Kansas City Chiefs

Chiefs-Dolphins authored great Christmas game

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 1:18 p.m. ET

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Fansided, Andrew Hammond/Fansided

On Christmas Day 1971, the Miami Dolphins beat the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Divisional Playoff, officially ushering in the AFC. 

When you look at classic NFL games from the 1970s, you automatically of “The Immaculate Reception” in ’72, “The Sea of Hands” game in ’74 and Staubach’s Hail Mary against the Vikings in 1975. However, there is one game that seems to escape the memory of most NFL Fans.

The Divisional Playoff game between the Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs is the first great game of the 1970’s in the NFL. Miami’s 27-24 double overtime victory remains the longest game in NFL history totaling 82 minutes and 40 seconds. On that muddy day in December, two Hall of Fame coaches and 13 Hall of Fame players and one owner arrived at Kansas City’s Municipal Stadium for what turned out to be the final game in that stadium.

Miami Dolphins Hall of Famers

Coach-Don Shula

Linebacker-Nick Buoniconti

Running Back-Larry Csonka

Quarterback-Bob Griese

Center-Jim Langer

Right Guard-Larry Little

Wide Receiver-Paul Warfield

Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Famers 

Coach-Hank Stram

Linebacker-Bobby Bell

Defensive Tackle-Buck Buchanan

Defensive Tackle-Curley Culp

Linebacker-Willie Lanier

Quarterback-Len Dawson

Owner-Lamar Hunt

Kicker-Jan Stenerud

Cornerback-Emmitt Thomas

The AFC slugfest and the hero that emerged from it

By the end of the first quarter, the Chiefs had put up 10 quick points on the Dolphins. In the second quarter, the Dolphins climbed right back to 10 points of their own. The last 30 minutes of regulation time saw both teams put up 14 points and got tremendous play from heroes sung and unsung.

One player that stood out from this game is not in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, he won’t even reach Canton, Ohio. However, for one day Chiefs running back Ed Podolak was the best player on the field. With a receiving touchdown and a rushing touchdown, the running back out of Iowa appeared to single-handedly put the Chiefs in the AFC Title Game. Then, came the Dolphins final drive.

Griese to Fleming and the Chiefs missed opportunity

With 1:25 left in the ballgame, Dolphins quarterback Bob Griese hooked up with tight end Marv Fleming to tie the game at 24. Podolak once again came up big for the Chiefs as he returned his third kickoff of the day for 78 yards to the Miami 22-yard line, setting up the Chiefs with a golden opportunity.

Jan Stenerud was one of the best kickers in the league at the time so with the Chiefs deep in Dolphins territory (and the goal posts moved up) you could see the Dolphins end coming soon. However, in what could be the first of Chiefs postseason heartbreak, Stenerud missed the first of two potential game-winning kicks. The kick even surprised Miami who knew with Stenerud stepping up, their season was all but over.

He missed it.

To the shock of everybody on TV and in Kansas City that cold Christmas night, dinner would be delayed and one of the NFL’s greatest games was headed to an extra session.

Two overtimes and a finish

Stenerud had a second chance at kicking the game-winner but that was blocked. Dolphins kicker Garo Yepremian also missed a kick. From the fifth quarter to the sixth, the Dolphins finally ended the NFL’s longest game as Yepremian was able to redeem himself first and the Dolphins were victorious in the Christmas Day marathon.

 Why does this game matter? 

With the NFL’s merger in 1970, the newly-formed AFC struggled to shake the stigma of being the lowly AFL. Even with the Baltimore Colts winning Super Bowl V that season, it was a former NFL team winning the Super Bowl while being in the AFC and knocking off all of those teams from the AFL. Although the Chiefs and Jets were winning Super Bowls, the AFC struggled to have a presence post-merger.

One team had been the standard-bearer of the AFL, and that was the Chiefs, at the same time the Miami Dolphins in their fifth year of existence were playing their biggest game in franchise history. Once Garo Yepremian’s 37-yard field goal went through the uprights, the torch was passed from the days of the AFL to the AFC.

From there, the Dolphins would help legitimize the former AFL, now AFC and become the league’s first dynasty in the new age of the NFL.

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