Lawmakers: Chiefs are Missouri’s official pro football team

The Kansas City Chiefs became Missouri’s only NFL franchise after the Rams fled St. Louis for Los Angeles in 2016.

But that hasn’t stopped Sen. Kiki Curls, D-Kansas City, from pushing for designation of the Chiefs as the state’s official pro-football team.

The resolution had a hearing Tuesday in the Senate’s Rules, Joint Rules, Resolutions and Ethics committee, just days after the Chiefs fell a few minutes short of making it to the Super Bowl.

“We’re proud of our franchise,” Curls said. “They’ve meant a lot to Kansas City as well as to the rest of the state.”

During the hearing, Curls she said she’s “super excited” about history-making quarterback Patrick Mahomes and applauded the Chiefs’ season.

State Senate President Dave Schatz did voice some hesitancy about what would happen if another NFL team came to Missouri, though it seems unlikely that will happen in the near future.

You always want to ask the “what if?” he said after the hearing.

“But I think that obviously (the Chiefs have )proven with their longstanding stay here a commitment to Missouri that they probably deserve that designation,” Schatz said.