IT TOOK NEGATIVE 40 DEGREE WEATHER TO STOP HIM:

Innovative football coach Don Coryell dies at 85 (BERNIE WILSON, 07/01/2010, AP)

The coach’s Air Coryell offense produced some of the most dynamic passing attacks in NFL history — and affected how defenses play even to this day.

After he went 104-19-2 at San Diego State from 1961-72, he left the Aztecs for the St. Louis Cardinals in 1973. With Jim Hart at quarterback, the Cardinals won division titles in 1974 and ‘75 behind Coryell. [...]

From 1978-86, Air Coryell — led by Fouts — set records and led the NFL in passing almost every season. Coryell guided the Chargers to the AFC championship game after the 1980 and ‘81 seasons, but he never reached the Super Bowl.

The lack of a Super Bowl on his resume may have hurt Coryell last winter in voting for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He was a finalist for the first time, but was not selected for induction.

“He revolutionized the game of football, not only in San Diego, but throughout the entire NFL,” Chargers president Dean Spanos said in a statement. “Don Coryell was a legend not only with the Chargers but throughout San Diego. Though unfortunately he did not live long enough to see it, hopefully one day his bust will find its proper place in pro football’s Hall of Fame. He will be missed.”

The big stars of the Air Coryell years — Fouts, tight end Kellen Winslow and wide receiver Charlie Joiner — all ended up in the Hall of Fame. Winslow was used more as a pass catcher than a blocker, and sometimes would be split out wide, as would running backs.

“Don once said, ‘If we’re asking Kellen to block a defensive end and not catch passes, I’m not a very good coach,’ ” Bauer said.

One of the lasting images of the Coryell years was an exhausted Winslow being helped off the field by two teammates after the Chargers’ epic 41-38 overtime victory in the playoffs over the Miami Dolphins on Jan. 2, 1982. Despite cramping up in the heat and humidity, Winslow caught 13 passes for 166 yards and one touchdown, and also blocked a potential game-winning field goal.

Bauer said Coryell changed the way opponents had to play defense, “And you see it today. “When we started splitting Kellen out, for instance, teams didn’t know what to do. He was a wide receiver in a tight end’s body. So a lot of teams started playing zone against us and we started picking them apart. Some teams tried to put a safety or linebacker out there and play man-to-man, and we licked our chops and went with Kellen.

“Because of Air Coryell, nickel and dime defenses became an every-game proposition,” Bauer said. “He changed the way the game is played today.”