocol. The cause of such an injury, was a helmet to helmet hit by a titan’s defender, and to this blind man, that sounds like targeting to me, but the player was not ejected, and not a flag was thrown. Unfortunately, the explosions of excitement from Mitch, and his use of meddafores such as “He is tasting the sweet nectar of the end zone” which permeated the first half, would be completely absent during the second half. My heart would sink, as Mitch’s tone became more and more docile, more deadpan. I could tell by his tone, when a flag was thrown before he announced it, when a pass was dropped or deflected it before he described it, and then, in the brief seconds of raw excitement when Alex Smith threw a deep bomb, followed by a tone of despair as the ball fell to the field like a stone. These tones of disappointment would rule the second half, just as his tones of jovial excitement in his discriptions of the flawless plays had dominated the first.  To my trained ears, the tones were those of a man who is reluctant to comment and describe what he is seeing, but knows he must, for those such as myself, who are unable to draw their own conclusions from what is being shown on TV, rely on him to paint the detailed and always moving picture of the gridiron and its constantly moving players, no matter how exciting or disastrous they might be.

                One of our star defensive linemen, Chris Jones, would suffer his own knee injury, removing him from the game, and the Titans would overtake the Chiefs, 22-21, and then, when the loss was looming ahead, Mitch’s voice voice exploded once again, in a way I had not heard sense the 46 yard catch and run by Tyreek Hill in the first quarter. Mitch described the events as fast as they were occurring on the field, telling me that Derrick Henry had been tackled, had the ball stripped from him, and the Chiefs defender had ran the ball in for a Chiefs touchdown, making victory inevitable. But just as quickly as Mitch’s joy had overtaken the broadcast, it was replaced with dismay and clear disappointment, as it was ruled that prior to the ball being stripped, Henry’s forward progress had been stopped, that he was down by contact, effectively whiping the scoreboard clean of the Chiefs touchdown and sealing their fate.

                The game, along with an up and down Chiefs season, would end moments later. The Chiefs forward progress had been stopped. And with an end to the Chiefs season,  an off season of change is without question. What will happen to the Chiefs coaching staff? Should Defensive Coordinator Bob Sutton be fired? Was that indeed the final game for number 11 Alex Smith as a Kansas City Chief? And will he come to be replaced by rookie Quarterback and the number 11 draft pick Patrick Mahomes? I will not hide my disappointment, that a season that began with such promise, by defeating the New England Patriots, in Gillette Stadium, followed by four more wins, and a back to back AFC West divisional title, would end the way it did, but I am hopeful that my Chiefs will return, as will my constant companion Mitch Holthus, the voice of the Chiefs, to help a blind man see the game of football once a week.

 

The Tale of the Blind Quarterback

For as far back as I can remember, football permeated my house hold, especially college football. My father was and still is, the biggest fan and the most knowledgeable person I have ever met in the subject of football. My fathers team of passionate choice (and now my own college team) is the Oklahoma Sooners (OU).  Every Saturday during the fall was Football Saturday. Our kitchen was littered with a buffet of what my father referred to as "football food" everything from burgers and hotdogs, to little smokies, chips, queso, cheese and crackers and beef stick, anything that qualified as football food, could be found on our counter top, grill, dinner table or stove top. On a Saturday in the fall, it was not the time for seeking fatherly advice, or asking Dad to help with homework, Saturday was football day always and forever. So, I'm sure you are assuming, that I joined my father in his passionate watching of football... No I did not. Well, maybe I at least kept up with the games and new what was going on, even if I didn't actually watch a game... didn't do that either. I did not know what a quarter back was (other then the most popular guy at school) , had no clue how to pick up a new set of downs, and indeed, had no idea in the wide world of sports what a down even was. This was not because I hated football, or had anything against it, this was because, I thought it would be difficult for a blind boy to keep up with such a visual game like football. Perhaps I should have lead this post, with the fact that I was borne completely blind, well... I was borne blind, but this blog is not about my blindness. Because of my lack of vision, I did not know how I could follow a game such as football, therefore, it never appealed to me to try and learn more about it, so, I would go the next 28 years, caring nothing about football, even though, living where I did, in a football town, and living in a strong football household, I was surrounded by football every day for my entire childhood. Let us fast-forward 28 years to today. I am now married to a beautiful woman, and she just gave birth to our first child, my beautiful now 16 month old daughter. We moved to Kansas City about a year and a half ago, for it is much easier for a blind man to get a job in a place like KC. Before moving to KC, I informed my wife, that I wished to develop at least a working knowledge of football, for I knew that Kansas City was strong Chiefs country, and I wanted to be able to at least have conversations with other people concerning football. I expressed this interest to my father, and requested that he tooter me in the ways of the pig skin and the grid iron. He agreed, and after that there were at least 3 or 4 sessions over the phone that typically lasted well over an hour. After a few of these sessions, I felt I had a general knowledge of football and could understand and discuss it at some length, I decided it was time to listen to a game, but I had to solve my original dilemma, of how to watch or listen to a game and no what was going on. "Why don't you just listen to it on the radio?" suggested a friend, "The play by play commentators would make it to where you would be able to follow what was happening, as long as you have a working knowledge of football." So, I downloaded a football radio app for my talking phone, and one Sunday night in August, I settled in to listen to the preseason game of the Chiefs versus the Packers... and that was all she wrote, the fat lady sung, game over man, or game just beginning, in a simple phrase, I was hooked. "I'm only going to listen to about fifteen minutes or so."  I told my sweet wife. "I can't see myself listening to all three or four hours of any game ever." and as the old sane goes... famous last words. Perhaps, by marrying a blind man, my wife hoped she would dodge the bullet of being a football wife, unfortunately for my bride, this was not to be, for ever sense that night, I have devoured all things football, both college and NFL, at an alarming rate. My football teams of choice are the Kansas City Chiefs and for college, I am a passionate fan of the team from where I am originally from and my fathers team, and that is the Oklahoma Sooners (OU), however, I have become such a fanatic, that I will listen to a game between two teams I care nothing about, just to quench my thirst for football. My wife handles all of this beautifully however, reflecting the wonderful person she is, by making all kinds of football snacks and buying and dressing our 16 month old daughter in Kansas City Chiefs onezies.  Now, it is the football drought, which is the months of February to August, in which there is no football to be had. During these months, I keep up with all football news I can find. I follow the draft, recruiting and all other football matters you can think of, and that brings us to the crux of this blog. This blog is not about just college football or just NFL football, it is about FOOTBALL and everything that would be included under that heading. Lets talk college, lets talk the NFL. If its in the middle of the season, and you want to talk about the game last night, then look no further then right here, or if it is the off season "the football drought" and you need your fix of the grid iron, then look no further then this blog. If your a fan of the Chiefs, Patriots, OU or Alabama Crimson tide, pull up a bar stool, and lets talk some football. I will be writing my passionate rants and opinions on all matters football, from up coming games, to the outcome of past games. I will rant about the politics of football, scandals, news updates and everything in between. I strongly encourage comments of all kinds, except comments on my horrible spelling. of  All this being said...ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL???!!!