With a persona as a bone-crushing linebacker who devoured quarterbacks, you’d assume that Derrick Johnson was one of those throwbacks who scowled even in family photos. Yet ask him about his Kansas City Chiefs days, especially the college-like atmosphere of Arrowhead Stadium, and he breaks into a teddy-bear smile. “There is an experience that I… Read more »
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Team: Kansas City Chiefs
Jim Kearney
Jim Kearney was a standout quarterback at Wharton High School in Texas and attended Prairie View A&M. Kearney’s successful collegiate career paved the way for him to be drafted by the Detroit Lions in 1965. He played in the Motor City for two seasons and then jumped north of the border to play with Montreal… Read more »
David Kendall
There are days when David Kendall kicks back and wonders how he ever pulled it all off. Even he can’t believe it at times. Back in college, a chance meeting with the then-head trainer of the Kansas City Chiefs led to an internship during training camp. Which would seem ho-hum except for the fact that… Read more »
Bill Kenney
There is no other way to say it. In late 1978, Bill Kenney had one last shot – and perhaps only a couple of minutes – to keep his dream alive in the National Football League. Brought in to Arrowhead Stadium for a tryout with the Kansas City Chiefs, the quarterback arrived on a blustery… Read more »
Eddie Kennison
The phone call came in from none other than Kansas City Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil – and only an hour before kickoff on a Thursday night in Philadelphia, at that. Eddie Kennison will never forget it. There he was in midseason 2001, sitting in his apartment in Denver and recently released, and yet staying confident… Read more »
Willie Lanier
A Kansas City Chief from 1967 to 1977, Lanier played in 8 Pro Bowls. Nicknamed “Contact” because of this ferocious tackling, Lanier was characterized as the defensive star in the Super Bowl IV victory. Lanier was named All AFL/AFC seven times, MVP of the 1971 Pro Bowl and the 1972 NFL Man of the Year.… Read more »
Nick Lowery
He came at us with a No. 8 Kansas City Chiefs jersey, old-school mustache and a leg. But not any ordinary leg. No, Nick Lowery had one for the ages as he boomed game-winning field goals, scored points and broke hearts. To understand his success, however, think back to Lowery’s college and early pro years.… Read more »
Bill Maas
All athletes have a mentor or two pushing them to be better. To the Kansas City Chiefs’ Bill Maas, the 70,000 fans who packed Arrowhead Stadium for every game have to be counted among his. “About 27 years ago, the Denver Broncos came to Arrowhead,” Maas said, recalling a time when the National Football League… Read more »
Jeremy Maclin
The assumption is that major college football players see their campus only as a springboard into the National Football League. However, Jeremy Maclin proved that he cared deeply about the University of Missouri. When he announced that he would forgo his final two seasons and enter the NFL Draft, Maclin couldn’t hold back emotions at… Read more »
Curtis McClinton
Inducted into the Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Fame in 1995, Curtis McClinton was the sixth leading rusher in Chiefs history. McClinton was one of the early stars of the AFL and was the first AFL player to score a touchdown in a Super Bowl, catching a 7 yard pass in the second quarter of… Read more »
Ted McKnight
It almost sounds too good to be true: A military kid who didn’t grow up under the impressionable Friday night lights of small-town football, who finds his way to a Minnesota high school and shifts to running back only in his senior year – all before heading off to a quaint NCAA Division II school… Read more »
Dan Meers
Who is KC Wolf? That’s Dan Meers, who back at St. Charles West High School in the 1980s was definitely not a standout athlete. “I wasn’t a mascot back then even though I got to watch our mascot perform because I was a three-sport bench-warmer – baseball, basketball and football,” Meers said, smiling. “I still… Read more »
Curt Merz
Curt “Mother” Merz was born and raised in New Jersey. His sports career began in high school where he garnered All-State honors in basketball, track and football. From there he signed with the University of Iowa to play football. In 1959, he helped the Hawkeyes win the Rose Bowl and played in both the Blue-Gray… Read more »
Maurice “Mo” Moorman
Mo Moorman was born and raised in Louisville, KY. During his senior year at Xavier High School in 1963, Moorman led his team to the Kentucky State Championship and was named to the All-State and All-South teams, along with being named an All-American. He started his collegiate play at the University of Kentucky but transferred… Read more »
Christian Okoye
Having played football for a mere three years at Azusa Pacific University, Christian was drafted in 1987 by the Kansas City Chiefs in the second round. During his seven seasons in Kansas City, Christian set a number of Chiefs rushing records, including total yards in a season, attempts in a season, touchdowns in a season,… Read more »
Jim Otis
It’s almost as if a Hollywood script writer delivered it right to Frank Capra himself. How else to explain the career of Jim Otis? There he was at age 7 in a photo beside 1955 Heisman Trophy winner Howard “Hopalong” Cassidy of Ohio State. As a high school junior, with the headlights of teammates’ cars… Read more »