1976 Kansas City Chiefs season

1976 Kansas City Chiefs season
Head coach	Paul Wiggin
Home field	Arrowhead Stadium
Results
Record	5–9
Division place	3rd AFC West
Playoff finish	did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	C Jack Rudnay

The 1976 Kansas City Chiefs season ended with a third consecutive 5–9 record and no playoff berth.

Buck Buchanan announced his retirement in February, while Len Dawson announced his own departure on May 1.^[1] Off the field, Jack Steadman was promoted to team president and Jim Schaaf was named general manager in August.^[1] On the field, Kansas City’s fortunes didn’t improve in the second year of the Wiggin regime. The club dropped three straight home games, including an embarrassing 27–17 loss in week three to the New Orleans Saints, the first win with the Saints for former Kansas City coach Hank Stram (who refused to shake hands with Wiggin following the game and rode off on the shoulders of his players as he did after the Chiefs' victory in Super Bowl IV) before suffering a 50–17 setback at Buffalo on October 3, opening the season at 0–4 for the first time in team history.^[1] The team registered a 3–1 record during a successful midseason stretch, but like most of the previous seasons, could not maintain that momentum.^[1]

After lingering in Len Dawson’s shadow for eight seasons, Mike Livingston was firmly entrenched as the team’s starting quarterback,^[1] becoming the first QB to start every regular season game since Dawson in 1968. Although Livingston played well and rallied the squad for wins in two of the season’s final three games, the Chiefs still ended the year with their third consecutive 5–9 record.^[1] Running back MacArthur Lane was the club’s top offensive threat, becoming the only player at the time in franchise history to lead the league in receptions (66).

Offseason

NFL Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	School/Club Team

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	September 12, 1976	San Diego Chargers	L 30–16	53,133
2	September 20, 1976	Oakland Raiders	L 24–21	60,884
3	September 26, 1976	New Orleans Saints	L 27–17	53,918
4	October 3, 1976	at Buffalo Bills	L 50–17	51,909
5	October 10, 1976	at Washington Redskins	W 33–30	53,060
6	October 17, 1976	at Miami Dolphins	W 20–17	43,325
7	October 24, 1976	Denver Broncos	L 35–26	57,961
8	October 31, 1976	at Tampa Bay Buccaneers	W 28–19	41,779
9	November 7, 1976	Pittsburgh Steelers	L 45–0	71,516
10	November 14, 1976	at Oakland Raiders	L 21–10	48,259
11	November 21, 1976	Cincinnati Bengals	L 27–24	46,259
12	November 28, 1976	at San Diego Chargers	W 23–20	29,272
13	December 5, 1976	at Denver Broncos	L 17–16	58,170
14	December 12, 1976	Cleveland Browns	W 39–14	34,340

Standings

AFC West
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Oakland Raiders^(1)	13	1	0	.929	7–0	10–1	350	237	W10
Denver Broncos	9	5	0	.643	5–2	7–5	315	206	W2
San Diego Chargers	6	8	0	.429	2–5	4–8	248	285	L1
Kansas City Chiefs	5	9	0	.357	2–5	4–8	290	376	W1
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	0	14	0	.000	0–4	0–13	125	412	L14

References

1. Kansas City Chiefs History 1970's