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Chiefs Kingdom suffered tragic news on March 10 as it was revealed that former 11-year wide receiver Otis Taylor has died at age 80 after a long bout with Parkinson’s disease and associated dementia. He died on Thursday, March 9, according to the Associated Press.
Kansas City Chiefs owner and CEO Clark Hunt addressed this news publicly on Friday, in a formal statement speaking for the organization that Taylor spent his entire NFL career with.
Hunt voiced:
The Kansas City Chiefs organization is saddened by the passing of Otis Taylor. My family and I would like to extend our heartfelt condolences to Otis’ wife Regina, his sister Odell and the entire Taylor family as we mourn his passing. Otis was a Chief throughout his 11-year career, and he played an integral part in the early success of our franchise. He became a Kansas City icon with his signature touchdown in Super Bowl IV, as he helped the Chiefs bring home our first Lombardi Trophy. He was one of the most dynamic receivers of his era, and he helped revolutionize the position. Off-the-field, he was kind and dedicated to his community. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family. Otis’ legacy will live forever as a member of the Chiefs Hall of Fame.
Remembering Chiefs WR & Franchise Hall of Famer Otis Taylor (1942-2023)
Hunt talked about a “signature touchdown” during his statement, and he was referring to a 46-yard touchdown reception in the 1970 Super Bowl that helped the Chiefs beat the Minnesota Vikings. Ironically, and somewhat cruelly, that pass was thrown by legendary quarterback Len Dawson, who died about seven months before Taylor.
All told, the star pass-catcher accumulated 7,306 receiving yards and 60 total touchdowns with the Chiefs — during an era before the passing game had exploded like it has in the modern-day NFL.
Aside from his Super Bowl title, Taylor was also a two-time first-team All-Pro and three-time Pro Bowl selection according to Pro Football Reference, as well as a two-time AFL champion. He even finished tied for second in the Associated Press’ MVP voting in 1971 at 10 tallies alongside Pro Football Hall of Fame QB Roger Staubach. The winner was another NFL Hall of Famer, Vikings DT Alan Page, who received 16 votes.
“In many ways, Taylor was a receiver way ahead of his time during the AFL’s heyday,” The Athletic’s Nate Taylor wrote on March 10. “At 6-foot-3 and 215-pounds, Taylor was a rare combination of size and speed at the position that allowed him to be part of the Chiefs’ first historic passing connection with Dawson… He retired in 1975 as the franchise’s leader for receiving touchdowns with 57.”
Voice of the Chiefs, Mitch Holthus, also tweeted: “Sad to hear of the passing of Otis Taylor…he and Len and the rest of the 1969-1971 @Chiefs were WAY ahead of their time…motions-shifts-route concepts-effective play action etc…. Otis Taylor with his size and speed and route running and YAC yards could still play [in] @NFL [to]day!”
More Details on Death of Former Chiefs WR Otis Taylor
“Taylor was diagnosed with Parkinson’s and associated dementia in 1990, and in 2012, his family filed a lawsuit against the NFL claiming it was legally responsible for health issues he experienced beginning with seizures in 1969,” the Associated Press detailed.
Continuing: “Bedridden and largely unable to talk in recent years, the lawsuit sought financial help for his care, overseen for more than a decade by his sister, Odell, a licensed vocational nurse, along with his wife Regina and son, Otis Taylor III.”
Taylor was inducted into the Chiefs’ ring of honor in 1982. AP noted that he was also a senior finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame this past year “but failed to make it through to the final round of voting.”
After playing the game for 10-plus seasons, he scouted it for another 11 later on. Per AP, Dawson once said that “Otis made my job easy… If you got the pass to Otis, you knew he’d catch it.”
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