I told Nevada Daily Mail managing editor Lynn Wade that I wasn't going to write my column about the Kansas City Chiefs this week.

But after further consultation with myself, I couldn't curb my enthusiasm.

There's a plethora of footnotes from the NFL Week 1 disaster, a 20-3 road loss to the Houston Texans, that still need to be addressed.

Here goes:

* Larry Johnson looks out of shape.

*Injured wide receiever Eddie Kennison must have been out of shape.

*Signing wideout Bobby Sippio from the practice squad is the best move the Chiefs made since they named Damon Huard the starting quarterback over the inexperienced Brodie Croyle.

*The Chiefs' offensive playbook stinks.

* Tight end Tony Gonzalez needs to quit making bone-headed penalties at the most inopportune of times.

OK, at least the Chiefs addressed their kicking woes in the aftermath of their opening-game free-fall, waiving fifth-round draft pick bust Justin Medlock and signing Dave Rayner, formerly of the Green Bay Packers, to a two-year contract.

But that's just one in a growing laundry of woes that need to be addressed.

First, there's All-Pro running back Larry Johnson, the overpriced holdout who didn't earn his healthy paycheck deep last weekend. If you're going to be one of the highest-paid players in the league, then its best that you should be ready to start the season.

The bottom line is that Johnson, despite his conditioning program in Arizona while he held out, proved he isn't game shape yet. His sturdy legs, which produced an NFL single-season record 416 carries for a franchise single-season record 1,789 yards, seemed to be wobbling just a smidgen.

Maybe there is some credence to playing in the preseason, contrary to some believers, and playing a couple series against the St. Louis Rams in the exhibition finale didn't make Johnson game-ready.

Don't get me wrong. Johnson is the Chiefs' franchise. Now he needs to prove it, like he did last season.

Kennison, on the other hand, played in the first three preseason games before sitting out the preseason finale at St. Louis. The 12-year pro is a big-play guy who is underappreciated, even though he's of the most prolific receivers in Chiefs history.

Sorry Eddie, don't mean to throw you under the bus, but how do you pull a hamstring on the first play of the regular season?

Regardless, the Chiefs and their injury-depleted receiving corps need Kennison back as soon as possible.

As for Sippio, you wonder why he didn't make the 53-man roster to start the season in the first place?

To be sure, Sippio did play in that "other" professional football league -- the Arena League -- complete with nets, sideboards and a small field -- but the guy can make some plays, and boy, do the Chiefs need some playmakers.

As far as Huard vs. Croyle goes, it really doesn't need to be addressed.

But with the Oakland Raiders finally signing former Louisiana State University standout JaMarcus Russell, maybe the Chiefs ought to look into trading for Daunte Culpepper, whose role will be reduced to being nothing more than a backup in a crowded position that also includes Josh McCown and Andrew Walter.

What about the play selection? Huard can throw the ball downfield. He proved that last year, but against the Texans, the Chiefs didn't even try to throw past the yard markers.

How do they expect to get a first down? C'mon, let's see some creativity.

Tight end Gonzalez is perhaps the best receiving tight end in NFL history. But what's the deal with his offensive holding penalties during pass plays. He always throws his arms in the air, claiming he did nothing wrong, after he's penalized for "hooking" defenders.

In the Houston game, his penalty cost the Chiefs a potential scoring drive.