1978 San Diego Chargers season

The 1978 San Diego Chargers season was the team's 19th season, and ninth in the National Football League.

1978 San Diego Chargers season
Head coach	Tommy Prothro (weeks 1-4) (5th season) Don Coryell (weeks 5-16) (1st season)
General manager	Johnny Sanders (Since 1976)
Owner	Eugene V. Klein (Since 1966)
Home field	San Diego Stadium
Results
Record	9–7
Division place	3rd AFC West
Playoff finish	Did not qualify
Pro Bowlers	3[1] WR John Jefferson T Russ Washington DT Louie Kelcher
AP All-Pros	3[2] WR John Jefferson T Russ Washington DT Louie Kelcher

The Chargers improved on their 7–7 record in 1977. This season included the "Holy Roller" game. It was Don Coryell's first season as the team's head coach, replacing Tommy Prothro after four games, and the team's first 16-game schedule.

Said the 2006 edition of Pro Football Prospectus,[3] "The Chargers were one of the worst franchises in the NFL before they hired Don Coryell four games into the 1978 season. The Chargers were 1–3 at the time, but finished 8–4 under Coryell, winning seven of their last eight games for the franchise's first winning record since 1969. Blessed with Hall of Famer Dan Fouts, the creative Coryell always designed potent offenses, but the San Diego Defense didn't catch up until 1979...."

It wasn't all roses for new Head Coach Coryell as he lost three out of his first four games, before ending the season by winning seven out of the last eight.

Early-season resignation of head coach Tommy Prothro and hiring of Don Coryell

The previous season Prothro had told team owner Gene Klein that he would coach for only one more year. After the team's third loss in a row, Prothro stayed at the stadium until almost midnight watching game films, and it was during this time that he decided to resign. In a public statement, he said, "I still believe this is a good football team and it is a playoff contender. However, after disappointing losses to Oakland and Denver and the disaster against Green Bay, I feel a fresh approach and a rude awakening may be what this team needs." Klein asked Prothro to stay on in an open-ended position to work in such areas as drafting and trading.[4]

The Chargers hired former St. Louis Cardinal Coach Don Coryell who had been asked to step down from an active role by St. Louis at the end of the last season. Because he still had two years left on his contract with St. Louis, the two teams negotiated and it was agreed upon that the Chargers would give St. Louis a third round draft pick to fully release Coryell from his remaining contract. Coryell had previously coached at San Diego State University from 1961 to 1972 before going to St. Louis. He said, "I'm pleased with the opportunity to coach again in San Diego because it's like a dream come true."[4]

1978 NFL Draft

Main article: 1978 NFL Draft

1978 San Diego Chargers draft
Round	Pick	Player	Position	College	Notes
1	14	John Jefferson *	Wide receiver	Arizona State
Made roster    †   Pro Football Hall of Fame    *   Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Roster

1978 San Diego Chargers final roster

	Quarterbacks 14 Dan Fouts Running backs 43 Rickey Anderson 37 Hank Bauer 41 Bo Matthews 26 Lydell Mitchell 40 Clarence Williams FB 33 Don Woods Wide receivers 83 John Jefferson 18 Charlie Joiner 89 Dwight McDonald 85 Artie Owens 20 Johnny Rodgers Tight ends 82 Pat Curran 84 Bob Klein		Offensive linemen 62 Don Macek G 53 Ralph Perretta C 56 Bob Rush C 66 Billy Shields T 70 Russ Washington T 67 Ed White G 63 Doug Wilkerson G Defensive linemen 71 Fred Dean DE 73 Charles DeJurnett DT 74 Louie Kelcher DT 79 Gary Johnson DT 68 Leroy Jones DE		Linebackers 50 Don Goode 55 Bob Horn 54 Jim Laslavic 51 Woodrow Lowe 57 Rick Middleton 52 Ray Preston Defensive backs 48 Jerome Dove CB 27 Glen Edwards FS 42 Mike Fuller SS 44 Pete Shaw SS 45 Hal Stringert CB 29 Mike Williams CB Special teams  6 Rolf Benirschke K 80 Jeff West P		Reserve lists Practice squad Rookies in italics active, inactive, practice squad

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Attendance
1	September 3, 1978	at Seattle Seahawks	W 24–20	55,778
2	September 10, 1978	Oakland Raiders	L 21–20	51,653
3	September 17, 1978	at Denver Broncos	L 27–14	74,983
4	September 24, 1978	Green Bay Packers	L 24–3	42,755
5	October 1, 1978	at New England Patriots	L 28–23	60,781
6	October 8, 1978	Denver Broncos	W 23–0	50,077
7	October 15, 1978	Miami Dolphins	L 28–21	50,637
8	October 22, 1978	at Detroit Lions	L 31–14	54,031
9	October 29, 1978	at Oakland Raiders	W 27–23	52,612
10	November 5, 1978	Cincinnati Bengals	W 22–13	43,639
11	November 12, 1978	Kansas City Chiefs	W 29–23	41,395
12	November 19, 1978	at Minnesota Vikings	W 13–7	38,859
13	November 26, 1978	at Kansas City Chiefs	L 23–0	26,248
14	December 4, 1978	Chicago Bears	W 40–7	48,492
15	December 10, 1978	Seattle Seahawks	W 37–10	49,975
16	December 17, 1978	at Houston Oilers	W 45–24	49,554

Standings

AFC West
	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Denver Broncos^(3)	10	6	0	.625	7–1	8–4	282	198	L1
Oakland Raiders	9	7	0	.563	3–5	5–7	311	283	W1
Seattle Seahawks	9	7	0	.563	4–4	6–6	345	358	W1
San Diego Chargers	9	7	0	.563	5–3	7–5	355	309	W3
Kansas City Chiefs	4	12	0	.250	1–7	4–10	243	327	L2

References

1. "1978 NFL Pro Bowlers". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
2. "1978 NFL All-Pros". Pro-Football-Reference.com.
3. Pro Football Prospectus 2006 (ISBN 0761142177), p.73-75
4. Prothro Out, Coryell Hired, Washington Post, Sept. 26, 1978.