Clark Hunt admitted to the pressure he felt in taking over for his late father, Lamar Hunt, in 2006Denny Medley/USA TODAY NETWORK
The Chiefs on Sunday will make their third Super Bowl appearance in four years, putting a cap on a decade that has transformed Clark Hunt’s “legacy as an NFL owner,” according to Vahe Gregorian of the K.C. STAR. Hunt has experienced “tremendous joy” from winning Super Bowl LIV and contending since then. He also has dealt with a “personal sense of relief after years of struggle that at times smacked of futility.” Hunt took over the franchise in 2006 when he was “essentially replacing a legendary father” -- Lamar Hunt. Clark Hunt said, “When I succeeded my father, I knew I was stepping into some very big shoes to fill. And I could never be like him, right? There was only one Lamar Hunt, and he was so special, such a visionary, such a great leader. Somebody that people followed because they just absolutely loved him. So I knew that I couldn’t be like him, and I had to just do it my way” (K.C. STAR, 2/8).
SUCCESSFUL RUN AT THE TOP: Hunt said “in modern history” the last five years have been the most successful “in growing our brand.” Hunt: “We’ve gone from very much a middle-of-the-pack team to a team that’s at or near the top and that also has translated to internationally. Internationally we’re now one of the top brands.” He said with “social media and the focus of the NFL internationally there’s a lot of growth opportunity in front of us on a global basis.” He also talked about his tenure as owner, saying he is “much more comfortable in the role and worry less about things that I know I can’t control." He said the "best solution to not worrying about things you can’t control is having great people” in leadership roles in the organization (“SportsBeat KC,” KANSASCITY.com, 2/7).
CHOP OR NOT? In N.Y., Nicholas Bogel-Burroughs wrote with Super Bowl LVII "taking place in a state with one of the largest Native American populations," the issue of the tomahawk chop "is bubbling up anew, with a protest planned for Super Bowl Sunday." Protesters will "call for an end to the chop." They will "also seek an end to other features of Chiefs games, including a large drum used to hype up the crowd and the team’s name itself." Amid a "reckoning over racism in 2020," the team said that it would "prohibit fans from entering the stadium while wearing headdresses or face paint that appropriated Native American cultures." The team also said it was “engaged in a thorough review process” of the team’s chopping tradition, as well as the drum. Still, the chop "has endured" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/9).
