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Sunday, August 2: Afternoon Practice

The third practice of Summer Training Camp started off with sunny skies, and almost every fan had a hat and/or sunglasses on. It was nice weather for practice with a temperature of 80 degrees and humidity at 48 percent. The breezy wind was due south at a speed of 8 miles-per-hour.

There were about 200 fans seen at the Kansas City Chiefs third practice. While most of the fans lined the fences, some fans continued to assume their spot in the bleachers. Though grills and coolers are not allowed at camp, fans still enjoy sitting around in the shady areas.

Fans

Kansas City Chiefs fans have been coming from all over the country to watch the first few practices. Harley Salomo, 15, from Kansas City, Mo., was at today's practice with his father and nephew. Salomo says, “My favorite player is Dwayne Bowe. I used to be a wide receive,r and I like Bowe’s swagger,” he said. Salomo and his family have been coming to the Chiefs camp for many years and use the time at camp as a family vacation. “We like to go to Duluth and other areas in Minnesota and Wisconsin,” he commented.

Judy and Owen Gahagen from Park Ville, Mo., are enjoying their 19th year at the Kansas City Chiefs Summer Training Camp. The couple found a comfortable spot in the shade to watch practice. “I remember when we could fly our plane onto a grass landing strip back in the day,” said Owen. The couple used to bring their children when they were younger and follow the team around during camp. Now, the couple travels to the area alone, and their grown son will be joining them in a few days. “We love the St. Croix Valley and are very sad to see that the Chiefs will be moving to Missouri. The way I see it is if people are willing to come all this way to watch practice, then they must be pretty serious fans,” Owen said.  As for favorites, the couple doesn’t really have one in particular; they enjoy watching the whole team and are interested to see how the new players will do. “Who knows," said Owen, (Matt) Cassel could be our quarterback of the franchise.” The Gahagens have also noticed a change in practice with the new coaching staff in charge. “Practice seems different. There's a lot less standing around, and it's at a much faster pace,” said Judy. As far as their summer trip, “everything must come to an end sometime," Owen said.

“I’m wearing the Marty Hat,” said Kansas City Chiefs Fan Will Faris from Independence Mo., at today's practice. His hat had been signed by previous Head Coach Marty Schotenheimer. Faris has been coming to the Summer Training Camp since 1998. Most years, he comes with his family. However, this year he has taken a long weekend by himself. “I don’t really have a favorite player right now," says Faris, "but I like to watch the quarterbacks and see what they are going to do with the season.” As for his attendance at the camp in Missouri, Faris said, “Yeah, I will probably go, but I won't be staying overnight since it's just a small commute from my house. I think Marty was right in bringing the team up here. It gets them away from their element and out of the hot weather.”

Couples Beth and Dennis Bass and Lorie and Brett Downing from Joplin, Mo. watched the team practice along the wooden fence. It is the Bass’ fourth time visiting camp and the Downings’ third. “We like the weather, enjoy watching the players, and it’s not that crowded. It gives us a chance to watch and be close to the team,” stated Beth. Dennis added, “It is a real nice town. We hate to see the Chiefs leave even though it will be closer for us.” When Beth and Lorie were asked who their favorite players were to watch, their husbands chimed in saying, “the quarterback with the big blue eyes,” implying Chiefs new quarterback Matt Cassel. This year they also brought their bicycles with them to ride to the practice fields from the hotel and around town on the trails.

Kansas City Chiefs in-house staff members Tom Stephens, Cole Blaise and Travis Geary were also spotted along the wooden fence on practice field three. They shoot all the video for the kcchiefs.com website footage. The video they are shooting is mainly for the fans on the website, but some of the video footage will be used later down the road for the new stadium and game day presentations. Stephens stated, “We enjoy keeping the fans in touch with the team when they are away at camp and to see what is going on.” He also added that there will be renovations to the kcchiefs.com website, which will be launched soon.

Elizabeth De La Cruz from Cottage Grove, Minn. was walking around with a football her and her family had received 12 autographs on last night after the afternoon practice, including one from running back Larry Johnson. Her and her husband enjoy coming to camp because it gives their children a terrific opportunity to experience professional football. The De La Cruz family is also here with the DeFend family from Woodbury, Minn. and the Laurito family from Cottage Grove, Minn.

Joe and Lindsey Rolf from Higginsville, Mo. watched practice today while enjoying the shade. Joe mentioned they are season ticket holders on the 41-yard-line at Arrowhead Stadium on the lower deck. Lindsey said her favorite player used to be tight end Tony Gonzalez, but it would now have to be quarterback Matt Cassel because "he is an awesome quarterback. Hopefully he will start for the Chiefs during the regular season.” The Rolfs have officially begun their vacation and will visit the Omaha Zoo on the way back home.

Tom Hofmeister, a UWRF student and president of the Theta Chi Fraternity, was watching the Chiefs offense practice today. “It is awesome to have the Chiefs here. The opportunity for fans and local residents to come out and be a part of an NFL camp is amazing!” Hofmeister said. Three members of the Theta Chi fraternity, including Hofmeister, volunteered at the Punt, Pass and Kick competition on Saturday. “Helping our community is a huge part of what our organization is all about,” he stated. “We had a ton of fun with the kids and I think they had a pretty good time themselves.”

Kenny Langum, Security Guard for the Chiefs, took time to speak with UWRF reporters today about his experiences. Langum works for an engineering company in Kansas City, Mo., but has been doing part time security for the Chiefs since 1978. During training camp, Langum directs media traffic into restricted areas around the practice fields where only members of the press and other qualified individuals are allowed to enter. When asked about his most memorable incident where he had to take security action, Langum recalled one game. “We were playing against the 49ers in San Francisco when a photographer somehow got through gate security with expired credentials from a few weeks before. While taking pictures of the game, he kept inching closer and closer to the players’ bench until he got close enough to snatch a football. I saw him stick it in his camera bag, and I had to grab him before he was able to get out! That was probably one of the craziest things I saw during my time working with the Chiefs.” Besides traveling to River Falls for training camp, Langum has gone with the team to preseason games, regular season games and even got to travel to Germany for a game in Berlin while the NFL was trying to expand to Europe. Langum also has a brother, Darwin, who has been working for the Chiefs since 1980.

Eric Reynolds of Apple Valley, Minn. was present for his 19th year at Chiefs camp in River Falls. “This campus is beautiful, and the staff does a wonderful job of getting the fields ready for the team every year.” Originally from Kansas City, Kan., Reynolds said that he has been a season ticket holder for the Chiefs until this year. I just can’t afford it anymore,” he said sadly. Reynolds used to work for an airline company and said that he had the opportunity to talk to many famous performers and athletes during his career. Many times, while visiting training camp in River Falls, he has been invited by Chiefs players to go golfing. He recalled one time when he saw quarterback David Krieg in his car near the practice field. “The Chiefs had signed quarterback Joe Montana during the off-season, so Krieg was now the backup. But I yelled to him ‘Great job today David!’ His windows were down and he heard me, so he responded back ‘They have replaced me with an old man!’ I told him not to worry about it because Montana would get knocked around in the first few games and would probably get hurt. No sooner had the words come out of my mouth, Montana sat up from the passenger seat of Krieg’s car! He had been reclining and resting there the whole time.I have never wanted to pull my foot from my mouth more than on that day. But after giving me a little grief about my comment, we all joked around for a while and then both quarterbacks signed a football for me.”

Defense

Before practice officially began, Defensive Coordinator Clancy Pendergast was working with the defensive backs, running a drill that used five garbage bins to simulate the offensive line. During this drill, cornerback Maurice Leggett was seeing time as the nickelback. While there was just enough time for everyone to catch their breath, linebacker Tamba Hali utilized the moment to stretch out his legs. While the defensive backs ran their drill, the defensive line was also early to the field. Defensive Line Coach Tim Krumrie had his men running a drill that polished their skills of getting off the line of scrimmage quickly. Other defensive players stood in to represent the offense, and a Nerf football was used during the snaps.

Defensive end Glenn Dorsey and linebackers Demorrio Williams and Derrick Johnson were not in full pads as the rest of the team was. For the first time of training camp, defensive tackle Ron Edwards and defensive end Dion Gales saw action this afternoon as they both participated in practice.

During this afternoon’s practice, the defensive backs worked using giant hoops placed on the field. The men would take off in one direction and have to jab back in the other direction, around the hoops. Later in practice, a similar drill was ran. The only difference was that the players had to pick up an item from the hoop as they ran around it.

Members of the entire defensive squad came together and ran a few rounds back and forth over some foam hurdles. From there, the squad split, and the defensive line moved to hitting the stationary sled. The lineabackers began working on where they’d be placed given different offensive routes, and the defensive backs worked on back peddling, footwork and catching passes.

One of the defensive coach stood on the back of the single sled while the defensive linemen worked on tackling. Defensive Line Coach Tim Krumrie continued to ask the men to “jam it” and “keep [their] head up.” Krumrie made defensive tackle Tank Tyler hit the dummy multiple times until he was satisfied with Tyler’s “jamming.”

While working on the single sled, rookie defensive end Alex Magee was reminded by Defensive Line Coach Tim Krumrie to keep his arms locked up. After he addressed Magee specifically, Krumrie repeated the advice, telling all the linemen that it applied to each of them. Throughout the drill, Krumrie preached about the position of each player’s hands. Meanwhile, the defensive backs worked one-on-one with each other on meeting receivers who just made a catch with their bodies.

The defensive line used cone-shaped dummies to work on sack situations. Each player would bust through three dummies and tackle the fourth, representing the quarterback. Defensive Line Coach Tim Krumrie then threw the ball on the ground, ordering each player to “get on the ball!” Following this drill, Krumrie put an arm pad on each of his arms, and had the linemen work on swatting past his arms. He said this drill was helping them learn how to run up the field as opposed to running sideways after battling an offender.

Seeing time with the first-string during 7-on-7 was: defensive ends Alfonso Boone and rookie Alex Magee, defensive tackle Ron Edwards and linebackers Monty Beisel, Zach Thomas, Tamba Hali and Mike Vrabel.

Frustrated due to the defense’s weak showing versus the running offense during 7-on-7, Defensive Line Coach Tim Krumrie shouted, “Don’t let him push your (butt) off the ball. You push him past the line of scrimmage!”

The horn sounded at 3:23 p.m. and everyone got a small water break. After the break, 11-on-11 began. Seeing time with the first-string was: linebackers Tamba Hali, Zach Thomas, Mike Vrabel and Monty Beisel; cornerbacks Brandon Carr and Brandon Flowers, safeties Bernard Pollard and Jarrad Page, defensive ends Alex Magee and Alfonso Boone and defensive tackle Ron Edwards.

After quarterback Matt Cassel completed a pass to wide receiver Dwayne Bowe, Defensive Coordinator Clancy Pendergast said he expected more out of linebacker Tamba Hali. “Finish, Tamba,” he shouted.

The horn sounded at 3:34 p.m. and the offensive and defensive lines came together on field 2, while everyone else met on field 1. The linemen worked one-on-one. The offensive lineman tried to stop the defensive lineman from reaching the hypothetical quarterback. Defensive Line Coach Tim Krumrie got frustrated with defensive tackle Tank Tyler when Tyler didn’t sprint back to the line of scrimmage after the whistle blew. Krumrie threatened the rest of the players that if they didn’t hustle back after the whistle blew, they’d be running the drill all night. Joining the drill after a few minutes was linebackers Turk McBride and Tamba Hali.

Defensive end Wallace Gilberry and defensive tackle Derek Lokey both had to run the length of field 2 after jumping offsides during a drill.

Around 4:15 p.m. the teams came together on the south end of field 2 to run some Red zone drills. Everyone was really fired up about being in the Red zone; there was lots of talking and shouting. During the drill, running back Jamaal Charles was able to score a touchdown in the northwest corner of the endzone. Members of his offensive team congratulated him, saying, “Good job, Charles.” and “Good job 2-5.” Fullback Jed Collins had a reception in the endzone during the Red zone drills as well, and tight end Tom Crabtree was excited as his lept into the air, giving Collins a high-five.

The defense also spent time working on interception situations.

Offense

Running back Kolby Smith, tight end Jake O’Connell and tackle Damion McIntosh were not suited up for practice this afternoon. Guards Brian Waters and Mike Goff were both in full pads for the first time today.

Off a good handoff from quarterback Tyler Thigpen during 7-on-7, running back Jackie Battle fumbled the football. This was much to the dismay of Offensive Line Coach Bill Muir.

Running back Dantrell Savage had a good run off a handoff from quarterback Matt Cassel during 7-on-7. Fellow running backs Jackie Battle and Larry Johnson were also getting quite a few touches, making a number of good running plays.

After rookie wide receiver Quinten Lawrence made a reception, Head Coach Todd Haley shouted to Wide Receivers Coach Dedric Ward, “Maybe there’s hope for him yet. He caught a ball in traffic. Maybe there’s hope, Dedric.”

Due to some good defense, quarterback Brodie Croyle threw an incompletion to wide receiver Taurus Johnson.

The players know that drops have been a problem at camp and Head Coach Todd Haley has made it publicly known. Wide receivers Dwayne Bowe and Jeff Webb were out early, before practice, getting some reps on the Jugs machine. Drops were once again a factor in the Chiefs practice, however. Running back Javarris Williams dropped two balls today when the running backs were running out-routes out of the backfield and then another during 7-on-7. Wide receivers Quinten Lawerence and Devard Darling each dropped a ball in one-on-zeros. Darling would add another in one-on-ones. Tight end Brad Cottam continued to struggle, dropping two balls during 7-on-7. Bowe had one drop during 7-on-7.

Head Coach Todd Haley was getting on quarterback Matt Cassel for his play-action fake during a half-speed scrimmage against the offensive reserves. “[We need a] good sell, good sell! If we are going to run those, Matt, we need a good sell!”

Tackle Branden Albert and tight end Tony Curtis both had false starts during an 11-0 “Perfect Play” sequence.

Tight end coach Bob Bicknell caught a little grief from Head Coach Todd Haley when Bicknell sent his tight ends to the wrong drill. “Come on Bob, wake up!” yelled Haley.

Much to the amusement of the fans around the east field, the quarterbacks were throwing, on the run, to a target with three nets sitting the near corner of the endzone.  Matt Cassel was up first, and he drilled the middle of the three targets and pumped his fist as he ran back. Offensive Coordinator Chan Gailey laughed and yelled over, “You trying to hit the middle one?” to which Cassel never responded.  The next two quarterbacks Tyler Thigpen and Brodie Croyle both drilled the middle target, putting a lot of pressure on Ingle Martin. Martin responded and hit the left-side target. Croyle ended the drill 3-4, which was tops out of the four quarterbacks.

The 7-on-7 pass skelly didn’t start all that well for the Chiefs offense. Two of quarterback Matt Cassel’s first three passes were dropped. Cassel would go onto complete his next three passes, all to wide receiver Mark Bradley. Cassel also came in for two more throws before the completion of the drill. His first one was a little behind tight end Brad Cottam and was dropped. Cassel’s last throw was beautifully placed to wide receiver Dwayne Bowe, just behind the reach of linebacker Zach Thomas. Cassel ended the drill 5-8.

Quarterback Tyler Thigpen looked really sharp in his 7-on-7 session. Thigpen was 6-6 on the day. Fellow quarterback Brodie Croyle then stepped in to take his snaps. Croyle was 4-6 during the drill. His first pass was too high for rookie wide receiver Taurus Johnson, who couldn’t make the fingertip catch. After Croyle was finished he got a compliment from Head Coach Todd Haley. “That’s a little better 12!” Haley said.

At the end of practice, Head Coach Todd Haley made his team do a little conditioning. The team was split up into offense and defense. Haley was overseeing the offense. He made his presence known throughout the drill. Haley’s most notable comments were: “We are not half (butt)-ing this!” and “You are mentally soft, Williams!”Haley was yelling at rookie running back Javarris Williams. Assistant Head Coach Maurice Carthon yelled this at tight end Tom Crabtree, “Crabtree, you run all the way, not half of it!”

Second year offensive tackle Branden Albert worked vigorously at today's practice. “It was a long practice today, but it will help us in the long run. These practices will prevent those stupid plays,” said Albert. Albert feels that the key to getting better is “to keep being competitive and working together as a whole team. Some of these guys have been out here for many years and they don’t miss a beat,” Albert said.

Wide receiver Bobby Engram had a post-practice interview with a USA Today reporter today.  Engram was asked what he thinks about the team as a whole, his teammates and the coaching staff.  “I’m very excited to be a part of the rebuilding process here,” Engram said.  “We have a lot of very talented young players, and the mentality around here is all about working hard.  If we can stay consistent in our efforts to work hard and come together the way we are right now, we are going to turn things around very fast.”  When asked about his new quarterback Matt Cassel, Engram had nothing but good things to say.  “Matt is spot on.  He works as hard as anybody, and his mentality is that of a winner. He does not let little hardships get in the way.  If he throws an interception or fumbles the ball, he moves on right away and doesn’t dwell on it.  That says to me that he is maturing as a quarterback.”  On the other hand, Engram let the press know that Cassel is not always as serious as he seems on the football field.  “Many people probably don’t know that Matt is a jokester.  He is what I like to call a ‘locker room guy.’  He is always making jokes with the guys, and he does not separate himself from other players.  It is part of what makes him a natural leader.”  Engram also added that his relationship with Cassel on the field gets better every day.  Both players were able to get some quality time together, practicing routes before camp started, which helps to get them a lot more comfortable with each other.  “Matt makes a lot of really good throws.  He is always on target,” Engram confidently stated. Another teammate that Engram was asked about was linebacker Mike Vrabel.  “Oh man,” Engram sighed.  “Mike is a smart, smart guy.  And a tough player.  He is out there directing people around on the field and helping them out.  I’ve played against him and just let me say, I’m glad to be on the same team now!”

Special Teams

At 3:15 p.m. the horn blew and the offense and defense came together on field 2 to work on field goals. Punter Dustin Colquitt went 4-4 during the drill. His kicks ranged in distance from 20 yards to 35 yards. During the drill, safety Bernard Pollard had a near block on a Colquitt kick from the 25-yard line.

At the sound of the horn at 3:53 p.m. the entire team got together on field 1 to run situation drills. By 3:57 p.m. most of the team had moved to field 2 to work on special teams drills. Punter Dustin Colquitt was the kicker. During one run, wide receiver Jeff Webb was going up against cornerbacks Donald Washington and Brandon Flowers.

Teammates were heard cheering Webb on as he struggled to reach the ball downfield. “Ya gotta win, Webb. Ya gotta get to the ball,” the players hollered.

After a good play on a kick return drill, cornerbacks Maurice Leggett and Brandon Flowers high-fived one another and laughed as they ran off the field.

Extra, extra...

Cornerback Ricardo Colclough was sporting one red knee-high sock on his left leg this afternoon, and on his right leg, there was nothing.

Chiefs President Denny Thum was present at this afternoon’s practice.

Before another round of 11-on-11, the team got about a two minute breather. During this time, a stray red balloon floated across field 3 from the fence along the west side of the field. The balloon steered clear of the players on field 2 and drifted off toward Hunt Arena.

The team’s final huddle happened at 4:28 p.m. after some team stretching.

Defensive ends Wallace Gilberry, Alex Magee and Bobby Greenwood and defensive tackles Tank Tyler and Derek Lokey were among some of the defensive linemen to sign autographs for eager fans at the conclusion of this afternoon’s practice.

Todd Haley Press Conference

Head Coach Todd Haley met with reporters for about eight minutes after practice. The first question was concerned with the first practice of guards Brian Waters and Mike Goff. Haley commented on having them back at practice. “They looked very good. I was excited to see them.They are both potential differences makers for us,” he said. Haley would not comment on the reasons for why the guards hadn't practice Saturday, but did say that “it didn’t appear it was going to be a long-term deal for either of them.”

Haley said that one-a-days will be longer and focused on conditioning toward the end. Practice was rumored to end around 3:50 p.m., but didn’t end until almost 4:30 p.m.  

The “Defensive end Tyson Jackson Question” was asked again at Haley’s Press Conference. And for the fourth day in a row, it was met with the same response. “I am only going to talk about the players that are here and actually practicing,” Haley said.

Haley was asked about the drops in practice, but this time it was focused on wide receiver Dwayne Bowe. Bowe had one drop in today’s practice. Haley said, “To play receiver in the NFL, you must catch most of the footballs. There will be some that land on the ground for one reason or another, but you must catch most of the footballs.” He didn’t direct his comments directly at Bowe adding, “And that goes for every receiver.”

2009 Staff

Students and staff covering the Chiefs this year.
Front, left to right: Amanda Kane (Fans, Seniors Day),
Renee Thony (Sidelines), Linda Abel (Fans, Kids' Days),
Jim Thies (Sports Information Director).
Back, left to right: Deb Toftness (Office Manager),
Kevin Harter (University Communications Director),
Steve Linzmeier (Sidelines), J. J. Mosher (Fans, Punt, Pass & Kick),
Jens Gunelson (Photographer). Not picture is
Brenda Bredahl (University Communications Writer/Editor).