Len Dawson has passed - RIP

Al Bundy · 11:37 AM

https://kmbc.com/article/len-dawson-...at-87/40943140

"He loved Kansas City and no matter where his travels took him, he could not wait to return home."

Rest well, Len. ❤️

Len Dawson has died at the age of 87: https://t.co/rRdEugmMD9 pic.twitter.com/cJfMwKtpon
— KMBC (@kmbc) August 24, 2022

https://www.chiefs.com/news/chiefs-m...4l3P21ZulRpgwc

Chiefs Mourn the Passing of Franchise Legend Len Dawson
Aug 24, 2022 at 07:47 AM

The Kansas City Chiefs are saddened to share the passing of Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback, Chiefs legend and Kansas City icon, Len Dawson.

"My family and I are heartbroken. Len Dawson is synonymous with the Kansas City Chiefs. Len embraced and came to embody Kansas City and the people that call it home. You would be hard-pressed to find a player who had a bigger impact in shaping the organization as we know it today than Len Dawson did," Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt said. "I admired Len my entire life – first as a Hall of Fame player on the field, and later as he transitioned into a successful broadcasting career. Throughout his remarkable career, Len made it a priority to give back to the community that he loved. The franchise has lost a true legend. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Linda and his family."

Dawson was the heart and soul of the Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs franchise during his illustrious14-year Chiefs career, helping make the franchise one of professional football's premier teams while becoming one of the game's elite passers.

Under the leadership of PFHOF Head Coach Hank Stram, who brought Dawson to the Texans/Chiefs franchise in 1962, Dawson's Chiefs were perennial contenders and won American Football League Championships in 1962, 1966 and 1969. He earned the Most Valuable Player award for Super Bowl IV when he directed Kansas City to a 23-7 win over the heavily favored Minnesota Vikings. Dawson won the AFL passing title four times and still holds the franchise's career records for pass attempts (3,696), completions (2,115), passing yards (28,507) and touchdowns (237).

He was named to six AFL All-Star teams and one Pro Bowl squad, and also earned AFL Player of the Year honors for the 1962 season. Dawson started 158 regular season games for Kansas City, the most of any quarterback in franchise history. He led the AFL in passing four different seasons (1962, 1964, 1966 and 1968), pacing the AFL in completion percentage eight times, including a string of six-straight seasons from 1964-69.

Dawson was recognized as the 1973 NFL Man of the Year, one of five Chiefs players to ever earn the honor. He retired from professional football on May 1, 1976. He was enshrined into the Chiefs Hall of Fame in 1979 and was immortalized at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, in 1987. He was also enshrined in the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 1994 and the Purdue Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996.

Dawson enjoyed an equally legendary broadcasting career that began during his playing days. In 1966 he served as a sports anchor with KMBC Radio and as sports director for KMBC-TV while serving as the club's signal caller. Following his retirement from professional football after the 1975 season, Dawson joined NBC and served as a color analyst on NFL games until 1982. He then joined the Chiefs Radio Network as a color commentator in 1984, serving on the team's radio crew for 35 years. While working NFL games for NBC, Dawson embarked on what would become a 24-year run that spanned four decades (1977-2001) as the host of HBO's popular "Inside the NFL," cable television's longest-running series and the first NFL-related program to air on cable.

For his contributions to broadcasting, Dawson was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame as the recipient of the Hall's Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award in 2012. He became just the third individual in professional football history to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as both a player and a broadcaster, joining Dan Dierdorf and Frank Gifford.

In 2014, Dawson was honored with the Lamar Hunt Award for Professional Football at the 44th Annual NFL 101 Awards, recognizing his contributions both on and off the field that helped shape the National Football League into the preeminent professional sports league in America. In 2017, the club renamed the television broadcast booth inside GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium the Len Dawson Broadcast Booth in honor of Dawson's accomplishments both on the field and as a broadcaster.

Dawson began his professional career as a first-round draft pick of the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers in 1957. He went on to land with Cleveland in 1960 but was cut by the Browns prior to the 1962 season, at which point he was signed by the Dallas Texans as a free agent on July 2, 1962. In total he spent 19 years as a quarterback in the NFL/AFL.

The Alliance, Ohio, native attended Purdue University where he was a three-year starter at quarterback for the Boilermakers (1954-56) and ended his career as the university's leader in career passing yards and touchdown passes.

Pablo · 08-12-2022, 03:35 PM

Godspeed Lenny the Cool

lawrenceRaider · 08-12-2022, 03:38 PM

Sorry to hear it.

Boiled Chicken · 08-12-2022, 03:38 PM

Prayers

LiveSteam · 08-12-2022, 03:39 PM

Awwww. That sucks.
Man was a stud. Happy landings Len

Titty Meat · 08-12-2022, 03:41 PM

Damn that's too bad

**wazu** · 08-12-2022, 03:43 PM

Damn. Part of the fabric of this city. A huge part of my life the only thing Chiefs fans had to hold onto was what he and his teammates accomplished, even if we never got to see him play.

Megatron96 · 08-12-2022, 03:43 PM

Prayers. Love you, Len.

seclark · 08-12-2022, 03:43 PM

Thoughts and prayers
sec

Monty · 08-12-2022, 03:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pablo

Godspeed Lenny the Cool

All day this.

TwistedChief · 08-12-2022, 03:50 PM

Love you, Lenny.

VAChief · 08-12-2022, 03:52 PM

Awful news...Godspeed Lenny! Chief Nation will always have your blindside.

threebag · 08-12-2022, 04:03 PM

Prayers Lenny, thank you for being one of my favorite All Time Chiefs.

stumppy · 08-12-2022, 04:04 PM

You're The Man, Lenny. Always will be.

**dirk digler** · 08-12-2022, 04:06 PM

god speed Lenny you will never be forgotten and you will be missed.

08-12-2022, 03:34 PM
Al Bundy Damnit Peg Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Overland Park Casino cash: $5401831	Len Dawson has passed - RIP https://kmbc.com/article/len-dawson-...at-87/40943140 "He loved Kansas City and no matter where his travels took him, he could not wait to return home." Rest well, Len. ❤️ Len Dawson has died at the age of 87: https://t.co/rRdEugmMD9 pic.twitter.com/cJfMwKtpon — KMBC (@kmbc) August 24, 2022 https://www.chiefs.com/news/chiefs-m...4l3P21ZulRpgwc Chiefs Mourn the Passing of Franchise Legend Len Dawson Aug 24, 2022 at 07:47 AM The Kansas City Chiefs are saddened to share the passing of Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback, Chiefs legend and Kansas City icon, Len Dawson. "My family and I are heartbroken. Len Dawson is synonymous with the Kansas City Chiefs. Len embraced and came to embody Kansas City and the people that call it home. You would be hard-pressed to find a player who had a bigger impact in shaping the organization as we know it today than Len Dawson did," Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt said. "I admired Len my entire life – first as a Hall of Fame player on the field, and later as he transitioned into a successful broadcasting career. Throughout his remarkable career, Len made it a priority to give back to the community that he loved. The franchise has lost a true legend. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Linda and his family." Dawson was the heart and soul of the Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs franchise during his illustrious14-year Chiefs career, helping make the franchise one of professional football's premier teams while becoming one of the game's elite passers. Under the leadership of PFHOF Head Coach Hank Stram, who brought Dawson to the Texans/Chiefs franchise in 1962, Dawson's Chiefs were perennial contenders and won American Football League Championships in 1962, 1966 and 1969. He earned the Most Valuable Player award for Super Bowl IV when he directed Kansas City to a 23-7 win over the heavily favored Minnesota Vikings. Dawson won the AFL passing title four times and still holds the franchise's career records for pass attempts (3,696), completions (2,115), passing yards (28,507) and touchdowns (237). He was named to six AFL All-Star teams and one Pro Bowl squad, and also earned AFL Player of the Year honors for the 1962 season. Dawson started 158 regular season games for Kansas City, the most of any quarterback in franchise history. He led the AFL in passing four different seasons (1962, 1964, 1966 and 1968), pacing the AFL in completion percentage eight times, including a string of six-straight seasons from 1964-69. Dawson was recognized as the 1973 NFL Man of the Year, one of five Chiefs players to ever earn the honor. He retired from professional football on May 1, 1976. He was enshrined into the Chiefs Hall of Fame in 1979 and was immortalized at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, in 1987. He was also enshrined in the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 1994 and the Purdue Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996. Dawson enjoyed an equally legendary broadcasting career that began during his playing days. In 1966 he served as a sports anchor with KMBC Radio and as sports director for KMBC-TV while serving as the club's signal caller. Following his retirement from professional football after the 1975 season, Dawson joined NBC and served as a color analyst on NFL games until 1982. He then joined the Chiefs Radio Network as a color commentator in 1984, serving on the team's radio crew for 35 years. While working NFL games for NBC, Dawson embarked on what would become a 24-year run that spanned four decades (1977-2001) as the host of HBO's popular "Inside the NFL," cable television's longest-running series and the first NFL-related program to air on cable. For his contributions to broadcasting, Dawson was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame as the recipient of the Hall's Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award in 2012. He became just the third individual in professional football history to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as both a player and a broadcaster, joining Dan Dierdorf and Frank Gifford. In 2014, Dawson was honored with the Lamar Hunt Award for Professional Football at the 44th Annual NFL 101 Awards, recognizing his contributions both on and off the field that helped shape the National Football League into the preeminent professional sports league in America. In 2017, the club renamed the television broadcast booth inside GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium the Len Dawson Broadcast Booth in honor of Dawson's accomplishments both on the field and as a broadcaster. Dawson began his professional career as a first-round draft pick of the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers in 1957. He went on to land with Cleveland in 1960 but was cut by the Browns prior to the 1962 season, at which point he was signed by the Dallas Texans as a free agent on July 2, 1962. In total he spent 19 years as a quarterback in the NFL/AFL. The Alliance, Ohio, native attended Purdue University where he was a three-year starter at quarterback for the Boilermakers (1954-56) and ended his career as the university's leader in career passing yards and touchdown passes. Last edited by Dartgod; 08-24-2022 at 11:37 AM..
Posts: 23,315

08-12-2022, 03:35 PM	#2
Pablo Ultrabanned Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: KCMO Casino cash: $2069356	Godspeed Lenny the Cool
Posts: 40,230	5 0

08-12-2022, 03:38 PM	#3
lawrenceRaider Here We Go Again Join Date: May 2002 Casino cash: $2283544	Sorry to hear it. __________________
Posts: 14,442

08-12-2022, 03:38 PM	#4
Boiled Chicken Starter Join Date: Dec 2008 Casino cash: $3288129	Prayers
Posts: 375

08-12-2022, 03:39 PM	#5
LiveSteam The Constitutional Choo choo Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: homeof43conferencetitles Casino cash: $2255432	Awwww. That sucks. Man was a stud. Happy landings Len __________________ Progressivism.. The Politically Correct way of saying "I'm a Communist slash Nazi" depending on what the issue of the day is?
Posts: 44,290

08-12-2022, 03:41 PM	#6
Titty Meat Inmem 2.0 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: My house Casino cash: $2327558	Damn that's too bad
Posts: 75,037	0 1

08-12-2022, 03:43 PM	#7
wazu ... Join Date: May 2002 Location: Kansas City, MO Casino cash: $2252295 VARSITY	Damn. Part of the fabric of this city. A huge part of my life the only thing Chiefs fans had to hold onto was what he and his teammates accomplished, even if we never got to see him play.
Posts: 27,713

08-12-2022, 03:43 PM	#8
Megatron96 Suupraa Geniuuusss Join Date: Jan 2019 Location: Phoenix, AZ Casino cash: $2000400	Prayers. Love you, Len. __________________ *“Some ideas are so stupid only intellectuals believe them.”*- George Orwell Steven "Spags" Spagnuolo is my Adopt-A-Chief!!!
Posts: 29,676

08-12-2022, 03:43 PM	#9
seclark MVP Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: nemo Casino cash: $1739900	Thoughts and prayers sec __________________ "Mr. seclark. Wrong for gravy, wrong for jelly, wrong for biscuits." -rj "If every Planeteer who was disliked by another Planeteer stopped being a Planeteer we wouldn't have any Planeteers." -rj
Posts: 13,399

08-12-2022, 03:50 PM	#11
TwistedChief Why so serious? Join Date: Dec 2016 Location: Chicago Casino cash: $2490415	Love you, Lenny.
Posts: 12,213	1 0

08-12-2022, 03:52 PM	#12
VAChief Comfortably Numb Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: Virginia Casino cash: $5255842	Awful news...Godspeed Lenny! Chief Nation will always have your blindside.
Posts: 5,531	1 0

08-12-2022, 04:03 PM	#13
threebag Snacks Are Under My Apron Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: The Edge Casino cash: $3051660	Prayers Lenny, thank you for being one of my favorite All Time Chiefs. __________________ Free DeBerg HayWire Greatest Mod Ever In big nasty kcnut we trust
Posts: 23,859

08-12-2022, 04:04 PM	#14
stumppy New and Improved Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Springfield, Mo. Casino cash: $1538590	You're The Man, Lenny. Always will be. __________________ “As a nation, we can endure damaging policies for a four-year term. But we cannot survive a president willing to terminate our Constitution”
Posts: 21,065	2 0

08-12-2022, 04:06 PM	#15
dirk digler Please squeeze Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Clinton, MO Casino cash: $3304644	god speed Lenny you will never be forgotten and you will be missed.
Posts: 66,247