1966 American Football League Championship Game

American football championship November 2013 aflc 1966 Kansas City Chiefs 11–2–1 KC Buffalo Bills 9–4–1 BUF Western Eastern Hank Stram Joe Collier 7 10 0 14 31 7 0 0 0 7 January 1, 1967 War Memorial Stadium Buffalo, New York Kansas City https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=UFZcAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ilYNAAAAIBAJ&pg=3797%2C236445 Youngstown Vindicator Ohio Associated Press Rathet Mike Kansas City is favored to halt Bills today January 1, 1967 D1 42,080 NBC Curt Gowdy, Paul Christman,and Pat Hernon Chiefs: Lamar Hunt (owner), Hank Stram (head coach), Bobby Beathard (personnel administrator), Bobby Bell, Buck Buchanan, Len Dawson, Johnny Robinson,Emmitt Thomas Bills: Ralph Wilson (owner), Billy Shaw USA 1 Buffalo 42.905 -78.856 Location in the United States bottom 5 290 USA New York 1 Buffalo 42.905 -78.856 Location in New York 5 180 The 1966 AFL Championship Game was the seventh American Football League's championship game, played at War Memorial Stadium in Buffalo, New York, on January 1, 1967.https://www.si.com/vault/1967/01/09/542904/firewater-for-some-firedup-chiefs Sports Illustrated Shrake Edwin Firewater for some fired-up Chiefs January 9, 1967 14http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1967/01/02/page/97/article/chiefs-rout-buffalo-31-to-7 Chicago Tribune Rollow Cooper Chiefs rout Buffalo, 31 to 7 January 2, 1967 1, section 3 It matched the Western Division champion Kansas City Chiefs (11–2–1) and the Eastern Division champion Buffalo Bills (9–4–1) to decide the American Football League (AFL) champion for the 1966 season. The host Bills entered as two-time defending champions, but the visiting Chiefs were three-point favorites, mainly because of their explosive and innovative offense led by head coach Hank Stram.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=8QIqAAAAIBAJ&sjid=3ycEAAAAIBAJ&pg=5186%2C201527 Milwaukee Journal Potent Chiefs have slim edge on Bills January 1, 1967 3, sports The Bills were a more conventional team with a solid defensive line and a running mindset on offense. The two teams had split their season series, played early in the schedule without weather as a factor, with the road team winning each. The Chiefs defeated the Bills by a score of 31–7,January 2, 1967 Chiefs ready for Packers https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jNFTAAAAIBAJ&sjid=szgNAAAAIBAJ&pg=7205%2C79036 Lawrence Daily Journal-World Kansas 14 Associated Press Google Newshttps://news.google.com/newspapers?id=CnMxAAAAIBAJ&sjid=DxEEAAAAIBAJ&pg=3982%2C202260 Milwaukee Sentinel Associated Press Kansas City romps over Buffalo to end Bills' AFL reign, 31-7 January 2, 1967 1, part 2 and advanced to Super Bowl I to play against the National Football League (NFL) champion Green Bay Packers. Background The game was originally scheduled for Monday, December 26, the week after the conclusion of the regular season. The AFL–NFL merger agreement of June 1966 called for a "world championship game" between the league champions. When a date of January 15, 1967, was established, the AFL title game was moved to January 1, same as the NFL championship game in Dallas. The AFL game was at 1 p.m. EST, televised by NBC, and the NFL game followed at 4 p.m. on CBS. Like the NFL, the host team for the title game was alternated between the divisions, regardless of record. In the AFL, the Eastern division hosted in even-numbered years and the Western in odd; home-field advantage was not adopted until 1975. Kansas City Chiefs 1966 Kansas City Chiefs season The Kansas City Chiefs finished the 1966 regular season with an 11–2–1 record and clinched the Western Division title five weeks earlier, on November 27.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=YMxYAAAAIBAJ&sjid=AekDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7129%2C4216591 Spokesman-Review Spokane, Washington Associated Press Chiefs clinch first pro grid title November 28, 1966 10 https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=aKVRAAAAIBAJ&sjid=zRAEAAAAIBAJ&pg=2602%2C7267569 Milwaukee Sentinel wire services Chiefs win, 32-24, for 'West' crown November 28, 1966 1, part 2 Quarterback Len Dawson finished the season with 2,527 passing yards and 26 touchdowns, with only 10 interceptions, giving him a 101.7 passer rating. The team's top wide receiver was Otis Taylor who caught 58 passes for 1,297 yards and 8 touchdowns; Chris Burford also contributed by catching 58 passes for 758 yards and 8 touchdowns. Mike Garrett was the team's leading rusher, gaining 801 yards and 6 touchdowns. Other reliable options included Curtis McClinton (540 yards, 4 touchdowns) and Bert Coan (521 yards, 7 touchdowns). The Chiefs' offense consisted of five All-Stars: Len Dawson, Curtis McClinton, Otis Taylor, Jim Tyrer, and Ed Budde.https://www.pro-football-reference.com/years/1966_AFL/probowl.htm 1966 AFL Pro Bowlers Sports Reference Pro-Football-Reference.com July 16, 2011 Their defense featured six All-Stars: Johnny Robinson, E.J. Holub, Sherrill Headrick, Bobby Bell, Buck Buchanan, and Jerry Mays. Buffalo Bills 1966 Buffalo Bills season Game summary In a chilly drizzle, Kansas City broke open a tied fierce 7–7 battle and dominated the rest of the contest from there on, forcing four turnovers (without losing any themselves) and outscoring host Buffalo 24-0 over the last three quarters. On the opening kickoff, Fletcher Smith's short kick was fielded by defensive end Dudley Meredith, who promptly fumbled the ball, and KC punter Jerrel Wilson, who also played on the kick coverage team, recovered it for the Chiefs on the Bills 31-yard line. This led to the first score of the game, a 29-yard touchdown pass from Len Dawson to tight end Fred Arbanas. After an exchange of punts, Buffalo tied the game when receiver Elbert Dubenion raced ahead of defensive back Fred Williamson, "the Hammer", caught a pass from Jack Kemp at the Chiefs 45, and raced all the way to the end zone for a 69-yard touchdown reception. Later on, Mike Garrett's 27-yard punt return gave the Chiefs a first down on the Bills 45-yard line. After a few plays, Dawson made a key 15-yard completion to Arbanas advancing to the Buffalo 29. It was the last catch of the day for Arbanas, who ended up leaving the game with a separated shoulder; however, it paid off big time as Dawson threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to Otis Taylor on the next play, giving the Chiefs a 14–7 second quarter lead. Buffalo responded with a drive deep into Chiefs territory, featuring Kemp's 30-yard completion to rookie receiver Rob Burnett to the Kansas City 12-yard line. But in what turned out to be one of the most crucial plays of the game, Kemp's next pass resulted in a costly interception in the end zone by safety Johnny Robinson, who returned the football 72 yards to the Bills 28. Mike Mercer eventually cashed in the turnover with a 32-yard field goal that gave the Chiefs a 17–7 halftime lead. The third quarter was a defensive struggle with each team punting the football twice. Near the end, Kansas City got possession of the football on the Bills 42-yard line, but failed to score when Mercer missed a 49-yard field goal attempt. The Chiefs put the game away with consecutive touchdown drives in the fourth quarter. First, Dawson's 45-yard completion to Chris Burford gave the team a first down at the Buffalo 4-yard line. Garrett then ran the ball on the next four plays, concluding with a 1-yard touchdown run. On the first play of Buffalo's next drive, receiver Glenn Bass lost a fumble that Bobby Hunt returned 21 yards to the Bills 20-yard line, which led to another Garrett touchdown run, the final score of the game from 18 yards. Footage of the play shows that Garrett was about to throw a halfback option pass but a heavy rush from Buffalo's defense prevented it, forcing Garrett to run. Buffalo could do nothing with their next drive, and on their final one of the day, Kemp was intercepted by Emmitt Thomas.http://media.kcchiefs.com/media/143725/playoff_history_and_summaries.pdf Archived copy media.kcchiefs.com 30 June 2022 https://web.archive.org/web/20140113200735/http://media.kcchiefs.com/media/143725/playoff_history_and_summaries.pdf 13 January 2014 deadHistorical Newspapers from 1700s-2000s - Newspapers.com Dawson completed 16 of 24 passes for 227 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 28 yards. Garrett rushed for 39 yards and two touchdowns, caught 4 passes for 16 yards, returned a kickoff for 3 yards, and added another 37 yards on 3 punt returns. Kemp completed 12 of 25 passes for 253 yards and a touchdown, coupled with two costly interceptions. Burnett caught six passes for 127 yards.Championship - Kansas City Chiefs at Buffalo Bills - January 1st, 1967 https://www.pro-football-reference.com/boxscores/196701010buf.htm 2024-01-04 Pro-Football-Reference.com en Box score text-align:center; background:#eee Kansas City Chiefs 31, Buffalo Bills 7 Chiefs 7 10 0 14 Bills 7 0 0 0 War Memorial Stadium, Buffalo, New York January 1, 1967 42,080 32 F, drizzle, relative humidity 82%, wind 12 mph on, wind chill 22 F 1:00 p.m. EST Pro-Football-Reference.com NBC Curt Gowdy, Paul Christman, and Pat Hernon1966 NFL-AFL Commentator Crews https://web.archive.org/web/20081211144637/http://the506.com/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1221529501 December 11, 2008 January 2021 Forums are self-published and inherently not reliable, verifiable sources. Scoring First quarter KC – Fred Arbanas 29-yard pass from Len Dawson (Mike Mercer kick). Chiefs 7–0 BUF – Elbert Dubenion 69-yard pass from Jack Kemp (Booth Lusteg kick). Tied 7–7 Second quarter KC – Otis Taylor 29-yard pass from Len Dawson (Mike Mercer kick). Chiefs 14–7 KC – Mike Mercer 22-yard field goal. Chiefs 17–7 Third quarter Fourth quarter KC – Mike Garrett 1-yard rush (Mike Mercer kick). Chiefs 24–7 KC – Mike Garrett 18-yard rush (Mike Mercer kick). Chiefs 31–7 Top passers KC – Len Dawson – 16/24, 227 yards, 2 TD BUF – Jack Kemp – 12/27, 253 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT Top rushers KC – Mike Garrett – 13 rushes, 39 yards, 2 TD BUF – Wray Carlton – 9 rushes, 31 yards Top receivers KC – Otis Taylor – 5 receptions, 78 yards, 1 TD BUF – Bobby Burnett – 6 receptions, 127 yards Starting lineups Source: Hall of Fame inductee #FFCC00 Kansas City Position BuffaloOffenseLen Dawson QB Jack Kemp Mike Garrett RB Bobby Burnett Curtis McClinton FB Wray Carlton Otis Taylor FL Elbert Dubenion Chris Burford SE Bobby Crockett Fred Arbanas TE Paul Costa Jim Tyrer LT Stew Barber Ed Budde LG Billy Shaw Wayne Frazier C Al Bemiller Curt Merz RG Joe O'Donnell Dave Hill RT Dick HudsonDefense Jerry Mays LDE Ron McDole Andy Rice LDT Jim DunawayBuck Buchanan RDT Tom Sestak Chuck Hurston RDE Tom DayBobby Bell LLB John Tracey Sherrill Headrick MLB Harry Jacobs E.J. Holub RLB Mike Stratton Fred Williamson LCB Tom Janik Willie Mitchell RCB Butch Byrd Bobby Hunt SS Hagood ClarkeJohnny Robinson FS George Saimes Statistics Statistics Chiefs BillsFirst downs 14 9Rushing yards 113 40Yards per carry 3.4 3.0Passing yards 227 253 Sacked-Yards 9–63 4–38 Total yards 340 293Fumbles-Lost 1–0 3–2Turnovers 0 4Penalties-Yards 4–40 3–23 Officials Referee: Walt Fitzgerald Umpire: Walt Parker Head linesman: Tony Veteri Side linesman: Cal Lepore Back judge: Hugh Gamber Field judge: Bob Bauer The AFL added a sixth game official, the side linesman, in 1966; the NFL added its sixth official, the line judge, during the previous season. The seventh official, the side judge, was added in 1978. Players' shares The winning Chiefs split their players' shares for the title game 51 ways for $5,308 each, while the Bills split theirs into 47 shares for about $3,800 each.https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=jNFTAAAAIBAJ&sjid=szgNAAAAIBAJ&pg=2513%2C79297 Lawrence Daily Journal-World Kansas K.C. splits pot 51 ways January 2, 1967 14 The upcoming Super Bowl I awarded an additional $15,000 per player for the winners and $7,500 each for the losing team. See also 1966 AFL season AFL Championship Games Super Bowl I 1966 NFL Championship Game Bills–Chiefs rivalry References 2 External links 1966 AFL Championship Game on IMDb Box score on Pro-Football-Reference.com 42.905 -78.856 type:event title Kansas City ChiefsAmerican Football League Champions 1966 Buffalo Bills1965 AFL Champions Oakland Raiders1967 AFL Champions 1966 Category:Buffalo Bills postseason Category:Jack Kemp Category:Kansas City Chiefs postseason Championship Game American Football League Championship Category:American football in Buffalo, New York Category:January 1967 sports events in the United States Category:American football competitions in New York (state)