Assessing who's hot as September quickly approaches.
Aug 23, 2010 - The Kansas City Chiefs are nearly finished with training camp and at the halfway point of preseason.
There are some Chiefs that have showed up in a big way through the last month. Here are the guys I thought had the top performances from the start of training camp through the first two preseason games.
1. WR Dexter McCluster
That should really read WR/RB/QB/KR/PR/OW (offensive weapon) because those are the positions McCluster has practiced at.
He's primarily seen time as a receiver but in the first preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons, he ran the ball on five of six plays at one point so I think the Chiefs are at least curious how he'd do (he did well).
McCluster has been the 'Newcomer of the year' at Chiefs training camp. Early on, he was the talk of the town as his quick jukes and fast style of play got fans excited. In training camp, where you're not really being tackled, McCluster looks very good. In two preseason games, he's flashed some of what he'll be able to offer the Chiefs and helped move the ball.
He's definitely an asset and was able to show that halfway through the preseason.
2. OLB Tamba Hali
Yeah, yeah the stats won't show it. Tamba only has one tackle and no sacks.
But what the stat sheet won't tell you about is the pressure he puts on the quarterback. It won't show you teams using an extra blocker on Hali. It won't show you the energy he brings to his teammates.
I'm a big Hali fan because he goes about his business and doesn't seem to care what the perception of him is. He doesn't talk to the media and didn't do anything flashy during camp but he was consistent. He was energetic on mundane training camp plays and I think that practice attitude helps him as one of the Chiefs top two defenders.
3. WR Dwayne Bowe
In a year when a lot of folks are looking at him to see how he'll respond, Dwayne Bowe deserves some credit for showing up in shape, ready to play and with a good attitude.
One of the Chiefs challenges has been getting away from the D-Bowe Show, and while he flashed that at times in St. Joe, he was much more quiet and focused on the play at hand.
Bowe was probably the top performer of the first week of training camp before cooling down a bit. He didn't see any balls thrown his way in the first preseason game but corralled three in the second preseason game. Bowe's ranking could fluctuate if he has two more preseason games like his first one, though.
At times in the last year it seemed Bowe would rather duck the questions, hide and move on. But give him credit for showing up strong in the first half of the preseason.
