Otis Taylor (born August 11, 1942) is a former American college and professional American football player, for Prairie View A&M University and the American Football League's Kansas City Chiefs. Standing 6-foot-3 and weighing 215 pounds, Taylor possessed sure hands during his career and served as a devastating downfield blocker, springing Chiefs running backs for many long runs.
Professional career
Otis Taylor - The Legend -
Taylor was selected in the 1965 AFL draft (Chiefs) and the NFL draft, by the Philadelphia Eagles. After a famous "baby-sitting" incident, in which Taylor "escaped" from NFL scouts, he was signed for the Chiefs by their legendary scout Lloyd Wells.
Taylor caught five touchdown passes during his rookie year, and followed that up in 1966 by leading the AFL with a 22.4 yd/catch average and finishing second in receiving yards (1,297). At season's end, he was voted First-team All-AFL and was selected for the 1966 AFL All-Star team. Taylor led the AFL in receiving touchdowns in 1967 with 11 and led the NFL in receiving yards in 1971 with 1,110. He made the AFC-NFC Pro Bowl twice and in 1971 was named Consensus All-Pro by the Associated Press (AP), the Newspaper Enterprise Association (NEA), the Pro Football Writers Association (PFWA) and Pro Football Weekly. The PFWA also named him First-team All-Pro for the 1972 season. Taylor ranks second on the Chiefs' all-time list in receptions (410), receiving yards (7,306), receiving touchdowns (57) and 100-yard games (20).
Taylor combined with running back Robert Holmes for what was at the time the longest reception in Chiefs history in 1969 when he caught a pass from quarterback Mike Livingston for 79 yards, then lateraled to Holmes, who carried it another 14 yards for a touchdown. However, Taylor's most memorable highlight from that season came in the fourth and final AFL-NFL World Championship Game on January 11, 1970, when he caught a short pass, turned downfield and stiff-armed his way to a 46-yard touchdown in the Chiefs 23-7 upset victory over the NFL's champion, the Minnesota Vikings, who, before Super Bowl IV, had been dubbed by some as "the greatest team in pro football history".
"Otis made my job easy," former Chiefs quarterback and Hall of Famer Len Dawson said. "If you got the pass to Otis, you knew he'd catch it."
The Professional Football Researchers Association named Taylor to the PRFA Hall of Very Good Class of 2006
Ben Davidson incident
On November 1, 1970, the Chiefs led the Oakland Raiders 17â€"14 late in the fourth quarter, and a long run for a first-down run by Dawson apparently sealed victory for the Chiefs in the final minute when Dawson, as he lay on the ground, was speared by Raiders' cheap-shot artist defensive end Ben Davidson, who dove into Dawson with his helmet, provoking Taylor to attack Davidson.
After a bench-clearing brawl, offsetting penalties were called, nullifying the first down under the rules in effect at that time. The Chiefs were obliged to punt, and the Raiders tied the game on a George Blanda field goal with eight seconds to play. Davidson's hit against Dawson not only cost the Chiefs a win, but helped Oakland win the AFC West with a season record of 8â€"4â€"2, while defending world champion Kansas City finished 7â€"5â€"2 and out of the playoffs. The very next season, the rule for offsetting personal foul penalties was changed to separate penalties during the play, and penalties after the play. The rule change was largely due to this play.
Jack Del Rio incident
After his time as a player had come to a close, Taylor became a scout for the Kansas City Chiefs. During the 1987 NFL Player's strike, Taylor was arriving at Arrowhead Stadium and was assaulted by Jack Del Rio, who was a new player to the organization in 1987 and was striking with his teammates. Del Rio mistook Taylor for a replacement player and was told Taylor was actually a Chief's legend and retired player by fans who had come upon the assault. He later pressed charges against Del Rio and the two settled out of court.
See also
- Chiefsâ€"Raiders rivalry
- American Football League players, coaches, and contributors
References
External links
- Career statistics and player information from NFL.com · Pro-Football-Reference · Databasefootball.com
