cdcox
02-06-2006, 01:06 PM
Otis Taylor should be in the Hall of Fame. He invented a new prototype for WR - big, fast, great hands.
I think if one play during the 1971 Christmas Day game against the Dolphins had gone differently, he would be in the Hall today. Ironically, the play didn't even involve him, but three other Hall of Famers from those great Chiefs teams.: Dawson, Bell and Stenerud.
In their preparations for the game, it was noticed that the Dolphins lined up in an unbalanced line in defense of FGs. So the Chiefs put in a fake FG during the week in which the ball was hiked directly to Stenerud and he would run the ball to the weak side of the defense. Jan was surprisingly fast, having a 40-yd dash time in the 4.5 to 4.6 range. The Dolphins obliged by lining up in the unbalanced formation, and Dawson called the audible for the fake. However, when Bell, the long snapper, looked between his legs, he saw Jan concentrating on the spot from which he was going to kick the ball. This was part of Jan's deception, but it was so good that it ended up tricking Bell into thinking that Jan had missed the audible. So, he snapped it to a very surprised Dawson. The kick was rushed and missed. Meanwhile, both guards had pulled beautifully out to the open right side of the formation and would have provided Jan an easy escort to the endzone.
The Dolphins went on to win that SB, but many considered that Chiefs team to be better than the '69 champs. Had the Chiefs won another SB, then a larger crop of Chiefs from that era would have been inducted including Budde, Emmit Thomas, Johnny Robinson, and most certainly Otis Taylor.
I think if one play during the 1971 Christmas Day game against the Dolphins had gone differently, he would be in the Hall today. Ironically, the play didn't even involve him, but three other Hall of Famers from those great Chiefs teams.: Dawson, Bell and Stenerud.
In their preparations for the game, it was noticed that the Dolphins lined up in an unbalanced line in defense of FGs. So the Chiefs put in a fake FG during the week in which the ball was hiked directly to Stenerud and he would run the ball to the weak side of the defense. Jan was surprisingly fast, having a 40-yd dash time in the 4.5 to 4.6 range. The Dolphins obliged by lining up in the unbalanced formation, and Dawson called the audible for the fake. However, when Bell, the long snapper, looked between his legs, he saw Jan concentrating on the spot from which he was going to kick the ball. This was part of Jan's deception, but it was so good that it ended up tricking Bell into thinking that Jan had missed the audible. So, he snapped it to a very surprised Dawson. The kick was rushed and missed. Meanwhile, both guards had pulled beautifully out to the open right side of the formation and would have provided Jan an easy escort to the endzone.
The Dolphins went on to win that SB, but many considered that Chiefs team to be better than the '69 champs. Had the Chiefs won another SB, then a larger crop of Chiefs from that era would have been inducted including Budde, Emmit Thomas, Johnny Robinson, and most certainly Otis Taylor.