Mellinger Minutes: Chiefs’ future now looks like a rocket ship, plus Mizzou, KSU, KU

By Sam Mellinger

Updated October 25, 2018 4:21 PM

One of the hardest decisions of Brett Veach’s time as general manager will come in the next week. No league moves as fast as the NFL, and the Chiefs are something like a high-speed bumper car.

The decision, oversimplified for the sake of clarity:

How much of the future that his front office has been building toward is he willing to sacrifice to strengthen a present more encouraging than any of them imagined?

There are a thousand more factors that will inform how Veach, his assistants and the Chiefs’ coaching staff approach next Tuesday’s trade deadline. They were close to a deal for safety Earl Thomas before the Seahawks star leg broke on Sept. 30, but that may have been a one-off situation.

Thomas is a unique talent, and a terrific fit for what defensive coordinator Bob Sutton asks of his safeties. There are other defensive backs who might be available, but there might not be other defensive backs as attractive for the Chiefs. That’s not all, though.

Every week that passes is a little closer to safeties Eric Berry and Daniel Sorensen returning, and the safety position does not appear to be the same mess it was a month ago. Ron Parker returned an interception for a touchdown against the Bengals, and Jordan Lucas has been strong.

There are other avenues. Patrick Peterson, the Cardinals’ star cornerback, reportedly wants out of Arizona desperately. A deal for him would require clearing a number of obstacles. The Chiefs would have to outbid teams across the league, and would probably need to restructure a contract to fit him under the salary cap. Most notably, the Cardinals have publicly and privately said they’re unwilling to trade him, but these things are fluid.

Other players who might fit the Chiefs and have been mentioned in various reports as trade candidates include Cardinals safety Deone Bucannon, Raiders safety Karl Joseph and Bucs cornerback Brent Grimes.

This is going to require an honest self-evaluation, and the Chiefs’ best guess about the near future.

How much of what the defense did against the Bengals is real and repeatable?
How confident is the Chiefs’ medical team that Berry and Justin Houston will return, be strong and remain healthy?
How much is the secondary the problem now, and how much of that will be fixed if Berry is himself?

Reggie Ragland and Anthony Hitchens have been better recently, and Dorian O’Daniel showed flashes of being able to solve one of the defense’s greatest weaknesses: covering backs in the passing game. But how much of that is real?

This front office has been among the league’s most aggressive, both in trading up in the draft and working the edges of the roster through trades and signings. But last week, a Chiefs source indicated the team was not seriously pursuing any trades, a stance that was reinforced this week.

It’s unclear what could change that would push them to make a deal, but of course they’ll monitor new developments.

For now, though, it feels like the Chiefs will stand down. There’s a lot to like about the team as currently constructed, and some of the spots that appeared to be fatal flaws a month ago are improved.

This also is not an all-in season. The offense is young and built around Patrick Mahomes on a rookie contract. The list of pending free agents is manageable: Dee Ford can be franchised, and after that it’s Mitch Morse, Steven Nelson, Allen Bailey, Orlando Scandrick, Anthony Sherman and others.

They’re scheduled to have a significant amount of cap space open for 2019, and can add more by redoing some deals, including Houston. Tyreek Hill, Chris Jones and Kendall Fuller will be eligible for extensions.

This is the balance the front office must maintain. Their most recent draft class is promising, and they’ll have an extra second-round pick next year in a draft said to be stocked with defensive linemen.

As it stands this year, the Chiefs are 6-1 with their only loss coming at the gun at New England with two defensive stars and two starting offensive linemen injured. There is no reason to make a panic move. They’re in a good spot.

A roster that a month ago looked in desperate need of reinforcement now feels much more stable. The guess here is that the Chiefs don’t make a major move, and will instead see how far this group can go.

This week’s eating recommendation is the Nashville hot chicken sandwich at Brown and Loe, and the reading recommendation is Popular Mechanics on what the world will look like in 2045.

Please give me a follow on Twitter and Facebook, and as always, thanks for your help and thanks for reading.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">What would this city be like with a Chiefs Super Bowl parade comparade to the Royals World Series?</p>— J-D JR (@jimmyjay555) <a href="https://twitter.com/jimmyjay555/status/1054380163230810113?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

One of the tricks of this weird job is finding comfort in looking at sports in different ways. Sometimes it’s the star. Sometimes it’s the role player. Sometimes it’s 1,695 words about one play, and sometimes it’s the idea that a franchise’s entire worldview is changing in front of us all.

You go back and forth between personalities and strategy, between stars of the game and those behind the scenes, from going an inch wide but a mile deep to looking out from 30,000 feet.

Right now, this moment, it feels like time for 30,000 feet.

Because this team is a rocket ship, and the schedule is hitting a soft spot. Maybe that’s a dumb thing to say with the Broncos coming, because the Broncos should’ve beaten the Chiefs in Denver and the last two weeks have played the Rams to three points and annihilated the Cardinals on the road. But it feels like the Chiefs have just three We’ll Learn Something games left:

Nov. 19 against the Rams in Mexico City, where the league’s most dynamic offense faces the league’s most complete team.

Dec. 9 against the Ravens at Arrowhead, where Patrick Mahomes faces the league’s best defense.

Dec. 13 against the Chargers at Arrowhead, where the Chiefs face the toughest division challenger, a team that’s only lost to the Rams and Chiefs.

The Chiefs have a real chance to be 13-3, maybe even better. The loss at New England means they have to finish with the better record or risk another playoff game where the phones don’t work.

That puts more importance on games that otherwise would be less interesting, but still, with the exception of the three games listed above the most important things going forward:

Stay ahead of the Patriots, because playing them at Arrowhead is a hell of a lot better than Foxborough.
Be healthy. Most obviously that means Berry and Houston, but it also means strength and health going into the postseason for the irreplaceable three — Mahomes, Tyreek Hill, and Travis Kelce.
Use the rest of the season, including the bye week over Thanksgiving and the half-by after the Thursday night game against the Chargers, to define as best they can what this team’s best version looks like. Now, I happen to believe that part of that should be pushing the boundaries of convention to amplify the offense and hide the defense, but that’s only part of it. They need to figure out how to cover running backs and how to better disguise coverages on defense, and they need to be as close to perfect as possible on a few specific plays and concepts they know can get them out of trouble in the postseason.

The genius of the NFL’s business model is how quickly things change, and a key injury or a loss to the Broncos and this is an entirely different conversation next week.

But in the moment, yes, the imagery of a Chiefs parade does not feel like a search for unicorns.

The parade would be bigger, drunker, and a little less personal than the Royals’, but that’s a fairly accurate comparison between the NFL and MLB, too. It would be eerily similar in a few ways, too — an enormous party for a group of fans who now have to change the way they see a sport.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">You always criticize Bob Sutton for lacking creativity, but admit it: you never would have considered a 12-man defense. Would have revolutionized the game if it had worked.</p>— Andrew Bare (@HalfwayToHobo) <a href="https://twitter.com/HalfwayToHobo/status/1054379094312284160?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

It’s a good line, but I come here today to applaud, not to criticize. You’ve probably seen the quote by now, but just for the record here’s Bengals star receiver A.J. Green on whether the Chiefs did anything different:

“Yeah, they didn’t play a lot of press. I think they had a drive where I had a couple of catches where they would be pressing me and bailing and then a lot of two-manning on my side. They switched up some things that we didn’t see on film.”

CREATIVITY!

CONFUSION!

PUTTING PLAYERS IN POSITIONS TO SUCCEED!

This is it, you guys, at least for one week. I don’t know if it’s real or not. We need more than one week, more than one situation — at home, night game, big platform against a team with a history of underperforming in that context — that advantages the defense.

But, and I know I wrote this in the game column, but the standards have changed. That’s true across the league, where defenders as proud and accomplished as Chris Harris are saying the goal is to hold the opponent under 30, but it’s particularly true with this Chiefs team.

The Chiefs’ offense is so good it makes the defense sort of like the son of a billionaire. That group is born on second base, maybe even third, and if they simply avoid mistakes they’ll grow up and take over daddy’s business someday.

Also, I’m telling you, if you guys don’t put me in my place I’m going to keep throwing these weird analogies at you.

If you keep reading, you’re only encouraging me.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Should we really be encouraged by this defense? They have looked above avg. to dare I say it good against two mediocre to bad QB's, Bortles and Dalton, but have looked pretty awful the rest of the year. Dalton stared down Green all night, all we had to do was cover him it seemed.</p>— Seth Atkins (@SethAtkins) <a href="https://twitter.com/SethAtkins/status/1054382098906312704?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

Let’s not get too revisionist here. The Jaguars have turned the ball over more than three times only once, and that was against the Chiefs. The Bengals entered the week sixth in the league in scoring, including 34 against the Ravens, who have given up an average of 11.2 points in their other six games.

Even now, Dalton is ninth in Pro Football Focus’ quarterback grades, and 10th according to Football Outsiders.

The Chiefs aren’t doing this against Rutgers, is the point, but litigating the past isn’t as important as whether this is replicable.

I don’t know the answer. My hunch is that the Chiefs can have a defense that ranks somewhere in the low 20s the rest of the way.

A year ago, with the notable exceptions of the Jets game and the second half against the Titans the Chiefs defense was much better later than the beginning. It’s a reasonable stance to believe the same thing could happen again.

We always have to include this disclaimer about Houston and Berry getting healthy, but even beyond that the tackling was better against the Bengals, the coverage tighter, the pressure more consistent.

NFL teams are living things. They evolve week to week based on a million factors, from personal lives to nutrition to sleep patterns to strategy and individual matchups. What they are one week does not determine what they are the next, and the Chiefs defense has a chance to change the reputation it earned so far.

In this way, the linebackers might be the most interesting to follow. Anthony Hitchens and Reggie Ragland are each better than they’ve shown, and this is particularly true with tackling, against the run, and reading where plays are going. Just on first watch, this was the best they’ve played together, and there are logical reasons to believe that’s closer to what we’ll see going forward than the struggles of the first six weeks.

The Terrance Smith injury is interesting, too. He’d become their coverage linebacker, and he was OK there — much better recently than the first few weeks. But Dorian O’Daniel provides a real upside.

He’s faster, and his college tape is full of tackles that show anticipation and violent tackles. There has to be a reason he was behind Smith, so it’s worth being cautious, but he had 25 snaps against the Bengals that collectively showed promise. This was the best one:

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">So much to be impressed with by Chiefs tonight. Add No. 44 (LB Dorian O’Daniel) to the list. He absolutely blew up Mixon here. <a href="https://t.co/Vu0ifMGOQG">pic.twitter.com/Vu0ifMGOQG</a></p>— Jeff Rosen (@jeff_rosen88) <a href="https://twitter.com/jeff_rosen88/status/1054202152481107968?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

My guess is the coaches preferred Smith for the same reasons they typically go slow with rookies. Sutton’s defense can be overly complicated, can lock players into too much thinking and not enough reacting, and that’s especially hard on young players.

But he’s had some time now, and if they can simplify his role to utilize his speed and playmaking, they may have one of those small upgrades that can help push the boulder up the hill.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Everyone is talking about the skill players, but how about some love for the big uglies up front? They have been solid.</p>— Greg Hunsucker (@GregHunsucker) <a href="https://twitter.com/GregHunsucker/status/1054395691584372736?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

It’s a good point by Greg, and would be even if they weren’t playing with 40 percent backups. It’s a small sample, but Jordan Devey and Andrew Wylie do not get out into space as well as Laurent Duvernay-Tardif and Mitch Morse. But the beauty of a dynamic offense is they don’t need everything working at maximum capacity.

Devey and Wylie have, generally, been what you hope backups can be — solid if unspectacular, not the reason you’ll win but good enough to avoid being the reason you’ll lose. They seem better in pass protection than with run blocking, which makes them good fits for this group.

Mitchell Schwartz has been terrific and consistent, the best man on the line. Eric Fisher has become reliable, and Cam Erving is so much better now than at the beginning of the year.

This is always worth remembering — Mahomes’ talent and the dangers of the skill position guys make the line’s job easier.

But they’ve been pretty good on their own, too.

There is no way to know, of course. We’re all guessing, and on some level using our own biases and preconceived notions, but it’s always seemed to me that the most important factor in a quarterback’s success is the environment in which he’s placed.

Andy Reid seems to think this, too, and here I’m thinking of his answer when asked why so many highly drafted quarterbacks fail.

“I’ve studied that,” he said. “How many quarterbacks could have been if they’d had the right environment?”

It’s easy to think of examples. Sam Bradford is always the first that comes to my mind, though injuries had a major part of that. Jared Goff was unplayably bad as a rookie, with Jeff Fisher, and now one of the most prolific quarterbacks in the league with Sean McVay. Alex Smith was part of a train wreck his first six seasons in San Francisco, then a fluke special teams turnover away from the Super Bowl in his seventh.

Nick Foles won a Super Bowl, and what would Tom Brady and Bill Belichick be without each other?

I’m sure you have your own examples.

Truly great quarterbacks can rise above, and Peyton Manning might be the best example of that, but environment is so critical.

You’re asking specifically about Mahomes, and I know I’m out there a ways on him, but my best guess is this:

He’s in an environment good enough that Alex Smith threw for 4,042 yards, 26 touchdowns and five interceptions last year, leading the league in adjusted yards to attempt, interception rate, and passer rating.

An average quarterback could take Mahomes’ place and produce above average results, and Mahomes could go to an average offensive situation — something like the 49ers or Broncos, maybe* — and lift it higher.

* Please don’t get hung up on the examples. I’m just thinking of the teams the Chiefs have played. The 49ers have good coaching and average talent; the Broncos have good talent and average coaching.

Mahomes is better for being surrounded by Reid and the skill guys; Reid and the skill guys are better for having Mahomes in the middle.

Together, along with league factors making it easier than ever for offenses, we’re watching one of the most effective offenses of all time. Mahomes is the best young quarterback the league has seen in a while, and he’s also in the best situation any young quarterback has seen in a while.

Twenty-eight punts last year, compared to 16 now.

More comparisons:

The 2018 Chiefs have scored 260 points with 3,062 yards and six turnovers.
The 2017 Chiefs had scored 207 points with 2,747 yards and one turnover.

There are some minor differences. Sammy Watkins has not shown up statistically, but they’re able to run different things with him compared to a year ago. Tyreek Hill is better, more of a polished receiver. I believe the line is better, even with the injuries, at least in part because they’re not being asked to pull off these elaborate schemes like a year ago.

But it’s also true that Mahomes makes it easier for everyone. The linemen may be occasionally frustrated that Mahomes isn’t where he’s supposed to be — though that’s happening less now than at the beginning of the year, and Alex Smith caused some sacks on his own, too — but he also erases mistakes.

The best example of that is the nine seconds of chaos against the 49ers, but there are many others, from the memorable like the left-handed pass in Denver to the more subtle like shaking off a lineman’s hand on his arm to throw deep to Watkins against the Bengals.

It’s all symbiotic. That’s one of the best parts of football. Nobody does it alone, though Mahomes makes it easier for those around him.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">If Berry's (and potentially Houston's) ailments boil down to pain management, what becomes your threshold for playing versus resting with the Chiefs win total growing despite their absence?</p>— Nick Petr (@nick_petr) <a href="https://twitter.com/nick_petr/status/1054384887564767232?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

Houston is dealing with a hamstring, and that’s not about pain management. That’s a soft tissue injury that can linger, particularly in the cold, and particularly if it’s rushed back so I’m all for them being cautious there.

I believe a big part of Berry’s return will be pain management. Might even be the most important part. But there’s more to it, and some of this is conjecture, some of it an educated guess so here goes: there could be mental scars from losing two seasons due to injuries in the first game, with a 6-1 record there is absolutely no pressure to come back and save the team, and the Super Bowl is in his hometown which means even more emphasis on being strong through the playoffs.

These are all guesses, in one way or another, so I can’t give you a specific scenario. But I do think it’s important that he gets some snaps in, because whatever he is in his first game back is not going to be what he can be with time.

He’ll need to play his way back in, not just physically but with all the subtle communications and decisions that are made in real time on the field. He’s never played next to Jordan Lucas, or behind Kendall Fuller or Orlando Scandrick. These things take reps, and even if Berry is exceptionally smart and talented — and he is — he’s still a human football player who will need to work his way back in.

They’re in no danger at the moment, and there are a lot of other factors that will be at play, but if it was strictly about working back for the postseason I wonder if they might target the Cardinals game in three weeks:

Get some reps in a game they should win handily, have an extra day of recovery before playing the Rams in Mexico the following Monday, then a full bye, then five games leading into the playoffs.

That can be massaged, obviously, and a case can be made to wait for the Rams game or even after the bye.

We’re all just throwing darts here.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I know all the ways my heart CAN get broken in January, but please describe with specificity the way my heart WILL get broken in January.</p>— Jon Blumenthal (@JonBlumenthal) <a href="https://twitter.com/JonBlumenthal/status/1054378550135062528?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

The popular answer would be a 45-44 loss to the Patriots on a Butker missed field goal, but you know the one that would hurt even more involves Mahomes tearing an Achilles while being stuffed at the goal line and you guys I’m truly sorry for bringing that up let’s just move on.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">In hindsight, building Mizzou Arena on an ancient burial ground was a bad idea right?</p>— Mike Frevert (@MikeFrevert) <a href="https://twitter.com/MikeFrevert/status/1054378878792273921?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

Sometimes I wonder if we make too much of Mizzou’s rotten luck. I mean, every team in every sport has heartbreak. In a lot of ways, that’s the point of sports, that it’ll kick you in the gut and somehow you’ll still go in for a hug the next time.

Just thinking about the other two local schools, I’m not sure anyone has a rougher loss than K-State against Texas A&M in the 1998 Big 12 championship — the Sirr Parker game.

K-State, just a decade before lost in the wilderness and considering dropping its football program to a lower level, had multiple leads late for a win that would’ve meant playing for the national championship. They were close again in 2012, ranked second in the nation with two regular season games to go. They’ve had their share of bizarre, too — the secret contract, Pervis Pasco, a thrilling double overtime win in the 2010 Sweet 16 that I’ll always believe sapped the energy from the regional final, which meant not making the Final Four, and greased the wheels for Frank Martin’s departure.

Kansas’ heartache has typically been more straightforward. The football team has mostly always stunk, and the one year they were great they received the break of a decade in going to the Orange Bowl over Mizzou. But staking your reputation on college basketball success means a mess of heartbreak there, too — Bucknell, Bradley, and Oregon just in Bill Self’s years. What if Joel Embiid’s back held up?

At the moment, obviously, the FBI investigation gives KU the most serious concern of any local school in more than a decade. History and the NCAA’s enforcement patterns tell us KU is likely to avoid the worst, but they’ve been publicly caught wrestling with pigs.

All of that is true, but Mizzou does seem to have it worse than others, at least in terms of rotten luck. Bad losses happen, but how often do they come with a pass being kicked from one teammate to another, or on a down that by clear and long-standing rule does not exist? How many other schools can put a group of names together — Tony VanZant, Kelly Thames, Michael Porter — and you know they’re talking about a specific subset of disappointment?

Maybe K-State fans should look at those near misses like accomplishments, because who would’ve thought Bill Snyder could get so close? Maybe KU fans should look at the tournament losses and current scare — if their silly plausible deniability is legally upheld — as the byproduct of living so fully in the often shady world of college basketball.

But Mizzou is a little different. It’s beyond bad luck, beyond unfortunate circumstances. They could go decades without a single knee injury and still have more than their share of bad ones.

The only positive I can imagine is that if Jontay Porter is indeed “forced” back for a redshirt sophomore season, he would presumably be stronger and better athletically than he is at the moment, so perhaps we’d see even more from him than we would’ve this year.

Maybe that’s a storyline we’ll get into later. Right now, it’s just sad.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">KU fans all wanted Beaty to succeed and no one wants to HAVE to fire another. But is there even a possible case to be made that Beaty should keep his job? For this question, assume that paying his buyout is not a concern for KU.</p>— Gavin FEARton (feat. Wiz Ghoulifa) (@gavinesq) <a href="https://twitter.com/gavinesq/status/1054399365127831553?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

Well, the case would be that Kansas football is such a mess that only the ignorant and out of touch would expect to be backed into a corner financially to the point that a position coach at a historically underachieving program is hired and then be good enough to have the thing turned around before even one full recruiting cycle.

The case would be that Pookah Williams shows enough promise, and that the coaches might finally have the train moving enough that progress is nigh.

The case would be that you can’t keep cycling through coaches, and that firing the guy you have now just means diminishing another recruiting class and setting the whole thing back again.

To be clear: this is not a case that I would make.

Beaty is overmatched, and that’s at least as much a comment on the awful state of the program as it is Beaty’s competency, but the lack of progress in recruiting Texas, the throw-a-dart handling of quarterbacks past and present, and the consistent micromanaging of assistants are all terrible signs.

It’s hard to see how this is going to work, and that would be true even if the chancellor hadn’t kneecapped Beaty by firing his AD and replacing him with a man whose primary qualification is connections within the football coaching community.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">What does Dean Wade need to do to have a good case for Big 12 POTY at the end of the season?</p>— Nightmare on Adam's Tweets (@ams_ksu) <a href="https://twitter.com/ams_ksu/status/1054387319397081088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

Something to overcome the Best Player On Best Team argument that will likely be tagged to Dedric Lawson.

Wade is clearly capable, too. He averaged 16.2 points last year on 55 percent shooting, which, among other things means he needs to shoot a lot more. But he’s also good from virtually every spot on the court. There’s not a particular matchup that you except him to struggle against.

One thing that’s seemed to hold him back at times is confidence. He’s always been a little better than he believes, which is quite different than a lot of basketball players. If he has a problem with that this year, he’s beyond help, because he has to know he’s one of the better players not just in the league but the country.

If he’s around 20 points and 10 rebounds, with a moment or two (preferably against Kansas) that stinks in the mind, even if KU wins the league by a couple games Wade would have a case for player of the year.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">SKC has to be <a href="https://twitter.com/MLS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MLS</a> Cup favorites, right?</p>— Drew Champlin (@DrewChamplin) <a href="https://twitter.com/DrewChamplin/status/1054378605436985347?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

Well, FiveThirtyEight’s model gives the Red Bulls and Atlanta slightly better odds, but sometimes we get too caught up into that kind of thing.

The important thing for now is that Sporting is in first place, needing only a draw next weekend to secure the Western Conference’s top seed. Already, Sporting is guaranteed at least one home match for the first time since the MLS Cup championship in 2013.

The West is tight enough that Sporting could still finish anywhere from No. 1 to 4 based on the last results, but earning the home match and positioning to play at Children’s Mercy Park until the championship is critical considering the franchise’s history.

Soccer is so unpredictable, and a team that looks in form one week can lose it the next, but Vermes has said this is the best team he’s had since the 2013 champs. They’re healthy, and a years-long evolution into a possession-oriented team appears complete. They have dynamic scorers in the front, veteran defenders in the back, and a keeper who can wipe out a few mistakes every match.

Atlanta is loaded, particularly if healthy, and beating them on the road in the MLS Cup final would be a hell of a task.

There is so much that needs to happen between then and now, however, starting with a critical result next weekend against LAFC.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">You can choose one candy for Patrick Mahomes to throw 50-yards into your Halloween bag. Which one are you going with???</p>— Adam Drovetta (@ADrovetta) <a href="https://twitter.com/ADrovetta/status/1054381469546688512?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

This is hard for me, because I like my candy, and I like my variety. I like chocolate, and I also like the fruity sugar stuff like Skittles and Starburst. Candy corn is atrocious, though I must point out that it’s salvageable when my wife combines it with peanuts. Tastes like a Payday bar.

All that said, I am convinced that there is no better candy bar than a Snickers perfectly cooled — colder than the refrigerator would do, but not as frozen as the freezer. It’s a really difficult sweet spot to find, but as they say, joy is in the journey.

Also: do they still make Skor bars? Those are the best freezer bar, even better than Twix or Kit Kat, and you either agree with me or you’re wrong.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Theoretical: If a kid refuses to eat dinner, do you make him his own dinner, or make him go hungry?</p>— Aaron (@a_ogilvie) <a href="https://twitter.com/a_ogilvie/status/1054415195664273408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

Welcome to the parental advice portion of our program.

The Mellingers employ a bit of a multi-pronged approach to this challenge. The key is to read the defense, and take what’s available while not letting them know you’re compromising.

We’re big on the Feed Them What You Eat approach, but if it’s something we really don’t think they’ll like — smoked salmon, for instance, or chili — we’ll try to have a backup plan like boiling water ready for mac and cheese or something.

The key, I believe, is to make your decision right away. You’re going to stand your ground or give in immediately, but you can only give in if they at least try it. Sometimes, they’ll surprise themselves and like what you served (our kids eat pesto like it’s ice cream) but even if they don’t it’s a chance to make them try something new and then move on.

The frustrating part is when they like what’s in front of them, but still refuse to eat it. Usually we’ll make sure to at least have a side we know they’ll eat, but either way, in that situation we try to not back down but also remember to stuff them full of pepperonis or protein bars or something before bed.

Also, before you take any of my advice on this, you should know that one of my lowest dad moments was the time I couldn’t even get my older son into Johnny’s, where there was pizza and french fries waiting for him. I lost my cool, slammed my car door shut, screamed like an idiot after he was strapped in, and then apologized on our way to hitting the McDonald’s drive thru.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">If you could make your kid forget one kids TV show or movie what would it be</p>— Cody Tapp (@codybtapp) <a href="https://twitter.com/codybtapp/status/1054397379024224257?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 22, 2018</a></blockquote>

My thing with shows isn’t necessarily what they watch, but what they don’t. They’re both heavily into Paw Patrol and Blaze at the moment, but a week from now it could be PJ Masks and Inspector Gadget. They tend to go all in on a particular show, wear it out, move on, and then eventually move back.

I know that bothers a lot of parents, when it’s the same shows over and over, but I really don’t care. It’s a half hour where they’re locked in, we can do other stuff, the shows usually have something close to a good message, and they don’t watch a lot of TV.

The thing I’d change is totally selfish. I wish they wanted to watch sports more.

I know, I know. But we’re in the trust tree, right? And to be fair, they’ll tolerate sports, most of the time. Football and soccer, mostly, though I’m curious how this basketball season might go. The older one is even starting to ask some questions, like score and position and — I swear this is a true story — why the Chiefs can’t tackle the other team.

“I think it’s because they’re not as big or strong,” he said when I got back from the Patriots game, and someday he’s coming for my job.

But, I’m also not going to be that dad who stuffs sports down their throats. Selfishly, I’d love it if they were into it, because it’d be something we could always talk about, but in the meantime I’m fine asking why Crusher can’t just play by the rules.

This week, I’m particularly thankful that there’s a company out there that will rent bounce houses for something like $150. Quite possibly the best value going. Kids are entertained, active, happy. That means the parents can entertain, be active, be happy. We really are the best country in the world.

Sam Mellinger

Sam Mellinger is a Kansas City Star sports columnist.

This story was originally published October 23, 2018 at 11:49 AM.

Sam Mellinger

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