From KCChiefs.com
BOWE’S BACK
December 15th – 6:08 AM
WR Dwayne Bowe made a quiescent return to Arrowhead on Monday morning following a four-week NFL suspension for violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing substances.
There were no press conferences, special statements or “Bowe Show” banners. The Chiefs’ top wide receiver simply entered the locker room, quietly made way to his locker, and shook hands with a few teammates whom he hadn’t seen over the past month. There were a limited number of greetings, smiles and hugs, but that’s about it.
Bowe arrived on a Monday morning just as he’d done for the previous nine weeks prior to his suspension. Not much time for chatter, just a change of clothes and off to work out before film review. The routine was nothing noteworthy, and may have even felt monotonous a month ago, but it was easy to see that Bowe was happy to be back at work.
There was no visible evidence of a change in physical appearance from four weeks prior, either. Bowe said that he had been staying in shape by working out at former Chiefs offensive lineman Will Shields’ area gym while being barred by the NFL from participating in any team-related activities.
“Dwayne is back this week,” Chiefs head coach Todd Haley said. “We haven’t had any contact by league rules – you’re not allowed to have any contact with a suspended player. We’ll have to do our best to see where he’s at and get him up to speed.”
There’s no question that the Chiefs could use Bowe back in the receiving rotation. Despite his four-week suspension, he still leads all Kansas City wide receivers with 33 catches for 466 yards and four TDs. He actually held the overall team-lead in receptions until RB Jamaal Charles caught his 34th pass of the season in the fourth quarter vs. Buffalo on Sunday.
Even a Bowe at 75% or 85% can add a much-needed spark to the Chiefs offense. The question isn’t whether or not Bowe can help the Chiefs over these final three games. It’s more or less, what are reasonable expectations for Bowe in his return to the field on Sunday?
This is a topic that many have weighed in on. Fans, media members and everything in between seem to have discussed this topic with no clear consensus. The same can be said inside Arrowhead.
WR Bobby Wade played his 100th career NFL game on Sunday. Over the course of those seven professional seasons, Wade has seen plenty of players fight through comebacks whether it is from suspension or injury. He said that outside expectations for Bowe to step right in and play at the exact same level (or higher) before the suspension would be unrealistic.
“It’s the speed of the game,” Wade said about the biggest adjustment that looms for Bowe. “It can go both ways. The speed of the game can slow down and you are faster than everybody, or you’re not quite up to speed. It’s going to be a challenge for him to play within his own realm and make the plays that come to him.
“Conditioning is going to be the same, but it’s tough to simulate any type of game speed when you’re away from the game,” Wade continued. “It’s going to be a very big challenge for him, but I think that he is very capable of handling that.”
Another veteran wide receiver, Chris Chambers, felt the opposite way about Bowe. Chambers feels like expectations for Bowe to step in and contribute immediately, at a similar level as before, are fair.
“I think that the expectations should be high,” Chambers said. “I think that they will be high for himself. He’ll have more help around him. All the focus won’t be on him, we’ll all make some plays.”
Chambers led all Chiefs receivers with 17 catches for 250 yards and a TD in Bowe’s absence. He’s followed in a close second by Charles and Wade, who each turned in 13 catches a piece. Without Bowe in the lineup, it’s fair to say that the Chiefs have lacked a primary go-to receiving target. In total, Chiefs quarterbacks completed passes to 11 different players during the course of Bowe’s four-game suspension.
“Any time you’re missing one of your better players – which we were for the last four weeks – I’m personally excited about having Dwayne back,” Haley said. “I think Dwayne was making tremendous strides when the suspension occurred and I think he’s made strides in all areas to a point where he cares about what we’re trying to do.”
Bowe had turned in his second-highest receiving output of the season at Oakland (11/15) – a six-catch, 91-yard effort – before news of the suspension broke the following Tuesday afternoon on Chiefs LIVE (12:00-1:00 PM CST each Tuesday on kcchiefs.com).
Haley offered his opinions on his own expectations for Bowe as well. Basically, Haley is treating the situation as if Bowe were coming off an injury.
Looking for any type of precedent? Bowe caught just one pass for 11 yards following the only bundle of missed time during his three-year NFL career. That occurred this season vs. the Giants (10/4), following a leg injury that kept him out of the lineup at Philadelphia (9/27) the week before. Prior to this season, Bowe had never missed a game as a pro.
Haley didn’t comment, however, as to whether Bowe would return to his starting role or not on Sunday. That is something we’ll likely have a better read on after Wednesday’s practice session. Starter or not, Bowe’s return to the field vs. Cleveland will create a receiving presence that the Chiefs have lacked over the past month.
“Just in looking at him it looks like he’s done a pretty good job of keeping himself in condition,” Haley said. “We’ve got to get him up to speed in any of the new stuff we’re doing. I’m personally excited about having him back in the mix. We need all the hands we can get.”
and worst case you can keep a potential breakout player OFF the other playoff teams. though I do also agree it's a long shot (for bowe to put up good #s w/ cassel struggling).depending on roster depth requirements, i'd think many owners have a WR5 or RB5 or TE3 that is expendable for someone like Bowe @ this point.
and how are you gonna say to judge it by looking at him? the guy is a professional athlete.
You can argue effectively that his use of a diuretic is suspect, and could be indicative of PED use, but Bowe did not and has not tested positive for any performance enhancing drug.
