Monday
Morning QB: Fast break
offense looks more like a four-corner stall
10/8/2001
by C.K. Rairden
Landmark columnist
Offensively, it was awful. Defensively,
it could have been.
For the second time in three games, the Chiefs offense
scored no touchdowns. After the initial hype of the “fast-break”
offense subsided during the pre-season, I downgraded the
Chiefs offensive scheme to a “controlled fast break.”
If this kind of play continues, Dean Smith may be called
in and the Chiefs offense may go to the four-corner stall
against formidable foes.
Much was said about how the receivers and Trent Green
weren’t on the same page against the Broncos. Skip
that—they weren’t on the same chapter. At times,
they were perusing completely different books. Blitz sight
adjustments were missed, receivers ran out instead of
up. Receivers quit on routes. Green seemed determined
to float balls toward a general area no matter what kind
of pressure he was faced with.
The longest pass play of the day was a catch by Tony
Gonzalez sitting on the sideline. Two Denver defenders
had a shot at yet another interception; the ball ricocheted
off the defensive backs and fell right into the lucky
hands of a seated Gonzalez.
Then the luck ran out.
• • •
Trent Green’s first interception may have been because
WR Snoop Minnis ran the wrong route. Or maybe not. It
was tough to tell, but regardless the pass should not
have been thrown.
The second looked awful. Green lobbed a pass down the
sideline sort of toward Chris Thomas and another drive
was ended. It looked even worse on tape. Green jumped
in the air while back-pedaling then threw off his back
foot, and missed his receiver by 8 yards.
The third broke the teams back. A decent throw across
the middle turned ugly as WR Derrick Alexander ‘alligator
armed’ and quit on the route. Deltha O’Neal
was more than happy to take the lane vacated by Alexander
and grab his third of four picks on the afternoon. It
was the second straight pass to Alexander where he didn’t
carry his route to its completion. If Derrick is to be
the number one wide receiver in this offense, he needs
to show up every now and then.
The fourth interception was an overthrown attempt late
in the game.
• • •
One quarter of the season is over and a nasty pattern
has developed during these first four games. The Chiefs
offense is struggling to score points against any decent
team. The writing was on the wall early and not addressed
by the team. It takes personnel to run this offense. For
the Chiefs to remain competitive this season, some adjustments
must be made.
• • •
Monday Morning QB’s staff is more than happy to
stick its collective nose in with suggestions.
—Call Derrick Mayes and sign him. Healthy receivers
who can get off the line are needed.
—Replace Dante Hall. Unless he is going against
Mike Stock’s awful team he is no threat. Plus he
can’t play receiver. The team needs healthy bodies
at receiver.
—Start Chris Thomas. Let Snoop spell him.
—Find a fullback and sign him. There is no guarantee
that Richardson will return this season.
—If Mikhail Ricks is not going to be used as a TE
or a WR why is he on the roster? Use him or bring in a
receiver for his roster spot.
—Did I mention that this team needs some healthy
receivers?
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