Dec. 14, 1963 - Len Dawson passed for 3 touchdowns today and ran 43 yards for another to lead the Chiefs, playing probably their best game of the season, to a 35-3 triumph over the Boston Patriots before 12,598 shivering fans in Kansas City’s Municipal Stadium and a national TV audience. All Boston had to do was win or tie and they would have become the Eastern Division champs. But they couldn’t, and now the best the Patriots can hope for is a playoff. They can get this if Houston loses one of its two games with San Diego and Oakland. A loss by Houston would put the Patriots in a playoff game with the Bills in Buffalo on Dec. 28. Boston opened today’s scoring late in the first quarter on a 15-yard field goal by Gino Cappelletti. The Patriots’ only score was set up when Jerrell Wilson of Kansas City dropped the ball while preparing to punt. Boston took possession on the Chiefs’ 30-yard line. After that, it was Kansas City’s game offensively and defensively. In the second quarter, Dawson tossed a 14-yard scoring pass to Chris Burford for a 7-3 lead at halftime. In the third period, Dawson hit Fred Arbanas with an 8-yard touchdown pass. Minutes later, Dawson raced 43 yards along the sideline for another Kansas City touchdown. The Chiefs’ quarterback threw a 6-yard scoring pass to Frank Jackson in the final quarter, and Abner Haynes ended the scoring with a 36-yard touchdown run. The Patriots could have set an AFL defensive rushing record for the season had they held Kansas City to 95 yards on the ground. But the Chiefs gained 224 yards rushing. Dawson added 189 yards through the air with 15 completions on 33 attempts. Afterward, the Kansas City quarterback had the following comment to make about the strategy of using short passes in the first half and then switching to the long ones in the second half: “It’s like a baseball pitcher using a change of pace to set them up. You get them worried about the short one, then hit them with the long one.” Said Chief coach Hank Stram: “I thought our 4-linebacker defense was very effective, but all the defense was outstanding. The [11 degree] cold wasn’t too much of a problem. Proper execution makes the differences.” Dawson said it was tough for Boston, a notorious blitzing team, to use its favorite weapon because of the slippery footing.
