1968 Kansas City Chiefs season

1968 Kansas City Chiefs season
OwnerLamar Hunt
General managerJack Steadman
Head coachHank Stram
Home fieldMunicipal Stadium
Results
Record12–2
Division place2nd AFL Western
Playoff finishLost Divisional Playoffs
(at Raiders) 6–41
AFL All-StarsQB Len Dawson
OT Jim Tyrer
G Ed Budde
DT Buck Buchanan
DE Jerry Mays
LB Jim Lynch
LB Willie Lanier
LB Bobby Bell
CB Emmitt Thomas
S Johnny Robinson
K Jan Stenerud

The 1968 Kansas City Chiefs season was the 9th season for the Kansas City Chiefs as a professional AFL franchise; They finished with a 12–2 record (the best in the Stram era), resulting in a tie for first place in the AFL Western Division with the Oakland Raiders, before the Raiders won the championship in a tiebreaker playoff, defeating the Chiefs 41–6.

The 1968 Chiefs boasted one of the finest defenses ever assembled by the club, allowing an AFL record (and still franchise-low) 170 points, or 12.1 points per game. The nucleus of the defensive unit was clearly in its prime, producing six AFL All-Stars, including all three of the squad's linebackers.

Offensively, quarterback Len Dawson led the AFL in passing for the fourth time. Guard Ed Budde won the AFL Offensive Player of the Week award for the October 20 game against the Raiders. It was the first time the award was given to an interior lineman.

The Chiefs began the season with a 7–1 record and rattled off five straight victories to close the regular season at 12–2, sharing the division crown with the Raiders and setting up their playoff on December 22, in which the Raiders advanced to the AFL Championship Game against the New York Jets.[1] The loss to Oakland was a major event in the Chiefs' rivalry with the Raiders, one of the NFL's most storied feuds.

  1. ^ "Kansas City Chiefs History 1960's". Archived from the original on October 18, 2004. Retrieved July 30, 2007.