1971 Kansas City Chiefs season

1971 Kansas City Chiefs season

Infobox NFL_season
team = Kansas City Chiefs
year = 1971
record = 10-3-1
division_place = 1st AFC West
coach = Hank Stram
stadium = Municipal Stadium
playoffs = L (Dolphins, 27-24 in 2OT)

The 1971 Kansas City Chiefs season saw the club bounce back from a 7-5-2 campaign in 1970 to record a 10-3-1 mark and win the AFC West division championship, the Chiefs' first division title since 1966. The Chiefs tied with the Miami Dolphins for the best record in the AFC and were tied for the third-best record overall in the NFL, trailing only the 11-3 marks of the Dallas Cowboys and Minnesota Vikings.

Most of the pieces of the team which won Super Bowl IV two years earlier were still in place. Left defensive end Jerry Mays retired after the 1970 season, with Marvin Upshaw taking his spot, but the other 10 defensive starters were the same as they were two years prior. Middle linebacker Willie Lanier was a unanimous All-Pro selection following the season, and would likely have been named NFL Defensive Player of the Year had not Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Alan Page become the second defensive player to win the league's Most Valuable Player award. Outside linebacker Bobby Bell, defensive tackle Buck Buchanan and cornerback Emmitt Thomas joined Lanier on the AFC Pro Bowl squad following the season.

On offense, fullback Robert Holmes was traded to the San Diego Chargers midway through the season, leaving Wendell Hayes to assume the fullback duties next to third-year pro Ed Podolak, who had become the starting halfback slot when Mike Garrett was traded to San Diego in 1970. Morris Stroud, the tallest player in NFL history at 6-foot-10, and Willie Frazier, acquired from San Diego, alternated at tight end for the retired Fred Arbanas, but the rest of the offensive line, save for center Jack Rudnay, remained the same from the Super Bowl winning team. Rudnay assumed the starting center spot in 1970 over veteran E. J. Holub. At wide receiver, rookie Elmo Wright, the Chiefs' first-round pick in the 1971 NFL Draft from the University of Houston, assumed the slot opposite all-pro Otis Taylor, as Frank Pitts had moved on to the Cleveland Browns. Taylor earned selection to the Pro Bowl, along with guard Ed Budde, quarterback Len Dawson, and tackle Jim Tyrer.

Kansas City's special teams remained among the league's elite units, thanks to the combination of kicker Jan Stenerud and punter Jerrel Wilson, both of whom were named to the Pro Bowl. Podolak and Warren McVea handled the bulk of the return duties.

The season was the last for the Chiefs in Municipal Stadium, as owner Lamar Hunt and general manager Jack Steadman were overseeing the construction of Arrowhead Stadium, located at the junction of Interstate 70 and Interstate 435 in Jackson County, Missouri, at the eastern edge of the Kansas City city limits. Arrowhead, along with Royals Stadium, being constructed for the Kansas City Royals of Major League Baseball, would form the Truman Sports Complex, bucking the trend of multi-purpose stadiums in vogue at the time.

The season ended in heartbreak, as the Miami Dolphins won the longest game in National Football League history on Christmas Day, defeating the Chiefs 27-24 in double overtime on a 37-yard field goal by Garo Yepremian in the last football game in Municipal Stadium, as well as the last game for safety Johnny Robinson, who was an original member of the Dallas Texans in 1960. Coach Hank Stram often called the 1971 Chiefs the franchise's best-ever squad, and this loss haunted Stram for the rest of his life, even after his induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2003.

The loss to Miami began a nosedive in the Chiefs' fortunes. Kansas City backslid to 8-6 and 7-5-2 in 1972 and 1973, before falling to 5-9 and last in the AFC West in 1974, leading to the Stram's firing following the season. Kansas City would not reach the playoffs again until 1986, did not host (or win) another playoff game until 1991, and did not win the AFC West division title until 1993.

Offseason

NFL Draft

eason Standings

[ NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York,NY, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 297 ]

References

External links

* [http://www.databasefootball.com/teams/teamyear.htm?tm=KAN&lg=nfl&yr=1971 1971 Kansas City Chiefs on Database Football]


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • 1990 Kansas City Chiefs season — Infobox NFL season team = Kansas City Chiefs year = 1990 record = 11 5 division place = 2nd AFC West coach = Marty Schottenheimer stadium = Arrowhead Stadium playoffs = L (Dolphins)The 1990 Kansas City Chiefs season ended with an 11 5 record and… …   Wikipedia

  • 1986 Kansas City Chiefs season — Infobox NFL season team = Kansas City Chiefs year = 1986 record = 10 6 division place = 2nd AFC West coach = John Mackovic stadium = Arrowhead Stadium playoffs = L (Jets) 15 35The 1986 Kansas City Chiefs season ended with a 10 6 record, the most… …   Wikipedia

  • Kansas City Chiefs — Current season Established 1960 Play in and headquartered in Arrowhead Stadium Kansas City, Missouri …   Wikipedia

  • History of the Kansas City Chiefs — The following is a detailed history of the Kansas City Chiefs, 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 is currently part …   Wikipedia

  • List of Kansas City Chiefs players — This is a select list of players from the Kansas City Chiefs football team from the National Football League. For more information, see Kansas City Chiefs. Current rosterAll time first round draft picksChiefs quarterbacksThroughout the Chiefs… …   Wikipedia

  • Kansas City, Missouri — For other cities with a similar name, see Kansas City (disambiguation). Kansas City   City   From top left: the Liberty Me …   Wikipedia

  • Municipal Stadium (Kansas City) — Kansas City Municipal Stadium Municipal Stadium First Athletics game at Municipal Stadium, 1955. Former names Muehlebach Field (1923 1937) …   Wikipedia

  • History of Kansas City — The History of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area dates back to the 1800s. The Kansas City Metropolitan Area, straddling the border between Missouri and Kansas at the confluence of the Kansas and Missouri rivers, was a good place to build several… …   Wikipedia

  • History of the Kansas City Royals — The following is a detailed history of the Kansas City Royals, a Major League Baseball team that began play in 1969 in Kansas City, Missouri. The team is currently in the American League Central Division. The franchise has won six division titles …   Wikipedia

  • 1971 Pittsburgh Steelers season — Infobox NFL season team = Pittsburgh Steelers year = 1971 record = 6 8 division place = 2nd AFC Central coach = Chuck Noll stadium = Three Rivers Stadium playoffs = none previous = 1970 next = 1972 Offseason NFL Draft Preseason Schedule Game… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”