Add Your Comment

| Read (0) Comments

Published 3/20/2012 in Sports

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Eric Winston usually gets about 50 mentions on his Twitter feed after a game. When he visited the Kansas City Chiefs during the start of free agency, the veteran right tackle got hundreds of them from random fans trying to court him.

“I loved it. I thought it was really cool,” Winston said. “I thought it was great they were so into it. They knew everything was going on; they knew who I was. They knew what I could do. It was just another piece of the puzzle.”

All the pieces added up to a $22 million, four-year deal.

On the same day word spread that Winston had agreed to terms, the Chiefs announced that they had signed former first-round draft pick Brady Quinn to back up Matt Cassel at quarterback.

Winston will take over at right tackle for Barry Richardson, who struggled mightily last year and became a free agent. Winston helped Houston become the NFL’s second-leading rushing team.

“We are very happy to add a quality right tackle like Eric to our team,” Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli said. “He is a smart lineman who is going to bring passion, intelligence and toughness to our offense.”

Winston was in the fourth year of a $30 million, five-year deal when he was cut by the Texans to save salary cap space. He also visited the Miami Dolphins.

Turned out that Kansas City was the most active.

“They did so much more than any other organization,” Winston said. “Most organizations the GM calls and says, ‘Hey, we’re excited to have you.’”

and says, ‘We’re excited.”‘

Instead, Pioli and coach Romeo Crennel logged multiple calls, along with new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. The Chiefs may have ultimately sealed the deal when they took Winston to an upscale barbecue joint, which left such an impression that Winston tweeted about it.

Winston said he was not very familiar with the Chiefs. He’s bumped into Cassel a couple times, and he knows running back Jamaal Charles by reputation.

“To be honest, Kansas City wasn’t somewhere that if I had to pick off the top of my head, ‘Where would you want to go?’ Kansas City wasn’t that place,” Winston said.

“It was just choosing the right situation for me and my family,” he said. “Tell you the truth, I thought it was more of a rust-belt city, but when you get there, it’s far from it.”

Quinn started 12 games over three seasons with Cleveland, where Crennel once served as the head coach and Daboll was the offensive coordinator.

The former Notre Dame star completed 52 percent of his passes for 1,902 yards and 10 touchdowns with nine interceptions in Cleveland. He spent last season as a backup in Denver.

“I’m just looking forward to getting back to playing under Romeo,” Quinn said of why he chose the Chiefs. “I think he’s a smart choice. I think he definitely knows how to take care of players and put us in the best possible position to win.”

That familiarity is the biggest reason Quinn said he turned down a more lucrative offer from the Broncos to sign with the Chiefs. He also alluded to Denver’s courtship of Peyton Manning.

“If you look at the Denver situation, there’s a lot of unknowns,” he said. “It’s a great organization, having been a part of it for two years and all that, but I felt like for me personally, it was a better situation to go to Kansas City.”

Quinn said that he’d been told Cassel was the starting quarterback, but Pioli and Crennel have both said they want the incumbent to experience a challenge in training camp.

“Obviously there is going to be competition, like there should be on every team in every room,” Quinn said. “Competition makes everyone better. That’s just how the league is.”

KANSAS CITY — Eric Winston usually gets about 50 mentions on his Twitter feed after a game. When he visited the Kansas City Chiefs during the start of free agency, the veteran right tackle got hundreds of them from random fans trying to court him.“I loved it. I thought it was really cool,” Winston said. “I thought it was great they were so into it. They knew everything was going on; they knew who I was. They knew what I could do. It was just another piece of the puzzle.”All the pieces added up to a $22 million, four-year deal.On the same day word spread that Winston had agreed to terms, the Chiefs announced that they had signed former first-round draft pick Brady Quinn to back up Matt Cassel at quarterback.Winston will take over at right tackle for Barry Richardson, who struggled mightily last year and became a free agent. Winston helped Houston become the NFL’s second-leading rushing team.“We are very happy to add a quality right tackle like Eric to our team,” Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli said. “He is a smart lineman who is going to bring passion, intelligence and toughness to our offense.”Winston was in the fourth year of a $30 million, five-year deal when he was cut by the Texans to save salary cap space. He also visited the Miami Dolphins.“They did so much more than any other organization,” Winston said. “Most organizations the GM calls and says, ‘Hey, we’re excited to have you,’ or the coach calls and says, ‘We’re excited.’”Instead, Pioli and coach Romeo Crennel logged multiple calls, along with new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll.Winston said he was not very familiar with the Chiefs. He’s bumped into Cassel a couple times, and he knows running back Jamaal Charles by reputation.“To be honest, Kansas City wasn’t somewhere that if I had to pick off the top of my head, ‘Where would you want to go?’ Kansas City wasn’t that place,” Winston said.“It was just choosing the right situation for me and my family,” he said. “Tell you the truth, I thought it was more of a rust-belt city, but when you get there, it’s far from it.”Quinn started 12 games over three seasons with Cleveland, where Crennel once served as the head coach and Daboll was the offensive coordinator.The former Notre Dame star completed 52 percent of his passes for 1,902 yards and 10 touchdowns with nine interceptions in Cleveland. He spent last season as a backup in Denver.“I’m just looking forward to getting back to playing under Romeo,” Quinn said of why he chose the Chiefs.That familiarity is the biggest reason Quinn said he turned down a more lucrative offer from the Broncos to sign with the Chiefs.He also alluded to Denver’s courtship of Peyton Manning.“If you look at the Denver situation, there’s a lot of unknowns,” he said. “It’s a great organization, having been a part of it for two years and all that, but I felt like for me personally, it was a better situation to go to Kansas City.”Quinn said that he’d been told Cassel was the starting quarterback, but Pioli and Crennel have both said they want the incumbent to experience a challenge in training camp.“Obviously there is going to be competition, like there should be on every team in every room,” Quinn said. “Competition makes everyone better. That’s just how the league is.”

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

KANSAS CITY — Eric Winston usually gets about 50 mentions on his Twitter feed after a game. When he visited the Kansas City Chiefs during the start of free agency, the veteran right tackle got hundreds of them from random fans trying to court him.

“I loved it. I thought it was really cool,” Winston said. “I thought it was great they were so into it. They knew everything was going on; they knew who I was. They knew what I could do. It was just another piece of the puzzle.”

All the pieces added up to a $22 million, four-year deal.

On the same day word spread that Winston had agreed to terms, the Chiefs announced that they had signed former first-round draft pick Brady Quinn to back up Matt Cassel at quarterback.

Winston will take over at right tackle for Barry Richardson, who struggled mightily last year and became a free agent. Winston helped Houston become the NFL’s second-leading rushing team.

“We are very happy to add a quality right tackle like Eric to our team,” Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli said. “He is a smart lineman who is going to bring passion, intelligence and toughness to our offense.”

Winston was in the fourth year of a $30 million, five-year deal when he was cut by the Texans to save salary cap space. He also visited the Miami Dolphins.

Turned out that Kansas City was the most aggressive.

“They did so much more than any other organization,” Winston said. “Most organizations the GM calls and says, ‘Hey, we’re excited to have you,’ or the coach calls and says, ‘We’re excited.’”

Instead, Pioli and coach Romeo Crennel logged multiple calls, along with new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. The Chiefs may have ultimately sealed the deal when they took Winston to an upscale barbecue joint, which left such an impression that Winston tweeted about it.

Winston said he was not very familiar with the Chiefs. He’s bumped into Cassel a couple times, and he knows running back Jamaal Charles by reputation.

“To be honest, Kansas City wasn’t somewhere that if I had to pick off the top of my head, ‘Where would you want to go?’ Kansas City wasn’t that place,” Winston said.

“It was just choosing the right situation for me and my family,” he said. “Tell you the truth, I thought it was more of a rust-belt city, but when you get there, it’s far from it.”

Quinn started 12 games over three seasons with Cleveland, where Crennel once served as the head coach and Daboll was the offensive coordinator.

The former Notre Dame star completed 52 percent of his passes for 1,902 yards and 10 touchdowns with nine interceptions in Cleveland. He spent last season as a backup in Denver.

“I’m just looking forward to getting back to playing under Romeo,” Quinn said of why he chose the Chiefs. “I think he’s a smart choice. I think he definitely knows how to take care of players and put us in the best possible position to win.”

That familiarity is the biggest reason Quinn said he turned down a more lucrative offer from the Broncos to sign with the Chiefs. He also alluded to Denver’s courtship of quarterback Peyton Manning.

“If you look at the Denver situation, there’s a lot of unknowns,” he said. “It’s a great organization, having been a part of it for two years and all that, but I felt like for me personally, it was a better situation to go to Kansas City.”

Quinn said that he’d been told Cassel was the starting quarterback, but Pioli and Crennel have both said they want the incumbent to experience a challenge in training camp.

“Obviously there is going to be competition, like there should be on every team in every room,” Quinn said. “Competition makes everyone better. That’s just how the league is.”

Eric Winston usually gets about 50 mentions on his Twitter feed after a game. When he visited the Kansas City Chiefs during the start of free agency, the veteran right tackle got hundreds of them from random fans trying to court him.
     “I loved it. I thought it was really cool,” Winston said. “I thought it was great they were so into it. They knew everything was going on; they knew who I was. They knew what I could do. It was just another piece of the puzzle.”
     All the pieces added up to a $22 million, four-year deal.
     On the same day word spread that Winston had agreed to terms, the Chiefs announced that they had signed former first-round draft pick Brady Quinn to back up Matt Cassel at quarterback.
     Winston will take over at right tackle for Barry Richardson, who struggled mightily last year and became a free agent. Winston helped Houston become the NFL’s second-leading rushing team.
     “We are very happy to add a quality right tackle like Eric to our team,” Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli said. “He is a smart lineman who is going to bring passion, intelligence and toughness to our offense.”
     Winston was in the fourth year of a $30 million, five-year deal when he was cut by the Texans to save salary cap space. He also visited the Miami Dolphins.
     Turned out that Kansas City was the most aggressive.
     “They did so much more than any other organization,” Winston said. “Most organizations the GM calls and says, ‘Hey, we’re excited to have you,’ or the coach calls and says, ‘We’re excited.’”
     Instead, Pioli and coach Romeo Crennel logged multiple calls, along with new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. The Chiefs may have ultimately sealed the deal when they took Winston to an upscale barbecue joint, which left such an impression that Winston tweeted about it.
     Winston said he was not very familiar with the Chiefs. He’s bumped into Cassel a couple times, and he knows running back Jamaal Charles by reputation.
     “To be honest, Kansas City wasn’t somewhere that if I had to pick off the top of my head, ‘Where would you want to go?’ Kansas City wasn’t that place,” Winston said.
     “It was just choosing the right situation for me and my family,” he said. “Tell you the truth, I thought it was more of a rust-belt city, but when you get there, it’s far from it.”
     Quinn started 12 games over three seasons with Cleveland, where Crennel once served as the head coach and Daboll was the offensive coordinator.
     The former Notre Dame star completed 52 percent of his passes for 1,902 yards and 10 touchdowns with nine interceptions in Cleveland. He spent last season as a backup in Denver.
     “I’m just looking forward to getting back to playing under Romeo,” Quinn said of why he chose the Chiefs. “I think he’s a smart choice. I think he definitely knows how to take care of players and put us in the best possible position to win.”
     That familiarity is the biggest reason Quinn said he turned down a more lucrative offer from the Broncos to sign with the Chiefs. He also alluded to Denver’s courtship of Peyton Manning.
     “If you look at the Denver situation, there’s a lot of unknowns,” he said. “It’s a great organization, having been a part of it for two years and all that, but I felt like for me personally, it was a better situation to go to Kansas City.”
     Quinn said that he’d been told Cassel was the starting quarterback, but Pioli and Crennel have both said they want the incumbent to experience a challenge in training camp.
     “Obviously there is going to be competition, like there should be on every team in every room,” Quinn said. “Competition makes everyone better. That’s just how the league is.”

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) Eric Winston usually gets about 50 mentions on his Twitter feed after a game. When he visited the Kansas City Chiefs during the start of free agency, the veteran right tackle got hundreds of them from random fans trying to court him.

”I loved it. I thought it was really cool,” Winston said. ”I thought it was great they were so into it. They knew everything was going on; they knew who I was. They knew what I could do. It was just another piece of the puzzle.”

All the pieces added up to a $22 million, four-year deal.

On the same day word spread that Winston had agreed to terms, the Chiefs announced that they had signed former first-round draft pick Brady Quinn to back up Matt Cassel at quarterback.

Winston will take over at right tackle for Barry Richardson, who struggled mightily last year and became a free agent. Winston helped Houston become the NFL’s second-leading rushing team.

”We are very happy to add a quality right tackle like Eric to our team,” Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli said. ”He is a smart lineman who is going to bring passion, intelligence and toughness to our offense.”

Winston was in the fourth year of a $30 million, five-year deal when he was cut by the Texans to save salary cap space. He also visited the Miami Dolphins.

Turned out that Kansas City was the most aggressive.

”They did so much more than any other organization,” Winston said. ”Most organizations the GM calls and says, ‘Hey, we’re excited to have you,’ or the coach calls and says, ‘We’re excited.”’

Instead, Pioli and coach Romeo Crennel logged multiple calls, along with new offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. The Chiefs may have ultimately sealed the deal when they took Winston to an upscale barbecue joint, which left such an impression that Winston tweeted about it.

Winston said he was not very familiar with the Chiefs. He’s bumped into Cassel a couple times, and he knows running back Jamaal Charles by reputation.

”To be honest, Kansas City wasn’t somewhere that if I had to pick off the top of my head, ‘Where would you want to go?’ Kansas City wasn’t that place,” Winston said.

”It was just choosing the right situation for me and my family,” he said. ”Tell you the truth, I thought it was more of a rust-belt city, but when you get there, it’s far from it.”

Quinn started 12 games over three seasons with Cleveland, where Crennel once served as the head coach and Daboll was the offensive coordinator.

The former Notre Dame star completed 52 percent of his passes for 1,902 yards and 10 touchdowns with nine interceptions in Cleveland. He spent last season as a backup in Denver.

”I’m just looking forward to getting back to playing under Romeo,” Quinn said of why he chose the Chiefs. ”I think he’s a smart choice. I think he definitely knows how to take care of players and put us in the best possible position to win.”

That familiarity is the biggest reason Quinn said he turned down a more lucrative offer from the Broncos to sign with the Chiefs. He also alluded to Denver’s courtship of Peyton Manning.

”If you look at the Denver situation, there’s a lot of unknowns,” he said. ”It’s a great organization, having been a part of it for two years and all that, but I felt like for me personally, it was a better situation to go to Kansas City.”

Quinn said that he’d been told Cassel was the starting quarterback, but Pioli and Crennel have both said they want the incumbent to experience a challenge in training camp.

”Obviously there is going to be competition, like there should be on every team in every room,” Quinn said. ”Competition makes everyone better. That’s just how the league is.”

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Eric Winston usually gets about 50 mentions on his Twitter feed after a game. When he visited the Kansas City Chiefs during the start of free agency, the veteran right tackle got hundreds of them from random fans trying to court him.

“I loved it. I thought it was really cool,” Winston said. “I thought it was great they were so into it. They knew everything was going on; they knew who I was. They knew what I could do. It was just another piece of the puzzle.”

All the pieces added up to a $22 million, four-year deal.

On the same day word spread that Winston had agreed to terms, the Chiefs announced that they had signed former first-round draft pick Brady Quinn to back up Matt Cassel at quarterback.

Winston will take over at right tackle for Barry Richardson, who struggled mightily last year and became a free agent. Winston helped Houston become the NFL’s second-leading rushing team.

“We are very happy to add a quality right tackle like Eric to our team,” Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli said. “He is a smart lineman who is going to bring passion, intelligence and toughness to our offence.”

Winston was in the fourth year of a $30 million, five-year deal when he was cut by the Texans to save salary cap space. He also visited the Miami Dolphins.

Turned out that Kansas City was the most aggressive.

“They did so much more than any other organization,” Winston said. “Most organizations the GM calls and says, ‘Hey, we’re excited to have you,’ or the coach calls and says, ‘We’re excited.’”

Instead, Pioli and coach Romeo Crennel logged multiple calls, along with new offensive co-ordinator Brian Daboll. The Chiefs may have ultimately sealed the deal when they took Winston to an upscale barbecue joint, which left such an impression that Winston tweeted about it.

Winston said he was not very familiar with the Chiefs. He’s bumped into Cassel a couple times, and he knows running back Jamaal Charles by reputation.

“To be honest, Kansas City wasn’t somewhere that if I had to pick off the top of my head, ‘Where would you want to go?’ Kansas City wasn’t that place,” Winston said.

“It was just choosing the right situation for me and my family,” he said. “Tell you the truth, I thought it was more of a rust-belt city, but when you get there, it’s far from it.”

Quinn started 12 games over three seasons with Cleveland, where Crennel once served as the head coach and Daboll was the offensive co-ordinator.

The former Notre Dame star completed 52 per cent of his passes for 1,902 yards and 10 touchdowns with nine interceptions in Cleveland. He spent last season as a backup in Denver.

“I’m just looking forward to getting back to playing under Romeo,” Quinn said of why he chose the Chiefs. “I think he’s a smart choice. I think he definitely knows how to take care of players and put us in the best possible position to win.”

That familiarity is the biggest reason Quinn said he turned down a more lucrative offer from the Broncos to sign with the Chiefs. He also alluded to Denver’s courtship of Peyton Manning.

“If you look at the Denver situation, there’s a lot of unknowns,” he said. “It’s a great organization, having been a part of it for two years and all that, but I felt like for me personally, it was a better situation to go to Kansas City.”

Quinn said that he’d been told Cassel was the starting quarterback, but Pioli and Crennel have both said they want the incumbent to experience a challenge in training camp.

“Obviously there is going to be competition, like there should be on every team in every room,” Quinn said. “Competition makes everyone better. That’s just how the league is.”

Read more: State, Kansas City, Kansas City Chiefs, Chiefs Football, Kansas City Chiefs Football, Stanford Routt, Stanford Routt Kansas City, Stanford Routt Chiefs, Pro, NFL

(AP) — A person familiar with the situation tells The Associated Press that the Kansas City Chiefs and cornerback Stanford Routt have agreed to terms on a $19.6 million, three-year deal.

The person, speaking on condition of anonymity Monday because the team had not announced the deal, said the agreement includes a $4 million signing bonus and $6 million the first season.

Routt is still owed $5 million next month from the Raiders, who released him after the first year of a $54.4 million, five-year deal.

Routt chose the Chiefs over competing offers from Buffalo, Cincinnati, Houston, New Orleans, Minnesota and Tennessee.

(Copyright ©2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP)—A person familiar with the situation tells The
Associated Press that the Kansas City Chiefs and cornerback Stanford Routt have
agreed to terms on a $19.6 million, three-year deal.

The person, speaking on condition of anonymity Monday because the team had
not announced the deal, said the agreement includes a $4 million signing bonus
and $6 million the first season.

Routt is still owed $5 million next month from the Raiders, who released him
after the first year of a $54.4 million, five-year deal. Routt chose the Chiefs
over competing offers from Buffalo, Cincinnati, Houston, New Orleans, Minnesota
and Tennessee.

Routt will likely take over for Brandon Carr, who will become a free agent.
Signing Routt means the Chiefs are more likely to use the franchise tag on wide
receiver Dwayne Bowe instead of Carr.

———

AP Sports Writer Josh Dubow contributed to this report.

Chiefs kicker Ryan Succop can retire that “Mr. Irrelevant” nickname.

The 256th and final pick of the 2009 draft has signed a $14 million, five-year contract extension with Kansas City, a person with knowledge of the deal said late Friday.

ESPN.com, citing anonymous sources, first reported the extension.

The contract includes a $2 million signing bonus, according to a person who spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press because an official announcement had not been made.

Succop joins a pair of other kickers who signed lucrative five-year extensions. Billy Cundiff signed for $15 million to remain with the Baltimore Ravens in January, while Mason Crosby signed with the Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers for $14.75 million in July.

Succop matched Pete Stoyanovich’s franchise record when he hit 22 consecutive field goals earlier this season.

PLAYERS SUE OVER FINANCIAL ADVICE

Kansas City quarterback Kyle Orton and some 20 other NFL players are suing a Chicago law firm for more than $10 million, claiming they received bad financial advice on investing in energy concerns.

The 14-page lawsuit filed this week in Cook County Circuit Court claims that the alleged negligence of Chuhak & Tecson cost Orton and the other players millions of dollars related to energy investments.

PACKERS MISSING 3 KEY PLAYERS

Green Bay will be without three key offensive players in Sunday’s game against Detroit.

Running back James Starks (knee/ankle), receiver/kick returner Randall Cobb (groin) and receiver Greg Jennings (knee), who has missed the last two games, won’t play in the regular-season finale. Coach Mike McCarthy would not say Friday whether quarterback Aaron Rodgers will sit the game out.

REGGIE BUSH OUT FOR MIAMI SEASON FINALE

On Friday, Miami interim coach Todd Bowles said running back Reggie Bush will not play in Sunday’s season finale against the New York Jets because of a right knee injury.

He suffered the injury late in the fourth quarter of last Saturday’s loss to the New England Patriots.

“The knee hasn’t been responding, so we’re going to sit him down,” Bowles said. “I think he would be out earlier in the year, too. He’s just not ready to play this game.”

The injury will cut a career-best season short for Bush.

EXTRA POINTS

Raiders wide receiver Jacoby Ford expects to play in Oakland’s regular-season finale against San Diego. … New England’s Tom Brady is listed as probable for Sunday’s regular-season finale against Buffalo. … Minnesota running back Adrian Peterson has had surgery to repair torn ligaments in his left knee. The surgery was reported as successful. … Arizona defensive tackle Darnell Dockett has been fined $15,000 for hitting Cincinnati quarterback Andy Dalton below the knees last weekend and another $15,000 for a horse-collar tackle on Bengals running back Bernard Scott. … Houston receiver Andre Johnson will play against Tennessee on Sunday after missing the last three games because of a strained left hamstring. … Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger and safety Troy Polamalu are listed as probable for Sunday’s game against the Browns.

The calendar year of 2011 wasn’t too kind to the Kansas City Chiefs. Things didn’t start well and then they ended just as abruptly at the end of the 2011 regular season. Here’s a review of what the Kansas City Chiefs did in 2011 from January to December.

Playoff Loss

The Baltimore Ravens came into Arrowhead Stadium and defeated the Chiefs 30-7 back on Jan. 9. The first AFC West title in years was short-lived. The Chiefs were actually ahead 7-3 after a 41-yard touchdown run by Jamaal Charles. Then the Ravens scored 27 unanswered points to leave the home fans wishing for next year.

First Draft Pick

Jonathan Baldwin out of Pittsburgh was the first round draft choice of the Chiefs in April. He is seen as another big-play receiver to give some help to Dwayne Bowe downfield. ESPN reported in mid-August that Baldwin hurt his fist in a locker room fight with running back Thomas Jones. Baldwin would sit out a month while his fist healed. Kansas City got nine draft picks overall. Outside linebacker Justin Houston came around later in the season to have an impact on defense.

Clocks Cleaned

The Chiefs got their clocks cleaned on opening day at Arrowhead Stadium. The Buffalo Bills defeated Kansas City by a score of 41-7. The Chiefs didn’t score until the first half was almost over. The Bills had a 20-7 lead at halftime.

Todd Haley Fired

Head coach Todd Haley was fired Dec. 12 after a disappointing 5-8 start to the season. The Chiefs started out 0-3 and then improved to 4-3 before enduring a four-game losing streak. The inconsistency in the season was enough for general manager Scott Pioli to fire Haley and promote defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel to interim head coach.

Spoiled Perfection

A week after Haley’s last game against the Jets, Crennel’s squad defeated the Green Bay Packers. The win ended the Packers’ 19-game winning streak dating back to last season. The 19-14 win gave fans hope that the Chiefs’ slim playoff hopes would come to pass. The next week, a 16-13 loss to the Oakland Raiders meant Kansas City would miss the playoffs just a year after being crowned the champions of the AFC West.

William Browning is a fan of the Kansas City Chiefs after latching on to the team during the lean years of St. Louis football. Born in the gateway city, he is also a lifelong St. Louis Cardinals fan. He currently resides in Branson, Mo.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Former Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton will be a starter for the Kansas City Chiefs against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday unless an injured finger on his throwing hand prevents him from playing.

Interim Chiefs coach Romeo Crennel said Wednesday that he made the change to jump-start the team’s stagnant offense. Journeyman quarterback Tyler Palko had led the Chiefs to only two touchdowns in four games since taking over for the injured Matt Cassel.

“We made the change and we’ll see how it plays out,” said Crennel, who took over Monday after the firing of Todd Haley. “If it works out with more points on the board, then it’ll be a good change.”

Crennel said that if Orton is unable to play, fifth-round draft pick Ricky Stanzi will start for Kansas City.

Orton took snaps under center with the first-team offense Wednesday during the brief portion of practice that the media was allowed to observe. He was wearing a sleeve on his index finger, which he dislocated on his only play as a member of the Chiefs two weeks ago at Chicago.

Roethlisberger not practicing. Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger’s sprained left ankle remained in a walking boot, and backups Charlie Batch and Dennis Dixon are preparing as if they will play Monday night in San Francisco.

Footnotes. Wade Phillips, a veteran coach who has turned the Houston defense into the NFL’s best, will have surgery this week to resolve a kidney condition and will be away from the team for a week to 10 days.

• Deep-threat wide receiver Denarius Moore returned to practice for the Raiders after missing the previous three games with an injured right foot.

• Browns president Mike Holmgren said Pat Shurmur will “absolutely” be Cleveland’s coach next season.

• Titans coach Mike Munchak said he is assuming QB Matt Hasselbeck will play Sunday at Indianapolis until he sees otherwise.

The Associated Press

Read More: Tamba Hali (LB – KAN), Justin Houston (LB – KAN), New York Jets, Chicago Bears, Kansas City Chiefs

The New York Jets are probably well aware that both sides of their offensive line will be tested today against the Kansas City Chiefs. That’s something that could not have been said much earlier in the year, when only Tamba Hali represented the Chiefs’ pass rush options and Justin Houston had yet to understand what it took to succeed at the pro level. Now he’s definitely clued in.

“At a time when some rookies are wilting, Justin Houston is emerging,” writes Dan Pompei. “The Chiefs linebacker has made steady progress all season and the coaching of Gary Gibbs and Romeo Crennel is starting to pay off. Houston had three sacks—his first three of the season—last week, but he has been getting close to the quarterback in recent weeks, so Kansas City coaches were not surprised by the third round pick’s breakout game in Chicago.”

The Chiefs put up 7 sacks total last week on the Bears ridiculously porous front line, so they shouldn’t expect similar numbers today against the Jets, but even if Houston can help hurry Mark Sanchez in the pocket or flush him out for linebackers like Derrick Johnson, they might stand a good chance today on the road.

The Kansas City Chiefs have to win out to make the playoffs. At 5-7 with four games left, winning four games in a row will be hard. One of those games will be against the undefeated Green Bay Packers. The Chiefs can still win the AFC West at 8-8 and squeak into the playoffs as the lowest-seeded division champ.

In either scenario, Kansas City needs help in order for the Oakland Raiders and Denver Broncos to lose. The Chiefs play both of those division rivals the last two weekends of the season. The defense will also have to carry the team.

The offense has looked anemic all year, even with Matt Cassel(notes) in at quarterback. Dwayne Bowe(notes) has been ineffective since mid-October. The last time he scored a touchdown was Oct. 9 against the hapless Indianapolis Colts.

The team has been less than stellar in the passing attack as well. With just 11 passing touchdowns and 15 interceptions, the Chiefs need a jump start on offense. Their passing yardage is third-worst in the league.

The running game has been inconsistent. Jackie Battle(notes) has yet to have two games in a row with decent yardage. The Chiefs are actually averaging 120 yards rushing per game, which is ninth in the league. The problem is that all of those yards have produced on three rushing touchdowns all season, worst in the league tied with the Cleveland Browns.

The only unit that has kept Kansas City in its season has been the defense. National media such as the Washington Post has noticed the trend as well. Kansas City has 17 interceptions on the year and two returned for touchdowns. The 17 picks is second in the NFL behind the Packers.

The swarming secondary may have saved the Chiefs season. The number of sacks has picked up remarkably over the past two weeks. Kansas City has 20 sacks this season, fourth worst in the NFL. Before the 10-3 victory over the Chicago Bears Dec. 4, the Chiefs had just 13 sacks this year, which would have been the worst in the NFL.

The most amazing thing about this defensive unit is that the usual suspects from last year haven’t lived up to their potential. Tamba Hali’s(notes) amazing sack total last year isn’t even close this year. Rookie Justin Houston(notes) has come on later in the season to take over sackmaster duties.

One steady presence has been linebacker Derrick Johnson. With just 22 more tackles, he will equal his highest season total for tackles that he set last year. He also has two sacks to go along with an interception. Johnson leads the team by far in terms of tackles.

If the Chiefs are going to do something this season, now is the time. I would say three of the final four games are winnable and would earn an 8-8 record. With some help, an AFC title is still within reach. The defense has to keep doing what they are doing. The offense simply has to play just well enough to let the defense keep them in the game.

William Browning is a fan of the Kansas City Chiefs after latching on to the team during the lean years of St. Louis football. Born in the gateway city, he is also a lifelong St. Louis Cardinals fan. He currently resides in Branson, Mo.

Note: This article was written by a Yahoo! contributor. Sign up here to start publishing your own sports content.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP)—The way this season has gone for the Kansas City
Chiefs, it figured that Kyle Orton(notes) would hurt his finger on his first play with
his new team.

The Chiefs have been waylaid by injuries, in-fighting and inconsistency.
Their best players have been bruised, battered and beaten down. The losses have
been stunning routs, the victories by the narrowest margins, and yet somehow
they still have a chance to make the playoffs.

However remote it may be.

Kansas City managed to slip past the Chicago Bears 10-3 on Sunday, the lone
touchdown coming when Dexter McCluster(notes) hauled in a deflected desperation pass at
the end of the first half. It was the first time the offense had scored in 56
drives, and of course it would be in the most improbable of ways.

Chiefs coach Todd Haley couldn’t help but smile on Monday, though. Kansas
City counted out so many times all season, is just two games back in the AFC
West and still has games to play against both teams it trails in the standings.

“If we can figure out a way to win—pretty, ugly or indifferent—we have
a chance,” Haley said.

Ugly seems to be modus operandi at the moment.

The offense still struggles to get out of its own way, managing just 252
yards total against the Bears. The Chiefs had a fourth of that total—60 yards
— in penalties. And their 3.1 yards per carry would be bad enough if not for the
fact that the passing game has been a disaster since Matt Cassel(notes) went down with
a season-ending injury to his throwing hand.

Tyler Palko’s(notes) numbers looked respectable against Chicago: 17 of 30 for 157
yards and a touchdown without an interception. They look even better when you
consider he had seven turnovers in his first two starts, including three in a
span of three plays last week against the Steelers.

But that doesn’t hide the fact that the offense still can’t find some
traction.

“We know what happens if we lose,” wide receiver Steve Breaston(notes) said. “We
have to take one game at a time. I know everybody says that, but that’s
extremely important with the situation we’re in.”

It helps that a defense so maligned earlier in the season, when it allowed
more than 40 points in back-to-back games against Buffalo and Detroit, has
emerged as the team’s biggest strength.

Kansas City had seven sacks against the Bears, three of them by rookie
linebacker Justin Houston(notes), who has come on as the biggest bright spot out of
this year’s draft. Linebacker Derrick Johnson also had a sack, continuing a
breakthrough season with a performance that caught the attention of Bears
linebacker Brian Urlacher(notes), who made a point of telling Haley how impressed he
was.

“We’re being more consistent. We’re being aware of our season’s
situation,” Johnson said. “We need to play good. It’s a lot of pressure, but
it’s positive pressure.”

Jon McGraw(notes) had one of three interceptions for the defense, and the only
reason he’s playing so much is because Pro bowl safety Eric Berry(notes) went down for
the season in the opener. McGraw’s pick of a deflection in the end zone
prevented a potential Bears touchdown.

Chicago wound up going 0 for 11 on third down and failed on both of its
fourth-down tries. The offense managed just 181 yards, and quarterback Caleb
Hanie’s(notes) rating was just 23.8.

“We expect to do good when you go out on the field,” Johnson said.
“That’s when you get success, when you expect to do good. We didn’t expect them
to be 0 for 11 on third downs, but it works. We know we need to play good every
week. We do that we’ll have a chance to win.”

Haley said even he was a bit surprised by the way the defense has played,
not just on Sunday, but in the last few weeks. It gave Kansas City (5-7) a
chance to beat Denver in a 17-10 loss a few weeks ago, and did so again in a
13-9 loss to Pittsburgh just over a week ago.

On Sunday, the offense finally did enough to make sure it wouldn’t go to
waste.

“We’re coming on at the right time,” Haley said.

Just in time. Maybe.

The Chiefs still have a brutal stretch of games awaiting them, starting on
the road Sunday against the Jets. Then it’s home against the defending Super
Bowl champion Packers, who are chasing a perfect season, before division rivals
Oakland and Denver to finish out the regular season.

But at least they’re in a position to keep playing for something.

“It felt really good to get a win,” wide receiver Jonathan Baldwin(notes) said.
“Now, we can’t get sidetracked. We just have to keep executing and go from
there.”