User:Harper J. Cole/sandbox/Dan Fouts (draft)

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Table

Record Previous holder Fouts Succeeding holder
Most attempts, playoff game Richard Todd - 51 (Wild Card playoffs, 1981) 53 (Divisional playoffs, 1981) Bernie Kosar - 64 (Divisional playoffs, 1986)[1]
Most completions, playoff game Richard Todd - 28 (Wild Card Round, 1981) 33 (Divisional playoffs, 1981) Warren Moon - 36 (Wild Card playoffs, 1992)[2]
Most yards, playoff game Daryle Lamonica - 401 (AFL Championship, 1968) 433 (Divisional playoffs, 1981) Bernie Kosar - 489 (Divisional Playoffs, 1986)[1]
Most consecutive 300-yard games Multiple players - 3 4 (Weeks 6-9, 1979) Joe Montana - 5 (Weeks 2-14, 1982)
Most consecutive 400-yard games Multiple players - 1 2 (Weeks 14-15, 1982) Ryan Fitzpatrick - 3 (Weeks 1-3, 2018)[3]
Most attempts, season Steve DeBerg - 578 (1979) 589 (1980)
then 609 (1981)
1986)[4]
Most completions, season Steve DeBerg - 347 (1979) 348 (1980))
then 360 (1981))		 Dan Marino - 362 (
1984)[5]
Most yards, season Joe Namath - 4,007 (1967) 4,082 (1979)
then 4,715 (1980)
then 4,802 (1981)		 Dan Marino - 5,084 (1984)[5]
Most 300-yard games, season Joe Namath - 6 (1967) 8 (1980) Dan Marino - 9 (1984)[5]
Most 300-yard games, career Johnny Unitas - 26 (1956-72) 52 (1974-87) Dan Marino - 63 (1983-99)[6][7]
Most 400-yard games, career Sonny Jurgensen - 5 (1961-67) 6 (1980-85) Dan Marino - 13 (1984-95)[8][7]
Most 4,000-yard seasons, career Joe Namath - 1 (1967) 3 (1979-81) Dan Marino - 6 (1984-86, 88, 92, 94)[9][7]

Professional career

1973-1975: Early struggles

Fouts was selected in the 3rd round of the

1973 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers, using the 64th overall pick.[10] He was brought in to back up his childhood idol, Johnny Unitas, who had joined the Chargers during the offseason after 17 years with the Baltimore Colts.[11] Unitas soon picked up a career-ending shoulder injury, causing Fouts to see extensive action as a rookie. His first appearance came in Week 4, entering a game at Pittsburgh at the start of the second half, with the Chargers trailing 38–0. Fouts led three touchdown drives, and the game finished 38–21;[12] Fouts' first career touchdown pass was a 13-yarder to Jerry LeVias.[13] The following week, he made his first start, completing 12 of 30 passes for 183 yards, two touchdowns and an interception as the Chargers lost 27–17 to Oakland[14], earning positive reviews for his performance.[15] However, Fouts struggled in his next game, intercepted four times during a 41–0 home loss to Atlanta.[16] By the end of the 1973 season, Fouts was 0–5–1 as a starter, with 6 touchdowns against 13 interceptions, while completing fewer than 45% of his passes.[17] His passer rating of 46.0 was well below the league average of 64.9.[18]

Unitas announced his retirement before the 1974 season, paving the way for Fouts to stake a claim to the starting job.[19] Fouts started the first eleven games, before a broken thumb ended his season.[20] Fouts went 3–8 in those games, posted an improved passer rating of 61.4;[17] half of his season total of 8 touchdown passes came in a single Week 8 game with Cleveland, completing 12 passes of 21 for 333 yards as the Chargers won 36–35.[21] While Fouts again finished the season with a completion percentage below 50%, his yards per completion of 15.1 led the NFL.[22]

Fouts did increase his completion percentage

passer rating of zero, the only such rating of his 15-year career.[24] The Chargers were faced with the prospect of a winless season after opening 0–11, but Fouts led them to a 28–20 win at Kansas City in Week 12, overcoming three interceptions and scoring the game's final touchdown himself.[25]

1976-1977: Improvement and holdout

In 1976, the Chargers brought in Bill Walsh from Cincinnati to be their offensive coordinator;[26] Fouts would later say, "Walsh really got me into the position to be an effective quarterback". [11] Fouts also gained a new wide receiver when the Chargers traded for seven-year veteran Charlie Joiner.[27] Joiner went on to spend 11 years with Fouts in San Diego, with over 9,000 receiving yards and 47 touchdowns as a Charger.[28] Fouts later described the receiver as a security blanket, saying: "I don’t think he ever dropped any, at least any that were thrown that he could catch."[29]

Fouts began the 1976 season by throwing six touchdown and no interceptions in the first three games, all wins.

shut out four times and finished 6–8,[33] or for Fouts, who started thirteen games and played in all fourteen.[30] Nonetheless, he finished with new career highs in passing yards (2,535), completion percentage (57.8%), and touchdowns (14); he also threw 15 interceptions, at a new career-low interception percentage of 4.2%.[17] Fouts finished with a passer rating of 75.4 for the season, above the league average of 67.0.[18]

San Diego acquired quarterback

collective bargaining agreement, which meant the Chargers had only to match the offer of another team to prevent him from leaving. There was speculation that Fouts was disgruntled due to Harris's signing and contract,[35] but Fouts himself said that he wanted to play in a Super Bowl, and that the Chargers were not of that caliber; he stated that he would retire if he was not allowed to leave San Diego.[37] Fouts refused to report to training camp,[38] During the lengthy holdout that followed, Fouts attacked Prothro as "the farthest thing from a head coach you'll ever find ... he's snowing people into thinking he knows what he's doing."[35]

On November 15, the NFL grievance committee rejected an attempt by Fouts to become a free agent. Chargers Owner Gene Klein said that Fouts had been given bad advice by his lawyer,[39] and would be welcome back to the team.[40] Fouts reported to the team on November 17, 125 days late, having accrued $62,500 in fines.[41] He returned to a 5–5 team who had recently lost Harris to injury, and started from Week 11 onwards.[42] Fouts threw 4 touchdowns and 1 interception in the first two games, both wins, then no touchdowns and five interceptions in the following two, both defeats.[43]

1978-1986: Leader of Air Coryell

1978

The arrival of head coach Don Coryell in 1978 spurred Fouts' transformation into a record-breaking quarterback.

The Chargers drafted wide receiver

1978 Draft,[44] and he caught two touchdown passes from Fouts on his debut as the Chargers beat Seattle in Week 1.[45] San Diego lost their next three, however, and Prothro resigned, to be replaced by Coryell.[46] He installed the explosive offensive system that would become known as Air Coryell during an eight-year reign as Chargers head coach, led on the field by Fouts.[47]

In Coryell's first game, Fouts completed 14 of 18 passes for 173 yards, with 3 touchdowns, 1 interception and a passer rating of 101.7, but the Chargers were defeated in New England, 28–23.[48] They lost three of Coryell's first four games, slipping to a 2–6 record at the midway point of the season after Fouts threw three interceptions during a 31–14 defeat in Detroit.[49] San Diego won their next four games in a row.[50] In the third of these games, Fouts threw a 14-yard touchdown to Jefferson as time expired in overtime, to beat Kansas City 29–23.[51] Two weeks later, Fouts missed the return match with the Chiefs through injury, and Harris was intercepted five times as the Chargers were shut out.[52] Fouts returned for the final three games, winning all of them to give him seven consecutive victories as a starter; he passed frequently during these three games, throwing for over 900 yards and 9 touchdowns, while the Chargers averaged over 40 points per game.[53] In the final game, Fouts threw for 369 yards (tying a club record)[54] and four touchdowns, as San Diego beat the playoff-bound Oilers 45–24 in Houston.[55]

The Chargers finished 9–7, missing the playoffs. As a team, they led the league in passing yards.[50] Fouts himself was sixth in the NFL with 2,999 passing yards, first in yards per attempt (7.9), fourth in completion percentage (58.8%) and touchdowns (24), and third in passer rating (83.0).[56] He threw more touchdowns than interceptions for the first time in his career (24-20),[17] and combined frequently with Jefferson, who led the league with 13 touchdown receptions.[57]

1979

The Chargers finished 12–4 in

New Orleans.[63] Fouts threw 3 interceptions the following week, but also passed for one touchdown and ran for another, as San Diego beat Denver 17–7 and clinched both their division and the #1 seed in the AFC.[64][65]

Fouts finished the season with 4,082 yards passing, breaking Joe Namath's record of 4,007, albeit from two extra games.[65] He also led the league in completion percentage with 62.6%, and ranked third with a passer rating of 82.6.[66] He posted an even ratio of touchdowns to interceptions (24-24). Fouts tied another Namath record with six total 300-yard games.[67] In the end of season awards, he finished second behind Earl Campbell for both AP NFL MVP (outvoted 34–27) and AP Offensive Player of the Year (outvoted 39–34),[68] while being named to the AFC Pro Bowl and 1st-team All-Pro teams.[17] Both Jefferson and Joiner had 1,000 yard receiving seasons, two of the twelve players to reach that milestone league-wide.[69]

San Diego's return to the playoffs ended in disappointment, losing 17–14 to the wildcard Houston Oilers. Fouts completed 25 of 47 passes for 333 yards, no touchdowns and five interceptions.[70] It was revealed after the game that Houston defensive coordinator Ed Biles had managed to crack the code San Diego used to signal their offensive plays to Fouts, giving them prior warning of the coming plays and potentially accounting in part for Fouts' struggles.[71]

1980

San Diego repeated as division champions in 1980, with an 11–5 record.[72] The season featured the emergence of another major target for Fouts. Tight end Kellen Winslow, the Chargers' 1st-round pick in the 1979 Draft, had missed half of his rookie season with a broken leg, but played a huge role in the Charger offense from 1980 through to a major knee injury in 1984.[73] Winslow is credited with revolutionising the tight end position through his pass-catching ability.[74]

Fouts had an eventful game in the Week 2 matchup with Oakland. He turned the ball over on five consecutive possessions in the 3rd quarter, with four interceptions and a fumble that was run back for a touchdown, but eventually threw a 24-yard touchdown to Joiner in overtime as the Chargers won 30–24.[75] Fouts finished the game with 29 completions from 44 attempts for 387 yards, with 3 touchdowns and 5 interceptions.[76] The 387 yards were a new single-game franchise record for the Chargers. Fouts himself would break the record once more four weeks later, with 388 yards in a 38–24 loss to the Raiders; the following week, he broke it again, this time passing for 444 yards in a 44–7 victory over the Giants.[77] This last total would prove to be the joint most of his career.[24] San Diego and Oakland had a tight race for the AFC West title, which the Chargers eventually edged on tiebreakers after a final-day win over Pittsburgh, in which Fouts threw for 308 yards and ran for a touchdown.[78]

For the second consecutive season, Fouts broke the passing yardage record, finishing with 4,715 yards, over 500 ahead of his nearest rival.[79] This time, he also broke Namath's yards per game record by averaging 294.7.[80] His marks for attempts (589) and completions (348) were also NFL records,[81] and he posted a new personal best with 30 touchdowns (against 24 interceptions) and with a passer rating of 84.7.[17] He had eight 300+ yard passing games, breaking a record he'd tied the previous season.[82] Fouts was voted a 2nd-team All-Pro, and made his second Pro Bowl.[17] Jefferson, Winslow and Joiner, his leading receivers, dominated the receiving yardage charts, finishing 1st, 2nd and 4th respectively, with over 1,100 yards each. Also, Jefferson led the league in touchdown catches, and Winslow came top in receptions.[83] They were the first trio of teammates to each have 1,000 receiving yards in the same season.[84]

San Diego were again the #1 seed in the AFC playoffs, and hosted the Buffalo Bills in the Divisional Playoffs. The Chargers trailed 14–3 at halftime, before a Fouts touchdown pass to Joiner and a field goal pulled them within a point early in the final quarter. Fouts would later be intercepted in Bills territory, before bringing the Chargers to a 3rd and 10 at midfield with a little over two minutes to play. He then found little-used wide receiver Ron Smith for what would prove to be the game-winning touchdown.[85] Fouts finished 22 of 37, for 314 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions.[86] The following week, San Diego hosted Oakland for their third meeting of the season, with the AFC championship and a place in the Super Bowl at stake. Fouts had a mixed first half, as he threw two touchdown passes to Joiner, but also two red zone interceptions. Joiner's second touchdown began a comeback attempt from 28–7 behind that eventually fell short; Oakland won 34–27, and went on to triumph in Super Bowl XV.[87] Fouts finished the game having completed 22 of 45 passes for 336 yards, 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions.[88]

1981

While San Diego won their third consecutive division title in 1981, they had to contend with early-season unrest, with both Jefferson and key defensive end Fred Dean holding out for better pay. Both players were traded early in the season, to the disapproval of numerous other Chargers.[89] Jefferson's replacement, Wes Chandler,[90] had made one Pro Bowl with the New Orleans Saints, and would go on to make three more with the Chargers.[91] Without Dean, the defense slipped from 6th to 27th in the 28-team league, leaving Fouts and the offense as the unit more likely to lead San Diego to victories.

Fouts began the season by posting a near-perfect passer rating of 157.1, completing 19 of 25 for 330 yards, 3 touchdowns and no interceptions in an easy 44–14 win over

Denver with a 10–6 record.[99]

Fouts led the Chargers to a victory in the storied "Epic in Miami" 1981 AFC Divisional Playoff game, setting several postseason passing records.

With the exception of the finale, Fouts passed for between 252 and 352 yards in every regular season game.[100] With 4,802 yards, he broke the single-season record for the 3rd consecutive season, as well as breaking the records for yards per game (300.1), attempts (609) and completions (360) for the second time. He also posted the best touchdown to interception ratio of his career (33-17), led the league in touchdown passes for the first time, and made his third Pro Bowl.[17] At this point, Fouts was responsible for over half of the five 4,000 yard passing seasons in NFL history, posting his third in a row.[101] Fouts again had three 1,000 yard receivers, with Joiner, Chandler (including his yards with the Saints before he was traded) and Winslow (again the league's leader in receptions) all crossing the mark.[102] He also benefitted from a stable, veteran offensive line (Billy Shields, Doug Wilkerson, Don Macek, Ed White and Russ Washington), [103] who enabled Fouts to be sacked on a career-low 3% of his pass attempts.[17][104]

San Diego faced the Dolphins in the Divisional Playoffs, winning the Epic in Miami 41–38. In a dominant 1st quarter, the Chargers led 24–0 when Fouts threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to James Brooks. Miami scored 24 points of their own to tie the score in the 3rd quarter, before Fouts restored the lead with a 25-yard touchdown to Winslow. The Dolphins responded with the next 14 points, and were close to scoring again when they lost a fumble at the San Diego 18 with five minutes to play. Fouts completed 7 of 8 passes for 75 yards on the ensuing drive, ending with a 9-yard touchdown pass that was intended for Winslow but caught instead by Brooks, with 58 seconds to play. Winslow blocked a last-second Miami field goal, and the game went to overtime, where Benirschke missed a short kick and Leroy Jones blocked another Miami attempt. Finally, Fouts completed back-to-back passes of 20 yards to Chandler and 39 yards to Joiner, and Benirschke won the game with a 29-yard field goal nearly 14 minutes into overtime.[105] Fouts, who described the game as the best he'd ever played in,[106] finished with 33 completions from 53 attempts for 433 yards (all setting new NFL playoff records), with 3 touchdowns and 1 interception.[107] The Epic in Miami also set playoff records for the most combined points, yards, passing yards and completions, and is widely considered one of the greatest NFL games played.[108][109]

The Chargers faced the Bengals again in the AFC Championship Game, this time in Cincinnati. The game, known as the Freezer Bowl, was played in frigid conditions, with a temperature of −9 °F (−22.8 °C), in contrast to the 88 °F (31.1 °C) conditions in Miami the previous week.[110] Fouts struggled to grip the ball, completing 15 of 28 passes for 185 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions as the Chargers were defeated 27–7, missing out on a Super Bowl appearance by one game for the second consecutive season.[111]

1982

Fouts tied his career-high with 444 passing yards as San Diego defeated the 49ers 41–37.

In 1982, the Chargers started 1–1 before an NFL players strike interrupted the regular season, and reduced it to nine games in total when it resumed in November.[112] Fouts did not support the strike action before it began, but trained extensively with his teammates while it was ongoing.[113]

When play resumed, the Chargers lost their first game back, then won their next two going into a road meeting with the

Jack Murphy Stadium.[117] Fouts went 25 of 40 for 435 yards, 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions. He become the first player in NFL history to post back-to-back 400-yard games.[118] The teams combined for 66 completions, breaking the NFL record set in the Chargers' previous game, and 883 passing yards, setting a new record.[116] Fouts followed up with another big game the following week, completing 18 of 30 for 298 yards, 5 touchdowns and 1 interception, as San Diego won their fifth straight game, 44–26 over Baltimore.[119] Despite losing their final game, the Chargers qualified for the playoffs for the fourth straight year with a 6–3 record.[59]

While the truncated season prevented Fouts from again breaking the passing yardage record in 1982, he did set a new yards per game record for the third consecutive year, this time with 320.3 per game. He led the league in passing yards (2,883), touchdowns (17, tied with Montana), and yards per attempt (8.7, which would prove to be the best of his career). His passer rating of 93.3, second-best in the league, would also stand as a career-high, and he was named 1st-team All-Pro for the second time, as well as being voted to a fourth successive Pro Bowl.

PFWA, as well as the player-awarded Jim Thorpe Trophy.[122] Fouts was again well protected by the same quintet of offensive linemen as the previous year. This time, none of the five missed a game, and Fouts was sacked on 3.5% of pass plays.[123][120] From Fouts' receivers, Winslow caught the second-most passes in the league, while Chandler, despite missing a game, finished as the only 1,000-yard receiver in the league.[124]

San Diego travelled to Pittsburgh in the first round of the playoffs. The Steelers led 28–17 in the final quarter, but Fouts finished consecutive drives with touchdown passes to Winslow, the first coming on 4th down, the second with one minute to play. These were enough to give the Chargers a 31–28 victory.[125] Fouts completed 27 of 43 passes for 333 yards, 3 touchdowns and no interceptions, producing a passer rating of 112.5, his best in a playoff game.[126] In the second round of the playoffs, the Chargers faced the Dolphins in the Orange Bowl, the same venue as their famous match from the previous season. The rematch proved to be one-sided, with Miami winning 34–13. Fouts completed 15 of 34 passes for 191 yards, 1 touchdown and 5 interceptions.[127] This proved to be the last playoff game of his career, meaning that he had thrown five interceptions in both his first and final playoff games.[126]

Later seasons

Fouts was a free agent in 1983. While negotiating with the Chargers, he also considered an offer to play for a proposed San Diego-based franchise in the new USFL.[128] Ultimately, Fouts opted to sign a six-year contract with the Chargers, stating that he wanted to win a Super Bowl. The contract was reported to pay upward of $1 million per year, making it one of the most lucrative in pro football.[129] Fouts played for five more season, but missed time through injury in each of those, and would not return to the playoffs.[17]

In 1983, the Chargers went 6–10 while conceding the most points in the league.[130] Fouts started the first seven games, throwing for at least 300 yards in five of them,[131] but was kept out of the next five by a shoulder injury, ending a run of consecutive starts that stretched back to 1978.[132] After returning for three games, Fouts reaggravated the injury and missed the finale.[133] He went 5–5 as a starter, led the league in yards per game for the fifth straight year with 297.5, and made his fifth straight Pro Bowl. He threw 20 touchdowns and 15 interceptions and produced a career-high 8.8 yards per attempt, while his completion percentage (63.2%) and passer rating (92.5) were both the second best marks of his career.[17]

San Diego started 4–2 in

Miami Dolphins.[136] Fouts started the first thirteen games of the season, before injuring his groin and missing the remaining three.[137] He went 6–7 as a starter, with 19 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. His yards per attempt slipped to 7.4, while his passer rating of 83.4 was his worst since 1979.[17] Fouts still averaged 287.7 yards per game, but was eclipsed by Marino, who surpassed Fouts' single-season record with 5,084 passing yards[138] and his run of five straight Pro Bowl appearances came to an end.[17]

In

Raiders. It was the sixth 400-yard game of his career, a new NFL record.[143] Fouts started the final game on the bench with a cracked fibula,[144] though he did have a one-play cameo appearance, coming on to hand the ball off while Herrmann was winded.[145] Fouts went 7–5 as a starter. Despite throwing no passes in his final appearance, he topped the league in yards per game for the sixth time in his career, with 259.9. His yards per attempt rebounded to 8.5, and he led the league in that category for the third time. He also posted the best touchdown percentage in the league for the only time in his career, with 6.3% of his passes going for touchdowns. His touchdowns to interceptions ratio (27-20) and passer rating (88.1) were both improved after the previous year, and he earned a sixth Pro Bowl berth, as well as 2nd-Team All-Pro honors.[17]

1986 began well for the Chargers, who defeated Miami 50–28, with Fouts throwing 3 touchdowns and no interceptions.[146] However, this was to prove both the last 3-touchdown game of Fouts' career, and the last win of the Don Coryell era. The Chargers lost their next seven games, with Fouts throwing 6 touchdowns and 19 interceptions before being sidelined by a pair of concussions.[24][147] Coryell, who had been expected to stand down at the end of the season, instead announced his resignation on October 29, amid rumours that he had been pressured into the decision. Assistant coach Al Saunders was promoted to take his place.[148] Fouts missed three games due to the concussions, and one more with a sore shoulder;[149] he finished the season 3–9 as a starter, and saw a major drop in statistical performance. His touchdown total was less than his interception total (16–22) for the first time since 1977, his completion percentage of 58.6% was his worst since 1976, and his passer rating dropped to 71.4, his worst since 1975 and below the NFL average of 74.1.[18]

1987: Final season and retirement

Fouts c. 1987

Fouts played one full season after Coryell's resignation. He entered 1987 without his longest serving receiver, Joiner retiring as the record-holder in career receptions and yards.[150] The Chargers lost their first game and won their second before the season was interrupted by a players' strike, which caused the Week 3 games to be cancelled and the following three weeks to feature teams made up largely of replacement players.[151] While Fouts was not part of the players union and did not picket with his teammates, he nonetheless refused to play for the Chargers while the strike was ongoing, noting that he would be risking injury behind an inexperienced offensive line.[152] The replacement Chargers won all three of their games, meaning that Fouts and the other regulars came back to a 4–1 team, standing atop the AFC West.[153]

In his first game back, Fouts completed 24 of 34 for 293 yards, 2 touchdowns and no interceptions as San Diego beat the Chiefs 42–21.[154] Three narrow victories followed, and the Chargers had a league-best 8–1 record.[155] However, they lost all six of their remaining games while scoring only five offensive touchdowns, and missed the playoffs.[151] Fouts played only briefly in the first of these defeats due to a calf injury,[156] and missed the finale with a slightly torn rotator cuff.[157] His 254th and final touchdown pass came in Week 14, a 15-yarder to Lionel James in the final quarter of a 20–16 loss to Pittsburgh,[158] where he also posted his 51st and final 300-yard game, a record at the time, and almost double the next highest (Marino and Unitas, both on 26).[24][159] The following week, he played his final game, a 20–7 home defeat to the Indianapolis Colts.[24] Fouts completed 22 of 37 passes for 257 yards, no touchdowns and 3 interceptions. He scored the only Chargers touchdown of the game himself, on a 1-yard run.[160]

Statistically, Fouts had a similar campaign to the previous year. He was 5–5 as a starter, throwing 10 touchdowns and 15 interceptions, while his passer rating dropped slightly to 70.0. He was sacked significantly more frequently, with 24 sacks occurring on 6.2% of pass attempts, his highest percentage since 1977.[17]

Fouts announced his retirement on March 24, 1988, at his home in

Rancho Santa Fe. He cited the wear and tear on his body as the main reason.[161] He was 36 years old at the time, and second only to Fran Tarkenton in terms of career passing yards, as well as being 4th on the passing touchdowns list. Reflecting on his career, he said, "We had so much confidence in what we were doing and we had a lot of fun."[162]

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