By Seth Herrold
It’s no secret the Chiefs are a terrible NFL team this year. Terrible doesn’t even quite represent how bad this team really is. I have watched the Chiefs for many, many years and this is as bad as I ever remember them. The team needs overhauled from the ownership down through the front office and onto the field. There are literally no bright spots for Chiefs’ fans.
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The season started off with so much hope because the key players who helped the team win the AFC West Division title in 2010 but who were injured in 2011, were all back. When Sports Illustrated picked the Chiefs to win the AFC West this year, hopes only grew.
Now, half way through the season, it’s quite obvious the Chiefs are not going to win the division. They aren’t even going to get close like they did somehow last season, missing the playoffs by a field goal. The only positive that will come out of this season is a good draft pick.
The biggest problem with the Chiefs is a good draft pick isn’t going to do this team any good. There are too many things that need to be addressed to be fixed with one draft pick. At the top of the list for many fans is the quarterback. I am a fan of Matt Cassel. I like the guy, I really do. He is a warrior who keeps picking himself up off the ground despite getting knocked down time and time again. He battles, never gives up and, when he lost the starting position to Brady Quinn, he took it in stride, doing everything he could to help get Quinn ready to start. Matt Cassel is the definition of a team player.
All that said, Matt Cassel is not a great player. Sure, he isn’t given much to work with, but the guy just lacks that killer instinct, the ability to feel a rush coming from behind him, the pin-point accuracy. He is a serviceable NFL quarterback, but not one who is going to take this team to the next level. It took me a long time to accept this because I kept thinking of the Matt Cassel from 2010. The one that made the Pro Bowl and, if it hadn’t been for freakish seasons by Michael Vick and Tom Brady that season, would have had his name mentioned in the MVP discussion.
Cassel was great that year, leading the team to 10 wins and a divisional title. Cassel also led the Patriots to a 10-win season and the playoffs before coming to Kansas City. In both those seasons, however, Cassel wasn’t needed to make plays to win games for his respective teams. He was simply asked to avoid making mistakes, which he did. When Cassel is asked to step up and make plays, however, well… just look at the past two seasons. He can avoid making mistakes and win a lot of games when he has a good offensive line and a good ground game to lean on. This year, the Chiefs have a terrible offensive line and the ground game has way under-achieved. The end result is Cassel is asked to make plays and he simply can’t. It doesn’t help having an offensive line this bad in front of him, but Cassel didn’t lose the starting spot to Quinn just because the offensive line is bad.
So, do the Chiefs need a better quarterback? Yes, there is no question. But, do I want to see the Chiefs and Matt Cassel part ways? No. Like I said, I like Cassel and he is a team player that would really help a young quarterback along, especially if the Chiefs use this good draft pick on one. A quarterback doesn’t come close to fixing all the Chiefs’ problems, but it’s certainly a step in the right direction.