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2008 Kansas City Chiefs NFL Football Predictions
Overview - Kansas City certainly isn’t a ‘sexy’ team for bettors heading into the 2008 season.  Unlike their division mates in Oakland, the Chiefs haven’t been drafting big name offensive players that fans are familiar with from their college exploits.  KC closed out their miserable 2007 campaign by dropping their last nine games.  Then, they spent the offseason jettisoning veteran after veteran, entering full-blown rebuilding mode for 2008.  The Chiefs had (have) ample salary cap space, but they’ve chosen not to use it – there will be no quick fixes here.
 
Part of many bettors distaste for Kansas City stems from their coaching staff.  Head coach Herm Edwards is known for being one of the most conservative coaches in the league.  He’s surrounded himself with a staff that mirrors his approach.  New offensive coordinator Chan Gailey was one of the most conservative head coaches in college football during his just concluded tenure with Georgia Tech.  #2 overall draft choice WR Calvin Johnson was a veritable non-factor in Gailey’s offense.  Kansas City’s gameplan for 2008 will be all about defense and running the football.
 
Offense - Quarterback Brodie Croyle didn’t win in college at Alabama.  He didn’t win last year after his mid-season insertion into the starting lineup.  And Croyle has shown limited ability to inspire his teammates around him as a powerful leader.  In six starts and three games where he came off the bench in ’07, Croyle had only one game in which he threw for even 200 yards.  For the season, he managed just six touchdown passes in 224 pass attempts.
 
There’s no certainly that Croyle will be the quarterback of the future in KC – he’s no surefire, can’t miss prospect.  If he struggles again in 2008, we can expect the Chiefs to go in another direction.  Backup Tyler Thigpen, a second year pro from Coastal Carolina could get a late season look if (when?) the Chiefs officially give up on their season at some point in November or December.
 
Running back Larry Johnson is once again expected to be the workhorse of the offense.  Johnson ran for 3539 yards in ’05 and ’06, but was off to a terrible start last year before breaking his foot midway through the season and missing the remainder of the campaign.  Backup Kolby Smith performed well in his absence, and third round rookie Jamaal Charles (Texas) was added in the offseason to give the Chiefs solid depth.
 
Wide receiver Dwayne Bowe enjoyed a truly stellar rookie season, catching 70 passes for 995 yards and five touchdowns, the best showing of any rookie receiver in the league.  Tight end Tony Gonzalez has lost a step at 32, but he remains one of the premier pass catchers at his position in the league.  Behind those two, however, the Chiefs have no proven weapons at all.  Fourth round draft choice Will Franklin (Missouri) and free agent acquisition Devard Darling (Baltimore) are expected to compete for the other starting wide receiver position.
 
For most of this decade, the Chiefs sported one of the premier offensive lines in all of football.  Four of their five starters played together for four straight years, including potential Hall of Famers Willie Roaf and Will Shields.  But following the retirement of those two stud linemen, the Chiefs used six different starting offensive line combinations last year.
 
The line continues to be one of the most unsettled units on the roster heading into 2008.  The only ‘sure thing’ is left guard Brian Waters.  Rookie Brandon Flowers (first round, Virginia) is the projected starting left tackle despite the fact that he started only two games at that position in college.  Damian McIntosh is switching positions from left tackle to right tackle.  Right guard Adrian Jones was cut by the Jets; now he’s projected to start in KC.  Rudy Niswanger was a backup center last year; this year he’s projected to be the starter.  The line’s development as a unit is paramount to any success that KC fans and backers will enjoy this Fall.
 
Defense - Defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham is a conservative guy, just like his head coach.  Cunningham has been in the league for 28 years, including earlier stints as the Chiefs defensive coordinator and as their head coach.  Cunningham’s defense enjoyed some real success last year.  They were first in the NFL in third down conversions allowed, and third in the league in red zone defense, allowing only 16 touchdowns in 43 red zone tries from their opponents.
 
The Chiefs traded their sack meister, Jared Allen, to Minnesota in the offseason, but there’s still plenty of quality young talent on the defensive line.  First round draft choice Glenn Dorsey (LSU) has the potential to be an impact player from day one at defensive tackle, a premier level disrupter at the line of scrimmage.  Turk McBride, Tank Tyler and Tamba Hali each have two years of NFL experience or less, but each guy was a first day draft choice with the potential to excel.
 
The Chiefs linebacking corps is the only unit on the team to return every starter from last year.  While Derrick Johnson has never lived up to the ‘superstar’ status surrounding him after college, he’s certainly better than average.  Donnie Edwards and Napoleon Harris return as well.  Free agent acquisition Demorrio Williams started all 16 games with the Falcons last year, shoring up this unit’s depth.
 
Following the departure of Ty Law, rookie cornerback Brandon Flowers (second round, Virginia Tech) is expected to start immediately.  Like every rookie cornerback, he can be expected to have his share of struggles early on.  Fifth round draft choice Brandon Carr (Grand Valley State) could press eleven year veteran Patrick Surtain for playing time at the other corner spot.  KC has virtually no quality depth at this position. Safeties Bernard Pollard and Jarrad Page showed signs of promise last year, but neither is a proven veteran.
 
Schedule - The Chiefs will be kept well hidden from the general public, without a single national TV game on their schedule.  That being said, KC actually has a chance to get off to a decent start, with a very manageable first half slate following their season opener at New England, making it somewhat difficult to bet this team Under their season win total of six.