"C%u2002hiefs linebacker Derrick Johnson doesn%u2019t even like to hear the word %u201Crebuilding.%u201D

There%u2019s no room for it in the NFL, he says.

%u201CIt%u2019s a college word,%u201D he told me. %u201CYou rebuild in college, you build programs.

%u201CBut in the NFL, there%u2019s too much at stake. There%u2019s a sense of urgency. You can develop young guys, but you have to win.

%u201CNo matter how young you are, you got veteran guys who want to win. You think Tony Gonzalez wants to hear about rebuilding? You win the way Indianapolis does or Green Bay. You develop as you%u2019re winning.%u201D

So even though the Chiefs have been restructuring their roster with an influx of young players, Johnson doesn%u2019t want to wait two or three years for the team to win.

%u201CLast year was hard on me,%u201D he said. %u201CWe lost more games, 12, in that one season than I did my whole college career. I never want to go through that again.%u201D

But can the Chiefs, with all their young players, make the turnaround that fast?

%u201CYou can do it if you have the right chemistry,%u201D he said, %u201Cand I think we have that. I want to be a part of that. I look around, and it%u2019s like I%u2019m the old guy (at 26).

%u201CI want to be a leader, just not on the field but more vocal, too. I%u2019m going to try.%u201D

Johnson also wants to turn into the type of player the Chiefs and fans envisioned when the Chiefs made him their top pick in 2005. He wants that breakthrough season.

%u201CIt%u2019s about making plays,%u201D he said. %u201CIt%u2019s about causing fumbles, getting sacks, tackles for losses. Flying to the ball.

%u201CI want to be that guy that my teammates look to when it%u2019s going tough and say %u2018Hey, he%u2019s going to make a play now.%u2019%u2002%u201D

Is Johnson close?

%u201CI think I showed some of that last year,%u201D he said. %u201CI had some plays where people would say %u2018Whoa, man, that was pretty good.%u2019 And then I had some times when I looked like I was just kind of there.

%u201CBut most of all, I want to win. That%u2019s the number one thing. We got to win.%u201D

Real %u2018Breakthrough%u2019

On the subject of breakthroughs, Johnson is actively involved in Operation Breakthrough, an organization devoted to helping underprivileged children. He was at the Operation Breakthrough center on Troost on Wednesday, making plans for the third playground in the inner city he%u2019ll have built."