_(crop).jpg) Dawson with the Kansas City Chiefs in 1975 | |||||||||||||||
| No. 18, 16 | |||||||||||||||
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| Position: | Quarterback | ||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
| Born: | (1935-06-20)June 20, 1935 Alliance, Ohio, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Died: | August 24, 2022(2022-08-24) (aged 87) Kansas City, Kansas, U.S. | ||||||||||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) | ||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 190 lb (86 kg) | ||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||
| High school: | Alliance (OH) | ||||||||||||||
| College: | Purdue (1953–1956) | ||||||||||||||
| NFL draft: | 1957: 1st round, 5th pick | ||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||
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| Career AFL/NFL statistics | |||||||||||||||
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Leonard Ray Dawson (June 20, 1935 – August 24, 2022) was an American professionalfootballquarterback who played in theNational Football League (NFL) andAmerican Football League (AFL) for 19 seasons, primarily with theKansas City Chiefs franchise. After playingcollege football atPurdue, Dawson began his NFL career in 1957, spending three seasons with thePittsburgh Steelers and two with theCleveland Browns. He left the NFL in 1962 to sign with the AFL's Chiefs (then known as the Dallas Texans), where he spent the last 14 seasons of his career, and rejoined the NFL after theAFL–NFL merger.
In the AFL, Dawson led the league in completion percentage seven times, passer rating six times, and passing touchdowns four times. He was namedMost Valuable Player in 1962 and selected to sixAFL All-Star games. Dawson also guided the Chiefs to threeAFL championships and the franchise's firstSuper Bowl title inSuper Bowl IV, of which he was namedMVP. He retired fromprofessional football after the1975 season and later served as the sports director atKMBC-TV inKansas City andcolor analyst for the Chiefs Radio Network. His demeanor and style earned him the nickname "Lenny the Cool" from his teammates.[1][2][3]
Dawson was theseventh son of a seventh son and 9th of 11 children overall.[4] He attendedAlliance High School inAlliance, Ohio.[5] He was MVP of the football team and was named outstanding Ohio back of the year by theInternational News Service. A three-sport athlete, Dawson set school records in football and basketball, and was the first athlete in 13 years to be named first-team all-state in both sports during the same year.[6]
During the recruiting process, Dawson had to choose between theOhio State University inColumbus andPurdue University inIndiana.[7] While he was reluctant to take overWoody Hayes' split-T offense with the Buckeyes,[8] the true reason he selected Purdue stemmed from the rapport he had established with assistant coachHank Stram, beginning a friendship that would last for more than a half-century.[9]
As a sophomore in1954, Dawson's first as theBoilermakers' quarterback, he was theNCAA's leader in pass efficiency, while also playing defense and serving as the team's kicker.[10] He threw four touchdown passes in a 31–0 victory overMissouri, and later engineered a huge upset ofNotre Dame, which had entered the contest on a 13-game winning streak.[8][11]
During three seasons (1954–1956) with the Boilermakers, Dawson threw for 3,325 yards and 29 touchdowns,[12] leading theBig Ten Conference in that category during each year. He was named third-teamAll-American in 1956. He was an All-Big Ten quarterback during the 1955 and 1956 seasons.[13]
While at Purdue, Dawson was initiated into theAlpha Tau Omegafraternity.[8]
Dawson was the fifth overall selection in the1957 NFL draft, taken by thePittsburgh Steelers, but he was unable to make an impact. Following his rookie season in1957, his status became more tenuous when the Steelers acquired future Hall of FamerBobby Layne early in the1958 season.[14]
Dawson was traded to theCleveland Browns on December 31, 1959.[15][16] However, after encountering similar problems in battling Browns quarterbackMilt Plum,[17] Dawson was released after the1961 season,[16] having completed only 21 passes for 204 yards and two touchdowns in his five seasons of NFL play.[18]
Dawson signed with the American Football League'sDallas Texans on June 30, 1962.[19] The move reunited him with Stram, who was beginning his third year as the Texans' head coach.[20]
In1962, Dawson led the league in touchdowns and yards per attempt, and was theSporting News' selection as theAFL MVP. He also led Dallas to thefirst of three league titles in a thrilling double-overtime victory over the two-time defending championOilers in Houston. Dawson ran a ball-control offense in the 20–17 win, and tossed a 28-yard touchdown pass to halfbackAbner Haynes.[21]
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The team moved north toKansas City and was renamed to theChiefs in1963.[22]
A pinpoint passer, Dawson's mobility helped him flourish in Stram's "moving pocket" offense.[23] He would win four AFL passing titles and was selected as a league All-Star six times, ending the 10-year run of the league as its highest-rated career passer. From 1962 to 1969, Dawson threw more touchdown passes (182) than any other professional football quarterback.[24] In 1966, Dawson led the Chiefs to an 11–2–1 record and a 31–7 win over theBuffalo Bills in theAFL Championship Game, earning his team the honor of representing the AFL inSuper Bowl I, the first championship game between the AFL and their NFL rivals. The NFL championGreen Bay Packers won easily, 35–10, but Dawson performed fairly well, completing 16 of 27 passes for 210 yards and one touchdown, with one interception. Dawson was selected by his peers as aSporting News 1966 AFL All-League player.[25]
Though he threw for more than 2,000 yards in each of the previous seven campaigns, Dawson's1969 season with Kansas City would be his most memorable because of his dramatic comeback from a knee injury suffered in the season's second game.[26] The injury was at first feared to be season-ending, but after missing five games, Dawson went on to lead the Chiefs to road playoff victories over both the defending Super Bowl championNew York Jets and theOakland Raiders.[27] He then capped his year with MVP accolades inSuper Bowl IV, the last game ever played by an American Football League team.[11][28] In the game, Dawson paced the Chiefs to a win over the NFL's heavily favoredMinnesota Vikings by completing 12 of 17 passes for 142 yards and a touchdown, with one interception, and rushing for 11 yards.[29] The performance was especially notable given that Dawson had been mistakenly linked to a gambling scandal (by an unrelated gentleman who was named Donald Dawson) in the days leading up to the game.[30]
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On November 1, 1970, the Chiefs led the Oakland Raiders 17–14 late in the fourth quarter. Facing third and long, a run by Dawson apparently sealed victory for the Chiefs, but as Dawson lay on the ground, he was speared by Raiders' defensive endBen Davidson, who dove into Dawson with his helmet, provoking Chiefs' receiverOtis Taylor to attack Davidson.[31] After a bench-clearing brawl, offsetting penalties were called, nullifying the first down under the rules in effect at that time. The Chiefs were obliged to punt, and the Raiders tied the game on aGeorge Blanda field goal with eight seconds to play. Taylor's retaliation against Davidson not only cost the Chiefs a win, but Oakland won the AFC West with a season record of 8–4–2, while Kansas City finished 7–5–2 and out of the playoffs.[32]
Dawson announced his retirement in May 1976, shortly before turning 41.[33] Dawson ended his career in 1975, having completed 2,136 of 3,741 passes for 28,711 yards and 239 touchdowns, with 181 interceptions. He also gained 1,293 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns in his career.[18]
Dawson retired as the Chiefs all-time career leader in passing yards, passing touchdowns, completions, attempts, rushing yards by a quarterback, and rushing touchdowns by a quarterback. Only his touchdowns records still stand. He also held the single season passing touchdown record from 1964 until it was broken in 2018. He held the single season passing yards record from 1964 until 1983. He was inducted into the Chiefs Hall of Fame in 1979 and thePro Football Hall of Fame in 1987. His number 16 was retired by the Chiefs and is the only number in franchise history to be worn by a single player. He was also named to theAmerican Football League All-Time Team in 1970.
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In 1966, while still playing for the Chiefs, Dawson became sports director atKMBC-TV in Kansas City. On March 16, 2009, Dawson announced he would step down from anchoring on a nightly basis but would still report for KMBC during the Chiefs football season and would fill in when other anchors were on leave.[34]
From 1977 to 2001, Dawson hosted HBO'sInside the NFL. He also worked as an analyst forNBC's AFC coverage from 1977 to 1982. From 1985 to 2017, Dawson was the color analyst for the Chiefs' radio broadcast team. In 2012, Dawson was honored with thePete Rozelle Radio-Television Award presented by the Pro Football Hall of Fame for his longtime contributions as a sports broadcaster.[35] At the beginning of his final season as the Chiefs radio analyst, the Chiefs named their broadcast booth atArrowhead Stadium after Dawson.[36] When he retired after the 2017 season, he had spent 58 years with the Texans/Chiefs organization.
In 1979, Dawson was enshrined in the Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Fame,[37] followed by induction into thePro Football Hall of Fame in 1987 andPurdue'sIntercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame in 1996.[38] In 2008, he was awarded theWalter Camp Distinguished American Award.[39]
In 2006, Dawson was interviewed for theNFL Network documentaryAmerica's Game: The Super Bowl Champions chronicling the1969 Kansas City Chiefs season.[40]
Dawson teamed withDepend in 1998 to encourage men to visit their doctors and to be screened forprostate cancer.[41]
Dawson was married to hishigh school sweetheart from 1954 until her death in 1978.[42] He had two children. He later remarried and remained married until his death.[43]
In 1991, Dawson was diagnosed withprostate cancer.[44]
On August 12, 2022, Dawson's family announced that he had enteredhospice care at theUniversity of Kansas Medical Center inKansas City, Kansas.[26] He died on August 24, at the age of 87.[45] He had been one of the last living members of the Chiefs franchise who dated back to its time in Dallas.
The Chiefs wore a decal with the number 16 on their helmets for the entire2022 season in honor of Dawson. Before their first offensive play of the preseason game the day after his death, the Chiefs lined up in a huddle popularized by Dawson, where the quarterback stands in front of the other 10 offensive players instead of standing in the middle with the players making a circle around him.[46]
| Legend | |
|---|---|
| TSN AFL MVP/POTY | |
| Super Bowl MVP | |
| AFL champion | |
| AFL &Super Bowl champion | |
| Led the league | |
| Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | Games | Passing | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | GS | Record | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Avg | Lng | TD | Int | Rtg | ||
| 1957 | PIT | 3 | 1 | 0–1 | 2 | 4 | 50.0 | 25 | 6.3 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 69.8 |
| 1958 | PIT | 4 | 0 | — | 1 | 6 | 16.7 | 11 | 1.8 | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 |
| 1959 | PIT | 12 | 0 | — | 3 | 7 | 42.9 | 60 | 8.6 | 32 | 1 | 0 | 113.1 |
| 1960 | CLE | 2 | 0 | — | 8 | 13 | 61.5 | 23 | 1.8 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 65.9 |
| 1961 | CLE | 7 | 1 | 1–0 | 7 | 15 | 46.7 | 85 | 5.7 | 17 | 1 | 3 | 47.2 |
| 1962 | DAL | 14 | 14 | 11–3 | 189 | 310 | 61.0 | 2,759 | 8.9 | 92 | 29 | 17 | 98.3 |
| 1963 | KC | 14 | 13 | 5–7–1 | 190 | 352 | 54.0 | 2,389 | 6.8 | 82 | 19 | 19 | 77.5 |
| 1964 | KC | 14 | 14 | 7–7 | 199 | 354 | 56.2 | 2,879 | 8.1 | 72 | 30 | 18 | 89.9 |
| 1965 | KC | 14 | 12 | 6–4–2 | 163 | 305 | 53.4 | 2,262 | 7.4 | 67 | 21 | 14 | 81.3 |
| 1966 | KC | 14 | 14 | 11–2–1 | 159 | 284 | 56.0 | 2,527 | 8.9 | 89 | 26 | 10 | 101.7 |
| 1967 | KC | 14 | 14 | 9–5 | 206 | 357 | 57.7 | 2,651 | 7.4 | 71 | 24 | 17 | 83.7 |
| 1968 | KC | 14 | 13 | 11–2 | 131 | 224 | 58.5 | 2,109 | 9.4 | 92 | 17 | 9 | 98.6 |
| 1969 | KC | 9 | 7 | 5–2 | 98 | 166 | 59.0 | 1,323 | 8.0 | 55 | 9 | 13 | 69.9 |
| 1970 | KC | 14 | 12 | 5–5–2 | 141 | 262 | 53.8 | 1,876 | 7.2 | 61 | 13 | 14 | 71.0 |
| 1971 | KC | 14 | 13 | 9–3–1 | 167 | 301 | 55.5 | 2,504 | 8.3 | 82 | 15 | 13 | 81.6 |
| 1972 | KC | 14 | 12 | 7–5 | 175 | 305 | 57.4 | 1,835 | 6.0 | 44 | 13 | 12 | 72.8 |
| 1973 | KC | 8 | 6 | 3–2–1 | 66 | 101 | 65.3 | 725 | 7.2 | 48 | 2 | 5 | 72.4 |
| 1974 | KC | 14 | 8 | 3–5 | 138 | 235 | 58.7 | 1,573 | 6.7 | 84 | 7 | 13 | 65.8 |
| 1975 | KC | 12 | 5 | 1–4 | 93 | 140 | 66.4 | 1,095 | 7.8 | 51 | 5 | 4 | 90.0 |
| Career | 211 | 159 | 94–57–8 | 2,136 | 3,741 | 57.1 | 28,711 | 7.7 | 92 | 239 | 183 | 82.6 | |
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