We are 69 days away from the Kansas City Chiefs‘ season-opening game against the Denver Broncos on “Monday Night Football” in Week 1.
The No. 69 jersey is currently unfulfilled in Kansas City. It has been worn by a couple of great defenders in franchise history.
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All-time Chiefs who wore No. 69
Sherrill Headrick (1960 – 1967)
Jared Allen (2004 – 2007)
While Allen is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Headrick is the greater all-time Chiefs player, earning three first-team All-Pro honors as a linebacker during a stretch in which the franchise won the AFL Championship twice. He earned multiple interceptions in five of the eight seasons he played in Kansas City (and Dallas when the team was the Texans).
Allen finished fifth in voting for Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2004, earning nine sacks as a first-year player from Idaho State. In 2007, the 25-year-old edge rusher led the NFL with 15.5 sacks and 19 tackles for loss, earning first-team All-Pro honors.
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The franchise tag was applied the following offseason, a tool used in order to trade Allen to the Minnesota Vikings after the 4-12 campaign. Allen would go on to be honored as a first-team All-Pro three more times, donning the No. 69 jersey at each of his stops.
69: The number of opportunities Brashard Smith had on offense last season
With 44 rush attempts and 25 receptions, running back Brashard Smith totaled 69 “touches” during his rookie campaign last year, the fourth-most touches on the team by season’s end. He trailed the two running backs ahead of him on the depth chart, Kareem Hunt (181) and Isiah Pacheco (137), along with tight end Travis Kelce (77).
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The statistic speaks to the lack of season-long playmakers who were available to Kansas City last season. The team needs a wide receiver who is dependable throughout the entire regular season and will earn more than 70 opportunities with the ball in his hands.
Smith averaged 4.7 yards per touch; the longest play of his, as an offensive playmaker, was just 17 yards. He flashed explosiveness, but the Chiefs’ coaching staff needs to find a way to get more out of Smith, who is explosive when the ball is in his hands and is likely a leading candidate to return kicks and punts for the team this year.
