AFC Divisional: Miami Dolphins at Kansas City Chiefs (Kansas City Municipal Stadium), with a Conference Championship spot at stake. Kickoff time: 4:00pm. Winner advances to the Conference Championship. The losing team's season is over.
The divisional round is where the bracket is supposed to take its real shape. Miami Dolphins traveling to Kansas City Chiefs at Kansas City Municipal Stadium, with the league watching to see whether the better team or the better matchup wins. Bye-week home favorites carry the weight of expectation; the visiting wild-card winner walks in with no one expecting them and nothing to lose.
The bracket has narrowed to the teams that survived the regular season. Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs are two of them; the rest of the league is in scouting mode for the offseason. What happens in Kansas City Municipal Stadium shifts the rest of the tree: a road favorite winning rearranges seeding expectations; a home upset shows the bracket math underweights heart.
Miami Dolphins versus Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Divisional. The teams who reach this round have already proven they survive a long schedule; the stats that matter most now are the ones that compress: scoring differential, red-zone efficiency, turnover margin. At this stage of the year, the simple math is that defenses tighten and the team that protects the ball wins more often than the team that scores the most. Whichever side of Miami Dolphins-Kansas City Chiefs cleans up the careless plays first usually walks out with the result. Conservative-game expectations should not surprise the reader; both staffs know exactly what worked all season and will lean hard on what travels. The early answer is the kicking game, where any swing of field position compounds.
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Cleveland Browns | 9-5 | W5 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 6-8 | L1 |
| Houston Oilers | 4-9-1 | W3 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 4-10 | L3 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Miami Dolphins | 10-3-1 | W1 |
| Baltimore Colts | 10-4 | L1 |
| New England Patriots | 6-8 | W1 |
| New York Jets | 6-8 | W2 |
| Buffalo Bills | 1-13 | L3 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Kansas City Chiefs | 10-3-1 | W3 |
| Oakland Raiders | 8-4-2 | W1 |
| San Diego Chargers | 6-8 | L1 |
| Denver Broncos | 4-9-1 | L2 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco 49ers | 9-5 | W2 |
| Los Angeles Rams | 8-5-1 | W1 |
| Atlanta Falcons | 7-6-1 | W1 |
| New Orleans Saints | 4-8-2 | L3 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Minnesota Vikings | 11-3 | W2 |
| Detroit Lions | 7-6-1 | L3 |
| Chicago Bears | 6-8 | L5 |
| Green Bay Packers | 4-8-2 | L1 |
| Team | Rec | Strk |
|---|---|---|
| Dallas Cowboys | 11-3 | W7 |
| Washington Redskins | 9-4-1 | L1 |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 6-7-1 | W3 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 4-9-1 | L2 |
| New York Giants | 4-10 | L5 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miami Dolphins | 0 | 10 | 7 | 7 | 010172424 |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 10 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 1010172424 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chiefs | Jan Stenerud 24 yard field goal | 0-3 |
| Chiefs | Ed Podolak 7 yard pass from Len Dawson ( Jan Stenerud kick) | 0-10 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Dolphins | Larry Csonka 1 yard rush ( Garo Yepremian kick) | 7-10 |
| Dolphins | Garo Yepremian 14 yard field goal | 10-10 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chiefs | Jim Otis 1 yard rush ( Jan Stenerud kick) | 10-17 |
| Dolphins | Jim Kiick 1 yard rush ( Garo Yepremian kick) | 17-17 |
| Team | Play | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Chiefs | Ed Podolak 3 yard rush ( Jan Stenerud kick) | 17-24 |
| Dolphins | Marv Fleming 5 yard pass from Bob Griese ( Garo Yepremian kick) | 24-24 |
| OT | ||
| Dolphins | Garo Yepremian 37 yard field goal | 27-24 |
| Dolphins | Chiefs | |
|---|---|---|
| Team totals | ||
| First Downs | 22 | 23 |
| Total Yards | 407 | 451 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 4 |
| Passing | ||
| Comp/Att | 20/35 | 18/26 |
| Pass yards | 263 | 246 |
| Pass TD | 1 | 1 |
| Interceptions | 2 | 2 |
| Sacks taken | 0 | 1 |
| Sack yards lost | 0 | 8 |
| Net pass yards | 263 | 238 |
| Rushing | ||
| Rushes | 43 | 44 |
| Rush yards | 144 | 213 |
| Rush TD | 2 | 2 |
| Discipline | ||
| Fumbles | 1 | 3 |
| Fumbles lost | 0 | 2 |
| Penalties | 5 | 6 |
| Penalty yards | 26 | 44 |
| Player | C/A | Yds | TD | Int | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MIA | |||||
| Bob Griese | 20/35 | 263 | 1 | 2 | |
| KAN | |||||
| Len Dawson | 18/26 | 246 | 1 | 2 | |
| Player | Att | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MIA | ||||
| Larry Csonka | 24 | 86 | 1 | 29 |
| Jim Kiick | 15 | 56 | 1 | 11 |
| Bob Griese | 2 | 9 | 0 | 12 |
| Paul Warfield | 2 | -7 | 0 | -3 |
| KAN | ||||
| Wendell Hayes | 22 | 100 | 0 | 16 |
| Ed Podolak | 17 | 85 | 1 | 32 |
| Elmo Wright | 2 | 15 | 0 | 10 |
| Jim Otis | 3 | 13 | 1 | 12 |
| Player | Rec | Yds | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MIA | ||||
| Paul Warfield | 7 | 140 | 0 | 35 |
| Howard Twilley | 5 | 58 | 0 | 23 |
| Marv Fleming | 4 | 37 | 1 | 16 |
| Jim Kiick | 3 | 24 | 0 | 10 |
| Jim Mandich | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| KAN | ||||
| Ed Podolak | 8 | 110 | 1 | 29 |
| Elmo Wright | 3 | 104 | 0 | 63 |
| Willie Frazier | 1 | 14 | 0 | 14 |
| Otis Taylor | 3 | 12 | 0 | 6 |
| Wendell Hayes | 3 | 6 | 0 | 7 |
Miami Dolphins defeated Kansas City Chiefs 27-24 at Kansas City Municipal Stadium in the AFC Divisional. The final scoring play was Dolphins: Garo Yepremian 37 yard field goal. The result came down to the final possession; Miami Dolphins won by 3. Top line of the day: Bob Griese: 263 pass yards on 20-of-35, 1 TD, 2 INT. Miami Dolphins move on to the conference final.
Miami Dolphins walked out of Kansas City Municipal Stadium as the team that survived an AFC Divisional Kansas City Chiefs will replay in its head for the entire offseason. The scoreboard says 27-24. The game stayed within 3 points throughout, the kind of contest where every drive felt like a referendum and every defensive stop carried twice its usual weight. The final scoring play came from Dolphins: Garo Yepremian 37 yard field goal. Whether it was the game-decider or just the period at the end of the sentence depends on what the camera caught earlier. Miami Dolphins move on to a conference championship.
Miami Dolphins 27, Kansas City Chiefs 24. Round: AFC Divisional. Q1: 2 scoring plays. Q2: 2 scoring plays. Q3: 2 scoring plays. Q4: 2 scoring plays. OT: 1 scoring play. Top performers: - Bob Griese: 263 pass yards on 20-of-35, 1 TD, 2 INT - Wendell Hayes: 100 rush yards on 22 carries - Paul Warfield: 7 catches for 140 yards
AFC Divisional, played at Kansas City Municipal Stadium. Final: Miami Dolphins 27, Kansas City Chiefs 24, with Miami Dolphins taking the result by 3. **First quarter**
- Chiefs: Jan Stenerud 24 yard field goal - Chiefs: Ed Podolak 7 yard pass from Len Dawson ( Jan Stenerud kick)
**Second quarter**
- Dolphins: Larry Csonka 1 yard rush ( Garo Yepremian kick) - Dolphins: Garo Yepremian 14 yard field goal
**Third quarter**
- Chiefs: Jim Otis 1 yard rush ( Jan Stenerud kick) - Dolphins: Jim Kiick 1 yard rush ( Garo Yepremian kick)
**Fourth quarter**
- Chiefs: Ed Podolak 3 yard rush ( Jan Stenerud kick) - Dolphins: Marv Fleming 5 yard pass from Bob Griese ( Garo Yepremian kick)
**Overtime**
- Dolphins: Garo Yepremian 37 yard field goal
**Top performers**
- Bob Griese: 263 pass yards on 20-of-35, 1 TD, 2 INT - Wendell Hayes: 100 rush yards on 22 carries - Paul Warfield: 7 catches for 140 yards
A 3-point margin in AFC Divisional is the kind of result that defines reputations on both sidelines.