There’s no place like home! Kansas City is much more than just the city of fountains, or a BBQ mecca! It is also home to the Chiefs and welcomes one of the most loyal and enthusiastic fan bases in the US.
The stadium creates a perfect cocoon to any player who feels like a gladiator while getting on the field. The roar in Arrowhead is the loudest in the league and it is well known no player ever forgets his passage in Kansas City. And the latest proof to this fervor is the one-day contracts granted to Derrick Johnson and Jamaal Charles to retire as Chiefs.
Is Jamaal Charles a future Hall of Famer?
Charles will always be a Hall of Famer in Kansas City. To retire peacefully, he chose to sign a one day contract with the Chiefs this week and took his last handoff from MVP Patrick Mahomes before calling it quits in red and gold.
During his 11 seasons in the NFL, Charles averaged an impressive 5.4 yards per carry, which is the second most of any running back in NFL history and ranks fourth overall. However, he is maybe one of the most underrated running backs of all time, but the crowd in KC will never forget his kindness and talent.
“Jamaal Charles is so underrated,” offensive lineman Geoff Schwartz posted via Twitter in April. “He was on some bad teams and then got hurt. He was amazing.”
The all-time leader in rushing yardage for Kansas City, Charles, 32, played from 2008 to 2016 with the Chiefs, rushing for 7,260 yards and 43 touchdowns. He played two more seasons — one with the Denver Broncos in 2017 and one with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2018.
“After 25 years of playing this sport I love so much, and 11 years in the NFL,” Charles said via an Instagram post. “I’m officially hanging up my cleats for the last time today.”
He decided to quit his career to spend more deserved quality time with his family.
Derrick Johnson has also announced he would retire as a Chief.
Another cornerstone of the past Chiefs team is veteran linebacker Derrick Johnson, who will finish his career as Kansas City’s all-time leader in tackles (1,262), and will also retire as a Chief. According to the Kansas City Star, the veteran linebacker will sign a one-day deal with Kansas City so he can finish his career with the team that picked him in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft.
Johnson, 36, played a key role on the Chiefs’ defense for years and was considered a beast at his position, but an injury in 2016 made his end of career a little bit bumpier. After 13 years to play for the Chiefs, he was cut in March 2018. The All-Pro and four-time Pro Bowl selection then signed with the Raiders but appeared in just six games before being released by Oakland. The veteran was not able to find another job before deciding to call it quits.
Johnson has discussed going into coaching for a few months now, so we might see him again at the Chiefs, as an assistant coach, learning from the big guys.
Anyway, the Chiefs are a big family, with some ups and downs, like everywhere else, but the feeling of belonging to a great city and team never disappears to the ones who played in Kansas City. And two talented players such as Charles and Johnson just proved it this week.
Sports is competition but when a team becomes more than a team, and when the team becomes a family, that’s when the magic happens.
