Roster

The Chiefs drafted RB Javarris Williams from Tennessee State in the seventh round of the NFL Draft with pick No. 212 overall.

The Chiefs signed DB A.J. Davis, OG Anthony Oakley and DE Jermaine McGhee to their practice squad. To make room, they release WR Micah Rucker, DB Travarous Bain and DE Jason Parker.

The Kansas City Star caught up with Chiefs QB Tyler Thigpen after he watched Matt Cassel take nearly all the first-team reps with the offense during the club's recent minicamp. Thigpen was told that he'd be given the chance to compete by new head coach Todd Haley, but that apparently was lip service, and Thigpen isn't happy, saying he is "not OK" with his demotion. "It's life," Thigpen said. "Everything happens for a reason. You may not see the reason right now, but I know there's a reason that they brought a guy in like Matt. I'm behind him, and all I'm doing is pushing him, making him better. Hopefully me doing that is going to make this team better."

Chiefs DB Bernard Pollard (eight tackles), DB Brandon Flowers (seven tackles), LB Derick Johnson (seven tackles) and LB Demorrio Williams (six tackles, two for loss, forced fumble, fumble recovery) all had decent outings in a Week 16 loss to Miami.

The Kansas City Chiefs announced on Saturday that the team has acquired QB Matt Cassel and LB Mike Vrabel from New England in exchange for the Chiefs second-round pick (34th overall) in the 2009 NFL Draft. The agreement is contingent on both players reporting and passing their physicals. "I have a long history with both players," said Kansas City Chiefs General Manager Scott Pioli. "Mike and Matt are men that I respect both personally and professionally. I look forward to having them as new members of the Chiefs family." The news likely means he will be the team's starting quarterback this upcoming fall as opposed to Tom Brady's backup in New England. Tyler Thigpen will now be reduced to a backup role.

Once again, the injury-ravaged Chiefs are scouring the landscape for usable, unemployed professional football players. They're in the market for linebackers and cornerbacks. Coach Herman Edwards said linebackers Derrick Johnson and Pat Thomas and defensive end Brian Johnston are all out for this week's game against New Orleans. Questionable are defensive ends Tamba Hali and Turk McBride, cornerbacks Patrick Surtain and Brandon Flowers and safety DaJuan Morgan.

The Kansas City Chiefs announced Tuesday that they agreed to terms with unrestricted free agent WR Terrance Copper, who spent last season in New Orleans and Baltimore. He didn't record a catch in 2008. He has six career receiving touchdowns and exactly 600 yards receiving over five NFL seasons.

The Chiefs inactives for Week 9 against Green Bay include QB Tyler Thigpen (3rd QB), DB Rashad Barksdale, WR Bobby Sippio, WR Eddie Kennison, DL DeMarcus Tyler and LB Keyaron Fox.

Chiefs K Connor Barth was held without a point in a Week 17 loss to the Bengals.

Safety Jarrad Page has signed his restricted free agent tender with the Kansas City Chiefs. Page joined the Chiefs as a seventh-round draft pick from UCLA in 2006 and soon became a starter. Last year, he was a steadying influence for Kansas City's very young secondary. In 48 games, Page has 185 tackles and 10 sacks, three forced fumbles, and three fumble recoveries.

The Kansas City Chiefs announced Friday that the club has signed seventh-round draft pick TE Jake O'Connell. O'Connell joined the Chiefs as the club's second of three seventh-round selections in the 2009 NFL Draft. He played in 41 games (13 starts) at Miami (Ohio). He caught 46 passes for 453 yards (9.8 avg.) with four TDs to go with seven special teams tackles.

Kansas City drafted WR Quinten Lawrence from McNeese State in the sixth round of the NFL Draft on Sunday with overall pick No. 175.

Kansas City added three more players to stabilize a hobbled roster, signing linebacker Curtis Gatewood and defensive end Andy Studebaker to two-year contracts, and promoting running back Jackie Battle from the practice squad. Defensive tackle Antwon Burton also was added to the practice squad.

The Kansas City Star reports Chiefs RB Dantrell Savage is being mentored by former Kansas City RB Priest Holmes prior to training camp. "That would be one of the best things for me between now and training camp," said Savage, a 5-foot-8, 182-pound running back who joined the Chiefs last year from Oklahoma State. "We have a lot of the same features, our size and height and also being a free agent (out of college) trying to make it. Basically, I can't lose. He's basically going to show me the ropes, just fill my head with information about how to make it in the NFL and also how to make it once football is gone. He knows how hard it is for a free-agent running back to make it in the NFL. It's also hard on me because I'm small and a lot of times small guys in the league don't last long. Small guys have to work harder and show you want the job."

The Chiefs have listed the inactives for their Week 16 game vs. Miami. Not in uniform will be: CB Maurice Leggett, DB David Macklin, TE Michael Merritt, DE Alfonso Boone, WR Jeff Webb and DE Wallace Gilberry.

After riding the bench in college and his pro career until last year, Matt Cassel now finds himself in Kansas City, and are things ever different. At 27, Cassel has a team to call his own for the first time since high school. From the first day of spring drills, a team is finally counting on him not to follow, but to lead; not to hold the clipboard, but to help execute the plays on it. This weekend's mandatory minicamp brought all the Chiefs players on the field with their new quarterback for the first time. The realization is sinking in that his time is finally at hand. Although coach Todd Haley refuses to name a starter at any position, there is no question in anyone's mind who the starter will be. "He's running the team," said wide receiver Bobby Engram. "And I'm very impressed. He's a very sharp guy. He's watching film, he's drawing up plays, he's coaching everybody up. He's shown early on that we're going to be able to rely on him."

Chiefs DB Brandon Carr had four tackles Sunday against New Orleans.

The Kansas City Star reports Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles is being used as a third-down back behind starter Larry Johnson during offseason workouts Wednesday.

The Kansas City Star reports Chiefs QB Brodie Croyle didn't participate in a recent veteran minicamp. His season ended last October with a knee injury and surgery. Coach Todd Haley indicated Sunday that Croyle could be ready to play by the start of training camp in late July. Croyle is hopeful of being the No. 3 QB for the Chiefs behind Matt Cassel and Tyler Thigpen. "As it stands, yeah," Haley said. "Croyle is the wild card right now just on when we're going to get him back. We're hoping that before camp he'll be ready to go. We'll keep all options open and we'll talk about these guys that were in here this weekend and anyone else that's available or becomes available."

Knee - Questionable for start of training camp

Once again, the injury-ravaged Chiefs are scouring the landscape for usable, unemployed professional football players. They're in the market for linebackers and cornerbacks. Coach Herman Edwards said linebackers Derrick Johnson and Pat Thomas and defensive end Brian Johnston are all out for this week's game against New Orleans. Questionable are defensive ends Tamba Hali and Turk McBride, cornerbacks Patrick Surtain and Brandon Flowers and safety DaJuan Morgan.

The Kansas City Star reports that Chiefs running back Kolby Smith will miss the rest of the season with a knee injury, according to head coach Herman Edwards. Smith was carted off the field with a sprained knee in the second quarter Week 9 against the Buccaneers. He started in place of Larry Johnson, benched for disciplinary problems. Smith had 10 carries for 46 yards and a one-yard touchdown before leaving.

Notable Chiefs defensive players from Week 5 vs. Jacksonville include: CB Ty Law (eight solo tackles), LB Donnie Edwards (nine total tackles), LB Napoleon Harris (eight total tackles, sack), DB Bernard Pollard (six total tackles, sack), LB Derrick Johnson and DB Jarrad Page (four solo tackles each), DL Ron Edwards (three solo tackles, sack) and DE Jared Allen (four total tackles, 1.5 sacks).

Chiefs WR Devard Darling caught his first touchdown of the season in a Week 16 loss to Miami. He finished with three catches for 69 yards.

The Kansas City Star reports that Chiefs third-year WR Dwayne Bowe has stopped showboating in practice and has focused on being a polished receiver. Bowe used to do antics for the TV cameras in practice but has since cooled on that per the request of new no-nonsense head coach Todd Haley. "I'm older now," Bowe said. "This is my third year, a critical year. I want to be more serious and not even give him any reason to think I'm joking around. ... He just wants me to go out there and work on what I need to work on. There's going to be a lot of ball drills this year." Haley also said Bowe reported to offseason practice out of shape. "Dwayne's been very receptive to trying to do it our way," Haley said, "and the way we want it done."

The Chiefs have come to terms with free agent cornerback Travis Daniels, who played at Cleveland last year. The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Daniels began his NFL career as a fourth-round draft pick for Miami, where he played from 2005 to 2007 before going to the Browns. He has started 26 games and had 126 tackles, three interceptions and two fumble recoveries.

Chiefs DB Bernard Pollard (eight tackles), DB Brandon Flowers (seven tackles), LB Derick Johnson (seven tackles) and LB Demorrio Williams (six tackles, two for loss, forced fumble, fumble recovery) all had decent outings in a Week 16 loss to Miami.

Chiefs RB Jackie Battle, RB Mike Cox, WR Will Franklin, TE Brad Cottam and QB Quinn Gray all dressed for Kansas City's Week 16 loss to Miami, but failed to record an offensive statistic.

Chiefs DB Bernard Pollard (eight tackles), DB Brandon Flowers (seven tackles), LB Derick Johnson (seven tackles) and LB Demorrio Williams (six tackles, two for loss, forced fumble, fumble recovery) all had decent outings in a Week 16 loss to Miami.

The Chiefs listed DB Patrick Surtain, LB Weston Dacus, WR Jeff Webb and QB Ingle Martin among their inactives for Week 9 against the Buccaneers.

The Chiefs have named the inactives for their Week 17 game at Cincinnati. Not in uniform will be: DB David Macklin, TE Mike Merritt, DT Derek Lokey, WR Jeff Webb and DE Wallace Gilberry.

According to the team web site, Chiefs WR Mark Bradley will have to step up his game with Tony Gonzalez gone. He entered offseason workouts as the starter opposite Dwayne Bowe. Last year, once the Bears released him and he joined the Chiefs before the fourth game last season, Bradley caught 30 passes for 380 yards and three touchdowns. "When I got here, I was excited about a new start and things are working out so far," he said. "I knew what I was capable of doing, it was just a matter of getting a chance and showing what I could do consistently. Once I got here, I could show that and I took off from there. I got more plays, got more involved in the offense and things started coming my way."

The Chiefs have signed free agent TE Sean Ryan and waived LB Curtis Gatewood and WR Kevin Robinson.

Chiefs DB Patrick Surtain, DB Ricardo Colclough, TE Mike Merritt, LB Pat Thomas, LB Donnie Edwards and WR Jeff Webb have all been ruled inactive for Week 13 at Oakland.

Chiefs DL Glenn Dorsey had four tackles Sunday against New Orleans.

A day after trading TE Tony Gonzalez to the Falcons, the club replaced him with ex-Cowboys TE Tony Curtis. Curtis pretty much was a No. 2 TE option for the Cowboys but did catch 11 passes for 80 yards and three touchdowns in his time there. He and Chiefs head coach Todd Haley worked together in Dallas in 2006.

The Chiefs signed FB/TE Jed Collins to a two-year reserve future free agent contact Thursday. The 6-foot, 249-pound Collins entered the NFL as a rookie free agent with Philadelphia this past season, but was released before the regular season and added to the practice squad. Collins also spent time on Chicago's practice squad, and was on Cleveland's active roster for two weeks before finishing the season on the Browns' practice squad.

The Chiefs and seven-time Pro Bowl linebacker Zach Thomas have agreed to a one-year, $2 million deal. Thomas, 36, started 14 of 16 games for the Dallas Cowboys in 2008 during his 13th NFL season, recording 94 tackles, 65 of which came solo.

The Kansas City Star reports that the Chiefs and FS Mike Brown have agreed to terms on a contract. Brown will battle for a starting job in training camp. He's an injury risk after suffering several season-ending problems but did play 15 games for the Bears in 2009.

The Kansas City Chiefs announced Tuesday that the club has signed seventh-round draft pick K Ryan Succop. Succop joined the Chiefs as the final pick of the NFL Draft as "Mr. Irrelevant." He played in 50 games at South Carolina, connecting on 49 of 69 field goals (71 percent) with a career-long of 55 yards. He also converted 104 PATs and racked up a total of 251 points, the second-highest total in school history.

With the Chiefs moving TE Tony Gonzalez to the Falcons for a second-round pick in the 2010 draft, the club will need someone to step up and help QB Matt Cassel in the passing game. That someone might be veteran Bobby Engram, who doesn't have any kind of good speed but does have some really excellent hands and can help the offense move the chains.

The Chiefs have listed the inactives for their Week 16 game vs. Miami. Not in uniform will be: CB Maurice Leggett, DB David Macklin, TE Michael Merritt, DE Alfonso Boone, WR Jeff Webb and DE Wallace Gilberry.

Wide receiver Jeff Webb has signed a one-year restricted free agent tender to stay with the Kansas City Chiefs. Webb caught five passes last season for 46 yards. He has caught 36 passes for 382 yards with one touchdown in 31 games during his three-year career with the Chiefs. He also has returned 17 kickoffs for 373 yards (21.9 average) and has 14 special team tackles. The Chiefs took Webb as a sixth-round pick (190th overall) in the 2006 NFL draft.

The Chiefs agreed to terms with safety Jon McGraw and linebacker Darrell Robertson on Friday. McGraw has had 12 starts in 86 games in his seven NFL seasons with the New York Jets, Detroit and Kansas City, where he played in the 2007-08 season. Robertson, who spent time on the New England practice squad in 2008, originally entered the NFL in 2008 as a rookie free agent with Dallas. He also played two games last year for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League.

In the Chiefs' 22-21 loss vs. the Chargers in Week 15, notable defenders included: DE Tamba Hali (five solo tackles, two sacks and two forced fumbles), CB Brandon Flowers (10 solo tackles, forced fumble), DL Jason Babin (six total tackles, sack) and DB Jarrad Page (six total tackles, forced fumble). CB Patrick Surtain also had an interception with two solo tackles.

Chiefs RB Jackie Battle, RB Mike Cox, WR Will Franklin, TE Brad Cottam and QB Quinn Gray all dressed for Kansas City's Week 16 loss to Miami, but failed to record an offensive statistic.

The Packers released tight end James Adkisson from their practice squad Tuesday.

The Kansas City Chiefs have agreed to terms with free agent linebacker Corey Mays. The team announced the deal Friday. Mays played in 32 games, including one start, during two seasons with New England and Cincinnati. He tallied 16 tackles, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and 38 special teams tackles. The former Notre Dame player and second-team All-American entered the NFL in 2006 as a rookie free agent with the Patriots.

The Chiefs and backup QB Ingle Martin have agreed to a new two-year reserve/future deal. Martin will compete for a backup job with the Chiefs in training camp.

The Kansas City Star reports that second-year tight end Brad Cottam will get the first crack at replacing Tony Gonzalez in the Chiefs offense. Cottam realizes that Gonzalez's departure leaves a huge hole in the offense, but he believes his well-rounded ability can make a difference. "I was brought here for a different reason, to be more of a blocker," Cottam said. "I've showed them I can be a pretty good receiver, too. ... I knew as well as everybody else that as long as Tony was here, I'm not going to be in front of him. It's a little spark that gets you going, gets you motivated now that he's gone."

The Kansas City Star reports that Chiefs RB Larry Johnson worked at the team's recent minicamp without incident, keeping a low profile and politely requesting to not be interviewed. This is quite a change from earlier this offseason when he requested a trade, and the thinking is that Johnson has bought into the team's philosophy and offense, focused on being a quality part of the team this season.

The Kansas City Chiefs have come to terms with linebacker Monty Beisel. Beisel played for the Chiefs from 2001-2004. The former Kansas State player most recently was with the Arizona Cardinals after a year in New England.

Chiefs DB Bernard Pollard (eight tackles), DB Brandon Flowers (seven tackles), LB Derick Johnson (seven tackles) and LB Demorrio Williams (six tackles, two for loss, forced fumble, fumble recovery) all had decent outings in a Week 16 loss to Miami.