Dan Fouts

At 73 years old, Dan Fouts has this physical status:

Daniel Francis Fouts (born June 10, 1951) is an American former football quarterback who competed in the National Football League (NFL).

From 1973 to 1987, Fouts spent his entire professional career with the San Diego Chargers.

He was one of the most prolific passing quarterbacks in the 1970s and 1980s, but the Chargers were unable to make it to the Super Bowl during his fifteen-year career.

From 1979 to 1982, he was the first football player to throw for 4,000 yards in three years. In 1993, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

He lives in Sisters, Oregon, and is now a color analyst for NFL games on CBS television and Westwood One radio.

Dan is the son of Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame founder Bob Fouts.

Life outside football

Julianne Mehl, the public health specialist who married Fouts in 1977, was his first wife. Both students had met at the University of Oregon. They later divorced, and Fouts married Jeri Martin for the second time in 1994. He had two children from the first marriage and two from the second. Dominic, his first son, died of cancer in 2012. With Dan Fouts as an advisor, the family established the Dominic Fouts Memorial Cancer Fund.

He and his wife live in Oregon, the state of his alma mater, in a two-story house he built from logs in the 1970s. The house is located in the mountains near Sisters.

Fouts loved fishing, skiing, and racquetball during his playing career, with him referred to as a private person away from football. He is also a keen golfer who has attended many charity golf tournaments.

Source

Early life and high school career

Dan Fouts was born in San Francisco to Julie and Bob Fouts, the fourth of five children. His father, a sports broadcaster, argued on games for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL), for more than 20 years. Dan played for Bob as a kid and played for the 49ers as a ballboy. John Brodie, the 49ers' starting quarterback of the time, was one of his first sporting heroes. When Fouts' permission to play football, they told him that he'd have to be a quarterback because he had such a strong throwing arm while playing Little League baseball. In 1964, he played Pop Warner football for the Drake Junior Pirates, where his coach referred to him as a "outstanding quarterback" in the team's nickname.

Fouts attended Marin Catholic High School, which is located just north of San Francisco, California, for his second year, and he played a few games as a sophomore in the fall of 1966. Though he temporarily lost his starting job after playing described as "highly jitter" by a local newspaper, a newspaper's end-of-season report stated that he could be more proactive with better coverage. The Fouts, who play on a 0–6 team, had nine interceptions and only one touchdown on the season. He also played varsity basketball as a forward. For his remaining two years of high school, Fouts transferred to St. Ignatius College Preparatory (San Francisco). St. Ignatius was the WCAL first-team's first-team in 1967, defeating the West Catholic Athletic League with a 6–0 record, and Fouts was named to the WCAL All-Star first team. With 16 touchdowns and two interceptions, he almost converted his touchdown to interceptions ratio. In Fouts' senior year, the Saint Ignatius went 5-1; he died a little less because his team stayed more focused on their running game.

College career

When he accepted a scholarship from the University of Oregon to play for the Ducks in Eugene, he was somewhat of a mystery. He joined the freshman team in 1969, his first year (1969). He began the season on the bench behind veteran quarterback/punter Tom Blanchard in 1970. Fouts came off the bench and completed 12 of 19 passes for 166 yards and two touchdowns, with the game-winner in the final two minutes in the first game, 31-24 over California. With 424 passing yards, Fouts and Blanchard tied for a new Pacific-8 Conference record. After another relief appearance the following week, Fouts has his first chance to start in Week 3 against Stanford and their quarterback Jim Plunkett with Blanchard out injured. Fouts and Plunkett will face the AFC championship game ten years later. Stanford beat Stanford 33–10 in their first meeting, but Fouts set school records with 27 completions, 51 attempts, and 271 yards, according to Plunkett. Fouts threw the winning 15-yard touchdown with 30 seconds to play two weeks earlier, and Oregon defeated UCLA 41-40. In Week 5 of a win over Idaho, Fouts tied a school record with four touchdowns; he repeated the feat against the Air Force three weeks later, while setting a record of 466 yards that would not exist until 1989. The Fouts finished second in the Pacific-8 Conference in completions, completion percentage, and passing touchdowns (behind Plunkett each time) and third in passing yards, though his 24 interceptions were tied for the most in the league. He finished for 16 touchdowns while running for four more, and his season total of 2,390 passing yards was a record that didn't exist until 1986. UPI named him an honorable mention in their season-end all-coast program.

Fouts made his debut (1971) as a veteran and highly rated starter. He had fewer attempts than the previous season, in large part due to running back Ahmad Rashad, who led the Pacific-8 in rushing attempts and yards. In terms of firsts, completions, and passing yards, Fouts ranked third in the conference. His interceptions ratio was up from 9-11, with his interceptions total being the lowest among Pacific-8 quarterbacks to play in every game. When Rashad has graduated, Fouts became the primary object of the offense in 1972. In an early-season victory over Arizona, he tied for career passing yards, but his team sank for a significant portion of the season, losing 60 points in consecutive games and going into their final against with a 3–7 record. Fouts threw a 65-yard touchdown in his last college game, and Oregon defeated Oregon State for the first time in nine years. Fouts was accepted to the All-Pac-8 squad and finished second in the conference behind Stanford's Mike Boryla in attempts, completions, touchdowns, and interceptions. During a difficult season, the Ducks had less help up front, and receiver Greg Sprecht's departure accounted for the majority of the Ducks offense. At the time, Fouts ranked second in conference passing and total offense behind Plunkett in career passing and total offense. He set 19 Oregon records, including those for career passing yardage (5,995) and total offense (5,871), and was inducted into the university's hall of fame in 1992.

Professional career

The San Diego Chargers' Fouts was selected in the third round of the 1973 NFL Draft, using the 64th overall pick. Johnny Unitas, the Chargers' sixth quarterback in the draft, was brought in to help his childhood hero, Johnny Unitas, who had played for the Baltimore Colts for 17 years. When Fouts broke his collarbone while playing in the Coaches All-America Game, he later left out more money before signing with the Chargers. Since recovering from his injury, he skipped the first three preseason games. The unitas were soon recovering from a career-ending shoulder injury, prompting Fouts to play a lot as a rookie. His first appearance in Week 4 was in Week 4, beginning with a game at Pittsburgh in the second half with the Chargers trailing 38-0. Three touchdown drives were scored, with the game ending 38-21; Fouts' first touchdown pass was a 13-yarder to Jerry LeVias. Fouts made his first appearance as the Chargers lost 27–17 to Oakland, earning praise for his efforts. During a 41–0 home loss to Atlanta, he failed in his next game and intercepted four times. With six touchdowns against 13 interceptions in 1973, Fouts was 0–5–1 as a starter, but he had only passed on fewer than 45% of his passes. His passer rating of 46.0 was considerably lower than the league average of 64.9.

Unitas reported his resignation before the 1974 season, opening the way for Fouts to stake their claim to the starting position. He started the first eleven games before suffering a broken thumb ended his season. In those games, the Fouts went 3-8, with a reduced passer rating of 61.4; half of his season total of 8 touchdown passes came in a single week 8 game with Cleveland, where the Chargers defeated 36–35. Although Fouts had a completion percentage below 50%, his yards per completion of 15.1 led the NFL.

While going 2–7 as a starter, the Fouts raised his completion percentage in 1975 (to 54 percent) but only two touchdowns against ten interceptions. Fouts completed 3 of 13 passes for 29 yards, no interceptions, and two interceptions in a Week 3 game with the Raiders, while intercepting five times for 51 yards, his lowest rating in his 15-year career. When he was announced at the start of the season, he was booed, and he suffered with injuries throughout the season (first a sore ankle and then a concussion), but his replacements also failed.

Bill Walsh of Cincinnati was brought on by the Chargers from Cincinnati to be their offensive coordinator in 1976. He stayed in the job for a season before going on to Stanford as the head coach. "Walsh put me in a position to be a good quarterback," Fouts would later explain. When the Chargers acquired seven-year veteran Charlie Joiner, the Chargers added a new wide receiver. Joiner spent 11 years with Fouts in San Diego, totaling over 9,000 receiving yards and 47 touchdowns as a Charger. "I don't think he ever dropped any, at least ones that were thrown that he could catch," Fouts later described the receiver as a security blanket."

In the first three games, the Fouts opened the 1976 season with six touchdowns and no interceptions. In a 43–24 victory over Don Coryell's St. Louis Cardinals, the Fouts went 15 of 18 for 259 yards, 4 touchdowns, and no interceptions. He received a perfect passer rating of 158.3 as of 2022; Fouts is the only Charger to receive such a rating as of 2022. No. 2 in the league was No. 1 on Fouts. At that time, the defenses he had faced were not well rated, but not necessarily well rated. Despite fans's wishes for backup Clint Longley to have more playing time, the Chargers, who were shut down four times and finished 6–8, or Fouts, who played in all fourteen, did not do well during the remainder of the season. Nevertheless, he set new career records in passing yards (2,535), completion percentage (57.8%), and touchdowns (14); he had 15 interceptions, a new career-low interception percentage of 4.2%. Fouts had a passer rating of 75.4 on the season, much better than the league average of 67.0. Jack Murphy, a San Diego sports journalist, characterized 1976 as a year of "strong growth" for Fouts, and the former Walsh predicted that he would have a stellar career in the league.

During the offseason, San Diego acquired quarterback James Harris from the Los Angeles Rams, with head coach Tommy Prothro stating that he needed depth at the injury-prone position. Harris's deal was estimated to pay him approximately $170,000 per year, relative to $8,000 for Fouts. In an antitrust lawsuit, Fouts was one of 17 players convicted of the NFL in the following month. Fouts expressed a desire to leave San Diego and screamed for a new collective bargaining deal; the Chargers had to match the offer of another team to discourage him from leaving; the team had only to agree to keep him from leaving. Fouts was initially dissatisfied due to Harris' signing and signing, but Fouts himself said he wanted to play in a Super Bowl and that the Chargers were not of that caliber; if he was not allowed to leave San Diego, he would return; not so bad. Fouts refused to attend training camp, and Fouts branded Prothro "the farthest thing from a head coach you'll ever find" during the lengthy wait before the event, "he's snowing people into believing he knows what he's doing."

The NFL grievance committee denied Fouts' bid to become a free agent on November 15, 2017. Fouts had been given incorrect advice by his lawyer, and Chargers owner Gene Klein said that the team will be welcomed back to the team. On November 17, Fouts reported to the team 125 days late, after collecting $62,000 in fines. He played for a 5–5 team after losing Harris to injury recently, and he started from Week 11 onwards. In the first two games, the Fouts had 4 touchdowns and one interceptor, then there were no touchdowns and five interceptions in the following two games, both losses.

As the Chargers defeated Seattle in Week 1 of the 1978 season, the Chargers drafted wide receiver John Jefferson in the first round of the 1978 draft, and he caught two touchdown passes from Fouts in his first attempt. San Diego's next three years have been rained, with Prothro resigned and Coryell to take their place. During an eight-year tenure as Chargers head coach, he installed the explosive offensive system that would become known as Air Coryell. Fouts was the head coach.

San Diego lost three of Coryell's first four games, falling to a 2-6 record at the midway point of the season. Fouts threw a 14-yard touchdown to Jefferson in the third game in a row; they defeated Kansas City 29–23. Because of injuries, Fouts missed the Chiefs' return match, and the Chargers were suspended. He returned for the final three games, winning all of them to give him seven straight victories as a starter; during those three games, he passed for over 900 yards and 9 touchdowns, while the Chargers averaged over 40 points per game. During a good finish, Fouts was lauded for his efforts.

The Chargers were 9–7 and thus out of the playoffs. They led the league in passing yards as a team. With 2,999 passing yards, first in yards per attempt (7.9), fourth in completion percentage (58.8%) and touchdowns (24), and third in passer rating (83.0). For the first time in his career (24-20), he threw more touchdowns than interceptions, and he played often with Jefferson, who led the league with 13 touchdown receptions. The NFL had passed a rule change to eliminate defenders from attacking receivers more than five yards from the line of scrimmage.

The Chargers finished 12–4 in 1979, winning the AFC West and winning the playoffs for the first time since 1965. Another key target for Fouts was announced in the offseason. Kellen Winslow, the Chargers' first-round pick in the 1979 Draft, missed half of his rookie season due to a fractured leg, but he played a significant role in the Charger offense from 1980 to 1984. Winslow is credited with transforming the tight end position by his pass-catching skills.

In 1979, the Fouts first played a single game. He set an NFL record of four straight 300-yard games from Week 6 to Week 9, but the Chargers only won two of them. Later this year, the Fouts had three straight passer ratings of over 100. San Diego and the No. 2 were both AFC West champions and No. 104 runners in the regular season. For the first time, six years into his career, the Fouts made the playoffs for the first time.

Despite two additional games, the Fouts finished the season with 4,082 yards passing, beating Joe Namath's record of 4,007 yards passing. With a completion percentage of 66%, he led the league in completion percentages with 62 percent and ranked third with a passer rating of 82.6. He had a decent ratio of touchdowns to interceptions (24–24). With six total 300-yard games, Fouts tied another Namath record. He came in second second in both AP NFL MVP (outvoted 34–27) and AP Offensive Player of the Year (outvoted 39–34), while being named to the AFC Pro Bowl and 1st-team All-Pro teams, finishing second second in the end of season awards. Both Jefferson and Joiner had 1,000 yards in their first two seasons, two of the twelve players to reach that historic high point in the league.

San Diego's return to the playoffs ended in disappointment, losing 17-14 at home to the Houston Oilers, who also lost 17–14 at home. Fouts completed 25 of 47 passes for 333 yards, with no touchdowns and five interceptions. "We just made too many mistakes," Fouts said after the game. We didn't do well, but they did." After the game, Houston defensive coordinator Ed Biles was able to crack the code used by San Diego to alert their offensive plays to Fouts, preventing them of upcoming plays and potentially playing a role in Fouts' failure.

In 1980, San Diego became the division champions with an 11–5 record. In the Week 2 matchup with Oakland, the Fouts had an exciting match. In the 3rd quarter, he turned the ball over on five possessions in a row, with four interceptions and a fumble that was returned for a touchdown, but the Chargers defeated the Chargers 30-24. With 3 touchdowns and 5 interceptions, the game was over for 29 completions from 44 attempts for 387 yards. The Chargers' 387 yards set a new single-game franchise record. Fouts himself would smash the record once more four weeks later, losing by 388 yards in a 38–24 loss to the Raiders; the next week, he would break it again, this time passing for 444 yards in a 44–7 victory over the Giants. This was expected to be his joint-most of his career. The Chargers eventually defeated San Diego and Oakland in a close contest for the AFC West title, with the Chargers eventually winning by tiebreakers.

Fouts set the passing yardage record for the second straight season, finishing with 4,715 yards, over 500 yards ahead of his nearest rival. By averaging 294.7, he tied Namath's yards per game record for the second time. His attempts (589) and completions (348) were NFL records, and he set a new personal record with 30 touchdowns (against 24 interceptions) and a passer rating of 84.7. He had eight 300+ yards passing games, breaking a record set he had set the previous season. Fouts was named a 2nd-team All-Pro and made his second Pro Bowl appearance. Jefferson, Winslow, and Joiner, his leading receivers, dominated the receiving yardage charts, placing 1st, 2nd, and 4th respectively, with over 1,100 yards per. Jefferson led the league in touchdown receptions, while Winslow came in first in receptions. They were the first three teammates to have 1,000 receiving yards in the same season. "Dan has certainly matured over the past four years," Joiner said of Fouts at this point. His speed of release is better, and he's improved at reading defenses, so he's better at going to the receiver who's open."

San Diego was named the No. 1 in the United States for the second time. In the Divisional Playoffs, the Buffalo Bills were the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs and the Buffalo Bills were hosted by the Buffalo Bills. Early in the game, the Chargers trailed 14–3 and 14-13, with 14–13 having just over two minutes to play against a 3rd and 10 at midfield. Ron Smith, the game's most versatile wide receiver, was then drafted by the Fouts for what would be the game-winning touchdown. For 314 yards, 1 touchdown, and 2 interceptions, the football team finished 22 of 37, for 314 yards, 1 touchdown, and two interceptions. Following the come-from-behind triumph, Jefferson and Joiner were among those lauding his leadership and toughness. San Diego hosted Oakland for their third meeting of the season, with a spot in the Super Bowl in play. In the first half, the Fouts had a mixed first half, with two touchdown passes to Joiner and two red zone interceptions. Joiner's second touchdown started a comeback bid from 28-27 behind; Oakland won 34–27, and went on to win Super Bowl XV; joining the Bears lasted from there. With 22 of 45 passes for 336 yards, 2 touchdowns, and two interceptions, the Fouts finished the game.

Although San Diego captured their third straight division title in 1981, they had to face early-season demonstrations, with Jefferson and key defensive end Fred Dean out for better pay. Both players were drafted early in the season, to the disapproval of many other Chargers. Wes Chandler, Jefferson's replacement, had one Pro Bowl with the New Orleans Saints and would continue to make three more with the Chargers. The defense went from 6th to 27th in the 28-team league without Dean, leaving Fouts and the offense as the unit more likely to lead San Diego to victories.

In a close 44-14 victory over Cleveland, the fouts started the season with a near-perfect passer rating of 157.1, totaling 19 of 25 for 330 yards, 3 touchdowns, and no interceptions. The Chargers posted a 6–3 record before being forced to back-one-sided defeats that put them two games behind the division lead. The Chargers defeated the defending Super Bowl champions 521-21 in Week 12. On six consecutive drives, four to Winslow in a ten-minute sandwiching halftime, the Fouts threw touchdown passes, including four to Winslow. The six touchdown passes were the most important part of Fouts' career, and the Chargers' record remains unbeaten as of 2022. With a 10–6 record, the Chargers won the division on tiebreakers over Denver, the first of four over the final five weeks of the regular season.

In every regular season game save the finale, the quarterback was consistent, passing for between 252 and 352 yards. He set a single-season record for the third straight season (190.1), attempts (609) and completions (360) for the second time, beating his nearest rival by 900 yards ahead of his second attempt. For the first time, he had the best touchdown to intercept ratio of his career (33–17), led the league in touchdown passes for the first time, and his third Pro Bowl appearance was he posted his third Pro Bowl. At this point, Fouts was behind more than half of the five 4,000-yard passing seasons in NFL history, his third in a row. Joiner, Chandler (including his yards with the Saints before he was traded) and Winslow (again the league's highest receiver in receptions) all met the mark, with three 1,000-yard receivers. He prospered from a veteran offensive line (Billy Shields, Doug Wilkerson, Don Macek, Ed White, Russ Washington), who caused Fouts to be dismissed on a career-low 3% of his pass attempts.

San Diego defeated the Miami Dolphins in the Divisional Playoffs, winning the Epic by 41–38. The Chargers led 24–0 after Fouts threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to James Brooks in a dominant 1st quarter. In the 3rd quarter, Miami tied the score for the first time before Fouts restored the lead with a 25-yard touchdown to Winslow. The Dolphins responded with the next 14 points and were close to scoring again after losing a fumble at the San Diego 18 with five minutes remaining. On the ensuing drive, Fouts completed 7 of 8 passes for 75 yards, with a 9-yard touchdown pass intended for Winslow but instead by Brooks with 58 seconds to play. The game went into overtime, with Fouts completing back-to-back passes of 20 yards to Chandler and 39 yards to Joiner, and Benirschke winning the game by a 29-yard field goal nearly 14 minutes into the extra period. With 33 completions from 53 attempts for 433 yards (all new NFL playoff records), Fouts, who described the game as the best he's ever played in, finished with 33 touchdowns and 1 interception. The Epic in Miami set new playoff records for the most combined points, yards, passing yards, and completions, and is widely considered one of the best NFL games ever played.

In the AFC Championship Game in Cincinnati, the Chargers faced the Bengals. The game, known as the Freezer Bowl, was played under frigid weather with a temperature of 88 °F (31.1 °C) in Miami this week. As the Chargers were defeated 27–7, losing out on a second straight season in one game, the Fouts struggled to grasp the ball, clocking 15 of 28 passes for 185 yards, 1 touchdown, and 2 interceptions.

When the Chargers returned to the league in November in 1982, they were 1–1. Fouts did not support the strike action right away but he trained regularly with his colleagues while it was still underway.

The Chargers lost their first game back in the first game and then won their next two, transforming to a road match against the defending Super Bowl champion 49ers. Fouts threw five touchdowns, including a game-winner to running back Chuck Muncie with three minutes remaining in a passing duel with Joe Montana. The Chargers defeated 41–37; Fouts had 33 attempts from 48 attempts, for 444 yards (tying his career high), 5 touchdowns, and no interceptions. With 65 completions, the teams set a new NFL record, while still combining for 810 passing yards. San Diego defeated Cincinnati 50–34 at Jack Murphy Stadium this week. For 435 yards, 1 touchdown, and 2 interceptions, the quarterback went 25 of 40 for 435 yards, 1 touchdown, and 2 interceptions. He became the first NFL player to broadcast back-to-back 400-yard games in history. The teams combined for 66 completions, breaking the NFL record set in the Chargers' previous game and 883 passing yards, a new record. The Chargers also qualified for the playoffs for the fourth straight year, a 6–3 record.

Despite the fact that the running season prevented Fouts from resetting the passing yardage record in 1982, he did set a new record for the third year in a row, this time with 320.3 per game. He led the league in passing yards (2,883), touchdowns (17, tied with Montana), and yards per attempt (8.7, which would be the best of his career) among his career's seniors. His passer rating of 93.3, the second best in the league, was his second consecutive Pro Bowl appearance, as well as being named 1st-team All-Pro for the second time. With 43 of the available 80 votes, Fouts received the Associated Press Offensive Player of the Year Award, but with 33, two behind Washington kicker Mark Moseley, they finished second in NFL MVP voting. He did win a league MVP award from the PFWA, as well as the player-awarded Jim Thorpe Trophy. The same quintet of offensive linemen as the previous year provided a good deal of defense for Fouts. None of the five players was suspended from a game this season, and Fouts was suspended on 3.5 percent of pass plays. Winslow had the second-most passes in the league, with Fouts' receivers ranked second, and Chandler finished as the league's youngest 1,000-yard receiver.

In the first round of the playoffs, San Diego and Pittsburgh met in Pittsburgh. In the final quarter, the Steelers led 28-20, but Fouts led to touchdown passes to Winslow, the first coming on 4th down, with the second having just one minute to play. These were enough to win by the Chargers by 31-28. Fouts completed 27 of 43 passes for 333 yards, 3 touchdowns, and no interceptions, giving him a passer rating of 112.5, his highest in a playoff game. The Chargers faced the Dolphins in the Orange Bowl in the second round of the playoffs, in the same stadium as their legendary match from last season. Miami defeated 34-13 in the rematch, which was one-sided. Fouts completed 15 of 34 passes for 191 yards, 1 touchdown, and 5 interceptions. This was his last playoff game of his career, meaning he had thrown five interceptions in both his first and last playoff games.

In 1983, Fouts became a free agent. While negotiating with the Chargers, he also considered an offer to compete for a new San Diego-based franchise in the new USFL. In the end, Fouts decided to sign a six-year contract with the Chargers, citing that he wanted to win a Super Bowl. The deal was reported to be worth upwards of $1 million a year, making it one of pro football's most lucrative. Fouts played for five seasons, but they missed time due to illness in each of them and will not return to the playoffs.

The Chargers went 6–10 in 1983, losing the most points in the league, while conceding the most points. Fouts started the first seven games, throwing for at least 300 yards in five of them, but they were ruled out of the next five games due to a shoulder injury, snapping a string of consecutive starts that dates back to 1978. Fouts aggravated the injury and missed the finale after returning from three games. He started with 5-5 as a starter, led the league in yards per game for the fifth year in a row, with 297.5, and his fifth straight Pro Bowl appearance. He had 20 touchdowns and 15 interceptions on a career-high 8.8 yards per attempt, while his completion percentage (63.2%) and passer rating (92.5) were his second highest marks of his career.

San Diego went 4–2 in 1984 but then slowed to 9-9 after that low. In a Week 8 loss to the Raiders, Fouts had his fourth career 400-yard game. While leading the Chargers back from a 28-14 quarter deficit to a 34-28 overtime victory over Dan Marino and the previously undefeated Miami Dolphins, he set career highs for attempts and completions, going 37 of 56 for 380 yards, 4 touchdowns, and 1 interception. Fouts played the first thirteen games of the season before injuring his groin and missing the remaining three. He started 6–7 as a starter, with 19 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. His yards per attempt decreased to 7.4, while his passer rating of 83.4 was his lowest since 1979. The Fouts still averaged 287.7 yards per game, but Marino, who tied Fouts' single-season record with 5,084 passing yards, brought an end to the former quarterback's run to an end, ending his five-year streak in Pro Bowls.

The Chargers finished 8-8 in 1985. The comparison between their offense and defense was stark, as they led the league in points scored, yards gained, first downs, passing yards, and passing touchdowns, but yards conceded, first downs forfeited, and passing yards surrendered. As a result, Fouts participated in numerous high-scoring shootouts. He threw for 440 yards and four touchdowns in Week 2, but Seattle had 5 of their own and lost 49-35. Fouts accounted for 344 yards and a further 4 touchdown the following week, which was enough to win by 44–41 over Cincinnati. With knee ligament damage in Cleveland, the Fouts was forced to miss a week of action, and the team underwent arthroscopic surgery to repair it. In a 40–34 overtime victory over the Raiders, Fouts threw for 436 yards and four touchdowns on his third attempt after returning from his injured field. It was his sixth 400-yard game of his career, a new NFL record. With a cracked fibula, Fouts started the final game on the bench, though he did have a one-play cameo appearance, marching on to turn the ball over while Herrmann was winded. As a starter, the Fouts went 7–5. Despite throwing no passes in his last game, he led the league in yards per game for the sixth time in his career, with 259.9. For the third time, his yards per attempt increased to 8.5 percent, and he led the league in that segment. For the first time in his career, he had the highest touchdown percentage in the league, with 6.3% of his passes going for touchdowns. His touchdowns to interceptions ratio (27-20) and passer rating (88.1) were all improved since the previous year, with him earning his sixth Pro Bowl berth as well as 2nd-Team All-Pro awards. Chandler and running back Lionel James both hit the mark, while Joiner was short by 68 yards.

The Chargers' 1986 season got off to a promising start, defeating Miami 50–28 with Fouts throwing 3 touchdowns and no interceptions. This was to be both the last 3-touchdown game of Fouts' career and the Don Coryell era's last victory. The Chargers dropped their next seven games, with Fouts throwing 6 touchdowns and 19 interceptions before being sidelined by two concussions. Coryell, who had been supposed to stand down at the end of the season, instead announced his resignation on October 29, amid rumors that he had been coerced into the decision. Al Saunders, an assistant coach, had been promoted to take his position. Fouts missed three games due to concussions and one more with a sore shoulder; he ended the season 3–9 as a starter and saw a major decline in statistical results. For the first time since 1977, his completion percentage of 56% was his lowest since 1976, with his passer rating down to 71.4, his lowest since 1975 and below the NFL average of 74.1.

After Coryell's departure, the Fouts played one season. Joiner, the longest-serving receiver, went into 1987 without him, ranking him as the highest receiver in career receptions and yards. The Chargers lost their first game and won their second before a players' strike, which caused the Week 3 games to be postponed, and the following three weeks to feature teams made up a majority of replacement players. Although Fouts was not part of the players union and did not picket with his teammates, he did not decide to play for the Chargers while the strike was ongoing, despite the fact that he was risking injury while playing against an inexperienced offensive line. The Chargers won all three games, bringing Fouts and the other regulars back to a 4–1 team, which is currently ranked atop the AFC West.

San Diego defeated the Chiefs 42-21 in his first game back. Fouts completed 24 of 34 for 293 yards, 2 touchdowns, and no interceptions. Three narrow victories were followed by three others, and the Chargers had a league-best 8–1 record. However, the Wolves lost all six of their remaining games while only scoring five offensive touchdowns and missed the playoffs. Fouts had only briefly in the first round of these losses due to a calf injury, and they missed the finale with a barely torn rotator cuff. In Week 14, his 254th and final touchdown pass came in, a 15-yarder to James in the final quarter of a 20-16 loss to Pittsburgh, while his 51st and final 300-yard game tied for the first time and nearly double the next best time. He played his last game, a 20–7 home loss to the Indianapolis Colts, in the following week. In 32 of 37 passes for 257 yards, no interceptions, and three interceptions, with 22 of 37 interceptions. On a 1-yard field, he scored the first Chargers touchdown of the season himself.

Fouts had a similar campaign to last year, both nationally and internationally. He was 5–5 as a starter, throwing 10 touchdowns and 15 interceptions, though his passer rating fell slightly to 70.0. He was fired more often than ever, with 24 sacks occurring on 6.2% of pass attempts, his highest percentage since 1977.

Fouts announced his retirement on March 24, 1988 at his Rancho Santa Fe home. He cited the wear and tear on his body as the primary reason. He was 36 years old at the time and second only to Fran Tarkenton in terms of NFL career passing yards, trailing by about 4,000 yards despite attempting 863 fewer passes. With 254 points, the Fouts ranked fourth in career passing touchdowns. "We had so much faith in what we were doing and had a lot of fun," the narrator said about his work.

After playing 171 games in San Diego for 43,040 yards and 254 touchdowns, the kicks had a total of 171 games. He ran for 476 yards and 13 touchdowns. He retired from the Chargers after being fired from his No. During a halftime of a game against San Francisco on November 27, 1988, fourteen jerseys were displayed during a ceremony at Jack Murphy Stadium on November 27, 1988. He was the first Charger to have his number retired at the time. Fouts had 42 team records as well as seven league records at the time of his retirement. San Diego found it difficult to replace after making 14 quarterback changes in less than five seasons before settling on Stan Humphries as a long-term starter. Many of Fouts' club records lasted well into the 21st century, with Philip Rivers breaking his career passing yardage record in 2015 and career passing yardage record in 2016, while Justin Herbert eclipsed Fouts' 1981 single season passing yardage record in that year, 40 years later.

Although he played five seasons before the arrival of Coryell in San Diego and another one after he left, Fouts is best remembered as the quarterback of the Air Coryell offense, which led the league in passing yards seven times in an eight-season span (1978-83, 1985). When Fouts was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993, he selected Coryell to address him, and he later stated in his acceptance address that he would not have been a Hall of Fame quarterback without his former coach.

Coryell characterized Fouts as a "quick feet and could get back and make decisions." He wasn't afraid to pull the trigger and let the ball roll." Before deciding on a pass target, the Fouts were able to read up to five pages. "Dan Fouts had a cool, steel-like energy, and courage," Bill Walsh, who went on to be a Hall of Fame head coach after leaving San Diego, said. He took a lot of beatings and a lot of pounding, but he continued to play, injured or otherwise. He played more physical football on his team, including the linebackers. The Fouts rarely used the pistol, with the more able to read defenses at the line. After receiving the snap, he'll travel a shorter distance than most quarterbacks and often postpone his receivers until the last second to allow them time to open, tendencies that have caused him to take a number of hits throughout his career.

Despite going back to the playoffs from 1979 to 1982 and playing in two AFC Championship Games, the Chargers never made it to the Super Bowl, despite being the Fouts. He appears on lists of the top quarterbacks, whether you're looking for a Super Bowl or play in one. The San Diego defense was often blamed for their setbacks. Although the Fouts' offense improved under Coryell, who led the league in total yardage five times in eight seasons from 1978 to 1981, the defense dropped from 6th in 1980 to 27th in 1981, and remained in the bottom five for the next four seasons. This happened when Dean, an All-Pro sack specialist, was traded to the San Francisco 49ers in a labor dispute. Dean will be named in the Hall of Fame later this year after winning a Super Bowl victory and leading the 49ers to another Super Bowl championship three years later. "I can't tell how much it affected us because we did make it to the AFC championship game," Chargers' All-Pro defensive lineman Gary "Big Hands" Johnson of Dean's death. "But I could say that if we had more pass rush from the corner, it might have been different." The trade, according to U-T San Diego in 2013, was "probably the biggest blunder in franchise history."

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