The Kansas City Chiefs season was the franchise's 14th season in the National Football League and the 24th overall. They matched on their 6–10 record and last place finish in the AFC West.
After the conclusion of the 1982 season on January 4, the Chiefs fired head coach Marv Levy. Levy had compiled a 31–42 record in Kansas City. Dallas Cowboys quarterbacks coach John Mackovic was named the fifth head coach in team history on February 2. The 39-year-old Mackovic became the youngest individual ever to hold that post for the club. The Chiefs held the seventh overall pick in the 1983 NFL draft and selected quarterback Todd Blackledge, bypassing future Hall of Fame inductees Jim Kelly and Dan Marino. The Chiefs would not draft another quarterback in the first round until the 2017 NFL draft when they drafted Patrick Mahomes.
Tragedy struck the Chiefs on June 29 when Joe Delaney drowned while attempting to save the lives of three children in Monroe, Louisiana. Delaney was posthumously awarded the Presidential Citizen's Medal by Ronald Reagan on July 13. Linebacker Bobby Bell became the first Chiefs player to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on July 30, providing some solace for the mourning Chiefs fan base following Delaney's death.
With Bill Kenney and Todd Blackledge both on the roster, starting quarterback Steve Fuller was traded to the Los Angeles Rams on August 19. Kenney earned a Pro Bowl berth after racking up a franchise-record 4,348 passing yards, while wide receiver Carlos Carson hauled in 80 passes for 1,351 yards. Despite the team's high-flying passing game, Mackovic had trouble finding a suitable replacement for Joe Delaney and the running back position. The highest scoring contest in franchise history took place as the Chiefs and Seattle Seahawks combined for 99 points in a wild, 51–48 overtime loss at the Kingdome. A meager crowd of 11,377 braved near-zero degree temperatures (the franchise's coldest home game until January 2024) to attend the club's season-ending 48–17 win against Denver on December 18, the smallest attendance figure ever for a Chiefs game at Arrowhead as the club finished the year at 6–10. The win did ensure Denver would not host the Wild Card Game the following week, as the Seahawks would take advantage of the Kingdome in a blowout win.
NFL draft
1983 Kansas City Chiefs draft Round Selection Player Position College 1 7 Todd Blackledge Quarterback Penn State 2 34 Dave Lutz Guard Georgia Tech 3 61 Albert Lewis Cornerback Grambling State 4 92 Ron Wetzel Tight end Arizona State 5 119 Jim Arnold Punter Vanderbilt 6 146 Ellis Gardner Tackle Georgia Tech 7 173 Ken Thomas Running back San Jose State 7 179 Daryl Posey Running back Mississippi College 8 204 Irv Eatman Tackle UCLA 9 231 Adam Lingner Center Illinois 10 257 Mark Shumate Defensive tackle Wisconsin 11 284 Dwayne Jackson Defensive end South Carolina State 12 315 Ken Jones Tackle Tennessee
Personnel
Staff
Roster
Preseason Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap 1 at Cincinnati Bengals W 24–7 1–0 Riverfront Stadium 42,662 Recap 2 Detroit Lions L 13–17 1–1 Arrowhead Stadium 32,885 Recap 3 St. Louis Cardinals W 17–16 2–1 Arrowhead Stadium 34,070 Recap 4 at Chicago Bears L 17–20 2–2 Soldier Field 56,311 Recap
Regular season Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap 1 September 4 Seattle Seahawks W 17–13 1–0 Arrowhead Stadium 42,531 Recap 2 San Diego Chargers L 14–17 1–1 Arrowhead Stadium 62,150 Recap 3 September 18 at Washington Redskins L 12–27 1–2 RFK Stadium 52,610 Recap 4 September 25 at Miami Dolphins L 6–14 1–3 Miami Orange Bowl 50,785 Recap 5 October 2 St. Louis Cardinals W 38–14 2–3 Arrowhead Stadium 58,975 Recap 6 October 9 at Los Angeles Raiders L 20–21 2–4 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 40,492 Recap 7 October 16 New York Giants W 38–17 3–4 Arrowhead Stadium 55,449 Recap 8 October 23 at Houston Oilers W 13–10 4–4 Houston Astrodome 39,462 Recap 9 October 30 at Denver Broncos L 24–27 4–5 Mile High Stadium 74,640 Recap 10 November 6 Los Angeles Raiders L 20–28 4–6 Arrowhead Stadium 75,497 Recap 11 November 13 Cincinnati Bengals W 20–15 5–6 Arrowhead Stadium 44,711 Recap 12 November 20 at Dallas Cowboys L 21–41 5–7 Texas Stadium 64,103 Recap 13 November 27 at Seattle Seahawks L 48–51 5–8 Kingdome 56,793 Recap 14 December 4 Buffalo Bills L 9–14 5–9 Arrowhead Stadium 27,104 Recap 15 December 11 at San Diego Chargers L 38–41 5–10 Jack Murphy Stadium 35,510 Recap 16 December 18 Denver Broncos W 48–17 6–10 Arrowhead Stadium 11,377 Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries
Week 1: vs. Seattle Seahawks
Week 2: vs. San Diego Chargers
Week 3: at Washington Redskins
Week 4: at Miami Dolphins
Week 5: vs. St. Louis Cardinals
Week 6: at Los Angeles Raiders
Week 7: vs. New York Giants
Week 8: at Houston Oilers
Week 9: at Denver Broncos
Week 10: vs. Los Angeles Raiders
Week 11: vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Week 12: at Dallas Cowboys
Week 13: at Seattle Seahawks
Week 14: vs. Buffalo Bills
Week 15: at San Diego Chargers
Week 16: vs. Denver Broncos
Standings
References
External links 1983 Kansas City Chiefs at Pro-Football-Reference.com