1989 Kansas City Chiefs season

1989 Kansas City Chiefs season
Head coach Marty Schottenheimer
Home field Arrowhead Stadium
Results
Record 8–7–1
Division place 2nd AFC West
Playoff finish did not qualify
Pro Bowlers FB Christian Okoye
LB Derrick Thomas
CB Kevin Ross
CB Albert Lewis

The 1989 Kansas City Chiefs season ended with an 8–7–1 record and second-place finish in the AFC West. The season was the first with head coach Marty Schottenheimer and general manager Carl Peterson.

The Chiefs had changed coaches before, but never had the organization gone through the complete overhaul it did between the 1988 and 1989 seasons. On December 19, 1988, Lamar Hunt hired Carl Peterson as the team's new president/general manager. Peterson wasted no time in making changes. On January 5 he fired head coach Frank Gansz two weeks after taking over. On January 24 he hired Marty Schottenheimer, who was fired by Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell. Schottenheimer also cleaned house and with Peterson's help by making several roster changes.

The Chiefs started the season at Denver on September 10 but the Chiefs lost the opener, 34–20. The very next Sunday the Chiefs downed the Los Angeles Raiders 24–19, Schottenheimer's first win as Chiefs' head coach.

The Chiefs would start the season 1–4, but soon turned things around. On October 22, Christian Okoye carried the ball 33 times for 170 yards as the Chiefs defeated the Dallas Cowboys at Arrowhead Stadium, 36–28. During the Chiefs unexpected success, rookie linebacker Derrick Thomas made 10 sacks while Stephone Paige led the receivers with 44 receptions.

On November 26, Kansas City cruised past the Houston Oilers, 34–0 to start a 3-game winning streak to give themselves a chance to make the playoffs. Steve DeBerg passed for 2,529 yards in his second season with the team.

On December 17, using a bruising running game and a smothering defense, the San Diego Chargers marched into Arrowhead Stadium and crushed the Chiefs' playoffs dreams. They bulldozed their way to 219 yards rushing, 176 by Marion Butts, and won 20–13. The all but eliminated the Chiefs from any chance of making the playoffs. Christian Okoye constantly found his path blocked, holes jammed. Chiefs' quarterback Steve DeBerg was ineffective because of the chilling 18-degree weather and completed just 14 of 33 passes. The Chiefs had one final opportunity to tie the game, driving from their own 36 yard line to the San Diego 19. Deberg's next pass into the end zone was intercepted, ending the Chiefs' chances and the game. The loss Left the Chiefs Needing a win at Miami combined with a Pittsburgh Loss in final week to make the playoffs.

The next week, the Chiefs did bounce back and defeated the Miami Dolphins for the second time in the season, 27–24 and had their first winning record in the Schottenheimer-Peterson era. Pittsburgh however won their game and final AFC Playoff spot. Christian Okoye led the NFL in rushing with 1,480 yards. Okoye was named to the Pro Bowl along with defensive stars Derrick Thomas, Albert Lewis and Kevin Ross. This season proved to be a prelude of good things to come.

Offseason

NFL draft

Main article: 1989 NFL draft
1989 Kansas City Chiefs draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 4 Derrick Thomas * †  Linebacker Alabama
2 32 Mike Elkins  Quarterback Wake Forest
3 60 Naz Worthen  Wide receiver North Carolina State
4 88 Stan Petry  Defensive back TCU
6 143 Robb Thomas  Wide receiver Oregon State
7 171 Ron Sancho  Linebacker LSU
8 199 Bryan Tobey  Running back Grambling State
8 220 Todd McNair  Running back Temple
9 227 Jack Phillips  Defensive back Alcorn State
10 255 Rob McGovern  Linebacker Holy Cross
11 283 Marcus Turner  Defensive back UCLA
12 311 Bill Jones  Running back Texas State
      Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[1]

Personnel

Staff

1989 Kansas City Chiefs staff
Front office
  • Founder – Lamar Hunt
  • Chairman of the Board – Jack Steadman
  • President/General Manager/Chief Executive Officer – Carl Peterson
  • Assistant General Manager – Dennis Thum
  • Director of Player Personnel – Whitey Dovell

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

 Defensive coaches
  • Defensive Coordinator/Linebackers – Bill Cowher
  • Defensive Line – Tom Pratt
  • Defensive Backs – Tony Dungy
  • Special Assistant/Quality Control – Darvin Wallis

Special teams coaches

Strength and conditioning

Schedule

Week Date Opponent Result Attendance
1 September 10, 1989 at Denver Broncos L 34–20
74,284
2 September 17, 1989 Los Angeles Raiders W 24–19
71,741
3 September 24, 1989 at San Diego Chargers L 21–6
40,128
4 October 1, 1989 Cincinnati Bengals L 21–6
61,165
5 October 8, 1989 at Seattle Seahawks W 20–16
60,715
6 October 15, 1989 at Los Angeles Raiders L 20–14
40,453
7 October 22, 1989 Dallas Cowboys W 36–28
76,841
8 October 29, 1989 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 23–17
54,194
9 November 5, 1989 Seattle Seahawks W 20–10
54,489
10 November 12, 1989 Denver Broncos L 16–13
76,245
11 November 19, 1989 at Cleveland Browns T 10–10
77,922
12 November 26, 1989 Houston Oilers W 34–0
51,342
13 December 3, 1989 Miami Dolphins W 26–21
54,610
14 December 10, 1989 at Green Bay Packers W 21–3
56,694
15 December 17, 1989 San Diego Chargers L 20–13
40,623
16 December 24, 1989 at Miami Dolphins W 27–24
43,612

Standings

AFC West
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Denver Broncos(1) 11 5 0 .688 6–2 9–3 362 226 L1
Kansas City Chiefs 8 7 1 .531 3–5 6–7–1 318 286 W1
Los Angeles Raiders 8 8 0 .500 3–5 6–6 315 297 L2
Seattle Seahawks 7 9 0 .438 4–4 7–5 241 327 L1
San Diego Chargers 6 10 0 .375 4–4 4–8 266 290 W2

References

  1. ↑ "1989 Kansas City Chiefs draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 8, 2014.
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