The 1977 Kansas City Chiefs season was the

franchise Franchise may refer to: Business and law * Franchising, a business method that involves licensing of trademarks and methods of doing business to franchisees * Franchise, a privilege to operate a type of business such as a cable television p ...

's 8th season in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

, the 15th as the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

, and the 18th overall. This season was the worst in franchise historyChiefs History: 1970s
''Kansas City Chiefs'', January 2, 2006. until the 2008 season, with the Chiefs winning only two of fourteen games. After an 0–5 start, Head coach

Paul Wiggin Paul David Wiggin (born November 18, 1934) is a former American football player and coach who currently serves as the senior consultant for pro personnel with the Minnesota Vikings. After graduating from Stanford University in 1957,

was fired following a 44–7 loss to

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

in Week 7.

Tom Bettis Thomas William Bettis (March 17, 1933 – February 28, 2015) was an All-American football linebacker, NFL player, and NFL coach. After starring at Purdue, Bettis was selected by the Green Bay Packers in the first round of the 1955 NFL Draft 5th ...

took over as interim head coach for the rest of the season. The team endured a six-game losing streak to conclude the season at 2–12.

Off-season

1977 NFL Draft

Roster

Season summary

An 0–5 start doomed the squad with a 44–7 loss at Cleveland (10/30) effectively sealing Wiggin's fate. Despite the club's record Wiggin was still a popular figure in Kansas City, but was nonetheless relieved of his duties on Halloween, marking the first in-season coaching switch in team history, and the last until

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

, when

Todd Haley Richard Todd Haley (born February 28, 1967) is an American football coach who is the current head coach and general manager for the Memphis Showboats of the United States Football League (USFL). From 1997 to 2006, he had stints as the wide rece ...

was fired with three games remaining. Wiggin concluded his tenure with an 11–24 record. Defensive backs coach Tom Bettis was named interim coach and claimed a 20–10 victory vs. Green Bay (11/6) in the franchise's initial contest under his direction, but it was the only victory of his brief head coaching tenure. The team endured a six-game losing streak to conclude the season at 2–12. (Ironically, Haley's successor,

Romeo Crennel Romeo Crennel (born June 18, 1947) is a former American football coach, who was the senior advisor for football performance for the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). A former long-time coaching assistant to Bill Parcells, Cre ...

, also won his first game in charge against the Packers at home; Green Bay entered that game 13–0.) Bettis and the remainder of the coaching staff assembled by Wiggin were released on December 19, one day after a 21–20 loss at Oakland (12/18) in the regular season finale.

Marv Levy Marvin Daniel Levy (; born August 3, 1925) is an American former football coach and executive who was a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for seventeen seasons. He spent most of his head coaching career with the Buffalo Bills, lea ...

, the former head coach of the

CFL The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

Montreal Alouettes The Montreal Alouettes (Canadian French, French: Les Alouettes de Montréal) are a professional Canadian football team based in Montreal, Quebec. Founded in 1946, the team has folded and been revived twice. The Alouettes compete in the Canadian F ...

, was named the fourth head coach in franchise history on December 20. The heart and soul of the Chiefs once-vaunted defense departed when roommates

Willie Lanier Willie Edward Lanier (born August 21, 1945) is an American former professional football player who was a middle linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs from 1967 through 1977. He won postseason honors for eight consecutive years, making the Amer ...

and

Jim Lynch James Robert Lynch (August 28, 1945 – July 21, 2022) was an American football linebacker. Lynch played college football for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, where he was named an All-American and won the Maxwell Award in 1966. Lynch is a memb ...

, who both joined the club together as second-round draft picks in

1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 5 ** Spain and Romania sign an agreement in Paris, establishing full consular and ...

, retired following the 1977 campaign.

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

later acquired Lanier's rights in a trade, but failed to lure him out of retirement. By managing to win only twice in the 1977 season, the team was given the second pick in the

1978 NFL Draft The 1978 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held May 2–3, 1978, at the Roosevelt Hote ...

Schedule

Preseason

Regular season

Game summaries

Week 1: at New England Patriots

Week 2: vs. San Diego Chargers

Week 3: vs. Oakland Raiders

Week 4: at Denver Broncos

Week 5: vs. Baltimore Colts

Week 6: at San Diego Chargers

Week 7: at Cleveland Browns

Week 8: vs. Green Bay Packers

Week 9: at Chicago Bears

Week 10: vs. Denver Broncos

Week 11: at Houston Oilers

Week 12: vs. Cincinnati Bengals

Week 13: vs. Seattle Seahawks

Week 14: at Oakland Raiders

Standings

References

External links

1977 Kansas City Chiefs on Database Football
{{Clear 1977 Kansas City Chiefs season

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...