Thursday, November 4 Something's cookin' in K.C. By Mark Cannizzaro Special to ESPN.com

The Kansas City Chiefs sit today in a place where they've been accustomed to residing during much of the 1990s. So, the Chiefs' 5-2 record, which has them tied with the Seahawks atop the AFC West, should come as no surprise.

	First-year coach Gunther Cunningham has worked wonders with the Chiefs.

Except that, after a miserable 7-9 season filled with heated controversies in 1998, it looked like the Chiefs were firmly an organization on the decline.

Kansas City, which had been viewed as a Super Bowl contender for much of the '90s, looked like a once-proud franchise headed toward the bottom of the division on the bad end of the cycle.

Marty Schottenheimer, who had done so much for Kansas City and brought the Chiefs so close to the Super Bowl, was gone. Schottenheimer's top defensive assistant, Gunther Cunningham, was hired to replace him even though he had no head-coaching experience in the NFL. Everything was supposed to fall into that ugly "transition period" phase for awhile.

Instead, Cunningham has resurrected the Chiefs into what appears to be legitimate contenders again. All this without that so-called "transition period" or the presence of a powerful offense in Kansas City.

On the heels of their 34-0 trouncing of the Chargers last Sunday, the Chiefs share the division lead and look like legitimate playoff contenders.

More important than Kansas City's place in the division is where the competition is. The defending Super Bowl champion Broncos (2-6) are essentially out of it. The Raiders (4-3) look like their perennial inconsistent selves. The Chargers, who got off to a ripping 4-1 start, seem to have been exposed in the last two games. The most pressing challenger to Kansas City appears to be Seattle (5-2), which manhandled the Packers on Monday night.

The upcoming games will be tell-tale for the Chiefs, who have four road games (at Indianapolis, Tampa Bay, Oakland and Denver) and a home contest with Seattle in the next five weeks.

"All the hard work is finally paying off," Chiefs quarterback Elvis Grbac said. "We've got a long season and some tough road games coming up. We've got to stay focused and get ready."

Chargers quarterback Jim Harbaugh, who was beaten up by the Chiefs defense last Sunday, said, "They did a great job. They had a lot going for them."

One of the things the Chiefs have going for them is the running game. Grbac threw the ball just 15 times last Sunday.

"We're going to run the ball," Chiefs receiver Joe Horn said. "We're going to run the ball every week until the defense stops us. Once they stop us, that's when we're going to throw it. We have the receivers, and we have the quarterback to get it to us downfield."

The Chiefs enter this weekend ranked No. 5 in the NFL in rushing offense.

More important, though, is Kansas City's No. 7-ranked overall defense. That's how the Chiefs are winning games, despite losing Pro Bowl cornerback Dale Carter to the Broncos via free agency. Consider that the Chiefs routed the Chargers last week despite their offense producing only 10 first downs in the game.

The Chiefs have allowed just 22 points in their last three games, and only 45 in four games at Arrowhead Stadium.

They also rank No. 1 in the NFL in turnover ratio with a plus-13 margin. They have 21 takeaways and only eight turnovers. The Chiefs converted three of the four turnovers into 17 points last Sunday and intercepted at least two passes for the sixth consecutive game, matching a team record set in 1980.

"We've battled our way uphill," Cunningham said. "Now we're on top. We're going to stay on top. It's going to be tough. We've got a tough road. There's no question about it. But we're ready for it. We've got an attitude about it."

We'll find a lot about the Chiefs this week in Indianapolis, where the Colts (5-2) have shown they are indeed for real.

"Their offense is a lot better than what we faced this week," Chiefs cornerback Cris Dishman said. "Hopefully, we can keep the zeros rolling."

No need for Coates
For a number of years, Patriots tight end Ben Coates didn't speak to the media. He wasn't necessarily rude about it. He was just one of those athletes who preferred not to be quoted, perhaps not to be bothered.

	Ben Coates Tight End New England Patriots Profile
	1999 SEASON STATISTICS REC YDS YDS/R TD LNG FUM 16 184 11.5 2 22 0

After the Patriots' 27-3 pounding of the Cardinals last Sunday in Arizona, a win which has New England at 6-2 and a half-game out of first place in the AFC East, Coates decided to speak for a change. In this case, no one should have listened, let alone print his absurdly selfish words, which were explicitly designed to use the media.

I understand why Coates' words were printed, and I'm the first to acknowledge that it would have been my responsibility to report them after the game as the Boston media did. It's our obligation as reporters.

This case is a two-fold shame, though. First, it's a shame that a player who has been as good as Coates for so long would have the gall to complain about his personal stats while his team is winning. And second, it's a shame a guy like Coates, who's spent so much of his time hiding in the trainer's rooms, should have been given the forum to complain about his personal stats.

In the victory over the Cards, Coats went without a reception for the second game this season, and he was livid after the game.

"There's nothing I can do about it, except try to get the hell out of here," Coates spewed. "What's this, the second or third game where I haven't caught a (expletive) ball? There's nothing to talk about. If this is the way they want it, what's there to say? Just release me. Be my guest. Do whatever you want to do."

Coates, who was once the favorite target of Drew Bledsoe, has seen fewer passes under the direction of offensive coordinator Ernie Zampese, who's in his second year with the team. In 1997, Coates averaged 4.1 catches per game. In 1998, he averaged 4.7 per game. This season he's averaged two grabs per contest.

"It's definitely changed," Coates said of Zampese's regime. "He wants to do things his way, and the tight end isn't that important. I'm not going to be a decoy and run around and allow everyone else to get open. All I do is block. They can get anybody to block -- anybody. I have a lot of football left. I haven't slowed down any.

"I'm fine," Coates said of any speculation that he has been injured. "My health has been as good as it's been in a long time. That's (expletive). I'm sick of what's going on."

With the Patriots off for their bye this week, Coates said he was going to fly home to North Carolina during the three-day break and added, "Maybe I won't come back."

Who cares? Players with that kind of me-first, team-second attitude are easily replaceable.

Bungles beyond hope
When exactly is Mike Brown going to remove himself from the Bengals' ownership box and do something about the embarrassing mess he's overseeing in Cincinnati?

Obviously, Brown's status is Teflon. His coach, Bruce Coslet, has been a winner exactly no where as a head coach, and yet, as things continue to get worse and worse under Coslet, Browns sits back and does nothing.

Fact is, Coslet, who simply must be fired, isn't the only problem with the Bengals. The franchise's problems date back much further than when Coslet took over for David Shula. Problem is, things keep getting more and more hopeless under Coslet.

Last Sunday's 41-10 loss to the Jaguars at Cinergy Field left the Bengals at 1-7 at the halfway point for the second time in the last three years.

"Out of all the people on earth, I was the last person who thought it could be worse," Bengals linebacker Takeo Spikes said. "We did all the right things in the offseason. We did everything we're supposed to do, and this is what we get. Man, I don't know."

That statement from Spikes signifies the lack of hope this team has.

"Not only did we not play very well, but now we can't tackle," Coslet said. "When I'm feeling like I'm feeling, it's best not to say anything. So, I'll let it go at that. Go talk to the players. Why should I stand up here and say the same old stuff? I'm as tired and sick of it as you are and the fans are."

Having covered Coslet in New York when he manned the Jets, the above words rang very familiar. They are the beginning of the end.

Check out the following pathetic numbers, which by the way, do not lie and are, indeed, indicative of the Bengals' play: