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Thursday, August 10, 2006, Afternoon
K.C. Chiefs Training Camp Daily Updates

The weather today was mostly cloudy, but there were enough gaps in the clouds to provide adequate sunshine for all who attended this afternoon’s practice. The temperature was 81 degrees with 58 percent humidity. Winds were coming from the ENE at 7 mph.There were about 210 fans in the main field stands this afternoon.

Offense

The Chiefs signed quarterback Jeff Smoker. He joins the Chiefs as a free agent after spending the past two seasons with St. Louis and Philadelphia. Smoker took cornerback Julian Battle’s roster spot. He originally entered the NFL as the Rams sixth-round pick in the 2004 NFL Draft. Smoker was on the Rams active roster for all 16 contests in 2004 and eight games in 2005, but did not appear in a game in either season.

The Chiefs performed an entire walk-through of a game this afternoon, including practicing where they should stand for the National Anthem. Six members of the Chiefs’ staff were in the press box, running the clock and recording the downs. Offensive coordinator Mike Solari was also in the box, relaying play information to quarterback coach Terry Shea.

The starting offensive lineup consisted of: quarterback Trent Green, wide receiver Eddie Kennison, wide receiver Samie Parker, tight end Tony Gonzalez, tight end Kris Wilson, running back Larry Johnson, left tackle Kyle Turley, left guard Chris Bober, center Johnathan Ingram, right guard Will Shields and right tackle Kevin Sampson.

The second team included: quarterback Casey Printers, wide receiver Jeff Webb, wide receiver Jeris McIntyre, tight end Jason Dunn, fullback Ronnie Cruz, left tackle Will Svitek, left guard Tre Stallings, center Rudy Niswanger, right guard Thomas Barnett and right tackle Jordan Black.

Defense

Practice was run a little differently as the Chiefs practiced game situations along with running the play-clock.

This was all done in preparation for Saturday’s exhibition game  at Houston.

The starting defensive line starters look to be Eric Hicks and Jared Allen on the ends while Ryan Sims and Lional Dalton lock up the middle.  James Reed also could be plugged in as a starter, but there is no telling who head Coach Herm Edwards will go with.  Hicks will most likely get the nod over the injured rookie Tamba Hali.  Hali might see some action, but most likely will be rested to prevent farther injury.

Linebackers look to stay the same as they have all camp with Derrick Johnson and Kendrell Bell on the outide and Kawika Mitchell in the middle. 

The secondary also looks to be a lock with Ty Law and Patrick Surtain at corner.  Greg Wesley and Sammy Knight have the safety spots in the bank.

The defensive line should be the only questionable spot with so many players looking to earn a starting roll. 

Herm Edwards spoke after practice about the status at quarterback where they only had two healthy players until today’s signing of Michigan State alum Jeff Smoker.  Smoker has NFL experience from his back-up roll with the St. Louis Rams. 

To make room for Smoker, the Chiefs released back-up cornerback Julian Battle.  Battle most likely would not have gotten substantial playing time anyways behind Law, Surtain, Benny Sapp, and Lenny Walls. 

Edwards was asked what he most looked forward to seeing in Saturday’s game. “I want to see us controlling the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball,” said Edwards. “You have to be physical, especially when you go on the road.”

Fans

Shelly and Bruce Slivkin of Kansas City were early at practice today to watch the Chiefs on the main field at Ramer Field Sports Complex. This is their second year at camp in River Falls. The Slivkins return to camp each summer because they enjoy watching the team closely and getting autographs. The Slivkins, who were present at Family Fun Night, have received 22 autographs at camp so far, including running backs Michael Bennett and Larry Johnson.

Brian Brueke, from River Falls, came to his first practice today at camp this summer. Brueke has been visiting camp for nine years and enjoys being able to see the NFL team up-close. Brueke, who is a Vikings fan, holds no animosity toward the Chiefs, in fact, he thinks Coach Herm Edwards is doing an excellent job working with the team and leading them into the upcoming season.

Arriving only minutes before practice began, Keith and Catherine, from Topeka, Kan., brought their kids Teresa, 8, Tony, 11, and Angel, 14 to training camp for the day. They have family they are visiting in the area so they decided to stop by and see what camp was all about. Keith said he enjoys seeing the Chiefs up-close. He thinks Coach Herm Edwards will be pretty good for the team: “There will probably be a lot of changes,” for the better. He also commented on tackle Willie Roaf’s retirement: “I wish he wouldn’t have retired. I’ve seen [tackle Kyle] Turley play for other teams. He’ll do well.” Teresa had one last comment: “Go KC!”

Donna Jellum is in River Falls for training camp with her daughter Joan and son-in-law Greg. When she heard the Chiefs were in town, she made it a day trip to visit her granddaughter, who lives in the area, and come to practice. Being a Vikings fan, Jellum thinks running back Michael Bennett will be a good addition to the team. Bennett is her favorite player, and she will now enjoy watching him play for her favorite team in the AFC: the Chiefs.

Today Paul and Veryl Knopps, from Beldenville, Wis., attended their second practice since camp opened. They love the atmosphere that camp offers, and the chance to be able to see professional athletes so close to their home is great. Coming to training camp practices gets the Knopps revved up for the NFL season. Although the Knopps enjoy watching the Chiefs, their hearts are with the Green Bay Packers.

Extra...Extra

A few times at this afternoon’s practice, coaches would repeatedly yell “Jumbo.” Players would run out on the field with their arms above their heads like they were flexing, chanting “Jumbo” in deep voices.

This morning the Chiefs’ players had to weigh in. Every extra pound over their target weight goal costs them a $400 decrease from their paycheck.

Tackle Will Svitek was working with strength and conditioning assistant Billy Long on blocking and pivoting techniques.

Jay Glazer, from Fox Sports, has been attending the last couple of Chiefs afternoon practices. His focus today was rookie quarterback Brodie Croyle, with whom he shared a few words as they walked off Ramer Field.

Hall of Famer Lenny Dawson was on the sidelines again today; he is quite concerned with the Chiefs quarterback situation going into Saturday’s pre-season tip-off with the Houston Texans. With hobbled quarterbacks Brodie Croyle and Damon Huard on the shelf for Saturday’s game, the Chiefs acquired quarterback Jeff Smoker to take some of the load off the Chiefs’ only healthy quarterbacks, Trent Green and Casey Printers. Printers was the last player to leave this afternoon’s practice; Dawson was waiting patiently to ask him some questions about the heavy load he is expected to shoulder on Saturday. “If another quarterback goes down on Saturday, you can expect to see a fast game with a lot of running back hand-offs,” said Dawson.

Students and staff covering the Chiefs this year include in front row, left to right: Sara Dehn (Senior Day), Amie Eller (Kids' Days), John Hepokoski (sidelines), Holly Sigler (photographs), Jude Harder (fans, Punt, Pass & Kick). Back, left to right: Mark Kinders (Public Affairs Director), Kat Krtnick (sidelines), Deb Toftness (Office Manager), Brenda Bredahl (Public Affairs Editor), Jim Thies (Sports Information Director), Jens Gunelson (University Photographer).

Chiefs fans! Make sure you tune in to the 2006 Daily Updates page on a regular basis. We will be posting sidelines and fans information after each practice while the Chiefs are in camp.