Tradition Tuesday: Mike Shanahananigans, Dick "Coach Kleenex" Vermeil Speak, Sort Of

Tis true, chillins. Zey is a rough focus to this 'ere blog. Reckon it be all about zose Denver Broncos and zem Kansas City Chiefs. Yonder bumpkins Cecil and Old No. 7 spit they hayseed in a tin Broncos can while I keeps the fire a-blaze o'er in Camp Chief. Back when we was idjits, we'd drive, all cock-a-maimeed 'cross teh I-70s, westward and eastlike, just to see our dern squads knock helmets. Mostly, we'd get liquored up, narrowly avoid a skirmish or six, and go home losers. It were a pretty dumb effort at a tradition.

Now, though, we found our smarts, and we fly. Now gettin' on board a jet with a hangover ain't much more fun than hittin' the op'n road, but it don't last as long, and the po-lice can't find ya's as easy in a bird.

We been goin' at this confounded thing for some nine years, but we ain't figured out how to make the football season go 'round the calendar. So's fer teh meantime, we writes about it in this here...what'd we call it? Oh, yea, "Tradition Tuesday," our (sometimes) weekly state-of-the-rivlary address.

More on it, with a clicky of yer doohickey.

There are two stories to look at in today's Tradition-al feature. Each item involves former coaches and their past reflections. One is saying a tad more than the other. One is at liberty to do so, while the other stands to pocket multiple piles of green Benjamins for keeping the tanned lips sealed. Fittingly, there's a story for each team, and somewhat surprisingly, both stories came from the same locale: the American Century Celebrity Golf Championship in Lake Tahoe.

On the Denver Broncos front, the seldom-admirable "journalist" Woody Paige has put together a little number for The Denver Post. There are some interesting lines it it. Lines like the one that states that former Broncos head coach Mike Shanahan played golf with John Elway three days ago, a phrase that's enough to pitch a tent in the pants of any orange-and-blue-clad chump. Along those same chub-tastic lines would be anyone who thinks their team could use a proven winner as a coach, as Shanahan has "spent much of the offseason studying 'personnel and X's and O's' in the NFL without 'thinking about salary cap, roster limitations, coaching the specific players: all the things you have to consider in the league.'"

And again for the Denver faithful, more wood: "He told a friend privately that the Broncos have added some talent, and he expects them to be better this year. He told another friend privately that the Broncos made a mistake by trading Cutler for Kyle Orton. He would only tell me Saturday that he will watch the Broncos with interest this season."

The kicker to the story, however, is that, allegedly, the former coach will get seven million dollars this season for a) not coaching, and b) keeping his opinions regarding Denver Bronco football operations, to himself. Or at least within close circles.

As far as former Chiefs coaches are concerned, it was Dick Vermeil's turn to say, well, quite a bit more than Shanahan's pocketbook will afford, yet he still limited himself.

When asked if he still had the urge to coach, Vermeil said that he would "have the energy but not the stamina to go that full season, year round."

Regarding his time in Kansas City, Vermeil was open and honest:

"Kansas City was a great experience. Kansas City was I think overall my favorite city. And I dont say that to be derogatory to anyone else but it's just the people are patience (sic), understanding and the Hunt family is so wonderful to work for and with. We became very, very close friends."

The former coach was put to the test of sharing observations regarding the exits of Herman Edwards and Carl Peterson, the entries of Todd Haley and Scott Pioli: "Since I've retired, my opinions retired as well. I don't get involved in that I support what the Hunt family wants to do...It wasn't going well and they made a change and I hope it works."

Vermeil also spoke of Larry Johnson, Tony Gonzalez, and Matt Cassel, and, in a segment on whether or not he would've changed anything in his Chief tenure, he mentioned that he'd "draft defnsively better. We drafted poorly on defense. Our drafts were not productive enough and they should have been better. For one reason or another, and I'm not pointing fingers, they just weren't good enough."

The most important similarity between the two stories is that both coaches are, and will continue to be missed by their respective fan bases. Shanahan left behind an incredible history with two trips to football utopia, while Vermeil was one of the best figures to pace the sidelines in Chiefs history.

(props to Shutdown Corner and Arrowhead Pride)