Ka-BOOM! We just received our first real bombshell since DJ fell (oh-so-perfectly) to us in the draft last month. The Chiefs have sent word to Johnnie Morton to stay away from this spring?s OTAs (Organized Team Activities).

This is huge news, folks. For those of you that have a job to report to, imagine the CEO of your company pulling you aside and saying in his best Bill Lumberg voice (from the movie Office Space), "Johnnie, what?s happening? Uh, yeah? I?m gonna need you to go ahead and not come in to work until you hear back from me, mkay?" All that?s left is the shameful security escort from the building.

Morton was asked to take a pay cut last off-season and he refused. Apparently he went back to that well this spring and it was bone dry. This move by the KC brass is most likely a pre-cursor to his June 1st release. Of course, Bill Belichick will probably pick him up and he?ll lead the league in interceptions or something. The only way he plays another down wearing Chiefs? Red will be if he agrees to a new contract near the veteran minimum.

The numbers he put up in the 2004 season (55 receptions, 795 yards, 3 TDs) were respectable and eerily similar to his 2003 stats (50 receptions, 740 yards, 4 TDs). The problem is, Johnnie was brought in to Kansas City in 2002 to be the team?s number one receiver, and he simply did not cut the mustard. He was paid numbers similar to other number one WRs around the league, while consistently putting up number two wideout stats. Respectable, but not deserving of the kind of cheese Lamar Hunt shelled out.

There are those that have argued vehemently that Morton has been valuable, and on the flip-side, throngs of detractors give voice that he?s a free agent bust. A legitimate case can be made for both camps. Personally, I am on the fence. On the one hand, our offense is an elite one, and J-Mo deserves credit as one of the pistons in a smooth, purring engine.

Conversely, I find it disturbing that a he scoffed at the salary cut to help the team with much needed cap space. After all, he really has been overpaid the last 3 years. It reeks of greed, and the stance he?s taken could conceivably end his NFL career on sour note.

By releasing Morton after June 1st, the team will free up roughly $2.4M in cap space. That?s a nice amount, and could be used to sign rookies, or maybe to add another team?s cap casualty.

This move will give us an opportunity to see a brand new starting WR for the ?05 season. Will it be second-year speedster Sammie Parker? Will Marc Boerigter return to his ?03 form? Maybe Cro Thorpe will blow Dick Vermeil?s mind in training camp. We could pursue a veteran after the June 1st cuts. Isaac Bruce, perhaps? Ahh? the possibilities.

If you didn?t get the "Office Space" movie reference, go out and rent it. It?s an awesome movie. See ya next time with more Chiefs news and movie reviews.

Article courtesy of the Chiefs Coalitions (www.chiefscoalition.net)