"Todd Haley told Dwayne Bowe that the requirements were simple: If he wanted to make the big plays he seemed to crave, then he would have to earn them.

Bowe was coming off perhaps his most chaotic period as a pro. He was suspended four games last season for failing a test for performance-enhancing drugs, and this past spring, he described to a magazine the practice of "importing" women on Chiefs road trips.

The Kansas City wide receiver was on shaky ground. He had no choice but to listen to his coach — and to do what was asked.

"Compared to where he was the year before, (Bowe) showed that sense of urgency," Haley said this week. "The players respond how you coach them. If you enforce the idea and make it clear that that's the way it's going to be, generally guys get on board or they jump off."

For Bowe, getting on board meant a lot of things. It meant that he had to calm an act that seemed playful at times but selfish at others. It meant that he had to control himself and sharpen his focus. And it meant he had to block.

That's bad news for some wideouts, especially ones such as Bowe, who are used to making big plays. But Haley let players know that the Chiefs were going to be a running team in 2010, and if Bowe ever wanted to be targeted for those highlight-reel opportunities, he'd better get used to his new requirements. If he refused to block, he could forget about making catches.

"Some receivers are a little bit more reluctant than others," quarterback Matt Cassel said. "But at the same time, I know that a lot of the good ones go in there and they put their nose in there and they get after it.

"Dwayne has come in and worked tremendously hard this year and you can probably see it just with his physical look and what he brings. … You see him blocking on certain plays and he is doing everything that the coaches ask of him.""