2008 Kansas City Chiefs season

2008 Kansas City Chiefs season
OwnerThe Hunt family
General managerCarl Peterson
Head coachHerm Edwards
Home fieldArrowhead Stadium
Results
Record2–14
Division place4th AFC West
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro Bowlers
2
AP All-Pros
1
  • TE Tony Gonzalez (1st team)

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".[1] The season turned out to be the worst in the franchise's history at the time,[2] by tallying 13 losses for the first time ever.[3] The Chiefs' record tied with the St. Louis Rams where they stood 2–14.

The Chiefs' 2008 season began with a 1–10 record, with the franchise losing 19 of 20 games over a two-year period.[4] The team lost seven games by 7 points or less,[3] two games by 24-point margins,[5] suffered a 34–0 shutout to the Carolina Panthers,[6] and allowed a franchise-high 54 points against the Buffalo Bills.[4] Following a 22–21 loss to the Chargers, a game in which Kansas City allowed two touchdowns and lost an 11-point lead in the game's final minutes,[7] Chiefs owner Clark Hunt announced the resignation of General Manager/Vice President/CEO Carl Peterson effective at the end of the season.[8] The Chiefs suffered instability on offense with rotation at the quarterback position and offensive gameplans, and also on defense after trading DE Jared Allen to the Minnesota Vikings.[9] After trading Allen, who led the NFL in sacks in 2007, the Chiefs got 10 sacks on the season, setting a new NFL record for fewest sacks in a 16-game season.[2]

The Chiefs reorganized their offense to focus around quarterback Brodie Croyle, but his season-ending injury in Week 7 led to a new spread offense gameplan focused around Tyler Thigpen.[10] His passer rating climbed from 44.3 to 76.9 in the five games following his initial start at Atlanta. The Chiefs scored more than 10 points just twice in their first six games, but scored more offensive points than that in every game since, and twice topped 25 points. The Chiefs won their first game with the new offense against the Raiders in Week 13.

The season was the twelfth and final season in Kansas City for long-time Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez, who was traded to the Atlanta Falcons after the season.

  1. ^ Clayton, John (November 6, 2008). "Interesting list of suitors for Hall". ESPN. Retrieved November 14, 2008.
  2. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Johnson wants was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference Pennington-led was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b "Edwards helps Bills score most against Chiefs in history". ESPN. Associated Press. November 23, 2008. Archived from the original on December 6, 2008. Retrieved December 15, 2008.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Titans extend was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Williams' career-best was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference Chargers keep was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ "Chiefs GM Peterson to step down at end of season". ESPN.com. Associated Press. December 15, 2008. Archived from the original on December 17, 2008. Retrieved December 15, 2008.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Allen to Vikes was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Thigpen to start was invoked but never defined (see the help page).