Tag: fred arbanas

Ex-Kansas City Chiefs tight end Fred Arbanas dies at 82

Fred Arbanas, who starred as a tight end for the Chiefs, has died at the age of 82.

One of the greats in Kansas City Chiefs history, tight end Fred Arbanas, died on Saturday at 82.

Arbanas was a six-time all-AFL selection in 10 seasons despite losing the sight in his left eye in an off-field incident in 1964.

He was named to the All-Time AFL Team by the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was also a Chiefs Hall of Famer and played on the first two Kansas City Super Bowl teams, including the victory over the Minnesota Vikings in IV.

Per KansasCity.com:

He was enjoying his most productive season with the Chiefs in 1964 — 34 receptions for 686 yards and eight touchdowns — when a stranger came out of nowhere on Troost Avenue and approached Arbanas and teammate Al Reynolds. When Arbanas offered to shake hands, the man slugged Arbanas in the left eye, bolted and was never apprehended. Arbanas required several surgeries and though partial vision eventually returned, he was declared legally blind in the eye.

“When I get on the field, I don’t think about it,” Arbanas once said of the damaged eye. “I don’t pay attention to it. If I worried about it, I wouldn’t be able to play. … It’s not a handicap. If a person likes to play, he can adjust to about everything, and I’ve adjusted.”

(AP Photo)

Arbanas played from 1962-70 and caught 198 passes for 3,101 yards — an almost-unheard of 15.4-yard average for a tight end in the 1960s — with 34 touchdowns. He had a pair of catches for 30 total yards in Super Bowl I,

Arbanas served more than 40 years in the Jackson County Legislature after his football career.

 

Former Chiefs TE Fred Arbanas dead at 82

Arbanas was a member of the Chiefs’ Hall of Fame and Super Bowl IV champion.

Former Kansas City Chiefs tight end Fred Arbanas has died at the age of 82.

Before the Chiefs had all-time greats at the tight end position like Tony Gonzalez and Travis Kelce, there was Arbanas. A former Michigan State Spartan, Arbanas was selected by the then-Dallas Texans in the 1962 AFL draft. The following season the team would move to Kansas City and take on their current nickname.

Arbanas played nine seasons in total with the Chiefs, recording 198 career receptions for 3,100 receiving yards and 34 touchdowns. That was rare for a tight end in those days, when they were mostly used as in-line blockers.

Arbanas was selected to the Pro Bowl five times, back when the game actually meant something. He was also a three-time First-Team All-Pro and won the AFL Championship Game three times during his career. He played in Super Bowl I and became a Super Bowl champion with the Chiefs in Super Bowl IV against the Minnesota Vikings.

Arbanas was inducted into the Chiefs Hall of Fame in 1973. He was also selected for the AFL All-Time Team. He was perhaps the best tight end in AFL history.

Three years after his final NFL season, Arbanas got into county politics, joining the Jackson County Legislature.

In 1999, the Longview Lake Golf Course was renamed the Fred Arbanas Golf Course to commemorate his lifetime of service to the county.

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