Bob Kuechenberg
No. 67
Position:Guard
Personal information
Born:(1947-10-14)October 14, 1947
Gary, Indiana, U.S.
Died:January 12, 2019(2019-01-12) (aged 71)
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, U.S.
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:253 lb (115 kg)
Career information
High school:Hobart (Hobart, Indiana)
College:Notre Dame
NFL draft:1969 / Round: 4 / Pick: 80
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Games played:196
Games started:176
Fumble Recoveries:6
Player stats at NFL.com · PFR

Robert John Kuechenberg (October 14, 1947 – January 12, 2019) was an American professional football player who was a guard in the National Football League (NFL) for the Miami Dolphins for 14 seasons between 1970 and 1983, spending the 1984 season on injured reserve. He was a mainstay in a line that included Hall of Famers Jim Langer, Larry Little, and Dwight Stephenson and played in six Pro Bowls in the late 1970s and early 1980s. He was selected as one of the top 15 finalists for the Pro Football Hall of Fame from 2002 to 2006, and one of the top 17 finalists from 2007 to 2009, but missed the cut every year. He was inducted into the Miami Dolphin's Honor Roll on December 15, 1995. He was the brother of the retired Chicago Bears linebacker Rudy Kuechenberg.[1]

College career

Kuechenberg attended college at the University of Notre Dame, where he played both the offensive and defensive lines. Before college Kuechenberg attended Hobart High School, located in Hobart, Indiana 10 minutes from Gary, and 30 minutes from Chicago. Kuechenberg played football for the Hobart Brickies in his high school years.

Professional career

Kuechenberg was drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles as a fourth-round pick in the 1969 NFL Draft. He quit shortly after training camp started and played a season with the Chicago Owls in the Continental Football League. Kuechenberg signed with the Dolphins as a free agent in 1970. He became a starter that season as the Dolphins finished 10–4 and made the playoffs for the first time in club history. During the next regular season, 1971, Kuechenberg helped the Dolphins make it to the Super Bowl, where they lost to the Dallas Cowboys 24–3.

The next two seasons the Dolphins won the Super Bowl (going 17–0 in 1972) and his play was noticed by New York Post writer Paul Zimmerman, who named Kuechenberg on his All-pro ballot. The following season, 1974, he was named All-AFC by Pro Football Weekly and was named to his first Pro Bowl. He was named 1st team All-Pro in 1975 and in 1978 and was named All-AFC three times. He was Second-team All-Pro in 1977.

Kuechenberg was sometimes critical of his past teams. One such critique prompted then-current Miami All-Pro, Jason Taylor, to comment, "It's another chapter in the grumpy Kuechenberg story. It's Kuechenberg. He gets up every year and complains about something. If it ain't one thing, it's another. He needs a hug and a hobby. It's ridiculous."[2]

Kuechenberg was inducted into the American Football Association's Semi Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1986.[3] In 2013, President Barack Obama honored the entire 1972 Perfect Season Dolphins at an event in the White House, but Kuechenberg declined to attend for political reasons.[1][4][5][6] He told sports columnist Dave Hyde of Ft. Lauderdale's Sun-Sentinel "I want to be careful, because Mom said if you have nothing good to say about someone, then don't say anything. I don't have anything good to say about someone."[7] The Professional Football Researchers Association named Kuechenberg to the PRFA Hall of Very Good Class of 2013 [8]

He was one of at least 345 NFL players to be diagnosed after death with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), which is caused by repeated hits to the head.[9][10]

References

  1. ^ a b Hamnik, Al (20 August 2013). "NFL great Bob Kuechenberg makes his point with White House snub". nwitimes.com. Times Media Company. Archived from the original on 24 August 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  2. ^ Maske, Mark (November 2, 2006). "J. Taylor Sticks Up For Beleaguered Dolphins". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on May 23, 2011. Retrieved 2010-03-08.
  3. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-01-22. Retrieved 2011-08-28.((cite web)): CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. ^ Cote, Greg (20 August 2013). "White House invite a last stamp of approval for '72 Miami Dolphins". MiamiHerald.com. Miami Herald Media. Archived from the original on 20 August 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  5. ^ Darlington, Jim (20 August 2013). "President Obama honors 1972 Miami Dolphins at White House". NFL.com. NFL Enterprises. Archived from the original on 21 August 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  6. ^ McIntyre, Brian (20 August 2013). "Three members of the 1972 Miami Dolphins to skip White House visit for political reasons". Sports.yahoo.com. Shutdown Corner. Yahoo!. Archived from the original on 16 December 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  7. ^ Hyde, Dave (17 August 2013). "At least three '72 Dolphins refuse White House invite". Sun-Sentinel.com. Howard Greenberg (Tribune Company). Archived from the original on 21 August 2013. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
  8. ^ "Professional Researchers Association Hall of Very Good Class of 2013". Archived from the original on January 4, 2017. Retrieved November 10, 2016.
  9. ^ "The driving force behind Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE)". Concussion Legacy Foundation. Retrieved July 2, 2023.
  10. ^ Ken Belson and Benjamin Mueller (June 20, 2023). "Collective Force of Head Hits, Not Just the Number of Them, Increases Odds of C.T.E. The largest study of chronic traumatic encephalopathy to date found that the cumulative force of head hits absorbed by players in their careers is the best predictor of future brain disease". The New York Times. Retrieved July 2, 2023.

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