Kansas City Chiefs: 5 best draft picks of all-time
4. Buck Buchanan
Buck Buchanan was drafted by the Green Bay Packers with 265th overall pick in the 19th round of the 1963 NFL draft. Such low rating had nothing to do with his ability, or perceived lack thereof, but more the color of his skin. At a time when AFL and NFL teams undertook separate drafts, the Chiefs were the other organization to draft Buchanan in the 1963 draft. They took him first overall.
Buchanan duly chose the Chiefs, becoming the first black man to be the number one pick. He went on to justify such a controversial decision with a stellar career. Through the late ’60s and early ’70s, Kansas City developed one of the best defenses to ever grace the NFL. The defense was known as the “stack defense” where the linebackers sat directly behind the defensive line. Buchanan’s disruption at the line of scrimmage was essential, to allow the linebackers behind him to hunt the ball. Buchanan was a master of the trench.
He was ultimately named to six AFL all-star games in the late ’60s, won the Super Bowl in ’69 and was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1990, a year before he sadly died of lung cancer. Buchanan was a heck of a player on the field, and a history maker off it. The Chiefs have a proud heritage with a host of African-American players making history with the organization and Buchanan was a key part of that.
Next: 3. Tony Gonzalez