Three years ago, as the Chiefs sought to change the productivity of their defense by first altering those who influenced it, they pinpointed free agent safety Tyrann Mathieu as their guy. They were lured by his talent, to be sure, but only further persuaded by the personality. They needed both — a Pro Bowl player who could also project as the loudest voice in the room.
There was a bit of an abnormality to a potentially idealistic notion of marrying the two with one player, even if only at first — the newest guy on the roster doesn’t always feel the most comfortable barking out the orders. So Mathieu conjured an idea. He would invite the entire defense to his house every week, with a really simple goal in mind.
“I just tried to get to know dudes,” he said. “That’s how I came about it.”
