Hall of Fame Quarterback, Purdue Football Legend Len Dawson Dies at 87
Former Purdue quarterback and Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee Len Dawson passed away on Wednesday. He was 87 years old.
A legend at Purdue. And with the Chiefs. And in the broadcast booth.
— Purdue Football (@BoilerFootball) August 24, 2022
Simply, a legendary life.
Please keep the Dawson family and Len's many friends and colleagues in your thoughts. pic.twitter.com/8Rvv15ZzX1
Dawson, who spent three years with the Boilermakers from 1953-1956, helped the program establish the "Cradle of Quarterbacks" — a rich tradition of top-notch signal callers that have come and gone throughout the years.
During his three-year college career, Dawson would eclipse 3,000 yards passing while leading the Big Ten each season he was on the field. He garnered Third-Team All-American honors following the 1956 season and was an All-Big Ten selection in 1955 and 1956.
Dawson went on to become the fifth pick in the first round of the 1957 NFL Draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He was traded to the Cleveland brown after his first three seasons in the league.
Two years later, Dawson was released having only completed 21 passes for 204 yards and two touchdowns in five NFL seasons. But his career would take a positive turn after signing with the Dallas Texans of the American Football League and reuniting with former Purdue assistant coach Hank Stram.
In 1962, Dawson would lead the league in touchdowns and yards per attempt en route to being selected by Sporting News as the AFL's Most Valuable Player. He led Dallas to the first of three league titles before the team moved to Kansas City and was renamed the Chiefs in 1963.
Dawson would eventually lead the Chiefs to a victory over the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl IV and be named Super Bowl MVP. He also took the team to Super Bowl I, where the Chiefs were defeated by the Green Bay Packers.
In a 19-year NFL career, Dawson amassed 28,711 passing yards, an 82.6 passer rating and 239 touchdown passes. He owned the Chiefs' single-season touchdown record with 30 — which he set in 1964 — until it was broken in 2018 by star NFL quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
Dawson still owns Kansas City's career passing yards, touchdowns, and wins records despite his last season coming in 1975. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1987.
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D.J. Fezler is a staff writer for BoilermakersCountry.com. Hailing from The Region, he is from Cedar Lake in Northwest Indiana and has spent the last two years covering Purdue football and basketball.