KANSAS CITY CHIEFS (0-0)
VS.
HOUSTON TEXANS (0-0)

PRESEASON GAME #1
SATURDAY, AUGUST 15, 2009 – 7:00 pm (central)
ARROWHEAD STADIUM – KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Chiefs Television Network - KCTV-5 (CBS in Kansas City) - Play-by-play: Dave Armstrong - Color Commentator: Jayice Pearson - Sideline Reporter: Rich Baldinger

Chiefs FOX Football Radio Network - KCFX-FM (101.1 FM in Kansas City - Affiliates) - Play-by-play: Mitch Holthus - Color Commentator: Len Dawson - Sideline Reporter: Kendall Gammon

THE MATCH-UP

The Todd Haley era officially gets underway on Saturday when the Chiefs host the Houston Texans in the preseason opener for both clubs at Arrowhead Stadium (8/15). The second-youngest head coach in Chiefs history, Haley was named to that post on February 6th after serving a two-year stint as the offensive coordinator of the Arizona Cardinals.

Chiefs GM Scott Pioli is also entering his initial campaign in Kansas City, and has made several key off-season additions to the Chiefs roster. QB Matt Cassel and LB Mike Vrabel were acquired from New England in exchange for a second-round draft choice. Notable free agent acquisitions for the Chiefs have included LBs Zach Thomas and Monty Beisel, WRs Bobby Engram and Amani Toomer, as well as G Mike Goff, S Mike Brown and C Eric Ghiaciuc. All of the club’s 2009 draft picks are in camp.

Offensive coordinator Chan Gailey returns for his second season in that role. KC’s offense features two-time Pro Bowl RB Larry Johnson (D1-03), who needs 433 more yards to become the all-time leading rusher in franchise history. WR Dwayne Bowe (D1-07) posted 86 catches for 1,022 yards with seven TDs in 2008. Four-time Pro Bowl G Brian Waters returns on the offensive line along with C Rudy Niswanger, as well as Ts Damion McIntosh and Branden Albert (D1b-08).

The Chiefs are making the transition to a 3-4 base defensive alignment in 2009 under new defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergast. LB Derrick Johnson (D1-05) has moved to an ILB post, while LB Tamba Hali (D1-06) makes the transition from defensive end. The club’s defensive front also includes former LSU DEs Glenn Dorsey (D1a-08) and Tyson Jackson (D1-09), as well as DEs Alfonso Boone and Alex Magee (D3-09) and DTs Ron Edwards and Tank Tyler (D3-07).

Steve Hoffman coaches Kansas City’s special teams. That unit includes P Dustin Colquitt (D3-05) and K Ryan Succop (D7c-09). The Chiefs break camp next week and travel to Minnesota (8/21) for preseason Game Two.

THE SERIES
Kansas City is 1-1 in preseason action against the Texans in their brief history. Kansas City beat Houston 19-9 at Arrowhead Stadium (8/17/02), while Houston returned the favor topping the Chiefs by a 24-14 count at Reliant Stadium (8/12/06).

The Chiefs and Texans have split their four regular season meetings. The road team has won three of those four contests. The Texans prevailed by a 20-3 margin in the most recent meeting on Opening Day of the 2007 season at Reliant Stadium (9/9/07). Houston WR Andre Johnson led the Texans with seven catches for 142 yards and a TD.

Kansas City’s most recent victory over the Texans featured a record-setting performance by RB Larry Johnson. Johnson racked up a single-game franchise record with 211 rushing yards in a 45-17 win in a Sunday night contest at Reliant Stadium (11/20/05).

The Texans registered their initial regular season win against the Chiefs with a shocking 24-21 victory at Arrowhead (9/26/04) as CB Marcus Coleman’s 103-yard INT return TD dramatically turned the tide in the Texans favor. Kansas City dominated the inaugural regular season meeting between the two clubs as the Chiefs registered a 42-14 win at Reliant Stadium (9/21/03). Houston native WR Dante Hall scored on a 73-yard punt return TD in that contest, while RB Priest Holmes registered a pair of scoring jaunts.

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