Gailey Fails Chiefs

Every single Chiefs fan in Kansas City, as well as the entire New York defense, knew what was going to happen when the Chiefs got the ball with a three-point lead with less than five minutes to go in Sunday’s game. Predictably, KC’s offense pounded the ball up the middle three times and punted.

Chan Gailey, who has done a less than stellar job of attacking opponent’s weaknesses this year, negated a solid offensive effort by going into a shell with the game on the line. Head Coach Herm Edwards should reconsider his offensive coordinator for 2009 - assuming Gailey’s back for another season.

I’ve seen all I need from Gailey to conclude that he has no feel for the ebb and flow of a football game. His failure to show confidence in his young quarterback, who practically carried an offense on his back and nearly shocked the Jets in the Meadowlands, set this team back when it appeared they should have earned a much-needed win.

Edwards should be disgusted with the lackadaisical and conservative approach from Gailey, the man he deemed worthy as Chiefs’ play-caller this season. Gailey butchered the game in every sense of the word in the fourth quarter.

Instead of running three straight times over left guard Brian Waters, he could have called a bootleg if he didn’t feel like throwing. The Chiefs, without Jamaal Charles on the field, didn’t manage a running gain over four yards all day. Despite that, they put the game in the hands of Kolby Smith with time winding down.

With a superstar like tight end Tony Gonzalez on the field and two wide receivers who stepped up (Dwayne Bowe and Mark Bradley), Gailey chose the safe path and the Chiefs lost.

It wasn’t his only mistake, as he was also conservative early in the second half, when the Chiefs had first and goal at the Jets’ 10-yard line in the third quarter with the game tied at 14. Who calls a quarterback draw on second and goal after barely missing a touchdown on the previous play?

When you’re 1-5, you don’t put the ball back into the hands of a quarterback like Brett Favre, no matter if he’s thrown three interceptions. Sunday I lost confidence in Gailey’s ability to call a complete game and no doubt there are also some players on offense scratching their heads.

Gailey should be under serious consideration to be replaced after only one season in Kansas City. He came to the Chiefs with a reputation for offensive innovation, but he’s hardly shown that this year. The Chiefs were a better team Sunday than the New York Jets, it’s just too bad the offensive coordinator didn’t believe it.

Final Four Thoughts:

LB Derrick Johnson - He could have sown the game up with an interception that quite likely would have gone for a touchdown. Instead, his drop gave Favre another chance and he cashed in. Johnson is talented, but he needs to make at least one big play every game and that was his opportunity.

CB Brandon Flowers - There has been a lot of talk about the Chiefs 2008 draft and right now he’s by far the rookie of the year. Flowers’ two interceptions on the afternoon, including one that went for a touchdown that should have been the game winner, tells me he’s the star of the draft class.

K Connor Barth - He did an outstanding job for a kicker just coming off the couch, nailing all his kicks and kicking off well. Hopefully he’s an improvement over Nick Novak.

QB Tyler Thigpen - The Chiefs might have something to work with in Thigpen. He’s not an under-the-center type of quarterback, and Gailey worked around that over the first two and half quarters. Thigpen showed no signs of the shaky play that had marred his other games this year. He was cool in the pocket and the Chiefs should ride him the rest of the year. Kansas City is expected to sign veteran Daunte Culpepper on Tuesday as insurance, but Thigpen still deserves the starting job.