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2009 RECAP: THE WIDE RECEIVERS
January 19th – 5:09 PM

Last, but certainly not least, it’s time to take a look at the 2009 Kansas City Chiefs wide receiving core. Here’s a group that had some major setbacks and surprises. Leading the league in dropped passes (49) certainly wasn’t expected, but neither was the amount of roster turnover that saw veterans like Bobby Engram and Mark Bradley not make it through the season on Kansas City’s roster. Let’s take a look at those who closed out the season as Chiefs.

Dwayne Bowe — The biggest bombshell to hit the Chiefs in 2009 had to have been the league announcement that came across the wire stating Bowe had been suspended for four games due to the use of performance enhancing drugs (reportedly a diuretic). Ironically, Bowe would go on to lead the Chiefs in receptions for the first time in his career despite turning in the lowest receiving marks and games played totals as an NFL’er.

Bowe went from doghouse to penthouse to outhouse over the course of the season. In a way, Bowe’s year symbolized the wide receiving core as a whole. Bowe is a good teammate, person and wide receiver. His incredible athletic ability often shined bright in 2009, as it has in previous years, but so did his occasional lack of concentration.

Currently, Bowe is a vital piece of the Chiefs offensive puzzle. He and his quarterback need to enter 2010 fully on the same page to supplement the run game that Charles provides. If that can consistently happen, a big year could be in store for all parties involved.

Chris Chambers — He was certainly the Waiver Wire MVP of the Chiefs in 2009 and might have been the Waiver Wire MVP of the entire league for that matter. Chambers left a frustrating rotational situation in San Diego for a chance to become “the guy” in Kansas City when Bowe went on the suspended list.

Despite joining the team in November, Chambers led the team in both receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. He also single-handidly changed the Chiefs passing game. A legitimate downfield target, the Chiefs completed 14 passes of 30 or more yards in the nine games Chambers was on the roster. In the seven others, Kansas City completed just three such passes.

Chambers’ future in Kansas City is uncertain. He becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2010.

Terrance Copper — Just a special teamer? Copper spent the first 15 games of 2009 as a vital cog to almost every special teams unit. In Week 16, Copper got into the receiving act by opening the game with a 50-yard reception - just his third catch of the season - that set the tone for Kansas City’s Mile High route of Denver. Copper seemed to be a forgotten player many times during 2009, but he was rarely without a role on gameday. He finished with 16 special teams tackles, just one behind the team-lead.

Copper is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent in 2010. Will he be re-signed to served the same fifth WR/special teams role once again?

Quinten Lawrence — Most folks believe that Chambers is the fastest Chiefs wide receiver, but that title likely belongs to Lawrence. The 2009 sixth-round pick served as a ping pong ball between the Chiefs active roster and practice squad during his rookie season. By the end of the year, Lawrence found himself as the primary kickoff returner and fourth receiver. He’s young and fast, so he’ll likely get an opportunity to take that role in 2010. He’ll also likely have some competition.

Two weeks ago Haley mentioned Lawrence as a player that could be a part of Kansas City’s future. We saw just a sprinkle of the McNeese State product in 2009. Will we get the whole flavor in 2010?

Lance Long — Long’s season is a bit confusing. When he joined the Chiefs practice squad off waivers in September, most everyone knew that it was only a matter of time before Long suited up on game day. Once he did, Long’s impact was immediately felt. He was thrown to a team-high 11 times for a team-leading eight catches in just second week of action at Jacksonville. From there, Long briefly took over the club’s starting slot position, but didn’t turn in more than two catches per game the rest of the way. He was also tried briefly as a return man, but didn’t make the duties permanent.

After playing a major role in seven consecutive games, Long found himself on the inactive list for the final three contests to close out 2009. Where does he fit for 2010? Long seems to be yet another player who will be in the midst of heavy competition this offseason.

Bobby Wade — Like Long, Wade made an immediate impact with the Chiefs, catching a team-high six passes for 72 yards just three days on the job vs. Oakland (9/20). From there, Wade would go on to post a respectable 40 receptions, but he was also a gamday roster causality on numerous occasions. One week Wade would be inactive and the next he’d be a starter.

The Chiefs and Wade continually went back and forth in 2009 as to which role he would play. When 2010 rolls around there shouldn’t be a question. Wade will be an unrestricted free agent.

Devard Darling — Remember him? Just a few weeks after the infamous training camp “send off” in River Falls, Darling worked his way into a starting role. Unfortunately Darling was never able to see the fruit of his labors as he tore his knee vs. Seattle during the preseason and spent the entire season on injured reserve.

Darling signed a three-year contract in 2008, so there is a chance that we’ll see Darling wearing red once again on Sundays.

Wide Receivers MVP: Chris Chambers - He learned on the fly, all while giving the Chiefs a legitimate deep threat that the offense so desperately needed. He also stabilized what could have been a nightmarish situation with Bowe out for a month of football. Chambers also had a role in Jamaal Charles’ breakout campaign whether it be by decoy or in the downfield blocking game. The fact that he led the Chiefs in receiving yards despite playing only 10 games with the club says a lot about his season.

That’s it for the wide receivers recap and the 2009 offense as a whole. Tomorrow, we’ll begin to dig into the defensive side of the football.

2009 RECAP: THE QUARTERBACKS
January 19th – 3:36 PM

It was an up-and-down year indeed for the Chiefs quarterbacks. The days of Trent Green starting 81 consecutive games, spanning over the course of six seasons, seem like a faint memory. The Chiefs haven’t had a quarterback start all 16 regular season games since Green did it in 2005; 2009 was no exception with starter Matt Cassel missing the season opener at Baltimore with a knee injury.

The quarterback group, specifically Cassel, may have suffered the greatest impact from the late change in offensive philosophy. Cassel literally took an on-the-job training course in Haley’s offensive philosophy when he returned from the knee injury to play his first game (preseason or regular season contest) in the Chiefs new offensive scheme.

Even though Cassel’s first year as the Chiefs starter took a few wild swings, both positively and negatively, this is one of the few positions with a firm starter in place for 2010. Cassel’s the guy that will lead Kansas City into the Charlie Weis era of offense. Let’s recap the year that was for the Chiefs quarterbacks.

Matt Cassel — Cassel literally had just six (physical) practices to prepare for his debut in the Chiefs new offensive scheme, prior to making his first start as a Chief in the home opener vs. Oakland. Over 50 practices during the spring, and in training camp, were sent by the wayside as Cassel could only prepare mentally in the final two weeks leading up to his 2009 debut. Cassel’s knee injury slowed things down for both him, and the offense as a whole, to begin the season.

Without an effective run game, and with Cassel sporting a bum knee over the first half of the season, the Chiefs offense didn’t get off to the hot start that Chiefs fans or Matt Cassel wanted. But as Cassel’s knee improved, so did his mobility and effectiveness. Sack totals went down with a more agile Cassel and Jamaal Charles’ rushing binge in the second half of the season certainly didn’t hurt things either.

Cassel looked much more comfortable under center during the second half of the season, but his numbers didn’t correlate. It’s interesting that as the Chiefs offense began to take flight, Cassel’s numbers fell. Cassel threw 10 of his 16 INTs over the final six games of the season. That number is somewhat unique as quarterback numbers typically increase in correlation to the effectiveness of a rushing attack.

With that said, the Chiefs improved in virtually every offensive category when comparing weeks 1-8 with weeks 9-16 - specifically for QBs, net passing yards and 20+ yard completions both improved dramtically. A marked improvement in consistency is likely the area that Cassel will focus his attention this offeseaosn. Unlike last year, he’ll have an entire spring and summer to prepare for what the Chiefs will roll out offensively in 2010.

Brodie Croyle — The odds were against Brodie Croyle having the season that he did. Here is a guy that was in serious danger of not even making the team when training camp began. Let’s think about it…

Croyle didn’t take a single snap this offseason until the first day of training camp. That’s six full months of a new head coach seeing nothing but rehab work from Croyle. Throw in the fact that Haley is a stickler for availability and the fact that Croyle has more than his fair share of injury problems and it’s not exactly an ideal first impression. Then there was the whole tag of being the previous regimes “QB of the future.” Croyle had an uphill battle ahead of him to say the least.

Once Croyle came back, he slowly worked his way up the depth chart with an extremely solid training camp. He soured past Ingle Martin and eventually surpassed Tyler Thigpen solely on practice performance. Eventually, Croyle fought his way to the top and became the opening day starter in place of an injured Matt Cassel. He was unquestionable a head-turner in River Falls and he carried that momentum over to Baltimore by turning in the Chiefs first quarterback rating of 100.0+ since 2006 (min. 20 attempts).

Two weeks ago Croyle was identified as a core player, part of the Chiefs nucleus for 2010. By the end of the year, Croyle was even suggesting plays to Haley - remember the wishbone play-action pass to FB Tim Castille at Cincinnati? Honestly, 2009 might have been Croyle’s best as a pro, all things considered.

Croyle is scheduled to become a restricted free agent in 2010.

Matt Gutierrez — Gutierrez had a year much like most third quarterbacks across the league. He served a full season as the Chiefs scout team quarterback and took a few snaps during the closing minutes of some decided football games. The fact that he remained on the roster the entire year tells us that he performed his role at an acceptable level. He is scheduled to become a restricted free agent in 2010.

Quarterbacks MVP: Matt Cassel - Croyle was awarded the Chiefs “Comeback Player of the Year” Award for his efforts this season. Still, Matt Cassel is the MVP of this position group. Big strides are expected from 2009 to 2010 as improvements from year one to year two running an offense should be significant.

53 YOUNGSTERS ENTER DRAFT
January 19th – 10:47 AM

The NFL has granted 53 college players special eligibility for the 2010 NFL Draft. This means that each player has met the NFL three-year eligibility rule and has renounced their NCAA eligibility. Last year, 46 players were granted special eligibility.

Local players of note that are now draft eligibile via special eligibility are…

QB Sam Bradford, OU
WR Dezmon Briscoe, KU
WR Dez Bryant, OKST
T Bryan Bulaga, IA
DB Dominique Franks, OU
TE Jermaine Gresham, OU
DT Gerald McCoy, OU
DB Joshua Moore, KSU
DB Amari Spievey, IA

GOING LIVE AT NOON
January 19th – 10:07 AM

As has been the case all season (and offseason) long, CHIEFS LIVE! will be held at Noon (CST) right here on kcchiefs.com.

Today’s topics include:

• Divisional Playoff Round Recap
  
• Awards Week
• Tyson Jackson rookie DL comparison
• Chan Gailey to the Bills
• The 1998 Jets
  
• Romeo Crennel

We’ll cover much more than that and, as always, take your live calls to discuss anything and everything Chiefs related. See you at Noon.

2009 RECAP: RUNNING BACKS
January 19th – 6:06 AM

When Chiefs fans think happy thoughts following a 4-12 close to the 2009 season, the mind unquestionably shifts to #25 darting his way through (and past) the line into the second-level. From there, it quite often becomes a foot race and Charles rarely loses. His speed, athleticism and big-play potential are rivaled by few in the league and he single-handedly changed the way defenses prepared against Kansas City down the stretch. 

Jamaal Charles = happy thoughts.

Just two months ago, however, that wasn’t the case. Anything and everything associated with the Chiefs ground game was thought of as sub-par, at best. There was Larry Johnson’s incredibly low yards per carry mark, zero rushing TDs through eight games and off-the-field issues to boot. The change in backfield scenery that the Chiefs made on November 9th yielded nothing but positive results for all parties involved. 

What a bizarre year it was for the Chiefs running backs. Let’s take a quick look at those involved in closing out 2009.

Jamaal Charles – What more can anyone say that hasn’t already been said? We know about the franchise single-game rushing record, 1,000-yard season, touchdown streak and 5.89 yards per carry mark. We also know of Charles’ incredible bounce back from adversity when he thought his career in Kansas City might be over following an inactive status in the home opener. We know that Charles absolutely blew up over the final half of the season and, as a result, is the feature man for next season. Really, the only question that remains is who serves as Charles’ primary backup for 2010?

Tim Castille – When Castille was signed off the street November 17th, many Chiefs fans asked, “Why?” At the time, the Chiefs had FB Mike Cox and a healthy trio of rushers in Charles, Kolby Smith and Dantrell Savage – not to mention a rookie draftee on the practice squad in Javarris Williams. Where in the world would Castille fit?

It didn’t take long to figure out Todd Haley’s plans for Castille. A “cross-over” back, Castille originally took over the fullback role that Jackie Battle played to compliment Cox. He could block in similar situations as Cox, but was also able to handle trap carries, single-back sets and passing routes. Once Savage and Smith went down to injury, Castille’s role only expanded alongside Charles.

Overall, Castille had a very quiet, yet productive first season in Kansas City. He was a major reason the Chiefs were able to implement multiple shifts at the line of scrimmage and was a stand-in many times when Charles needed a breather. Does Castille fit into the plans for 2010? We’ll have to see. I’m sure he hopes Haley and Co. remember that circus grab he had at Cincinnati for his first career TD.

Mike Cox – Cox strikes me as the guy that you’re always trying to replace, but never can find someone to take the job away from him. That’s not a knock on the guy. In fact, it’s a compliment.

The former rookie free agent was brought in to man the blocking duties when his former collegiate head coach took over guidance of the Chiefs offense. As Chan Gailey came and went, Cox continued to stay and fought off plenty of competition for his job. At the end of the day, players like Battle and Castille were inserted to take over short-yardage carries, but nobody ever took Cox’s job as the primary blocking back.

Cox just looks the part of a fullback, face continually bloody and all. He’ll probably face competition once again this offseason for his job, but I wouldn’t ever count Cox out. Having players who fully understand their role in invaluable. Cox knows his role better than maybe anyone on the roster.
Cox is scheduled to become an exclusive rights free agent in 2010.

Javarris Williams – Williams, a 2009 draftee, was released following training camp and spent the entire season on the practice squad waiting for his call to the “bigs.” The promotion finally came prior to the December 6th game vs. Denver and Williams was welcomed to the league with two carries for negative five yards. He’s a raw runner coming from a small school (Tennessee State), but he has the build of and NFL “role runner.” Exactly what the role is in the future will depend on Williams’ 2010 offseason. He’ll likely have plenty of open competition for carries behind Charles.

Dantrell Savage – Savage is like a present-day Boomer Grigsby. Their games resemble little to no similarity, but they both built themselves into massive fan favorites with their play during training camps. Savage’s reckless abandon and small frame make him an easy guy to like and have kept him a part of a very volatile bottom of the Chiefs roster the past two seasons. Injuries and a key fumble dampened the mighty man’s season, but his play is still respected.

Kolby Smith – There isn’t a person out there who doesn’t want to see Smith succeed. He does the right things, plays the right way and is effective…when he’s healthy. The three words at the end of that last sentence are the ones to key on.

Ever since his 150-yard breakout game vs. Oakland as a rookie in 2007, excitement has surrounded Smith. Unfortunately, injuries have as well. A season-ending knee injury in 2008 and a season-ending ankle ailment in 2009 have limited Smith to just 11 games over the past two seasons. Here’s to Kolby’s health in the future.

Smith is scheduled to become a restricted free agent in 2010.

Jackie Battle – A special teamer who’s often found himself among the very last players on the 53-man roster looked like he’d found some staying power to begin 2009. Battle served as a situational back and paved the way for “crossover” Tim Castille over the second half of the year. He’s big, fast, physical and can serve nearly any special teams assignment thrown his way outside of kicking and punting (haven’t seen him snap, but who knows…kidding).

Battle’s shoulder injury took him out early in 2009, but this guy will be a tough out for the remainder of his NFL career. There is a seemingly endless need for guys like battle on nearly every NFL roster.

Battle is scheduled to become an exclusive rights free agent in 2010.

Running Backs MVP: Jamaal Charles – He’s the team MVP, so it’s only appropriate for Charles to serve as MVP of his position group as well. He led the Chiefs in rushing yards (1,120), yards from scrimmage (1,417), combined net yards (2,342) and total TDs (nine) in 2009, registering five 100-yard rushing games. Over the season’s final eight games, his 968 rushing yards ranked second in the league behind only Tennessee RB Chris Johnson (1,047), while his 1,126 yards from scrimmage over that span were topped only by Johnson (1,388). Charles became the first player in NFL history to rush for over 1,100 yards on fewer than 200 rushing attempts, needing just 190 carries to become the ninth player in Chiefs history to record a 1,000-yard campaign.

So, yeah…Charles is pretty good.

Up Next: The Quarterbacks

2009 RECAP: TIGHT ENDS
January 18th – 1:47 PM

The 2009 Kansas City Chiefs tight ends underwent as much roster turnover and depth chart jockeying than perhaps any other position on the club’s roster. We saw Brad Cottam lose out on the starting tight end role in training camp, only to make a late season surge before suffering a season-ending injury. 
Then there was the early impact of Sean Ryan, which fizzled out to see late acquisition Leonard Pope eventually serve as the new starter. 

There was lots of action among a position group that Chiefs fans aren’t accustomed to seeing take stock market-like ups and downs. Let’s take a look.

Leonard Pope – When Pope walked into the Chiefs locker room as a free agent signee on September 29th he looked like the second coming of Jason Dunn. At 6-8, 264, it was clear what Pope’s role on the team would be. He served as the role as the Chiefs “extra tackle” and occasional red zone target before becoming the starter for the second half of the season. His 20 catches for 174 yards with a TD were team highs, but Pope would have easily eclipsed career marks with a full season as Kansas City’s starter.

Sean Ryan – The star of training camp, Ryan came out of nowhere to earn the starting tight end job for the season opener. Ryan’s solid camp initially carried over to the playing field, as he was the Chiefs leading receiver several weeks into the season and scored his first career TD at Baltimore in his first game as the club’s starter. Not bad for a guy with 12 career catches over five seasons with five different teams prior to 2009. 

Unfortunately all of Ryan’s offensive production seized following the Chiefs win at Washington on October 18th. After starting the first eight games of the season, inconsistencies and the emergence of Pope led Ryan to an inactive status in six of the last eight games.

Ryan is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent in 2010.

Brad Cottam – Cottam has Chiefs fans intrigued heading into 2010. After entering training camp as the favorite to start at tight end, Cottam ultimately found himself buried on the depth chart when camp broke. Head coach Todd Haley gave Cottam plenty of areas to work on should Cottam wish to enter the lineup again. Cottam effectively went to work.

After seeing minimal playing time over the first three months of the season, Cottam re-emerged with three catches to open December vs. Denver and parlayed that success into some very impressive deep catches on post routes vs. Buffalo and Cleveland. By the end of the year, Cottam looked fluid, physical, smart and athletic. His season ended with a scare and he underwent surgery on his neck after going airborne in a first down attempt vs. the Browns.

Cottam should recover just fine from his injury. He has all the physical characteristics that a team could desire from a tight end. Will he take the next step in 2010? Cottam is one of the top players to watch this offseason.

Jake O’Connell – Exactly what do the Chiefs have with O’Connell? The team certainly tried to answer that question towards the end of the season when O’Connell played significant snaps in the final three games of the season. The rookie had been inactive the first 12 of 13 games prior to those final three contests. The Chiefs seventh-round pick came up big by getting his paw on a punt at Denver, but he also had a handful of drops as he adjusted to the speed change from MAC football to the NFL game. 

O’Connell is yet another young player with lots to show when OTAs open up this spring.

Tight Ends MVP: Leonard Pope – Pope’s big body solidified a position on shaky ground for the second half of the season. He gave the Chiefs a much-needed blocking presence on the edge and was able to fill the receiving role as of him offensively. He led the Chiefs tight ends in all major categories despite not entering the starting lineup until November 15th.

Tomorrow’s Look: The Running Backs

CHIEFS “ROOKS” HONORED
January 18th – 11:42 AM

It’s only fitting that during awards week, a pair of Chiefs rookies would be honored for their initial NFL season. Both DE Tyson Jackson and K Ryan Succop have been named to the Pro Football Weekly NFL All-Rookie Team.

Succop was a shoe-in for the kicking honor as he turned in the finest statistical kicking season of any rookie since the NFL merger in 1970. He also e established a Chiefs rookie record with 25 made field goals, surpassing the previous mark of 21 established by Hall of Fame K Jan Stenerud in 1967.

Jackson, on the other hand, was anything but a shoe-in as he went sackless as a rookie. Many times defensive ends are only judged off sack production, which is an uninformed analysis when it comes to evaluating a 3-4 defensive end. It’s nice to see Jackson receive a national honor as the top rookie at his position.

The All-Rookie team was voted selected by Pro Football Weekly, along with the Professional Football Writers of America. Here is the complete 2009 NFL All-Rookie Team.

Offense

QB Mark Sanchez / Jets

RB Knowshon Moreno / Broncos

RB Beanie Wells / Cardinals

WR Percy Harvin / Vikings

WR Austin Collie / Colts

TE Brandon Pettigrew / Lions

C Alex Mack / Browns

OG Andy Levitre / Bills

OG Louis Vasquez / Chargers

OT Michael Oher / Ravens

OT Phil Loadholt / Vikings

 

Defense

DL Tyson Jackson / Chiefs

DL Terrance Knighton / Jaguars

DL B.J. Raji / Packers

DL Matt Shaughnessy / Raiders

LB Brian Cushing / Texans

LB Clay Matthews / Packers

LB Brian Orakpo / Redskins

CB Vontae Davis / Dolphins

CB Jacob Lacey / Colts

S Jairus Byrd / Bills

S Louis Delmas / Lions

 

Specialists

PK Ryan Succop / Chiefs

P Pat McAfee / Colts

PR Quan Cosby / Bengals

KR Percy Harvin / Vikings

ST LaRod Stephens-Howling / Cardinals

AWARDS WEEK
January 18th – 7:33 AM

Congrats to the Colts, Jets, Vikings and Saints. A weekend of hard fought playoff games is in the books once more and each franchise reaching their respective conference championship games is well deserved.

Now, on to Chiefs talk.

It’s Awards Week here at kcchiefs.com as we’ll hand out our first-ever KCCHIEFS.com Awards in six categories today. We’ll also recap each player from each position group throughout the week.

Without further adieu, the winners of the first-annual KCCHIEFS.com Awards are as follows (be sure to check the “awards” video in the main scroll for player highlights and award analysis):

Comeback Player of the Year – QB Brodie Croyle

Role Player of the Year – OL Wade Smith

Breakthrough Player of the Year – RB Jamaal Charles

Offensive Player of the Year – RB Jamaal Charles

Defensive Player of the Year – CB Brandon Flowers

Rookie of the Year – K Ryan Succop

Congrats to each of the players listed above on a job well done in 2009.

Moving on, let’s take a look at the season of each player on the Chiefs roster and select positional MVPs beginning with the offensive linemen.

2009 Chiefs Offensive Line
T Branden Albert – Albert sported a much trimmer and athletic frame in 2009, manning the “blind side” of QB Matt Cassel. Albert took time to adjust to his new frame and struggled a bit out of the gates to open the season. But as the Chiefs o-line progressed over the second half of the season, so did Albert. “B.A.” was a major factor in the Chiefs cutting their sack total from 30 over the first eight games to 15 over the last eight. His effort to make three blocks that sent RB Jamaal Charles free at Denver might have been his most impressive play of the year.

Albert missed two games with an ankle injury this year and missed one with an elbow injury in 2008 as a rookie. He’s very much a port of Kansas City’s future and will continue his offseason weight training in hopes of starting all 16 games injury-free in 2010.

G Brian Waters – Brian kept quite from a media perspective in 2010, but that didn’t mean he was any less vocal away from the media. Waters’ on-field and in-house leadership qualities are unparalleled. The bedrock on the Chiefs offensive line, Waters started 14 or more games for the eighth consecutive season. After a reportedly rocky start to the offseason, Waters was his normal, reliable self on and off the field.

The Chiefs 2010 draft should be an exciting time for Chiefs fans. One scenario that a lot of fans seem to think may unfold is the drafting of a left tackle, shifting Albert to guard and Waters to center. Albert played the position in college while Waters began his career in Kansas City as a backup center to Casey Wiegmann. Neither Todd Haley nor Scott Pioli have addressed that thought, but it’s just another scenario to keep an eye on as the Chiefs continue an exciting 2010 offseason.

C Rudy Niswanger – If there is an ironman award to be given out on the Chiefs offensive line this season, it would most certainly go to Niswanger. After going down with a knee injury vs. San Diego, many were preparing for Niswanger to be done for the year. Not only did he quickly rehab from the once thought-to-be serious knee injury, but he didn’t miss a start. The Chiefs were in a vulnerable situation with Wade Smith already starting for an injured Branden Albert and Andy Alleman filling in for an injured Mike Goff (who got hurt vs. San Diego as well). There isn’t a more cerebral lineman on the Chiefs roster.

Niswanger is scheduled to become a restricted free agent in 2010.

G Mike Goff – It was a disappointing year for Goff, an offseason unrestricted free agent signee. Goff came to Kansas City as an extremely durable performer, playing in 106 consecutive games that dated all the way back to 2002. With the Chiefs, Goff’s season ended when he was shipped to injured reserve with a shoulder injury after just seven starts. An anticipated regular starter, Goff wasn’t around to see the much improved Chiefs offensive line from weeks 9-16.

T Ryan O’Callaghan – Remember the Chiefs right tackle situation before O’Callaghan arrived via waivers from New England? The Chiefs had three different starters at right tackle during training camp (Damion McIntosh, Barry Richardson and Ikechuku Ndukwe) before O’Callaghan steadied the position. He went on to start 12 games, missing one with a knee injury.

O’Callaghan is scheduled to become a restricted free agent in 2010.

G Wade Smith – A true “sixth man,” Smith did it all coming off the bench to fill in for injuries at left tackle and right guard. He showed in 2009 that he has the ability to play each position along the offensive front and was by far the best option coming off the bench. By the end of the year, Smith found himself as one of the best five linemen on the team. Despite the playing the role as the Chiefs primary reserve, Smith still managed to start nine of 16 games this season. Where would the Chiefs have been this year without Wade Smith?

Smith is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent in 2010.

C/G Andy Alleman – Part of the package deal from Miami that brought Ikechuke Ndukwe to Kansas City as well, Alleman showed his versatility by logging starts at both guard positions. He also had the smart to step in as the captain of the offensive line at center if the need arose. As the season winded down and Smith took over starting duties, Alleman often found himself serving as the “sixth man.”

Alleman is scheduled to become a restricted free agent in 2010.

G Darryl Harris – Harris, a rookie free agent showed plenty of promise in training camp and found himself a spot on the practice squad. There were numerous times during the season when it looked like Harris would crack the 53-man roster, but he patiently waited until December 19th for his call. Harris was inactive for two games and played as a reserve in one. He has a very big offseason ahead of him.

G/T Ikechuku Ndukwe – Ndukwe did a nice job coming in on short notice and becoming the Chiefs starting right tackle in a matter of days, not weeks. He held down a shaky roster situation for the first three games of 2009 until O’Callaghan was adjusted to the Kansas City playbook and ready to go. His effort was admirable considering he’d been a guard since entering the league in 2005.

Ndukwe is scheduled to become a restricted free agent in 2010.

T Barry Richardson – Big Barry may possess the rawest power of any player on the Chiefs offensive front. After ending getting an opportunity at the starting right tackle position in training camp, Richardson was unable to hold on to the role and ended up being release in the final cuts of camp. Richardson’s future with the Chiefs appeared in doubt at the time, but he would make a comeback by working on his fundamentals and technique as part of the practice squad.

Richardson came back to the Chiefs midseason to appear in 10 games. Another player with a vital offseason ahead of him, will this be the year that Big Barry takes the next step?

G Colin Brown – Here’s a guy who we won’t get a read on until workouts kick back up in the spring. Brown opened his rookie season as a tackle before shifting to guard towards the end of training camps. We saw him as a guard briefly before he went on injured reserve with a knee injury.

Will Brown continue to play guard? Will he shift back to play tackle? How will his injured knee hold up? Where does he fit in the future? These are all questions with answers TBD this offseason.

Offensive Line MVP: Rudy Niswanger – This pick may come as a surprise to many, but Niswagner battled injuries to stabilize season-long injury instability up front. He was the only player along the offensive line to start all 16 games of the season and he was generally lined up against the biggest and strongest opposing defensive lineman (particularity against 3-4 fronts). Plus, with Waters not talking to the media, Niswanger became the off-field leader by answering most of the tough questions from the media.

Stay tuned…we’ll take a look at the tight ends later today.