<table> </table> CINCINNATI | Let&#8217;s talk about four plays. We could talk about many more plays than that if you want because the Chiefs&#8217; 16-6 loss to Cincinnati on Sunday had plenty of lousy plays &#8212; it was a carnival of clumsiness, a fiesta of flops, a gala of gaffes.</p><p>There was the time when Jamaal Charles, all alone and in position to down a punt deep in Cincinnati territory, instead punched the ball into the end zone.</p><p>There was the time the entire Chiefs defensive front line jumped offside.</p><p>There was the time that the Chiefs defense stopped the Bengals on third down only to commit <em>two </em>penalties on the same play.</p><p>There was the time Chiefs linebacker Derrick Johnson strutted after a big hit, though the play gained yards and, at that moment, the Chiefs trailed 13-0 to a team with three wins and the lowest-scoring offense in the NFL.</p><p>There was the time Kansas City&#8217;s Kevin Robinson fielded a punt at his 6 even though kids learn in kindergarten not to do that.</p><p>Yes, we could discuss lots of bad plays. We also could go into the bizarre postgame scene in the Chiefs&#8217; locker room, where:</p><p>1. Coach Herm Edwards said that the Chiefs defense played pretty well even though they gave up more than 200 yards rushing to the worst offense in the league that was playing without six starters (including three offensive linemen). This Chiefs defense set an NFL record for fewest sacks (10) and gave up more yards than any Chiefs team ever (6,291).</p><p>2. Running back Larry Johnson said it was time for him to go somewhere else. &#8220;It&#8217;s half my fault,&#8221; he said. And later: &#8220;The city is sick of me.&#8221;</p><p>3. Tight end Tony Gonzalez said he wants Edwards and offensive coordinator Chan Gailey back, and he expects Tyler Thigpen to be the starting quarterback next year. And if those things do not happen, he will be unhappy.</p><p>4. Tyler Thigpen campaigned for himself to be the starting quarterback and said the Chiefs should not draft a quarterback in next year&#8217;s draft. He said this coming off a dreadful game in which he missed receivers all afternoon and led the Chiefs to two first downs in the first half against a defense missing seven starters.</p><p>It really was a three-ring circus, everything going wrong at once, trapeze artists colliding here, tightrope walkers falling there, elephants stampeding over on the other side. None of it quite made sense, none of it quite added up, so, yes, let&#8217;s talk about those four plays. This was late in the fourth quarter, with the Chiefs already down 16-0. Thigpen threw a long pass to Dwayne Bowe, who caught the ball and stumbled out of bounds at the goal line. The official signaled he was out at the 1.</p><p>So, it&#8217;s first and goal at the 1.</p><p>Well, wait, before the play is run, Herm Edwards decides to challenge the call &#8212; he believes that Bowe actually scored a touchdown. This, precisely, is the kind of goofy coaching decision that makes it difficult to defend Edwards. Sure, it is possible that Bowe got in &#8212; replays were inconclusive &#8212; but that&#8217;s not the point. What kind of message are you sending your team when you challenge that play?</p><p>It&#8217;s pretty clear: You are telling your own team that you do not believe they can score a touchdown from the 1-yard line. You are telling your own team that you would rather risk a precious timeout late in the game than trust them to punch the football in. You are telling the opposing defense to rest up because you have absolutely no confidence in your own team&#8217;s ability to pick up <em>one bleeping yard </em>with <em>four bleeping plays</em>.