KCMB Kansas City News

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Chiefs Sign Bowe, Colquitt To Long Term Deals

The Chiefs were busy yesterday, reaching long-term agreements with wide receiver Dwayne Bowe and punter Dustin Colquitt. The team has also decided to place the franchise tag on tackle Branden Albert.

Bowe’s deal is for five years and $56 million with $26 million guaranteed. The contract makes Bowe the second highest paid receiver in the NFL behind Calvin Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald. During the season, it appeared that Bowe’s days as a Chief were numbered, as he suggested that he would like toplay for a winner and it was clear that the Chiefs were about to enter a massive rebuilding project. Despite all that, Bowe has been very productive in his career, and the team is extremely thin at WR without him in the lineup.

Bowe wasn’t the only Chief who hit it big yesterday – Dustin Colquitt became the highest-paid punter in the NFL when Kansas City inked him to a five year, $18.75 million deal with $8.9 million guaranteed. There is no denying that Colquitt is an elite NFL punter – last season, he placed 42 punts inside opponents’ 20-yard line (two short of the NFL record) and he has continuously bailed the team out of bad field position when the offense stalls. Despite Colquitt’s talent, that is a lot of money to give to a punter – especially when the Chiefs are rebuilding for the future and not in a “win-now” mentality.

The third and final big move the Chiefs made was placing the franchise tag on left tackle Branden Albert. The former first round pick has started 71 games for Kansas City and has slowly developed into one of the better tackles in the league. It was rumored that the Chiefs were strongly considering drafting tackle Luke Joeckel, and it is unknown at this time if resigning Albert will change that.

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Monday, March 4, 2013

Kansas Blows Out West Virginia, Hosts Texas Tech Tonight

The Kansas Jayhawks are now two wins shy of a ninth consecutive Big 12 title. On Saturday, KU overcame a slow start and routed West Virginia 91-65.

Kansas was led by Ben McLemore, who broke out of his recent slump in a big way. The redshirt freshman scored a Kansas freshman record 36 points against the Mountaineers, shooting 12 of 15 from the floor, including five of six from three. Jeff Withey also had a big game for KU, as the senior center nearly notched his second triple double of the season. Withey ended up with 14 points, 10 rebounds and nine blocks, and Elijah Johnson added 12 points and 10 assists for Kansas.

After a rare three game losing streak, Kansas has picked up two tough road wins and blown out every team it has faced at home. A lot of that has to do with Johnson, who has found his shooting stroke and has limited turnovers. If Johnson has another hot March, the Jayhawks could be primed for another deep run in the NCAA tournament.

The Jayhawks could be primed for another big performance tonight, as they host Texas Tech on senior night. Kansas fans will be seeing Johnson, Withey, Kevin Young and Travis Releford for the final time in Allen Fieldhouse, and this is likely McLemore’s last home game as a Jayhawk as well. The Red Raiders won their last game - beating TCU on Saturday – yet it was only Tech’s third league win this season. TTU has been blown out by nearly every decent team it has faced recently, and it doesn’t appear that they can pose much of a threat to Kansas – especially in Lawrence on senior night.

If the Jayhawks can get past the Red Raiders tonight, they will play at Baylor with the Big 12 title on the line on Saturday.

Friday, March 1, 2013

2013 Kanrocksas Music Festival Lineup Announced

The 2013 Kanrocksas Music Festival recently announced its lineup for its two-day bill. Fun, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Passion Pit, Tiësto, MGMT and Kendrick Lamar are several artists who will be highlighting the event.

Kansas City residents will also have an opportunity to see several other well-known acts, such as the Descendents and the Dropkick Murphys. Baauer, the artist who produced the chart-topping “Harlem Shake” that has become a viral sensation, will also be appearing.

The festival will take place from June 28 – June 29 at the Kansas Speedway. The event started in 2011, when it was headlined by Muse and Eminem, but did not take place last year due to construction being done on the Speedway. Tickets are starting at $175 and can be purchased at Kanrocksas.com.

Below is the full list of artists who will be performing:

Tiësto
Fun.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Passion Pit
MGMT
Kendrick Lamar
The Avett Brothers
Pretty Lights
Imagine Dragons
Miguel
Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros
She & Him
Empire of the Sun
Sublime with Rome
Zeds Dead
Descendents
Baauer
Grouplove
Rusko
Dropkick Murphys
Machine Gun Kelly
Son Volt
T-Pain
Borgore
Grimes
Yeasayer
A-Trak
ZZ Ward
Flosstradamus
Trinidad Jame$
Danny Brown
Hopsin
Clockwork
Action Bronson
Mimosa
Robert DeLong
Killer Mike
Polyphonic Spree
Delta Rae
The Knocks
Three Loco
Congorock
Savoy (live)
Destructo
Manufactured Superstars
twenty one pilots
Blondfire
Churchill
Camera Obscura
Low Riderz
Anna Lunoe
Family of the Year
Aer
Air Dubai
Caitlin Rose
Empires
Langhorne Slim
The Floozies
Beautiful Bodies
Quiet Corral

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Chiefs Complete Deal To Acquire Alex Smith

It is official – the Chiefs and 49ers have reached a deal that will send quarterback Alex Smith to Kansas City. In the deal, the Chiefs gave up their second round pick (No. 34 overall) in this year’s NFL draft as well as a conditional pick in the 2014 draft.

Smith’s career got off to a rough start, but he has played well recently. In the 2011 season he threw 17 touchdowns against only five interceptions, leading the 49ers to the NFC title game. Smith was having an even better season in 2012, with a 104 QB rating through nine games before suffering a concussion against the St. Louis Rams. After he got hurt, Colin Kaepernick played well, and 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh stuck with the talented Kaepernick through the team’s run to the Super Bowl.

There is no question that the Chiefs needed help at quarterback, and Smith provides an upgrade to the position. The big question Chiefs fans are now wondering is this: did the team give up too much to acquire Smith?

The answer is yes. Smith is a good player, but the Chiefs are not in win-now territory. The team was the worst franchise in football last year, and will need a year or two of rebuilding to get back to playoff contention. The 34th pick in the draft is extremely valuable, as well as a mid-round pick in 2014.

The move to get Smith makes sense – there aren’t any great QB prospects in this year’s draft. The staff likely felt Smith gave them the best chance of winning over Geno Smith or Matt Barkley, and Alex will be 29-years-old when the season starts (so he has several years of football left in him). It just seems like the Chiefs could have acquired Smith at a cheaper price, especially since it has become clear he is firmly the backup to Kaepernick in San Francisco.

The Chiefs could still take a quarterback in the draft and groom them for the future. The team may gamble on Geno Smith with the top pick, or attempt to trade down several spots in the first round and take a quarterback then. Kansas City also could take a chance on a project later in the draft, but losing their second-round pick gives the team less flexibility. Most feel that the team isn’t sold on any QBs in this year’s draft, and will instead take a player like Texas A&M tackle Luke Joeckel and attempt to find a young QB in the future.

With the acquisition of Smith, it appears that Kansas City will release Matt Cassel. Cassel is due $7.75 million in 2013.

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Kansas City Recovering From Second Snow Storm

After being hit with one of the worst winter storms in years, Kansas City got a second helping of snow and ice yesterday that continued into this morning. The second storm featured heavy snow that has caved in roofs, broken trees and damaged power lines.

Over 100,000 people in the metro lost power from the recent storm, which featured 10 to 12 inches of snow across Johnson County to Lee’s Summit. Areas north of the Missouri River received around eight inches of snow, while the area between Pleasant Hill and Warrensburg received up to 14 inches. As a result from yesterday’s and Thursday’s snowfall, most of the Kansas City metro has received between 16 and 25 inches in less than a week.

The latest storm did not create nearly as many traffic problems as Thursday’s, mostly because more Kansas City residents chose to stay home during the day. Few roads were blocked, which marked a significant improvement over Thursday’s snowfall, when hundreds of abandoned vehicles blocked roads and highways across the metro. Despite less people on the roads, there were still several traffic accidents. Many cars and snowplows attempting to brave the conditions slid off roadways, and many roads were still in poor condition.

Most KC metro schools closed yesterday, and many decided to close today as well. Shawnee Mission, Blue Valley, Olathe, Kansas City, KS, Kansas City, MO Lee’s Summit, Belton, Raymore-Peculiar, Independence and Grandview schools are all closed today and will reopen tomorrow.

Kansas City International airport once again had to cancel flights due to the weather. Around 100 flights were cancelled yesterday, most of them coming in the morning. Several KC metro shopping areas and malls also closed, including Independence Center, Legends Outlets, Oak Park Mall, Lee’s Summit shopping centers, Town Center Plaza, Ward Parkway Center and most stores in Zona Rosa. Most of these areas have reopened today, and customers can call stores or visit their websites to check that they are open.