11 Cool and True Facts About the Chiefs
Laddie Morse
I know, I spend way too much time thinking about the Kansas City Chiefs. What I say to that? SO WHAT!? Other people spend too much time thinking about stuff like… what’s on TV tonight? Not that either of those things is a bad habit… I’m just trying to defend myself here. AnyWHO… here are some of the very cool things I’ve come across since my interest in the Chiefs has been heightened … well… since the Super Bowl win in February of 2020.
Kelce and Tony G Are the Two Best TEs Ever
Travis Kelce is my favorite TE of all time. Yes, he had to sit out his first season, in 2013 with a knee injury, and I recall thinking, he’s not coming back from that, but he’s not only proven me wrong, in that case, but he’s exceeded all of my expectations, including the fact that he is a good blocker.
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I’m also a big Tony Gonzalez fan and once met him at Salvatore’s Italian Restaurant on 40 Hwy in Independence. “Huge guy,” I recall thinking. Tony G played for 17 years in the NFL and his last 5 were in Atlanta playing for the Falcons. That means, he played 70% of his career for the Chiefs.
COOL & True Fact: Kelce is just beginning his 10th season in the league and will have to play 8 more years — including this one — to equal Tony G on that account. Kelce will only have to gain 5,896 more yards to surpass Tony G for the all time receiving yards amount for a Tight End (compiled from StatMuse.com):
You may notice too, that Kelce only has 51 more yards to go to pass up Gronk and reach the top five in total all time receiving yards. 🙂
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K.C. Drafted the 1st Black MLB Ever
When the Kansas City Chiefs drafted Willie Lanier in the 2nd round of their 1967 draft, Lanier would become the first black middle linebacker in professional football. Willie said he takes a lot of pride in helping to break barriers and revolutionize the position. Lanier played 11 seasons with K.C. and is member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
Lanier is a good example of an NFL player sharing his real life experience with us. He once said:
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“There comes a unique circ*mstance that you attempt to use all of your knowledge as an individual and your background as to who you are — not just from playing a sport, but from whatever you’ve done in your life, trying to achieve outcomes, trying to deal with critical moments of decision, trying to think through something that makes sense to you at that moment.”
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However, it was Lanier’s LB buddy who was the first Chiefs player to ever be elected to the NFL Hall of Fame: Bobby Bell.
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With Chiefs: Anything is Possible
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When my parents moved in the middle of my first grade year, the new school was using a totally different way of teaching reading (The Phonics Method), so when the year was done they told me I’d have to repeat that year. From that time until I went to college, I was called, a flunky, dumb and stupid. That’s just one of the reasons this story means so much to me. BTW, I went on to get a Master’s Degree In Reading Instruction.
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Dark Years… the All Time Leading Scorer
I consider the 1980s — and yes, I was a Chiefs fan throughout that decade — some of the darkest years for the team. The Chiefs started with Marv Levy as Head coach (who they should have held onto), then they went to John Mackinac (he didn’t belong in the pro game), then Frank Gansz (who recorded an 8-22-1 record) before the hiring of Marty Schottenheimer in January of 1989.
It was also from 1980-to-1993 that the Chiefs All Time Leading Scorer Played the game. Who was that? Kicker Nick Lowery. He had 1,466 points for the Chiefs.
Oddly enough, he played for 14 years for K.C. but in the past 5 season, current PK Harrison Butker has become the Chiefs #3 All Time Points leader with 678. BTW, Jan Stenerud is 2nd with 1,231 points. You’ll never guess who the Chiefs All Time Leading Scorer –> Who was not a kicker, was?
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Chiefs All Time Leading Scorer, Not a Kicker…
He’s one of my favorite Chiefs of all time. A top ten pick for me on that list for sure. In fact, he once was on my Chiefs Mount Rushmore… meaning, one of my top four Chiefs of all time. Of course things have changed since Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce and Andy Reid came to town. That player is: Priest Holmes. He has scored 500 points and is 5th on the K.C. All Time list of Leading Scorers. Holmes also has the most TDs in Chiefs history, even though he only played for 8 season for K.C., but only played in 11 games his last three seasons.
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Most Career TDs in Kansas City Chiefs history:
1. Priest Holmes (83)
2. Tony Gonzalez (76)
3. Tyreek Hill (67)
4. Jamaal Charles (64)
5. Larry Johnson (61)
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Derrick Thomas Had Depth
I’ll never forget watching Chiefs LB Derrick Thomas record 7 sacks in one game, a game they lost. Thomas also saw himself as a leader, not only on the field, but in the community. He once said:
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“On the field, accolades are great, but in order to reach your full potential, you have to overstep the boundaries of football and go out into the community and be an All-Pro there too.”
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AFC West Crown Streak
The Kansas City Chiefs have won more AFC West Division Titles — six — from 2016-to-2021… than they did from1972-to-2015 — five.
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The Birth of Bad JuJu?
It was the year after the Chiefs had won the fourth Super Bowl in January of 1970, that they played in what is known as the longest NFL game ever, on Christmas Day in 1971 vs the Dolphins, a game K.C. lost 27-to-24 in double OT. Why the extra Overtime? Because it was a Divisional Championship game and a winner had to be decided, right then and there.
It was also the final NFL game ever played at Municipal Stadium in K.C. and as one publication said: “It was horrific!” and I would agree. Miami’s kicker, Garo Yepremian, made a 37-yard field goal and the Dolphins were victorious. It was two teams heading in opposite directions. Miami went on to lose that year’s Super Bowl to the Cowboys, but then won the first of two straight Super Bowls and had the only “perfect” season in 1972. In the meantime, the Chiefs organization had little to cheer about until Marty Schottenheimer came to town in 1989 and had a 8-and-7-and-1 record. After that, it was an almost 180° turn around for the organization, but not util Andy Reid and Alex Smith came to town in 2013, did the Chiefs start their current AFC West flag domination… a flag which Patrick Mahomes has continued to wave with elite consistency.
Note: the Chiefs seems to still have some bad luck with the Colts. Indy has knocked K.C. out of several important games and it’s time they focused on stopping that kind of negative pattern.
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Tony DiPardo Lives On
A long time Kansas City face, Tony DiPardo, who between 1963 and 2008, was the team’s trumpet player and part of the Zing Band that played live music at all Chiefs games got a Super Bowl ring for the team’s victory in Super Bowl 4. Sadly, DiPardo passed away in 2011 at the spry age of 98 years old.
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Get Back… to the 1960s
The Chiefs organization owned the AFL in the 1960s. No, not because Lamar Hunt owned the team and helped to start the AFL. The Chiefs won three titles in the leagues first ten years — 1962, 1966, and 1969 — before they entered the NFL and became the AFC.
Now that I think of it… maybe joining the NFL is the reason for the bad luck during the 70s and the 80s.
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The Reids Had a Yard Sale
Did you know… that when Andy Reid signed with the Chiefs he sold a bunch of his Eagles belongings at a yard sale, right after he got the K.C. job. Also, Reid’s his wife Tammy,sold a bunch of memorabilia and other possessionsfrom their former home at a suburban Philadelphiahigh school in May of 2013. It was to raise money fora prep football team… including a shelter and anti-domestic violence agency.
Here’s something from the sale that one fan purchased:
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If you have any COOL & True Chiefs Factoids to share… please let er rip.
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Laddie Morse — ArrowheadOne
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