Tag: Dan Fouts

6 Chargers among ‘best player to wear each jersey number’

The Chargers had a few players represent them in CBS Sports’ list.

The Chargers have had some of the all-time greats walk through the doors since the franchise was founded in 1960.

CBS Sports listed the best players to wear each jersey number in the NFL. The Bolts had six players in total make the list.

Here’s who made the list along with a blurb for each player:

Drew Brees (9)

His career began in San Diego but ended when the franchise selected Philip Rivers in the first round of the 2004 NFL Draft. Brees’ potential was validated in New Orleans. Although he has not been named league MVP, the former Boilermaker has appeared in 13-Pro Bowls. He was named Super Bowl MVP in a championship effort.

Dan Fouts (14)

Fouts was the pilot of the Air Coryell offense. He took calculated risks downfield and was methodical in the team’s matriculation down the field. The Pro Football Hall of Fame inductee threw for 43,040 yards and 254 touchdowns. The former third-round selection was a six-time Pro Bowl selection and four-time All-Pro.

Philip Rivers (17)

Rivers was the No. 4 overall selection in the 2004 NFL Draft. Before venturing off to Indianapolis this season, he starred for the Chargers. The N.C. State product has gone to eight Pro Bowls. He has thrown for 59,271 yards and 397 touchdowns in his career. His career passing total should exceed 60,000 yards in 2020.

Johnny Unitas (19)

Unitas was initially drafted by Pittsburgh but was released before ever playing a down. He found a soft landing in Baltimore, where his Hall of Fame career took flight. He won one Super Bowl and three NFL championships during his 18 playing seasons. He was named to ten Pro Bowls and was an eight-time All-Pro. Over the course of his career, he threw for 40,239 yards and 290 touchdowns.

Junior Seau (55)

The list has essentially served as a reminder that the Trojans used to be a powerhouse. Seau has 12 Pro Bowls and a Defensive Player of the Year award to his name. He was named a ten-time All-Pro. The California native recorded 1,849 tackles, 56.5 sacks, 18 interceptions and 11 forced fumbles en route to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Larry Little (66)

Little entered the league as an undrafted free agent. It did not slow down an impressive playing career, however. He was a two-time Super Bowl champion. The Georgia native appeared in five Pro Bowls and was named a seven-time All-Pro. Little was vital to Miami’s offensive success during their perfect season in 1972.

Chargers among best franchises at drafting quarterbacks

The Chargers have a great track record of drafting quarterbacks.

NFL clubs have a lot on the line when drafting players at arguably the most important position on the field.

ESPN’s Seth Walder ranked how all 32 teams have done when it comes to drafting quarterbacks. To stack the teams up, Walder used Pro Football Reference’s weighted career approximate value (AV) to measure production, stretching all the way back to the start of the common draft era in 1967.

The Chargers have had a lot of success at doing so, ranking No. 2 in the league, right behind the Patriots.

Here’s a look at Walder’s ranking for the Bolts along with the reasoning behind it:

Total drafted QB career AV above expectation: 197
Best value pick: Drew Brees, No. 32 in 2001
Worst value pick: Ryan Leaf, No. 2 in 1998

I saw the Chargers at No. 2, and for a moment, I thought, “Huh?” But then it clicked. Even with the Leaf disaster, the Chargers have drafted several successful quarterbacks … for other teams. The aforementioned Brees is one. Eli Manning and Trent Green are two more.

Add in Dan Fouts, a Hall of Famer drafted with the 64th overall pick who did play for them, and it all makes perfect sense.

The Chargers have a quarterback in the Pro Football Hall of Fame with Dan Fouts. The franchise could possibly have another in the near future with Philip Rivers.

Rivers wasn’t drafted by the Chargers. Instead, he was involved in the blockbuster trade with the Giants. Eli Manning was the original pick. Despite shipping Manning away, he still managed to have a productive career with New York.

The Bolts were also the ones who drafted Drew Brees, who has had a lot of success with the Saints, as well as Trent Green, who earned a Super Bowl ring with the Rams and two Pro Bowl appearances with the Chiefs.

While the franchise was victims of drafting one of the NFL’s biggest busts in Ryan Leaf, the other signal-caller’s success has outweighed the poor career from one player.

Los Angeles, who hadn’t drafted a quarterback in the first-round since 2004, is hopeful that their 2020 draft pick, Justin Herbert can pan out like the rest of the top tier signal-callers that they acquired in the past.

Remembering Don Shula: Reliving epic 1982 playoff game between Chargers, Dolphins

The ‘Epic in Miami’ was arguably one of the most memorable games that Don Shula coached.

“A great game. Maybe the greatest ever,” legendary coach Don Shula said.

Thirty-eight years later, the game Shula was describing is still considered one of the greatest games in NFL history.

The “Epic in Miami” was the San Diego Chargers’ overtime win against the Miami Dolphins in the divisional round of the playoffs on Jan. 2, 1982.

Coming into the game, the Bolts led the league offensively in points (478), passing yards (4,873) and total yards (6,744). This was the prime of the Air Coryell era.

Chargers quarterback Dan Fouts was taking the league by storm with the help of a dynamic pass-catching trio in wide receivers Charlie Joiner and Wes Chandler and tight end Kellen Winslow, who revolutionized his position.

The Dolphins, on the other hand, were led by a phenomenal defense that ranked No. 5 in points allowed. Their offense wasn’t extraordinary, but they had a strong running game with the duo of Tony Nathan and Andra Franklin, who combined for 1,493 yards that season.

The first quarter was absolute domination by the Chargers in every phase of the game. The Bolts raced to a 24-0 lead with a 32-yard field goal, a 58-yard punt return for a touchdown by Chandler, a one-yard rushing touchdown by Chuck Muncie and an 8-yard passing touchdown from Fouts to James Brooks.

The beginning of the second quarter was no different for the Dolphins, as their first offensive drive resulted in an incompletion, two sacks and a fumble. Shula wasn’t having it anymore, so he made the decision to bench starting quarterback David Woodley in favor of Don Strock.

Strock led Miami to 17 points in the second quarter, including a memorable hook-and-lateral play near the end of the half.

By halftime, the Dolphins cut the deficit to just seven points after being down by 24 in the first-quarter.

Coming out of the locker room, Miami’s momentum carried, as Strock connected with wide receiver Joe Rose in the end zone for a 15-yard touchdown pass to tie the game, 24-24.

The Chargers were stunned with the Dolphins’ remarkable comeback, but they didn’t let up. Fouts found Winslow for a 25-yard touchdown to take a 31-24 lead. But Miami answered with a 50-yard touchdown pass from Strock to tight end Bruce Hardy late in the third quarter.

In the fourth quarter, Fouts was intercepted by safety Lyle Blackwood, which set up the Dolphins for a 15-yard touchdown run and a 38-31 lead. The Chargers would tie the score at 38 when Fouts hooked up with Brooks on a 9-yard touchdown pass.

The two teams exchanged drives after the score, but Miami was in position to win the game after recovering a fumble by Muncie. The Dolphins drove down to San Diego’s 26-yard line with time about to expire.

It seemed that kicker Uwe von Schamann was going to punch Miami’s ticket to the AFC Championship Game, but Winslow blocked the kick to force overtime.

The Dolphins were another position to win after they drove down into Chargers’ territory once again, but von Schamann’s attempt was blocked again, this time by defensive end Leroy Jones.

The Chargers then sealed the deal. A 35-yard pass from Fouts to Joiner set up the Bolts in Miami’s red zone, and Rolf Benirschke drilled the 29-yard field goal that sent San Diego to its second consecutive AFC Championship Game.

The offenses put on a show in the Orange Bowl, combining for 1,036 yards in the Chargers’ 41-38 victory.

Three Chargers receivers cracked the 100-yard mark, led by Winslow – the hero of the game. Winslow had 13 catches for 166 yards and the crucial blocked field goal at the end of regulation.

It was one of the best performances of Winslow’s Hall of Fame career, as he played with an injured shoulder, pinched nerve, swollen eye, cramps and dehydration from the South Florida humidity.

“My recollection of that game,” Shula said, “is that we had players who continued to help Winslow get up off the field when he was down and tired and didn’t have enough strength to get up. We were helping him up, and he would turn around and make a big play again. I was trying to get them to let him get up by himself.”

That difficult loss is overshadowed by Shula’s overall body of work.

His 347 wins are the most in NFL history. Miami won 66% of its games with 16 playoff bids and five conference championships and two Super Bowl appearances, including back-to-back titles during Shula’s 26 seasons as their head coach. Previously, he won 71 games in seven seasons as head coach of the Baltimore Colts, whom he guided to Super Bowl III. His legacy as a football innovator who changed the game forever will always be remembered.

Chargers legend Dan Fouts gives high praise to Justin Herbert

The Hall of Fame quarterback believes that Justin Herbert is in the perfect situation to be successful.

The Chargers drafted quarterback Justin Herbert with the No. 6 overall selection in the 2020 NFL Draft.

While the picked received a mixed bag of opinions, it’s safe to say that one of the best players to ever play for the franchise – QB Dan Fouts – was a huge fan of the pick.

“They’re getting everything they want. Obviously, the physical tools are there, the intelligence is there; the toughness, competitiveness. He’s a good guy,” Fouts said. “(And I say that) not just because he’s a Duck and now he’s going to be a Charger. I’m very excited to watch him play.”

Herbert is the first Oregon quarterback taken by the Chargers since they drafted Fouts in 1973. Fouts led the franchise to four playoff trips and three division titles in a 15-year Hall of Fame career.

Both signal-callers had successful tenures for the Ducks and now, Fouts is hoping that Herbert is able to follow his footsteps at the professional level.

In order for him to flourish against NFL-level competition, Herbert still has things that need to be improved upon. He needs to continue to work on his mechanics and the mental side of the game, including quickening his processor and developing his eye discipline.

However, Fouts believes that Herbert is in the perfect situation to be set up for success, as he’s able to sit behind Tyrod Taylor for the upcoming season and he will now have a proven quarterbacks coach to work with, Pep Hamilton.

“But any quarterback that gets his start in the league as a rookie, there is so much to learn. You don’t even have any idea how much you have to learn, but you do learn every day,” Fouts said. “I think that’s the key. When you’ve got the brain that Herbert has, I think learning will come easy.”

Report: Charles Davis leaving FOX for CBS

Charles Davis has reached an agreement with CBS to step into Dan Fouts’ role, according to a New York Post report.

Hours after it was reported Dan Fouts was out of the No. 2 position in CBS’ NFL booth, news Friday that Charles Davis is leaving his job at FOX to step into the role of the Hall-of-Fame quarterback.

Andrew Marchand of the New York Post reports Davis is exiting his role with FOX for the seat next to Ian Eagle. This means CBS has plucked FOX’s No. 2 analyst to put him in the same role on its NFL broadcasts.

There is a verbal agreement, but the contracts are not signed yet, according to Marchand.

CBS, which has the Super Bowl next year, has added an extra playoff game in the expanded format that Ian Eagle and Davis will broadcast.

FOX has to find a voice to team with Kevin Burkhardt on its second NFL team behind Joe Buck and Troy Aikman. Greg Olsen has been mentioned prominently, but decided to sign with the Seattle Seahawks rather than retire before the 2020 season.

Report: CBS cuts ties with longtime NFL analyst Dan Fouts

CBS has decided to end Dan Fouts’ run with the company’s NFL broadcasts.

The wheels continue to spin in the NFL broadcast booth despite it being the offseason and there being a coronavirus pandemic. The New York Post’s Andrew Marchand reports CBS has let go long-time analyst Dan Fouts, a Hall of Fame player during his career with the San Diego Chargers.

Per the Post:

CBS Sports has let go of its No. 2 NFL game analyst, Dan Fouts, The Post has learned.

CBS is now targeting Fox’s second NFL analyst, Charles Davis, according to sources, as a potential replacement. Fox is trying to retain Davis. CBS has also eyed its own analyst Trent Green as a potential replacement for Fouts next to Ian Eagle.

Fouts, 69, retired from playing in 1987 and has been a sportscaster for decades, including on “Monday Night Football,” where he teamed with Al Michaels and Dennis Miller.

Don Coryell named Hall of Fame finalist, again

The legendary coach is a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame for the seventh time.

The finalists for the Class of 2020 for the Pro Football Hall of Fame were announced on Wednesday.

For the seventh time, the legendary coach, Don Coryell, is a finalist to be enshrined in Canton, OH.

Coryell coached the Chargers from 1978-86, posting a 72-60 all-time record. Under him, the Bolts won three division titles, played in four divisional playoff games and two AFC Championship Games.

But it’s not what he accomplished while serving as the head coach, it’s how he revolutionized the game. The “Air Coryell” offense was the first time that teams utilized the passing game to attack defenses.

Quarterback Dan Fouts led the league in passing yards four straight seasons (1978-82) to become the first player to surpass 4,000 yards in three consecutive seasons.

Coryell was the first to do it and now many NFL teams are using it. It is now referred to as the West Coast offense because the San Francisco 49ers won Super Bowls with it, but it was originated in San Diego.

His creation also forced defenses to bring in extra defensive backs to slow the passing attack, in which we refer to as nickel and dime defenses nowadays.

Coryell, who changed the game of football, is worthy of being in the Hall of Fame.

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