The following lists provide an overview of notable groupings of Kansas City Chiefs players.
Throughout the Chiefs' near five-decade existence, there have been twelve starting quarterbacks to lead the team. Among the most prolific include Hall of Famers Len Dawson and Joe Montana, as well as superb quarterbacks of their era like Trent Green.
In the past few decades, the Chiefs have relied on veteran quarterbacks to lead their team. The last quarterback to be drafted by Kansas City that later went on to claim the starting position was Bill Kenney in 1980. Since Kenney's retirement in 1988. the Chiefs never drafted their own quarterback to develop until Brodie Croyle was drafted in 2006. When head coach Herman Edwards arrived in 2006, he stated that he was looking towards implementing younger players into his gameplan, and he was arguably looking to start at the quarterback position.
The Chiefs have also had a repeated history of backup quarterbacks that steal the spotlight. Mike Livingston led the Chiefs to the playoffs in their 1969 season after starting quarterback Len Dawson was injured for the majority of the year. Most recently, Rich Gannon took over for the injured Elvis Grbac in the 1997 season, but was revoked of the job in favor of Grbac's return for the playoffs. The Chiefs lost in the playoffs to the eventual Super Bowl champion Denver Broncos. A similar incident occurred in the 2006 season and playoffs when Trent Green and the Chiefs' offense failed to get a first down in the first forty-two minutes of the game. Backup quarterback Damon Huard, whom led the Chiefs on a 5âÂÂ2 record in Green's absence, never played a down in the playoff loss toâÂÂcoincidentallyâÂÂthe eventual Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts.
The Kansas City Chiefs feature forty-four former players and franchise contributors in their team hall of fame. Several of the team's names are featured at Arrowhead Stadium in a "ring of honor." A new member has been inducted in an annual ceremony, with the exception of the 1983 season.
1970s<br> 1970 Lamar Hunt, team founder and owner<br> 1971 #36 Mack Lee Hill, Running back<br> 1972 #75 Jerry Mays, Defensive tackle<br> 1973 #84 Fred Arbanas, Tight end<br> 1974 #42 Johnny Robinson, Safety<br> 1975 #88 Chris Burford, Wide receiver<br> 1976 #55 E. J. Holub, Center/Linebacker<br> 1977 #77 Jim Tyrer, Offensive tackle<br> 1978 #21 Mike Garrett, Running back<br> 1979 #16 Len Dawson, Quarterback
1980s<br> 1980 #78 Bobby Bell, Linebacker<br> 1981 #86 Buck Buchanan, Defensive tackle<br> 1982 #89 Otis Taylor, Wide receiver<br> 1983 No induction<br> 1984 #71 Ed Budde, Guard<br> 1985 #63 Willie Lanier, Linebacker<br> 1986 #18 Emmitt Thomas, Cornerback<br> 1987 Hank Stram, Coach<br> 1988 #44 Jerrel Wilson, Punter<br> 1989 #14 Ed Podolak, Running back |-
1990s<br> 1990 #51 Jim Lynch, Linebacker<br> 1991 #28 Abner Haynes, Running back<br> 1992 #3 Jan Stenerud, Kicker<br> 1993 #69 Sherrill Headrick, Linebacker<br> 1994 #58 Jack Rudnay, Center<br> 1995 #32 Curtis McClinton, Running back<br> 1996 #20 Deron Cherry, Safety<br> 1997 #73 Dave Hill, Offensive tackle<br> 1998 #67 Art Still, Defensive end<br> 1999 #34 Lloyd Burruss, Safety
2000s<br> 2000 #35 Christian Okoye, Running back<br> 2001 #58 Derrick Thomas, Linebacker<br> 2002 #76 John Alt, Offensive tackle<br> 2003 #59 Gary Spani, Linebacker<br> 2004 #37 Joe Delaney, Running back<br> 2005 Jack Steadman, team vice chairman and general manager<br> 2006 #90 Neil Smith, Defensive end<br> 2007 #29 Albert Lewis, Cornerback<br> 2008 #61 Curley Culp, Defensive tackle<br> 2009 #8 Nick Lowery, Place kicker<br> |-
2010s<br> 2010 Marty Schottenheimer, Coach<br> 2011 #31 Kevin Ross, Cornerback <br> 2012 #68 Will Shields, Guard <br> 2013 #26 Gary Barbaro, Defensive back <br> 2014 #31 Priest Holmes, Running back<br> 2015 #24 Gary Green, Cornerback <br> 2016 #49 Tony Richardson, Fullback <br> 2017 #88 Carlos Carson, Wide Receiver <br> 2018 #88 Tony Gonzalez, Tight End <br> 2019 #54 Brian Waters, Guard <br> 2023 #54 Dante Hall, Wide Receiver