Former New York Giants head coach, the late Bill Arnsparger, has won the Paul “Dr. Z” Zimmerman Award from the Professional Football Writers of America alongside Houston Texans associate head coach Romeo Crennel.
The PFWA made the official announcement on Monday.
The late Bill Arnsparger, mastermind of @MiamiDolphins “No-Name Defense” & who helped take 3 different franchises to Super Bowl, & @HoustonTexans associate HC Romeo Crennel, in his 38th NFL season & coached on 5 Super Bowl title teams, are 2020 “Dr. Z” Award winners by the PFWA.
— Pro Football Writers (@PFWAwriters) June 29, 2020
The Dr. Z Award is “given for lifetime achievement as an assistant coach in the NFL”
Arnsparger joined forces with Don Shula in 1964 in Baltimore, joining the Colts as Shula’s defensive line coach. He followed Shula to Miami in 1970, and the Dolphins reached their greatest heights over the next four seasons (1970-73). Arnsparger pulled the levers on defense as Miami was perfect in 1972 and won the Super Bowl again in 1973. He left to become the New York Giants’ head coach from 1974-76.
When Arnsparger was fired by the Giants at midseason in 1976, Shula rehired him immediately as defensive coordinator, and he stayed with the Dolphins through 1983, including another Super Bowl berth in 1982. After a stint as LSU head coach and as athletic director at Florida, Arnsparger returned to the NFL with San Diego for three seasons as defensive coordinator (1992-94), and his defense led the Chargers to their only Super Bowl appearance to date in 1994. He coached in six Super Bowls with three different franchises (III with Baltimore, VI, VII, VIII, XVII with Miami and XXIX with San Diego) with two victories with the Dolphins.
Although Arnsparger’s time with the Giants (7-28) was far less fruitful than his time with the Miami Dolphins or San Diego Chargers, he still left a lasting imprint on the franchise.
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