Marty Schottenheimer was greatest Browns coach of our generation
The Kansas City Years
Schottenheimer spent 10 years as the coach of the Kansas City Chiefs, compiling an outstanding record of 101-58-1. However, the major blemish in his record was that his playoff record was only 3-7. Most of the time, the Chiefs were one and done in the playoffs.
In the early years at Kansas City, Schottenheimer depended heavily on “The Nigerian Nightmare,” Christian Okoye. That offense became known as the “Martyball” offense and was not necessarily the most exciting offense out there, but the fans were happy because he won, at least until it was playoff time. Schottenheimer’s teams tended to make early exits from the playoffs, prompting the team to make a trade for All-Universe but aging and oft-repaired playmaker Joe Montana.
The closest he came to a Super Bowl was in 1993, with Montana at the controls. They won two playoff games but came up short against the Buffalo Bills in the Conference Championship,30-13. Montana suffered a concussion in that game, though Dave Kreig played well in his place. The following year, they once again were ousted in the first playoff game, though they were ahead and probably outplayed the Miami Dolphins overall.
After Montana retired, the pundits agreed that the Chiefs were done. However, Schottenheimer was masterful, promoting second-stringer Steve Bono, who guided the team to a 13-3 record, which was better than Montana had ever achieved with Kansas City. But once again, his team found a way to lose in excruciating fashion in the playoffs, on a cold windy day.
His team missed three field goals and Bono threw three passes to the wrong team, and they dropped the game to visiting Indianapolis, 10-7. The Chiefs let Bono go after a few years, replaced by Elvis Grbac. Rich Gannon was the backup quarterback for several years and never became the full-time starter. Of course, he would star for arch-rival Oakland after leaving Kansas City and have his best years in his late 30’s.
Schottenheimer’s teams continued to feature hard-hitting, disciplined defenses with tight coverages. His offensive style was conservative, often referred to by the old nickname of “Martyball,” which was not totally a compliment. The failure to get the maximum performance out of Rich Gannon is perhaps the largest complaint that could be raised against Martyball, since he proved to be a dynamic passer for Oakland, where he made the Pro-Bowl four times, with two All-Pro awards. The Raiders also made it to the Super Bowl in 2002.
Nevertheless, Schottenheimer had nine straight winning seasons, then one season in which he went 7-9 and resigned, yielding to the pressure to show better playoff success. That does not seem very fair. But the lack of playoff wins was always the cloud hanging over him. In all probability, he could have won it all with the right circumstances. But in football, if you don’t win, ultimately you have to understand that someone else will be given a chance to succeed.