Norv Turner

Norval Eugene Turner, born May 17, 1952, spent most of his NFL career as an offensive assistant. He served as offensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys when they won back-to-back Super Bowls (XXVII and XXVIII). Later, he became head coach for three franchises: the Washington Redskins (1994–2000), the Oakland Raiders (2004–2005), and the San Diego Chargers (2007–2012). Turner’s 118 career wins are the most ever for an NFL head coach with a losing record, and he is the only coach with at least 100 wins to finish below .500.

Turner was born at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina. He played quarterback and safety at Alhambra High School in Martinez, California, graduating in 1970. At the University of Oregon, he backed up future Hall of Famer Dan Fouts before starting in 1973 and 1974.

After a 1975 graduate assistant stint at Oregon, Turner joined USC’s staff in 1976 under head coach John Robinson, a fellow Oregon alumnus. He spent nine seasons with the Trojans, then followed Robinson to the NFL’s Los Angeles Rams in 1985, staying six seasons through 1990.

As Dallas’s offensive coordinator under Jimmy Johnson, Turner transformed a unit that ranked last in total yards (255.1 per game) and scoring (15.2 points per game) before his arrival. In 1991, the offense jumped to ninth in yards (318.8) and scoring (21.4). It ranked fourth in both categories in 1992 (350.4 yards, 25.6 points) and 1993 (350.9 yards, 23.5 points). Running back Emmitt Smith led the NFL in rushing all three years under Turner and was Super Bowl XXVIII MVP.

No Super Bowl-era team had won with the league’s leading rusher before Smith did in 1992 and 1993. When Smith rushed for 100-plus yards in a game from 1991 to 1993, Dallas went 21–1 in the regular season and 5–0 in the postseason. Quarterback Troy Aikman, who was 7–18 as a starter before Turner arrived, went 31–11 in the regular season and 6–0 in the playoffs under Turner, winning Super Bowl XXVII MVP. Receiver Michael Irvin never finished lower than second in the NFL in receiving yards during Turner’s tenure.

Overall, Dallas posted a 42–13 record, made three playoff appearances, won two NFC East titles (1992, 1993), two NFC championships (1992, 1993), three rushing titles (Smith, 1991–1993), one league MVP (Smith, 1993), and two Super Bowls.

Turner became Washington’s head coach in 1994. Over seven seasons, he went 49–59–1. In 1996, the Redskins started 7–1 but finished 9–7. They made the playoffs only once, in 1999, losing to Tampa Bay in the second round. Turner was fired on December 4, 2000, after a 9–7 loss to the Giants dropped the team to 7–6 despite a 6–2 start. That made him one of the few post-merger NFL head coaches fired midseason with a winning record (Ron Meyer of New England in 1984 was another). Terry Robiskie took over for the final three games; Washington finished 8–8. Turner then served as offensive coordinator for San Diego in 2001 and Miami in 2002 and 2003.

After the Raiders fired Bill Callahan, Al Davis hired Turner in 2004. Oakland went 5–11 in 2004 and 4–12 in 2005, with just one intra-division win (a 25–24 victory at Denver on November 28, 2004). Turner was fired on January 3, 2006.

On January 17, 2006, Turner became offensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers, working under head coach Mike Nolan—who had been Turner’s defensive coordinator in Washington from 1997 to 1999.

Turner was hired as San Diego’s head coach on February 19, 2007, after losing the Dallas job to Wade Phillips. He took over a team that had gone 14–2 the previous season under Marty Schottenheimer. Despite promising a strong start, Turner lost three of his first four games in 2007, drawing chants of “Mar-ty!” from fans. The team then rebounded with a 41–3 win over Denver.