Todd Haley understands that he needs players from his lineup to step and lead the show. The Kansas City Chiefs coach explained that the Chiefs needed a potent x-factor in their squad if they wanted to enter into the upper echelons of NFL. Haley told media that there were few players in his squad that had the skill to become such an asset for the team and one of those players is Chiefs’ star wide receiver, Dwayne Bowe.
According to some analysts Bowe could be the new Terrell Owens in NFL but Haley has suggested otherwise. Haley explained that although both players were superb wide receivers their position on field is quite different and so are their playing styles. Haley said, “I’ve been around a lot of receivers through the years, and a lot of good ones but I don’t know that I draw similarities between the two players. I think they’re both really good players at the receiver position but run after the catch is definitely something that is just a huge, huge stat for receivers to understand. Because there’s so many things that go into it, but if you can be a sufficient run after catch guy at the receiver position, which four plus, above three is real good, but four is, you’re going to generally be one of the top guys.”
Haley continued, “Now this year is just off the charts. That’s something I keep track of all the time and this Jordy Nelson, what he’s averaging after the catch, what Wes Welker’s averaging after the catch, to be in the sevens with as many times as he’s caught the ball at a receiver position, that’s difficult to do. I think that anytime you get a big, strong receiver it’s easy to compare but I think Dwayne’s his own entity and he’s working to try to be one of the best and I think he’s making progress and that consistently.”
Bowe’s ability to gain yards after a catch is quite impressive. Bowe was the cult figure in 3 of Chiefs victories this season; Minnesota Vikings, Indianapolis Colts and Oakland Raiders with 107, 128 and 76 yards respectively. The Chiefs have only managed to record 4 victories till Week 10, however Bowe has been a crucial part of each of them.
Haley informed that Bowe had improved a lot from last year. Haley said that not only is Bowe posting big numbers on the board but he has also grown more mature on field. Haley stated, “He’s improved this year as it’s gone, last year it was something we emphasized and he worked hard on and was terrific, run after catch numbers were a big part of us being able to be one of the more efficient offenses. This year early, we weren’t getting much run after catch out of the receiver positions, him included.
Haley added, “Sometimes that’s throw related, coverage related but generally if you use certain technique and when you catch the ball you have a chance to at least get three yards after the catch and he’s re-emphasized it here this year and came on strong. Like I said, here the last couple of weeks nobody’s played very good and we just need to make sure that this week we’re playing better. But that’s one of the things we’re always focused on and he definitely, when he’s catching the ball and it’s being thrown where it needs to be thrown, he’s capable of scoring from anywhere really in my opinion.”
