One of the many legendary coaches the NFL has ever had was Don Coryell. Coryell is known for his “Air Coryell” offense that catapulted the San Diego Chargers of the early 1980s into the upper echelon of the NFL. This pass-happy offense was exciting to watch and tough to defend against too, but how successful did it make Don Coryell as a coach?

Don Coryell began his NFL head coaching with the St. Louis Cardinals in 1973, and after his first season when he went 4-9-1 he reeled off four consecutive seasons where his teams’ record didn’t dip below .500. After going 7-7 during the 1977 season, Coryell’s tenure with the Cardinals was over and he moved onto the Chargers for the next season.

Coryell’s Chargers had five consecutive winning season from the time that he arrived there. That made for Coryell to have nine consecutive seasons with his teams having a record of .500 or better. This is truly a great accomplishment, hundreds of coaches would love to have that record. But, what happened after that? The Chargers records in his last four seasons were 6-10, 7-9, 8-8, and finally 1-7 before his time with the Chargers was over.

Don Coryell’s NFL Head Coaching Record

1973 Cardinals 4-9-1
1974 Cardinals 10-4
1975 Cardinals 11-3
1976 Cardinals 10-4
1977 Cardinals 7-7
1978 Chargers 8-4
1979 Chargers 12-4
1980 Chargers 11-5
1981 Chargers 10-6
1982 Chargers 6-3
1983 Chargers 6-10
1984 Chargers 7-9
1985 Chargers 8-8
1986 Chargers 1-7