1988 Kansas City Chiefs season

The 1988 Kansas City Chiefs season was the franchise's 19th season in the National Football League and the 29th overall.

1988 Kansas City Chiefs season
OwnerLamar Hunt
General managerJim Schaaf (fired Dec. 8)
Carl Peterson (after Dec. 19)
Head coachFrank Gansz
Home fieldArrowhead Stadium
Results
Record4–11–1
Division place5th AFC West
Playoff finishDid not qualify
Pro Bowlers
AP All-Pros
1
  • S Deron Cherry (1st team)

Bill Kenney opened the team's initial two games at quarterback, but was replaced by Steve DeBerg for the second half against Seattle.[1] DeBerg guided the team to a 20–13 win against Denver in his initial start as a member of the Chiefs. However, six losses, and a tie followed as Kenney and DeBerg jostled for the starting job.

As the season drew to a close, it became apparent the winds of change were blowing across the organization. President Jack Steadman resigned on December 8, while general manager Jim Schaaf was relieved of his duties the same day.[1] Steadman was later named chairman of the board. On the field, the Chiefs finished the year at 4–11–1 as questions swirled regarding head coach Frank Gansz's future and who would fill the club's leadership void. One day after the season's conclusion, former Philadelphia Eagles and United States Football League executive Carl Peterson was named the club's president/general manager and chief operating officer on December 19.

Offseason edit

The spring was marked by several notable trades as the club jockeyed to improve on its 4–11 finish in 1987. Todd Blackledge was traded to Pittsburgh on March 29 and 12-year veteran quarterback Steve DeBerg was acquired from Tampa Bay on March 31. The Chiefs moved up one spot in the first round of the draft to select defensive end Neil Smith with the second overall pick.

NFL draft edit

1988 Kansas City Chiefs draft
Round Pick Player Position College Notes
1 2 Neil Smith *  Defensive end Nebraska
3 59 Kevin Porter  Safety Auburn
4 96 Johnny Ray Ambrose  Wide receiver Mississippi
6 139 James Saxon  Running back San Jose State
7 170 Troy Stedman  Linebacker Washburn
8 197 Alfredo Roberts  Tight end Miami (FL)
9 224 Azizuddin Abdur-Ra'oof  Wide receiver Maryland
10 251 Kenny Gamble  Running back Colgate
11 282 Danny McManus  Quarterback Florida State
      Made roster    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

[2]

Personnel edit

Staff edit

1988 Kansas City Chiefs staff

Front office

Head coaches

Offensive coaches

Defensive coaches

Special teams coaches

Strength and conditioning

Roster edit

1988 Kansas City Chiefs roster
Quarterbacks

Running backs

Wide receivers

Tight ends

Offensive linemen

Defensive linemen

Linebackers

Defensive backs

Special teams

Reserve lists


Practice squad none


47 active, 15 inactive


Rookies in italics

Preseason edit

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap
1 August 6 Cincinnati Bengals W 34–21 1–0 Arrowhead Stadium 31,947 Recap
2 August 13 at Atlanta Falcons W 27–13 2–0 Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium 23,369 Recap
3 August 19 at Green Bay Packers T 21–21 (OT) 2–0–1 Milwaukee County Stadium 32,361 Recap
4 August 25 Phoenix Cardinals L 21–41 2–1–1 Arrowhead Stadium 36,883 Recap

Regular season edit

Schedule edit

Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Attendance Recap
1 September 4 Cleveland Browns L 3–6 0–1 Arrowhead Stadium 55,654 Recap
2 September 11 at Seattle Seahawks L 10–31 0–2 Kingdome 61,512 Recap
3 September 18 Denver Broncos W 20–13 1–2 Arrowhead Stadium 63,268 Recap
4 September 25 San Diego Chargers L 23–24 1–3 Arrowhead Stadium 45,498 Recap
5 October 2 at New York Jets T 17–17 (OT) 1–3–1 Giants Stadium 66,110 Recap
6 October 9 at Houston Oilers L 6–7 1–4–1 Houston Astrodome 39,134 Recap
7 October 16 Los Angeles Raiders L 17–27 1–5–1 Arrowhead Stadium 77,078 Recap
8 October 23 Detroit Lions L 6–7 1–6–1 Arrowhead Stadium 66,926 Recap
9 October 30 at Los Angeles Raiders L 10–17 1–7–1 Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 36,103 Recap
10 November 6 at Denver Broncos L 11–17 1–8–1 Mile High Stadium 74,227 Recap
11 November 13 Cincinnati Bengals W 31–28 2–8–1 Arrowhead Stadium 34,614 Recap
12 November 20 Seattle Seahawks W 27–24 3–8–1 Arrowhead Stadium 33,152 Recap
13 November 27 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 10–16 3–9–1 Three Rivers Stadium 42,057 Recap
14 December 4 New York Jets W 38–34 4–9–1 Arrowhead Stadium 30,059 Recap
15 December 11 at New York Giants L 12–28 4–10–1 Giants Stadium 69,807 Recap
16 December 18 at San Diego Chargers L 13–24 4–11–1 Jack Murphy Stadium 26,339 Recap

Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries edit

Week 1: vs. Cleveland Browns edit

Week 1: Cleveland Browns at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Browns 0 3 036
Chiefs 0 3 003

at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

Game information

Week 2: at Seattle Seahawks edit

Week 2: Kansas City Chiefs at Seattle Seahawks – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 3 0 0710
Seahawks 3 28 0031

at Kingdome, Seattle, Washington

Game information

Week 3: vs. Denver Broncos edit

Week 3: Denver Broncos at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Broncos 3 7 0313
Chiefs 3 7 7320

at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

Game information

Week 4: vs. San Diego Chargers edit

Week 4: San Diego Chargers at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chargers 14 0 01024
Chiefs 0 14 9023

at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

Game information

Week 5: at New York Jets edit

Week 5: Kansas City Chiefs at New York Jets – Game summary
Period 1 2 34OTTotal
Chiefs 0 0 314017
Jets 3 7 07017

at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

Game information

Week 6: at Houston Oilers edit

Week 6: Kansas City Chiefs at Houston Oilers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 3 3 006
Oilers 0 0 707

at Astrodome, Houston, Texas

  • Date: October 9
  • Game time: 12:00 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: None (indoor stadium)
  • Game attendance: 39,134
  • Referee: Fred Silva
  • TV announcers (NBC): Jay Randolph and Reggie Rucker
  • Recap, Game Book
Game information

Week 7: vs. Los Angeles Raiders edit

Week 7: Los Angeles Raiders at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Raiders 7 7 01327
Chiefs 0 7 01017

at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

  • Date: October 16
  • Game time: 12:00 p.m. CDT
  • Game weather: Sunny, 67 °F (19 °C)
  • Game attendance: 77,078
  • Referee: Bob McElwee
  • TV announcers (NBC): Tom Hammond and Joe Namath
  • Recap, Game Book
Game information

Week 8: vs. Detroit Lions edit

Week 8: Detroit Lions at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Lions 0 7 007
Chiefs 0 3 306

at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

Game information

Week 9: at Los Angeles Raiders edit

Week 9: Kansas City Chiefs at Los Angeles Raiders – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 0 7 0310
Raiders 7 7 0317

at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles, California

Game information

Week 10: at Denver Broncos edit

Week 10: Kansas City Chiefs at Denver Broncos – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 2 3 3311
Broncos 0 14 0317

at Mile High Stadium, Denver, Colorado

  • Date: November 6
  • Game time: 3:00 p.m. CST/2:00 p.m. MST
  • Game weather: Partly Cloudy, 63 °F (17 °C)
  • Game attendance: 74,227
  • Referee: Gordon McCarter
  • TV announcers (NBC): Gary Gerould and Reggie Rucker
  • Recap, Game Book
Game information

Week 11: vs. Cincinnati Bengals edit

Week 11: Cincinnati Bengals at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Bengals 7 7 14028
Chiefs 6 3 101231

at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

  • Date: November 13
  • Game time: 12:00 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: Sunny, 59 °F (15 °C)
  • Game attendance: 34,614
  • Referee: Jerry Seeman
  • TV announcers (NBC): Don Criqui and Bob Trumpy
  • Recap
Game information

Week 12: vs. Seattle Seahawks edit

Week 12: Seattle Seahawks at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Seahawks 0 7 71024
Chiefs 7 7 31027

at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

  • Date: November 20
  • Game time: 12:00 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: Sunny, 34 °F (1 °C)
  • Game attendance: 33,152
  • Referee: Bob McElwee
  • TV announcers (NBC): Gary Gerould and Jimmy Cefalo
  • Recap, Game Book
Game information

Week 13: at Pittsburgh Steelers edit

Week 13: Kansas City Chiefs at Pittsburgh Steelers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 0 7 0310
Steelers 6 7 3016

at Three Rivers Stadium, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

  • Date: November 27
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST/12:00 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: Partly Cloudy, 51 °F (11 °C)
  • Game attendance: 42,057
  • Referee: Dick Jorgensen
  • TV announcers (NBC): Gary Gerould and Reggie Rucker
  • Recap, Game Book
Game information

Week 14: vs. New York Jets edit

Week 14: New York Jets at Kansas City Chiefs – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Jets 10 10 7734
Chiefs 14 7 01738

at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

Game information

Week 15: at New York Giants edit

Week 15: Kansas City Chiefs at New York Giants – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 0 3 9012
Giants 7 0 71428

at Giants Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey

  • Date: December 11
  • Game time: 1:00 p.m. EST/12:00 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: Mostly Cloudy, 20 °F (−7 °C)
  • Game attendance: 69,807
  • Referee: Jim Tunney
  • TV announcers (NBC): Don Criqui and Bob Trumpy
  • Recap, Game Book
Game information

Week 16: at San Diego Chargers edit

Week 16: Kansas City Chiefs at San Diego Chargers – Game summary
Period 1 2 34Total
Chiefs 13 0 0013
Chargers 10 7 7024

at Jack Murphy Stadium, San Diego, California

  • Date: December 18
  • Game time: 3:00 p.m. CST/1:00 p.m. PST
  • Game weather: Partly Cloudy, 62 °F (17 °C)
  • Game attendance: 26,339
  • Referee: Johnny Grier
  • TV announcers (NBC): Jay Randolph and Dave Rowe
  • Recap, Game Book
Game information

Standings edit

AFC West
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
Seattle Seahawks(3) 9 7 0 .563 6–2 8–4 339 329 W2
Denver Broncos 8 8 0 .500 3–5 5–7 327 352 W1
Los Angeles Raiders 7 9 0 .438 6–2 6–6 325 369 L2
San Diego Chargers 6 10 0 .375 3–5 4–8 231 332 W2
Kansas City Chiefs 4 11 1 .281 2–6 4–9–1 254 320 L2

References edit

  1. ^ a b "Kansas City Chiefs History 1980's". Archived from the original on August 6, 2007. Retrieved July 31, 2007.
  2. ^ "1988 Kansas City Chiefs draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved December 12, 2014.

External links edit