FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- In most all the obvious ways, this place is exactly how Scott Pioli and Romeo Crennel left it. They still keep secrets here, still rely on Tom Brady here, still have three Super Bowl trophies here.
They think about Pioli and Crennel sometimes. How could they not? Those men are central figures to the Patriots’ biggest glories. The Patriots became the NFL’s preeminent power with Pioli and Crennel in key roles.So far in Kansas City, those men have been central figures to some of the Chiefs’ rockiest times: the playoffs last season, then a year that will be most remembered for injuries, disappointment, and drama.This is 1,500 miles from Kansas City, but feels so much further in reality. If Pioli brought The Patriot Way to Kansas City, it hasn’t shown up yet during games.It’s a funny thing, though. The closer you look, the more hope you find.The closer you look, the more Romeo Crennel’s promotion to head coach makes sense.• • • The Patriots haven’t won the Super Bowl since Crennel left. That’s easy to miss in the 24-hour hype that is the NFL and that is especially Tom Brady and Bill Belichick.When Crennel was the Patriots’ defensive coordinator for three championships from 2001-04, the common knock was that this was Belichick’s defense, not Crennel’s. On television, the announcers usually credited the head coach and rarely mentioned the assistant.Each day of the Patriots’ success meant another day to mention that Belichick is a defensive whiz, that Bill Parcells never made a Super Bowl without Belichick as his assistant, and the whole thing made a lot more sense before the old defensive whiz oversaw a defense that’s slipped four straight seasons.This year, the Patriots ranked 31st, and just 8 yards from last.The Patriots have had good defenses without Crennel — the 16-0 team ranked fourth in 2007 under Don Pees — but they typically flop in the playoffs. Look at their losses.They gave up 27 to Jake Plummer’s Broncos, 38 to the Colts (that was at Indianapolis, after the Patriots held the Colts to a combined 17 points in playoff wins at home the previous two years), 33 to the Ravens when Joe Flacco completed four passes, and 28 to Mark Sanchez’s Jets.The Patriots lost 17-14 in the Super Bowl four years ago, so that one’s on the offense, but you’ll remember the defense gave up the winning touchdown with 35 seconds left.Under Crennel, the Patriots gave up an average of 16.6 points per playoff game. They held six of nine opponents — including the 2001 Greatest-Show-On-Turf Rams — to 17 or fewer.There are a million factors that go beyond Crennel, of course. His last defense had Rodney Harrison, Tedy Bruschi, and Willie McGinest. This year, of the 12 defenders who started at least six games, four came into the league as undrafted free agents. Wide receiver Julian Edelman sometimes plays defensive back.New England apologists will point out that some of the yards given up this year came against a prevent defense, and there’s some truth to that, but there’s also video of Matt Moore and Ryan Fitzpatrick carving up the Patriots while playing with a lead or small deficit.The only regular-season game New England didn’t give up at least 16 points? At home against Tyler Palko and the Chiefs.There’s a reason one of the popular topics around here this season was whether the Patriots could convince Crennel to come back to his old job.• • • Romeo Crennel walked into an unwinnable situation the last time. That’s what Chiefs insiders think, anyway, and of course this all comes with a lot of hindsight and at least a little revisionist history.But look at the facts. Crennel took over a 4-12 team that got outscored by more points than all but two other teams. His quarterback the first year was Trent Dilfer. Then it was Charlie Frye. Then Derek Anderson.Cleveland’s best two players those years were Braylon Edwards and Kellen Winslow, a problem from the start. The whole thing was a failure, there’s no question about that, but it’s also true the Browns won 10 games in Crennel’s third season. That’s more than any other year in the current incarnation of the Browns, and they’ve won 14 games in the three years since Crennel left.The view changes if you shift perspective, doesn’t it?Pioli’s Chiefs are behind schedule, of course. Three years in and they have a melting offensive line and still no franchise quarterback. Injuries torpedoed 2011, sure, but the focus on ACL tears distracts from Pioli’s refusal to do much of anything bold since the Matt Cassel trade.Surely nobody believes that firing Todd Haley ends all the drama.But Crennel takes over what might be the AFC West favorite next year. If Jamaal Charles is 90 percent of what he was, he’s the best running back in the division. Tamba Hali is the best pass-rusher. Brandon Flowers, Eric Berry and the rest make for the best secondary. Dwayne Bowe heads a deep group of receivers.Maybe you’ve read here before that the Chiefs have the chassis for a championship team.That’s either a compliment or an indictment, depending on how Pioli drives it.• • • Look around, and you see a lot to be encouraged about for the Chiefs. The offensive line is the top priority, and the Chiefs appear convinced that they have to improve the quarterback situation — even if it doesn’t go to the extent that most of us would like.Perhaps more importantly, the Year of the Quarterback has led directly into the Postseason of the Defense.Half a postseason doesn’t make a trend, but isn’t it at least a little encouraging that Alex Smith beat Drew Brees?What’s been lost in the talk back home about Pioli and The Patriot Way is that the Patriots are trying something completely different now than the Chiefs. New England is built almost entirely on offense: Brady and Wes Welker and Rob Gronkowski and the No. 2 offense in the NFL.The new Chiefs have promoted their defensive coordinator, build around Hali and Derrick Johnson and Eric Berry, and if they ever get back to the playoffs, they’ll surely force at least a few punts.But maybe the most encouraging thing from the Chiefs’ offseason is Pioli’s public pledge to do his job better. Pioli is a self-analytical sort, very meticulous, and if that’s gotten in the way of more aggressive personnel moves over his first three years maybe it can lead to a better perspective going forward.That’s the Chiefs’ best chance, anyway. Pioli has everything he needs.The rest is on him now.Read more Sam Mellinger
Posted on Sat, Jan. 21, 2012 10:42 PM
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COMMENTARY
How today’s Patriots are encouraging for tomorrow’s Chiefs
New England’s defense has declined since Romeo Crennel left, and now he and Scott Pioli are building a better one in KC.
Kansas City Chiefs head coach Romeo Crennel spoke with his players in the second quarter against the Oakland Raiders on Saturday, December 24, 2011 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. The Chiefs lost 16-13 in overtime. DAVID EULITT/The Kansas City Star
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To reach Sam Mellinger, call 816-234-4365, send e-mail to smellinger@kcstar.com or follow twitter.com/mellinger. For previous columns, go to KansasCity.com
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