Marty Schottenheimer

Martin Edward Schottenheimer (; September 23, 1943 – February 8, 2021) was an American professional football linebacker and coach who served as a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for 21 seasons. He was the head coach of the Cleveland Browns from 1984 to 1988, the Kansas City Chiefs from 1989 to 1998, the Washington Redskins in 2001, and the San Diego Chargers from 2002 to 2006. Eighth in career wins at 205 and seventh in regular season wins at 200, Schottenheimer has the most wins among the league's head coaches to not win an NFL championship. After coaching in the NFL, he won a 2011 championship in his one season with the Virginia Destroyers of the United Football League (UFL). He was inducted to the Kansas City Chiefs Hall of Honor in 2010.

In his 21 seasons, Schottenheimer reached the playoffs 13 times and had only two losing records. Schottenheimer was also named NFL Coach of the Year with the Chargers in 2004 for leading a team that went 4–12 the previous year to a 12–4 record. However, he won only five of his 18 postseason games and never made a Super Bowl. Schottenheimer concluded his NFL career with a .613 regular season winning percentage, but a .278 playoff winning percentage, which is the only losing playoff record for an NFL coach with at least 200 wins. He, Dan Reeves, and Bill Belichick are the only eligible NFL coaches with at least 200 regular season wins who has not been inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Early life and college career

Schottenheimer was born in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania.

Schottenheimer attended high school at Fort Cherry High School in McDonald, Pennsylvania. He went to the University of Pittsburgh and played on their football team from 1961 to 1964, earning second-team All-American honors as a senior.

Professional career

Schottenheimer, a linebacker, was selected in the fourth round of the 1965 NFL draft by the Baltimore Colts and in the seventh round of the 1965 American Football League draft by the Buffalo Bills. He signed with the Bills and spent the next four seasons with Buffalo, including as a backup on the Bills' 1965 AFL Championship squad. Schottenheimer earned an AFL All-Star selection as part of that year's format change naming the entire Bills squad as All-Stars. Schottenheimer was still with the team during the 1969 preseason and intercepted two passes in a game against the Houston Oilers.

Some time between the 1969 preseason and regular season, Schottenheimer was sent to the Boston Patriots and spent the next two seasons with the Patriots. He was traded twice in two months prior to the start of the 1971 season, first to the Pittsburgh Steelers for Mike Haggerty in July, then to the Baltimore Colts for an undisclosed 1972 draft pick on 27 August.

Schottenheimer retired from football in 1971 and spent the next several years working in the real estate industry. He came out of retirement in 1974 to sign with the Portland Storm of the World Football League as a player-coach. He injured his shoulder prior to the start of the season, but stayed on with the Storm as their linebackers coach.

Coaching career

Schottenheimer's professional coaching career began in 1974 when he became linebackers coach for the Portland Storm of the World Football League. In 1975, he was hired as a linebackers coach for the NFL's New York Giants and in 1977 became defensive coordinator. Schottenheimer spent 1978 and 1979 as the linebackers coach for the NFL's Detroit Lions.

Cleveland Browns

In 1980, he was hired as the defensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns. On October 22, 1984, Schottenheimer replaced Sam Rutigliano as Browns head coach, after an October 7 game against the New England Patriots that bore an eerie resemblance to Cleveland's 1980 playoff loss to the Raiders, known as Red Right 88. The Browns were down 17–16 in the fourth quarter, and lost on an interception in New England's end zone as time expired. Chants of "Goodbye Sam" rang out from the stands after the New England game. Browns' owner Art Modell called the play-calling "inexcusable" and fired Rutigliano two weeks later. The 1–7 Browns then went 4–4 under Schottenheimer to finish the season with a 5–11 record.

The selection of University of Miami quarterback Bernie Kosar in 1985's supplemental draft helped usher in a new, largely successful era for Cleveland. With Schottenheimer, Kosar and many skilled players on offense and defense, the team achieved greater success than during the era of Rutigliano and former quarterback Brian Sipe. Though they became consistent playoff contenders in this era, the Browns did not reach the Super Bowl, falling one win short three times in the next four seasons.

While not stellar, the Browns' record won first place in a weak AFC Central in 1985, and the team looked poised to shock the heavily favored Miami Dolphins in a divisional playoff game on January 4, 1986. Cleveland surged to a 21–3 halftime lead, and it took a spirited second-half comeback by Dan Marino and the Dolphins to win it 24–21 and end the Browns' season. Despite the loss, many people expected Cleveland to be back the following year. "The Browns' days, the good days, are here and ahead of us", radio personality Pete Franklin said.

Despite a tumultuous offseason, 1986 marked Cleveland's entry into the ranks of the NFL's elite as Kosar's play improved and the defensive unit came together. Kosar threw for 3,854 yards to a corps of receivers that included Brian Brennan, Ozzie Newsome and rookie Webster Slaughter. On defense, cornerbacks Frank Minnifield and Hanford Dixon emerged as one of the NFL's premier pass-defending duos. After a slow start, the Browns rose to the top of the divisional standings, twice beating the Pittsburgh Steelers and ending a 16-game losing streak at Three Rivers Stadium. A 12–4 record earned Cleveland home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. The Browns' first opponents in the 1986 playoffs were the New York Jets. Kicker Mark Moseley made a field goal and won the game for the Browns 23–20. It was the team's first playoff victory in 17 years. The following week, the Browns matched up against the Denver Broncos in the AFC Championship game in Cleveland. Denver got out to an early lead, but Cleveland tied the game and then went ahead 20–13 in the fourth quarter. After the ensuing kickoff, the Broncos were pinned at their own 2-yard line with 5:32 remaining. Denver quarterback John Elway then engineered a 98-yard drive for a touchdown with the cold, whipping wind in his face. "The Drive", as the series came to be known, tied the score and sent the game into overtime. Cleveland received the ball first in the sudden-death period but was stopped by the Denver defense. On Denver's first possession, Elway again led the Broncos on a long drive ending with a Rich Karlis field goal that sailed just inside the left upright and won the game. The drive that tied the game has since come to be seen as one of the best in playoff history, and is remembered by Cleveland fans as a historic meltdown.

Although downtrodden by 1986's playoff defeat, Cleveland continued to win the following season. The Browns finished with a 10–5 record in 1987 and won the AFC Central for the third year in a row. In the divisional playoff round, the Browns faced the Indianapolis Colts and won 38–21. The win set up a rematch with the Broncos in the AFC Championship in Denver. The Broncos held a 21–3 lead at halftime, but a pair of rushing touchdowns and another by receiver Reggie Langhorne brought Cleveland to within seven points. Cleveland scored again in the fourth quarter, but the Broncos went ahead again by seven points on a touchdown with four minutes left. After Denver's kickoff, Kosar and the offense reached the Broncos' eight-yard line with 1:12 remaining. Kosar handed the ball to Earnest Byner on a second down. Byner ran left and broke inside with a clear path to the end zone, but was stripped by Denver's Jeremiah Castille just before crossing the goal line. The Broncos ran down the clock before intentionally taking a safety and winning 38–33. "The Fumble" quickly entered the lexicon of the Browns' modern-era disappointment, just as The Drive had a year before.

The 1988 season was marred by injuries to the Browns' quarterbacks. But despite the rotating cast of quarterbacks, Cleveland managed to finish with a 10–6 record and made the playoffs as a wild-card team. Cleveland met the Houston Oilers in the wild-card playoff round at home, and soon found themselves attempting to win with third-string quarterback Mike Pagel after an injury to second stringer Don Strock. Pagel put up a valiant effort, but the team lost the game 24–23. Four days after the Oilers loss, Schottenheimer and Modell announced that the coach would leave the team by mutual consent. Modell felt hiring an offensive coordinator was necessary to keep pace with the Oilers and the Bengals, a pair of divisional opponents then on the rise, but Schottenheimer said it "became evident that some of the differences we had, we weren't going to be able to resolve." Modell also wanted Schottenheimer's brother Kurt, who was the defensive coordinator, reassigned.

Schottenheimer remained with the Browns until 1988, amassing a 44–27 (.620) regular-season record and a 2–4 (.333) mark in the playoffs, including four playoff appearances, three AFC Central Division titles, and two trips to the AFC Championship Game (both against the Denver Broncos).