Chiefs age discrimination trial: Steve Cox takes stand, defends career

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Tuesday, the man suing the Kansas City Chiefs for age discrimination spent hours on the stand as attorneys wove through his career.

They meticulously-discussed years of seemingly glowing reviews where Steve Cox repeatedly 'exceeded expectations' showed years of consistent pay raises.

Within 10 years of starting with the Chiefs, his pay had gone from just over $40,000 to more than $70,000 as documents showed he was repeatedly awarded raises near the top of the possible scale.

"Were you ever written up in a document you saw?" asked an attorney for Cox. Cox simply answered, "No, sir."

Cox denied being verbally coached about his job performance but did admit several times he was criticized for individual mishaps he would quickly work to correct.

"I would never intentionally not do something I was supposed to do," he said.

As of late Tuesday afternoon, attorneys for the Chiefs hadn't had the chance to cross-examine Cox. But in opening statements last week, they did say while Cox was a hard worker, he was failing as a manager.

Attorneys for Cox have said Chiefs officials told him he was fired for poor performance.