The following lists provide an overview of notable groupings of Kansas City Chiefs players.
Throughout the Chiefs' near five-decade existence, there have been twelve starting quarterbacks to lead the team. Among the most prolific include Hall of Famers Len Dawson and Joe Montana, as well as superb quarterbacks of their era like Trent Green.
In the past few decades, the Chiefs have relied on veteran quarterbacks to lead their team. [1] The last quarterback to be drafted by Kansas City that later went on to claim the starting position was Bill Kenney in 1980. Since Kenney's retirement in 1988. the Chiefs never drafted their own quarterback to develop until Brodie Croyle [1] was drafted in 2006. When head coach Herman Edwards arrived in 2006, he stated that he was looking towards implementing younger players into his gameplan, and he was arguably looking to start at the quarterback position. [1]
The Chiefs have also had a repeated history of backup quarterbacks that steal the spotlight. [1] [2] Mike Livingston led the Chiefs to the playoffs in their 1969 season after starting quarterback Len Dawson was injured for the majority of the year. Most recently, Rich Gannon took over for the injured Elvis Grbac in the 1997 season, but was revoked of the job in favor of Grbac's return for the playoffs. The Chiefs lost in the playoffs to the eventual Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos. A similar incident occurred in the 2006 season and playoffs when Trent Green and the Chiefs' offense failed to get a first down in the first forty-two minutes of the game. Backup quarterback Damon Huard, whom led the Chiefs on a 5-2 record in Green's absence, never played a down in the playoff loss to—coincidentally—the eventual Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts. [1] [2] [3]
| Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Fame enshrinees | ||||
| Players | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Name | Position | Tenure | Inducted |
| 78 | Bobby Bell 12 | LB | 1963–1974 | 1983 |
| 63 | Willie Lanier 12 | LB | 1967–1977 | 1986 |
| 16 | Len Dawson 23 | QB | 1963–1975 | 1987 |
| 86 | Buck Buchanan 12 | DT | 1963–1975 | 1990 |
| 3 | Jan Stenerud 123 | K | 1967–1979 | 1991 |
| 53 | Mike Webster | C | 1989–1990 | 1997 |
| 19 | Joe Montana | QB | 1993–1994 | 2000 |
| 32 | Marcus Allen | RB | 1993–1997 | 2003 |
| 1 | Warren Moon | QB | 1999–2000 | 2006 |
| 18 | Emmitt Thomas 12 | CB | 1966–1978 | 2008 |
| 58 | Derrick Thomas | LB | 1989–1999 | 2009 |
| 77 | Willie Roaf | T | 2002–2005 | 2012 |
| 61 | Curley Culp 123 | DT | 1968–1974 | 2013 |
| 68 | Will Shields | G | 1993–2006 | 2015 |
| 8 | Morten Andersen | K | 2002–2003 | 2017 |
| 88 | Tony Gonzalez 3 | TE | 1997–2008 | 2019 |
| 24 | Ty Law | CB | 2006–2007 | 2019 |
| 42 | Johnny Robinson 12 | S | 1960–1971 | 2019 |
| 24 | Darrelle Revis | CB | 2017 | 2023 |
| Coaches and contributors | ||||
| Name | Position | Tenure | Inducted | |
| Lamar Hunt | Founder of franchise and American Football League | 1960–2006 | 1972 | |
| Marv Levy | Head coach | 1978–1982 | 2001 | |
| Hank Stram 123 | Head coach | 1960–1974 | 2003 | |
| Bill Polian | Contributor | 1978–1982 | 2015 | |
| Bobby Beathard | Contributor | 1963, 1966–1967 | 2018 | |
| Dick Vermeil | Head coach | 2001–2005 | 2022 | |
| 1Began career in the American Football League. 2Member of 1969 Super Bowl championship team. 3Spent majority of their career with the Chiefs (names in bold). | ||||
The Kansas City Chiefs feature forty-four former players and franchise contributors in their team hall of fame. Several of the team's names are featured at Arrowhead Stadium in a "ring of honor." A new member has been inducted in an annual ceremony, with the exception of the 1983 season. [4]
1970s | 1980s |
1990s | 2000s |
2010s |
Super Bowl IV was an American football game played on January 11, 1970, at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was the fourth and final AFL–NFL World Championship Game in professional football prior to the AFL–NFL merger taking effect the following season. The American Football League (AFL) champion Kansas City Chiefs defeated the National Football League (NFL) champion Minnesota Vikings by the score of 23–7. This victory by the AFL squared the Super Bowl series with the NFL at two games apiece as the two leagues merged after the game.
Leonard Ray Dawson was an American professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) and American Football League (AFL) for 19 seasons, primarily with the Kansas City Chiefs franchise. After playing college football at Purdue, Dawson began his NFL career in 1957, spending three seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers and two with the Cleveland Browns. He left the NFL in 1962 to sign with the AFL's Chiefs, where he spent the last 14 seasons of his career, and rejoined the NFL after the AFL–NFL merger.
Bobby Lee Bell Sr. is an American former professional football linebacker and defensive end who played for the Kansas City Chiefs of the American Football League (AFL) and the National Football League (NFL). He is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the College Football Hall of Fame, and was a member of the Chiefs' team that won Super Bowl IV against the Minnesota Vikings.
Elvis M. Grbac is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons, most notably with the Kansas City Chiefs. He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines, winning the Sammy Baugh Trophy, and was selected by the San Francisco 49ers in the eighth round of the 1993 NFL draft. Grbac spent his first four seasons as a backup with the 49ers before playing his next four seasons as the Chiefs' starter.
Richard Albert Vermeil is an American former football coach who served as a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for 15 seasons. He was the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles for seven seasons, the St. Louis Rams for three, and the Kansas City Chiefs for five. Prior to the NFL, he was the head football coach at Hillsdale High School from 1960 to 1962, Napa Junior College in 1964, and UCLA from 1974 to 1975. With UCLA, Vermeil led the team to victory in the 1976 Rose Bowl. Vermeil's NFL tenure would see him improve the fortunes of teams that had a losing record before he arrived and bring them all to the playoffs by his third season, which included a Super Bowl title with the Rams.
John Brodie Croyle is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Kansas City Chiefs of the National Football League (NFL) in the third round of the 2006 NFL draft. He played college football for the University of Alabama from 2002 to 2005.
Damon Paul Huard is an American former professional football quarterback. He is the director of community relations and fundraising for the University of Washington football program, his alma mater.
The 2006 season was the Kansas City Chiefs' 37th in the National Football League (NFL), their 47th overall, their 44th in Kansas City, and their first under head coach Herm Edwards. The team failed to improve on their 10–6 record from 2005 after starting at 0–2 start and ending the year with a 9–7 record.
The 1969 Kansas City Chiefs season was the team's tenth, their seventh in Kansas City, and the final season of the American Football League (AFL). It resulted in an 11–3 regular season record and three postseason road victories, including a 23–7 victory in Super Bowl IV over the NFL's heavily favored Minnesota Vikings.
The 2007 season was the Kansas City Chiefs' 38th in the National Football League (NFL), their 48th overall, and their second under head coach Herm Edwards.
31 quarterbacks have started for the National Football League's Kansas City Chiefs since their franchise began. The team has also had numerous backup quarterbacks that have stolen the spotlight from the starters.
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football franchise that began play in 1960 as the Dallas Texans. The team was a charter member of the American Football League (AFL), and now play in the National Football League (NFL). The team is not related to the earlier Dallas Texans NFL team that played for only one season in 1952.
The 1997 season was the Kansas City Chiefs' 28th in the National Football League (NFL) and their 38th overall. The Chiefs improved on their 9–7 record from 1996, and finished with a 13–3 record and as AFC West division champions. The Rich Gannon–Elvis Grbac quarterback controversy was a focal point of the team's season. It brewed throughout the entire season and arguably cost the Chiefs a victory in the playoffs. The Chiefs were defeated by division rival and eventual Super Bowl champion, Denver Broncos, in the 1997 playoffs. 1997 was the final season the Chiefs appeared in the playoffs during the 1990s and for the next several seasons, they fell into futility. They did not return to the playoffs until 2003.
The 1969 AFL playoffs was the postseason of the American Football League for its tenth and final season in 1969. For the first time, the ten-team league scheduled a four-team postseason, consisting of the top two teams from the two divisions. The division champions hosted the second place teams from the other division; both Western division teams won and advanced to the league championship game, with the winner advancing to play the NFL champion in Super Bowl IV in New Orleans on January 18, 1970.
The Chiefs–Raiders rivalry is a National Football League (NFL) rivalry between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Las Vegas Raiders. The rivalry between the Chiefs and Raiders is considered to be one of the NFL's most bitter rivalries. Since the American Football League (AFL) was established in 1960, the Chiefs and Raiders have shared the same division, first being the AFL Western Conference, and since the AFL–NFL merger in 1970, the AFC West.
The 2008 season was the Kansas City Chiefs' 39th in the National Football League (NFL), their 49th overall, and their third and final season under head coach Herm Edwards at the helm. The Chiefs failed to improve on their 4–12 record from 2007 with the youngest team in the NFL as part of their "youth movement". The season turned out to be the worst in the franchise's history at the time, by tallying 13 losses for the first time ever. The Chiefs' record tied with the St. Louis Rams where they stood 2–14.
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division.
The National Football League 100th Anniversary All-Time Team was voted on by a panel consisting of media members, former players and league personnel in 2019 to honor the greatest players of the first 100 years of the National Football League (NFL). Tom Brady, Larry Fitzgerald, and Adam Vinatieri were the only active players when the team was revealed, while Bill Belichick was the only active head coach to be selected; Rob Gronkowski was retired in 2019, but did play in the NFL in 2020 and 2021. Tom Brady was the last active player after his retirement following the 2022 NFL season. Johnny Unitas, Jim Brown, Gale Sayers, Don Hutson, Chuck Bednarik, Gino Marchetti, and Dick "Night Train" Lane are also part of the NFL 50th Anniversary All-Time Team and the NFL 75th Anniversary All-Time Team.
