Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
One year can make all the difference. In one year a pretender can become a contender, a cellar-dweller a top dog, you get the picture. The Kansas City Chiefs have one of the top home-field advantages in the NFL, but in recent years, Kansas City hasn’t capitalized on that. When you can’t score a touchdown with a wide receiver, or can’t keep other teams from doing the same, you offer myriad reasons to quiet your own crowd.
The Chiefs took the first step to elevating Arrowhead by signing free agent free safety Tyvon Branch. Although Branch has some health concerns, when he’s been in the lineup, he’s been effective. Having recorded a 4.26 second 40-yard dash, Branch possesses an unteachable impact skill. Speed kills, but it can bring life to your defense. If Branch makes it through training camp and OTAs in one piece, he’ll become a ball-hawking terror in the Chiefs’ defensive backfield.
While Eric Berry continues his fight against Hodgkin’s lymphoma, the Chiefs have delicately approached his replacement for the interim. Signing Branch to just a one-year deal shows that Kansas City is applying a pragmatic approach to this sensitive situation.
If this is the year Branch gets back to his 2010 form (16 games, 81 tackles, four sacks and an interception), then the Chiefs will have certainly hit windfall. If Branch can’t stay on the field, then the small one-year deal will be served to its minimum, a risk worth taking for a team lacking experience at safety.
Jerry Landry is a writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow Jerry on Twitter at @Jerry2Landry, “Like” him on Facebook or add him on Google.
