American Football League playoffs

• Eastern Division hosted in even-numbered seasons, Western in odd.

A tie in the Eastern Division standings necessitated an Eastern Division playoff game

Mike Stratton's hit on San Diego Chargers running back Keith Lincoln set the stage for the Buffalo Bills and their first AFL championship.

This was the last AFL Championship Game before the Super Bowl era began the following season and the last time a final pro football championship game was played in December. It was also the most recent championship won by a Buffalo-based professional sports team.

The Bills went into the 1966 AFL Championship having already won the game the previous two years. Though the game was to be played in Buffalo, the visiting Kansas City Chiefs were three-point favorites, mainly because of their explosive and innovative offense led by Head Coach Hank Stram. The Bills were a more conventional team with a solid defensive line and a running mindset on offense.

Kansas City dominated the game from start to finish, forcing four turnovers (without losing any themselves) and outscoring Buffalo 24-0 over the last three quarters.

On the opening kickoff, Fletcher Smith's short kick was fielded by defensive end Dudley Meredith, who promptly fumbled the ball, and KC punter Jerrel Wilson, who also played on the kick coverage team, recovered it for the Chiefs on the Bills 31-yard line. This led to the first score of the game, a 29-yard touchdown pass from Len Dawson to tight end Fred Arbanas . After an exchange of punts, Buffalo tied the game when receiver Elbert Dubenion raced ahead of defensive back Fred Williamson, caught a pass from Jack Kemp at the Chiefs 45, and raced all the way to the end zone for a 69-yard touchdown reception.

Later on, Mike Garrett's 27-yard punt return gave the Chiefs a first down on the Bills 45-yard line. After a few plays, Dawson made a key 15-yard completion to Arbanas on the Buffalo 29. It was the last catch of the day for Arbanas, who ended up leaving the game with a separated shoulder, but it paid off big time as Dawson threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to Otis Taylor on the next play, giving the Chiefs a 14-7 second quarter lead. Buffalo responded with a drive deep into Chiefs territory, featuring Kemp's 30-yard completion to rookie receiver Rob Burnett on the Kansas City 12-yard line. But in what turned out to be one of the most crucial plays of the game, Kemp's next pass was intercepted in the end zone by safety Johnny Robinson, who returned it 72 yards to the Bills 28. Mike Mercer eventually cashed in the turnover with a 32-yard field goal that gave the Chiefs a 17-7 halftime lead.

The third quarter was a defensive struggle with each team punting twice. Near the end, Kansas City got the ball on the Bills 42-yard line, but failed to score when Mercer missed a 49-yard field goal attempt.

In the fourth quarter, the Chiefs put the game away with consecutive touchdown drives. First, Dawson's 45-yard completion to Chris Burford gave the team a first down on the Buffalo 4-yard line. Garrett then ran the ball on the next four plays, his last carry a 1-yard touchdown run. Then on the first play of Buffalo's next drive, receiver Glenn Bass lost a fumble that was recovered by Bobby Hunt and returned 21 yards to the Bills 20-yard line, leading to the final score of the game on Garrett's 18-yard touchdown burst. Buffalo could do nothing with their next drive, and on their final one of the day, Kemp was intercepted by Emmitt Thomas.[1][2]

Dawson was near perfect, completing 16/24 passes for 227 yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing for 28 yards. Garrett rushed for 39 yards and two touchdowns, caught 4 passes for 16 yards, returned a kickoff for 3 yards, and added another 37 yards on 3 punt returns. Kempt completed just 12/25 passes for 253 yards and a touchdown, with two interceptions. Burnett caught 6 passes for 127 yards.

The Oakland Raiders were ten and a half point favorites over the Houston Oilers in the 1967 AFL Championship Game. Quarterback Daryle Lamonica, acquired in a trade from the Buffalo Bills in the offseason, led the Raiders to a 13-1 record, throwing 30 touchdown passes in the process. The Oilers went from last place in the Eastern Conference in 1966 to first in '67, beating out the New York Jets by a game. Most of the Oilers' offense centered on big fullback Hoyle Granger, and a midseason quarterback trade for the shifty Pete Beathard (sending their own starter, Jacky Lee, to the Kansas City Chiefs) proved to be the spark that turned Houston's season around.

The previous meeting between the two teams had been a close game won 19-7 by the Raiders, with Lamonica struggling offensively. This was not the case in the rematch. Oakland took a 10-0 lead in the second quarter on a 69-yard run down the left sidelines by Hewritt Dixon, and on a fake field goal attempt Lamonica passed to Dave Kocourek for the 17-0 halftime margin. Former Oilers quarterback George Blanda, who had led Houston to the AFL's first two championships, kicked four field goals for the Raiders. Houston did not score until the fourth quarter, when they already trailed 30-0.

Oakland lost Super Bowl II to the NFL champion Green Bay Packers.

A tie in the Western Division standings necessitated a Western Division playoff game

• AFC Championship Game

• NFL Record and Fact Book (ISBN 1-932994-36-X)
• Total Football: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Football League (ISBN 0-06-270174-6)

• '64 Title Game article from Billzone.com
• Images from '62 Title Game at Wireimage.com