Here's everything to get you caught up on what happened this week with plenty of exclusive content you can't find anywhere else.
These are just excerpts so follow the link for the complete article.
Press Releases
The NFL is launching a year-long celebration of the Super Bowl to commemorate Super Bowl 50, which will be played on Sunday, February 7, 2016 at Levi's Stadium in the San Francisco Bay Area. The plans were announced today at the NFL Annual Meeting at the Arizona Biltmore Hotel in Phoenix, Arizona.
The 2015 season will feature a gold thematic signifying the 50th "golden" Super Bowl that will be visible on the field and throughout the season.The 50-yard line numerals and NFL shield logo at every stadium will be gold. Team logos on sideline apparelwill have accents of gold*and logos for NFL events, *including Draft, Kickoff and the Playoffs, will turn to gold.
A total of 32 compensatory choices in the 2015 NFL Draft have been awarded to 14 teams
Under the rules for compensatory draft selections, a team losing more or better compensatory free agents than it acquires in the previous year is eligible to receive compensatory draft picks.
The number of picks a team receives equals the net loss of compensatory free agents up to a maximum of four. The 32 compensatory choices announced today will supplement the 224 choices in the seven rounds of the 2015 NFL Draft held on April 30-May 2 in Chicago.
Articles
On what memory stands out above all else in the league meetings he's been to:
"Probably the one thing that really stands out and this goes back a number of years back to the late 80s when the league was in the middle of some labor unrest, there was a lawsuit and there had been a strike and the league was in the transition with Pete Rozelle resigning.
"I remember vividly being with my dad. It was one of the first league meetings that I attended and Paul Tagliabue ended up getting elected. That really stands out in my mind because it was a very difficult process for the ownership to agree on who would be the next commissioner."
On whether he's in favor of playoff expansion:
"I'm personally in favor of it. It's been a topic that's been discussed the last couple of years. I think it's probably going to end up getting tabled at this meeting but I would expect the league to address it and continue discussions on it in the next year or two. I'm personally in favor of it because I think every year there's a team or teams who are left out of the playoffs who you could argue are very deserving.
"Now there are also years where there would be a team with perhaps a 7-9 or an 8-8 record that would get in, but that happens far less frequently than a 9-7 team or a 10-6 team ending up missing the playoffs, so I just think it would be a very smart thing for the NFL to do—having 14 teams out of 32 making the playoffs in my mind does not dilute the value of the playoffs."
One of the biggest storylines coming out of the NFL Annual Meeting in Phoenix this week was the 23 rule proposals that owners were going work through and discuss heading into 2015.
Of those 23 rules, there were 13 that had specifically to do with instant replay.
"We did discuss those playing rule proposals (Tuesday) morning related to instant replay," Chiefs chairman and CEO Clark Hunt said. "I won't say there's overwhelming support, but there's general support for fine tuning and perhaps increasing the number of plays that could be reviewable."
"I'm personally in favor of that."
Five Things To Know About Safety
Branch ranks 10th among all players* *that have run the 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine since 2006.
Branch participated in the 2008 NFL Scouting Combine and finished the 40-yard dash event in 4.31 seconds. But even though that mark ties him for 10th among all combine participants since 2006, he finished in a tie for second among his class. 2008 was also the year that Chris Johnson ran the dash in 4.24 seconds, which still stands as the record today.
Branch is especially looking forward to being on the right side of the "Home of the Chiefs."
Branch, who played for the Oakland Raiders from 2008 to 2014, said that he's excited to finally hear Chiefs fans proudly yell "home of the Chiefs!" while wearing the red and gold at Arrowhead Stadium.
"It's so loud in there," he **told B.J. Kissel last week**. "I'm excited to be on the other side of it now and have them rooting for me instead of against me."
Of all the compensatory picks, the most famous is New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady. Arguably the best postseason quarterback in NFL history with four Super Bowl championships, he was a nice selection for the Patriots in the sixth-round of the 2000 draft.
Linebacker Mike Vrabel (Pittsburgh, Round 3, Pick No. 91 overall, 1997) and receiver Derrick Alexander (Cleveland, Round 1, Pick No. 29 overall, 1994) are two notable compensatory picks that played for the Chiefs at some point in their careers.
Round 1: No. 18 overall
Round 2: (17) No. 49 overall
Round 3: (16) No. 80 overall
Round 3: (34) No. 98 overall (Compensatory)
Round 4: (19) No. 118 overall
Round 5: (36) No. 172 overall (Compensatory)
Round 5: (37) No. 173 overall (Compensatory)
Round 6: (17) No. 193 overall
Round 6: (42) No. 217 overall (Compensatory)
Round 7: (16) No. 233 overall
Reid believes that free agency is great for addressing needs, but doesn't feel it's a good strategy to make it the predominant method of roster filling.
"Sometimes free agency is a good hole-plugger," he explained. "I don't think you make a living from it. I don't think the position necessarily matters ... It also gives you full freedom to go into the draft. It doesn't back you into a corner going into the draft, so you can go in and take the best player."
Reid revealed that offensive lineman Ben Grubbs will indeed play at the left guard position.
"We'll put him in there at the left guard position and let him go," he said. "That's kind of home for him. That's where he played. He's smart, he's physical and everybody I talked to said he's a phenomenal guy in the locker room."
A look at Andy Reid's off season attire through the years.
After just two seasons as general manager of the Kansas City Chiefs, John Dorsey has led an organization that has seen the best turnaround in franchise history. The nine-win improvement from 2012 (2-14) to 2013 (11-5) during his first year leading the Chiefs is the best ever for the franchise from one year to the next.
In 2014, the Chiefs finished with a 9-7 record, which marked just the third time in 19 years that the Chiefs had back-to-back winning seasons.
Despite that success, Dorsey isn't ready to pat himself on the back just yet.
"I'm really never satisfied to be quite honest with you," he explained. "Until you reach that ultimate mark, that's what we all strive for. You'll never truly be satisfied; I don't think you can be.
"So right now what we do is we always talk about—rolling our sleeves up and going to work. We'll do that every day until we hit that ultimate mark."
Former defensive end Jimmy Wilkerson, who played for the Chiefs from 2003 to 2007 and is currently in the midst of his one-year **Chiefs Ambassador** apprenticeship, has been involved with Operation Breakthrough for the past six years.
His adoration for the organization dates back to his playing days.
"I really fell in love with it when I was playing under coach Dick Vermeil and his wife, Carol," Wilkerson said. "Just to see the things that the children have gone through and how it relates to my past as a kid made me connect with that charity event more so than other events."
NFL Fantasy Football: Chiefs RB Ranks No. 1
In the realm of what's important to Kansas City Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles, ranking No. 1 in fantasy football points per touch probably isn't high on the list.
But that's exactly what he did in 2014, so we'll just chalk it up as a symptom of being really good at football.
According to **Michael Fabiano of NFL.com**, Charles ranked as the No. 1 running back in 2014 when it came down to how many points he scored on average for each time he touched the ball.
Photos of Jamaal Charles' best carries from the 2014 season.
After missing the 2013 season (minus one special teams snap) with a knee injury, Kelce had a bounce-back season last year.
He showed everyone from the beginning of training camp all the way through the last game of the season that he's a dynamic playmaker when the ball is in his hands.
Kelce is spending most of his time this offseason working out at the team's training facility, and the expectations for him are only going to continue to rise.
"He's at that stage now where he understands doing the little things will help him be a high-level professional," Chiefs general manager John Dorsey said. "He's taking his craft very seriously, he's out here diligently working and that's all you can ask for."
It might be months from the beginning of the 2015 NFL season, but fantasy game aficionados can't help themselves and thus, we're discussing the three Kansas City Chiefs who find themselves projected in the top 100 fantasy players in 2015.
With so many big-name players moving across teams and conferences so far this offseason, the intrigue surrounding how these players could produce for their new teams is a storyline we'll continue to hear about.
The Chiefs' picks from the guys at NFL Network:
Bucky Brooks selects* Missouri/Oklahoma receiver Dorial Green-Beckham*
Green-Beckham (6'5", 237 pounds) had 59 receptions for 883 yards and 12 touchdowns as a sophomore for Missouri in 2013. He sat out all of 2014 after being dismissed from the Mizzou football team.
Just a few of the potential picks the Chiefs could have in the 2015 draft.
Florida State center Cameron Erving
Florida State center Cameron Erving
Pittsburgh offensive lineman T.J. Clemmings
Pittsburgh offensive lineman T.J. Clemmings
Texas defensive lineman Malcom Brown
Texas defensive lineman Malcom Brown
Louisville receiver DeVante Parker
Louisville receiver DeVante Parker
LSU offensive lineman La'el Collins
Iowa offensive lineman Brandon Scherff
Arizona State receiver Jaelen Strong
Arizona State receiver Jaelen Strong
Missouri / Oklahoma receiver Dorial Green-Beckham
Missouri / Oklahoma receiver Dorial Green-Beckham
LSU Cornerback Jalen Collins
LSU Cornerback Jalen Collins
Florida OL DJ Humphries
Florida OL DJ Humphries
Chiefs GM John Dorsey: S is in good spirits
"Well, anybody who knows Eric Berry knows that if there's a challenge presented to him, he will attack it with a vengeance," Dorsey told Sirius XM NFL Radio on Tuesday. "And he will do that. Everything that I have gotten back has been very positive. I have not spoken with him on the phone for probably six weeks, but I have texts. We communicated through texts. He's in good spirits, he's fine, he's driving, and he's going to conquer it."
Five Things To Know About Offensive Lineman
Fanaika had to walk onto the football team at Arizona State University.
Despite being named the Ocean Division Lineman of the Year as a senior at Mills High School in Millbrae, California, Fanaika had to try out to make the 2004 Arizona State football team.
**According to the Arizona Republic**, he ended up making the team as a scout-team lineman, and five years later, he left with the second-most starts among his senior class.
Over the past 10 years, the teams selecting at No. 18 have believed that a defensive player was the best player available in eight of the 10 drafts.
Since 2005, the only offensive players to be drafted No. 18 overall have been Pittsburgh Steelers OL Maurkice Pouncey in 2010 and Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco in 2008.
Headlines
Chiefs Download Podcast
The NFL's new league year began on March 10, and throughout the month, we've already seen Chiefs general manager John Dorsey making moves that will reshape the appearance of the 2015 version of the club.
On this edition of the Chiefs Download Podcast, Dorsey delves into many more aspects of the 2015 offseason including tight endTravis Kelce, WRJason Avant *and even quarterbackTerrelle Pryor.*
In addition, host Pete Sweeney and Chiefs reporter B.J. Kissel catch you up on every transaction the Chiefs have made to this point, including analysis on some of the new faces you'll see at Arrowhead this coming year.
Videos
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