Do tell the truth

Did the Chiefs have an emotional letdown following the events of Jovan Belcher’s murder/suicide/funeral?

Not judging by the first play of the game, when Jamaal Charles bolted through a gaping hole for an 80-yard touchdown run. And when asked about it after the game, most of the players said there was no letdown. They were just outplayed.

Why should anyone care about the last three games? Is there anything worth paying attention to?

It’s hard to come up with anything. If you haven’t used Oakland or Indianapolis in your knockout pool, these next two weeks might be a good opportunity.

What happened to Romeo Crennel’s new-found daring attitude on fourth down when he ordered a field goal in the first half when the Chiefs, leading 7-0 faced fourth down at the Cleveland 3?

Kicking a field goal for a 10-0 lead was the right move. If the game were scoreless or 3-0, going for it would have been the right choice. And having watched Brady Quinn’s third down pass nearly get intercepted only reinforced Crennel’s decision to kick. Who thought Ryan Succop would miss a 27-yarder?

What was the other bright spot in Sunday’s game besides Charles?

The Chiefs are still in the driver’s seat for the first pick in the 2013 draft because they have the tie-breaker (weaker schedule) than Jacksonville, also 2-11?

Who will be making that pick, and who will be coaching him?

It’s getting more and more likely that it shouldn’t be Scott Pioli and Romeo Crennel.

The number

165 The last time a team had a player rush for 165 yards and his team lost by 23 points or more like Jamaal Charles did was Carolina’s Richard Huntley, who ran 21 times for 168 yards in a 38-6 loss to New England on Jan. 6, 2002.

Last word

“We could have lost the game maybe, and we saw two wildcat plays that were like ‘What the (heck)?’ We did some fun stuff, and it worked out.”

| Cleveland coach Pat Shurmur on the trick plays the Browns trotted out on Sunday.

| Randy Covitz, rcovitz@kcstar.com