Funeral services were held Monday for former Arizona Cardinals and San Diego Chargers head coach Don Coryell, who died last week at 85.
He was a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame this year but was not selected for enshrinement, a fact that John Madden apparently took issue with during his eulogy.
Madden, who coached under Coryell at San Diego State in the early 1960s, pointed into the crowd at Dan Fouts and Joe Gibbs, and said all three were in the Hall because of Coryell, according to the Associated Press.
“There’s something missing,” he continued.
Coryell never won a Super Bowl. His playoff record was 3-6. But he led some high-powered offenses that changed the game in the 1970s and 80s.
That, reportedly, is what most likely has kept him out of the Hall. My inclination is that he is right on the borderline, but he was coaching just as I was starting to watch the game. So I’d be interested in hearing people’s thoughts on the influence he had on the game and whether or not he eventually will make it to Canton, Ohio.
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The problem with Don Coryell for the HoF is that as a coach, he has no postseason success, and indifferent W-L record, and a reputation for fielding teams with poor defenses.
There’s no question his teams had strong offenses, though, and there’s a perception that he could be seen as an innovator on that side of the ball. The best case for Coryell for the HoF is likely the same as one could make for Dick LeBeau, in the contributor wing as an innovator.