Celebrating 15 Years of 65 Toss Power Trap Productions
The Chiefs' in-house production agency celebrates 15 years this summer
If you ask Robert Alberino what he does for the Kansas City Chiefs, you'll get a simple answer.
"I'm responsible for anything that moves or makes sound," says Alberino, who serves as the Vice President of Content & Production for the four-time Super Bowl champions.
That swath of material includes everything from quick social segments to feature-length shows and anything posted on the video boards during game day. It all may seem to appear out of thin air, but every second of it was shot, edited and produced by a small collection of individuals whose passion for both sports and storytelling knows no bounds.
And while the idea of an in-house production company is commonplace nowadays, it was a relatively new idea when Alberino first joined the Chiefs 15 years ago. In fact, Alberino helped create a first-of-its-kind innovation – the Eagles Television Network – during his time in Philadelphia, where he worked with soon-to-be Chiefs President Mark Donovan. The idea behind ETN was to embrace the digital age from a storytelling perspective, and it laid the groundwork for what he hoped to achieve with the Chiefs.
"We took what we liked from ETN and amplified it," Alberino said. "From there, we decided to really focus on post-produced pieces, game day entertainment and social media. Those would be our three pillars.
There was just one critical component missing: a name.
"The idea was to create a moniker that the players would learn to trust," Alberino said. "The best way to do that is to come up with a name, and we wanted to harken back to history."
It was during that thought process that Alberino remembered the legendary words of Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Hank Stram, who became the first coach in league history to wear a microphone during Super Bowl IV.
Stram's jubilant commentary throughout the game remains some of the best audio ever to be captured on a football field, and it included an iconic play-call as the Chiefs faced a third down in the red zone.
"65 Toss Power Trap," Stram instructed. "It might pop wide open."
Stram was correct. The play was executed to perfection, and while the Chiefs' eventual victory in Super Bowl IV marked a triumph for the AFL, Stram's enthusiasm for the idea of a football production has proven to be just as significant.
It opened up an entirely new world of storytelling that has become part of our experience as fans, and for Alberino, it seemed like the perfect name for his creation. 65 Toss Power Trap Productions was born, and the rest is history.
"We had a name, and we had a game plan," Alberino remembered thinking. "Now, let's go create content that will evoke a spectrum of emotions for the Kingdom."
In the 15 years since those faithful conversations, 65 Toss Power Trap Productions has grown from its humble beginnings to employ over 30 producers, editors and storytellers.
The crew has documented more than 300 games, including seven AFC Championship Games and five Super Bowls. Along the way, 65TPT has won 74 Emmy Awards while setting the standard for what an in-house production agency can achieve.
So, in celebration of 15 years, here are 15 of our favorite content pieces to come out of One Arrowhead Drive.
