In an impressive season like this one for the Kansas City Chiefs, it should be expected that the front office would lock up some of the promising players to maintain the winning atmosphere and reward those players who have bought into the system and performed well within it.
One surprising thing, however, is which position is getting the attention.
Thus far, both Andy Studebaker and Derrick Johnson are the sole recipients of extensions from the front office. And they're both linebackers. That's quite surprising given the state of Chiefs linebackers not named Tamba Hali heading into this season -- heck, even heading into last season. And it shows just how well the players have bought into Todd Haley's program and Romeo Crennel's schemes and game planning.
Remember, it wasn't that long ago that Chiefs nation was clamoring for the team to take Aaron Curry, the dynamic linebacker out of Wake Forest with the third overall pick in the draft. Instead, the Chiefs went defensive line with Louisiana State's Tyson Jackson and Curry went to the Seahawks with the very next pick. The reason fans wanted Curry is that the linebacking corps was supposedly in shambles, with Derrick Johnson included with the names of disappointing draft choices, not those who warranted an extension.
Now, the team may decide to wrap up Tamba Hali at some point in the near future, making it three linebackers getting rewarded for their play and wrapped up for the long haul. It goes to show that in the NFL, sometimes it's the coaching and schemes that make all of the difference rather than gutting the roster and acquiring new talent.