Even though they aren't as important with Walsh, I'll give you the accolades:
- 3-time Super Bowl champion (XVI, XIX, XXII)
- 3 NFC championship titles
- 1981 coach of the Year (NFL, Sporting News, Pro Football Weekly, UPI); 1984 Coach of the Year (UPI)
- 102-63-1 overall record (92-59-1 regular season, 10-4 postseason)
But the real story with Walsh is the coaching tree. It's just incredible how many coaches have some sort of connection to the legendary coach from the Niners. The reason that Walsh had such a wide reach is because of the fact that he always had fresh, young assistants. He didn't keep the same assistants for years and years, which would have led his system to get old. Some even say that Bill Belichick has a similar system and philosophy, and that it will lead him to have a legacy on the level of Walsh. In pro football coaching, that is the greatest compliment that one can receive.
The Bill Walsh coaching tree can be found here, but I'll break it down for you right now (coaches in blod are first generation, red is the second generation and green is the third generation). Six current or former coaches have direct links to Walsh, which means that they were his assistants; they are Mike Holmgren, Jim Fassel, Paul Hackett, Sam Wyche, George Seifert, Dennis Green. From the Holmgren branch are Mike Sherman, Andy Reid (Brad Childress), Ray Rhodes, and Steve Mariucci (Marty Mornhinwheg). John Fox is on the Jim Fassel branch. Paul Hackett has added Mike McCarthy and John Gruden (Bill Callahan). Sam Wyche contributed Mike Mularky and Bruce Coslet. George Seifert had Mike Shanahan (Gary Kubiak) and Jeff Fisher as assistants. But the Denny Green branch is the really impressive one: Brian Billick (Jack Del Rio), Tony Dungy (Lovie Smith, Mike Tomlin, Rod Marinelli), and Mike Tice (Scott Linehan) were all his assistants. In case you weren't counting, that's 28 head coaches with some sort of connection to Bill Walsh!
The other thing that you have to talk about when you mention Walsh is the West Coast Offense. This offense, developed by Walsh, focuses on short screen passes, quick slants, and zone blocking. Every team in the NFL today runs at least part of its offense this way, and the fact that it keeps evolving is one of the ways to tell how great it is.
Basically, the legacy of Walsh is what sets him apart from others. He was a helluva coach, but he was an even better teacher. Let the discussion begin.
Others might say:
2. George Halas - Sure, the "Papa Bear" was the most beloved man to ever be part of the NFL, but that doesn't make him number one on my list. He was an amazing coach for 40 years with the Bears, and the fact that he also owned and played for the Bears means that I hope no Bears fans are reading this blog. Trust me, I thought about making him number one.
3. Chuck Noll - I hate the Steelers. I hate Chuck Noll. But I also respecthttp://www.sportingnews.com/post/
Sporting News - Your expert source for MLB Baseball, NFL Football, NBA Basketball, NHL Hockey, NCAA Football, NCAA Basketball and Fantasy Sports scores, blogs, and articles Chuck Noll. He never gets the credit that he deserves outside of Pittsburgh, but he was a great coach. I can't deny that, and neither should anybody else. He won four Super Bowls in four years and was a great evaluator of talent. Nothing more needs to be said.
4. Paul Brown - It would have been easy, seeing as how I am sometimes called an "Ohio homer," to pick Brown for my top spot. Brown designed the coaching position as we know it today (with a full-time, year-round staff and college scouting), and he contributed not one, but two teams to the NFL (Browns and Bengals).
5. Vince Lombardi - Yeah, yeah. Lombardi equals excellence. Lombardi won the first Super Bowl. Lombardi got the trophy named after him. He's a legend in Green Bay. That gets him the number five spot on my list.
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