Chiefs’ Fox hot on Bell’s tail

By Clayton Wendler  |   Friday, August 25, 2006  |  Comments( 0 )

Kansas City Chiefs
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"The fox has many tricks, the hedgehog only one."

- Desiderius Erasmus

Ol' Desi probably wasn't thinking about the Kansas City Chiefs when he added that adage to his collection in the 16th century, but it applies nonetheless.

Why?

Third-year linebacker Keyaron Fox is finally being given a shot at the starting weakside linebacker position.

In this case, former Pro Bowl linebacker Kendrell Bell qualifies as "the hedgehog."

And I emphasize the word 'former.'

Compared to Fox, it seems like Bell really only has one trick on the football field: hurling himself at lead blockers. The Chiefs were expecting big things from Bell after giving him a $10 million signing bonus in 2005. Instead, the Chiefs' prize free agent spent most of the season waddling around in hedgehog-like fashion, racking up only 41 tackles and generally disappearing during games.

New Chiefs head coach Herman Edwards must have noticed Bell's unspectacular 2005 season during film review, because Fox was running with the rest of the defensive starters at practice on Monday.

It's just another example of Edwards' philosophy that puts the best players on the field, regardless of their contract status or age.

"Both those guys are competing to be the starter and it's a good race," said Edwards of Fox and Bell. "It's been very, very competitive and that's what we said when we came here: we're going to make it a competitive atmosphere at all the positions."

One thing Fox brings to the competition is athleticism. He ran a 4.65 40-yard dash at the NFL combine in 2004, and was projected as a possible strong safety before the Chiefs drafted him as a linebacker.

Those 'tricks' make him an ideal candidate to play the weakside 'backer role in Edwards' Cover 2 scheme. Derrick Brooks has been dominating offenses at the same position for years in Tampa Bay. The Chiefs will need a similar type of play from their weakside this year, especially in a division with San Diego tight end Antonio Gates and Broncos rookie tight end Tony Scheffler.

By comparison, Bell was often lost in coverage last year, making the switch from inside linebacker, the position he played in Pittsburgh. He did not have so much as a single pass defensed.

Some fans might dismiss this 'competition' as nothing more than a trial run for the coaching staff to get a better look at Fox. But the same thing happened to Ryan Sims and Lional Dalton a few weeks ago, and they haven't regained their starting positions at defensive tackle since.

Bell played through injuries last year, and while that may have contributed to his dismal performances, he hasn't shown much this preseason. He has seven tackles in two preseason games, compared to 13 for Fox.

Fox, of course, is no stranger to injury. He sprained his right knee in a freakish, non-contact accident last year against the Raiders in Week Two, and his season ended on injured reserve. But that's a mere drop in the bucket compared to Bell's injury history.

The former Rookie of the Year has made the training room his second home in recent years. In addition to an ankle injury suffered in 2002, Bell missed 13 games in 2004 with a groin injury. It was also revealed last season that Bell had chronic shoulder problems.

Clearly, if anyone is healthier in this competition, it's Fox.

The Georgia product will get his first chance at starting on Saturday against the St. Louis Rams. Edwards said the Chiefs would rotate Fox and Bell.

C.E. Wendler can be reached at cwendler@realfootball365.com.

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