KANSAS CITY, Mo. Chiefs players packed up Thursday and went their separate ways for a long weekend free of football and distractions, but they took with them a warning. And perhaps the undisturbed locker in the heart of the locker room delivered it best: Don't forget that good judgment and smart choices are part of the job.
The players walked past running back Larry Johnson's locker after practice, before setting off on their bye-weekend plans. Coach Todd Haley gave them three days off before practice resumes Monday. Linebacker Mike Vrabel said he's going to Ohio. Cornerback Brandon Flowers posted on his Twitter page that he's throwing a party in south Florida.
Whatever they do, the Chiefs hope that their teammate's mistakes aren't buried too deeply in their minds.
"How these guys conduct themselves is very important to all of us," Haley said Thursday. "I delivered a message to them, and I'll keep that between us. I think that's just common sense.
"We obviously can't backtrack in any way, shape or form across the board. We worked hard this week to try and get better and I feel like we made progress. I think we've got a better idea about our football team right now."
It's unclear yet whether the Chiefs' future will include Johnson. He is suspended for two weeks, though Johnson's agent, Peter Schaffer, planned this week to appeal. Schaffer also told The Kansas City Star this week that he and the Chiefs are working on a settlement that could determine Johnson's future with the team.
On Friday afternoon, Schaffer sent a text message to The Star, writing that things were "moving forward on both ends." He wouldn't confirm an earlier report that the appeal had been submitted.
Johnson was punished after he posted disparaging comments Sunday night about Haley on his Twitter page, posted a gay slur in a later tweet, and directed another gay slur at reporters Monday in the locker room.
Some Chiefs players said they received a hard lesson this week in how to conduct themselves.
"It looked bad for all of us," Vrabel said. "It doesn't send a message that we want to send.
"You just have to worry about yourself and really concentrate on how you want to be portrayed as a professional. ... You just have to be careful. You affect a lot of people with what you do."
Vrabel said he learned years ago that he should put thought into his actions and weigh the consequences. He said his fifth-grade teacher drilled home a message that Vrabel had plenty of practice learning. Each time a student acted out, the teacher instructed him or her to write a phrase more than 200 times: "I am responsible for my own actions."
In more than 20 years since, Vrabel hasn't forgotten it.
"I probably wrote it 3,000, 4,000 times over the course of a year," he said with a smile. "And I will take responsibility for my own actions. That's all you have to do."
And that's all the Chiefs have asked of players. Haley has said he wants a smart football team, and that includes making the proper decisions, both on and off the field. Johnson has a history of off-field transgressions, and as time puts more distance between his current skills and his glory days, he is becoming known more for his mistakes than for back-to-back Pro Bowl seasons earlier this decade.
Regardless, Johnson isn't allowed at Chiefs headquarters until his suspension expires Nov. 9, after the Chiefs' game at Jacksonville. Johnson could be subject to additional punishment after he serves the team suspension.
For now, the team is moving forward without Johnson. Jamaal Charles and Dantrell Savage are the Chiefs' running backs, and Kolby Smith could be added to the active roster next week if he proves he has recovered fully from a knee injury suffered last season. The Chiefs used this week to distance themselves from Johnson's deeds and, of course, try to improve on the team's 1-6 record.
"We looked at ourselves," strong safety Mike Brown said.
That's all the Chiefs really want players to do. Especially this weekend.
"I think they deserve a little time, but we'll be back to work," Haley said. "We're not going to take our foot off the gas. It's all part of building this team."
(c) 2009, The Kansas City Star.
Visit The Star Web edition on the World Wide Web at http://www.kansascity.com.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
The players walked past running back Larry Johnson's locker after practice, before setting off on their bye-weekend plans. Coach Todd Haley gave them three days off before practice resumes Monday. Linebacker Mike Vrabel said he's going to Ohio. Cornerback Brandon Flowers posted on his Twitter page that he's throwing a party in south Florida.
Whatever they do, the Chiefs hope that their teammate's mistakes aren't buried too deeply in their minds.
"How these guys conduct themselves is very important to all of us," Haley said Thursday. "I delivered a message to them, and I'll keep that between us. I think that's just common sense.
"We obviously can't backtrack in any way, shape or form across the board. We worked hard this week to try and get better and I feel like we made progress. I think we've got a better idea about our football team right now."
It's unclear yet whether the Chiefs' future will include Johnson. He is suspended for two weeks, though Johnson's agent, Peter Schaffer, planned this week to appeal. Schaffer also told The Kansas City Star this week that he and the Chiefs are working on a settlement that could determine Johnson's future with the team.
On Friday afternoon, Schaffer sent a text message to The Star, writing that things were "moving forward on both ends." He wouldn't confirm an earlier report that the appeal had been submitted.
Johnson was punished after he posted disparaging comments Sunday night about Haley on his Twitter page, posted a gay slur in a later tweet, and directed another gay slur at reporters Monday in the locker room.
Some Chiefs players said they received a hard lesson this week in how to conduct themselves.
"It looked bad for all of us," Vrabel said. "It doesn't send a message that we want to send.
"You just have to worry about yourself and really concentrate on how you want to be portrayed as a professional. ... You just have to be careful. You affect a lot of people with what you do."
Vrabel said he learned years ago that he should put thought into his actions and weigh the consequences. He said his fifth-grade teacher drilled home a message that Vrabel had plenty of practice learning. Each time a student acted out, the teacher instructed him or her to write a phrase more than 200 times: "I am responsible for my own actions."
In more than 20 years since, Vrabel hasn't forgotten it.
"I probably wrote it 3,000, 4,000 times over the course of a year," he said with a smile. "And I will take responsibility for my own actions. That's all you have to do."
And that's all the Chiefs have asked of players. Haley has said he wants a smart football team, and that includes making the proper decisions, both on and off the field. Johnson has a history of off-field transgressions, and as time puts more distance between his current skills and his glory days, he is becoming known more for his mistakes than for back-to-back Pro Bowl seasons earlier this decade.
Regardless, Johnson isn't allowed at Chiefs headquarters until his suspension expires Nov. 9, after the Chiefs' game at Jacksonville. Johnson could be subject to additional punishment after he serves the team suspension.
For now, the team is moving forward without Johnson. Jamaal Charles and Dantrell Savage are the Chiefs' running backs, and Kolby Smith could be added to the active roster next week if he proves he has recovered fully from a knee injury suffered last season. The Chiefs used this week to distance themselves from Johnson's deeds and, of course, try to improve on the team's 1-6 record.
"We looked at ourselves," strong safety Mike Brown said.
That's all the Chiefs really want players to do. Especially this weekend.
"I think they deserve a little time, but we'll be back to work," Haley said. "We're not going to take our foot off the gas. It's all part of building this team."
(c) 2009, The Kansas City Star.
Visit The Star Web edition on the World Wide Web at http://www.kansascity.com.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
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