The best Kansas City Chiefs to ever wear the uniform: No. 35

In this special offseason series, we analyze the best players in Kansas City Chiefs history to wear every single uniform number. Here’s No. 35.

I have arrived. You can flush all of the other numbers away.

We’re at the point where any and all rational arguments to anything contrary to my own opinions are all flushed away. Fortunately I think reality and my own preference line up perfectly here, but a man has to go with his heart, and my heart is here at No. 35.  It’s how I became a fan of the Kansas City Chiefs. It’s how I became a football fan. Hell, it’s even my first foray into sports as a kid.

I’d make a bigger speech about having to stick to my guns but in the end I think most of you will say, “Dude, chill out. We agree with you.”

The Others

THERE ARE NO OTHERS. Just kidding. Other players certainly do exist in Kansas City Chiefs history

Charcandrick West is currently wearing No. 35 for the Chiefs, a man who has defeated the odds year after year to carve out an impressive spot on the team. An undrafted free agent from Abilene Christian, West has proven himself as a very underrated pass catcher, a willing blocker and solid special teams player. John Dorsey had a nice find here as West enters his fifth NFL season, all with the Chiefs. He’s been the glue in the backfield despite constant competition for his job year after year (or even week after week).

William White spent 3 seasons in Kansas City as a free safety in a career spanning 11 years, in the mid-’90s. While he was never a Pro Bowl caliber player, anyone who can spend over a decade making their living as a pro football player deserves a mention and White even started 21 games for K.C. in that time with 123 tackles and 4 interceptions.

Others who have worn the jersey number include RB Horace Belton, safety Quintin Demps, safety Willie Pile and fullback Jim Otis.

The Runner-up: Stewart “Smokey” Stover

Stover played for seven full seasons in Dallas/Kansas City as the franchise first came into existence. As a fullback in college, he made waves with his talents at what is now known as the University of Louisiana-Monroe, but Chiefs coach Hank Stram told him to suit up at linebacker. There he remained for the next seven seasons, including a Super Bowl appearance against the Green Bay Packers.

Stover had 7 interceptions for the Chiefs in those 7 years, as he played in a total of 98 games. It wasn’t a prolific career by any means, but Stover gets the nod over others due to his longevity. It’s also a cool anecdote that he played in a Super Bowl and then went on to play for the Grey Cup in the CFL the very next year.

The Winner: Christian Okoye

I was 10-years-old when I first saw the perfect blend of size and speed. They said his name was Christian Okoye, the Nigerian Nightmare, and as a kid, I saw a human being do something like this:

I was hooked. Suddenly I wasn’t just a Christian Okoye fan. I was an NFL fan and, specifically, a Kansas City Chiefs fan. Neither of my parents ever watched sports, so I was alone in my fervor. Every Sunday I couldn’t wait to watch him again. It’s the reason I hated Steve Atwater for the massive hit. It’s also why I still have issues with Barry Word who came in and took away carries. (Sorry, Barry.)

For those who never had the chance to watch Okoye week to week, he’s ranked No. 4 on the all-time franchise list with a shade under 5,000 career rushing yards (4,897 to be exact). He also has 40 rushing touchdowns to his name, good for fifth on the all-time list. Those are solid career numbers, but imagine a 6’1, 260ish lb. man putting up those totals. Despite being bigger than most linebackers(!), Okoye also ran a 4.45 second time in the 40-yard dash.

As I said, the perfect blend of size and speed.

Even as the Chiefs have enjoyed plenty of incredible running backs since then—and really, consider the impressive run of Priest Holmes, Larry Johnson, Marcus Allen, Jamaal Charles, Kareem Hunt—I will never get that excited about any of them because the single best running back in team history, for me, remains this rare specimen who succumbed to injuries before the stats could tell the story for him.

Next: The Best to Wear It: No. 34

Congratulations to Christian Okoye for being the greatest Chiefs player to ever wear the No. 35 on his uniform!