R.I.P. Bill Walsh

While Lola may disagree, the most significant cultural passing (at least in the US) this week has not been of some fancy European film director, but of Bill Walsh. His teams made the NFL much more entertaining to watch and was one piece of making it the country's most popular sport. Before his offensive innovations, teams either ran the ball twice, threw once, then punted (like the Cowboys), or they relentless threw long bombs (like the Raiders and the Chargers). Walsh's primary innovation was to spread the field and use short timing passes. This balanced the offense (equal number of runs and passes) and kept defenses on their heels. He wasn't the first to think of this, but the combination of those offensive ideas plus his almost manufacturing like commitment to quality (he would practice plays repeatedly until they were executed perfectly) took it to a new level.

Now, at least half of the league runs some variation of his West Coast offense. Partly because the NFL always copies success, and partly because so many of his assistant coaches are now head coaches in the NFL. So, next time you are watching football and you see a team marching down the field due to a mix of short, crisp passing and running, think of Bill Walsh.