30 greatest NFL QBs of all time: Where does Patrick Mahomes rank now?

Like Joe Namath the year prior, Len Dawson led the upstart Kansas City Chiefs to a Super Bowl Championship as the underdog AFL team against the Minnesota Vikings and Fran Tarkenton. Dawson’s story is similar to many of the greats of this era. It took him five years to really find his footing in the NFL, a luxury he wouldn’t get in 2023. He was drafted by the Steelers, but he was on the Browns and Texans before he finally found a home with the Chiefs.

Dawson was insanely good once he finally got a starting job. He led the league in touchdowns for four of five seasons, and the one outlier he had a career-high 30 touchdowns. He was the most accurate quarterback, finding the open receiver at a ridiculous clip. He led the league in accuracy seven of eight seasons from 1962 to 1969.

Dawson became known as Lenny the Cool because he was impervious to pressure. He never showed his emotion, and that probably got in the head of defensive players. He could avoid sacks and act like he knew where they were coming from. Maybe it was a sixth sense, but Dawson’s ability to stay “cool” under pressure led to a lot of wins in his time.

In 2022, Dawson lost his life at the age of 87. He lived an incredible life, and the Chiefs honored him throughout the season. They ended up winning the Super Bowl, with Patrick Mahomes lifting the Lombardi Trophy at season’s end. It seemed like a fitting end and a fitting tribute to one of the greats.