Former NFL head coach Marty Schottenheimer passed away Monday after suffering from Alzheimer’s for several years. He was 77 years old.
Schottenheimer was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2014. He was transferred to a hospice near his home in Charlotte, North Carolina on January 30, due to complications from the progressive and irreversible brain condition.
Schottenheimer was a head coach in the NFL for 21 seasons, leading the Cleveland Browns, Kansas City Chiefs, Washington, and Chargers.
He set a record of 205-139-1, including the playoffs, which led his teams to the postseason 13 times. Although Schottenheimer coached three AFC Championship Games, two with the Browns and one with the Chiefs, he never made it to a Super Bowl.
His NFL coaching career ended in 2006 after a 14-2 season with the Chargers and was eliminated in the division round of the playoffs.
Hall of Fame going back LaDainian Tomlinson played Schottenheimer for five seasons with the Chargers, calling him “the best coach I’ve ever had”.
“I’ve never been in a game with Marty as a coach, and I feel like I wasn’t quite prepared to win,” said Tomlinson. He really wanted you to understand every detail of the game plan. He considered him a real American man. He was a great father figure, and I was lucky that my wife and I got to know him and [su esposa] Pat beyond the typical player-coaching relationship. He was a complete person. He cared more about the man than the athlete. I will remember him more because of the life lessons he taught me. “
Schottenheimer also played six seasons as a linebacker for the Buffalo Bills (1965 to 1968) and Patriots (1969 to 1970).
He leaves behind his wife Pat, two children, Kristin and Brian, and four grandchildren.
Brian Schottenheimer recently struck a deal to become the Jacksonville Jaguars’ air match coordinator, a source told ESPN’s Adam Schefter, after being the Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator.
“We know he looks at us from the sky and smiles,” said his daughter. “We are incredibly proud of the man he was and how he lived his life.”