As Patrick Mahomes leads the Chiefs into AT&T Stadium this Thanksgiving, few realize he’s returning to his team’s birthplace – where they were forced to leave Dallas over 60 years ago.
The “Turf War” of 1960
Lamar Hunt founded the Dallas Texans after the NFL rejected his expansion team bids. The NFL retaliated by creating the Dallas Cowboys within 3 months, sparking an immediate battle for the city.
The Ticket Price War
Cowboys: $3.90 tickets
Texans: $4 tickets as a defiant statement
Though winning on field (25-17 vs 9-28-3), the Texans lost the revenue war, seeing attendance plummet from 42,000 to under 10,000 by 1962.
The “Buyout” Secret
In 1963, the Cowboys paid the Texans $246,500 to leave Dallas – essentially compensation for Hunt’s franchise to relocate to Kansas City.
The Neighbors’ Trophy
In 1998, Hunt created the homemade Preston Road Traveling Trophy (worth under $100). Whenever Dallas won, Jerry Jones would display it in his window for Hunt to see.
Mahomes’ Mission
Drafted in 2017, Mahomes was stunned to learn the Chiefs originated as the Dallas Texans. His first goal: win the Lamar Hunt Trophy – the award its namesake never got to claim.
Today’s game isn’t just another matchup. It’s Mahomes’ chance to complete a 60-year unfinished story – returning to Dallas not as the team that left, but as conquerors.