When the Saints Came Marching In

There are a couple of items from the Chiefs 20-30 loss to the Saints that stand out to me. The first of these is field position. Shortening the field on the NFL's number one offense was not the Special Teams finest moments. We also seemed to lose the battle at the line of scrimmage when it counted. And bad officiating didn't help. (Yes - I know they only had one camera angle. So, does that make it bad broadcasting? Give me a break - it's bad officiating whether it is on the field or in the reply booth - it's bad officiating. They can't fine me! Bad...bad...bad!!!)

And dropped passes...what kind of SHOW is that?

Enter the silver lining....Tyler Thigpen success in this league may just be tied to his health. If he is fortunate enough to stay healthy, I believe Tyler will become a playmaking quarterback that we haven't seen here in KC in some time. There are two plays in particular I would like to point out:

The first was a design option play. Tyler makes a quick post-snap read on the middle line-backer and defensive line. When I say quick...I mean quick. Within the span of 9 frames of video (which is approximately 1/3 of a second), Thigpen assess whether or not the middle linebacker breaks on the Y receiver's route...AND...if the defensive line is stunting or not. During the Saints game, the Chiefs ran this play twice. Thigpen read it perfectly for a short completion and for a huge QB keeper. The first part that amazes me is how quick this read must be made. And even if you want to believe he guessed right both times - he still beat the corner to the outside on the keeper. THAT IS PLAYMAKING!

On another play, Thigpen scrambles right. He is setting, pumping, and doing everything he can to cause the defense to balk. Seeing no safety in the middle of the field, and Will Franklin breaking, Tyler throws across his body for a 40 plus yard gain. Now every coach out there will tell you, Quarterbacks cannot throw back across their body while running the other direction. Quarterbacks, maybe not...PLAYMAKERS...OH YEAH!

I truly believe an average quarterback, with only 6 games experience would have thrown this ball away. Thigpen waits to the last second and then makes a perfectly safe throw to an area where only a Chief could catch it.

Here's hoping he finds his first win against the Bills this weekend.