A good sign for the Chiefs in 2010: This list was much more difficult than the five Chiefs who helped themselves.
There's not a whole lot you can tell during the spring -- particularly with offensive and defensive linemen -- but you can glean a few insights.
After attending a few days of camp this spring, here are a few Chiefs who have some work to do moving forward.
TE Jake O'Connell
My bold statement of the day: Jake O'Connell is not a Chief in 2010.
The Chiefs, continuing their strange love affair with tight ends, traded up in the seventh round of the 2009 draft to snag O'Connell. He was only active a few times last year and didn't produce much at all.
This spring he hasn't looked as sharp as others, particularly Tony Moeaki. He's dropped some passes, which could be a sign of a lack of focus -- a big no-no in Kansas City these days -- and generally hasn't compared to the other tight ends on the roster.
With Moeaki and Leonard Pope locking up the first two tight end jobs, O'Connell doesn't figure to see any playing time in 2010. Now the question becomes will he make the team.
QB Brodie Croyle
OK, so he didn't really need to help himself since he's firmly entrenched as the backup quarterback and the lack of legitimate competition behind him won't change that.
But consider this: The Chiefs hate injured players. Hate it. Croyle has a strong history of being injured.
That continued this spring when he hurt his finger throwing the ball which caused him to miss almost a week of team drills.
It won't have any long-lasting effects but it's yet another injury for a player whose coach hates injuries.
WR Dwayne Bowe
This isn't so much about his play on the field as it is the comments he made to ESPN the Magazine. He'll be on the team in 2010 if for no reason that he's a good value still working off of his rookie deal but this is another mark on Bowe's resume that the Chiefs aren't interested in seeing.
Bowe needs solid production this year to get the Chiefs to forget about yet another mistake.
He's facing even more pressure now that he's not the best receiver on the roster -- that honor goes to Chris Chambers.
NT Shaun Smith
You can't tell much of anything during the spring with offensive and defensive linemen. There are no pads and no contact so we're admittedly just guessing at this point.
But the Chiefs have placed an emphasis on focus this year and Smith is a laid back, fun-loving type of guy. Is that a bad thing? Not necessarily but maybe not ideal for the Chiefs who are trying to implement almost a military-like presence about their players.
Todd Haley hasn't said much about Smith other than "he's a character" but if he were excited about him, I think he'd say so.
Smith didn't see any time on the first team this spring, which is too bad, because some have high hopes for him. He had his best season under Romeo Crennel in 2007 and some were hoping he would replicate that.
There's a long way to go but it's somewhat concerning that Derek Lokey saw more time on the first team than he did.
WR Lance Long
Once thought to be a role player at the slot position, Lance Long is now an afterthought. He was battling an injury all spring and didn't see the field in any of the OTAs.
Long was probably a longshot (Pun!) to make the team anyway but his injury paved the way for Dexter McCluster to immediately step into his role on the first team.
Like I said before, folks from the Bill Parcells tree have no time for injuries and Long has been injured in his short time in Kansas City. He's got the motor, which Haley loves, but you can't play if you're not on the field.
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