Elevating Toughness … Game-Day Cup O’Chiefs

From Linthicum, Maryland

For just about every person, there is a different definition for the word tough.

Some see the word as descriptive of a person or situation that’s hard to deal with. Some use the word to describe a person who is physically strong. Others find it the word to define mental strength. Webster’s Dictionary has eight different definitions with words that range from rough, to stern, to difficult.

Tough is the word of the day as the Chiefs face Game No. 6 of their 2009 season. They will be in FedEx Field to face the Washington Redskins. Kickoff is noon, with television on CBS.

It’s already been a tough season for the Chiefs. They showed some toughness last week when they came back in the final minutes of regulation to tie up the Cowboys and send the game into overtime. Matters got tough in the extra period and they ended up losing another game. Mental toughness has been lacking all year, as evidenced by their high rank in penalties.

And there is the question that has hovered over the Chiefs franchise for some time: are they tough enough, do they have the disposition and mentality to be a contender, rather than pretender? Todd Haley has said since day one that he wants his team to be smart, tough and well conditioned.

But just what is the head coach’s definition of tough?

“I define toughness as a person that’s able to overcome adversity, whether that’s mental or physical, and be dependable,” Haley said.

Fans and media mistakenly translate the word tough when used in a football context as dealing with physical attributes – big, strong, powerful, and dominating. But the physical side is just a small part of the equation when it comes to tough.

Haley believes the mental toughness is what leads the way and has players and teams, raise the level of their physical toughness. He used wide receivers as an example.

“Mental toughness covers it all,” said Haley. “If you are mentally tough and a ball is thrown over the middle, you are not thinking about anything else but catching the ball. If you are not m mentally tough you are thinking ‘Oh gee, there’s a safety coming and what’s going to happen when he hits me?’

“To me if you find mentally tough guys who are unaffected by the variables around them, then you generally have a chance. You’ve got to have some talent. You can’t just have a bunch of mentally tough guys that are bricklayers.”

For an example, Haley used former NFL wide receiver Keyshawn Johnson.

“In all the years I coached with him and saw him play, I never saw fear,” Haley said. “It didn’t matter what the situation was. I watched him run a seam route and get knocked unconscious, out. They get him off the field and I watched him from the box walking back and forth trying to get his … four plays, he was back playing.

“You see the model of toughness and courage is and you relay that to guys. Some guys night never be (tough). That doesn’t mean just football. It means life in general. There are tough people and like they say, tough times don’t last, but tough people do.”

Here’s the truth about the NFL: most of the players and thus most of the teams are not tough. Certainly they all possess a bit of physical toughness; they must to play a violent game. But mental toughness is not in great supply. It’s the teams that can accumulate the most mentally tough players, and diminish the lack of mental toughness in the remaining players that win championships.

So are the ‘09 Chiefs a tough team? Haley says they are getting there, but by all manner of judgment in a football sense they are not. Not even close.

Mentally tough teams win games in the fourth quarter. The Chiefs made a step forward last week and tied a game in the final period, but they couldn’t win. Mentally tough teams are able to win on the road. Since 2006, the Chiefs are 6-21 away from Arrowhead Stadium. That’s a .222 winning percentage. Three of those six victories were in Oakland. That means in stadiums other than Arrowhead and the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, the Chiefs were 3-21, a .125 winning percentage.

Tough teams can run the ball when they must and stop the run when necessary. The Chiefs right now aren’t able to do either. Tough teams don’t rack up 36 penalties. Mentally tough receivers do not drop passes. Mentally tough defenders do not miss tackles. Every team in football suffers injuries. Mentally tough teams overcome the missing talent.

“I don’t think we can call ourselves a tough team,” said C Rudy Niswanger. “I mean the first thing that proves you’re toughness as a team is the ability to win. We haven’t won. I think we are playing like a tough team, I think we are making progress.

“But we can’t say we are a tough team.”

In the last three weeks, the Chiefs have faced three of the toughest teams in the league. The Eagles, Giants and Cowboys all have talented players. But all – especially the Giants – are tough teams, mentally and physically.

There’s no question that the ‘09 version of the Chiefs has been shown in the last month what kind of toughness it takes to be a contender.

“That’s all we’ve seen for the last few weeks, tough teams,” said FS Jarrad Page. “It’s something we have seen and now we have to answer to that level.”

So where are the Chiefs in this journey for toughness?

“I would think we’re making progress,” said Haley. “We’ve got enough situations game-wise to get us mentally tough and obviously some of these games are going to help if we don’t crack. If we let them help, they will help us as go forward, as will some of these practice conditions and weather and hurts and pains. Those things all help because you find out more about people. I’ll find out more about me every day.”

The Chiefs have a chance to find more of that necessary toughness against the Redskins. They are a struggling team right now, with problems on their offensive and defensive lines because of injuries. The locker room is unsettled because of rumors surrounding the future of head coach Jim Zorn.

The winner at FedEx Field will be the toughest team, and on this Sunday, the Chiefs have a chance to be that team.

SIGNINGS, INJURIES & MOVEMENT AROUND THE LEAGUE

• BEARS – released TE Michael Gaines.
• BROWNS – Out of Sunday’s game against the Steelers is K Phil Dawson and TE Steve Heiden.
• JETS – promoted RB Danny Woodhead from the practice squad.
• REDSKINS – promoted P Glenn Pakulak from the practice squad; released DE Renaldo Wynn.
• TEXANS – Out of Sunday’s game against the Bengals is DT Shaun Cody.
• TITANS – Out of Sunday’s game against the Patriots is CB Cortland Finnegan.

FROM THE PAGES OF CHIEFS HISTORY

On October 18, 1964, the Chiefs lost to the Buffalo Bills 35-22 in front of a crowd of 20,904 at Municipal Stadium. The visitors jumped to a 28-0 lead in the third quarter of this game before the Chiefs were able to get on the board. Buffalo QB Jack Kemp had three TD passes and scored one himself. In the third quarter, RB Mack Lee Hill got the Chiefs on the board with a 53-yard TD run. The two-point conversion pass failed. Then, the defense contributed as LB Bobby Bell recovered a fumble and ran 11 yards for a touchdown. The two-pointer failed again. QB Eddie Wilson scored on a one-yard run and the PAT kick by Tommy Brooker, followed by his 31-yard FG pulled the Chiefs to within 28-22. But the Bills scored a late touchdown to win by 13 points. S Bobby Hunt had a pair of interceptions.

On October 18, 1970, the Chiefs beat the Bengals 27-19 at brand new Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati. The home team scored the first nine points of the game, but the Chiefs came back and put 24 consecutive points on the board to run away with the game. QB Len Dawson threw TD passes of 59 yards to RB Ed Podolak and 26 yards to TE Fred Arbanas. RB Wendell Hayes added a two-yard scoring run. Podolak had 228 all-purpose yards on the game, with a 31-yard kickoff return and a 40-yard punt return. CB Emmitt Thomas had an interception of a QB Virgil Carter pass.

On October 18, 1971, the Chiefs beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 38-16 in a Monday night game at Municipal Stadium. This became one of the most memorable games in Monday night history when Steelers receiver Dave Smith celebrated a TD catch before he crossed the goal line. He lost control of the ball and it rolled out of the end zone for a touchback. It was the type of play seldom seen in those days before everyone had his own TD celebration. QB Len Dawson had three touchdown passes against the Steelers, including a pair to WR Otis Taylor for 5 and 27 yards and another one to WR Elmo Wright of 5 yards. The Chiefs defense picked off a pair of Terry Bradshaw passes, including one by CB Emmitt Thomas that he returned 32 yards for a touchdown. Taylor caught six passes for 190 yards and those two TDs.

On October 18, 1992, the Chiefs lost 17-10 to the Dallas Cowboys at Texas Stadium in Irving. The Chiefs defense did a good job of holding in check the Cowboys offensive trio of RB Emmitt Smith, WR Michael Irvin and QB Troy Aikman. Smith did have a 2-yard TD run, gaining 95 yards on the day. Irvin caught six passes for 84 yards but couldn’t find the end zone. Aikman threw for 192 yards, but was picked off twice. S Charles Mincy and rookie CB Dale Carter had the INTs. LB Derrick Thomas also had a sack of Aikman. The Chiefs only TD came on a 2-yard run by RB Barry Word. WR Willie Davis caught six passes for 100 yards.

SAY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO …

Born on October 18, 1957 in New Braunfels, Texas was WR Bubba Garcia. He was selected in the sixth-round of the 1980 NFL Draft out of Texas-El Paso. Garcia played only that rookie season with the Chiefs, appearing in five games and catching three passes for 27 yards and a touchdown.

Born on October 18, 1977 in Subic Bay, the Philippines was LB Fred Jones. He joined the Chiefs as a free agent in 2003 after playing two seasons with Buffalo. Jones spent two years with the Chiefs (2003-04), appearing in 27 games. Most of his playing time was on special teams.