The 2013 season was the Kansas City Chiefs' 44th in the National Football League (NFL), their 54th overall and their first under the head coach and general manager tandem of Andy Reid and John Dorsey respectively. After their 26–16 win over the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 3, which was also coach Andy Reid's first visit to Philadelphia since the Eagles fired him the season prior, the Chiefs vastly improved on their 2–14 record from 2012 just three weeks into the season. However, despite starting 9–0, the Chiefs would struggle in the second half of the season, losing 5 out of their last 7 games, and losing control of the AFC West. Despite that, they would still make the playoffs. After defeating the New York Giants 31–7 in Week 4, the Chiefs became the first team in NFL history to win two or fewer games in the previous season, and win the first four games the next. On October 13, 2013, against the Oakland Raiders, Chiefs fans broke the Guinness World Record for loudest crowd roar at an outdoor stadium, with 137.5 decibels. Seattle Seahawks fans later reclaimed the record on December 2, 2013, with a roar of 137.6 decibels. After the Indianapolis Colts defeated the Denver Broncos in Week 7, the Chiefs were the final undefeated team in the NFL. They were the first team in NFL history to earn the number one draft pick and be the last undefeated team in consecutive years.
The Chiefs clinched a playoff berth. They would lose to the Indianapolis Colts in the Wild Card round of the playoffs 45–44, after blowing a 38–10 lead. The loss extended an 8-game playoff losing streak dating back to the 1993 season, which stood as the longest in NFL history until it was broken by the Detroit Lions in 2016.
Roster changes
Trades
Position Player/pick received Team Compensation QB Alex Smith San Francisco 49ers 2013 2nd round draft pick2014 2nd round draft pick FB Anthony Sherman Arizona Cardinals CB Javier Arenas WR A. J. Jenkins San Francisco 49ers WR Jon Baldwin N/A 2014 6th round draft pick Dallas Cowboys LB Edgar Jones2014 7th round draft pick
Cuts Position Player 2013 team TE Kevin Boss None WR Steve Breaston None QB Matt Cassel Minnesota Vikings FB Patrick DiMarco Atlanta Falcons FB Nate Eachus None LB Cory Greenwood Detroit Lions CB De'Quan Menzie None G Rich Ranglin San Jose SaberCats(AFL) OT Luke Patterson New England Patriots LB Andy Studebaker Jacksonville Jaguars OT Eric Winston Arizona Cardinals
Free agency
+Offseason Position Player Status* 2012 team 2013 team FS Husain Abdullah UFA None Kansas City Chiefs CB Vince Agnew UFA Dallas Cowboys Kansas City Chiefs OT Branden Albert UFA Kansas City Chiefs Kansas City Chiefs WR Donnie Avery UFA Indianapolis Colts Kansas City Chiefs WR Dwayne Bowe UFA Kansas City Chiefs Kansas City Chiefs P Dustin Colquitt UFA Kansas City Chiefs Kansas City Chiefs QB Chase Daniel UFA New Orleans Saints Kansas City Chiefs LB Travis Daniels UFA Kansas City Chiefs None LB Zac Diles UFA Tennessee Titans Kansas City Chiefs DE Mike DeVito UFA New York Jets Kansas City Chiefs DE Glenn Dorsey UFA Kansas City Chiefs San Francisco 49ers C Tommie Draheim UFA GB / Sea / NE / Jax Kansas City Chiefs SS Abram Elam UFA Kansas City Chiefs None TE Anthony Fasano UFA Miami Dolphins Kansas City Chiefs LS Thomas Gafford UFA Kansas City Chiefs Kansas City Chiefs RB Peyton Hillis UFA Kansas City Chiefs Tampa Bay Buccaneers G Russ Hochstein UFA Kansas City Chiefs None LB Akeem Jordan UFA Philadelphia Eagles Kansas City Chiefs LB Edgar Jones UFA Kansas City Chiefs Kansas City Chiefs LB Chad Kilgore UFA Oakland Raiders Kansas City Chiefs LB Austen Lane UFA Jacksonville Jaguars Kansas City Chiefs LB Orie Lemon UFA Dallas Cowboys Kansas City Chiefs G Ryan Lilja UFA Kansas City Chiefs Denver Broncos TE Steve Maneri ERFA Kansas City Chiefs Chicago Bears C Bryan Mattison ERFA Kansas City Chiefs None SS Kyle McCarthy ERFA Kansas City Chiefs Oakland Raiders TE Jake O'Connell UFA Kansas City Chiefs Denver Broncos DE Ropati Pitoitua UFA Kansas City Chiefs Tennessee Titans QB Brady Quinn UFA Kansas City Chiefs Seattle Seahawks OT Matt Reynolds UFA Philadelphia Eagles Kansas City Chiefs CB Dunta Robinson UFA Atlanta Falcons Kansas City Chiefs TE Martin Rucker RFA Kansas City Chiefs None OT Geoff Schwartz UFA Minnesota Vikings Kansas City Chiefs LB Brandon Siler UFA Kansas City Chiefs None DE Shaun Smith UFA Kansas City Chiefs None CB Sean Smith UFA Miami Dolphins Kansas City Chiefs LB Leon Williams UFA Kansas City Chiefs None LB Frank Zombo UFA Green Bay Packers Kansas City Chiefs*RFA: Restricted free agent, UFA: Unrestricted free agent, ERFA: Exclusive rights free agent, Franchise: Franchise tag
Draft
Undrafted free agents Position Player College QB Tyler Bray Tennessee LB Darin Drakeford Maryland CB Otha Foster West Alabama WR Frankie Hammond Florida TE Demetrius Harris Wisconsin-Milwaukee OL A.J. Hawkins Ole Miss T Colin Kelly Oregon State RB Kaderius Lacey Alabama A&M DL Rob Lohr Vanderbilt DE Brad Madison Missouri LB/FB Toben Opurum Kansas S Brad McDougald Kansas OLB Josh Martin Columbia WR Rico Richardson Jackson State OLB Ridge Wilson West Alabama
Preseason cuts
+Cuts to 75 Position Player CB Vince Agnew DE Miguel Chavis WR Terrance Copper OL Ryan Durand OL Hutch Eckerson DB Otha Foster III OL A.J. Hawkins DE Rob Lohr RB Jordan Roberts WR Tyler Shoemaker QB Ricky Stanzi DB Neiko Thorpe FB Braden Wilson WR Jamar Newsome
+Cuts to 53 Position Player T Steven Baker WR Josh Bellamy S Malcolm Bronson S Greg Castillo CB Kennard Cox DL Marcus Dixon OL Tommie Draheim LB Darin Drakeford RB Shaun Draughn WR Frankie Hammond Jr. TE Demetrius Harris DB Tysyn Hartman OG Ricky Henry OLB Austen Lane LB Orie Lemon TE Tony Moeaki* CB Semaj Moody FB Toben Opurum OT Matt Reynolds WR Rico Richardson OL Rokevious Watkins DE/LB Ridge Wilson *Tony Moeaki was originally released but was subsequently placed on injured reserve
Inseason Transactions
Cuts Position Player CB Jalil Brown LB Zac Diles DT Jerrell Powe WR Devon Wylie LB Josh Martin DT Anthony Toribio
Signings Position Player TE Kevin Brock CB Marcus Cooper DT Jaye Howard LB James-Michael Johnson TE Sean McGrath LB Dezman Moses CB Ron Parker G Rishaw Johnson WR Kyle Williams DT Kyle Love
Players with multiple transactions This is a list of players who played for the Chiefs at some point during the season who were involved in more than one transaction during the season. Position Player Final Status S Bradley McDougald Claimed off waivers byTampa Bay WR Chad Hall Free Agent
Staff
Final roster
Preseason Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 at New Orleans Saints L 13–17 0–1 Mercedes-Benz Superdome Recap 2 San Francisco 49ers L 13–15 0–2 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 3 at Pittsburgh Steelers W 26–20 1–2 Heinz Field Recap 4 Green Bay Packers W 30–8 2–2 Arrowhead Stadium Recap
Game summaries Week 1: at New Orleans Saints
Week 2: vs. San Francisco 49ers
Week 3: at Pittsburgh Steelers
Week 4: vs. Green Bay Packers
Regular season Schedule Week Date Opponent Result Record Venue Recap 1 September 8 at Jacksonville Jaguars W 28–2 1–0 EverBank Field Recap 2 September 15 Dallas Cowboys W 17–16 2–0 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 3 at Philadelphia Eagles W 26–16 3–0 Lincoln Financial Field Recap 4 September 29 New York Giants W 31–7 4–0 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 5 October 6 at Tennessee Titans W 26–17 5–0 LP Field Recap 6 October 13 Oakland Raiders W 24–7 6–0 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 7 October 20 Houston Texans W 17–16 7–0 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 8 October 27 Cleveland Browns W 23–17 8–0 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 9 November 3 at Buffalo Bills W 23–13 9–0 Ralph Wilson Stadium Recap 10Bye 11 November 17 at Denver Broncos L 17–27 9–1 Sports Authority Field at Mile High Recap 12 November 24 San Diego Chargers L 38–41 9–2 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 13 December 1 Denver Broncos L 28–35 9–3 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 14 December 8 at Washington Redskins W 45–10 10–3 FedExField Recap 15 December 15 at Oakland Raiders W 56–31 11–3 O.co Coliseum Recap 16 December 22 Indianapolis Colts L 7–23 11–4 Arrowhead Stadium Recap 17 December 29 at San Diego Chargers L 24–27 11–5 Qualcomm Stadium Recap
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.
Game summaries Week 1: at Jacksonville Jaguars
The Chiefs started their 2013 season on the road against the Jaguars. The Jags scored a safety when J. T. Thomas blocked a punt in the end zone, giving them a 2–0 lead. The Chiefs took the lead when Alex Smith found Donnie Avery on a 5-yard touchdown pass, making the score 7–2. This was followed up by Smith finding Junior Hemingway on a 3-yard pass, extending the Chiefs' lead to 14–2. In the second quarter, the Chiefs continued to dominate as Jamaal Charles ran for a 2-yard touchdown, giving the team a 21–2 halftime lead.
After a scoreless third quarter, the Chiefs scored the only points of the second half in the fourth quarter when Tamba Hali returned an interception 10 yards for a touchdown.
The Chiefs beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 28–2, the first time in NFL history a game ended with that score. It was also the second time in 20 years a team scored only two points during a regular season game, as well as being the most recent one as of 2021. The Jaguars crossed the 50-yard line once during the game but failed to score.
With the win, the Chiefs started 1–0.
Week 2: vs. Dallas Cowboys
The Chiefs made their regular season debut at home against the Cowboys. They scored first as Jamaal Charles caught a 2-yard touchdown pass from Alex Smith for a 7–0 lead. The Cowboys got on the scoreboard when Dan Bailey kicked a 51-yard field goal to make the score 7–3, followed by Tony Romo and Dez Bryant hooking up on a 2-yard pass to give the Cowboys a 10–7 lead. With the 2nd quarter being scoreless, the Cowboys held on to their lead through halftime.
In the 3rd quarter, Bailey nailed a 30-yard field goal to increase the Cowboys' lead to 13–7. However, the Chiefs retook the lead when Smith found Dwayne Bowe on a 12-yard pass, making the score 14–13. In the 4th quarter, the Chiefs increased their lead to 17–13 when Ryan Succop nailed a 40-yard field goal. The Cowboys tried to rally late, but came up a point short when the only score they could muster was a 53-yard field goal by Bailey. The Chiefs won the game 17–16, earning their first 2–0 start since 2010.
Week 3: at Philadelphia Eagles
After a close call win at home, the Chiefs traveled to Philadelphia to take on the Eagles in a TNF duel. The Chiefs started their scoring when Ryan Succop kicked a 33-yard field goal for a 3–0 lead. This was followed by Eric Berry returning an interception 38 yards for a touchdown for a 10–0 lead. The Eagles managed to get on the board later on in the quarter when Michael Vick found Jason Avant on a 22-yard touchdown pass (with a failed PAT) making the score 10–6. The Chiefs continued to dominate as Succop kicked 2 field goals increasing his teams lead from 7 to eventually 10 points with field goals from 31 and 34 yards out 13–6 and 16–6 at halftime. In the 3rd quarter, the Eagles managed to rally coming within 7 points as Alex Henery kicked a 29-yard field goal for the only score of the quarter. The Chiefs pulled away as Jamaal Charles ran for a 3-yard touchdown for a 23–9 lead. The Eagles then fired back as LeSean McCoy ran for a touchdown from 41-yards out once again coming within 7 23–16. With Succop's 38-yard field goal, the Chiefs were able to seal the game with a final score of 26–16 sending them to a 3–0 start, their first such start since 2010. This was also head coach Andy Reid’s first visit to Philadelphia since he was fired by the organization a season earlier. Reid served as the Eagles head coach from 1999 to 2012.
Week 4: vs. New York Giants