I realize that the Kansas City Chiefs did not stun the professional football world in their win over the Washington Redskins. They did not convincingly stomp a maligned Redskins team. They did not assert themselves as contenders for the AFC West crown. Further, the next few weeks will bring a new set of challenges for our inexperienced players and coaches to overcome. However, it was most definitely progress.

In all but one of the previous games this season the Chiefs held the game close into the fourth quarter, only to find a way to lose. Against the hated Raiders, we watched as Matt Cassel threw two interceptions and Savage failed to get out of bounds as halftime ended the drive. When it counted, our defense made JaMarcus Russell look like JaMarcus Elway, as he drove the Raiders down the field in the fourth quarter to take a lead the Chiefs would not take back. We’ve seen multiple penalties and some confusing play calling. Just last week I had to cover my eyes as our second-year corner Maurice Leggett twice missed tackles and our veteran safety was not in a position to stop game changing – and game ending – pass plays.

Regardless of how it looked, the talented (and well paid) Redskins, along with coach Jim Zorn, were playing a must-win game. Perhaps, this past Sunday, our players learned the first rule of winning NFL games – “First, do no harm”. Against the ‘Skins, the Chiefs were penalized only four times, we had previously averaged more than seven. Kansas City did not turn the ball over while winning the time of possession by a large margin on the road. Further, we did it without the help of our starting left tackle.

This is not to say it we sat back and let the Redskins lose it. On perhaps the biggest non-Succop play of the day, Cassel passed to Bowe on a slant for a 32 yard gain with 1:47 left. An aggressive play call given the situation (and our prior history). If it fell incomplete, we would have given the Redskins more time to attempt the comeback that many expected. Instead, Bowe snagged the pass and headed down the sideline, eventually going out of bounds at the Washington 9 yard line. Of course, if he would have simply stayed in to keep the clock running, we would have been lining up in the victory formation. I don’t fault Bowe, how many times has he been in that situation before? It is a great example of how far we still have to go.

Today, the Chiefs made sure they controlled the final minutes, instead of putting the other team in a position to steal away our first win. Hali’s safety slammed the door shut instead of letting Washington’s best QB attempt a game winning drive. I believe today the Chiefs demonstrated significant, albeit small, progress. Frankly, I’ve waited the better part of a year for these young players to get out of their own way. It’s great to finally see it.