Photo Credit
Researched and compiled by
Carrie Birdsong
Born: October 14th, 1947 in Gary, Indiana
Died: January 12th, 2019 (age 71) in Fort
Lauderdale, Florida
Height: 6 ft 2 in
Weight: 253 lb
Position: Guard
High School: Hobart (Hobart, Indiana)
Career History
1. Philadelphia Eagles (1969)*
2. Chicago Owls (1969)
3. Miami Dolphins (1970 – 1984)
*Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career Highlights and Awards
1. 2x Super Bowl champion (VII, VIII)
2. 2x First-Team All-Pro (1975, 1978)
3. Second-Team All-Pro (1977)
4. 6x Pro Bowl (1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1982,
Weight: 253 lb
Position: Guard
High School: Hobart (Hobart, Indiana)
Career History
1. Philadelphia Eagles (1969)*
2. Chicago Owls (1969)
3. Miami Dolphins (1970 – 1984)
*Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career Highlights and Awards
1. 2x Super Bowl champion (VII, VIII)
2. 2x First-Team All-Pro (1975, 1978)
3. Second-Team All-Pro (1977)
4. 6x Pro Bowl (1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1982,
1983)
Miami Dolphins Honor Roll
1. National Champion (1966)
Career NFL Statistics
Games Played 196
Games Started 176
Fumble Recoveries 6
Robert John Kuechenberg (October 14th, 1947 to January 12th, 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 1970’s and early 1980’s. 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 15th, 1995. He was the brother of retired Chicago Bears linebacker Rudy Keuchenberg.(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/AFL 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. Hamnik, Al (August 20, 2013). "NFL great Bob
Miami Dolphins Honor Roll
1. National Champion (1966)
Career NFL Statistics
Games Played 196
Games Started 176
Fumble Recoveries 6
Robert John Kuechenberg (October 14th, 1947 to January 12th, 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 1970’s and early 1980’s. 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 15th, 1995. He was the brother of retired Chicago Bears linebacker Rudy Keuchenberg.(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/AFL 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. Hamnik, Al (August 20, 2013). "NFL great Bob
snub". nwitimes.com. Times Media Company.
Archived from the original on August 24, 2013.
Washington Post. Archived from the original on
original (PDF) on January 22, 2016. Retrieved
Dolphins". MiamiHerald.com. Miami Herald
Media. Archived from the original on August
20, 2013. Retrieved August 20, 2013.
5. Darlington, Jim (August 20, 2013).
5. Darlington, Jim (August 20, 2013).
Enterprises. Archived from the original on
Sports.yahoo.com. Shutdown Corner. Yahoo!.
Archived from the original on December 16,
invite". Sun-Sentinel.com. Howard
Greenberg (Tribune Company). Archived
from the original on August 21, 2013.
Hall of Very Good Class of 2013". Archived
from the original on January 4, 2017.
Concussion Legacy Foundation. Archived
from the original on July 2, 2023. Retrieved
July 2, 2023.
10. Ken Belson and Benjamin Mueller (June
10. Ken Belson and Benjamin Mueller (June
20, 2023). "Collective Force of Head Hits,
The New York Times. Retrieved July 2,
2023.
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