Five ways the Chiefs can improve before the draft

With the season wrapping up, the Chiefs will be faced with an important few months, as they will have to bring in new players and figure out what to do with their most troubled spots.  Here are a couple of suggestions that could lead to a much more productive season next year that involve getting a new quarterback through either trade or free-agency.

1. Alex Smith (trade)

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Alex Smith is a proven commodity, as he boasts an outstanding record of 20-5-1 in his last twenty-six outings (.7885). Smith has shined the last two seasons, but with Colin Kaepernick taking over in San Francisco, the 49ers will be looking to move him.While Smith has looked good, the only danger is that the Chiefs would likely have to swap first round picks with San Francisco, meaning they would lose their number one overall pick. However, this deal could be worth the cost considering that Smith's 70% completion percentage this year is his highest since joining the NFL, and dangerously close to an NFL record. Furthermore, in the last regular season and a half he has thrown for thirty touchdowns, to only ten interceptions. His efficiency without an elite receiver speaks for itself, and he could be worth the first pick in the draft, and more.

2. Kirk Cousins (trade)

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Kirk Cousins has seen game action three times, playing in place of RGIII. The rookie from Michigan State has been impressive as he has a passer rating of 101.6 through those games.  Cousins is 1-0 as a starter, but was probably most impressive when he came in against the playoff-bound Baltimore Ravens and threw for a touchdown, converted on a two-point-conversion to tie the game, and led the team on an overtime drive that ended in a game winning fieldgoal. In his one start Cousins threw with efficiency, and his stats showed that as his completion percentage was above 70%. Cousins may be young, but he has certainly established himself as a mobile quarterback, so the Chiefs could go after him. The Redskins have him under contract, but what they don't have is a first round pick the next two seasons because of the trade to acquire Robert Griffin III. The Chiefs could offer the Redskins their second round pick, which would be the thirty-third pick in the draft (the first pick of the second round). The pick is high enough that it is practically a first-round pick, and certainly carries the quality and value of one. Regardless, Cousins would be a great fit for Kansas City.

3. Michael Vick (free-agency/trade)

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Interestingly enough, Michael Vick still has a contract, but it appears that the Philadelphia Eagles will release him at the end of the year. Vick has struggled this year, although injuries have been a large part of that.  It cannot be denied, however, that Vick is one of the greatest rushing quarterbacks of all time, as he has over 20,000 passing yards and 5,500 rushing yards in his career. His season was cut short, but Vick still had more touchdowns (twelve), than interceptions (nine), which is something that no Chiefs quarterback can say. Should the Eagles retain Vick the Chiefs might be able to take him away for a third or fourth round pick. Either way, it would be extremely exciting to have a running quarterback in Kansas City, especially one with the speed of Vick.

4. Mark Sanchez (trade)

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The feelings about how terrible Mark Sanchez is are well overblown. Sanchez has had a down year, but with no weapons on offense, no running game, a battered offensive line, a limited defense, and poor coaching he can't exactly be faulted. With only a 55% career completion percentage, Sanchez has been far from dazzling, but two seasons ago he did have thirty-two total touchdowns to only eighteen interceptions.  With a solid running game and a couple of good wide receivers, Sanchez could thrive in Kansas City, especially if the Chiefs could keep Dwayne Bowe. Sanchez still has a lot of money left on his contract, but the Chiefs can afford it, and for that reason, they could get away with giving the Jets a fourth round pick for him. And it goes without saying that Sanchez has the experience for the job, as he led the New York Jets to the AFC Championship Game, twice.

5. Tim Tebow (free-agency)

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Tebow is interesting, because the Chiefs have a great running game, one that is far better than Denver's a season ago. Tim Tebow would bring excitement to Kansas City, along with ticket sales, but he would also bring leadership and playoff experience, something that could really come in handy.  Tebow thrived in Denver's system because they could afford to rely on their defense, run game, and special teams, something the Chiefs will be able to do if they sign Tebow, and then draft for defense.  Should the Cheifs pick up Tebow as a free agent then the focus for the draft would be defense, defense, defense, and more defense, starting with taking Manti Te'o first.  The Chiefs already have great special teams, and a great rushing attack, so with a solidified defense Tebow could actually be a good fit for Kansas City.

The benefit of acquiring any of these quarterbacks through free-agency is that it allows the Chiefs to use every draft pick for defense. his combination could bring life to a team that played atrocious football in the 2012-2013 season. It will be interesting to follow if the Chiefs will make any pre-draft moves, or if they will settle for reaching for a quarterback with their first or second pick.

The Dwayne Bowe Connection

The Chiefs reached a new low as they followed a blowout loss to the Cleveland Browns by getting shutout by the miserable Oakland Raiders.  The 15-0 drubbing is another blemish on the resume of coach Romeo Crennel and General Manager Scott Pioli, who will both likely be gone at the end of the season.  However, something has come to light in the last two games.  Since Dwayne Bowe went down with an injury the Chiefs have been unable to move the ball.  Bowe was injured on the second drive of the game against the Browns, and since then (seven quarters) the Chiefs have put up no points.

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Without Bowe the Chiefs were easily stopped by a terrible Cleveland Browns team and by a sub-par Oakland Raiders team, both of which that had shown very little life all season. Both teams were able to focus in on the run as they realized a Brady Quinn led offense without a major receiver had little to no chance of making a major play through the air.  Bowe now appears to have two broken ribs, and he was just placed on "IR", meaning that he will be out the rest of the season.  This news may come as a blessing in disguise, as the Chiefs have seriously decreased any slim chances they had of winning again.

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Next week the Chiefs face the Colts at home, and they will a wide receiver to step up, either Jon Baldwin, Steve Breaston, or Terrance Copper. However, Jamaal Charles will likely carry the load along with Peyton Hillis, who has done little since being on the cover of the popular video game Madden NFL 2012. The Chiefs don't have much of a chance though, as Andrew Luck has led the Colts to a postseason berth, just one year removed from having the worst record in all of football.

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The Colts have been hot as of late. They've won seven of their last nine contests, and have an overall record of 9-5. Luck has shown himself to be a top choice for the Rookie of the Year award and has even looked to be a solid choice for the NFL's Most Valuable Player award. Luck is on pace to go over 4,000 passing yards on the season, a mark that is unheard of for a rookie.

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The Colts have been improved defensively this year in a big way.  In the secondary, Darius Butler has managed to snag three interceptions and was able to return one of them for a touchdown. Robert Mathis has also been huge for the defense this year, as he already has seven sacks on the season to go along with an interception and a forced fumble. The Colts will not need to be great defensively though, because the Chiefs are without their only vertical threat, meaning that the Colts can afford to blitz on nearly every down.

On paper the Chiefs don't have a chance, but when a team is facing a rookie quarterback anything can happen.  Andrew Luck is hardly a typical rookie though, as he graduated after four years at Stanford and is playing like a veteran of the NFL.  Ultimately though the Chiefs need to continue to lose in order to secure the first pick in the 2013 NFL Draft, and there is no evidence to suspect that they wont.

From tragedy to triumph

The Chiefs were in an interesting situation on Sunday, playing less than twenty-four hours after the tragic events that involved Javon Belcher (starting inside linebacker) killing his girlfriend and then driving to the stadium and taking his own life in front of Romeo Crennel (head coach) and Scott Pioli (general manager). The unfortunate sequence of events left many loose ends, such as what would happen to Belcher's three-month-old child and whether or not the game Sunday would go on as planned.

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Shortly after the horrible tragedy the Chiefs voted as a team to play, and as they showed themselves to have strength, so did the fans, who came out in large numbers and didn't boo for the first game this year. The Chiefs came out sharp, scoring early on a two-yard Peyton Hillis touchdown run set up by a long catch by Jonathan Baldwin.  However, after a few back and forth sequences the Chiefs found themselves down 14-10, and they needed a play fast as time was running down in the first half.

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he Chiefs had the ball on the one yard line with two seconds left in the half, so Romeo Crennel, who had been extremely conservative all year, decided to take a risk.  It paid off as Brady Quinn found Tony Moeaki in the back of the endzone for the go-ahead score.  The Chiefs would never relinquish the lead again, as they would end up winning the game 27-21.

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Justin Houston shined again in the victory, as the second-year linebacker racked up his tenth sack on the year.  Houston has been a bright spot for the Chiefs, and the sack must have felt good considering he played right next to a fallen teammate in Belcher.  Houston may have led the Chiefs, but the overall performance of the team was impressive, leading Chiefs' owner Clark Hunt to give the game ball to Romeo Crennel.

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Playing after such tough events really showed the toughness of a team that had been pushed around, out muscled, and out matched in just about every game they had played. It certainly put a fire under the team, and it led to a great win, however, each win comes with a cost now because the Chiefs are looking for the number one pick in the upcoming 2013 NFL Draft.
This win kept the Chiefs tied with Jacksonville for the first pick in the draft, but as I mentioned in my last blog, they need to watch out. The next two games are against three-win teams, Cleveland and Oakland respectively. If they Chiefs can get through those games with only one win they should have an excellent shot at a top pick, but the only way to secure the first overall pick would be to lose out.

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One issue still remains, what happens to Zoey, who is now an orphan after the tragic events that occurred on Saturday.  The Chiefs are going to be starting a fund for her and for her future education. When asked about additional help that people could take the initiative to provide, Chiefs' lineman Eric Winston said that he was "not sure yet", but that it would be "a priority to help her".