Savage's plight familiar to Holmes
Perhaps because he was once one himself, Priest Holmes has an affinity for undersized, undrafted Chiefs running backs who previously played for a Big 12 school.
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. —It wasn't easy for Branden Albert to sit at the barbecue joint and take a pass on the ribs, the brisket, the pulled pork—everything. It wasn't easy to keep his mind on a strict offseason diet and exercise plan and ignore the meat-scented air and the colleague across from him, digging in.
Perhaps because he was once one himself, Priest Holmes has an affinity for undersized, undrafted Chiefs running backs who previously played for a Big 12 school.
Linebacker Derrick Thomas had more of his 126 1/2 career sacks against Denver's John Elway than against any other opposing quarterback.
The Chiefs moved closer to training camp last week, and the team's most pressing question is the same one it faced before offseason practice and, really, throughout the last two seasons: How reliable is the offensive line?
They trudged down the staircase with sweat in their eyes. Some were pulling off T-shirts for a few degrees of relief on a hot day. A few were still panting.
Tyson Jackson has passed Chiefs coach Todd Haley's first test, and that's a big one. Jackson will have to wait a few weeks before Kansas City moves forward, the pads come on, and the team's first-round pick has his chance to look the part.
Tony Gonzalez is gone, and that's not changing. That leaves a group of Chiefs tight ends fighting for Gonzalez's scraps -- and the competition for whatever is left of those 100-catch seasons is fiercer than Kansas City coach Todd Haley might have predicted.