The Kansas City Chiefs played in the first Super Bowl in 1967, losing to the Green Bay Packers. They’ve become a storied franchise ever since, winning four Super Bowls (three since 2019).
But who are the best players in franchise history? That question is trickier, especially given the significant accomplishments of Patrick Mahomes since becoming the starting quarterback in 2018.
Pro Football Reference’s Approximate Value (AV) is a single number to quantify a player’s total impact. Mahomes is seventh in total AV among all Chiefs players since 1960, but he’s rapidly rising in the ranks.
With PFR’s AV metric as a guide, here’s a list of the best Chiefs players in franchise history:
Best Kansas City Chiefs Players in Franchise History
| Rank | Player | Total AV |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Patrick Mahomes | 123 |
| 2 | Will Shields | 157 |
| 3 | Travis Kelce | 116 |
| 4 | Len Dawson | 143 |
| 5 | Derrick Thomas | 131 |
Patrick Mahomes
There is no need to wait for Mahomes to climb up the AV leaderboard. He’s already the best player in franchise history. It will merely be a formality when he finishes his career with the highest AV among all Chiefs players.
Since being selected No. 10 overall in the 2017 NFL Draft, Mahomes has established himself as one of the best quarterbacks in the history of the sport. He’s won three Super Bowls, three Super Bowl MVP trophies, and two MVP awards.
And he might not be done yet.
Will Shields
Will Shields is Kansas City’s career leader in AV at 157, which is 14 points higher than any other player on this list. He put together a Hall of Fame career as a guard, earning 12 Pro Bowl selections and two All-Pro nods.
Shields, a third-round pick out of Nebraska in the 1993 NFL Draft, committed 21 total penalties in his 14-year career. He played in 224 games, making 223 starts.
Travis Kelce
Similar to Mahomes, tight end Travis Kelce is further down Kansas City’s AV leaderboard, ranking ninth as of this writing. But Kelce has a case as the best tight end in NFL history, which means he deserves to be on a list of the best Chiefs players.
Kelce has earned 10 Pro Bowl honors and four All-Pro selections. He’s won three Super Bowls and become the Chiefs’ all-time receiving leader. Not bad for someone who was taken in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft.
Len Dawson
Quarterback Len Dawson spent the final 14 seasons of his 19-year career with the Kansas City Chiefs. He led the Chiefs to a championship in 1970, earning the MVP award after a 23-7 win over the Minnesota Vikings.
In his 14 seasons with the Chiefs, Dawson threw for 28,507 yards and 237 touchdowns in 183 games. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1987, following a career that included seven Pro Bowl selections and two All-Pro nods.
Derrick Thomas
Outside linebacker Derrick Thomas, the No. 4 overall pick in the 1989 draft, spent all 11 seasons in Kansas City through the 1999 campaign. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2009.
Thomas recorded 599 solo tackles and 126.5 sacks in 169 games in his career. He earned a Pro Bowl honor nine times and an All-Pro selection twice.
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