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Len Dawson dies as NFL, Kansas City Chiefs legend

By arrowheadstaff

Feb 6, 2016; San Francisco, CA, USA; Former NFL player Len Dawson on the red carpet prior to the NFL Honors award ceremony at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 6, 2016; San Francisco, CA, USA; Former NFL player Len Dawson on the red carpet prior to the NFL Honors award ceremony at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /
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Former Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Len Dawson has passed away at the age of 87 after entering hospice care in recent days.

On the verge of another regular season kicking off, the National Football League learned of the loss of one of its legends with the news that former Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Len Dawson had passed away at the age of 87 on Wednesday.

Dawson had entered hospice care in recent days, so the news wasn’t entirely unexpected. Still it’s an incredible loss for the Kansas City community, Chiefs Kingdom, and the league.

Dawson was an icon known throughout the NFL as Lenny the Cool and for generations was the only quarterback to have led the Chiefs to a Super Bowl championship. He was MVP in the biggest game of his career and was named a 7-time Pro Bowler (or the AFL equivalent) in his storied career. The three-time AFL champ was also the NFL’s Man of the Year in ’73.

More than that, Dawson soon became a local broadcasting icon and civic hero, from his 40 year involvement with KMBC to his position as host for HBO’s Inside the NFL to his important charitable work for various organizations including the American Cancer Society.

Dawson was inducted Chiefs Hall of Fame in 1979 and then into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1987 after playing in 211 total games over the course of 19 seasons, including 14 with the Dallas Texans-turned-Kansas City Chiefs.

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