CAMP SIGHTS: Pioli rolls up sleeves in Kansas City

If he were to leave the comfy confines of the New England Patriots, Scott Pioli wanted a challenge.



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Boy, does he have one.

Over the past two seasons, Kansas City's 26 losses rank as the NFL's second-highest total behind St. Louis' 27. Even the Detroit Lions — which became the first 0-16 squad in league history last year — can boast of having topped the Chiefs for their most recent victory in December 2007.

Mediocre personnel, poor drafts, suspect coaching and an air of front-office complacency have left this once-proud franchise in shambles. You could call Kansas City the anti-Patriots — until Pioli arrived.

Wooed in January to become the team's general manager, Pioli has spent the past seven months implementing the kind of program that has earned New England praise as franchise of the decade. Pioli isn't warm and fuzzy — a shock to some players and long-time employees accustomed to softer surroundings — but he and Bill Belichick have proven their hard-line approach works. Pioli is now trying to blaze his own trail with a new head coach (Todd Haley), different owner (Clark Hunt) and roster that needed a major overhaul.

"I know we've made progress," Pioli said last Saturday after the first Chiefs training camp practice in this western Wisconsin town. "I won't say a lot because there's so much that has to be fixed. I don't think you ever know how much until you're immersed in a situation."

Where do we begin?

CAMP SIGHTS '09

The Chiefs haven't won a postseason game since 1993. Kansas City's 2-14 record last season was the worst in the franchise's 50-year history. There was no long-term answer at quarterback. Running back Larry Johnson has tanked since signing a lucrative contract extension in 2007. The offensive line remains a mess. Former top executive Carl Peterson traded star defensive end Jared Allen to Minnesota during the 2008 offseason without finding an adequate replacement. The 2008 defense set an NFL single-season record for fewest sacks with 11 despite having invested high draft picks in linemen Glenn Dorsey, Tamba Hali and Turk McBride.

The future seemed so bleak entering this offseason that team leader Tony Gonzalez — the only Hall of Fame-caliber Chiefs player since the late Derrick Thomas a decade ago — wanted out before his career ended without a single playoff victory. The tight end was accommodated with a merciful April trade to Atlanta.

On the flip side, Pioli already has won three championship rings with a Patriots franchise again picked by oddsmakers as a Super Bowl favorite entering this season. Pioli's personal and professional relationships with Belichick and Patriots owner Robert Kraft were so strong that he declined prior job feelers from numerous NFL teams trying to duplicate New England's success.

No one could blame Pioli if he chose to remain the Patriots' vice president of player personnel. Yet at age 44, there was a growing now-or-never feeling surrounding Pioli and whether he would ever leave the New England nest. If teams knew he was complacent there, future opportunities to leave might not be as forthcoming.

As odd as it sounds, Kansas City was a perfect fit for Pioli to try and build his own dynasty as a general manager with final say on personnel moves and coaching hires. A massive rebuilding project doesn't faze Pioli. He already helped salvage three downtrodden franchises (New England, Cleveland and the New York Jets) while working under Belichick and father-in-law Bill Parcells. Kansas City also personally appealed to Pioli because his wife Dallas is a native Kansan with family in the area.

"When I said I'm not looking to become a general manager or for the next job, it was the truth," Pioli said. "We were in a situation where we were winning. I was OK with that. This decision wasn't ego-driven. It was the right situation at the right time."