2023 Pre-Season Rank Unranked.   Peak Period: 2021-23*

One of the best Centers going into 2024, Creed Humphrey, has already accomplished more than others of his ilk who have played three times as long.  The second runner-up for the 2021 Offensive Rookie of the Year, has been named to two Pro Bowls and is already a two-time Super Bowl Champion.

*Humphrey has only played three seasons.

Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the top 50 of each major North American sports team. That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists and consistently look to update them when necessary and based on necessity. As such, we are delighted to present our post-2023 revision of our top 50 Kansas City Chiefs.

As for all of our top 50 players in football, we look at the following:

1.  Advanced Statistics.

2.  Traditional statistics and how they finished in the National Football League.

3.  Playoff accomplishments.

4.  Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles that are not reflected in a stat sheet.

Last year, Kansas City did it all again, winning their second straight Super Bowl and fourth overall.  Despite this, there were no new entrants but two very significant elevations.

As always, we present our top five, which saw a new number five:

1. Len Dawson
2. Derrick Thomas
3. Tony Gonzalez
4. Bobby Bell
5. Patrick Mahomes

You can find the entire list here.

Mahomes moves into the top five and is poised to become the greatest Chief of all time.  If you go by Super Bowls, he is already there, and we understand if you think he should be #1 right now. 

Defensive Tackle Chris Jones, who secured his fifth Pro Bowl and Second First Team All-Pro jumped from #31 to #19.

Notably, Tight End Travis Kelce, who may have earned his ninth Pro Bowl, could not move up this loaded list.  He is still ranked at #7.

We thank you for your continued support of our lists on Notinhalloffame.com.

Kansas City Football lost one of its early stars, Abner Haynes, who passed away at the age of 86.

Haynes was with the Chiefs from their inception, dating back to 1960 when they were the Dallas Texans.  Winning the AFL Rookie of the Year, Haynes would also win the UPI and The Sporting News Player of the Year off of his league-leading 875 Rushing Yards and 9 TDs.  A dual-threat Halfback, Haynes led the AFL in Rushing Touchdowns the next two seasons and was a vital part of the team’s AFL Championship in 1962.

With the Texans/Chiefs, Haynes rushed for 3,814 Yards and caught 199 passes for 2,739 Yards with 56 Touchdowns from scrimmage.  The man who was the franchise’s first superstar was inducted to their Hall of Honor in 1991.

We at Notinhalloffame.com would like to extend our condolences to Abner Haynes's fans, friends, and family.

One of the most underrated Guards in the game, Dave Szott, was never chosen for a Pro Bowl, though he was good enough to make several. 

Szott was not a behemoth like other Linemen but used skill and leverage to outmaneuver his opponent.  Rarely beaten, Szott had no discernable weakness, well except for the lack of accolades!

The NFL Draft is on the horizon and fast approaching, so the future of some players is naturally going to remain unclear. However, in Rashee Rice’s case, his future with the Kansas City Chiefs remains totally up in the air, and he could yet be unavailable for the new NFL campaign that begins in September of this year.

Rice, 23, is a young player establishing himself with one of the most prominent and feared teams in the whole of the NFL. The Chiefs have and do win it all, and then some, and sports betting markets online suggest this will continue to be the case in 2024 and beyond, but they may have to do it without Rice, a player who broke the record for being the rookie to take the most passes in the playoffs on the way to the Super Bowl.

The Philadelphia-born wide receiver, who wears number four for the Chiefs, has eight felony charges lodged against him following a multi-car crash in Dallas, so not only could this make him unavailable for next season, but there could also be NFL charges looming, which may have a significantly negative effect too. The potential for Rice to be unavailable in part or in full would automatically lead many to believe that the Chiefs must be on the lookout for a wide receiver in the upcoming draft, but that’s not entirely the case, according to General Manager Brett Veach.

According to Veach, the original plans the Chiefs had will be the ones they go with, so offensive line depth, safety considerations and cornerback vacancies will all be at the forefront, as they were before Rice’s situation changed. However, while he did recognise that there is a need to continue as planned, Veach also suggested the Chiefs would be aiming to address the wide receiver position, just in case Rice is unable to play a part.

You can’t downplay Rice’s importance to the Chiefs, with the 2023 draft pick being the top receiver in the team last season. But, there’s always been an approach to keep adding talent and ensuring there’s competition for places, even if it’s just to drive the regular starters on to hit high standards on the performance front consistently. Depth and real competitiveness in all departments is the philosophy, and it’s one that has been proven to work based on the success achieved by the Chiefs in recent times.

What this could also mean is that if things don’t go smoothly for Rice in the coming months, he could quite easily be replaced, or have been replaced, when he makes his return. And it will likely be players of a similar level who have stepped into the void. Rice is contracted by the Chiefs until the end of 2026, when he will become an unrestricted free agent. But between then and now, a lot could happen, and if Veach has a player who can’t contribute, a tough decision may have to be made.

Regular visitors of Notinhalloffame.com know that we are slowly working on the top 50 of every major team in the NHL, NBA, NFL and MLB.  Once that is done, we intend to look at how each team honor their past players, coaches and executives.  As such, it is important to us that the

Kansas City Chiefs will be inducting Tamba Hali to their franchise Hall of Fame this year.

Originally from Liberia, Tamba Hali arrived in the United States at age 10 and the athletically gifted youngster took to football like a duck to water.  Hali went to Penn State and the Chiefs would draft him 20th overall in 2006 and he played Defensive End for the first three seasons of his career.  Moving to the Right Outside Linebacker in 2009, he would net 14.5 Quarterbacks in 2010 and would have double-digit Sacks again in 2011 and 2013 and from 2011 to 2015 he would be chosen for the Pro Bowl.   Hali played the entirety of his 12 seasons with the Chiefs.

Hali had 89.5 Sacks and 105 Tackles for Loss for the team.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate Tamba Hali for this impending honor.

One of the few Punters to have been drafted as high as the Third Round, All-American and two-time First Team SEC Selection, Dustin Colquitt, played his first 15 seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs.  Colquitt was a two-time Pro Bowl Selection and Super Bowl winner (LIV) with the Chiefs.  Following his release from Kansas City, Colquitt had brief stints with Pittsburgh, Jacksonville, Atlanta and Cleveland.

At the time of his retirement, Colquitt was in the top ten Punts and Punting Yards.

Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we here at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the 50 of each major North American sports team. That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists out and we always consistently look to update them when we can and based on necessity. As such, we are very happy to present our post 2022 revision of our top 50 Kansas City Chiefs.

As for all of our top 50 players in football we look at the following:

1. Advanced Statistics.

2. Traditional statistics and how they finished in the National Football League.

3. Playoff accomplishments.

4. Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles not reflected in a stat sheet.

Last year, Kansas City won their third Super Bowl and advanced in the overall hierarchy of the greatest NFL franchises of all-time. We saw three distinct rank elevations due to the powerful 2023 campaign.

As always, we present our top five, which did not change.

1. Len Dawson

2. Derrick Thomas

3. Tony Gonzalez

4. Bobby Bell

5. Will Shields

You can find the entire list here.

Tight End, Travis Kelce, exploded from #13 to #6.

Quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, who is now a two-time MVP, also rocketed up the ranking. He went to #8 from #19.

Defensive Tackle, Chris Jones, advanced nine spots to #31.

We welcome your input and comments and as always, we thank you for your support.

Chris Jones entered a sweet situation in the NFL in 2016, as he was drafted by a team on the rise (Kansas City) who could use a pass rusher.

The former Mississippi State star started more games than not in his first two seasons, and would be named an All-Rookie. Jones was a permanent starter for the Chiefs in his third year, accumulating 15.5 Sacks, 19 Tackles for Loss and 29 Quarterback Hits, which netted him a Second Team All-Pro nod. Following that, Jones was consistently double-teamed, but remained Kansas City’s top pass-rusher.

From 2019 to 2023, Jones has been a perennial Pro Bowl Selection, and is also on a two-year streak of First Team All-Pros.  The Chiefs won the last two Super Bowls, and while the offense gets most of the credit, these accolades do not happen with Jones leading the defence.  This is a very special player.

The Kansas City Chiefs lost one of their greats, with the passing of Otis Taylor, who died at the age of 80.  He had been battling Dementia and Parkinson’s.

A member of the Chiefs for all of his 11 NFL Seasons, Taylor was the player when Hall of Fame Quarterback Len Dawson was looking for a deep threat.  In fact, it was Taylor who caught half of the passes for the Kansas City Chiefs in their Super Bowl IV victory.

Taylor was a star in the AFL, and a big reason that the Chiefs were good.  He was their top receiver and rewarded them with a 1,297 yard season in 1966.  He was still productive after the NFL/AFL merger and the league in receiving yards in 1971. 

Taylor amassed 7,306 Receiving Yards and 57 Touchdowns, and was ranked #17 on our most recent list of those to consider for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.  He is also a member of the Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Fame.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to extend our condolences as the friends, family and fans of Otis Taylor.

Drafted in the Second Round from California in 2012 by the Cleveland Browns, Schwartz won the starting Right Tackle job as a rookie, and started every game for Cleveland for his four years as an NFL player.  Schwartz signed with Kansas City in 2016 as a Free Agent, and it quietly became one of the best signing in franchise history.

Schwartz took his play to the next level with the Chiefs, earning four consecutive All-Pros (three Second Team and one First Team), and was instrumental in the protection of Quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, who led Kansas City to a Super Bowl win in LIV.  Kansas City’s running game was also stellar with Schwartz anchoring the line.

A back injury in 2020, put him on the shelf after six Games, and he was released after the season.  After sitting out 2021, Schwartz elected to call it a career.  Schwartz may never have made it to the Pro Bowl but four All-Pros certainly show that he should have.  This could be one of the best players in recent memory to have never earned a “PB” beside his name.

2023 Pre-Season Rank #58, 2022 Pre-Season Rank #100. Peak Period 2019-23

Very few players on either side of the ball have made this big of a rank jump as Chris Jones, who might have taken over as the best Defensive Tackle in Football.  Jones is now a three-time Super Bowl winner, the king of the Chiefs defense, and has five All-Pros (one First Team, three Second Teams) on his resume.  Third in DPOY voting last year in 2022, Jones is a threat to win it in 2024. 

Would KC have won their last three Super Bowls without Jones?  Probably not.

Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we here at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the 50 of each major North American sports team.  That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists out and we always consistently look to update them when we can and based on necessity.  As such, we are very happy to present our post-2021 revision of our top 50 Kansas City Chiefs.

As for all of our top 50 players in football we look at the following: 

1.  Advanced Statistics.

2.  Traditional statistics and how they finished in the National Football League. 

3.  Playoff accomplishments.

4.  Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles not reflected in a stat sheet.

Last year, the Vikings went 12-5 and were Super Bowl contenders.  There were three significant elevations on the list, all on Offense.

As always, we present our top five, though there were no changes in this elite group:

1. Len Dawson

2. Derrick Thomas

3. Tony Gonzalez

4. Bobby Bell

5. Will Shields

You can find the entire list here.

Seven-time Pro Bowl and All-Decade Tight End, Travis Kelce, is approaching the top ten, climbing from #19 to #13.

Former MVP, Quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, took Kelce’s #19 spot with a rise from #28.  

Wide Receivier, Tyreke Hill, who was traded to Miami in the off-season, exploded from #42 to #24, but this will be as high as he goes.

We welcome your input and comments and as always, we thank you for your support.

There have been some incredible franchises over the years. The Pittsburgh Steelers were the most successful team in history, the Green Bay Packers swapped one Hall of Fame quarterback for another, and the New England Patriots were hated across the country.

Success breeds jealousy, but it also encourages head coaches and players to up their expectations. The Kansas City Chiefs are the franchise that has stepped up to the plate in the last five years due to their incredible performances. They have been so good that they are now the NFL’s next ruling dynasty and may sit on the throne for decades.

No Letting Up  

Like all the great locker rooms, Kansas City has no desire to ease off the throttle and lose momentum. Sure, the Chiefs lost the Super Bowl to Tampa Bay, yet you can be sure they’ll try and rewrite that mistake this time out. The American football odds already rank them as the +450 favorites ahead of the Buccaneers at +700.  

When you look at what Andy Reid’s men have achieved since 2016, it’s an inevitable conclusion. The Chiefs added a fifth consecutive AFC West title in 2020, around six weeks before losing out in Super Bowl LV. The season before, Patrick Mahomes famously led a revival to beat the San Francisco 49ers 31-20 and claim Super Bowl LIV.

Add the 2019 AFC Championship game to that and it’s clear that Kansas City has the drive to challenge for honors for the foreseeable future. Recent history proves it beyond doubt.  

Hall of Famers  

What makes the Chiefs a fantastic football team is the people they have in the most important places of the franchise. NFL franchises always need to be loaded in offense and defense, as Green Bay highlighted last term, and patient owners are always welcome. However, the key positions are head coach and QB.  

In Kansas City and the entire state, supporters look at the two men and see greatness. Andy Reid is already a Hall of Famer in everyone’s eyes, even if the NFL hasn’t made it official yet. Mahomes, on the other hand, has transcended the quarterback position with his incredibly powerful arm and ability to hit moving targets on the run.

Of course, Mahomes is a legacy quarterback with a full career at his mercy. However, Reid is only 63 and may easily have another decade at the top level, health permitting. To put it into perspective, Mahomes is the +450 favorite for the MVP award, while Reid is +2200 to be the Coach of the Year.  

Strong Competition

Competition is what forces franchises like the Kansas City Chiefs to milk every ounce of talent out of the roster. Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers are legends of the game that lead the chasing pack, but it’s the host of young players that will ensure Reid and Mahomes keep their eyes on the ball.  

The Buffalo Bills, who are +1100 third favorites for the Super Bowl title, have Josh Allen and will be contenders for years because of him. Lamar Jackson’s combination of throwing and rushing skills has the Ravens holding their breath this season, whereas Kyler Murray could transform the Arizona Cardinals’ fortunes.

These men are threats to the dominance of Patrick Mahomes, yet you can bet the Chiefs won’t shirk the responsibility. Instead, they’ll rise to the pressure and take on every contender that steps up to the plate.

The NFL has an array of excellent football teams, many of which can string together a Super Bowl-winning run. Overall, though, it’s the current Chiefs’ roster that appears as if it’ll go down in the annals of history.

Yes, we know that this is taking a while!

As many of you know, we here at Notinhalloffame.com are slowly generating the 50 of each major North American sports team.  That being said, we have existing Top 50 lists out and we always consistently look to update them when we can and based on necessity. As such, we are very happy to present our pre-2021 revision of our top 50 Kansas City Chiefs of all-time.

As for all of our top 50 players in football we look at the following: 

1.  Advanced Statistics.

2.  Traditional statistics and how they finished in the NFL. 

3. Playoff accomplishments.

4. Their overall impact on the team and other intangibles not reflected in a stat sheet.

This our first revision in two years, and with the Chiefs participating in the last two Super Bowls (winning the first), there are four new additions and one significant jump.  

1. Will Shields

2. Len Dawson

3. Derrick Thomas

4. Tony Gonzalez

5. Bobby Bell

You can find the entire list here.

Again, we need to state that this is the first revision in two years, so had we gotten around to redoing it last year, the debuts would not have been so dramatic.  

Our bad!

Moving on…

Tight End, Travis Kelce vaults from #34 to #19, and he is regarded as the top man in his position.

Quarterback and former MVP, Patrick Mahomes enters at #27.  It would not surprise us if he becomes number one in the future.

Wide Receiver, Tyreke Hill, comes in at #42.

Offensive Linemen, Mitchell Schwartz and Eric Fisher make their debuts at #45and #48respectively. Both are no longer Chiefs.

We welcome your input and commentsand as always, we thank you for your support.

Mitchell Schwartz played his first four seasons with the Cleveland Browns, and while he did well, he was not in that upper tier of Right Tackles.  This would change when he signed with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2016 and would have one of the best four-year stretches of any Offensive Tackle in franchise history, although you would not know it based on his Pro Bowl amounts.

That number, by the way, is zero.

In Schwartz's first four years in Kansas City, he had Approximate Values of 12, 16, 20 & 16, and in the year he had 20 (2018), he was second in the NFL in this metric. While the Pro Bowl voters snubbed him, he was a First Team All-Pro in 2018 and a Second Team selection in the other three years.  The Chiefs won Super Bowl LIV, and Schwartz's contributions should never be discounted.

After only playing six Games in 2020 due to injury, Schwartz was released, and retired shortly after.  Pro Bowl or not, the Tackle had one of the best runs in Chief history, and hopefully, this is celebrated in the future.

The Kansas City Chiefs have been around a long time, and many Hall of Famers have called KC home.  This would you make you expect that a player that has only suited up for a few years as a Chief could not crack this list so high, so early. Patrick Mahomes was not aware of this expectation.

Taken with the 10th Pick in 2017, the Quarterback from Texas Tech was an understudy to Alex Smith as a rookie, but the plan was for him to take over in 2018, and boy, did he ever!   In 2018, Mahomes threw for 5,097 Yards with a league-leading 50 Touchdowns against only 12 Interceptions.  Mahomes proved he could use his legs, but with a cannon-like gun he has for an arm, he was a pass-first QB despite his ability to be the other.  Mahomes was the AP MVP, PFWA MVP, Bert Bell Award Winner, and the Offensive Player of the Year in 2018, and he was also a First Team All-Pro. 

Mahomes missed a pair of Games in 2019 due to injury, but he still threw for over 4,000 Yards with a sparking TD Ratio of 26-5.  More importantly, he took the Chiefs to their first Super Bowl win in 40 years, defeating the San Francisco 49ers.  Mahomes was named the Game’s MVP, throwing for two TDs, and rushing for another.

The Quarterback again had a great 2020, with 38 Touchdowns and 4,740 Passing Yards.  Mahomes again led Kansas City to the Super Bowl, but that second ring eluded him as Tom Brady, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would not be denied.  Mahomes again went to the Pro Bowl in 2021, with another post-season trip.  In 2022, Mahomes would not be denied in seeking a second Super Bowl, where he narrowly defeated the Philadelphia Eagles.  That year, Mahomes also won his second MVP, second Touchdown Pass Title and first Passing Yards Title.  He also added a Pro Bowl and First Team All-Pro.  

When you thought it could not get any better, Mahomes led the Chiefs to another Super Bowl win, this time with a second win over San Francisco.  He also added a sixth straight Pro Bowl.

Entering the 2024 season as the most decorated active Quarterback in Football, and it is not without the realm of possibility for Mahomes to do it all again.  We are lucky to be watching him in real time.

Tyreke Hill had his share of off-field trouble when he was a star at Oklahoma State, and he had to relocate to Western Alabama.  Nevertheless, concern about his domestic violence arrest cost him draft spots, which dropped the talented Wide Receiver to the Fifth Round, where he was chosen by the Kansas City Chiefs.

Hill had 860 Yards from Scrimmage and was the Chiefs primary Punt Returner, for which he led the NFL in Punt Return Yards (592) and was a First Team All-Pro.  He was still returning punts in his second and third campaign but was now starting at Wide Receiver, and has to date eclipsed the 1,100 Yard mark, with his current high being 1,479 in 2018, which became his second First Team All-Pro year.  Hill's production dipped below 1,000 Yards in 2019, though that was due primarily to missing four games due to suspension.  Regardless, Hill still was a Pro Bowler, and in that year's Super Bowl, he was fantastic, catching nine passes for 105 Yards in their win over San Francisco. 

Hill played a sixth and final season with Kansas City, and again was chosen for the Pro Bowl, giving him a clean sweep in terms of his Chiefs tenure.  Hill was traded to the Miami Dolphins in 2022, ending his Chiefs totals to 67 Touchdowns and 8,745 All-Purpose Yards.

The Kansas City Chiefs made Eric Fisher the First Overall Pick in the 2013 Draft, and the Offensive Lineman made history as the first player from the Mid-American Conference to earn that honor.

Fisher was inserted as the starting Left Tackle, and while he did not achieve the heights that would be expected from a player of that draft stock, the Chiefs did not have to worry about his position for years.  Aiding the Chiefs in their Super Bowl LIV win, Fisher went to two Pro Bowls (2018 & 2020) and started all but four of his 117 Games with Kansas City.

It was announced that former Kansas City Chief, Fred Arbanas, passed away at the age of 82.

Like many in the early '60s, Fred Arbanas was drafted by both the NFL and the AFL, but usually, those who chose the AFL were drafted higher by the new organization.  This wasn't the case with Arbanas, who was a 7^th Round Selection by the Dallas Texans, where the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2^nd Round.

No matter, as Arbanas would go on to the All-AFL Team at Tight End.  He was an AFL All-Star as a rookie, and with the Texans, he would help them win the Championship, but the organization would relocate to Kansas City, where they were rechristened as the Chiefs.  Arbanas would continue his elite status at TE, where he would have another four AFL All-Star appearances and had First Team All-Pro honors three times (1963, 1964 & 1966).  He would aid Kansas City in winning the AFL title in 1966 and 1969, the latter where he would win his only Super Bowl Ring (IV).

Arbanas retired after 1970, recording 3,101 Yards and 34 Touchdowns, both high numbers for someone who played his position in the 1960s.

In our latest Notinhalloffame.com list of those to consider for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Arbanas was ranked #254.  Arbanas was inducted into the Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Fame in 1973.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to extend our condolences to the friends, fans and family of Fred Arbanas.