Dan Fouts

Daniel Francis Fouts (born June 10, 1951) is an American former professional football quarterback who played for the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League (NFL) throughout his 15-season career (1973–1987).

After a relatively undistinguished first five seasons in the league, Fouts came to prominence as the on-field leader during the Chargers' Air Coryell period.

Dan Fouts was born in San Francisco on June 10, 1951, to Julie and Bob Fouts, the fourth of five children.

His father was a sports broadcaster who commentated on games for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL) for over 20 years.

As a child, Dan acted as a stat-keeper for Bob and worked for the 49ers as a ballboy.

One of his first sporting heroes was John Brodie, the 49ers' starting quarterback of that time.

When, at the age of 11, Fouts asked his parents' permission to play football, they told him that he would have to be a quarterback, as he had shown a good throwing arm while playing Little League baseball.

He played Pop Warner football for the Drake Junior Pirates, where his coach described him as an "outstanding quarterback" in 1964.

Fouts attended Marin Catholic High School, located just north of San Francisco in Kentfield, California, for his two first years, and started some games as a sophomore in the fall of 1966.

While he temporarily lost the starting job after play described as "extremely jittery" by the local San Rafael Daily Independent Journal, an end of season report from the same paper stated that he should improve with better protection.

Fouts, playing on an 0–6 team, finished the season with nine interceptions and only one touchdown.

He also played varsity basketball as a forward.

Fouts transferred to St. Ignatius College Preparatory (San Francisco) for his final two years of high school.

In 1967, St. Ignatius were champions of the West Catholic Athletic League with a 6–0 record, and Fouts was named to the WCAL All-Star first-team.

He nearly reversed his touchdown to interceptions ratio, with 16 touchdowns and two interceptions.

St. Ignatius went 5–1 in Fouts' senior year; he passed much less as his team focused more on their running game.

Fouts was somewhat of an unknown when he accepted a scholarship offer from the University of Oregon to play for the Ducks in Eugene.

He started for the freshman team during his first year there (1969).

In 1970, he began the season on the bench behind veteran quarterback/punter Tom Blanchard.

In the opening game, a 31–24 victory over California, Fouts came off the bench and completed 12 of 19 passes for 166 yards and two touchdowns, including the game-winner in the final two minutes.

Fouts and Blanchard combined to set a new Pacific-8 Conference record with 424 passing yards.

He was a third-round draft pick of the Chargers in 1973, brought in to back up veteran Johnny Unitas.

Fouts struggled during his first three season in the league while playing for losing teams.

His form began to improve in 1976, when Bill Walsh spent a year in San Diego as his offensive coordinator, but discontentment over the direction of the team and the restrictions of the NFL's free agency rules led Fouts to refuse to play through the majority of 1977.

Early in 1978, Don Coryell became the new head coach of the Chargers and installed the pass-oriented offensive scheme that would become known as Air Coryell.

Fouts, given license to throw with an unprecedented frequency, produced record-breaking numbers during the rest of his career.

He led the league in passing every year from 1979 to 1982, passing for over 4,000 yards in the first three of these—no previous quarterback had posted consecutive 4,000-yard seasons.

He led the NFL in passing yards four straight years from 1979 to 1982 (still a record), and became the first player in history to throw for 4,000 yards in three consecutive seasons, breaking the NFL single-season record for passing yards each time.

He set career records for the most 300-yard games and 400-yard games.

Fouts was rewarded with six Pro Bowl selections (1979–1982, 1983, 1985) and four All-Pro selections (first team in 1979 and 1982, second team in 1980 and 1985).

Fouts led the Chargers to three consecutive AFC West division titles (1979–1981) and a further playoff appearance in 1982.

He was the winning quarterback in the Epic in Miami game, breaking a playoff record with 433 passing yards.

The Chargers advanced to the AFC championship game twice during his career, but never reached the Super Bowl.

Fouts is widely considered among the best quarterbacks in NFL history to never reach a Super Bowl.

Fouts was a color analyst for NFL games on CBS television and Westwood One radio.

He is the son of Bay Area Radio Hall of Famer Bob Fouts.

He was named a member of the NFL 1980s All-Decade Team, and elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993, his first year of eligibility.

Fouts played college football for the Oregon Ducks, breaking numerous records and later being inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame and the University of Oregon Hall of Fame.

Fouts was voted a Pro Bowler six times, first-team All-Pro twice, and Offensive Player of the Year in 1982.

In the strike-shortened 1982 season, he passed for 2,883 yards in only nine games, winning the AP Offensive Player of the Year and PFWA NFL MVP honors.