A year ago it wasn't until the eighth day of camp that the Chiefs went a full practice in pads. Todd Haley's philosophy was to ease the Chiefs into training camp and the season. Romeo Crennel is doing things differently this year and had the Chiefs in pads on Sunday, the third day of camp.
Not only did Haley try nontraditional approaches like a less-intensive camp, the coach rubbed a lot of people the wrong way. Put simply, he was one strange cat. He was moody and rarely smiled. He was gruff, from the way he talked to the way he dressed. (Google "Todd Haley looks like a bum" and you get three pages of relevant results.)
As hires tend to be, Crennel is the exact opposite of Haley. Watch this behind-the-scenes video of Crennel that the Chiefs posted on Sunday to see that old coach is always smiling, always positive, always pushing. (And he keeps his mustache cleanly trimmed.)
“He believes in what he believes in," linebacker Derrick Johnson told Kansas City Star columnist Kent Babb. "He's an old-school guy, and he's definitely going to put the hammer down on us."
Haley's approach resulted in an 0-3 start in 2011, including an embarrassing first two games in which Kansas City was outscored 89-10. It was the worst two-game point differential in Chiefs' history. The thinking was that the Chiefs were not prepared for the season and not in good enough shape, all a result of Haley's camp approach.
The jury's still out on how Crennel will start, but as he told Babb, "You have to be who you are," and if you go back and watch a mic'd up Crennel, he's doing just that in camp.
Chiefs staying outside despite the heat
Crennel kept the Chiefs outside on Sunday despite excessive heat in St. Joseph, Mo. -- according to Weather.com, it reached 102 degrees at 4:25 p.m. which was nearly an hour into Kansas City's practice.
"We have to be cognizant of the heat and how much work that they're doing and things like that," Crennel said. "I mentioned that we might have to start giving them more breaks, more time to take their helmets off and get some of that heat away from the bodies, but so far it’s been ideal weather, so we shouldn’t have to go through that yet."
Crennel said he would consider moving practice to the morning this week because of the heat, but he preferred to keep the regular schedule.
Albert sits out Sunday because of acclimation clause
Left tackle Branden Albert sat out Sunday's practice because of an acclimation clause in the new Collective Bargaining Agreement.
"(Albert) came a day late to training camp he needs a three-day acclimation period and that is not over until tomorrow," Crennel said. "He will be in pads tomorrow, but not today."
With Albert out, third-round pick Donald Stephson filled in. The battle for backup tackle is one of the top competitions in camp. The candidates include Stephson, second-year tackle David Mims, second-round pick Jeff Allen, who is also a backup at guard, and recently acquired veteran Tony Ugoh.
Other notes
- Jon Baldwin was featured in Sunday's Kansas City Star. Baldwin said he is more comfortable in camp this year and has a better connection with quarterback Matt Cassel. Baldwin is also welcoming the opportunity to be the team's No. 1 receiver with Dwayne Bowe still holding out.
- Starting outside linebacker Justin Houston sat out Saturday's afternoon practice because of sickness, but he was back on Sunday.
Follow Chiefs reporter C.J. Moore on Twitter @CBSSportsNFLKC and @cjmoore4.
