The Kansas City Chiefs entered last season as favorites and ended the season lifting. the Vince Lombardi trophy. They looked like a great team, almost perfect, overall, and deservedly won the Super Bowl against tough opponents. However, it seems success in the league does not directly imply a great support staff too. According to the NFLPA, those two can be on opposite ends of the spectrum altogether.
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The NFLPA released its maiden “report card” for teams from their last year’s performance off the pitch. The report card takes into account various other factors, such as food, travel, training facilities, etc. Around 1300 players from the 2022 season gave in their reviews, and the results are pretty shocking, at least when it comes to the Chiefs.
Kansas City Chiefs fare badly in the NFLPA’s first-ever “team report card”
In a shocking turn of events, the Super Bowl Champions ended up 29th in the league, according to the report card. The report delves into detail as to what players say about each criterion that is measured, and most players are not happy with the Chiefs’ facilities and staff. In fact, the report says that most players have negative opinions about head trainer Rick Burkholder, Andy Reid’s longtime athletic trainer.
Fans have split opinions about the report. Many consider the report to be fixed and does not portray the whole truth. While many others are just taking the opportunity to rain down on the Chiefs and call them out. Some, though, are interested in drawing comparisons from the report to what players have openly said, including Patrick Mahomes’ statement that he did not receive painkillers in the Super Bowl.
Yeah after what we just watched them do with Mahomes, Kelce, Sneed, Gay, Toney, etc during the playoff runs I’d say that’s cap.
— SB LVII Champs (@MVPatMahomes) March 3, 2023
You realize mahomes came out and said he didn’t get any pain killers right???
— THOMAS BRADY (@tommybbaby2) March 3, 2023
You'd think Miami's would be the worst with how they handled Tua this season
— DAcrisure (@DAcrisure) March 3, 2023
If they encourage to play through injuries I doubt they would report everything and let them play giving the idea that they are "healthy"
— Jake Manser (@jake_manser) March 3, 2023
organizational accountability is great for the league
every owner is a Zillionaire who makes billions profiting off the organization… no excuse with flawed facilities
— Stephen Lylyk (@LylykStephen) March 3, 2023
Especially in a corporate setting, people in administrative roles know how to make it clear that they can make your life unpleasant if you complain about conditions, while still 'keeping it legal'
— JD Montgomery (@JDMontgomery818) March 3, 2023
The healthiest team in the league.
— Cyle Maidment (@TheCyleMaidment) March 3, 2023
Isn’t this the staff that saved Mahomes season in 2019 by getting kneecap back in place on the field. Same staff that had him ready to play a week after high ankle sprain. Same staff that got Kelce on the field on a morning he woke up and couldn’t even straighten back. Seems odd
— Mike (@mloe68) March 3, 2023
Chiefs’ best rating is for strength coaches, best rank is in family treatment
While it is a bit far-fetched to expect teams to have the best of the best in every sector mentioned, this report can be a step towards progressing in the right direction. Unfortunately for the Chiefs, that means progress in almost every criterion recorded. While they are lagging behind in a lot of areas, it seems they are not too far behind when it comes to the quality of strength coaches, and family treatment.
The Chiefs rank 12th in ‘Treatment of Families’, with a ‘B’ grade. Apparently, while they do have a family room, players feel that the team should also offer daycare services. That shouldn’t be difficult, right? Apart from that, the Chiefs fared rather well when it came to their strength coaches, bagging 17th in the league with an ‘A-‘ grade. The rest of the report can be found here.
It will be interesting to see how the Chiefs react to this report. Concerned fans would definitely want CEO Clark Hunt to shell out a few dollars and make some improvements. After all, this is the team that brought back the Vince Lombardi Trophy for the second time in 4 years. Surely that warrants better food in the cafeteria, right?
Also Read: “Nine-Nine!” : Did Terry Crews Ever Play in the NFL? Where Did he Play & Why Did he Leave?
