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Bill Walsh and the San Francisco 49ers received most
of the credit for the West Coast Offense. However, the
dynamic style first appeared more than thirty years ago,
courtesy of Sid Gillman and the original AFL San Diego
Chargers. Coach Don Coryell brought the offense back to
San Diego in the 80s with Dan Fouts, Charlie Joiner and
Kellen Winslow. When Joe Montana led the 49ers to a
divisional title in 1981 -- his first year as the
starting quarterback -- Bill Walsh had the key ingredient
to the third, and most successful version of the West
Coast Offense. This system incorporates the philosophy, they can’t stop what they can’t catch. As you already know, the defense utilizes speed. On average the ball is released in a matter of 3 seconds. The system does not utilize a special formation, but the most used is the Pro-Set. Running backs should be capable of running as well as receiving. Receivers should be very fast. This system is well liked by linemen because they have only to hold their |
blocks for 3-4 seconds, when passing. Much of the yardage picked up as RAC (Yards after the catch or after the hand-off) .
Much weight is placed on the player who has the ball to do something extra. Another facet to this offense is when passing there are many available receivers so that, if first and the second receivers are covered, the quaterback has the option to throw to the third receiver. This often makes the defense key on the pass and when the offense elect to run it is a surprise.
On the surface, the West Coast Offense is simply a pass-oriented offense run by a great quarterback with All-Pro receivers. While this certainly describes the 49ers of the 80s, there was much more to the equation. However, before we look at Montana and company, let’s go back to the beginning with Sid Gillman and the 1963 AFL Champion San Diego Chargers.
The Chargers scored 399 points in 1963, and although receiver Lance Alworth was responsible for 11 touchdowns, the San Diego offense relied on the productive backfield duo of Keith Lincoln and Paul Lowe. At only 212 pounds, Lincoln was the "big" back. His quick, slashing running style gained a league leading 6.5 yards per carry for 826 yards. Paul Lowe topped 1000 yards, and the pair notched 13 rushing touchdowns.
San Diego passed the ball just 357 times; however, nine different receivers contributed to the West Coast Offense. Quarterback Tobin Rote’s favorite target was Hall of Famer Lance Alworth (61/1205), but Alworth benefited from a strong running game, and seven other receivers who caught 133 passes for 16 touchdowns. Lincoln and Lowe came out of the backfield to catch 49 passes for 5 touchdowns; and two tight ends, Dave Kocourek and Jacques MacKinnon averaged more than 17 yards per reception. Hence, the ingredient list for Gillman’s offense included: two all-purpose running backs, one big play wide receiver and tight ends who could run deep pass patterns. Hold onto that thought.
Our next study is the 1980 Chargers, led by Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Fouts. At 233 pounds Chuck Muncie was a big back with speed, and he rolled up 827 yards to lead the rushing attack. However, he was not alone. John Cappelletti, Mike Thomas and Clarence Williams combined for over 1100 yards and 11 touchdowns.
In the air, Coach Don Coryell had even more weapons than Sid Gillman. Tight End Kellen Winslow led the league with 89 receptions for 1290 yards. Opposing defenses also had to contend with wide receivers John Jefferson (82/1340) and Charlie Joiner (71/1132). Even the Chargers’ backfield quartet chipped in 99 passes for more than 800 yards. The West Coast Offense evolved under Don Coryell to feature four all-purpose running backs, two big play wide receivers, and a tight end who averaged 15 yards per catch.
Few will argue the superiority of Bill Walsh’s West Coast Offense. The 1984 Super Bowl Champions refined the formula, shifting more responsibility to their all-purpose back, Roger Craig. Although Wendell Tyler led the team in rushing with 1262 yards, Craig contributed 649 rushing yards and 71 receptions for 675 yards. He set an NFL record the following year by racking up over 1,000 yards in each category. Tight ends Earl Cooper and Russ Francis caught 64 passes between them, and the deep threat was provided by Freddie Solomon and Dwight Clark.
Bill Walsh’s refinements to the West Coast Offense produced a team that was less flashy than Air Coryell but ultimately more productive with four Super Bowl Championships in the 80s. The key ingredient was Roger Craig. He ran effectively and turned the swing pass into a deadly weapon. When opposing defenses focused too heavily on Craig, Montana moved down the field by spreading the ball around to his tight ends and wide receivers.
If your team has the right players to run the West Coast Offensel, your next step is to install the system.