The Carl Peterson Fallout
December 16th, 2008 at 10:22 amBy Chris
When we left you yesterday, it was with some early Christmas present news for Kansas City Chiefs fans: The resignation of Carl Peterson. To say Chiefs fans wanted him gone is akin to a hungry man saying he wants to eat; that’s a given. With that in mind, here are some of those responses. Love is indeed in the air:
Jason Whitlock, a noted Peterson lover, couldn’t hide his disappointment:
I laughed out loud. I smiled. Feelings of jubilation rushed through my entire body.
King Carl’s dethroning struck me the way the collapse of the Soviet Union must have hit Ronald Reagan.
Then I realized: It’s OK to feel good today and have renewed interest in and optimism about the Chiefs, but there’s no real justification for an end-zone dance.
Joe Posnanski, on the other hand, was the designated eulogy provider, which he did with his regularly masterful prose:
It’s a shame that it ends this way for Peterson, who will finish off his era in two weeks, closing out 20 years. As you might imagine, I was designated as the person to say something nice about Carl, and I will point to the first nine years. They were pretty great. The Chiefs went to the playoffs seven times, and they reached the AFC championship game once, and fans poured into Arrowhead Stadium. Carl changed the landscape of this city. He hired Marty Schottenheimer as coach, he opened up the parking lot for the best tailgate scene in professional sports, he got Joe Montana and Marcus Allen, and he drafted Derrick Thomas and Will Shields and Tony Gonzalez. And that’s a lot of good.
Over at Arrowhead Addict, there’s an open thread asking for fan reactions and while the mood is certainly high, there isn’t a great deal of Peterson trashing going on. This next response seems to capture the mood quite well (all sic’d up for your enjoyment):
I think Carl did great things too, we just never went all in. 20 years into the 5 year plan and finally Carl is gone.
I’m not going to say good riddance because I think Carl put together a lot of good teams and helped us gain league prominience, no one wanted to play in KC after Carl took over…both opponents and top free agents. The double edged sword of the mega-persona of Peterson can harm KC no more
The big discussion is focusing on “now that Peterson is gone, is Herm soon to follow?” According to the KC Star, Edwards is “safe” for now, but that doesn’t mean Chiefs fans aren’t dreaming of Bill Cowher’s chin roaming the sidelines at Arrowhead.
I’m starting the campaign for Bill Cowher. This likely gives Herm a chance to finish his next year, and then if that doesn’t work out likely opens the door for Chan Gailey, who Cowher said was the best (or something like that) coordinator he’s worked with.
So there you have it. With all the snow that fell in KC during last night (continuing today), and the holiday season that’s upon us, it’s safe to say Chiefs fans hoping for change got their Christmas present yesterday. Now we see if these hopes yield a better on-the-field product.
Check out the Star’s photo gallery of Peterson if you’d like a nice walk down memory lane.
