2-27

Depending on the time of the year, my all-out favourite team varies but from September – December, NFL season, it’s generally the Kansas City Chiefs. Even this year.

The Chiefs, it’s fair to say, are a pretty poor team. We’ve lost 27 of our last 29 games, dating back to the middle of the 2007 season. Last night, we blew a 10 point lead against the Dallas Cowboys, then fought back to force overtime, and then lost regardless. It made for tough viewing, but I’m hardened to it by now. Unsurprisingly.

The worst part about it all is how management of your team screws things up, and one such instance was pointed out to all Chiefs fans by Peter King today in his excellent Monday Morning Quarterback column. It involves our former Defensive End Jared Allen, who is now with the Minnesota Vikings and is probably one of the best defensive players in the NFL this season. The Chiefs traded him at the end of the 2007 season. It was a deal I agreed with at the time – he wanted to go – but boy have the Vikings had the best part of the deal.

I’ll leave King to explain the latest bit of Chiefs related information that has me in despair.

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I think if you're a Chiefs' fan, you might want to skip this section. Kansas City refused to give Jared Allen a top-tier defensive end contract 18 months ago, instead shipping him to Minnesota for what appeared to be fair compensation three days before the 2008 draft. Here's how the deal looks today:


What the Chiefs got:


1st round (15th overall) Branden Albert, OT -- Starting LT has a chance to be good. In-and-out work ethic.


3rd round (73) Jamaal Charles, RB -- Change-of-pace back averaging five carries a game in 21 pro games.


3rd round (82) DaJuan Morgan, S -- Sub safety who still has to prove self to new coaching staff.


6th round (182) Kevin Robinson, WR -- Cut by Chiefs in '08. Never played for them.


What the Vikings got:


Jared Allen, DE -- The league's best all-around defensive end has 21 sacks and three safeties in 22 Viking games.


6th round (187) John Sullivan, C -- First-year starting center on one of NFL's best lines.


It's not certain, but it's possible that history will show that the Vikings got a more productive player at 187 (Sullivan) than the Chiefs got at 15 (Albert). Ouch.

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Ouch indeed.

Thinkin' Of Z

I'm a little slow on this one - it's a busy week in college, and in my own personal life too. On Monday, Peter King announced in his Monday Morning QB article on si.com that the much-loved Dr. Z is recovering from two strokes he suffered on November 20th and 21st. The title was aptly Dr. Z is best football writer of our time. Simple, truthful.

I'd just like to pass on my very best to Paul Zimmerman and Linda, The Flaming Redhead. Z is a great writer, though that's almost irrelevant at a time when his health is at stake, something obviously far more important. Describing Z to a non-football fan just now, I described his impact like this.

There's just so many run of the mill writers today that don't contribute anything to an articles and then there's grumpy farts like Z who's pieces tread that delicate line between being factual and insightful while retaining an input from the writer's actual personality.

I'm a grumpy fart too. That's a compliment toZ in a rant from me. What I would love is to have his deft choice of language, his humour and most importantly his knowledge and passion for the sport. Z picked the Giants to win XLII you know, and he in a style which encapsulates the man.

As an Irish American Football fan who has learned so much about the sport and its history from Z, and someone who would love one day to be paid to write about sport, I genuinely hope that we'll get to read his views on XLIII as well.

Get better Z.