It’s been a busy day in Kansas City.
Defensive lineman Shaun Smith is in, cornerback Stanford Routt is out and Romeo Crennel is giving up defensive coordinator duties. Crennel made the announcement on Monday that linebackers coach Gary Gibbs will be the defensive coordinator for the rest of the season. Adam Teicher of the Kansas City Star reports that Crennel said he decided to make the change in order to devote more time to the entire team.
“We have a young team and some guys, the perception may be that I’m a defensive coach, that I’m a defensive coordinator, and I don’t care about other parts of the team, which is not true,” Crennel said. “But their perception may be that. By my being with them more, I think they will see I’m concerned about the whole team.”
After the Chiefs opened the season by allowing 75 points in losses to the Falcons and Bills, Crennel insisted that wearing both hats wasn’t a problem. He also said that you “wouldn’t even be asking the question” if the Chiefs were playing better.
No one needed to ask the question on Monday because the Chiefs clearly haven’t started playing any better. Changes come when you are 1-7 and this is one Crennel had to make.
There could be more changes to come as the Chiefs try to avoid an abyss that would likely cost Crennel and General Manager Scott Pioli their jobs. It’s hard to imagine any of these moves changes the fortunes of the team all that much at this point in the season.
Having said that, we’re in favor of Crennel’s global approach if it keeps the head coach of an NFL team from wondering why his star running back only got five carries in a game