1/1/1967 – Chiefs 31, Bills 7
As the Dallas Texans moved from Dallas, Texas and became the Kansas City Chiefs they entered into a rough three-year stint in franchise history. From 1963 to 1966, they only won 19 games and missed the playoffs every season. The 1966 season would change all that.
Multiple Chiefs players would have stellar years. Len Dawson was nominated to the equivalent of First Team All Pro, throwing for 26 touchdowns and 2,527 total yards and leading the offense to finish first in both points and yards produced.
Even more impressive, teammates Bobby Hunt and Johnny Robinson would tie for the league lead in interceptions with 10. The defense as a whole tallied 33 that year and finished second in both points and yards against.
The team would enter the AFL Playoffs on a tear, winning seven of their last eight games. The Chiefs had split the regular seasons two contests with the two-time defending champion Buffalo Bills, but outscored them 56-49. They entered their second AFL Championship as three-point favorites, due mostly to the sentiment around their dynamic and cutting edge offense.
The Bills were known to have a stellar defense, but they were no match for the Chiefs that day. The Chiefs absolutely pummeled their opponent en route to a 31-7 victory, the second largest margin of victory in the AFL Championship game’s history.
The victory rewarded the Chiefs a spot in the inaugural NFL-AFL Championship game, a game that would later be renamed the Super Bowl based on the suggestion of Chiefs owner Lamar Hunt. While the result wasn’t what Chiefs brass and their fans wanted, with the Green Bay Packers handing the Chiefs a very sound defeat, their participation in the first Super Bowl is an iconic part of the franchise’s history and set the team up for their first Super Bowl only three seasons later.