Scott Pioli becomes Chiefs GM

We interrupt this message…. Scott Pioli former Vice President of Player Personnel for the New England Patriots becomes General Manager for the Kansas City Chiefs!

IMHO, this is a home run from both Clark Hunt and Denny Thum. Certainly Pioli is the man with the greatest pedigree. He is a four time NFL Executive of the Year. He has three rings. His assistant, former Chiefs,Thomas Dimtroff was responsible for getting Atlanta back on track this year. And perhaps most important, is his ability to discern talent. Remember, Tom Brady was a 6th round pick. And Matt Cassel was a 7th rounder who was a backup in college behind two Heisman Trophy winners. But the single greatest benefit is just what Chiefs fans need most – HOPE!

Do I think Mr. Pioli success is given? Of course not, but I believe in Denny Thum’s ability to have and build synergy with the former Patriot. As with any manager, you live and die by those you pick to trust. And the Patriots synergy through this decade has certainly payed a fantasic dividend.

This is what Robert Kraft (owner of the Patriots) had to say about Mr. Pioli:
“Scott Pioli was an integral part of the many championships the New England Patriots have celebrated this decade and I would like to thank him for his countless contributions throughout the past nine seasons. Scott is a great evaluator of talent. He is thorough in his evaluations, extremely organized and has done a tremendous job mining all possible resources to help Coach Belichick and his staff field the players needed to win consistently. He has played an important role in building a championship tradition with players that I am proud to call Patriots. On behalf of the entire Patriots organization, I wish Scott continued success in his new role and offer best wishes to his wonderful wife Dallas, and their beautiful daughter Mia. I think Clark Hunt and the Kansas City Chiefs have made a very wise hire.”

Here's to 2009!

2008 NFL Playoffs - Divisional Weekend

This year's NFL playoffs might have reinforced two football axioms:

1. Defenses win championships.
2. That's why they play 'em!

Ironically, it seems to also be saying "Home-Field Advantage" is not necessarily so. In fact, this year home-field tag is synonymous with turnovers! Both number one seeds now at home playing Guitar Hero.

RAVENS at TITANS
My heart goes out to Tennessee and Titans fans everywhere. It brought back the pain of seasons gone by and the incredible disappointment at concluding 13-3 home field season in round one of the playoffs. And for those that think Ray Lewis is finished, did you see that snot-knocker? I think Ravens @ Steelers is going to be a good game.

CARDINALS at PANTHERS
Congratulations to Kurt Warner and the Cardinals. Is it me...or have they had THAT defense all year? On the other side, I can't think of a worse birthday present for a quarterback than Jake Delhomme's 0.0 passer rating. Zero point Zero...ugh! It would seem that the Eastern Time Zone didn't have near the vexing power that the media said it would.

(Ear muffs)

While we on this...Are you FREAKIN' kidding me? How could any intelligent human being make the argument that the Arizona Cardinals can't play in the Eastern Time Zone. Especially when it was a late game, not an early kick off. Media pros made this argument for a solid week. How could a sane individual suggest any team can't play in a certain time zone. Do airline pilots have trouble landing in cities whose name begin with vowels? Do mechanics have trouble working on cars painted blue? Is it possible a minister could preach on a day, other than Sunday? And certainly, NASCAR drivers can't go anywhere that requires turning right! What a ludicrous premise. This is a statistician out-of-control!

PARITY & NUMBER ONE SEED
The NFL continues to have parity among their teams. The number one seed and home crowd is no longer enough to make it happen. Nor is the coin-flip in overtime. Nor is the title of "World Champion!" Oringally, I thought it would be the Ravens vs. Giants. Since I have to reconsider, I'd like a day to think about those Steelers too!

2008 NFL Playoffs - Wildcard Weekend

Every year, I continue to believe that I have finally "seen it all" in the NFL. Yesterday I watched the Wildcard games with great anticipation. I've always believed that December's momentum was more powerful than a team's win/loss record. But it's hard to deny that a 12-4 should be able to handle an 8-8 team, regardless of momentum.

Personally, I don't like either GM. The Colts' Bill Polian makes my job very difficult when we play the colts at Indy. And I dislike the Chargers' A.J. Smith for the way he treated Marty. I do like, and a big congratulations to, KC native and K-State'r Darren Sproles. He rocks! And I love that his size not only hasn't limited him, but I think helps him. Proof that hard work can offset many dispositions, including physical ones.

Of course, on the NFC side, Arizona had as little momentum as you can take in to post season. Nevertheless, thier defense played extremely well...and Edgerrin James played like a Pro Bowler and former Colts stud. These two games just further reveal how much parity exists in the National Football League.

A wise friend once told me..."NEVER BET ON HUMAN BEINGS!"