Croyle

FOXBORO — Herm Edwards is going to play the hand that he’s been dealt, no matter how bad the cards may look.

He can’t fold now. His team is going all in.

Speaking with media in Kansas City this week about the Chiefs’ rebuilding project, the former New York Jets coach, who has been at the helm in Kansas City since 2006, likened himself to a poker player.

“It’s like being in a card game and then you go, ‘I’ve got some bad cards, and I’ve got to throw them in,’ ” Edwards said. “(But) you’ve got to play them. You can’t throw your hand in. You’ve got to play. I think if we’re going to be truthful with ourselves, we’ve got to do it.”

Kansas City has at least been able to pull some cards to try to improve its hand.

The club was a major player during the draft, selecting 12 players, including six among the top 100 picks.

The high number of selections was in part because of the three slots the Chiefs received from the Vikings in the trade of defensive lineman Jared Allen.

Kansas City has 15 rookies on its roster.

And a great many of them will play roles on Sunday. Edwards said in a conference call with the local media yesterday that 11 of the 45 players active for the regular-season opener in New England will be in their first year.

But while nearly a quarter of the active roster in the Patriots game will be first-year players, those inexperienced players aren’t balanced by veterans. Eighteen other Kansas City players have only two or three years’ experience in the NFL.

Edwards has been part of this type of gamble before, however.

“It’s similar to what we did in Tampa Bay,” he said yesterday, alluding to his days as defensive backs/assistant head coach under Tony Dungy with the Buccaneers in the late 1990s. “We went through the same process of trying to build a team.”

The process thus far has had its ups and downs.

“I think the thing they [rookies] bring to the table, obviously, is a lot of energy. They’re very inquisitive,” Edwards said. “They don’t know what they don’t know, which is kind of good as a coach because you can mold them the way you want. But that being said, there’s some misfires. Sometimes you scratch your head after practice and ask yourself, ‘Why’d he do that?’ That’s just part of the learning process for young players.”

Chiefs receiver Dwayne Bowe, who has only one season under his belt, is a big part of the team’s youth movement.

To him, managing nerves is a big part of the job for rookies.

“This is the NFL and there is a reason why you were drafted and there’s a reason why you’re playing that week,” Bowe said. “It is just the anxiety level will be pretty high. I told the young guys, ‘All you have to do is know your role and play fast.’ They are showing good poise during practice and all throughout the preseason. I think they’re going to do pretty good.”

At least four rookies could start against the Pats — left tackle Branden Albert, defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey, cornerback Brandon Flowers and fullback Mike Cox. Receiver Will Franklin, tight end Brad Cottam, defensive end Brian Johnston and corner Brandon Carr could see a lot of snaps, too.

While the rookies undergo their baptism by fire, Bowe and quarterback Brodie Croyle will continue to grow together. Croyle, a third-round draft pick in 2006, is in his first full season as the Chiefs’ starter after having played in nine games last year.

Croyle has been adapting to his starting role while also learning a new offense under Chan Gailey, who was brought in this year after six years at Georgia Tech.

Croyle will have his hands full, as many a quarterback — some of whom enjoyed outstanding careers — has struggled the first time he faced a Bill Belichick defense.

But Edwards and Bowe noted Croyle’s increased confidence under center, and Patriots safety Rodney Harrison said yesterday that it doesn’t seem as through Croyle panics that often on the field.

Still, it’s a heck of a task for such a young team to come to Foxboro — the home of the defending AFC champion, where New England has not lost a regular-season home opener since 2001 and where the Patriots are looking to win their record 20th consecutive regular-season game — with a still-green quarterback and a roster loaded with players still on their rookie contracts.

Herm Edwards is all in, hoping not to go bust.

smanza@projo.com