Kansas City Chiefs/Andy Reid/Home/Road/ Title Game Notes

This Sunday’s at Baltimore vs the Ravens, 2023 AFC Title Game will bring Chiefs’ coach Andy Reid’s eleventh title tilt appearance (only Bill Belichick with 13 and an (8-5) record has more such appearances, Reid will pass the great Tom Landry, who had 10), only the third to be a Reid team road game.

Reid’s teams, the Philadelphia Eagles (1-4) and Chiefs (3-2) are a combined (4-6) in the previous ten.

All but the ’01 loss at St. Louis, vs the heavily favored Rams and the ’08 game at Arizona, vs the Cardinals were Reid team home title games, as the previous 5, in this Reid and the Chiefs’ 6th consecutive title game appearance, were home games.

The Chiefs nee Dallas Texans played and won all three of their AFL Title games, all of which were road games. (In ’62 as the Texans at the Houston Oilers, in ’66 at Buffalo in the first of what is now 58 Bills’ seasons sans a crown, corresponding “exactly” with this the season in which the 58th (ode to the great, 4 time Supe winning, Steeler’s player, Jack Lambert) and in ’69 in the last AFL game (was there an All-Star Game that followed that last title game?) at Oakland vs the Raiders).

Playing within the AFC for now 54 seasons, the Chiefs have made 7 AFC Title Games, the first and the upcoming one “sandwiching” five straight home such games, the last 5 completed seasons (’18-’22).

Adding it up, Reid coached teams (4-6) in such games have or will have played 8 of the 11 at home.

Meanwhile the Chiefs in either AFL or AFC title games are currently (6-3) with (after the tilt is played, earlier than the NFC game on Sunday) half (5) of their such tilts at home.

Noting: all but one of the total 10 Chiefs games and all 11 of Reid’s (6 with the Chiefs were Conference Title Games/NFL Semi-final games.

The ’62 AFL Title Game was of “the all the way” variety. No Super Bowl nee NFL/AFL Championship game followed. It was four years later that the two 1962 champions, the then Dallas Texans and by then the Kansas City Chiefs and Green BAy Packers met in the NFL/AFL Championship Game, which is now considered the first of what will be 58 Super Bowls played after that such game on February 11, 2024.

Click below or eventually on You Tube for highlights of the Chiefs’ AFL Title Game win at Oakland, vs the Raiders on January 4, 1970. One week later, the Chiefs prevailed vs the heavily favored Minnesota Vikings (not as large favorites as the Colts, who famously also lost, were vs the New York Jets the year before) in what was the last AFL/NFL and considered the fourth Super Bowl.

At (the Len Dawson pass) 2:12, the play begins (I am not a big fan of replay, love Otis Taylor and am appalled he is “not in” the Football Hall of Fame) notice the great Otis Taylor is also “NOT IN” but was ruled to be on that play.

Alas in both cases, apply, as is not always but often the “case” (pun or comment intended) the saying “justice is blind.”