Chiefs Sign Tamba Hali To Five Year Deal

The Chiefs have signed OLB Tamba Hali to a new five year deal worth 60 million, making the Chiefs star one of the highest paid pass rushers in the league. According to sources, 35 million of the contract will be guaranteed.

This has been a long time coming for Hali, who has quietly developed into one of the best pass rushers in the league. Hali led the AFC with 14.5 sacks last season, and has been extremely consistent since being drafted 20th overall from Penn State in 2006.

The deal was absolutely necessary for Kansas City, and the Chiefs were smart to lock up Hali for the rest of his prime. The team doesn't have much of a pass rush without Hali - Wallace Gilberry placed second on the team in sacks last season with seven. As we learned last season, teams cannot reach the Superbowl without a strong pass rush, and a player like Hali makes the entire defense better.

Hali could join the team's practice today, as could Gilberry, who also recently signed. Kansas City has signed all of its top defensive players but two - CB Brandon Carr and rookie LB Justin Houston.

Royals Fall To Orioles In Hottest Game In Team History

After an impressive series victory over Cleveland, Kansas City fell flat on its face last night. The Royals got hammered at home by the Orioles, 8-2, and fell to 28-30 at home for the season.

Kansas City had no answer for Baltimore's Mark Reynolds, who drove in five runs and outscored the Royals by himself. Kansas City cut the lead to two runs in the eighth inning when Alex Gordon scored on Billy Butler's sacrifice fly, only to watch Reynolds blast a three run homer in the ninth to put the game out of reach.

Bruce Chen picked up the loss for Kansas City, dropping his record to 5-5 on the season. Chen has now lost three of his last four decisions, and appears to have lost the magic he had earlier in the year. Chen has pitched past the fifth inning only once since the All-Star break, and Kansas City may need to sit him or send him down to the minors for a week or two to get it together.

The game time temperature was 107 degrees, which allegedly is a record for a game at Kauffman Stadium. With a record heat wave heating the area, tonight and tomorrow's games will likely be just as hot, and fans at the K are encouraged to stay hydrated and avoid the sun as much as possible.

Record High Temperatures hit KC Area Tuesday

"Is it hot enough for ya?!?!" What kind of asshole says that. No, it's not hot enough for me, I like to have my balls actually melt to the inside of my leg. Geez, what a dickhead.

Record highs were recorded all around the metro today. Officially, the high temperature was 107 at the airport breaking the old record of 104. Those of us south of the river know that it reached 110 plus in some areas. Olathe's official reading was 110. That was the hottest recorded temperature there since the 1950s.

The heat caused problems with electricity in some areas. The prolonged heat wave really puts stress on the system. Shawnee Mission Medical Center reported a power outage at the hottest part of the afternoon on Tuesday. You can check for outages 24/7 on KCPL's website. Of course, that does you a lot of good if you're the one without power.

Today, and the rest of the week, it should be considerably cooler, like 96. Enjoy your cool weather Kansas City!! On the bright side, the sexy ladies tend to wear a little less on those really hot days.

Breaking Down the Chiefs' Schedule

Kansas City surprised the NFL last season with a remarkable turnaround, transforming from one of the league's worst teams into the AFC West champions. Kansas City has made a lot of good moves this offseason, and its younger players will be more experienced when the 2011 season starts. Despite all the signs that this could be a special year for Kansas City, many NFL pundits think the Chiefs won't even be back in the postseason, and for good reason: the Chiefs face a brutal schedule.

Many NFL coaches like to break down their teams' schedule into four segments, so that is what we will do here. In the first segment, Kansas City has two winnable home games against the Bills and the Vikings, and two tough road games against the Chargers and Lions. If the Chiefs want another shot at a playoff run, the team likely needs to win three of these games (since the later portion of the schedule is chalked full of playoff teams). Kansas City should take care of Minnesota and Buffalo at Arrowhead, and a split of San Diego and Detroit doesn't seem that far-fetched.

In Kansas City's second schedule segment, the team faces three AFC opponents it hasn't had very much luck against recently. Apart from a bye week, the Chiefs play the Colts and Raiders on the road, and San Diego at home. Kansas City will likely need to win two of these games to sniff the postseason, which could be asking a lot. The team finishes this portion with a home game against Miami, who will have one of the best defenses in the league. A winnable game, but the Dolphins will be a tough out next season.

Kansas City opens its third schedule segment hosting Denver, a game the Chiefs should win. However, things get a lot tougher, as the team then travels to New England to face the Patriots and hosts last season's AFC champion, Pittsburgh. Next, Kansas City travels to Chicago to take on the NFC runner-up Bears. The Bears have had a poor offseason and were a lucky team last year, and the game in Chicago should be one Kansas City can steal. If it can split between New England and Pittsburgh, the Chiefs could be in great shape. That is a gigantic"if" though.

The final portion of the Chiefs schedule could be even tougher than the third segment, as Kansas City opens with a trip to New York to face the Jets. You may not like all the talking New York does, but the team will have one of the best defenses in the league, and there is a reason why they have made the last two AFC championship games despite starting one of the worst QBs in the league. After the Jets, Kansas City hosts last year's Super Bowl champion. Being in Kansas City gives the Chiefs a better shot at knocking off Green Bay, but the Packers could very well be even better next season. The Chiefs final two games are both winnable, which is good because Kansas City could very likely need to win both to qualify for the playoffs. The team hosts Oakland before wrapping up the regular season on the road in Denver.

The Chiefs will likely be a better team next season, however the team's win-loss record may not reflect that. On paper, Kansas City's schedule looks like one of the toughest in the league, and the team will likely need to pull a few upsets for another shot at a postseason run.

Chiefs Sign First Round Pick Jonathan Baldwin, Several Free Agents

Kansas City has signed its first round pick from the 2011 draft. The Chiefs reached terms with WR Jonathan Baldwin, inking the former Pittsburgh star to a four year deal with an option for a fifth season.

While the news was expected, the Chiefs can breath a sigh of relief now that the team doesn't have to suffer through a messy holdout from its top draft selection. Despite being a rookie, Baldwin is expected to be an immediate contributor to Kansas City's offense, pairing with pro bowler Dwayne Bowe and the newly acquired Steve Breaston to give the Chiefs one of the strongest WR corps it has had in years.

Signing Baldwin means that Kansas City has now come to terms with every one of its draft picks except Justin Houston. Houston, a defensive end selected in the third round out of Georgia, was expected to contend for some serious playing time this season, and should be a priority for the Chiefs now that Baldwin is signed.

Apart from Breaston, the Chiefs also announced several other roster additions - all players who played for Kansas City last year. The team will be bringing back center Casey Wiegmann, tight end Leonard Pope, wide receiver Terrance Copper, running back Jackie Battle, safety Jon McGraw, cornerback Travis Daniels and tackle Ryan O'Callaghan. Fullback Mike Cox signed his restricted free agent tender, while safety Reshard Langford signed an exclusive rights free agent tender. The team released 2008 third round pick Brad Cottam, who was unable to recover from a serious vertebra injury sustained in 2009.