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Len Dawson, MVP of Chiefs' first Super Bowl win, in hospice

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Len Dawson, the 87-year-old Hall of Fame quarterback who led the Kansas City Chiefs to their first Super Bowl title, has entered hospice care in Kansas City.

KMBC-TV, the Kansas City station where Dawson began his broadcasting career in 1966, confirmed Dawson is in hospice care through his wife, Linda.

Hall of Fame quarterback Len Dawson, and former quarterback for the Kansas City Chiefs, died at 87. Bettmann Archive
Len Dawson of the Kansas City Chiefs looks on during an AFL Football game in 1969 in Kansas City. Getty Images

The MVP of the Chiefs’ 23-7 Super Bowl victory over Minnesota in January 1970, Dawson was elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1987 and received the Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award in 2012.

From Alliance, Ohio, Dawson starred at Purdue and was selected fifth overall by Pittsburgh in the 1957 NFL draft. After seeing limited time in the NFL in three seasons with the Steelers and two with Cleveland, he joined the Dallas Texans in the American Football League in 1962, reuniting with former Purdue assistant coach Hank Stram.

Len Dawson fires a pass against the Green Bay Packers during Super Bowl I on January 15, 1967 in Los Angeles. NFL
Len Dawson led the Chiefs to their first Super Bowl title. WireImage.com

Dawson moved with the team to Kansas City the following season and remained the Chiefs’ starting quarterback until retiring in 1975.

In addition to his work at KMBC where he was the station’s first sports anchor, Dawson was a game analyst for NBC and the Chiefs’ radio network and hosted HBO’s “Inside the NFL” show.

Len Dawson scrambles with the ball against the Atlanta Falcons during a game December 17, 1972 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium in Atlanta. Getty Images

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Fernande Dalal

Update: 2024-09-02