Lionel Taylor, one of the American Football League’s best players, died last week, according to his family. The Broncos, Taylor’s primary AFL team, announced his passing. He was 89. Taylor died at his home in Rio Rancho, N.M., according to the Denver Gazette’s Chris Tomasson.
The Broncos acquired Taylor, a 1959 Bears UDFA, in their inaugural season — when the team was one of the eight original AFL franchises — and saw him lead the upstart league in receptions in that 1960 campaign. This was no small feat considering the presences of Hall of Famer Don Maynard and the Oilers’ high-octane duo of Bill Groman and Charley Hennigan. Taylor, however, enjoyed a decorated career despite the Broncos struggling during their AFL days.
Converted from Bears linebacker to Broncos wideout, Taylor led the AFL with 92 receptions in his Denver debut. He then ripped off one of the most consistent stretches in receiving history. Standing an imposing 6-foot-2 and 215 pounds, Taylor drew four first-team All-AFL nods from 1960-65 and led the league in receptions five times in that span.
Although the AFL was a pass-friendlier operation compared to the NFL in that period, Taylor totaling four 1,100-yard seasons was a feat certainly ahead of its time. By 1965, only one other receiver (AFLer Art Powell) had ever accumulated four 1,100-yard seasons. Taylor also produced the sport’s first 100-catch year (100 in 1961) and his 1,235-yard 1960 campaign — in 12 games — in Denver represented his highwater mark. Although Hennigan eclipsed Taylor’s AFL reception record (with 101) in 1964, no NFL receiver reached 100 until Art Monk‘s 106-catch 1984 season. Taylor’s 102.9 receiving yards per game in 1960 remains a Broncos single-season record.
A Kansas City, Mo., native, Taylor played collegiately at New Mexico Highlands. Despite the NFL draft consisting of 30 rounds in 1959, Taylor did not hear his name called. Playing 10 seasons, Taylor ended up in Oakland via a 1967 trade and wrapped his career with a two-season Houston stint (1967-68). He still sits fourth in Broncos history in receptions (543) and receiving yards (6,872) despite modern receivers enjoying much friendlier rulebooks for aerial success. Taylor never missed a game in seven Broncos seasons.
Taylor later earned Super Bowl rings as a coach, being the Steelers’ wide receivers coach under Chuck Noll. This period (1970-76) featured Taylor mentoring future Hall of Famers Lynn Swann and John Stallworth, as he coached the Pittsburgh icons during their first three seasons. He then spent five seasons as a Rams assistant, coaching the Los Angeles receivers from 1977-79 (the last of those seasons ending in Super Bowl XIV) and rising to the L.A. OC post for a two-season stint (1980-81). Taylor was part of the Broncos’ first Ring of Fame class.