SuraClan » Gryba) and more so by the physical possture and reaction of

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Chiefs general manager John Dorsey said Friday that he does not anticipate using the franchise tag on any free agents, something the team has done each of the past three seasons. The Chiefs are poised to lose several key players from last years 11-5 team, including Pro Bowl left tackle Branden Albert, Pro Bowl punt returner Dexter McCluster and starting defensive end Tyson Jackson, safety Kendrick Lewis and offensive guards Jon Asamoah and Geoff Schwartz. The deadline to use the franchise tag is March 3. "Probably not," Dorsey said. "We probably wont use it." The Chiefs used the tag on Albert last season, paying him more than $9.8 million -- the average of the top five salaries at his position the previous year. They could franchise him again but would be on the hook for 120 per cent of Alberts salary, a massive financial commitment for a team that is already bumping along just below the salary cap. Kansas City used the franchise tag on linebacker Tamba Hali two years ago, eventually signing him to a long-term contract. The same story unfolded last year for wide receiver Dwayne Bowe, who signed a $56 million, five-year contract one year after receiving the tag. Dorsey did say that hes having "ongoing conversations" with representatives of all of the Chiefs free agents, including Albert, but refused to get into the specifics. "We will continue to have ongoing discussions with his representatives here at the combine," Dorsey said. "Weve done is weve reached out to every representative for every unrestricted free agent that we have, and weve also talked to Alex Smiths representative as well." Smith wont become a free agent until after the 2014 season, but signing him to an extension would not only lock him up but also offer some salary cap relief. Smiths number this is season is $8 million, but the Chiefs could trim that roughly in half with an extension. The Chiefs have already waived defensive back Dunta Robinson to free up salary, and its likely they will either restructure current contracts or part ways with some of their veterans in order to create more off-season flexibility. "I dont think its fair to talk about a players contract in a setting like this," Dorsey said. "I think thats not the proper business that you like to do." Dorsey did address several other issues at the combine, including his belief in building through the draft. Thats the same philosophy followed by his mentor, Ted Thompson of the Green Bay Packers, and one espoused by Chiefs coach Andy Reid. That means that the Chiefs are unlikely to be quite as active as they were in free agency last year, when they turned over roughly half of their roster. Free agency begins March 1. Still, there are plenty of holes to fill, especially along the offensive line. "We look at everybody right now and make sure that you cover all the positions," Reid said Thursday. "One of the tricks of the draft is that you take the best players available, if you can stay that disciplined to do so and make yourself a better football team." Other positions of need include free safety, where Lewis struggled much of the season, and wide receiver, where the Chiefs kept shuffling through options with little success. "We have a pretty good group of young players to form a nice nucleus," Reid said. "I look forward to adding guys too, and Im a big believer that you build your team through the draft. Free agency can be a bit of a tease at times, and I think you have to be real careful." Teppo Numminen Jersey . -- Chris Crawford hit a 3-pointer with 1:36 left to put Memphis ahead to stay, and the 21st-ranked Tigers beat seventh-ranked Louisville 72-66 Saturday, sweeping the season series from the Cardinals. Custom Winnipeg Jets Jerseys . 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Keith Tkachuk Jersey . Wearing bib No. 1, Maze skied through the gates cleanly to defend her big first-run lead and finish 0.07 seconds ahead of Anna Fenninger of Austria. Defending champion Viktoria Rebensburg of Germany was third, trailing 0.Got a question on rule clarification, comments on rule enforcements or some memorable NHL stories? Kerry wants to answer your emails at cmonref@tsn.ca. Hi Kerry, In the second period of the Ottawa-Columbus game, Blue Jackets forward Artem Anisimov had the puck and had his head down and Senators defenceman Eric Gryba threw a big body check on him. Anisimov was down and stayed that way for a few minutes. Gryba got a match penalty and a game misconduct for the hit, though most hockey fans Ive seen on social media (and commentators and analysts) deemed it a clean hit. I thought it was clearly a full body check with no intent and the one official was looking right at the play with a good view and didnt call anything until afterwards. I dont get it. I know its hard for the officials to make that call since hockey plays happen so fast. But since this official saw the play happen from a good angle, I have no idea how he didnt see what actually happened. Couldnt the official who saw it just say it was a clean hit to the other official and linesmen? If you were the ref that was looking at the play as it happened, what would you have done? Thoughts on the play? Thank you for your time, Haleigh J. -- Haleigh: While I am certainly concerned for the health and well-being of Artem Anisimov I, like you, see this as a legal body check in both the setup and execution of the hit delivered by Eric Gryba. Let me attempt to clarify your question as to why the referee called a match penalty from what you describe as, from a good angle. Referee Justin St. Pierre, backing up through the bottom of the end zone face-off circle, processed the visual information he received on the play and did react to the hit by raising his arm to call a penalty before the scrum developed. From this position, given the speed of the play, St. Pierre must have determined in the momentary aftermath of the hit that an illegal check to the head had been delivered. This is reasonable for the ref to determine given his angle (looking through the back of Gryba) and more so by the physical possture and reaction of both players following the contact.dddddddddddd. Grybas body naturally elevated as a result of impact and Anisimovs out of control fall and loss of his helmet provided the ref with incriminating imagery burnt into his mind in that moment. The time delay that resulted from the altercation that took place following the check, coupled with the fact that Anisimov required medical attention to remove him from the ice elevated the refs perception of the play to a match penalty. My take is considerably different. As you suggested, Anisimov had his head down and was looking back toward the puck with his body in a lowered posture. In setting up to make a legal check, Gryba mirrored his opponent by lowering his body posture as well with the intent to make a shoulder check through Anisimovs body. The body posture of both players is a key component in the set up of the intended check. Just prior to impact Gryba stiffened his legs slightly and delivered a shoulder check off the centre mass of Anisimov. While some secondary contact to the head resulted the main contact was delivered through Anisimovs chest and shoulder. Once the referee determined that an illegal check to the head had been delivered, rule 48 provides for only two penalty options to assess; a minor or a match penalty. There are no provisions for a major penalty or game misconduct within this rule. A match penalty is to be assessed at the Referees discretion if, in his judgment, the player attempted to or deliberately injured his opponent with an illegal check to the head. In my judgment, for the reasons stated above, I do not believe that was the case. The closest official to the play made the call. In response to your last portion of the question, his partner, veteran referee Paul Devorski, would have been trailing the play a considerable distance away and on the opposite side of the ice. It would be highly unlikely that he would attempt to override the decision made by his partner whom he would assume was in better position to observe the play more clearly. 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