The Kansas City Chiefs are the gift that keeps on giving. This holiday season, let’s look back at the most memorable Chiefs games of Christmas past.
The Kansas City Chiefs are on a roll, winning 13 of their first 14 games in their run-it-back campaign of 2020. Though this year has had its downfalls, to this point, the Chiefs have been a bright spot—at least for the die-hard fans in Chiefs Kingdom.
The Chiefs host the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, a game they should win handily despite the Falcons’ late season improvement. However, since we’re in the holiday spirit, instead of focusing on the upcoming matchup, it might be fun to look back through the Chiefs franchise history at some of the best games of the Christmas season.
12/23/1962 – Texans 20, Oilers 17
Before the Kansas City Chiefs graced the gridiron of Municipal Stadium in Kansas City, and eventually Arrowhead Stadium beginning in 1972, they occupied the Cotton Bowl in Dallas Texas for two seasons. At the time they were the more successful Dallas football team, outpacing Tom Landry’s Dallas Cowboys by 16 wins in the three seasons the two teams shared the venue.
The team’s first major signs of success came early. The 1962 Dallas Texans, led by franchise legend and hall of famer Len Dawson, possessing the league’s best offense and best defense finished the season with an impressive 11-3 record. It was the best record in the three-year franchise history and optimism was high as they looked to face off against the two-time defending champion Houston Oilers for the AFL title.
The Houston Oilers were the most dominant team to date in the AFL, winning 10 or more games every season and two AFL titles, and were 6.5 point favorites against the Texans. The teams had split the two matchups that season, but the Texans had outscored them 37-21. Sentiment favored the Oilers, but fortune favored the Texans.
The nearly 40,000 fans in attendance would witness a classic, to that time the longest game in professional sports history. The Texans and Oilers would trade blows throughout, but regulation would end in a 17-17 tie.
The first overtime would end the same, with neither team scoring. The big play would came right before the end of the period, as defensive end Bill Hull intercepted NFL and AFL ironman George Blanda’s pass to carry the Texans offense into Oiler territory. 29 yards later rookie kicker Tommy Brooker kicked a 25-yard field goal to hand the Texans an early Christmas present and their first professional championship.
The Texans would leave for Kansas City, Missouri that offseason. Their first AFL Championship would set up one of the most successful decades in franchise history, only to be rivaled by the modern day Kansas City Chiefs.