Chiefs Sam Mellinger Nails It! - Page 4

Marcellus · 11-18-2012, 07:39 PM

Sam Mellinger | Chiefs’ disconnect with angry fan base grows deeper
By SAM MELLINGER
The Kansas City Star

The elevator door opens, and here comes Clark Hunt. He is dressed in a dark suit, like always, solemn look on his face as he walks through a basement hallway at Arrowhead Stadium. Over his head, a television plays the final seconds of another remarkably inept showing by the team he inherited from his father and that is now embarrassing the family name.

“The Chiefs lose again,” the voice on the television says.

Hunt doesn’t look up. Doesn’t speak. Just keeps walking, into the locker room of the undisputed worst team in football. The door shuts behind him. A security guard in the hallway turns the TV off, and it’s just as well because the Chiefs’ pathetic 28-6 loss to the mediocre Bengals is finally over. By now, we’ve all seen enough from a 1-9 clown show.

The only things left are shame, ugly accusations about mistreatment from fans, and questions.

If not now, then when? If the Chiefs can land like an anvil at the bottom of the NFL in year four of a process that was supposed to be competing for the division championship, then what, exactly, could it possibly take for major changes?

If not after this, then what?

“I’m not feeling very good at this point,” coach Romeo Crennel says.

Some perspective: Bill Self’s winning percentage at Kansas is .835. Nick Saban’s at Alabama is .831, Tom Brady’s in New England is .774, and Michael Jordan’s in playoff series is .806.

Opponents at Arrowhead Stadium since last November are at .889.

Arrowhead used to be one of the toughest places in the NFL to play. Television executives loved having games here, the barbecue smoke in the parking lot and screaming fans inside making for some of the league’s best theater.

Now, fans are literally dressing for a funeral – an organized statement to wear black in mourning of the franchise they fell in love with.

Chiefs officials – Hunt, most notably – have done a rotten job of showing it, but they’ve been privately concerned about a growing fan resentment for some time now. Hunt continues to meet with angry fans, partly to gather information to help diagnose the problem.

Until now, team brass held a stubborn belief that the loudest dissent came from a vocal minority, but in a season full of milestone losses, here comes one more: Arrowhead evenly split between fans dressed in black, fans dressed in other colors and empty seats.

If this doesn’t push Hunt to make major changes in the coming weeks, then it’s fair to wonder what could.

A handful of fans are accusing the team of confiscating critical signs or kicking them out of the stadium. A team spokesman made a point to “vehemently” deny security guards had orders to remove critical fans, saying the only issues were mass distribution of flyers impeding pregame traffic.

Either way, it’s one more piece of evidence of an undeniable and enormous disconnect between team and town. A family paid for an obituary in Sunday’s Star for a man who died “of complications from MS and heartbreaking disappointment caused by the Kansas City Chiefs.”

Two fans write in to say they saw “Pioli doesn’t” taped underneath “Kansas City knows” on a t-shirt for sale in a store. Fans are wearing black, or paper bags, or both. One section passed time during the game with a paper airplane contest.

And those are the ones who still bother to show up for games.

Here is an incomplete list of things to happen more often this fall than the Chiefs winning:

The team captain being benched, the quarterback suffering a concussion, a banner flying over the stadium calling for the GM to be fired, the head coach saying he doesn’t understand what happened with the team, and players celebrating a touchdown that didn’t count.

So far, you are as likely to catch the Chiefs on a day their coach fires himself as defensive coordinator as you are a day they win a game of football. One of their two biggest free-agent acquisitions called fans “sickening and disgusting.” The other one got cut a few weeks back.

Their offense has managed 12 touchdowns, 20 field goals and 31 turnovers. They’ve now lost six of 10 games by 16 points or more, the most in the league, and they’ve trailed by at least 17 every game but two. Dwayne Bowe has 49 catches, and Dustin Colquitt has 49 punts.

If you didn’t know better, you’d think fixing a tragic comedy of a football team takes more than posting a sign that says “ELIMINATE BAD FOOTBALL.”

The Chiefs should be used to talking about blowout losses by now, but they’re not getting any better at it.

Crennel, for instance, has tried to send messages this year by switching quarterbacks and cutting cornerbacks and giving up his defensive coordinator duties to concentrate more on offense (the Chiefs have responded by scoring 19 points in 25 possessions), and pledged that anyone who turns the ball over will be benched.

He has vacillated between “ELIMINATE BAD FOOTBALL” and “PLAY GOOD FOOTBALL” signs, but is still wondering what else he can do to stop his team’s pathetic football.

“We’ll evaluate and determine if there’s anything else we can do,” Crennel says.

Thing is, too many in the Chiefs’ locker room seem to be in denial. Flowers mentioned that some people think the Chiefs are among the NFL’s top five in talent. Shaun Smith called for fan loyalty, and pointed out that only two teams can play in the Super Bowl. Jamaal Charles said a coaching change would only set the Chiefs back, as if they’re not already there.

The Chiefs are playing worse than bad football. This is football so bad it’s turning one of the league’s most loyal and passionate fan bases into its most angry and outwardly disrespectful.

Maybe it’s only natural that some of the men in the locker room are in denial about that. But after another blowout loss where empty seats and fans dressed in mourning outnumbered everyone else, the owner must now face reality.

To reach Sam Mellinger, call 816-234-4365, send e-mail to smellinger@kcstar.com or follow twitter.com/mellinger. For previous columns, go to KansasCity.com.

Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2012/11/18...#storylink=cpy

Boom!

stonedstooge · 11-18-2012, 08:16 PM

Me thinks Clark already extended Pioli and doesn't want to take the financial hit. Hell if the contract was done during the summer, who the hell knows what kind of buyout language it has in it.

Hammock Parties · 11-18-2012, 08:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by KCUnited

I honestly think Clark wants to improve the situation, but has zero clue how to do it. He turned the organization over to a guy he thought could run it, paid him a shit ton of money, and it blew up in his face and now he doesn't know what to do.

He knows he has to fire Pioli.

I bet he's pulling out his hair trying to ID the replacement GM.

**DeezNutz** · 11-18-2012, 08:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stonedstooge

Me thinks Clark already extended Pioli and doesn't want to take the financial hit. Hell if the contract was done during the summer, who the hell knows what kind of buyout language it has in it.

Clark denied that he gave Pioli an extension. (Hunt was the source for Teicher's article, no question about that.)

ChiefsCountry · 11-18-2012, 08:18 PM

I predict a fairly big crowd next week with it being Thanksgiving weekend, Denver, and Peyton Manning coming in.

Chieftain58 · 11-18-2012, 08:18 PM

Pioli hitched his wagon onto CASSEL and they all need to be shown the door... And whatever they do they better ignore Friggin Mel kiper

**the Talking Can** · 11-18-2012, 08:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Marcellus

So he vest time to fly around the country every other week to watch a team suck ass but has no interest in improving the situation outside of the negativity being an inconvenience?

Doesn't pass the smell test.

sorry, forgot i was talking to Mr. Wrong About Everything

what i should have said, so as not to stir the tiny snow globe in your skull:

Clark is has long thirsted for a championship and is currently interrogating fans, other GMs, and the squirrels in an effort to develop a multi-faceted plan for building a superbowl winning franchise....he will spare no time or expense, and tolerate no failure...he can not sleep at night knowing we are so far from a championship....but he also can't put his finger on what is wrong since and pioli, crennel, and cassel are all performing above expectations...if it isn't pioli and crennel "what, what could it be!?!?" he implores to the squirrels and fans...this is the most likely explanation for a man long known to be obsessed with only one thing: finding the right latin guy to bang his wife...

no, wait, I meant: winning a championship

**gblowfish** · 11-18-2012, 08:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ChiefsCountry

I predict a fairly big crowd next week with it being Thanksgiving weekend, Denver, and Peyton Manning coming in.

The place will be LOUSY with Donk fans. They love to kick us when we're down. It's always been that way.

FAX · 11-18-2012, 08:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stonedstooge

Me thinks Clark already extended Pioli and doesn't want to take the financial hit. Hell if the contract was done during the summer, who the hell knows what kind of buyout language it has in it.

The thing about that is this; every owner takes into account the possibility of an early termination when they hire a GM, a coach, and assistant ... anybody. It's always factored into the initial hiring decision.

I think people make far too much of this notion that Clark would take a financial hit in order to fire Pioli. Although it's true, I think it's a tad over-blown, to be honest.

FAX

KCUnited · 11-18-2012, 08:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DeezNutz

Fire the mother****er and get someone else. Wash your hands, lint roll your suit, and move on.

This just isn't that hard.

Agreed, but he hasn't even paid the last coach. This guy is eating coal and shitting diamonds.

ChiefsCountry · 11-18-2012, 08:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gblowfish

The place will be LOUSY with Donk fans. They love to kick us when we're down. It's always been that way.

Yep those Western Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma and other losers will fill up Arrowhead.

stonedstooge · 11-18-2012, 08:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FAX

The thing about that is this; every owner takes into account the possibility of an early termination when they hire a GM, a coach, and assistant ... anybody. It's always factored into the initial hiring decision.

I think people make far too much of this notion that Clark would take a financial hit in order to fire Pioli. Although it's true, I think it's a tad over-blown, to be honest.

FAX

Could be. I know I'm tired of playing spy games with this group. It's a lot of work trying to be a Cheaps fan. Instead of bringing me pleasure, they make my head hurt

**DeezNutz** · 11-18-2012, 08:23 PM

As for why he's flying to road games...same reason fans go to Arrowhead: to party.

No, he's not out drinking Nats with the peasants, but there's little doubt there are all sorts of "designer" party favors in the suites (Whitney Houston clip).

RINGLEADER · 11-18-2012, 08:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigRedChief

Clark will just ignore it again.

He will ignore it until the bottomline forces him to pay attention.

And given the way the league is structured there's not really much of a reason to pay attention.

FringeNC · 11-18-2012, 08:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the Talking Can

he hired pioli to 'set it and forget it'...and if we were even in eyesight of mediocre, he'd be profitable and unconcerned...that's why he extended him last year, pioli was doing well enough, it would have never occurred to him to actually evaluate what pioli had built (crennel, cassel)

His unquestioning acceptance of letting Pioli bring back Cassel with no legitimate competition is damning. He was clueless that Cassel was viewed as complete garbage by people who, you know, buy season tickets and put money into his pockets. The damage the never-ending Cassel experiment has done to this franchise is mind-blowing.

Hammock Parties · 11-18-2012, 08:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by the Talking Can

a man long known to be obsessed with only one thing: finding the right latin guy to bang his wife...

Cuckold Hunt?

11-18-2012, 07:39 PM
Marcellus Diablo Negro Join Date: Sep 2003 Casino cash: $2962662	Sam Mellinger Nails It! Sam Mellinger \| Chiefs’ disconnect with angry fan base grows deeper By SAM MELLINGER The Kansas City Star The elevator door opens, and here comes Clark Hunt. He is dressed in a dark suit, like always, solemn look on his face as he walks through a basement hallway at Arrowhead Stadium. Over his head, a television plays the final seconds of another remarkably inept showing by the team he inherited from his father and that is now embarrassing the family name. “The Chiefs lose again,” the voice on the television says. Hunt doesn’t look up. Doesn’t speak. Just keeps walking, into the locker room of the undisputed worst team in football. The door shuts behind him. A security guard in the hallway turns the TV off, and it’s just as well because the Chiefs’ pathetic 28-6 loss to the mediocre Bengals is finally over. By now, we’ve all seen enough from a 1-9 clown show. The only things left are shame, ugly accusations about mistreatment from fans, and questions. If not now, then when? If the Chiefs can land like an anvil at the bottom of the NFL in year four of a process that was supposed to be competing for the division championship, then what, exactly, could it possibly take for major changes? If not after this, then what? “I’m not feeling very good at this point,” coach Romeo Crennel says. Some perspective: Bill Self’s winning percentage at Kansas is .835. Nick Saban’s at Alabama is .831, Tom Brady’s in New England is .774, and Michael Jordan’s in playoff series is .806. Opponents at Arrowhead Stadium since last November are at .889. Arrowhead used to be one of the toughest places in the NFL to play. Television executives loved having games here, the barbecue smoke in the parking lot and screaming fans inside making for some of the league’s best theater. Now, fans are literally dressing for a funeral – an organized statement to wear black in mourning of the franchise they fell in love with. Chiefs officials – Hunt, most notably – have done a rotten job of showing it, but they’ve been privately concerned about a growing fan resentment for some time now. Hunt continues to meet with angry fans, partly to gather information to help diagnose the problem. Until now, team brass held a stubborn belief that the loudest dissent came from a vocal minority, but in a season full of milestone losses, here comes one more: Arrowhead evenly split between fans dressed in black, fans dressed in other colors and empty seats. If this doesn’t push Hunt to make major changes in the coming weeks, then it’s fair to wonder what could. A handful of fans are accusing the team of confiscating critical signs or kicking them out of the stadium. A team spokesman made a point to “vehemently” deny security guards had orders to remove critical fans, saying the only issues were mass distribution of flyers impeding pregame traffic. Either way, it’s one more piece of evidence of an undeniable and enormous disconnect between team and town. A family paid for an obituary in Sunday’s Star for a man who died “of complications from MS and heartbreaking disappointment caused by the Kansas City Chiefs.” Two fans write in to say they saw “Pioli doesn’t” taped underneath “Kansas City knows” on a t-shirt for sale in a store. Fans are wearing black, or paper bags, or both. One section passed time during the game with a paper airplane contest. And those are the ones who still bother to show up for games. Here is an incomplete list of things to happen more often this fall than the Chiefs winning: The team captain being benched, the quarterback suffering a concussion, a banner flying over the stadium calling for the GM to be fired, the head coach saying he doesn’t understand what happened with the team, and players celebrating a touchdown that didn’t count. So far, you are as likely to catch the Chiefs on a day their coach fires himself as defensive coordinator as you are a day they win a game of football. One of their two biggest free-agent acquisitions called fans “sickening and disgusting.” The other one got cut a few weeks back. Their offense has managed 12 touchdowns, 20 field goals and 31 turnovers. They’ve now lost six of 10 games by 16 points or more, the most in the league, and they’ve trailed by at least 17 every game but two. Dwayne Bowe has 49 catches, and Dustin Colquitt has 49 punts. If you didn’t know better, you’d think fixing a tragic comedy of a football team takes more than posting a sign that says “ELIMINATE BAD FOOTBALL.” The Chiefs should be used to talking about blowout losses by now, but they’re not getting any better at it. Crennel, for instance, has tried to send messages this year by switching quarterbacks and cutting cornerbacks and giving up his defensive coordinator duties to concentrate more on offense (the Chiefs have responded by scoring 19 points in 25 possessions), and pledged that anyone who turns the ball over will be benched. He has vacillated between “ELIMINATE BAD FOOTBALL” and “PLAY GOOD FOOTBALL” signs, but is still wondering what else he can do to stop his team’s pathetic football. “We’ll evaluate and determine if there’s anything else we can do,” Crennel says. Thing is, too many in the Chiefs’ locker room seem to be in denial. Flowers mentioned that some people think the Chiefs are among the NFL’s top five in talent. Shaun Smith called for fan loyalty, and pointed out that only two teams can play in the Super Bowl. Jamaal Charles said a coaching change would only set the Chiefs back, as if they’re not already there. The Chiefs are playing worse than bad football. This is football so bad it’s turning one of the league’s most loyal and passionate fan bases into its most angry and outwardly disrespectful. Maybe it’s only natural that some of the men in the locker room are in denial about that. But after another blowout loss where empty seats and fans dressed in mourning outnumbered everyone else, the owner must now face reality. To reach Sam Mellinger, call 816-234-4365, send e-mail to smellinger@kcstar.com or follow twitter.com/mellinger. For previous columns, go to KansasCity.com. Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2012/11/18...#storylink=cpy Boom!
Posts: 69,310

11-18-2012, 08:16 PM	#46
stonedstooge Arf! Arf! Arf! Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: North Casino cash: $5944173	Me thinks Clark already extended Pioli and doesn't want to take the financial hit. Hell if the contract was done during the summer, who the hell knows what kind of buyout language it has in it. __________________ 2013 ADOPT A CHIEF Eric Kush "Often is a word I seldom use"--JP
Posts: 25,284

11-18-2012, 08:18 PM	#49
ChiefsCountry The Insider Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Lake of the Ozarks Casino cash: $2198752	I predict a fairly big crowd next week with it being Thanksgiving weekend, Denver, and Peyton Manning coming in.
Posts: 49,690

11-18-2012, 08:18 PM	#50
Chieftain58 Fan club member Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Land of OZ Casino cash: $10005117	Pioli hitched his wagon onto CASSEL and they all need to be shown the door... And whatever they do they better ignore Friggin Mel kiper __________________
Posts: 1,626