Week 11 - Seahags 20 at Chiefs 24

Nothing beats a nice roasted and stuffed bird this time of year.

I admit it, I don't like the Seahawks. And not because of Dave Krieg getting sacked 7 times by Derrick Thomas, and almost an 8th when he threw a hail-mary that somehow found Paul Skansi in the endzone to beat the Chiefs at Arrowhead. I was at that game. If ever there was a moment you can say the air went out of a stadium... And it's not because of their contrived and bogus attempts to steal Arrowhead's decades old recognition as America's loudest outdoor stadium. And it's not because "I'm jealous" of their recent success. It's because they are a very dirty team with a notorious cheater for a head coach. Pete Carroll is classless. His USC team had to vacate a national title and had a Heisman Trophy revoked - the first time in NCAA history. His teams not only cheat, they play dirty, they talk trash. The Seahags are the most penalized team in the NFL the last three seasons. They lead the league in unnecessary roughness penalties - nearly twice the NFL average. They have more than twice the NFL average in penalty yards. They've had more players ejected than any other NFL team. Carroll doesn't just cheat during games. He was caught cheating during the off-season and fined $300,000 by the league. Pete Carroll is the role model for what's wrong with football. It sure felt good to out-tough them yesterday. And that's exactly what the Chiefs did. KC stood up the Seahawks and smashed them in their squawking beaks. And with the Rams dismantling Peyton Manning and the Donkeys, KC is tied for the division lead and controls its own destiny.

Offense: In this day and age, 190 rushing yards to 108 passing yards is almost unheard of. And for both teams to finish with more yards on the ground than in the air - simply never happens any more. But it did at Arrowhead, yesterday. This was a ground war between two of the best RB's in the League, Jamaal Charles and Marshawn Lynch, and two of the NFL's better running QB's, Russell Wilson and Alex Smith. Again, the Chiefs WR's couldn't find paydirt, but Charles and Davis did. The first KC drive was masterful. They executed 15 plays for 86 yards in 9:01 that only saw two 3rd downs (both 3rd & 1), capping it off with a 1 yard run by JC. That drive broke a Seattle 29 game streak without giving up a score on an opponent's opening drive. The next drive was the exact opposite style, with the exact same result. There were 4 plays for 80 yards in 2:13 that never saw a 2nd down, that also ended with JC reaching the endzone. I was impressed by De'Anthony Thomas. Not just his running, but his downfield blocking for JC. The tiny man was even seen taking two guys out on one run. The down side for the O's - they coughed up two fumbles, and neither of them was by Knile Davis! JC and Kelce each provided Seattle with early Christmas presents and a short field, which resulted in 10 points. Seattle's vaunted defense frankly did not look as impressive as Buffalo's did last week. I know they have injuries, but so do the Chiefs - so does everyone 11 weeks into the NFL season. But Jamaal shredded them and Smith out-managed them. There were no sacks by Seattle, which is pretty remarkable given the way Smith has been harassed this year. KC lost the turnover battle, the time of possession, the total yardage, in fact pretty much every stat on the sheet except the important one - the scoreboard.

Defense: I know defenses hate to be labeled "bend but don't break", but can someone give me a better description of what we saw yesterday? They didn't force any turnovers. They were gashed a few times by big plays. They gave up 204 rushing yards - 71 of them by the quarterback. But when it was crunch time, they did the crunching. Three stops on fourth down in the fourth quarter. That's getting it done. Due to Seattle's notorious rushing attack, the Chiefs didn't do much of their characteristic blitzing. Candidly, despite the 2 sacks and the times Wilson was chased out of the pocket, it was mostly a game defended by a surprisingly tight - even though thinned by injuries - defensive backfield. Last week's hero, Ron Parker got schooled a few times early, but also came up with some nice plays. In the end, however, it was all about what Kool Aid Man calls "The Bigs" (he'd know). The fat boys up front, who spent much of their day chasing Russell Wilson from behind,  did the heavy lifting when it mattered.  Special shout out to the Kool Aid Man. With one TO in his pocket, he challenged the spot of the ball, and forced a fourth down, which his Bigs used to stuff Marshawn Lynch and turn the ball over on downs. Oh, and Doug Baldwin - shut up. You ran a borderline pick route in the end zone, and then whine about incidental contact by Sean Smith, when the KC D-backs didn't bite on it? You weren't catching that ball anyway, unless you were suddenly 17 feet tall. And thanks to the stop on fourth and goal, the D's streak continues of no rushing TDs allowed in a game.

Specials: There were only two punts by KC. But we still have the NFL's best punter. One of his punts was perfectly downed at the 4 yard line. The tiny Brazillian made his only FG, which now runs him to 11 in a row after a very shaky start. Knile Davis did a great job on kickoff returns, posting a nearly 32 yard average, and DAT had one solid punt return that resulted in a dirty, cheating Seahawk - Ricardo Lockett - being ejected from the game for punching Kurt Coleman in the face. You have to be a pretty special brand of stupid to fist-punch a guy wearing a helmet.

Throw Him A Bone: Who but Jamaal Charles? It was the JC Show all day. Despite the fumble, he was on fire. Earlier in the week, one of the Seattle defenders said, "Kansas City is easy to figure out. Shut down #25 and make them beat you with their passing game." Yeah, how'd that work out for you? I'll refresh your memory - 159 rushing yards, a staggering 8.0 yard per carry average and two touchdowns.

Doggity Dog: This one is tough. No one stands out as having had a really bad game. That's what it takes to out tough the meanest team in football. I think I'm going to go with James Michael Johnson. He had three tackles, but he also was the one most responsible for allowing Marshawn Lynch to pile up 124 yards, almost entirely up the gut.

Next up - At the Black Hole against the hapless Faders on Thursday night at 7:25 PM CST.

Tailgating Recipe:
How about a simple cocktail to keep you warm?

I call this one The Dizzy Irish Monk.

1 part Dizzy Three espresso-infused vodka (any coffee vodka could be subbed, in a pinch)
1 part Bailey's Irish Cream (or similar Irish cream liqueur)
1 part Frangelico (or similar hazelnut liqueur)

Stir together. Can be served over ice, straight up or even warmed (which is how I like it!)