KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Nobody gave Kendrick Lewis much thought when the Kansas City Chiefs made him their fifth-round draft pick last year.

He wasn’t even the best player out of Ole Miss to be selected by the Chiefs — they also picked versatile running back Dexter McCluster in the early rounds. But Scott Pioli saw something in Lewis on video, so the Chiefs’ general manager called in to make Lewis the 136th overall pick.

Now, plenty of teams are forced to give Lewis a whole lot of thought.

The second-year safety has assumed a much bigger role with the Chiefs, who lost Pro Bowl safety Eric Berry to a season-ending knee injury in the first game of the season.

Lewis has picked off a pass each of the past two weeks, returning one of them 59 yards for a touchdown against the Oakland Raiders. He also recovered a fumble in Monday night’s 23-20 overtime win over the San Diego Chargers that gave Kansas City a share of the AFC West lead.

“Kendrick last year, as a young guy, I know multiple times I talked about him, how he’s pretty impressive, and became an important part of our team pretty quickly,” coach Todd Haley said.

“A lot of that had to do with his ability to be a leader, and communicate, and help other teammates around him, and it’s never been too big for Kendrick. This guy’s been pretty impressive from a leadership standpoint right out of the gate.”

Displaced by Hurricane Katrina in high school, the native of New Orleans wound up heading to Mississippi for college, where the former wide receiver excelled as a defensive back.

Lewis was elected team captain by his teammates, and coach Houston Nutt has lavished praise on him for helping the Rebels to Cotton Bowls after the 2008 and ’09 seasons. Lewis not only led the team in tackles those two years, he also led Ole Miss in interceptions.

During the NFL combine, though, he ran a 4.73-second 40-yard dash — and his stock plummeted.

Some analysts predicted he wouldn’t go until the seventh round, if at all. But the Chiefs’ scouts liked what they saw, and Pioli made the call to draft Lewis despite having already selected Berry — the much more highly touted safety — with their first-round pick.

It turned out to be a wise move right from the start.

Jarred Page was expected to be the starting safety alongside Berry last season, but he decided not to sign his tender and was traded to New England. Eventually, Lewis moved into the starting role after an injury to veteran safety Jon McGraw, and he hasn’t given up the job since.

His excellence in pass defence has never been clearer than in the four games Lewis missed last season due to injury; the Chiefs lost three of them.

“First and foremost, defensively, somebody in that secondary has to be the quarterback of what’s going on, and when you have someone you can trust like we trust Kendrick, understanding as the formations change, the tight ends flip, the technical jargon, a lot of adjustments that are going on at a high rate, you know, this guy is a comfort,” Haley said. “Kendrick is a comfort to have out there.”

His value has only grown with the loss of Berry, who started every game as a rookie and wound up representing the Chiefs in the Pro Bowl. It was Berry who emerged as one of the central figures on a rapidly improving defence before a torn ACL in his left knee abruptly ended his season.

“He’s done a good job of stepping in there and being a consistent contributor for us back there,” McGraw said after the Chiefs went through a light workout indoors Wednesday.

McGraw has been around the league long enough to know how important communication is in the defensive backfield. That’s what has made Lewis’ play even more incredible. Not only did the Chiefs lose Berry, but McGraw also went down against San Diego, and Lewis still held things together.

“It’s difficult. You’re used to certain ways of communication, certain expectations, where a guy is going to be, what he’s thinking,” McGraw said. “So there’s always a little difficulty in adjustment and he’s done a great job of that.”

Lewis has three interceptions this season, one of which he nearly brought back for a touchdown against San Diego and another he did against Oakland, tightrope walking down the sideline the final few yards and contorting his body in just the right way to get across the goal line.

He’s also stepped up to stop the run, a job that normally falls to Berry, helping a defence that was so maligned after allowing 89 points through two games get things under control.

Now, Kansas City is riding an improbable four-game winning streak into Sunday’s game against the winless Miami Dolphins. They could win their fifth straight for the first time in eight years.

“Kendrick is a comfort to have out there on the field, I know, to all of us as coaches, because he does a very good job of getting it right,” Haley said. “And that’s happening at a very high rate.”

Now, plenty of teams are forced to give Lewis a whole lot of thought.

The second-year safety has assumed a much bigger role with the Chiefs, who lost Pro Bowl safety Eric Berry to a season-ending knee injury in the first game of the season.

Lewis has picked off a pass each of the past two weeks, returning one of them 59 yards for a touchdown against the Oakland Raiders. He also recovered a fumble in Monday night’s 23-20 overtime win over the San Diego Chargers that gave Kansas City a share of the AFC West lead.

“Kendrick last year, as a young guy, I know multiple times I talked about him, how he’s pretty impressive, and became an important part of our team pretty quickly,” coach Todd Haley said.

“A lot of that had to do with his ability to be a leader, and communicate, and help other teammates around him, and it’s never been too big for Kendrick. This guy’s been pretty impressive from a leadership standpoint right out of the gate.”

Displaced by Hurricane Katrina in high school, the native of New Orleans wound up heading to Mississippi for college, where the former wide receiver excelled as a defensive back.

Lewis was elected team captain by his teammates, and coach Houston Nutt has lavished praise on him for helping the Rebels to Cotton Bowls after the 2008 and ‘09 seasons. Lewis not only led the team in tackles those two years, he also led Ole Miss in interceptions.

During the NFL combine, though, he ran a 4.73-second 40-yard dash — and his stock plummeted.

Some analysts predicted he wouldn’t go until the seventh round, if at all. But the Chiefs’ scouts liked what they saw, and Pioli made the call to draft Lewis despite having already selected Berry — the much more highly touted safety — with their first-round pick.

It turned out to be a wise move right from the start.

Jarred Page was expected to be the starting safety alongside Berry last season, but he decided not to sign his tender and was traded to New England. Eventually, Lewis moved into the starting role after an injury to veteran safety Jon McGraw, and he hasn’t given up the job since.

His excellence in pass defense has never been clearer than in the four games Lewis missed last season due to injury; the Chiefs lost three of them.

“First and foremost, defensively, somebody in that secondary has to be the quarterback of what’s going on, and when you have someone you can trust like we trust Kendrick, understanding as the formations change, the tight ends flip, the technical jargon, a lot of adjustments that are going on at a high rate, you know, this guy is a comfort,” Haley said. “Kendrick is a comfort to have out there.”

His value has only grown with the loss of Berry, who started every game as a rookie and wound up representing the Chiefs in the Pro Bowl. It was Berry who emerged as one of the central figures on a rapidly improving defense before a torn ACL in his left knee abruptly ended his season.

“He’s done a good job of stepping in there and being a consistent contributor for us back there,” McGraw said after the Chiefs went through a light workout indoors Wednesday.

McGraw has been around the league long enough to know how important communication is in the defensive backfield. That’s what has made Lewis’ play even more incredible. Not only did the Chiefs lose Berry, but McGraw also went down against San Diego, and Lewis still held things together.

“It’s difficult. You’re used to certain ways of communication, certain expectations, where a guy is going to be, what he’s thinking,” McGraw said. “So there’s always a little difficulty in adjustment and he’s done a great job of that.”

Lewis has three interceptions this season, one of which he nearly brought back for a touchdown against San Diego and another he did against Oakland, tightrope walking down the sideline the final few yards and contorting his body in just the right way to get across the goal line.

He’s also stepped up to stop the run, a job that normally falls to Berry, helping a defense that was so maligned after allowing 89 points through two games get things under control.

Now, Kansas City is riding an improbable four-game winning streak into Sunday’s game against the winless Miami Dolphins. They could win their fifth straight for the first time in eight years.

“Kendrick is a comfort to have out there on the field, I know, to all of us as coaches, because he does a very good job of getting it right,” Haley said. “And that’s happening at a very high rate.”

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP)—Nobody gave Kendrick Lewis(notes) much thought when the
Kansas City Chiefs made him their fifth-round draft pick last year.

He wasn’t even the best player out of Ole Miss to be selected by the Chiefs
— they also picked versatile running back Dexter McCluster(notes) in the early rounds.
But Scott Pioli saw something in Lewis on video, so the Chiefs’ general manager
called in to make Lewis the 136th overall pick.

Now, plenty of teams are forced to give Lewis a whole lot of thought.

The second-year safety has assumed a much bigger role with the Chiefs, who
lost Pro Bowl safety Eric Berry(notes) to a season-ending knee injury in the first game
of the season.

Lewis has picked off a pass each of the past two weeks, returning one of
them 59 yards for a touchdown against the Oakland Raiders. He also recovered a
fumble in Monday night’s 23-20 overtime win over the San Diego Chargers that
gave Kansas City a share of the AFC West lead.

“Kendrick last year, as a young guy, I know multiple times I talked about
him, how he’s pretty impressive, and became an important part of our team pretty
quickly,” coach Todd Haley said.

“A lot of that had to do with his ability to be a leader, and communicate,
and help other teammates around him, and it’s never been too big for Kendrick.
This guy’s been pretty impressive from a leadership standpoint right out of the
gate.”

Displaced by Hurricane Katrina in high school, the native of New Orleans
wound up heading to Mississippi for college, where the former wide receiver
excelled as a defensive back.

Lewis was elected team captain by his teammates, and coach Houston Nutt has
lavished praise on him for helping the Rebels to Cotton Bowls after the 2008 and
’09 seasons. Lewis not only led the team in tackles those two years, he also led
Ole Miss in interceptions.

During the NFL combine, though, he ran a 4.73-second 40-yard dash—and his
stock plummeted.

Some analysts predicted he wouldn’t go until the seventh round, if at all.
But the Chiefs’ scouts liked what they saw, and Pioli made the call to draft
Lewis despite having already selected Berry—the much more highly touted safety
— with their first-round pick.

It turned out to be a wise move right from the start.

Jarred Page was expected to be the starting safety alongside Berry last
season, but he decided not to sign his tender and was traded to New England.
Eventually, Lewis moved into the starting role after an injury to veteran safety
Jon McGraw(notes), and he hasn’t given up the job since.

His excellence in pass defense has never been clearer than in the four games
Lewis missed last season due to injury; the Chiefs lost three of them.

“First and foremost, defensively, somebody in that secondary has to be the
quarterback of what’s going on, and when you have someone you can trust like we
trust Kendrick, understanding as the formations change, the tight ends flip, the
technical jargon, a lot of adjustments that are going on at a high rate, you
know, this guy is a comfort,” Haley said. “Kendrick is a comfort to have out
there.”

His value has only grown with the loss of Berry, who started every game as a
rookie and wound up representing the Chiefs in the Pro Bowl. It was Berry who
emerged as one of the central figures on a rapidly improving defense before a
torn ACL in his left knee abruptly ended his season.

“He’s done a good job of stepping in there and being a consistent
contributor for us back there,” McGraw said after the Chiefs went through a
light workout indoors Wednesday.

McGraw has been around the league long enough to know how important
communication is in the defensive backfield. That’s what has made Lewis’ play
even more incredible. Not only did the Chiefs lose Berry, but McGraw also went
down against San Diego, and Lewis still held things together.

“It’s difficult. You’re used to certain ways of communication, certain
expectations, where a guy is going to be, what he’s thinking,” McGraw said.
“So there’s always a little difficulty in adjustment and he’s done a great job
of that.”

Lewis has three interceptions this season, one of which he nearly brought
back for a touchdown against San Diego and another he did against Oakland,
tightrope walking down the sideline the final few yards and contorting his body
in just the right way to get across the goal line.

He’s also stepped up to stop the run, a job that normally falls to Berry,
helping a defense that was so maligned after allowing 89 points through two
games get things under control.

Now, Kansas City is riding an improbable four-game winning streak into
Sunday’s game against the winless Miami Dolphins. They could win their fifth
straight for the first time in eight years.

“Kendrick is a comfort to have out there on the field, I know, to all of us
as coaches, because he does a very good job of getting it right,” Haley said.
“And that’s happening at a very high rate.”

The Kansas City Chiefs have lost several great young players to injury this season, and perhaps none hurt worse than defensive impact player Eric Berry. He was already a Pro Bowl safety last year after being the Chiefs first pick in the NFL Draft in 2010 at No. 5 overall. Yet to lose him for the season to a torn ACL might have made some fans wonder whether or not he would continue to develop and become the franchise player everyone was expecting. Apparently, the belief is that Berry is still at the top.

In a recent set of rankings over at ESPN, Matt Williamson notes that Berry is still atop a list that also includes Earl Thomas and Patrick Chung among others. He writes, “If any young safety has the potential to reach the level of Reed or Polamalu, it’s Berry. But, of course, he was lost for the year with a torn ACL very early in the 2011 season and the ramifications of his loss can be felt throughout the Kansas City defense. Berry is capable of being great in every facet of the position described above. Hopefully his injury doesn’t stunt his growth too much.”

Chiefs fans can only hope that Berry can rehab back to his former place of health and impact on the field. Apparently, several still believe in his incredible talent.

By Matt Conner

– Editor

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Aug 16, 2011 – While the Chiefs have made Tamba Hali their defensive cornerstone for the next few years as the elite pass rusher on the team, there’s no denying the secondary has a couple stars of its own. Brandon Flowers is nearing the top tier of elite corners in the NFL already, and Brandon Carr’s stock has risen impressively alongside him. Yet last year’s selection of Eric Berry at No. 5 overall is the addition that made the Chiefs’ defensive backfield one of the best in the NFL.

In his first year, the former Tennessee Volunteer put up some impressive stats and significant playing time and gave Chiefs fans every reason to believe he’ll be anchoring the back of the defense for the rest of the decade. With four interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown, to go with two sacks, a forced fumble and 92 tackles, Berry showed the all-around skills that made him such a high selection in the first place. But with the bar set high as a Pro Bowler in his rookie year, what should Chiefs fans expect of Berry in Year Two?

Taking a look at some of the other top safeties in the NFL, it’s clear that they really began to anticipate the quarterback’s actions much better in their second or third season. Interception numbers went up in the second and third season for most top safeties — names like Nick Collins, Ed Reed and Troy Polamalu — as did passes defended. For a young safety like the Lions’ Louis Delmas, he seemed to become more intense, increasing sacks and forced fumbles as he gained confidence in his sophomore season.

Collins had 1 interception in his rookie season of 2005 to go with 7 passes defended. His next season, he had 3 interceptions and 10 PD. Over the last three years, he’s had 17 interceptions and continues to be an elite safety for a championship team (including an interception for a touchdown against the Steelers in the 2010 Super Bowl). Reed went from 5 to 7 interceptions in his first two seasons, and he even grabbed 9 in his third year, an uncanny number for a safety. Polamalu didn’t even have a single INT in his rookie year, but came away with 5 in the second.

Since schemes and personnel dictate statistics like interceptions, it’s impossible to point to these numbers and create any kind of formulas. After all, Berry’s numbers went down his senior year in college, but of course, that speaks to college offenses going away from Berry’s side of the field given his tremendous talent. So while the numbers could lie to some degree, it’s safe to say that Berry’s confidence should grow by leaps and bounds this year, allowing him to trust his instincts even more.

Pat Kirwan recently listed the best safeties in the NFL and had Berry at No. 6 overall saying that “the sky is the limit.” Given the dynamic nature of Berry’s fellow defensive backs, Berry should make the leap to elite-level status in his second season, a position he will most likely occupy for quite some time.

Read More: Ed Reed (S – BAL), Troy Polamalu (SS – PIT), Nick Collins (S – GBP), Louis Delmas (S – DET), Eric Berry (DB – KAN), Detroit Lions

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