MIAMI – In the moments leading up to the AFC Championship Game, Titans controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk and Chiefs owner Clark Hunt huddled for a quick chat in the frigid temperatures at Arrowhead Stadium.
They wished one another well, and then rooted on their respective teams, a trip to Super Bowl LIV on the line.
"We had a great exchange, and the one thing that we both agreed on in that conversation is 'Hey, whoever wins this game has to go to Miami and get it done and win a Super Bowl," Hunt said of Strunk, and the Titans. "We were fortunate enough to win, but the Titans had a great season.
"And they are going to be a very good football team for a long time."
The Chiefs beat the Titans 35-24 in the AFC Championship Game, and advanced to Sunday's Super Bowl LIV against the 49ers.
Hunt, who like Amy Adams Strunk, was raised by an influential father, expanded further on why he thinks the Titans will be a force to be reckoned with for years to come. The Titans rallied to beat the Chiefs 35-32 in Nashville in November, and in the playoffs knocked off the Patriots and Ravens to reach the AFC title game.
Hunt said the franchise's success starts with Strunk.
"I've been very, very impressed with the job Amy has done," Hunt said. "And it really goes to the people that she brought into the organization. The head coach, Mike Vrabel, what an incredible coach he is. I think he proved that throughout the season. We were lucky enough to have Mike in Kansas City (as a player) at the end of his career and I got to know him a little bit as a person. Obviously, he was an outstanding player. But he's also a quality individual, and he's very, very bright. I think that showed in his coaching this year.
"And they have a great personnel staff, led by (GM) Jon Robinson. Amy has really done an outstanding job with the franchise. I was not at all surprise to see them in the AFC Championship Game. It went our way this year, but I wouldn't be surprised to see the Titans in that game again next year. They are going to be a very good football team for a long time."
Clark Hunt has been involved in the leadership of the Chiefs for nearly two decades, and he currently serves as the club's Chairman and CEO. His father, Lamar, was an original AFL owner just Amy Adams Strunk's father, longtime Houston Oilers/Tennessee Titans owner Bud Adams.
Lamar Hunt and Bud Adams actually founded the AFL together in 1959, and were members of the "Foolish Club.''
Even before the league's merger with the NFL, Hunt moved his Dallas Texans to Kansas City in 1963, and renamed them the Chiefs. Adams became owner of the Houston Oilers, who would later become the Tennessee Titans.
Hunt, who spoke to Titans Online on Monday night at Super Bowl Opening Night, said he'd like to see Bud Adams make it to the Hall of Fame one day. Adams was one of 10 finalists in the contributor category for the Pro Football Hall of Fame Centennial class, but on January 15 it was revealed he wasn't among those selected as part of the NFL's 100-year anniversary.
"I think Bud Adams is very deserving of being in the Hall of Fame," Hunt said. "He played a key role, along with my dad and (late Bills owner) Ralph Wilson, in the founding of the American Football League and keeping that league together in the first few years when it was very, very tough.
"So I think Bud would be a very deserving Hall of Fame candidate and I'd love to see it happen."
This Sunday, Hunt would also love to see his Chiefs win their second Super Bowl.
The Chiefs beat the Vikings 23-7 back in Super Bowl IV, but the team hasn't been back since.
The Titans were hoping to return to the Super Bowl for the first time since the 1999 season.
"It's been 50 years since we've been in the Super Bowl, which is way too long," Hunt said. "But I think the process and the struggles that we've been through make being here even more special. We appreciate how difficult it is to get to this game, and I think our entire team and organization is very focused on putting our best product out on the field on Sunday."
