Former Kansas City Chiefs tight end and local influential politician Fred Arbanas passed away on Saturday announced by the Jackson County Democratic Party and confirmed by the Associated Press. He was 82.
Arbanas was drafted by the Dallas Texans in the seventh-round of the 1961 AFL Draft with the 53rd overall pick. In 1962, he was an important part that contributed to the Texans’ double-overtime victory over the Houston Oilers in the AFL Championship that season.
When the Texans moved to Kansas City and became the “Chiefs” the following year, Arbanas remained as the team’s starting tight end. In 1966 and 1969, he helped lead Kansas City to two more AFL Championships and the franchise’s first Lombardi trophy in Super Bowl 4.
Throughout the 1960s, Arbanas became a household name and one of the Chiefs’ top offensive playmakers along with quarterback Len Dawson and wide receiver Otis Taylor. In eight seasons, Arbanas accumulated 198 receptions for 3,101 yards and 34 touchdowns.
Before Tony Gonzalez, Arbanas held all the Chiefs franchise records for most receptions and receiving yards for a tight end.
Arbanas retired from pro-football following the 1970 season, in which he appeared in six games. In 1973, he was inducted into the Chiefs Hall of Honor. In 1997, he was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame. And in 2012, he was inducted into the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame.
Incredibly, Arbanas accomplished all that despite being legally blind in his left eye – the result from being attacked by two men on a Kansas City street in 1965.
Outside of football, Arbanas ran a concrete company that worked in public relation with the Coca-Cola company and eventually, he began an advertising company.
In 1973, Jackson County, Missouri changed its governmental structure, creating a county legislature headed by a county executive. Arbanas was elected to a seat in the inaugural legislature and served 11 terms through 2014.
In 1974 and 1988, he was elected the body’s Chairman and also served as acting County Executive in 2016.
