Tag: Kellen Winslow

The top-graded draft prospects at each position since 2004

Draft Wire’s Jeff Risdon reveals his top-graded draft prospects at each position since 2004

On a recent radio appearance, I was asked an intriguing question.

“Who was the best prospect you’ve ever graded?”

I’ve been evaluating prospects and covering the NFL draft professionally since 2004, which meant the 2023 draft was my 20th. The question and the timeframe was a nice catalyst to go back and examine some of the older evaluations.

To answer the question directly, my highest-graded player ever was Wisconsin OT Joe Thomas in 2007. The grading scales and systems I use have changed over the years, but Thomas topped any iteration.

Here are the top-graded players from my evaluations at each position since the 2004 NFL draft.

Chargers set to host draft party with several franchise greats in attendance

The Chargers 2023 draft party will have several franchise greats in attendance.

The Chargers’ quiet offseason has necessitated that they make big moves in the upcoming NFL draft, which is set to take place in Kansas City later in April.

The team announced that they are set to host a draft party for the occasion on April 27th that will have some legendary players in attendance, including Dan Fouts, Ladanian Tomlinson, and Kellen Winslow.

The event is set to take place at Westfield Century City in Los Angeles, CA and details regarding ticket sales to the general public should be released in the coming days.

While the team has been slow to sign big names in free agency, their plethora of draft capital should ensure that they add premium talent in all seven rounds of the annual selection meeting, especially with their 21st overall pick.

It will be a long summer while fans wait to see the newest crop of talent take the field in August, but they can get an early taste of the Chargers’ 2023 hype train at the draft party.

Legendary Chargers HC Don Coryell elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame

Former Chargers HC Don Coryell got the call from Canton.

It’s been long overdue, but former Chargers head coach Don Coryell has finally been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Coryell coached the Chargers from 1978-1986, posting a 72-60 record. Under him, the Bolts won three division titles and 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 marked the beginning of the NFL’s transformation from a run-first league to one where passing reigned supreme.

Quarterback Dan Fouts led the league in passing yards four straight seasons (1979-1982) and became the first player to surpass 4,000 yards in three consecutive seasons.

Coryell’s offense forced defenses to bring in extra defensive backs to slow the passing attack, which we refer to as nickel and dime defenses nowadays.

Coryell passed away on July 1, 2010 in La Mesa, CA at the age of 85.

Why Don Coryell absolutely, positively belongs in the Pro Football Hall of Fame

Don Coryell might finally be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2023. Here’s why that honor is long, long overdue.

“I don’t think there’s ever been a coach who was more courageous about creating offense.” Dan Fouts on Don Coryell

Don Coryell was many things in his 85 years on this Earth. He was an Army paratrooper during World War II, a defensive back for the Washington Huskies, a longtime high school and college coach, the head coach of the St. Louis Cardinals and San Diego Chargers, and finally, a retiree living a gentle life in the Pacific Northwest. Most prominently, of course, was his work in the NFL from 1973 through 1986, when he took the Sid Gillman vertical passing game, added his own rushing formation concepts, and spun the NFL’s passing offense forward a generation. Coryell can be considered the functional link between the deep passing games of the 1960s and 1970s, and the West Coast Offense that followed into the 1980s and 1990s. As much as any coach in the history of football, Coryell preached the gospel of the nuanced, aggressive passing game wherever he went — and wherever he went, he got results.

On Wednesday, the Pro Football Hall of Fame announced that Coryell, who died on July 1, 2010, was named as the finalist for the Coach/Contributor class of 2023. From the HOF:

A four-hour meeting of the Hall of Fame’s Coach/Contributor Committee concluded Tuesday afternoon with Coryell emerging from the group of 12 Coach/Contributor candidates remaining under consideration as the Finalist for next year’s class of enshrinees. The Hall of Fame’s full 49-person Selection Committee will consider Coryell for election – along with 15 Modern-Era Players and three Seniors – when it meets to choose the entire Class of 2023 in January.

Coryell would be elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame if he receives at least 80% approval in the up-or-down balloting next year.

Last week, the Hall’s Seniors Committee chose Chuck Howley, Joe Klecko and Ken Riley as Finalists for the Class of 2023. Each of them also would be elected if he receives 80% approval at the January selection meeting.

Coryell had reached the Finalist stage in the selection process six other times: 2010, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019 and 2020. In 14 seasons as a head coach in the NFL after a lengthy career in the college ranks, he posted an overall record (including playoffs) of 114-89-1.

In St. Louis, Coryell was named Associated Press Coach of the Year in 1974, his second season with the Cardinals. He led the team to a 10-4 record and their first playoff appearance since the 1948 NFL Championship Game. They followed that breakthrough year with an 11-win regular season in 1975 that equaled the then-franchise record for victories in a season (1948, 1925).

After five seasons in St. Louis, Coryell became head coach of the San Diego Chargers, and with future Hall of Famers Dan Fouts, Kellen Winslow, and Charlie Joiner built the “Air Coryell” offense that ranked atop the NFL in numerous statistics. In his nine years with the Chargers (1978-1986), the team led the league in total offense five times, passing yards seven times (and was second another year) and scoring three times.

His 1980 and 1981 teams reached the AFC title games, falling one win short of the Super Bowl. Prior to Coryell’s arrival, the Chargers had not posted a winning record for eight seasons and had not qualified for the playoffs since appearing in the AFL title game in 1965.

Several Hall of Fame coaches voiced support for Coryell as a Hall of Fame-worthy candidate over the years, including Joe Gibbs, John Madden, Dick Vermeil, and Bill Walsh.

We’ve said for as long as we can remember that Coryell already should have been in the Hall of Fame, as a coach and as a schematic innovator. Let’s get into the details of why.

(Article adapted from The Genius of Desperation by Doug Farrar and Louis Riddick. Copyright 2018 Doug Farrar/Triumph Books LLC. Play diagrams by Doug Farrar and Lindsey Schauer. Used by permission). 

Ex-NFL star Kellen Winslow II sentenced to 14 years for rape and sex crimes against women

Former NFL tight end Kellen Winslow II faced final judgment in court and was rebuked by the judge and women he violated.

Former NFL tight end Kellen Winslow II faced final judgment in court and was rebuked by the judge and women he violated.

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.

Ex-Chargers TE Kellen Winslow named to NFL 100 All-Time Team

A former Charger great joins a handful of the best players to play in the National Football League.

Former Chargers tight end Kellen Winslow has been named to the NFL 100 All-Time Team.

Winslow joins linebacker Junior Seau on the 100-player roster, which is being revealed position by position as the series within the celebration of the league’s 100th season.

Regarded as the one that revolutionized the position, Winslow set the record for most receiving yards in a single season by a tight end with 1,290 yards in 1980. In the same year, Winslow led the NFL in receptions with 89.

Winslow’s performance against the Miami Dolphins in the 1981 playoffs is his most memorable moment in his career.

Winslow finished the game with an NFL playoff-record 13 receptions for 166 yards. But it’s his blocked field goal at the end of regulation to force the game into overtime that may have been his biggest play of the game.

After nine seasons in the league, Winslow retired in 1987 due to multiple knee injuries that hampered him throughout his stint with the Chargers.

He finished his career with 541 receptions, 6,741 yards, 45 touchdowns, five Pro Bowl selections, along with being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1995.

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