“If Chuck had his wish, it’d be three yards and a cloud of dust and he’d win, 7-6.” —Steve Largent on Chuck Knox
Bill Walsh did it in 1981. Or maybe Don Coryell did it in 1974. Could be that Mel Blount did it indirectly in 1977. Or maybe it was Steve Largent who did it in 1978. Great change has many progenitors. Whoever did it, and surely each had a part, for longer than I’ve lived the NFL has been a passing league. I have never known an NFL in which pass-centric strategies are not praised and rush-centric strategies are not scorned.