Changing Our Chiefs' Name?

There's a great article out today on our Kansas City Chiefs. It gives background--again--on how they got their name (everyone should know by now) but more. It also tells why it really MIGHT be racist and wrong and then finally, what we could, in fact, change the name to.

KC Chiefs: 

Three alternate mascot names we could live with

I have to say, the proposed names pleasantly surprised me. I didn't think anyone could, would or did, yet, come up with any good options but these 3 sound great:

1. Blues (not the Smokin' Blues, just the Blues, however)
2. Qs (as in BBQ) and
3. Bucks (after Buck O'Neill)

Great ideas, as I said. I could definitely live with any of those, at least. (But Wolves?  No. Please, no).

GO CHIEFS!!!

At least for now.

Ink On Our Own "Magic Patrick" Mahomes

Our own Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes is getting lots of great press after that come-from-behind, overtime win last weekend against the Ravens.

First this one from no less than Sports Illustrated.

Patrick Mahomes History of No-Look Passes

You certainly have seen the play by now—you would have had to go out of your way to avoid seeing it. It was late in the first half of Sunday’s Chiefs-Ravens game, a second-and-1. Patrick Mahomes zigged to the left, then zagged back to the right, evading the rush as he scanned the field. Then, with his head pointed squarely downfield, he slung the ball across his body, firing it diagonally across the hash marks and painted field numbers to his left. Receiver Demarcus Robinson, crossing the field, made the catch at a spot where Mahomes had given zero outward indication he was going to throw.

“Look at the magic of the quarterback,” Tony Romo said on the CBS broadcast while watching the replay of the 17-yard pass to Robinson. “Moving around, dancing, then throws it—like, almost, no look. That’s incredible.”

Not done there:

Where Patrick Mahomes Gets His Cool

What can a person say except...

GO CHIEFS!!

Patrick Mahomes & Our Chiefs Get More Great Press

Yessir and ma’am, our Chiefs are getting yet more great press, what with being led by the magic and strength that is and that we get from and with Patrick Mahomes.

Top storyline for each Week 10 NFL game | Yardbarker.com

What they have to say:

Arizona Cardinals at Kansas City Chiefs: Patrick Mahomes, NFL MVP?

The answer is a resounding yes. It’s also highly unlikely that this second-year quarterback will somehow take a step back in the MVP race Week 10 against a two-win Arizona Cardinals team. We’re honestly just running out of expletives to define what Mahomes has done for the 8-1 Chiefs on the season.

In addition to already breaking multiple records, Mahomes is completing 66 percent of his passes while leading this offense to an average of 36.3 points per game. He’s on pace for 5,400 total yards and 55 total touchdowns. It’s now up to Patrick Peterson and the Cardinals to somehow slow him down at Arrowhead come Sunday. Good luck with that.

GO CHIEFS!!

The Wonderful Irony of Kansas City Trying to Get Soccer's World Cup

So it's big local news yesterday. This, from the Star.

Arrowhead Stadium could host a 2026 World Cup match. What's that worth to KC?

Leaders in Kansas City want to have the soccer World Cup come to Kansas City.

Terrific.

By 2020, we'll have our new downtown hotel, right?

And our new, single terminal airport?  So what if it costs us more than 1 billion dollars--and far, far higher prices to fly in and out of town. Right?

The irony, of course, is that, to do so, to get this World Cup Soccer and all the attention and recognition it would bring us, the city? The irony is, we need to have more mass transit, they make clear.

And there's the rub.

Kansas Citians have been ignoring or even out and out fighting against mass transit----but this would require it.

Fantastic.

Maybe we'll get it yet.

HERE'S THE BIG NFL QUESTION!!

If the Chiefs can beat the Patriots, at home, in the season opener, who CAN'T they beat?

GO CHIEFS!!

Holidays With the Chiefs!

Our own Kansas City Chiefs made a "top ten" list yesterday and in none other than the New York Times.

The 10 Most Important N.F.L. Games

It seems not only is it one of the top ten most important games left in the season but it's also going to be a big Christmas gift for all us fans. What they had to say:

There are six weeks remaining in the N.F.L. season, and more than 90 games to come. Some will be crucial, and some will be 60 minutes of garbage time. But which are which?

Thanks to The Upshot’s Playoff Simulator at nytimes.com, The New York Times can quantify that.

Every game counts in the standings, but some are much more likely to affect the playoffs than others. A game like the Jets at the Patriots on Christmas Eve does not look too important: The Patriots are a lock to make the postseason, and the Jets are a huge long shot. The Browns at the Steelers on Jan. 1 might turn out to matter a lot to Pittsburgh, but it will not affect Cleveland’s playoff chances, which are zero.

But a handful of games are likely to be crucial for the playoff hopes of both teams. These are the biggest games left this year, according to The Upshot’s simulator.

9. Broncos at Chiefs, Dec. 25

The Raiders, the Chiefs and the Broncos are in a dogfight for the A.F.C. West, as well as wild-card consolation prizes. Of all the games left on their schedules, this ranks as the most important, although the Chiefs at the Broncos on Dec. 4 is 11th on the list.

GO CHIEFS!

In the meantime, happy Thanksgiving to all. Here's hoping for more great wins this season.

An Open Letter To White America

Dear White America,

Don't like the silent protests during the National Anthem at NFL games?

Fight for justice. Fight for more equity for all. Fight for fairness.

Do something. Do something about it. Stand up for what's right.

Sincerely,

The rest of America

CHIEFS COME BACK!!

Yes sir! Our own Kansas City Chiefs were down and down by a lot, even into the fourth quarter but tied it up in the last few minutes of the game and WON IN OVERTIME!!

Chargers vs. Chiefs 2016 picks: Experts think Kansas City will win opener

So to all the unbelievers and Chiefs (and Royals) haters out there, especially the ones who blog, SUCK IT.

Local Newsman Remembers 9/11

From Kris Ketz'Facebook page today.

"A personal note. 

Sunday. 15 years since 9/11. And on a day when the Chiefs open the 2016 season at home - for me - who could forget that first football game after the attacks. At Arrowhead. And it was the New York Giants in town. I'll never forget walking to my seats that morning and catching a glimpse of a sign hanging from the club level. 'KC NY.'

We all loved New York for all the obvious reasons. 

Anyone or anything from the big apple was a special guest that day. I don't know about the other 79,000 fans in the stadium that day but for me it was hard to think about football - yet - it was good to see it. It was more than a game. It was a step towards returning to some form of 'normal' and at a time when nobody knew what 'normal' would be. We all wanted to see how America and Americans would respond to what happened - long term. We were all so anxious to help in whatever small way we could. 

There was a big "fill the boot" effort in the stadium thanks to members of the KCFD (at least in my section 134) who were busy raising money for the recovery effort in NYC. I may be wrong on the numbers but I think Chiefs fans raised something north of $200,000 that day and then the Chiefs matched what was raised. The singing of the National Anthem that day meant more. 

Like most fans around us there was a lump in my throat and for once we all ended by singing 'Home of the Brave', Chiefs players & coaches had American Flags in their hands. Like I said we all wanted to help. We all wanted to do something. We all wanted people in NY to know that people in KC had their back. I don't recall the final score that day but I remember leaving the stadium thinking in any other environment this would have been just another football game. 

15 years later - KC still 's NY."

On the Chiefs, Looking to August

MSN News ran this today under the headline

32 players whose NFL careers can either flourish or falter

Kansas City Chiefs – OT Eric Fisher

The No. 1 overall pick from 2013 looks to build off of his first season as Alex Smith’s blindside protector. In 2014, Fisher allowed seven sacks and 24 hurries. Kansas City’s

offensive line needs to be anchored by Fisher as they allowed overachieving center Rodney Hudson to depart in free agency.

 

 

 

 

Kansas City Hits the Big Time Media!

Yes sir, Kansas City hits the big time media and in a big way--in the very first paragraph. Just not in a good way:

The 10 Grossest Foods You Can Buy at the Ballpark

When they want "gross food", they come to us first, it seems. From "Mother Jones" today:

Five months ago, Jon Costa, a food safety manager for Aramark, told ESPN and local media outlets about the dire conditions in the kitchens at Kansas City's Kauffman Stadium (home to baseball's Royals) and Arrowhead Stadium (home to football's Chiefs). He discovered roaches in the vending area, mouse feces near pizza dough, mold growth in ice machines, and employees eating where food was supposed to be prepared.

KSHB reported that the Kansas City Health Department found critical violations at 20 of Kauffman's concession stands last November, after Costa came forward following the Royals' World Series loss. In a letter to ESPN that month, an Aramark official refuted Costa's allegations, which included expired pizza dough being served during Game 7 of the World Series, as "unsubstantiated claims raised by a disgruntled employee." Still, Aramark enlisted an external inspector to conduct additional sweeps of concessions and increased training for its staff. (Costa, meanwhile, was fired in March.)

That hurts.

Not only that, though, our beer costs too much:

Beer Prices At Every Major League Baseball Game

The NFL, taxes and WHAT THE HELL ARE WE DOING?

I won't even ask, I'll just say it--this makes no sense whatever.

Not only is the NFL a huge profit maker but the owners are, every one of them, multi-millionaires or multi-billionaires.

Why in God's name do we let these filthy rich moochers not pay any taxes whatever?

To whom does this even remotely make sense?

When they want their stadiums redone and updated and made more luxurious--again, mostly for the wealthy, with their skyboxes--they come to the county and city and state with their hands out, wanting money and then they're non-taxed, too?  Last time around, they asked for, no, blackmailed us for one quarter of a billion dollars.  And they got it.  We gave it to them.

And think about it, too.  It goes further.  Each and every one of the franchises is a monopoly, for God's sake. They have a monopoly on this sport in their area, they make millions, if not billions and we let them be tax exempt.  This is better than the big church scam.

This sh*t's gotta' stop.  And we're just the ones to do it.

Kansas City isn't on this list???

I'm shocked.

10 Worst Sports Cities in America
Stunned.

All these suck worse than us and our teams.

The NFL: The Perfect, Selfish, Heartless, Capitalist Business?

I pointed out here before how the National Football League, the NFL, amazingly doesn't pay any tazes.

None, whatever.

They're a "non-profit", according to the Internal Revenue Service:

How the NFL Fleeces Taxpayers 

The NFL Doesn't Need Tax Exempt Status

Now, it turns out the NFL doesn't want to even pay a true, minimum wage, either:

U.S. Labor Department Calls NFL Cheerleaders 'Seasonal Amusement' -- Says They Don't Deserve Minimum Wage

Isn't that beautiful?

And if you're an NFL team owner, like Clark Huntand the Hunt family, and you want to have your stadium renovated, what do you do? Why, you do what the Kansas City Chiefs (KCChiefs)  and even the Kansas City Royals do and go with your hat in your hand, out to the city and county you're in and ask--or blackmail--the people there to take the expense on themselves, even if they are middle- or lower-class schlubs.  You know, people who are trying to make a living and who are trying to keep their heads above water, financially, and who, by the way, DO pay tazes.

Oops.

This has got to make the people over at Walmart green with envy. Up to now, with this information, they likely thought they had the perfect profit-making, people-abusing business model and profit center.

And the question is, America:  why do we tolerate this nonsense, this abuse?

Kansas City Chiefs History: On this day

On Jan. 15, 1967, the first Super Bowl was played as the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League defeated the Kansas City Chiefs of the American Football League, 35-10.

Did you know this about the NFL?

Does any of this make any sense?  Well, does it make any sense except to the very wealthy owners of these teams?  

Keep in mind, too, each team is a monopoly.

On top of this obscenity, when they want their stadiums updated, first they go to each area with their respective hats out, asking their city/state/county for money to do so, followed closely by threatening the area with leaving.

And all the owners are billionaires in their own right.

This is crazy.

Let's not let them do this to us any longer.

Let's get THIS party started.

Write your government representative now:

Contacting the Congress: A Citizen's Congressional Directory

Thank you, in advance.

Breaking: Clark Hunt makes big Chiefs move

Breaking sports news:

In an effort to both win more games and cut team expenses, Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt announced today he would be cutting the team in half, firing the entire offensive team.

Mr. Hunt was quoted, saying "It's our defense that's winning the games anyway so we figured this was an excellent move all around.

More at 6 and 10 tonight.

KC Royal in the (money) news

From Yahoo! Sports yesterday:

MLB All-Star paydays

The MLB All-Star game will take place on July 16 in New York. The All-Stars will represent their teams and play for bragging rights and home field advantage for the World Series. Aside from pride, players also get plenty of perks and money. We have compiled a list of the players who have All-Star bonuses written into their contracts. Find out who will be getting a nice one-day payday and the other perks the league provides for the players selected for the 2013 All-Star game.

(Data and numbers courtesy of Cot's Baseball Contracts and the MLB Collective Bargaining Agreement)

Alex Gordon

Contract bonus: $500,000 in 2014 and 2015. Kansas City's Gordon didn't even realize he'd pocketed and extra million until his agent reminded him of the big clause in his contract. He also tacks on another $500K to his now $13.25M player option in 2016.

Makes you feel better about our Royals, doesn't it?  (Not).

Whaddya' bet Mr. Gordon is on a short list to be traded off soon, with that in the budget, if he stays hitting.

The insanity of what we allow for the obscenely wealthy NFL owners

The NFL, as I pointed out here earlier, is, first of all, a monopoly, each and every team. Second, each team and each owner has TOTAL TAX-FREE STATUS (did you know that?) and third, finally,  insanely, we also allow them, these teams, to have "blackout Sundays" so people can't watch their games if they haven't already, additionally paid to see the games.

Why do we do this?  Why do we allow this insanity to go on?

They make huge, obscene profits.  When they want their stadiums updated, they go to the local people and their governments, with their hat and hand out, as though they're poor, as we here in Kansas City found out not that many years ago.

This is crazy.

It's stupid.

It's grossly unfair.

What's more, it's immoral.  Truly immoral.

2013: The year for sports in the Kansas City metro?

First, the Royals seem very real this year:

 

Is it time to take the Royals seriously as contenders?

 

Kansas City Royals: A Good Week, Or A Good Year? 

 

The Chiefs have gutted their team, added more new players and changed plenty of people in the front office:



Chiefs, No. 1 draft pick Eric Fisher pleased with first day of practice

And now this, only yesterday:

Andrew Wiggins among biggest recruiting victories in Kansas basketball history

To go along with it, the  Latest 2013-14 power rankings in basketball came out late yesterday and show our very same KU ranked 4th. What they had to say:

 

The wait is over. Andrew Wiggins has chosen Kansas. The deadline for entering the NBA Draft has come and gone. We've lost Trey Burke, Victor Oladipo and Ben McLemore to the pros, but Marcus Smart of Oklahoma State, Russ Smith of Louisville, and Shabazz Napier of Connecticut are staying.

Sorry, Florida State. If Wiggins had selected the Seminoles, you'd probably see them in our latest edition of the early 2013-14 rankings. But he didn't, so they're not. See how the rest of the field is shaping up.

 

4. Kansas: Despite the loss of five starters, the Jayhawks became a Final Four contender again when Andrew Wiggins, the No. 1 prospect in the Class of 2013, signed his letter of intent to play at Kansas. The 6-foot-8 Wiggins is an unbelievable athlete and a real game changer for KU. Coach Bill Self has put together his best recruiting class ever, including Wayne Selden, center Joel Emblid, and shooters Conner Frankamp and Brennan Greene. Sophomore Perry Ellis and point guard Naadir Tharpe must provide leadership. Self isn't done; he'd like to add Memphis transfer Tarik Black. Kansas will be favored to win the Big 12 for a 10th consecutive season.

 

So let's not jinx it, sports fans.

Let's just keep our fingers crossed.

 

And enjoy.