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The Kansas City Chiefs became a perennial playoff team over the last several seasons; it finally paid off this past season. After 50 long years in Kansas City, the Chiefs finally ended the franchise's championship drought, winning Super Bowl LIV. The organization appears primed for yet another memorable run in 2020.
Even though the Chiefs did not win a Super Bowl for five decades, that doesn't mean Kansas City wasn't working its way toward a title this whole time. Thanks to a slew of highly-touted players, well-known head coaches and the front office personnel that helped put it all together over the years, the Chiefs have remained one of the league's most talented and popular franchises.
In addition to drafting well and luring more than a few high-profiled free agents to Kansas City, the Chiefs have also executed some infamous trades that helped propel the team toward greatness.
1. QB Patrick Mahomes / Future NFL Draft Picks (Buffalo Bills)
Already the most dyanmic player in franchise history, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has quite literally done it all in less than a handful of seasons. A NFL MVP, Super Bowl MVP and Super Bowl Champion, all before the age of 25, Mahomes also secured a new long-term contract to remain with the Chiefs for what seems like it could be his entire playing career en route to earning more than $500 million. However, it all started with a trade as the Chiefs traded up from No. 27 overall to No. 10 overall in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft. With the Chiefs swapping first round picks with the Buffalo Bills, Kansas City was also forced to give up the team's looming pick in the third round at 91st overall in addition to a 2018 first round pick. Obviously worth it less than four years removed from the deal, the Chiefs managed to select the best all-around player in the NFL today by being aggressive and taking a chance on the former Texas Tech Red Raiders standout.
2. TE Tony Gonzalez / Future NFL Draft Picks (Tennessee Oilers)
Thanks to some crafty work by the team's front office back in 1997, the Kansas City Chiefs infamously traded up to select future Pro Football Hall of Fame tight end Tony Gonzalez. With the Chiefs trading up from 18th overall to No. 13 with the Tennessee Oilers on the other side of the deal, Kansas City made sure they ultimately got their man as Gonzalez went on to become one of the best to ever play the position in addition to cementing himself as one of the cornerstones of the current AFC West franchise. With the Chiefs also being forced to give up the franchise's own first round NFL Draft pick alongside a future third, fourth and sixth round picks, the move immediately paid dividends as Gonzalez made a major impact right off the bat. As a rookie, he produced 33 receptions and two touchdowns while being named to the NFL All-Rookie team. Of course, the rest is history as Gonzalez proved that he could do it all as a NFL tight end before all was said and done.
3. QB Joe Montana / Future NFL Draft Picks (San Francisco 49ers)
Even though Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback was on the very back end of his career by the time he was traded from the San Francisco 49ers to the Kansas City Chiefs, the heralded signal caller that is Joe Montana still made a memorable impact over the course of his 29 appearances for the latter organization. The Chiefs infamously won a division title in 1993-94, the team's first season with Montana under center while such a feat marked the first time that Kansas City had won a divisional crown in 22 years. Not only that, but that same campaign saw the Chiefs advance all the way to the conference title game for the first time since the franchise won Super Bowl IV following the 1969-70 season. With Montana heading from San Francisco to the Chiefs, thanks to the presence of fellow quarterback Steve Young, the 49ers ultimately agreed to send Montana, a third round pick and one player back to the Chiefs for Kansas City's first round selection at No. 18 overall in 1993.
4. QB Alex Smith / Future NFL Draft Picks (San Francisco 49ers)
Even though the Kansas City Chiefs were only able to win one playoff game under the veteran signal caller's direction, quarterback Alex Smith helped begin to pave the way for the once prolific franchise to turn things around. With the acquisition of Smith from the San Francisco 49ers serving as the catalyst for a major turnaround in Kansas City, the 2019-20 team, led by another signal caller in Patrick Mahomes, ultimately finished the job. Not first time, that these two franchises executed a major trade involving a quarterback that went from San Francisco to Kansas City, Smith was traded from the 49ers to the Chiefs in February 2013. The 49ers agreed to trade Smith to the Chiefs in exchange for a second round NFL Draft pick in 2013 in addition to a conditional pick in the 2014 NFL Draft. It is also worth noting that Smith initially served as a mentor to Mahomes during his rookie season before the latter eventually took over the reins in Kansas City one year later.
5. DE Frank Clark / Future NFL Draft Picks (Seattle Seahawks)
Another member of the team's now infamous Super Bowl title run from a season ago, former Seattle Seahawks pass rusher Frank Clark became a member of the Kansas City Chiefs in April 2019 — right before the 2019 NFL Draft got underway. Clark was traded to the Chiefs alongside a 2019 third round pick with a first and third round selection in 2019 going back to Seattle. The Chiefs also shipped a conditional second round selection in the 2020 NFL Draft to the Seahawks to sweeten the deal. After officially making the move from Kansas City to Seattle, Clark inked a five-year, $105.5 million contract to remain with Kansas City for the foreseeable future. One of the most important defensive players for the Chiefs, the acquisition of Clark allowed the AFC West franchise to bolster its defense in order to compliment its already high-powered offense.
