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SCORING OPPORTUNITIES HAUNT CHIEFS
September 22nd – 4:05 PM

Chiefs head coach Todd Haley has reviewed the game film from last Sunday. He saw many of the same things as you. He saw a defense that kept a high-powered Raiders rushing attack in check. He saw an offense that produced 25 first downs and 170 yards on the ground against a stout front seven. He also saw a team that squandered scoring opportunities.

“We need to figure out offensively how to score points and not waste scoring opportunities like we did at the end of the half,” Haley said.

The clock running down on the Chiefs at the end of the first half last Sunday was the most visible mistake on a day where the Chiefs rallied off close to four times the amount of offensive output their opponent produced. But this is the NFL, and in the NFL it is tough to win when you produce a 0% red zone efficiency.

Sure, turnovers mental errors and penalties played a part in the Chiefs loss, but the deciding factor was squandering scoring opportunities. That’s the only way to explain a loss after holding an opponent to just seven total completions and 67 rushing yards, all while exploding for over 400 yards of total offense.

Haley faced the firing squad today and explained the use of time outs, personnel sightings and workload. He listened, processed and explained with honest answers. But the reality is that the Chiefs are 0-2. Haley knows that and is ready to move on. To him, the season is divided into four quarters and the second half of the first quarter begins on Sunday in Philly.

“It’s as disappointing as you can be when you lose on Sunday,” Haley said. “When you feel like you have an opportunity to win the game it makes it worse. We could be 2-0 right now, we could be 1-1; we could be 0-2. We’re 0-2 in the first quarter of the season. That’s the way I look at the season and that’s the way I’d like my team to look at the season. It’s the way I was taught a long time ago. We’ve got two games left in this quarter and we’ve got to figure out a way to get a couple back.”

CHARLES INACTIVE STATUS UPDATE
September 22nd – 1:59 PM

One of the biggest surprises among fans regarding the Chiefs inactives vs. Oakland didn’t revolve around an injury. RB Jamaal Charles was held out of the Raiders game despite being healthy. Chiefs head coach Todd Haley confirmed today that Charles was indeed injury-free on Sunday.

Haley went on the record today about Charles’ inactive status. In the end of the day, Charles’ inactivity stems from a numbers crunch, wanting to get a look at RB Dantrell Savage and giving Kansas City the best chance to win.

“I’ve made it pretty clear, we’re going to continue to do everything we can to figure out who the guys are that give us the best chance to win,” Haley said. “We have some limitations offensively number-wise as we go into each game. There is some juggling that has to go on and I think that we had a guy in Savage that sat the first week that we wanted to see.

“There is going to be somebody left out every week,” Haley continued. “That’s all part of the process and it’s happening at other positions also, and it’s going to continue to happen until we feel like we’re going in the direction we want to go.”

TRANSACTION TUESDAY?
September 22nd – 9:22 AM

Now that QB Matt Cassel is back in action, the need to roster four quarterbacks dwindles. Today is “Transaction Tuesday” around the league and KC has been busy working out players at positions across the board. Will a roster move be made this afternoon? We’ll keep you updated on kcchiefs.com.

DJ KEEPS CHARGING FORWARD
September 22nd – 6:00 AM

Way back on August 24th, Chiefs head coach Todd Haley said this about LB Derrick Johnson…

“Derrick needs to get it going a little bit, I’d say,” Haley said.

It was short, sweet and to the point. Haley wanted Johnson to focus on his game and increase his productivity. Shortly afterwards, Johnson found himself running with the third-team defense. That was nearly a month ago.

“I’ve got to go by what I see,” Haley said a few weeks ago, “and not go by what I hope.”

Obviously Haley saw a player that needed to pick his game up. Many thought the coach might be bluffing. He wasn’t. He was (and is) serious about performance. Over the course of this past month, Johnson has seen himself play through the fourth quarter of the final preseason game in St. Louis and serve a complimentary role on the defense this regular season. All the while, however, Johnson has remained level-headed.

“It’s more frustrating to lose,” Johnson said. “Do I want to play more? Yeah. I’m a football player. I’ve been a starter in the league. It’s not a big problem though. Every time I’m out there I try to make plays. That’s my job. I’m a football player and I don’t complain or anything like that. I’m a player that goes out and if you tell me to do something, I’m going to do it. I am very coachable.”

Johnson has responded by doing what he can in small pieces. He’s played just 36 plays over the first two games, but he’s is doing what he can to contribute in a positive manner. Johnson leads the team in interceptions (one for 70 yards) and is tied for the team lead in both sacks and quarterback pressures.

On the surface, it looks as if Johnson is doing anything and everything he can to get back on the field more frequently. Mentally, it’s a wild card. Only the coaching staff and Johnson himself know DJ’s Monday morning film grade. The important part, though, is that Johnson is working hard, keeping his mouth shut and letting his actions do the talking.

He was unofficially promoted yesterday from the third-team defense to the second-team defense via the Chiefs latest depth chart.

“I speak by actions and that’s the best way to do it,” Johnson said. “Some people handle situations differently and I’m not verbal when it comes to this situation. It’s very new to me, but I just want to let my play out on the field speak. Hopefully I can get more reps and there will be more things that I can do.”

Johnson has done some soul searching since his demotion. He’s stood tall in front of the media and fielded tough questions regarding his play. Generally, he’s handled the demotion well, supported the direction of the new coaching staff and even revealed weaknesses in his game that he needs to work on.

Johnson seems to have grown up a lot during the very early portion of this 2009 campaign. He’s quietly shown maturity and a team-first attitude while fighting back up the ladder of linebackers to reach his goals.

“At the end of the day I just want to win,” Johnson said.

At the end of the day, that’s all that his coaching staff, the front office and the fan base want as well. If Johnson continues to keep a positive attitude and focuses on playing a consistent game, he’ll like where it takes him.