2003 Kansas City Chiefs season

2003 Kansas City Chiefs season
Head coach Dick Vermeil
Home field Arrowhead Stadium
Results
Record 13–3
Division place 1st AFC West
Playoff finish Lost AFC Divisional Playoffs (Colts)
Pro Bowlers QB Trent Green
RB Priest Holmes
FB Tony Richardson
TE Tony Gonzalez
T Willie Roaf
G Will Shields
S Jerome Woods
KR Dante Hall
ST Gary Stills

The 2003 Kansas City Chiefs season was the franchise's 34th season in the National Football League, the 44th overall and the third under head coach Dick Vermeil.

The season resulted in a 13–3 winning record, beginning with a nine-game winning streak—the franchise's best start in their 40-year history. The Chiefs won the AFC West and clinched the second seed in the playoffs. Kansas City lost in an offensive shootout at home in the AFC Divisional Playoffs to the Indianapolis Colts 38–31, a game noted for involving no punts from either team's kicking squad.

The season is best remembered for the Chiefs’ record-breaking offense. On December 28, running back Priest Holmes broke Marshall Faulk's single-season rushing touchdown record by scoring his 27th rushing touchdown against the Chicago Bears. Quarterback Trent Green threw for 4,000 yards and kick returner Dante Hall returned four kicks for touchdowns. However, the weak Chiefs defense would prove to be too big of a weakness, as they failed to stop the Colts in the 2003-04 playoffs.

2003 NFL Draft

The Chiefs originally had the 16th pick in the 2003 NFL Draft. Vermeil was intent on selecting a defensive player, but felt that there were no defensive players available with their pick, and traded the pick to the Pittsburgh Steelers for the 27th pick, as well as the Steelers third and sixth round picks.[1] With the 16th pick, the Steelers selected Troy Polamalu from USC. With the 27th overall pick in the 2003 NFL Draft, the Kansas City Chiefs selected running back Larry Johnson from Penn State.[2]

Round Selection Overall Player Position College
1 27 27 Larry Johnson Running back Penn State
2 15 47 Kawika Mitchell Linebacker South Florida
3 28 92 Julian Battle Defensive back Tennessee
4 16 113 Brett Williams Offensive tackle Florida State
5 18 153 Jordan Black Offensive tackle Notre Dame
6 16 189 Jimmy Wilkerson Defensive end Oklahoma
7 16 230 Montique Sharpe Defensive tackle Wake Forest
7 38 252 Willie Pile Linebacker Virginia Tech

Regular season

After beginning the 2003 season 9–0, the Chiefs finished the regular season with a record of 13–3. The Chiefs’ offense topped the NFL in almost all statistical categories and Kansas City became favorites to win Super Bowl XXXVIII.[3]

The Chiefs clinched their first AFC West title since 1997 with a 45–17 win against the Detroit Lions, as QB Trent Green became the first player in team history to register a "perfect" 158.3 passer rating in a game.[4]

Kansas City concluded its 13–3 regular season with a 31–3 victory vs. Chicago (December 28), marking a perfect 8–0 record at home and the club's 13th consecutive regular season victory at Arrowhead Stadium. In that win, Priest Holmes set a trio of TD records. He finished the season with 27 rushing scores, establishing NFL single-season records for both rushing TDs and total TDs. Holmes (61) also bypassed WR Otis Taylor (60) for the most career TDs scored by a player in Chiefs history.[4]

The Chiefs five win improvement from the previous season tied as the best mark in franchise history. Kansas City became the first AFC team to lead the NFL in scoring in consecutive seasons since San Diego in ‘81–82 as the club produced a franchise-best 484 points. The team also led the NFL with a +19 turnover differential.[4]

Nine Chiefs players received Pro Bowl recognition, the third-highest total in team history, while the club's six offensive Pro Bowlers marked the most in club annals.[4]

Schedule

Week Opponent Result Game site TV Time Attendance
1 San Diego Chargers W 27–14 Arrowhead Stadium CBS 12:00CT
78,048
2 Pittsburgh Steelers W 41–20 Arrowhead Stadium CBS 12:00CT
78,416
3 at Houston Texans W 42–14 Reliant Stadium CBS 12:00CT
70,487
4 at Baltimore Ravens W 17–10 Ravens Stadium CBS 3:15CT
69,459
5 Denver Broncos W 24–23 Arrowhead Stadium CBS 12:00CT
78,903
6 at Green Bay Packers W 40–34 (OT) Lambeau Field CBS 12:00CT
70,407
7 at Oakland Raiders W 17–10 Network Associates Coliseum ABC 8:00CT
62,391
8 Buffalo Bills W 38–5 Arrowhead Stadium ESPN 7:30CT
78,689
Week 9 — Bye
10 Cleveland Browns W 41–20 Arrowhead Stadium CBS 12:00CT
78,560
11 at Cincinnati Bengals L 24–19 Paul Brown Stadium CBS 12:00CT
64,923
12 Oakland Raiders W 27–24 Arrowhead Stadium CBS 3:15CT
78,889
13 at San Diego Chargers W 28–24 Qualcomm Stadium CBS 3:15CT
57,671
14 at Denver Broncos L 45–27 Invesco Field at Mile High CBS 3:15CT
76,403
15 Detroit Lions W 45–17 Arrowhead Stadium FOX 12:00CT
77,922
16 at Minnesota Vikings L 45–20 Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome CBS 3:15CT
64,291
17 Chicago Bears W 31–3 Arrowhead Stadium FOX 12:00CT
78,413
2004 playoffs
Divisional
Playoff 		Indianapolis Colts L 38–31 Arrowhead Stadium CBS 12:05CT
79,159

Playoffs

Main article: NFL playoffs, 2003-04

AFC Divisional Playoffs

Indianapolis Colts 38, Kansas City Chiefs 31
1 2 34Total
Colts 14 7 10738
Chiefs 3 7 14731

at Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri

This offensive shootout became the first game without a punt in NFL playoff history. Colts quarterback Peyton Manning threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns, while Edgerrin James ran for a career postseason high 125 yards and two scores. On the Kansas City side, Dante Hall caught a touchdown and returned a kickoff for another; and Priest Holmes, who set the regular-season rushing touchdown record, rushed for 176 yards, caught 5 passes for 32 yards, and scored twice. Kansas City quarterback Trent Green threw for 212 yards and a touchdown while also rushing for 18 yards in his first career postseason game. The Chiefs defense failed to stop the Colts offense. Kansas City's defensive coordinator Greg Robinson was asked to resign the following week.

Standings

AFC West
W L T PCT DIV CONF PF PA STK
(2) Kansas City Chiefs 13 3 0 .813 5–1 10–2 484 332 W1
(6) Denver Broncos 10 6 0 .625 5–1 9–3 381 301 L1
Oakland Raiders 4 12 0 .250 1–5 3–9 270 379 L2
San Diego Chargers 4 12 0 .250 1–5 2–10 313 441 W1

References

  1. ↑ So there they were with the 16th pick... Retrieved October 4, 2010
  2. ↑ Kansas City Chiefs 2003 season – Database Football Retrieved December 18, 2006.
  3. ↑ Zimmerman, Paul. The Race to XXXVIII Sports Illustrated, November 17, 2003.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Chiefs history: 2003 KCChiefs.com, retrieved December 18, 2006.

External links

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