2012 Kansas City Chiefs season explained

Year:	2012
Team:	Kansas City Chiefs
Coach:	Romeo Crennel
Owner:	The Hunt family
General Manager:	Scott Pioli
Stadium:	Arrowhead Stadium
Record:	2–14
Division Place:	4th AFC West
Playoffs:	Did not qualify
Mvp:	Jamaal Charles
Roy:	Dontari Poe
Shortnavlink:	Chiefs seasons

The 2012 season was the Kansas City Chiefs' 43rd in the National Football League (NFL), their 53rd overall and their first and only full season under head coach Romeo Crennel, who had served as the interim head coach for the final three games of the 2011 season following Todd Haley's termination. The Chiefs failed to rebound from their 7–9 record in 2011, and were eliminated from playoff contention in Week 12. Although they shared the same 2–14 record as the Jacksonville Jaguars for the worst record of the season, the Chiefs had a lower strength of schedule, so they were awarded the first pick in the 2013 NFL draft. The Chiefs went 0–12 against AFC opponents in 2012; their only wins of the season were from NFC teams, against the Carolina Panthers and New Orleans Saints. In 2017, ESPN.com named the 2012 season the Chiefs’ worst in franchise history.^[1] The season remains, as of 2023, the most recent season that the Chiefs finished at or below .500.

On December 1, 2012, the day before the Chiefs' week 13 game against the Carolina Panthers, linebacker Jovan Belcher murdered his girlfriend then drove to Arrowhead Stadium where he killed himself in front of Crennel and general manager Scott Pioli. The Chiefs held a moment of silence for domestic violence victims and the teams met for a prayer on the field prior to the game.

Season summary

The 2012 team tied the 1977 (2–12) and 2008 (2–14) teams for the franchise worst seasons in terms of fewest wins. The 2008 and 2012 seasons were the worst in terms of win percentage (.125) in franchise history.

They tied with the Jacksonville Jaguars for the NFL's worst record. The Chiefs had the number 1 pick in the 2013 National Football League Draft based on strength of schedule.^[2] It was the second time in franchise history the Chiefs have had the #1 pick.^[3]

Kansas City suffered from quarterback controversy all season. The Chiefs were tied with the Arizona Cardinals for most interceptions (20) with Matt Cassel throwing 12 and his late season replacement Brady Quinn throwing 8.^[4]

The Chiefs started the season tying the 1929 record of Buffalo Bisons for most games without ever leading in regulation (8 games). The Chiefs did defeat the Saints in week 3, but didn't lead until their game winning field goal in overtime. The Chiefs broke the streak in Week 10 against the Pittsburgh Steelers when they led 10–0 in the second quarter before losing the game 16–13 in overtime.^[5] In Week 4, the Chiefs had six turnovers in a loss to San Diego.^[6] Chiefs tackle Eric Winston claimed Kansas City hometown fans cheered the injury of quarterback Matt Cassel in a Week 5 loss to the Baltimore Ravens calling it "Sick", however fans claim it was because Brady Quinn was seen coming onto the field and were cheering for him.^{[7] [8]} Fans formed the "Save Our Chiefs" organization. They wore black to games to protest and hired an airplane to fly over Arrowhead Stadium on game days towing a banner that read, "Restore Hope: Fire Pioli."^[9] When asked why running back Jamaal Charles carried the ball only 5 times in a week 8 loss to the Oakland Raiders, Romeo Crennel responded "Now, that I'm not exactly sure, either."^[10] In Week 15, the Chiefs didn't have a first down until the third quarter in a loss against Oakland.^[11] In Week 16, the team rushed for a franchise record of 352 yards against the Colts and still lost the game.^[12] In Week 17, the Chiefs matched the 1981 Baltimore Colts season record of losing 9 games by 14 points or more in one season as the Chiefs lost to Denver.^[3]

The Chiefs finished near the bottom of the league in most major statistical categories. They were 23rd in total offense, 32nd in points scored,^[13] and 37 giveaways, tied for worst in the NFL.^[14] The Chiefs were 20th in total defense and 25th in points allowed. The Chiefs tied for the fewest takeaways with the Eagles. Their low forced turnovers and giveaways led the Chiefs to finish tied for the worst turnover differential in the NFL with a −24.^[15]

Roster changes

Free agency

^{[16] [17]}

Kansas City Chiefs free agency

Position	Player	Status*	2011 team	2012 team
CB		UFA	St. Louis Rams	Kansas City Chiefs
RB		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	San Diego Chargers
TE		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	None
LB		RFA	Kansas City Chiefs	Kansas City Chiefs
TE		UFA	Oakland Raiders	Kansas City Chiefs
WR		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	Kansas City Chiefs
CB		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	Dallas Cowboys
CB		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	Kansas City Chiefs
DE		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
NT		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	Kansas City Chiefs
NT		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	None
LB		ERFA	Kansas City Chiefs	Kansas City Chiefs
RB		UFA	Cleveland Browns	Kansas City Chiefs
RB		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	None
S		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	Detroit Lions
FB		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	San Diego Chargers
S		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	None
OT		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	None
TE		RFA	Kansas City Chiefs	Kansas City Chiefs
QB		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	Dallas Cowboys
QB		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	None
S		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	None
DE		UFA	New York Jets	Kansas City Chiefs
TE		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	Pittsburgh Steelers
QB		UFA	Denver Broncos	Kansas City Chiefs
CB		UFA	Free Agent	Kansas City Chiefs
OT		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	St. Louis Rams
CB		UFA	Oakland Raiders	Kansas City Chiefs
WR		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	None
C		UFA	Kansas City Chiefs	None
OT		UFA	Houston Texans	Kansas City Chiefs
*RFA: Restricted free agent, UFA: Unrestricted free agent, ERFA: Exclusive rights free agent, Franchise: Franchise tag|} Draft See main article: 2012 NFL draft. Notes Acquired via trade with the New England Patriots for S Jarrad Page. Preseason Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 Arizona Cardinals W 27–17 1–0 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 2 at St. Louis Rams L 17–31 1–1 Edward Jones Dome Recap 3 Seattle Seahawks L 14–44 1–2 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 4 at Green Bay Packers L 3–24 1–3 Lambeau Field Recap Game summaries Week 4: at Green Bay Packers Regular season Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 September 9 Atlanta Falcons L 24–40 0–1 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 2 September 16 at Buffalo Bills L 17–35 0–2 Ralph Wilson Stadium Recap 3 September 23 at New Orleans Saints W 27–24 1–2 Mercedes-Benz Superdome Recap 4 September 30 San Diego Chargers L 20–37 1–3 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 5 October 7 Baltimore Ravens L 6–9 1–4 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 6 October 14 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers L 10–38 1–5 Raymond James Stadium Recap 7 Bye 8 October 28 Oakland Raiders L 16–26 1–6 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 9 at San Diego Chargers L 13–31 1–7 Recap 10 at Pittsburgh Steelers L 13–16 1–8 Heinz Field Recap 11 November 18 Cincinnati Bengals L 6–28 1–9 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 12 November 25 Denver Broncos L 9–17 1–10 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 13 December 2 Carolina Panthers W 27–21 2–10 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 14 December 9 at Cleveland Browns L 7–30 2–11 Cleveland Browns Stadium Recap 15 December 16 at Oakland Raiders L 0–15 2–12 O.co Coliseum Recap 16 December 23 Indianapolis Colts L 13–20 2–13 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 17 December 30 at Denver Broncos L 3–38 2–14 Sports Authority Field at Mile High Recap Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. Game summaries Week 17: at Denver Broncos Standings Conference External links

Notes and References

1. Web site: The worst NFL teams ever for all 32 franchises. ESPN.com. December 26, 2017.
2. Web site: 2013 NFL Draft order . https://web.archive.org/web/20121214061956/http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap1000000109680/article/2013-nfl-draft-order . dead . December 14, 2012 . NFL.com . December 31, 2012.
3. Web site: Mellinger . Sam . There's only one thing to do now that Chiefs season is over . KansasCity.com . December 27, 2012 . December 31, 2012.
4. Web site: 2012 NFL Player Passing Stats – National Football League – ESPN . https://web.archive.org/web/20100403014435/http://espn.go.com/nfl/statistics/player/_/stat/passing/sort/interceptions . dead . April 3, 2010 . Espn.go.com . December 31, 2012.
5. Web site: Kansas City Chiefs tie 83-year-old mark of shame . NFL.com . November 1, 2012 . December 22, 2012.
6. Web site: Chargers Beat Chiefs 37–20: San Diego Uses 6 Turnovers To Beat Kansas City . Huffingtonpost.com . September 30, 2012 . December 31, 2012.
7. Web site: Eric Winston rips fans' reaction . Espn.go.com . October 9, 2012 . December 22, 2012.
8. Web site: 2012-10-09 . Matt Cassel Injury: Teammate Blasts Fans for Cheering Quarterback's Injury | Video – ABC News . Abcnews.go.com . December 22, 2012.
9. News: Benson . Lisa . Chiefs fans wear black to Sunday's game to protest season . December 8, 2012 . KSHB 41 Action News . November 18, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121121095101/http://www.kshb.com/dpp/sports/football/chiefs/chiefs-fans-blackout-sundays-game-to-protest-season-and-gm . November 21, 2012 . dead . mdy .
10. Web site: Romeo Crennel doesn't know why Jamaal Charles only got 5 carries | ProFootballTalk . October 29, 2012 . Profootballtalk.nbcsports.com . December 31, 2012.
11. Web site: Janikowski, Raiders boot struggling Chiefs in shutout . Usatoday.com . December 16, 2012 . December 31, 2012.
12. Web site: Jeff LegwoldThe Denver Postdenverpost.com . Chiefs' Jamaal Charles an industrial-sized headache for Broncos . December 26, 2012 . The Denver Post . December 31, 2012.
13. Web site: 2012 Total Offense . ESPN.com.
14. Web site: 2021 NFL Team Total Offense Stats. https://archive.today/20130124144811/http://espn.go.com/nfl/statistics/team/_/stat/givetake/sort/giveTotal/league/afc. dead. January 24, 2013.
15. Web site: 2021 NFL Team Total Offense Stats. https://web.archive.org/web/20091110020637/http://espn.go.com/nfl/statistics/team/_/stat/givetake/league/nfc. dead. November 10, 2009.
16. Web site: Kansas City Chiefs: Free Agents. ESPN.com.
17. Web site: Kansas City Chiefs: Free Agents. ESPN.com (Not Duplicate Sources).