The 1978 San Diego Chargers season was the team's 19th season, and 9th in the National Football League.
The Chargers improved on their 7–7 record in 1977. This season included the "Holy Roller" game. It was Don Coryell's first season as the teams head coach, replacing Tommy Prothro after four games, and the teams first 16 game schedule.
Said the 2006 edition of Pro Football Prospectus,[1] "The Chargers were one of the worst franchises in the NFL before they hired Don Coryell four games into the 1978 season. The Chargers were 1-3 at the time, but finished 8-4 under Coryell, winning seven of their last eight games. Blessed with Hall of Famer Dan Fouts, the creative Coryell always designed potent offenses, but the San Diego Defense didn't catch up until 1979...."
NFL Draft[edit]
Main article:
1978 NFL Draft
| Round |
Pick |
Player |
Position |
School/Club Team |
Regular season[edit]
Schedule[edit]
| Week |
Date |
Opponent |
Result |
Attendance |
| 1 |
September 3, 1978 |
at Seattle Seahawks |
W 24–20 |
55,778
|
| 2 |
September 10, 1978 |
Oakland Raiders |
L 21–20 |
51,653
|
| 3 |
September 17, 1978 |
at Denver Broncos |
L 27–14 |
74,983
|
| 4 |
September 24, 1978 |
Green Bay Packers |
L 24–3 |
42,755
|
| 5 |
October 1, 1978 |
at New England Patriots |
L 28–23 |
60,781
|
| 6 |
October 8, 1978 |
Denver Broncos |
W 23–0 |
50,077
|
| 7 |
October 15, 1978 |
Miami Dolphins |
L 28–21 |
50,637
|
| 8 |
October 22, 1978 |
at Detroit Lions |
L 31–14 |
54,031
|
| 9 |
October 29, 1978 |
at Oakland Raiders |
W 27–23 |
52,612
|
| 10 |
November 5, 1978 |
Cincinnati Bengals |
W 22–13 |
43,639
|
| 11 |
November 12, 1978 |
Kansas City Chiefs |
W 29–23 |
41,395
|
| 12 |
November 19, 1978 |
at Minnesota Vikings |
W 13–7 |
38,859
|
| 13 |
November 26, 1978 |
at Kansas City Chiefs |
L 23–0 |
26,248
|
| 14 |
December 4, 1978 |
Chicago Bears |
W 40–7 |
48,492
|
| 15 |
December 10, 1978 |
Seattle Seahawks |
W 37–10 |
49,975
|
| 16 |
December 17, 1978 |
at Houston Oilers |
W 45–24 |
49,554
|
Standings[edit]
1978 San Diego Chargers Team Starters
Offense
14 Dan Fouts QB
26 Lydell Mitchell RB
33 Don Woods FB
83 John Jefferson WR
18 Charlie Joiner WR
84 Bob Klein TE
66 Billy Shields LT
63 Doug Wilkerson LG
62 Don Macek C
67 Ed White RG
70 Russ Washington RT
Defense
68 Leroy Jones LDE
74 Louie Kelcher LDT
79 Gary Johnson RDT
71 Fred Dean RDE
50 Don Goode LB
55 Bob Horn LB
51 Woody Lowe LB
45 Hal Stringert LCB
29 Mike H. Williams RCB
42 Mjke Fuller SS/PR
44 Pete Shaw FS
Kicking Team
6 Rolf Benirschke K
8 Jeff West P
85 Artie Owens KR
References[edit]
See also[edit]
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