The 1972 Kansas City Chiefs season was the franchise's third season in the National Football League, tenth as the Kansas City Chiefs, and thirteenth overall. The Chiefs moved into the new Arrowhead Stadium and ended with an 8–6 record, runner-up in the AFC West, but missed the playoffs.
The last original member of the franchise (1960 Dallas Texans) departed on July 12 when safety Johnny Robinson announced his retirement at training camp. Starting quarterback Len Dawson ended speculation about his retirement and signed a two-year contract on April 4. Franchise owner Lamar Hunt became the first AFL figure to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on July 29; Dawson was inducted in and Robinson in .
After two different construction strikes and a myriad of other delays, Arrowhead Stadium was officially dedicated on August 12, when the Chiefs registered a 24–14 preseason victory over the St. Louis Cardinals. On a very warm Saturday night with an attendance of 78,190, running back Ed Podolak scored the first touchdown in the facility. Regular season ticket prices for this first season at Arrowhead were eight dollars for box seats and $7 for reserved seating.
In the opener on September 17, the Chiefs lost 20–10 to Miami (the first win of their perfect season) in the first regular season game at the new Arrowhead Stadium, in front of a crowd of 79,829. The Chiefs lost their first four games at Arrowhead until beating division rival Oakland in week 8 in front of a standing-room-only crowd of 82,094, the largest “in-house” attendance total for an NFL contest in Arrowhead's history at that time. After a 5–3 start, a three-game losing streak effectively eliminated the club from playoff contention. An 8–6 record was only good enough for a second-place finish in the AFC West, 2½ games behind Oakland. Linebacker Willie Lanier became the first Chiefs player to receive the prestigious NFL Man of the Year Award in the offseason.
In week six, the Chiefs dropped a shocking 21–20 decision at home to the lowly Philadelphia Eagles, who entered the game 0–5 and won only once more (also a one-point victory, over the Houston Oilers, who finished 1–13). It was the only time the Chiefs and Eagles met until 1992,Urena, Ivan; Pro Football Schedules: A Complete Historical Guide from 1933 to the Present, p. 18 and Kansas City did not visit Philadelphia until 1998.Urena; Pro Football Schedules, p. 17
Offseason NFL draft
Round Pick Player Position School/club team
Roster
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap HOF vs. New York Giants W 23–17 1–0 Fawcett Stadium 19,307 Recap 1 vs. Chicago Bears W 24–10 2–0 Notre Dame Stadium 32,391 Recap 2 St. Louis Cardinals W 24–14 3–0 Arrowhead Stadium 78,190 Recap 3 Baltimore Colts L 17–23 3–1 Arrowhead Stadium 76,882 Recap 4 August 27 Los Angeles Rams W 19–13 4–1 Arrowhead Stadium 77,064 Recap 5 Dallas Cowboys W 20–10 5–1 Arrowhead Stadium 79,592 Recap 6 at Green Bay Packers L 0–20 5–2 Milwaukee County Stadium 47,281 Recap
Regular season Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap 1 September 17 Miami Dolphins L 10–20 0–1 Arrowhead Stadium 79,829 Recap 2 at New Orleans Saints W 20–17 1–1 Tulane Stadium 70,793 Recap 3 October 1 at Denver Broncos W 45–24 2–1 Mile High Stadium 51,656 Recap 4 October 8 at Cleveland Browns W 31–7 3–1 Cleveland Stadium 83,819 Recap 5 October 15 Cincinnati Bengals L 16–23 3–2 Arrowhead Stadium 79,068 Recap 6 October 22 Philadelphia Eagles L 20–21 3–3 Arrowhead Stadium 78,389 Recap 7 October 29 at San Diego Chargers W 26–14 4–3 San Diego Stadium 54,533 Recap 8 November 5 Oakland Raiders W 27–14 5–3 Arrowhead Stadium 82,094 Recap 9 November 12 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 7–16 5–4 Three Rivers Stadium 50,350 Recap 10 November 19 San Diego Chargers L 17–27 5–5 Arrowhead Stadium 79,011 Recap 11 November 26 at Oakland Raiders L 3–26 5–6 Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum 54,801 Recap 12 December 3 Denver Broncos W 24–21 6–6 Arrowhead Stadium 66,725 Recap 13 December 10 Baltimore Colts W 24–10 7–6 Arrowhead Stadium 44,175 Recap 14 December 17 at Atlanta Falcons W 17–14 8–6 Atlanta Stadium 58,850 Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries Week 1: vs. Miami Dolphins
Week 2: at New Orleans Saints
Week 3: at Denver Broncos
Week 4: at Cleveland Browns
Week 5: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Week 6: vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Week 7: at San Diego Chargers
Week 8: vs. Oakland Raiders
Week 9: at Pittsburgh Steelers
Week 10: vs. San Diego Chargers
Week 11: at Oakland Raiders
Week 12: vs. Denver Broncos
Week 13: vs. Baltimore Colts
Week 14: at Atlanta Falcons
Standings
References
External links 1972 Kansas City Chiefs at Pro-Football-Reference.com 1972 Kansas City Chiefs at ProFootballArchives.com 1972 Kansas City Chiefs at jt-sw.com