1971 Kansas City Chiefs (NFL) |
| 1st place • American Football Conference • Western Division • 10-3-1 .769 |
| Playoff Statistics |
| Head Coach: Hank Stram |
| John Beake | Offensive Backs |
| Tom Bettis | Defensive Backs |
| Pete Brewster | Receivers |
| Tommy O'Boyle | Assistant Coach |
| Tom Pratt | Defensive Line |
| Bill Walsh | Offensive Line |
| SCORES | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day | Date | Opponent | Score | Location | Venue | Attendance | |||
| Sat | 8/7/1971 | A | Baltimore Colts | 10-7 | W | Baltimore, MD | Memorial Stadium | 16771 | |
| Sat | 8/14/1971 | H | Atlanta Falcons | 12-10 | W | Kansas City, MO | Municipal Stadium | 37403 | |
| Sat | 8/21/1971 | A | New Orleans Saints | 27-7 | W | New Orleans, LA | Tulane Stadium | 70459 | |
| Mon | 8/30/1971 | H | New York Jets | 21-16 | W | Kansas City, MO | Municipal Stadium | 37650 | |
| Sat | 9/4/1971 | H | St. Louis Cardinals | 17-17 | T | Kansas City, MO | Municipal Stadium | 36743 | |
| Sat | 9/11/1971 | A | Dallas Cowboys | 17-24 | L | Dallas, TX | Cotton Bowl | 74035 | |
| Sun | 9/19/1971 | A | San Diego Chargers | 14-21 | L | San Diego, CA | San Diego Stadium | 54061 | |
| Sun | 9/26/1971 | A | Houston Oilers | 20-16 | W | Houston, TX | Astrodome | 46498 | |
| Sun | 10/3/1971 | A | Denver Broncos | 16-3 | W | Denver, CO | Mile High Stadium | 51200 | |
| Sun | 10/10/1971 | H | San Diego Chargers | 31-10 | W | Kansas City, MO | Municipal Stadium | 50514 | |
| Mon | 10/18/1971 | H | Pittsburgh Steelers | 38-16 | W | Kansas City, MO | Municipal Stadium | 49533 | |
| Sun | 10/24/1971 | H | Washington Redskins | 27-20 | W | Kansas City, MO | Municipal Stadium | 51989 | |
| Sun | 10/31/1971 | A | Oakland Raiders | 20-20 | T | Oakland, CA | Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum | 54715 | |
| Sun | 11/7/1971 | A | New York Jets | 10-13 | L | New York, NY | Shea Stadium | 62812 | |
| Sun | 11/14/1971 | H | Cleveland Browns | 13-7 | W | Kansas City, MO | Municipal Stadium | 50388 | |
| Sun | 11/21/1971 | H | Denver Broncos | 28-10 | W | Kansas City, MO | Municipal Stadium | 49945 | |
| Thu | 11/25/1971 | A | Detroit Lions | 21-32 | L | Detroit, MI | Tiger Stadium | 54418 | |
| Mon | 12/6/1971 | A | San Francisco 49ers | 26-17 | W | San Francisco, CA | Candlestick Park | 45306 | |
| Sun | 12/12/1971 | H | Oakland Raiders | 16-14 | W | Kansas City, MO | Municipal Stadium | 51215 | |
| Sun | 12/19/1971 | H | Buffalo Bills | 22-9 | W | Kansas City, MO | Municipal Stadium | 48121 | |
| AFC Divisional Playoff | |||||||||
| Sat | 12/25/1971 | H | Miami Dolphins | 24-27 | L | OT2 | Kansas City, MO | Municipal Stadium | 45822 |
| ROSTER | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | No | Pos | Ht | Wt | Age | College | GP | GS |
| Mike Adamle | 32 | RB | 5-9 | 197 | 22 | Northwestern | 8 | 0 |
| Nate Allen | 48 | RCB | 5-10 | 170 | 23 | Texas Southern | 4 | 0 |
| Bobby Bell | 78 | LLB | 6-4 | 228 | 31 | Minnesota | 14 | 14 |
| Ceasar Belser | 24 | RLB | 6-0 | 212 | 27 | Arkansas-Pine Bluff | 14 | 0 |
| Bruce Bergey | 84 | TE | 6-4 | 240 | 25 | Glendale CC; UCLA | 6 | 0 |
| Aaron Brown | 87 | RDE | 6-5 | 263 | 28 | Minnesota | 13 | 13 |
| Buck Buchanan | 86 | RDT | 6-7 | 279 | 32 | Grambling State | 14 | 14 |
| Ed Budde | 71 | LOG | 6-5 | 261 | 31 | Michigan State | 14 | 14 |
| Curley Culp | 61 | LDT | 6-1 | 265 | 25 | Arizona State | 14 | 14 |
| George Daney | 60 | ROG-C | 6-4 | 240 | 25 | Detroit Mercy; Texas-El Paso | 14 | 6 |
| Len Dawson | 16 | QB | 6-0 | 190 | 36 | Purdue | 14 | 13 |
| Willie Frazier | 83 | TE | 6-4 | 230 | 29 | Arkansas-Pine Bluff | 8 | 1 |
| Dave Hadley | 23 | LCB-LS | 5-9 | 189 | 23 | Alcorn State | 14 | 0 |
| Wendell Hayes | 38 | RB | 6-1 | 221 | 31 | Oakland JC; Cal Poly (Humboldt) | 14 | 14 |
| Dave Hill | 73 | ROT | 6-5 | 259 | 30 | Auburn | 14 | 13 |
| Robert Holmes | 45 | RB | 5-9 | 221 | 26 | Southern University | 6 | 0 |
| Dennis Homan | 21 | WR | 6-1 | 181 | 25 | Alabama | 8 | 0 |
| John Huarte | 7 | QB | 6-0 | 188 | 28 | Notre Dame | 1 | 0 |
| Bruce Jankowski | 41 | WR | 5-11 | 185 | 22 | Ohio State | 5 | 0 |
| Jim Kearney | 46 | LS | 6-2 | 205 | 28 | Prairie View A&M | 14 | 14 |
| Willie Lanier | 63 | MLB | 6-1 | 245 | 26 | Morgan State | 14 | 14 |
| Mike Livingston | 10 | QB | 6-3 | 209 | 26 | Southern Methodist | 3 | 1 |
| Ed Lothamer | 82 | LDT | 6-5 | 261 | 29 | Michigan State | 14 | 0 |
| Jim Lynch | 51 | RLB | 6-1 | 232 | 26 | Notre Dame | 14 | 14 |
| Jim Marsalis | 40 | LCB | 5-11 | 194 | 26 | Tennessee State | 14 | 14 |
| Warren McVea | 6 | RB | 5-10 | 182 | 25 | Houston | 12 | 3 |
| Mo Moorman | 76 | ROG | 6-5 | 232 | 26 | Kentucky; Texas A&M | 9 | 8 |
| Mike Oriard | 50 | C | 6-4 | 223 | 23 | Notre Dame | 14 | 1 |
| Jim Otis | 35 | RB | 6-0 | 220 | 23 | Ohio State | 13 | 0 |
| Ed Podolak | 14 | RB | 6-1 | 204 | 24 | Iowa | 13 | 11 |
| Kerry Reardon | 15 | CB | 5-11 | 180 | 22 | Iowa | 6 | 0 |
| Johnny Robinson | 42 | RS | 6-0 | 200 | 33 | Louisiana State | 14 | 14 |
| Jack Rudnay | 58 | C | 6-3 | 240 | 24 | Northwestern | 13 | 13 |
| Mike Sensibaugh | 20 | RS | 5-11 | 191 | 22 | Ohio State | 7 | 0 |
| Sid Smith | 70 | ROT-LOT | 6-4 | 260 | 23 | Southern California | 14 | 1 |
| Bob Stein | 66 | LLB-MLB-LDE-RDE | 6-2 | 235 | 23 | Minnesota | 14 | 0 |
| Jan Stenerud | 3 | K | 6-2 | 188 | 29 | Montana State | 14 | 0 |
| Morris Stroud | 88 | TE | 6-10 | 255 | 25 | Clark Atlanta | 14 | 13 |
| Otis Taylor | 89 | WR | 6-2 | 215 | 29 | Prairie View A&M | 14 | 14 |
| Emmitt Thomas | 18 | RCB | 6-2 | 192 | 28 | Bishop | 14 | 14 |
| Jim Tyrer | 77 | LOT | 6-6 | 283 | 32 | Ohio State | 14 | 14 |
| Marv Upshaw | 81 | LDE | 6-3 | 253 | 25 | Trinity (Texas) | 14 | 14 |
| Jerrel Wilson | 44 | P | 6-4 | 222 | 30 | Pearl River CC; Southern Mississippi | 14 | 0 |
| Elmo Wright | 17 | WR | 6-0 | 190 | 22 | Houston | 14 | 14 |
| Wilbur Young | 99 | LDE-RDT | 6-6 | 285 | 22 | William Penn | 13 | 1 |
| DRAFT LIST | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round | Overall | Player | Pos | College |
| 1 | 16 | Elmo Wright | WR | Houston |
| 2 | 39 | Wilbur Young | DT | William Penn |
| 2 | 42 | Scott Lewis | DE | Grambling State |
| 4 | 94 | Dave Robinson | TE | Jacksonville State |
| 5 | 120 | Mike Adamle | RB | Northwestern |
| 6 | 146 | Kerry Reardon | DB | Iowa |
| 8 | 191 | Mike Sensibaugh | DB | Ohio State |
| 8 | 198 | Rick Telander | DB | Northwestern |
| 9 | 224 | Alvin Hawes | T | Minnesota |
| 10 | 250 | Bruce Jankowski | WR | Ohio State |
| 11 | 276 | Nate Allen | DB | Texas Southern |
| 12 | 302 | Tony Esposito | RB | Pittsburgh |
| 13 | 328 | Chuck Hixson | QB | Southern Methodist |
| 14 | 354 | Bruce Bergey | DE | UCLA |
| 15 | 380 | Mike Montgomery | DB | Texas State |
| 16 | 406 | Darrell Jansonius | G | Iowa State |
| 17 | 431 | Travis Hill | DB | Prairie View A&M |
| SCORING BY QUARTERS | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Totals | 61 | 123 | 48 | 70 | 302 |
| Opponents Totals | 41 | 71 | 22 | 74 | 208 |
| TEAM STATS | TOP | 1st Downs | FDR | FDP | FDX | 3rd Down Efficiency | 4th Down Efficiency | PEN | PENY |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Totals | 240 | 108 | 119 | 13 | / % | / % | 72 | 734 | |
| Opponents Totals | 223 | 73 | 125 | 25 | / % | / % | 71 | 751 |
| SCORING | TD | X1 | X1A | PCT | FG | FGA | PCT | SAF | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan Stenerud | 0 | 32 | 32 | 100.0 | 26 | 44 | 59.1 | 0 | 110 |
| Ed Podolak | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 54 | ||
| Otis Taylor | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 48 | ||
| Warren McVea | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | ||
| Elmo Wright | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | ||
| Wendell Hayes | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | ||
| Jim Otis | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | ||
| Mike Adamle | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Bobby Bell | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Aaron Brown | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Morris Stroud | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Emmitt Thomas | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| Bob Stein | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Team Totals | 32 | 32 | 32 | 100.0 | 26 | 45 | 57.8 | 0 | 302 |
| Opponents Totals | 21 | 20 | 21 | 95.2 | 20 | 32 | 62.5 | 1 | 208 |
| FIELD GOALS | MADE | ATT | PCT | BL | LG | 1-19 | 20-29 | 30-39 | 40-49 | 50+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan Stenerud | 26 | 44 | 59.1 | 3 | 54 | 12/13 | 5/9 | 4/8 | 4/9 | 1/5 |
| Bob Stein | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0/0 | 0/0 | 0/1 | 0/0 | 0/0 | |
| Team Totals | 26 | 45 | 57.8 | 3 | 54 | 12/13 | 5/9 | 4/9 | 4/9 | 1/5 |
| Opponents Totals | 20 | 32 | 62.5 | 5/ | 4/ | 7/ | 4/ | 0/ |
| RUSHING | ATT | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ed Podolak | 184 | 708 | 3.8 | 25 | 9 |
| Wendell Hayes | 132 | 537 | 4.1 | 27 | 1 |
| Warren McVea | 68 | 288 | 4.2 | 19 | 3 |
| Jim Otis | 49 | 184 | 3.8 | 14 | 0 |
| Mike Adamle | 13 | 43 | 3.3 | 15 | 0 |
| Robert Holmes | 21 | 35 | 1.7 | 6 | 0 |
| Otis Taylor | 1 | 25 | 25.0 | 25t | 1 |
| Len Dawson | 12 | 24 | 2.0 | 8 | 0 |
| Mike Livingston | 5 | 11 | 2.2 | 5 | 0 |
| Willie Frazier | 1 | -2 | -2.0 | -2 | 0 |
| Elmo Wright | 1 | -10 | -10.0 | -10 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 487 | 1843 | 3.8 | 27 | 14 |
| Opponents Totals | 367 | 1300 | 3.5 | 28 | 9 |
| PASSING | ATT | COM | PCT | INC | YDS | Y/ATT | Y/COM | LG | TD | TD% | INT | INT% | TS | YL | NYP | RTG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Len Dawson | 301 | 167 | 55.5 | 121 | 2504 | 8.3 | 15.0 | 82 | 15 | 5.0 | 13 | 4.3 | 30 | 303 | 2201 | 81.6 |
| Mike Livingston | 28 | 12 | 42.9 | 16 | 130 | 4.6 | 10.8 | 36 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 4 | 39 | 91 | 57.1 |
| Ed Podolak | 2 | 2 | 100.0 | 0 | 42 | 21.0 | 21.0 | 23 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 42 | 118.8 |
| John Huarte | 6 | 2 | 33.3 | 4 | 18 | 3.0 | 9.0 | 26 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0.0 | 1 | 5 | 13 | 42.4 |
| Team Totals | 337 | 183 | 54.3 | 141 | 2694 | 8.0 | 14.7 | 82 | 15 | 4.5 | 13 | 3.9 | 35 | 347 | 2347 | 79.4 |
| Opponents Totals | 418 | 209 | 50.0 | 182 | 2703 | 6.5 | 12.9 | 53 | 11 | 2.6 | 27 | 6.5 | 28 | 235 | 2468 | 52.6 |
| RECEIVING | REC | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Otis Taylor | 57 | 1110 | 19.5 | 82 | 7 |
| Ed Podolak | 36 | 252 | 7.0 | 23 | 0 |
| Elmo Wright | 26 | 528 | 20.3 | 69t | 3 |
| Morris Stroud | 22 | 454 | 20.6 | 54 | 1 |
| Wendell Hayes | 16 | 150 | 9.4 | 26t | 1 |
| Jim Otis | 13 | 81 | 6.2 | 26 | 2 |
| Warren McVea | 5 | -3 | -0.6 | 10 | 0 |
| Dennis Homan | 2 | 47 | 23.5 | 29 | 0 |
| Willie Frazier | 2 | 41 | 20.5 | 23 | 0 |
| Robert Holmes | 2 | 16 | 8.0 | 12 | 0 |
| Sid Smith | 1 | 12 | 12.0 | 12 | 0 |
| Mike Adamle | 1 | 6 | 6.0 | 6t | 1 |
| Team Totals | 183 | 2694 | 14.7 | 82 | 15 |
| Opponents Totals | 209 | 2703 | 12.9 | 53 | 11 |
| INTERCEPTIONS | INT | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emmitt Thomas | 8 | 145 | 18.1 | 36 | 1 |
| Johnny Robinson | 4 | 53 | 13.3 | 29 | 0 |
| Jim Kearney | 3 | 46 | 15.3 | 29 | 0 |
| Jim Marsalis | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Willie Lanier | 2 | 38 | 19.0 | 21 | 0 |
| Aaron Brown | 1 | 68 | 68.0 | 68t | 1 |
| Bobby Bell | 1 | 26 | 26.0 | 26t | 1 |
| Jim Lynch | 1 | 10 | 10.0 | 10 | 0 |
| Buck Buchanan | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 9 | 0 |
| Bob Stein | 1 | 5 | 5.0 | 5 | 0 |
| Wilbur Young | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 3 | 0 |
| Dave Hadley | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 27 | 403 | 14.9 | 68t | 3 |
| Opponents Totals | 13 | 167 | 12.8 | 50 | 0 |
| PUNTING | NO | YDS | AVG | LG | BL | TB | I20 | RYDS | NYDS | NET |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jerrel Wilson | 64 | 2864 | 44.8 | 68 | 1 | 286 | ||||
| Team Totals | 64 | 2864 | 44.8 | 68 | 1 | 286 | ||||
| Opponents Totals | 67 | 2727 | 40.7 | 56 | 0 | 150 |
| PUNT RETURNS | NO | FC | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ed Podolak | 14 | 9 | 84 | 6.0 | 23 | 0 |
| Dennis Homan | 10 | 5 | 61 | 6.1 | 18 | 0 |
| Mike Sensibaugh | 5 | 1 | -2 | -0.4 | 3 | 0 |
| Kerry Reardon | 3 | 5 | 5 | 1.7 | 4 | 0 |
| Ceasar Belser | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2.0 | 2 | 0 |
| Team Totals | 33 | 20 | 150 | 4.5 | 23 | 0 |
| Opponents Totals | 40 | 6 | 286 | 7.2 | 27 | 0 |
| KICKOFF RETURNS | NO | FC | YDS | AVG | LG | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kerry Reardon | 12 | 308 | 25.7 | 41 | 0 | |
| Warren McVea | 9 | 177 | 19.7 | 37 | 0 | |
| Robert Holmes | 7 | 171 | 24.4 | 41 | 0 | |
| Mike Adamle | 7 | 149 | 21.3 | 34 | 0 | |
| Wendell Hayes | 4 | 75 | 18.8 | 34 | 0 | |
| Mike Sensibaugh | 4 | 71 | 17.8 | 25 | 0 | |
| Ed Podolak | 3 | 65 | 21.7 | 25 | 0 | |
| Bruce Bergey | 1 | 15 | 15.0 | 15 | 0 | |
| Team Totals | 47 | 1031 | 21.9 | 41 | 0 | |
| Opponents Totals | 47 | 1071 | 22.8 | 44 | 0 |
| SACKS | NO | YDS |
|---|---|---|
| Marvin Upshaw | 7.5 | |
| Curley Culp | 6.0 | |
| Aaron Brown | 5.0 | |
| Buck Buchanan | 5.0 | |
| Wilbur Young | 2.5 | |
| Bobby Bell | 1.5 | |
| Jim Lynch | 0.5 | |
| Team Totals | 28.0 | 235.0 |
| Opponents Totals | 35.0 | 347.0 |
| FUMBLES | NO | LOST | OWN | OPP | REC | YDS | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Len Dawson | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3 | -14 | 0 | |
| Wendell Hayes | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Robert Holmes | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Dennis Homan | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| Jim Kearney | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 20 | 0 |
| Willie Lanier | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| Mike Livingston | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | |
| Jim Lynch | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| Jim Marsalis | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Warren McVea | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Jim Otis | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Ed Podolak | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Mike Sensibaugh | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Sid Smith | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Otis Taylor | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jim Tyrer | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Jerrel Wilson | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -11 | 0 | |
| Elmo Wright | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Team Totals | 23 | 14 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 1 | 0 |
| Opponents Totals | 16 | 6 | 8 | 13 | 21 | 1 |
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| Last Updated: February 21, 2025 |