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1970 Kansas City Chiefs season
Owner Lamar Hunt
General manager Jack Steadman
Head coach Hank Stram
Home field Municipal Stadium
Results
Record7–5–2
Division place2nd AFC West
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro BowlersG Ed Budde
OT Jim Tyrer
DE Jerry Mays
DT Buck Buchanan
LB Bobby Bell
LB Willie Lanier
CB Jim Marsalis
S Johnny Robinson
K Jan Stenerud
P Jerrel Wilson

The 1970 Kansas City Chiefs season was the franchise's debut season in the National Football League, the 8th as the Kansas City Chiefs, and the 11th overall. It began with the Chiefs attempting to defend their Super Bowl IV championship title but ended with a 7–5–2 record and missed the playoffs for the first time since 1967.

Following their championship success, the Chiefs traded running back Mike Garrett, who was the club's all-time leading rusher at the time, to San Diego after a week 3 loss in Denver, and replaced him in the lineup with Ed Podolak. [1] Despite a 44–24 win against soon to be Super Bowl V Champion Baltimore on September 28 in just the second-ever telecast of ABC's Monday Night Football, the Chiefs owned a 3–3–1 record at the season's midpoint. [1]

One of the season's pivotal junctures came in a 17–17 tie against Oakland on November 1. [1] The Chiefs were ahead 17–14 when Len Dawson apparently sealed the win, running for a first down which would have allowed Kansas City to run out the clock. While on the ground, Dawson was speared by Raiders defensive end Ben Davidson in an infamous incident that cost the Chiefs a victory and further inflamed the already heated Chiefs–Raiders rivalry. [1] Wide receiver Otis Taylor retaliated and a bench-clearing brawl ensued. Offsetting penalties were called, nullifying Dawson's first down. The Chiefs were forced to punt and Raiders kicker George Blanda eventually booted a game-tying field goal with eight seconds remaining. Following the tie with Oakland the Chiefs' defense would permit only 43 points over the next 5 weeks, which included 4 wins and 6–6 tie with the St. Louis Cardinals at Municipal Stadium. The Cardinals had come into that game with a streak of three straight shutout wins. The Chiefs' D held St. Louis to a late FG as the game ended 6–6. After a 16–0 shutout of Denver the Chiefs had played to a 6–1–2 record over the past nine weeks to stand 7–3–2 with two weeks to play and very much looked like a team with a chance to defend its championship.

Then came the big one at Oakland, the game that decided pro football's toughest division. The Saturday game on December 12 was a stand-alone NBC national telecast. The Chiefs led early 3–0, and the game was tied 6–6 at the half. But the Raiders, behind the angry running of fullback Marv Hubbard, dominated the second half in a 20–6 division-clinching win for Oakland.

The Chiefs had a slim hope for the AFC wild card, but needed a win by a poor Buffalo team in Miami and a win in San Diego to make the playoffs. Miami jumped to a 28–0 first quarter lead and rolled to a 45–7 win. The Chiefs, warming up to play the Chargers, saw the Miami blowout and knew their reign as champions was over. Eliminated, the Chiefs played an uninspired sleep walk game and lost 31–13. In the end, it was that tie in November with Oakland that ultimately cost the Chiefs the AFC West division title; Kansas City finished at 7–5–2, while the Raiders were a game ahead at 8–4–2. [1] The rules were changed several years later to assess such penalties as the Davidson-Taylor incident as dead-ball fouls after the play counted.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Round Pick Player Position School/Club Team
1 26 Sid Smith Offensive tackle USC
2 52 Clyde Werner Linebacker Washington
3 61 Billy Bob Barnett Defensive end Texas A&M
3 78 David Hadley Defensive back Alcorn A&M
5 130 Mike Oriard Center Notre Dame
6 156 Robert Hews Tackle Princeton
7 182 Clyde Glosson Wide receiver Texas-El Paso
8 193 Fred Barry Defensive back Boston University
9 234 Charley Evans Tackle Texas Tech
10 260 Bob Stankovich Guard Arkansas
11 285 Bill O'Neal Running back Grambling
12 312 Rodney Fedorchak Guard Pittsburgh
13 338 Troy Patridge Defensive end Texas-Arlington
14 364 Glenn Dumont Running back American International
15 390 Bob Liggett Defensive tackle Nebraska
16 416 Randy Ross Linebacker Kansas State
17 442 Rayford Jenkins Defensive back Alcorn A&M

[2]

Roster

1970 Kansas City Chiefs roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad



Rookies in italics

Preseason

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap
1 July 31 vs. College All-Stars W 24–3 1–0 Soldier Field ( Chicago, IL) 55,032 Recap
2 August 8 at Detroit Lions W 30–17 2–0 Tiger Stadium 55,032 Recap
3 August 14 Baltimore Colts L 3–17 2–1 Municipal Stadium 34,341 Recap
4 August 22 vs. Cleveland Browns W 16–13 3–1 Liberty Bowl ( Memphis, TN) 31,532 Recap
5 August 29 at Atlanta Falcons L 17–22 3–2 Atlanta Stadium 56,990 Recap
6 September 5 at Dallas Cowboys W 13–0 4–2 Cotton Bowl 69,055 Recap
7 September 12 at St. Louis Cardinals L 24–34 4–3 Busch Memorial Stadium 50,661 Recap

Regular season

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap
1 September 20 at Minnesota Vikings L 10–27 0–1 Metropolitan Stadium 47,900 Recap
2 September 28 at Baltimore Colts W 44–24 1–1 Memorial Stadium 53,911 Recap
3 October 4 at Denver Broncos L 13–26 1–2 Mile High Stadium 50,705 Recap
4 October 11 Boston Patriots W 23–10 2–2 Municipal Stadium 50,698 Recap
5 October 18 at Cincinnati Bengals W 27–19 3–2 Riverfront Stadium 57,265 Recap
6 October 25 Dallas Cowboys L 16–27 3–3 Municipal Stadium 51,158 Recap
7 November 1 Oakland Raiders T 17–17 3–3–1 Municipal Stadium 51,334 Recap
8 November 8 Houston Oilers W 24–9 4–3–1 Municipal Stadium 49,810 Recap
9 November 15 at Pittsburgh Steelers W 31–14 5–3–1 Three Rivers Stadium 50,081 Recap
10 November 22 St. Louis Cardinals T 6–6 5–3–2 Municipal Stadium 50,711 Recap
11 November 29 San Diego Chargers W 26–14 6–3–2 Municipal Stadium 50,315 Recap
12 December 6 Denver Broncos W 16–0 7–3–2 Municipal Stadium 50,454 Recap
13 December 12 at Oakland Raiders L 6–20 7–4–2 Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum 54,596 Recap
14 December 20 at San Diego Chargers L 13–31 7–5–2 San Diego Stadium 41,379 Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 1: at Minnesota Vikings

Week 1: Kansas City Chiefs at Minnesota Vikings – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 0 7 3010
Vikings 0 17 01027

at Metropolitan Stadium, Bloomington, Minnesota

Game information

Week 2: at Baltimore Colts

Week 2: Kansas City Chiefs at Baltimore Colts – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 10 21 31044
Colts 0 7 31424

at Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, Maryland

Game information

Week 3: at Denver Broncos

Week 3: Kansas City Chiefs at Denver Broncos – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 0 3 10013
Broncos 10 7 0926

at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado

Game information

Week 4: vs. Boston Patriots

Week 4: Boston Patriots at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Patriots 3 0 0710
Chiefs 0 10 01323

at Municipal Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

  • Date: October 11
  • Game time: 3:00 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: 57 °F (14 °C)
  • Game attendance: 50,698
  • Referee: Walt Fitzgerald
  • TV announcers (NBC): Charlie Jones and Kyle Rote
  • Recap
Game information

Week 5: at Cincinnati Bengals

Week 5: Kansas City Chiefs at Cincinnati Bengals – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 0 17 7327
Bengals 3 6 01019

at Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati, Ohio

  • Date: October 18
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: 45 °F (7 °C)
  • Game attendance: 57,265
  • Referee: Ben Dreith
  • TV announcers (NBC): Charlie Jones and George Ratterman
  • Recap
Game information

Week 6: vs. Dallas Cowboys

Week 6: Dallas Cowboys at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cowboys 3 10 14027
Chiefs 7 3 0616

at Municipal Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

Game information

Week 7: vs. Oakland Raiders

Week 7: Oakland Raiders at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Raiders 0 7 7317
Chiefs 0 7 3717

at Municipal Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

  • Date: November 1
  • Game time: 3:00 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: 40 °F (4 °C)
  • Game attendance: 51,334
  • Referee: Bob Finley
  • TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy and Kyle Rote
  • Box score
Game information

Week 8: vs. Houston Oilers

Week 8: Houston Oilers at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Oilers 3 3 309
Chiefs 7 7 01024

at Municipal Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

  • Date: November 8
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: 56 °F (13 °C)
  • Game attendance: 49,810
  • Referee: Bernie Ulman
  • TV announcers (NBC): Bill Enis and George Ratterman
  • Box score
Game information

Week 9: at Pittsburgh Steelers

Week 9: Kansas City Chiefs at Pittsburgh Steelers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 3 7 71431
Steelers 0 0 7714

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Game information

Week 10: vs. St. Louis Cardinals

Week 10: St. Louis Cardinals at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Cardinals 0 0 336
Chiefs 3 3 006

at Municipal Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

  • Date: November 22
  • Game time: 3:00 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: 42 °F (6 °C)
  • Game attendance: 50,711
  • Referee: Fred Swearingen
  • TV announcers (CBS): Ray Scott, Pat Summerall and Bruce Roberts
  • Box score
Game information

Week 11: vs. San Diego Chargers

Week 11: San Diego Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chargers 7 0 0714
Chiefs 10 3 7626

at Municipal Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

  • Date: November 29
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: 48 °F (9 °C)
  • Game attendance: 50,315
  • Referee: Jim Tunney
  • TV announcers (NBC): Jim Simpson and Al DeRogatis
  • Box score
Game information

Week 12: vs. Denver Broncos

Week 12: Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Broncos 0 0 000
Chiefs 10 0 3316

at Municipal Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

Game information

Week 13: at Oakland Raiders

Week 13: Kansas City Chiefs at Oakland Raiders – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 3 0 036
Raiders 0 6 7720

at Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, Oakland, California

  • Date: December 12
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 50 °F (10 °C)
  • Game attendance: 54,596
  • Referee: Tommy Bell
  • TV announcers (NBC): Curt Gowdy and Kyle Rote
  • Recap
Game information

Week 14: at San Diego Chargers

Week 14: Kansas City Chiefs at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 0 10 3013
Chargers 3 14 7731

at San Diego Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: December 20
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: 54 °F (12 °C)
  • Game attendance: 41,379
  • Referee: Norm Schachter
  • TV announcers (NBC): Jay Randolph and Gordy Soltau
  • Recap
Game information

Standings

AFC West
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Oakland Raiders 8 4 2 .667 4–0–2 7–2–2 300 293 L1
Kansas City Chiefs 7 5 2 .583 2–3–1 7–3–1 272 244 L2
San Diego Chargers 5 6 3 .455 2–2–2 4–4–3 282 278 W1
Denver Broncos 5 8 1 .385 1–4–1 3–6–1 253 264 L1
Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Kansas City Chiefs History 1970s". Archived from the original on August 23, 2007. Retrieved July 30, 2007.
  2. ^ 1970 NFL Draft on databaseFootball.com Archived March 27, 2008, at the Wayback Machine