The First Great Kansas City Chiefs' Coach (You Know, Before Andy Reid)
Everyone knows the Kansas City Chiefs stand on the doorstep of history. They have this era’s greatest quarterback under center. The world’s biggest pop star sits in a luxury box for all their games. And they have the undisputed best coach in football.
That said, it’s easy to forget that the Chiefs wandered in the wilderness a long, long time. For more than 50 years, they didn’t reach the big game a single time — not once between January 1970 and February 2020.
While Andy Reid deserves accolades for taking the Chiefs to five Super Bowls in the past six years, it was another head coach who initially helped the team from Kansas City climb to greatness.
His name was Hank Stram.
And he was one of the true characters of the game.
Here’s the story of this colorful head coach who led the Chiefs to their first Super Bowl and their first win in the big game.
The Early Years: Building the Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs
Here’s something you may not know: The Chiefs haven’t always played in Kansas City. They were once the Dallas Texas of the American Football League (AFL), the brainchild of oil tycoon Lamar Hunt, who was determined to challenge the NFL’s dominance. Hunt was also the founder and owner of the Dallas Texans, one of the AFL’s original teams, and he focused on getting a coach who could quickly lead his new franchise to greatness.
His choice? A little-known assistant from Miami named Hank Stram.
Nobody knew who Hank Stram was back then. He’d spent years working under legendary coaches like Frank Leahy at Notre Dame and Bud Wilkinson at Oklahoma, but he’d never been a head coach. But Hunt saw something in Stram, and it turned out to be a brilliant hire.
From the beginning, Stram built the Texans with discipline, creativity, and flair. He wanted to outsmart and outmaneuver his opponents. He designed an offense based on motion, misdirection, and speed, concepts that would later become staples in modern football. On defense, he prioritized athleticism and toughness, setting the foundation for one of the most feared units in the league.
The Texas won the 1962 AFL Championship in two overtimes, but the team struggled to compete with the Dallas Cowboys. In 1963, Hunt made the bold decision to relocate to Kansas City, where they were rebranded as the Chiefs. The move started a new era of winning.
The Rise of a Championship Team
As the Chiefs settled into their new home in Kansas City, Hank Stram wasted no time building a roster that would dominate the AFL. He wanted players who fit his innovative schemes and tough-minded philosophy. Over the next few years, he assembled a group of future Hall of Famers and Chiefs legends, creating one of the most well-rounded teams in football.
At the heart of Stram’s offense was Len Dawson, a smart, accurate quarterback who thrived in Stram’s high-motion passing attack. Dawson had been a journeyman before reuniting with Stram in Kansas City. Under his old coach’s system, he became the AFL’s most efficient passer. His connection with Otis Taylor, a wide receiver with size and speed, gave the Chiefs a big-play threat that few defenses could handle.
On defense, Stram built a unit that blended size, speed, and intelligence — a group that could match up with any team, NFL or AFL. Buck Buchanan, the 6-foot-7 defensive tackle, was a nightmare for opposing quarterbacks, while Willie Lanier became a dominant middle linebacker. Flanking Lanier was Bobby Bell, an all-around defensive force who could rush the passer, cover receivers, and make plays all over the field.
With this core in place, the Chiefs emerged as an AFL powerhouse. In 1966, they won their first AFL Championship since the Dallas days, earning the right to play in the inaugural Super Bowl I (known then as the AFL-NFL Championship Game) against Vince Lombardi’s Green Bay Packers. It was a defining moment. Stram’s team fought hard, but ultimately fell to the Packers 35-10.
Super Bowl IV: Stram’s Masterpiece
It took three years, but the Chiefs would return to the big game. When the Kansas City Chiefs reached Super Bowl IV in January 1970, Hank Stram was ready for the moment. His team had battled through the AFL playoffs and dismantled the Oakland Raiders in the AFL Championship. They would face the heavily favored Minnesota Vikings, a team built on brute strength and a suffocating defense known as the Purple People Eaters. But Stram had a plan.
A Mastermind at Work
Super Bowl IV was historic for many reasons, but perhaps most memorable was the fact that Hank Stram became the first Super Bowl coach to be mic’d up. NFL Films captured Stram’s every word, giving football fans a rare, behind-the-scenes look at a head coach in action. What they got was pure gold.
The Game Plan: Outsmarting the Vikings
The Vikings were 12-point favorites, boasting the league’s best defense, but Stram saw weaknesses. Instead of trying to overpower Minnesota, he relied on misdirection, quick passes, and creative play-calling. Defensively, the Chiefs swarmed Vikings quarterback Joe Kapp, forcing him into mistakes and shutting down Minnesota’s powerful run game.
‘Matriculating the Ball Down the Field’
One of the most iconic moments in NFL Films history came from Stram’s sideline antics. As the Chiefs moved methodically down the field, he turned to his players and said with a grin:
“Just keep matriculating the ball down the field, boys!”
It was classic Stram — confident, charming, and absolutely sure of his team’s ability to execute his vision.
The 65 Toss Power Trap
Stram’s confidence reached its peak when he called “65 Toss Power Trap,” a beautifully designed running play that sent running back Mike Garrett untouched into the end zone. As the play unfolded, Stram was caught on camera, grinning and telling his assistants:
“Wasn’t that a beautiful play?”
It became one of the most famous moments in Super Bowl history — a coach savoring the moment as a play worked to perfection on the biggest stage.
AFL Legitimacy: The Chiefs Prove They Belong
The Chiefs dominated the game, winning 23-7, and delivering the AFL’s second straight Super Bowl victory. It was a validation of the AFL. Two months later, the AFL and NFL officially merged, and Stram’s Chiefs became forever etched in football history.
For Stram, it was the crowning achievement of his career. His creative mind and bold personality had led Kansas City to football’s most important game — and they won. Thanks to NFL Films, his performance on the sideline remains one of the most beloved coaching moments in Super Bowl history.
Hank Stram: More Than Just a Coach
After his coaching career, Stram took his football wisdom and infectious enthusiasm to the Monday Night Football radio booth, where he teamed up with Jack Buck to call games for millions of listeners. Even in retirement, his love for the sport was evident in every broadcast.
In 2003, Stram received the ultimate honor — induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Though his health had declined, he delivered an emotional, pre-recorded speech that captured his love for the game and the players who helped him build a championship team.
Stram’s legacy is about more than just his 124-76-10 career record. He was a pioneer, a motivator, and the architect of the Chiefs' first great dynasty. Before Andy Reid became Kansas City’s greatest coach, Hank Stram set the standard.