In Herm's Head

Herm the Germ might have taken some chances at a time like this, but today's Edwards defends his simple — and conservative — style.

The press conference is supposed to be over, but Edwards has a good story to tell. Three reporters have stopped him in the hallway outside the locker room. It's Thursday, November 1, three days before the Chiefs fall apart in the fourth quarter against Green Bay.

On one side of Edwards is KCSP 610's Rhonda Moss, holding a microphone in his face. In front of him is Doug Tucker, the beat reporter from the Associated Press. On the other side is The Kansas City Star's Randy Covitz, who has asked Edwards if he fears that his players will be star-struck by Favre. Covitz cites a couple of times when teams have seemed humbled in Favre's presence.

"I've got one better for you," Edwards says. The man nicknamed "the Preacher" is getting ready for a story — or one of his rare but infamous rants. He allows a slight smile. He's in a good mood; he's already gone on for a while during his press conference about the barbecue joint in Ames, Iowa, where he always stops for a milkshake on his way to training camp in Wisconsin.

"My first pro game was against Joe Namath when he was with the Rams. You think I wasn't star-struck?"

Edwards lets a minute of silence hang to let that sink in.

"But I got my first NFL interception against Joe Namath."

Afterward, he says, he went over and shook Namath's hand. "Hey, if you can get an interception off one of the great quarterbacks, it's special."

Early in the Green Bay game on November 4, it seems his team has learned from the coach's story. Not only has veteran Patrick Surtain intercepted a pass from Favre, but so has third-stringer Benny Sapp.

With seven minutes and 13 seconds left in the first quarter, Edwards shows his only sign of unchecked emotion.

The Chiefs have punted to the Packers and pinned Favre at his own 2-yard line. Kansas City has a chance for what Edwards is always looking for: a big play on defense.

Favre huddles his team members in the end zone, and the Chiefs defense spreads out in front of them. Edwards, knowing he has a few seconds before Favre snaps the ball, walks out onto the field where safety Bernard Pollard is standing.

"Hey!" Edwards yells to Pollard.

Edwards looks furious and shakes his fist as if banging it on a table.

"We got to take over the game," he tells Pollard. "We can't give up big plays. We're in a position to win."

Despite Edwards' speech, Favre leads the Packers 70 yards to a field goal on that drive.

With three minutes left in the game, the Chiefs, down 23-22, get the ball back. But they can't manage a first down, so they have to punt. The Chiefs get the ball back again, but this time Huard throws an interception that turns into seven points for Green Bay.

The Packers win, 33-22. Favre ends the day with two touchdowns and 360 yards passing.

Clearly, it's time to bench Huard. But for a coach like Edwards, benching a guy isn't an easy thing to do. A week later, when Denver comes to town, Huard is still the starter.

Every winter, college prospects head to the scouting combine at the Indi­anapolis RCA Dome to run drills for NFL coaches.

At last February's combine, DeMarcus "Tank" Tyler knew he had to perform well. The 300-pound defensive lineman had earned a reputation as a troublemaker when he played for North Carolina State. At a game in September 2006, an official said he saw Tyler spit on a Southern Mississippi player during an argument. "I always lose my temper," Tyler told the Charlotte News & Observer. He denied spitting on the guy, but he acknowledged getting into fights. "I try to play with a lot of emotion and enthusiasm and sometimes I get to talking back and forth with another player. I don't mean anything personally."

Now, at the combine, he had to recast himself as a 22-year-old who was mature enough for the NFL.

As Tyler lined up to run the 40-yard dash, he looked over and saw Herm Edwards watching.