NFL notebook: Chiefs' draft history big reason for 1-8 record
BY Associated Press
Friday, November 16, 2012
11/16/12 at 2:31 AM
Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli has often said free agency is a flawed way to build a team, where players available are often overpriced or on the downward side of their careers.
Sure, it's always necessary to sign a couple guys to plug holes, but Pioli would much rather draft and develop the right guys to generate stability.
The Chiefs' best offensive players, running back Jamaal Charles and wide receiver Dwayne Bowe, were chosen in the draft. But they haven't been able to find a quarterback who can get them the ball.
The deficiencies are even more glaring on defense.
With the exception of end, where homegrown guy Glenn Dorsey recently landed on injured reserve, everyone on that side of the ball was signed out of college by the Chiefs. That means stars such as linebackers Tamba Hali and Derrick Johnson, who have both been to the Pro Bowl, and solid players such as safety Eric Berry and Kendrick Lewis.
Those are the hits.
The misses are obvious along the line, where Dorsey has been unspectacular in a system that doesn't necessarily suit him; fellow end Tyson Jackson has earned a fraction of the money that came with being the third overall pick in 2009; and where this year's first-round selection - defensive tackle Dontari Poe - is still trying to figure out things.
Urlacher says again he'd lie about concussion: Brian Urlacher wasn't backing down. Chicago's star linebacker would still lie to cover up a concussion.
Urlacher raised a few more eyebrows on Thursday when he reiterated what he told HBO earlier in the year, and it didn't seem to matter to him that Bears quarterback Jay Cutler is recovering from that same injury.
His stance remains the same.
"Yeah," he said when asked if he would lie to cover up a concussion.
Urlacher acknowledged it would be tough to cover up a concussion, and added that the NFL needs to do a better job protecting players from knee injuries.
Ex-punter sues stadium tenant over turf: Former Houston Texans punter Brett Hartmann has sued the county agency that operates Reliant Stadium, blaming "unsafe turf" for a possibly career-ending knee injury.
The 6-foot-2 Hartmann played in the first 12 games last season before tearing his left anterior cruciate ligament and fracturing a bone in Houston's 17-10 win over Atlanta on Dec. 4.
For Texans games, workers piece together more than 1,200, 8-by-8-foot palettes of real grass with forklifts. Hartmann caught his left foot in a seam between palettes and was placed on injured reserve.
