Kansas City Chiefs Draft Day Disasters: Five Worst Picks in Team History

Aug 2, 2014; Canton, OH, USA; Gale Sayers waves to the crowd at the TimkenSteel Grand Parade on Cleveland Avenue in advance of the 2014 Pro Football Hall of Fame Enshrinement. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

5. RB Gale Sayers, Kansas, 1st Round 1965—Yes, Chiefs fans, that’s not a misprint. Your Kansas City Chiefs drafted future Hall-of-Fame running back Gale Sayers with their first round pick in 1965.

Sayers, however, chose to sign with the more-established NFL team that also drafted him in the first round: The Chicago Bears.

While we know the Kansas City Chiefs were the dominant team of the AFL era, winning 3 AFL Championships and their only Super Bowl, Sayers would have made a good offense unstoppable.

Already endowed with Hall-of-Fame quarterback Len Dawson, All-AFL WR Otis Taylor, outstanding TE Fred Arbanas, and a massive line led by LT Jim Tyrer and G Ed Budde, the play-making Sayers would have made the Chiefs a historic offensive juggernaut in an era that favored the ground game.

Sayers was a force: running, receiving, and on kick returns. Paired with a defense loaded with 5 future Hall-of-Famers, there’s no telling what the team could have achieved.

Losing the local University of Kansas hero was a significant blow.

With Sayers, the Chiefs might have won 2 of the first four Super Bowls and we’d be talking about a late 60’s Kansas City dynasty instead of Green Bay. Perhaps teams would get awarded the Hank Stram Trophy after winning the Super Bowl instead of that Vince Lombardi guy. You never know.

Next: Number FOUR