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Kansas City Chiefs’ Offseason Stories: Who Starts at QB?

By Jon Yoon | July 21st, 2008

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Brodie Croyle.

I could almost just end this post right there. Brodie Croyle is going to start in game 1. Period. It astounds me how many media-heads continue to insist that there is a quarterback competition. This Chiefs’ team preview on NFL.com suggests that Croyle will be in a heated QB controversy with Damon Huard and that Thigpen is fast emerging as a favorite of Chan Gailey’s, which could create an interesting QB controversy. I’m not saying that the writer of this story is wrong, but I’d be curious to hear what statements he is referring to. I have heard no remotely credible threats of Huard taking the job away from Croyle. In fact, given that the team is ready to commit to a rookie left tackle and has seemed to cut off virtually every player who wasn’t born in the 80’s, I don’t know where anyone would get the idea that the coaching staff would want Huard to start in 2008. And I have heard no credible story that suggests that Thigpen is any threat to take the starting QB job away from Croyle. I’ve heard some “chatter” about the latter, but that was the same chatter that suggested that LJ was going to be traded for Keenan McCardell.

That’s funny, because the same Chan Gailey that likes Thigpen enough to consider him as a contender to start in 2008 is the same Chan Gailey that said that there was no question in his mind that Brodie Croyle could be a franchise quarterback. In that same article, Herm suggests that it’s Brodie Croyle’s team. Croyle has spent a lot of time this offseason reworking his game, getting into a rhythm with Dwayne Bowe, learning Chan Gailey’s offense. Chan Gailey, the man who is supposedly creating a QB controversy, meanwhile, is designing an offense to cater to the strengths of Croyle. None of it adds up. You know why? Because it’s not going to happen, much as the media would like to have you believe otherwise.

Given that the NFL.com article was pretty spot-on with most of their analysis, it surprised me that they would make a ridiculous comment like: “this should be one of the NFL’s tightest quarterback races this summer.” But I suppose I can understand the rationale. For some odd reason, there has been a lot of resistance to the idea that Brodie Croyle might start for the Chiefs in 2008. With that pushback, come rampant stories about how Tyler Thigpen is making a push for the starting QB position. Funny thing is, you never hear it from anybody official. The closest I’ve heard to an official pronouncement that Thigpen could compete for a starting job was a report by Adam Schefter a few months ago that stated that coaches were impressed with Thigpen.

Then again, since when were coaches ever reliable sources when it comes to publicly evaluating their young players? Do they really have any incentive to talk smack about any of their young guys? Of course if they are asked to voice their opinion about a young player like Thigpen, they’re going to do everything in their power to boost that player’s confidence by telling the media that the kid is a hustler. That kind of talk could even light a fire in Brodie Croyle to take his game to the next level. However, this is also the same talk that proclaimed that Chris Hannon and “Crap”honso Thorpe had a fighting shot of winning a starting job in Kansas City (neither player even made the roster).

I can only attribute this story concept to a few different ideas: #1) the media-heads are attempting to make a story out of a non-story during crazy season; #2) for some weird, strange reason completely unbeknownst to me, media-heads really despise Brodie Croyle. They are so eager to see him fail and I don’t have the slightest idea why. And so, you see a lot ridiculous reports like this fantasy football ranking, that place Brodie Croyle as the #30 ranked QB in the NFL (behind Grossman, Tarvaris Jackson, and Alex Smith). That’s one of many reports that have pretty much painted the picture of Brodie Croyle as one of the worst starting QBs in the NFL. That’s strange, considering that Croyle, a half-year starter, is ranked worse than a QB like Rex Grossman, who has been sucking for years.

So yes, if you look at the loose evidence, there could be a small threat that Tyler Thigpen could push for a starting job against Brodie Croyle, nevermind that he never faced real competition in college, that he’s considered somewhat short by NFL standards, and that Herm Edwards and Chan Gailey have already voiced their support for Croyle going into training camp. I guess if you ignore all those other variables, you might find a very marginally compelling story that Tyler Thigpen will take a healthy Brodie Croyle’s job away.

This entry was posted on Monday, July 21st, 2008 at 7:38 pm and is filed under tyler thigpen, chan gailey, brodie croyle, qb controversy, Random Observations, Analysis. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

13 Responses to “Kansas City Chiefs’ Offseason Stories: Who Starts at QB?”

Ernest says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 8:58 am

Chandelier Croyle job was given to him after he could not win it from a journeyman QB who had some success from the previous season. And he has already proven to be to fragile for the NFL. He has been hurt just about every year since high school. And being in SEC area, we know first hand that Croyle do not have what it takes. After week six everyone will know it.
CurtMerzFan says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 9:13 am

I can see Earnest ate his full ration of poo this morning - cuz he aint got a clue.

As usual, Jon hit the nasty curve ball out of the park. The J.O.B. is Brodies. And he’ll have to lose a LOT more before it’s not. Statistically, Croyles numbers match up very well indeed with the likes of Peyton, Brady, Palmer, Anderson and several others after six starts.

The easy read around the league is it was all Brodie’s fault KC lost their last 8 in a row… but if you’re paying attention, it had a hell of a lot more to do with Larry Johnson going down than anything else.
Ron Rabon says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 9:14 am

You are right on. Croyle will surprise the nay sayers this year. Give him some blocking and if LJ stays healthy he will win the fan base. Remember the boos and bad talk about Eli Manning a year ago. LOL
Ron Rabon says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 9:16 am

Earnest sounds like an Auburn fan. Grammar and all.
Jeff says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 9:32 am

EXPECT BRODIE TO DO WELL

Brodie’s first 6 games as starter compare favorably with Peyton Manning’s first six games and also with Eli Mannings first six games.
See
http://www.kcchiefs.com/news/2008/06/04six_games_in/

I watched Brodie at Alabama, and contrary to the talk of some of the media types (who are just recycling one another’s story lines) he makes good decisions even if he does have a bit of a gunslinger attitude - a good thing in a talented QB with a head for football. My concern is that the KC coaching staff will go overboard in trying to have Brodie merely “manage the game.” Brodie is talented, and while it is important that he protect the football, they need to give him opportunity to use his talent.

There’s always a big adjustment as one moves from the college level to the NFL, but Brodie’s 6 losses last year aren’t so much a reflection of his own potential as they are are reflection of a very inadequate offensive line and a limited ground threat. No QB is going to thrive with constant heat from his blind side. The O-line this year may be young, but if it’s an improved line, expect Brodie to look like an improved QB.

One last observation: I wonder if part of the shallowness in the talk about the QB situation at KC is due to a shift from coverage of the NFL as team coverage to a focus on fantasy team needs. Fantasy teams are fantasies. individual statistics are combined to create something that doesn’t exist. In that fantasy world, it’s easy to focus on an individual and say “my fantasy team didn’t do well because player ‘x’ didn’t perform.” But in the NFL, wins and losses truly are team events. Each player’s performance is affected by the whole team’s performance. That should be obvious. But apparently, it no longer is.
Glenn says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 10:42 am

It’s too early to evaluate Brodie Croyle’s future potential in any meaningful way. From what little we’ve seen of Brodie Croyle, he’s done well.

What’s been less successful in my mind is the treatment Brodie Croyle received last year. What I’ve never understood is why Croyle didn’t start in game 1. Yes, he threw some interceptions in the pre-season. Yes, he was inconsistent. That’s what first year quarterbacks are. That’s what they do: make mistakes. Why even hint that the Chiefs might go down that road (starting a first-year quarterback) if the head coach was not willing to live with the mistakes? At one point, a source cited Herm claiming that he couldn’t start Croyle because the veteran’s in the locker room didn’t believe in him. Are those the same veterans that aren’t in Chiefs uniforms this year??

Overall, the offensive execution last year was horrible, with Brodie or without. Just ask Larry Johnson. Defenses knew what the Chiefs were going to do before the ball was snapped. That makes it easy to play defense. Many people cite the offensive line as the problem, but it was more than that. It seemed as if defenses were run-blitzing 85% of the time the Chiefs ran and had the perfect pass defense called on 85% of the pass plays. We have a local bar that allows a person to predict plays and score points. I went there a couple times last year for Chiefs games and scored major points by correctly predicting the Chiefs play-calling 80 - 90% of the time. And I don’t study film the way opposing coaches do. In 2006, I was in the same bar trying to do the same thing with the Chiefs offense. No luck at all.

My prediction is that the Chiefs offense will be better this year with noticable improvement starting somewhere between week 7 and week 10. It’ll probably be very ugly for all of September and maybe October, but if our defense can win a few games, the Chiefs could be a competitive team in December.
ricky-poo says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 2:29 pm

Who in the hell knows?!?

I’ll second the fact that the Chiefs demise last year wasn’t all because of Croyle. People here have only mentioned the obvious. Running game, blocking. Typical near-sightedness. Although those are definately important the Chiefs, however, were in a number of close games.

The Chiefs were also hurt by poor special teams performance in setting up the offense with a short field. Play calling changes when you got 85 yards to go compared to 55. Defenses are a lot more aggressive when they can afford to be.

Another thing is the Chiefs defense. They started the year looking like a top ten. But by the time Croyle came in they were giving up big plays at wrong times again. Not on the grand scale during the Vermeil era but still not proving they could make stops when absolutely needed by the end of the year. Field position was given up by the defense and not given back by the SP’s. All of that can make it harder for any offense.

As for this coming season? Who in the hell knows?!?
SpokaneOakfan says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 3:04 pm

The thing about Croyle isn’t his talent, but the talent surrounding him. A QB is only as good as his line and/or recievers. Having said that, I think if Croyle is ever going to be the franchise, then the Chiefs have to let him take his lumps now. If they do the old musical QB thing trying to win now, then they’ll lose not only a lot of games, but the confidence of their QB.

It’s tricky finding the guy with the mental makeup to succeed at the QB position. Look at Troy Aikman- he was destroyed his first season at Dallas. He had nothing to work with. He turned out okay. Look at Ryan Leaf- he had nothing to work with, but couldn’t keep his head up and wait it out. He failed.

We’ll see how Croyle ends up. I do think that if you evaluate where he is now with what he has to work with, 30th isn’t too much of a diss on him.
ricky-poo says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 3:16 pm

Oh, another thing. I know this is off topic but I got to get this off my chest. I haven’t heard this angle from ANYONE about Jared Allen. Even though he was the sack leader and could potentially be a consistent sack threat (with emphasis on the words could and potentially, Allen isn’t by any stretch a confirmed/proven quality gem) that type of production isn’t as important this season. There are at present only three games on the Chiefs itinerary that involve established top tier QBs; NE, NO and Cinn. The QBs in the AFC West are not true fire stand in the pocket kind of QBs. You have to go at least 4-2 in the division if you want to have a chance to win it.

Most of the QBs the Chiefs face this year are going to be “young” AND “inexperienced/non-established” making them a) more able to avoid sacks with their mobility and b) quick to bail out of the pocket, respectively.

So why not get those extra picks (in accordance with their long term plan) and sacrifice something that you can possibly afford to lose? I think the Allen trade could have been, in part anyway, based on this reality.
Hank says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 3:41 pm

All you have to do is watch all the (regular season) games Brodie played in last year and observe the part HE had control over. You will see a QB who made better DECISIONS than (much more experienced) Jay Cutler (I charted the two). You will also see a much more accurate arm than he is given credit for. And we don’t need to talk about the zip on the ball. Review the games… it wasn’t that the receivers dropped MANY more balls than other NFL receivers (although the rate was above Denver and San Diego’s drop rate); it was WHEN they dropped the ball. Do a comparison between one of the best QB’s in the game (Peyton Manning) and Brodie by watching the KC/Indy game (11/18/07). STUDY Brodie’s skills sets in his 4th game as a pro and compare to Peyton’s (in his prime). And remember-Brodie only had 2 guys on his side that would have made the Colt’s offensive team in Bowe and Gonzales (okay maybe Waters). People need to understand that Brodie ALREADY has what it takes to be a franchise QB. He needs a better supporting cast, a little more experience and an OC that has a brain. Chan (I have seen it all) Gailey ALREADY knows this but no one seems to listen. P.S. In my game study of the 07 season I conclude the BIGGEST crybaby is L.T. and the most non-fired up (bad attitude) running back is our own L.J.
Diamond Dave says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 6:19 pm

More false rumor mongering from Adam Schefter? Or, as I suppose, they are getting information from coaches who are afraid to go on record to denounce Brodie.
Ian Brennan says:

July 22nd, 2008 at 11:22 pm

spokaneoakfan…. i agree with you 100 % croyle has to play the whole year or in his whole career will never be good….if we pull him after proclaiming him the starter he will fall and fall hard and never regain his swagger…..Im for Croyle all the way even though i think that Thigpen has a lot of talent we gotta stick with Croyle
Bill Mason says:

July 24th, 2008 at 6:23 am

I am so glad I found this site. Finally smart fans.I am so tired of reading and hearing so called fans bashing Brodie,I live in Va and have the Sunday ticket and watch the Chiefs every week and i think with Chans offense Brodie is going to be even better.I have been a Chiefs fan for 40 years and I am excited for this year to start.I will be going to # games this year patriots,panthers and Saints, I love games at ARROWHEAD.