Former Washington Football Team coach Marty Schottenheimer dies at 77

Legendary NFL head coach Marty Schottenheimer has died at the age of 77.

Schottenheimer had been battling Alzheimer’s since 2014 and had recently been placed into hospice care. He is the eighth-winningest coach in NFL history with 205 wins to his name, logged 11 seasons with double-digit wins, and served as a head coach for 21 seasons in total.

Schottenheimer did spend one of those years with the Washington Football Team. He was the first head coach hired by Dan Snyder after the departure of Norv Turner in 2000. Schottenheimer put forth an 8-8 record during his lone season in Washington but had the team trending in the right direction at the end of the season. Washington won eight of their last 11 games under Schottenheimer and became the first team in NFL history to win five straight games after losing five straight.

However, Snyder decided to go in a different direction and hire Florida head coach Steve Spurrier to join the professional ranks. The Spurrier era lasted just two disappointing seasons in which Washington went 12-20 overall, and it left many wondering what could’ve been had Schottenheimer stuck around beyond his first season with the team.

In the aftermath of Schottenheimer’s death, Dan and Tanya Snyder released a statement about his passing via the Washington Football Team’s Twitter account.

This is a decent gesture from the Snyders and their description of Schottenheimer matches well with the other tributes that have come in for the man.

Schottenheimer’s impact on the NFL will continue, and his mentorship to the likes of Bruce Arians, Bill Cowher, Tony Dungy, Herm Edwards, Mike McCarthy, and, of course, his son Brian has left an indelible mark on the game. He is one of the all-time coaching greats and deserves to be remembered as such.

Our condolences go out to the Schottenheimer family. May he rest in peace.