Otis Taylor, Super Bowl champion and Chiefs legend, dead at 80

Longtime Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Otis Taylor, who helped lead the franchise to its first Super Bowl victory in 1970, has died, the team confirmed Friday.

Taylor, who spent more than 10 years with Kansas City, died Thursday after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease and dementia. 

“The Kansas City Chiefs organization is saddened by the passing of Otis Taylor. My family and I would like to extend our heartfelt condolences to Otis’ wife Regina, his sister Odell and the entire Taylor family as we mourn his passing,” Chiefs chairman and CEO Clark Hunt said in a statement. 

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“Otis was a Chief throughout his 11-year career, and he played an integral part in the early success of our franchise. He became a Kansas City icon with his signature touchdown in Super Bowl IV, as he helped the Chiefs bring home our first Lombardi Trophy,” Clark added. 

“He was one of the most dynamic receivers of his era, and he helped revolutionize the position. Off-the-field, he was kind and dedicated to his community. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family. Otis’ legacy will live forever as a member of the Chiefs Hall of Fame.”

Taylor was selected by the Chiefs in the fourth round of the 1965 AFL draft and would go on to have a dynamic career alongside legendary quarterback Len Dawson, who died just seven months before Taylor. 

Despite his many accolades, including two Pro Bowl selections, two 1,000-yard seasons and the iconic 46-yard touchdown reception that helped the Chiefs defeat the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl IV, Taylor was never inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

“Otis made my job easy,” Dawson once said. “If you got the pass to Otis, you knew he’d catch it.”

A two-time AFL champion and an AFL MVP, Taylor played for the Chiefs from 1965 to 1975. He finished his career with 7,306 yards and 57 receiving touchdowns. 

In 1990, Taylor was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease and associated dementia, which led his family to file a lawsuit against the NFL in 2012, claiming that the league was legally responsible for health issues he experienced, beginning with seizures in 1969.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.