For this NFL Thursday miniseries today, we drive east from San Francisco out to Missouri to explore the Kansas City Chiefs’ organizational history. In 63 seasons, the team has won 54.6 percent of its games, registering 25 postseason appearances. This includes 16 division titles, 5 overall championships, and 3 Super Bowl wins (1969, 2019, 2022). The latter two teams did not make this list, which is interesting.

In fact, all these teams below came from the AFL origins for the team, which began in Dallas as the Texans—where the franchise won its first championship (1962). The Texans/Chiefs were one of the best, if not the best, of the old AFL franchises. After that first title, the team moved to Kansas City and became the Chiefs, winning a second AFL title in 1966 on their way to the first-ever Super Bowl. Quite a history for this bunch!

No. 5: 1962 Dallas Texans

With an 11-3 record, the Texans won the AFL West Division behind the No. 1 offense, the No. 1 defense, and the No. 1 SRS ranking overall in an 8-team league. When Dallas jumped out to a 17-0 halftime lead over the Houston Oilers in the AFL Championship, it looked inevitable that the Texans would cruise to the title. Alas, the Oilers came back to force overtime, and Dallas emerged victorious in forgotten double-overtime style.

Halfback Abner Hayes (20 Approximate Value), quarterback Len Dawson (18), linebacker Sherrill Headrick (15), and LB E.J. Holub (15) were the leaders on this roster—Hayes had been the voted AFL MVP in 1960, while we awarded Dawson the 1962 AFL MVP nod. In the title game, the Texans ran for 199 yards and forced 5 turnovers, but somehow, the Oilers hung in there before finally succumbing in the 2OT loss.

No. 4: 1967 Kansas City Chiefs

With a 9-5 record, it’s a surprise to see this second-place team on the list. The Chiefs were No. 2 on offense, No. 3 on defense, and No. 2 overall in the SRS rankings. They finished four games behind the division-winning Oakland Raiders. So, why is this team rated so high? Well, a plus-154 point differential is one reason, in addition to a SOS superior to that of the Raiders; three losses by 8 total points say a lot, too.

HB Mike Garrett (16 AV), LB Bobby Bell (15), Dawson (15), and tackle Jim Tyrer (15) topped the roster for value. Garrett had won the 1965 Heisman, even though we disagreed with that call. Overall, nine players posted at least 13 AV on this very deep squad. The close losses would not have gotten the Chiefs to the limited playoffs of the time, but if those defeats had been close victories, we’d see a 12-2 record instead.

No. 3: 1966 Kansas City Chiefs

An 11-2-1 record left the team atop the AFL West Division, thanks to the No. 1 offense, the No. 2 defense, and the No. 1 overall SRS ranking. The Chiefs won the AFL title, 31-7, over the Buffalo Bills in a game where K.C. forced 4 turnovers. However, in Super Bowl I (which wasn’t called that at the time), the Chiefs ran into a historical force known as the Green Bay Packers. The 35-10 loss was a soul-crushing experience for K.C.

Flanker Otis Taylor (20 AV) and Dawson (16) were the high-end producers for this team, even though 12 guys overall reached double-digit AV. Despite taking 63 yards in sack losses, Dawson still posted a 124.8 QB rating in the AFL Championship. But against the Packers, the Chiefs could do very little right: Green Bay owned the second half, outscoring Kansas City 21-0 to break open a close, tight game after halftime.

No. 2: 1969 Kansas City Chiefs

This team won the franchise’s third AFL title in eight seasons, while also winning the first Super Bowl in organizational history. The Chiefs went 11-3 to win the AFL West, before beating the New York Jets (the defending SB champs) and the Raiders in the AFL playoffs with gritty efforts. In Super Bowl IV, Kansas City upset the heavily favored Minnesota Vikings, 23-7, in a game that remains legendary to this day. Check it.

K.C. featured the No. 2 offense, the No. 1 defense, and the No. 1 overall SRS ranking, thanks to Bell (17 AV) and defensive tackle Buck Buchanan (16). Again, it was a deep roster with 12 players reaching double-digit value—none of them named Dawson. The defense held the Jets, the Raiders, and the Vikings to a combined 20 points in the postseason, forcing 13 turnovers in the process. The offense did just enough, obviously.

No. 1: 1968 Kansas City Chiefs

With the No. 4 offense, the No. 1 defense, and the No. 2 overall SRS ranking, these Chiefs top our list with a 12-2 record and a shared AFL West Division crown. But to break that division tie, Kansas City had to go and play in Oakland against the Raiders, and everything went wrong for the Chiefs. The stout defense couldn’t stop the Oakland passing game; the Raiders went up 21-0 early in the game on the way to a big 41-6 win.

The top value players were all on defense: Bell (16 AV), Buchanan (15), LB Willie Lanier (15), and free safety Johnny Robinson (15)—who would be our pick later for the SB IV MVP. Despite all this, we still gave the 1968 NFL MVP to Dawson, as well. This was a great team, with 13 players with 10+ AV. So, what happened in Oakland?! It’s hard to tell, as the offense committed 4 turnovers as the roster’s meltdown was universal.