 Gibbs in 2018 | |||||||||
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| Born | (1940-11-25)November 25, 1940 (age 84) Mocksville, North Carolina, U.S. | ||||||||
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| High school | Santa Fe(Santa Fe Springs, California) | ||||||||
| College | San Diego State | ||||||||
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Coaching profile at Pro Football Reference  | |||||||||
Joe Jackson Gibbs (born November 25, 1940) is a formerfootball coach and an Americanauto racing team owner. He served as thehead coach of theWashington Redskins of theNational Football League (NFL) from1981 to1992 and then2004 to2007, leading them to nine playoff appearances, fiveNFC Championship titles, and threeSuper Bowl wins over 16 seasons.
Gibbs was named the 1982 and 1983NFL Coach of the Year and is the only head coach to have won Super Bowls with three different startingquarterbacks. He and his sons founded theNASCAR teamJoe Gibbs Racing in 1992, which has since won fiveNASCAR championships. Gibbs, named to theNFL 100th Anniversary All-Time Team, is also the only member of both thePro Football Hall of Fame andNASCAR Hall of Fame.
Born inMocksville, North Carolina, Gibbs is the older of two sons of Jackson Cephus Gibbs (1916–1989) and Winnie Era Blalock (1915–2000). He graduated fromSanta Fe High School in 1959, where he playedquarterback. Gibbs attendedCerritos College before earning aBachelor of Arts degree in 1964 and amaster's degree in 1966 fromSan Diego State University.[1]
Gibbs began his career in 1964 coachingoffensive linemen underDon Coryell for theSan Diego State Aztecs football team.[1] He served two years each atFlorida State,USC, andArkansas. Gibbs then advanced to theNational Football League, hired as the offensive backfield coach for theSt. Louis Cardinals (1973–1977) by Coryell, who had been named head coach. After a season asoffensive coordinator for theTampa Bay Buccaneers (1978) under former USC coachJohn McKay, Gibbs rejoined Coryell with theSan Diego Chargers in 1979.
While in Tampa, Gibbs developed the reputation as a leading pioneer for championing black quarterbacks in the NFL, which was considered extremely controversial at the time. After thoroughly studyingMatt Cavanaugh, who led Pitt to a national championship,Guy Benjamin, an All-American fromStanford University, andDoug Williams fromGrambling State University, Gibbs rated Williams as the best professional prospect, and informed head coach McKay that Williams would be "hands down and without question" the best quarterback in the1978 NFL draft. According toTony Dungy, "People don't realize that Joe Gibbs changed the face of the NFL by having the courage to say, in a Southern town at that time, that Doug Williams is the guy we should take. When Tampa drafted Doug, it shocked the whole country to take this unknown from Grambling over those star players from Pitt and Stanford. But that was Joe Gibbs. He was looking for the best player possible."[2] With the recommendation of Gibbs, Tampa Bay selected Williams, and became the first African-American drafted in the first round to play quarterback.
In his bookRise of the Black QB, author Jason Reid cited an incident in the1978 Tampa Bay training camp, in which quarterbacks coachBill Nelsen began berating Williams in what was described as going beyond coaching and becoming a personal attack. Just a position coach at the time, Gibbs, who was at the opposite end of the field, sprinted over to Nelsen and confronted him. "I think Coach Gibbs knew that it wasn't a matter of being coached hard," recalled Williams. "I mean, I played for Eddie Robinson at Grambling, so heknew I could handle that. But he (Gibbs) immediately sensed that something else was going on."[3] Gibbs threw his clipboard down, pointed his finger in Nelsen's face and said, "Don't you ever talk to him like that again! Is that clear?" According to Williams, Nelsen never confronted Williams in that manner again.[4]
As the offensive coordinator for San Diego, Gibbs spearheaded the highly successful "Air Coryell" offense. Using a sophisticated passing attack, the Chargers andquarterbackDan Fouts set multiple offensive records during Gibbs' two seasons there. Remarkably, the Chargers averaged more than 400 yards of offense per game during their 1980 season. After 17 years of coaching as an assistant, theWashington Redskins offered Gibbs theirhead coaching position.[5]
After firing then-head coachJack Pardee, Redskins ownerJack Kent Cooke was on the lookout for candidates. When general managerBobby Beathard pointed out the 40-year-old San Diego assistant coach, Cooke, who had a keen eye for spotting leadership and an ability to teach (he also hiredJerry West andSparky Anderson to their first managerial/executive jobs), saw Gibbs' potential during an interview and hired him.
Gibbs' first season with the Redskins started inauspiciously when the team lost their first five games. Cooke famously expressed confidence in Gibbs, declaring that the team would finish 8–8. The losses and Cooke's confidence served as a catalyst, and the newly motivated team improved and reached an even 8–8 record in 1981.
Gibbs' second season with the Redskins, which was shortenedby a players strike, saw them finish with an 8-1 regular-season record and defeat theMiami Dolphins 27–17 inSuper Bowl XVII. In 1983, Gibbs' success continued with a 14–2 regular-season record and a win against theLos Angeles Rams 51–7 at home, in the divisional round of the playoffs. The Redskins once again won an NFC Championship, defeating theSan Francisco 49ers 24–21 on a last-secondfield goal, advancing toSuper Bowl XVIII. The Redskins were installed as a 2-point favorite by Nevada books going into the game, but were soundly defeated by theLos Angeles Raiders 38–9.
The 1984 Redskins won the NFC East with an 11–5 record and hosted a home playoff game against theChicago Bears but lost 23–19.
Gibbs coached the 1985 Redskins to a 10–6 regular-season record and barely missed the playoffs. During the seasonJoe Theismann broke his leg during aMonday Night Football game against theNew York Giants, but the Redskins still won the game withJay Schroeder at quarterback.
In 1986, Gibbs coached the team to a 12–4 regular-season record and defeated theLos Angeles Rams 19–7 in the wild card playoffs, then upset the defending championChicago Bears 27–13 in the divisional round, on the road, to get back to the NFC Championship game against theNew York Giants. The Giants would win 17–0. It was to be Gibbs' only NFC championship game loss.
The 1987 Redskins made the playoffs and again defeated theChicago Bears 21–17 on the road in the divisional round, then beat theMinnesota Vikings 17–10 at home in the NFC Championship Game, then atSuper Bowl XXII, they rode the arm of quarterbackDoug Williams to blow out theDenver Broncos 42–10.
Four years later, the Redskins won their first 11 games before finishing the season 14–2, and cruised through the playoffs with home victories over theAtlanta Falcons (24–7) andDetroit Lions (41–10). InSuper Bowl XXVI, the Redskins were up 24–0 on theBuffalo Bills just 16 seconds into the third quarter, and 37–10 with over 11 minutes to go when Gibbs pulled most of his starters. The Bills would score two cosmetic touchdowns for a final score of 37–24.[6] The victory gave Gibbs and the team their thirdSuper Bowl title.
Gibbs returned for the 1992 regular season to defend the Redskins' Super Bowl crown from the previous year. The Redskins finished with a lesser record at 9–7 and third place in theNFC East. They needed a bit of help to make the playoffs and they got it after a loss by theGreen Bay Packers got them in as the last Wild Card entry. In the wild-card round, the Redskins defeated theMinnesota Vikings on the road, by the score of 24–7, however they would fall in the divisional round to theSan Francisco 49ers in a road game by the score of 20–13, ending the Redskins' hopes of retaining their Super Bowl crown. Two months afterSuper Bowl XXVII, Gibbs retired on March 5, 1993, surprising many in the organization and around the league. Center Jeff Bostic called it "probably the biggest shock I've gotten in my life."[7] A notorious workaholic, he had begun to suffer health problems, and he cited a desire to spend more time with his family.
From 1994 to 1997, Gibbs served as acolor analyst onNBC Sports' NFLpregame show.
In 1996, Gibbs was enshrined in thePro Football Hall of Fame. He was one of the winningest coaches in the NFL, with a record of 124–60, and a post-season record of 16–5. His combined winning percentage of .683 was third all-time (behindVince Lombardi andJohn Madden). In his 12 seasons so far, the Redskins won 4NFC East titles, reached the playoffs 8 times, and finished with a losing record only one season (7–9 in 1988). Gibbs is the only NFL coach to win three Super Bowls with three different starting quarterbacks and three different starting running backs.
Throughout his retirement, many NFL owners approached Gibbs hoping to lure him out of retirement, but to no avail. Some owners even offered to move his entire NASCAR racing team to their team's city if he came back. The only team he seriously considered coming back for was theCarolina Panthers when they first joined the NFL as an expansion in 1995. However, he did not believe he would be able to manage his time between his race team and coaching.[8] In 1999, he was part of a group that was trying to buy the Redskins but ultimately failed. In 2002, Gibbs and a small group of investors bought five percent of theAtlanta Falcons from ownerArthur Blank for $27 million.[9] It wasn't until late 2003 when Gibbs took a serious interest in returning to football. Blank and his general manager,Rich McKay moved quickly to interview him for the Falcons' vacant head coaching position due to the firing ofDan Reeves.[10]
In January 2004, Gibbs accepted an offer from Redskins ownerDaniel Snyder to return as the team's head coach. At his press conference, Gibbs stated that even though he enjoyed NASCAR, he had also missed coaching in the NFL. Gibbs left his racing team in the hands of his eldest son, J. D., while his other son, Coy, joined him as an assistant with the Redskins. Many coaches from his previous tenure with the team returned with Gibbs as well, including offensive line coach/assistant head coachJoe Bugel,offensive coordinatorDon Breaux,quarterbacks coachJack Burns, andtight ends coachRennie Simmons. Gibbs also hired formerBuffalo Bills head coachGregg Williams to join the team to run the defense and hired one of his former running backs,Earnest Byner, to serve as running backs coach.
In 2004, Gibbs had what was, up to that point, the worst season of his career with a 6–10 finish. However, the team did finish the season on a high note with a 21–18 victory over playoff-bound Minnesota. The defense also finished the season ranked third in yards allowed. Hoping to improve on the previous season's dismal passing attack, Gibbs added formerJacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinatorBill Musgrave as his quarterbacks coach. Having coached new Redskins quarterbackMark Brunell when they both were inJacksonville, they easily formed a rapport. Musgrave's input allowed the Redskins to add a few new wrinkles to their playbook. For the first time under Gibbs, the Redskins offense utilized theshotgun formation. In the Wild Card playoff game, Gibbs led his team to a 17–10 victory over theTampa Bay Buccaneers, to whom the Redskins suffered a 36–35 defeat earlier in the year. In the next round of the playoffs, however, the Redskins could not replicate their early-season victory over theSuper Bowl-boundSeattle Seahawks, and lost to the eventual NFC Champion by the score of 20–10.[11]
During the 2006 offseason, Gibbs hiredKansas City Chiefs' offensive coordinatorAl Saunders to be associate head coach. Saunders came from a similar background as Gibbs, as both learned underDon Coryell. He took over for Gibbs as the team's primary play-caller upon joining the Redskins. This allowed Gibbs to focus more on his role as head coach and CEO and devote more time to personnel matters, defense, and special teams. Gibbs also added formerBuffalo Bills defensive coordinatorJerry Gray to his staff as secondary/cornerbacks coach.
The Redskins finished 5–11 in 2006, the team's worst regular-season record under him.The following season the team suffered a tragedy whenfree safetySean Taylor was shot in his home during a home robbery in November 2007 and died in the hospital a day later. However, the Redskins still qualified for the playoffs following the completion of a 9–7 regular season before being defeated by theNFC West division championsSeattle Seahawks in the first round. Gibbs retired as head coach and president in January 2008, citing family obligations.[12][13] During Gibbs' four-year return to the Redskins, the team qualified for the playoffs twice, once more than it qualified for the playoffs during his 11-year absence. He was succeeded as head coach byJim Zorn.
Although Gibbs helped craft a passing-oriented attack during his time in San Diego, his Redskins teams incorporated a smash-mouth, rushing-oriented attack oriented around such plays as the iconiccounter trey. By building a strong offensive line (known as "The Hogs") Gibbs was able to control the line of scrimmage, allowing workhorse running backsJohn Riggins,George Rogers, andEarnest Byner to power the ground game. Gibbs added a deep passing attack which complemented the ground game, utilizing agile receivers such asArt Monk,Gary Clark, andRicky Sanders. Gibbs' offense was aided by aggressive defensive units under the direction of defensive coordinatorRichie Petitbon.
Gibbs' system was robust enough to be successful without a Hall-of-Fame-caliber quarterback at the helm. The Redskins' Super Bowl victories were won featuringJoe Theismann,Doug Williams, andMark Rypien. Gibbs is credited with inventing theH-back set, typically by use of a smaller tight end in the backfield. Gibbs was also credited for creating theTrips formation: stacking three wide receivers to one side. He is one of few coaches that utilized theH-back position prominently in his offense. Gibbs' offenses were known for their extensive number of formations, as well asshifts andmotions.
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Gibbs created hisNASCAR team,Joe Gibbs Racing in 1992, a year before he first retired from the NFL. The first driver for his team wasDale Jarrett (1992–1994), with the sponsorInterstate Batteries, and the number 18. His son,J. D. Gibbs, was the president of Joe Gibbs Racing and oversaw daily operations of each of the teams since his father's return to the NFL. J. D. Gibbs died on January 11, 2019. Driver Denny Hamlin won the Daytona 500 on February 17 and dedicated the win to J. D. in his post-race celebration.
The team currently fields four full-time entries in theNASCAR Cup Series and three full-time entries in theNASCAR Xfinity Series.
Beginning in 1995, Gibbs fielded three cars in theNHRA, one, in each of these professional categories:
Yates would bring home 2 NHRA Winston Pro Stock Championships in 1996 and 1997. McDonald's was the primary sponsor on all three cars from 1995 to 1997. In 1998 Cruz Pedregon would be sponsored by Interstate Batteries and Jim Yates by SplitFire.
Pedregon won Gibbs' first NHRA National Event as a team owner at the 1995 NHRA Chief Auto Parts Winternationals. He would couple that with a victory at the '95 NHRA U.S. Nationals, third for Pedregon in four years at the U.S. Nationals. Pedregon continued to race for Gibbs until mid-season (Englishtown, New Jersey) in 1999. Ending with a final-round appearance, Pedregon left to race on his own, and was replaced by Tommy Johnson Jr. would win his first Fuel Funny Car win with Gibbs at the '99 NHRA Keystone Nationals and would go to the next two final rounds, scoring another victory in the process. It was announced that after the '99 season, Gibbs team would be reduced to a two-car team, and the Funny Car team was parked from then on.
McClenathan finished second in NHRA Winston Top Fuel points in both 1997 and 1998 with Gibbs. In 1997, McClenathan went on a hot streak, sweeping the famed Western Swing (Denver, Sonoma, Seattle) and a total four wins in a row, 5 in 6 races since Denver, including a final round at the U.S. Nationals in '97. He also took Gibbs' MBNA Top Fuel Dragster to a $200,000 payday, winning the 2000 NHRA Winston No-Bull Showdown, pitting Top Fuel Dragsters against Funny Cars in a 24 car shootout.
Gibbs announced that he would focus solely on his NASCAR teams following the 2000 season, ending the six-year-long relationship with NHRA.
In 2008, Gibbs branched out intomotorcycle racing, forming the JGRMX team competing in theAMAmotocross andsupercross championships.[14][15] The team is based in Huntersville, North Carolina. The team was managed by Gibbs' sonCoy Gibbs until his untimely death in November 2022.[14]
He founded Game Plan for Life in 2009, an evangelical Christian witnessing organization.[16] In 2017, the organization funded the establishment of aSoutheastern Baptist Theological Seminary campus in the Nash Correctional Institution prison inNashville, North Carolina.[17]
Gibbs became aBaptist at the age of nine.[18][19] He currently resides inCharlotte, North Carolina, with his wife Patricia, who is of Mexican descent. They had two sons,J. D. Gibbs andCoy Gibbs, and eight grandchildren, includingTy Gibbs. His son J. D. died on January 11, 2019, after a long battle with neurological brain disease diagnosed in 2015, while his other son, Coy, died in his sleep on November 6, 2022.[20] His grandsons Jackson and Ty both work for his team. Jackson played college football atUCLA andAppalachian State, and Miller also played football at Appalachian State. Jackson is currently a pit crew member forChristopher Bell in theNASCAR Cup Series. Ty drives the No. 54 in theNASCAR Cup Series for JGR. Ty won the 2021ARCA Menards Series championship and the 2022NASCAR Xfinity Series championship. Gibbs became a limited partner ofHarris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment (HBSE) upon their investment in Joe Gibbs Racing in 2023.[21]
On September 5, 2008, Gibbs addressed the2008 Republican National Convention, during which he offered his support forJohn McCain and his hope that theMcCain-Palin ticket would lead to a 'spiritual awakening' in the United States. Gibbs has long been open about his Christian faith, but notoriously reserved about articulating his political positions, because, as the old Washington joke goes, "TheRedskins are the only thing that unites the town."[22] As one of the most sought afterA-List figures in Washington social circles for over a quarter-century (and even being referred to as "the most popular man in Washington" by theWashington Post),[23] Gibbs admitted being uneasy addressing the convention, stating that it was "a little awkward to put on a partisan hat."[24]
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Ties | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| WAS | 1981 | 8 | 8 | 0 | .500 | 4th in NFC East | — | — | — | — |
| WAS | 1982 | 8 | 1 | 0 | .889 | 1st in NFC | 4 | 0 | 1.000 | Super Bowl XVII champions |
| WAS | 1983 | 14 | 2 | 0 | .875 | 1st in NFC East | 2 | 1 | .667 | Lost toLos Angeles Raiders inSuper Bowl XVIII |
| WAS | 1984 | 11 | 5 | 0 | .687 | 1st in NFC East | 0 | 1 | .000 | Lost toChicago Bears inNFC Divisional Game |
| WAS | 1985 | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 3rd in NFC East | — | — | — | — |
| WAS | 1986 | 12 | 4 | 0 | .750 | 2nd in NFC East | 2 | 1 | .667 | Lost toNew York Giants inNFC Championship Game |
| WAS | 1987 | 11 | 4 | 0 | .733 | 1st in NFC East | 3 | 0 | 1.000 | Super Bowl XXII champions |
| WAS | 1988 | 7 | 9 | 0 | .438 | 3rd in NFC East | — | — | — | — |
| WAS | 1989 | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 3rd in NFC East | — | — | — | — |
| WAS | 1990 | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 3rd in NFC East | 1 | 1 | .500 | Lost toSan Francisco 49ers inNFC Divisional Game |
| WAS | 1991 | 14 | 2 | 0 | .875 | 1st in NFC East | 3 | 0 | 1.000 | Super Bowl XXVI champions |
| WAS | 1992 | 9 | 7 | 0 | .562 | 3rd in NFC East | 1 | 1 | .500 | Lost toSan Francisco 49ers inNFC Divisional Game |
| WAS | 2004 | 6 | 10 | 0 | .375 | 4th in NFC East | — | — | — | — |
| WAS | 2005 | 10 | 6 | 0 | .625 | 2nd in NFC East | 1 | 1 | .500 | Lost toSeattle Seahawks inNFC Divisional Game |
| WAS | 2006 | 5 | 11 | 0 | .312 | 4th in NFC East | — | — | — | — |
| WAS | 2007 | 9 | 7 | 0 | .562 | 3rd in NFC East | 0 | 1 | .000 | Lost toSeattle Seahawks inNFC Wild Card Game |
| Total | 154 | 94 | 0 | .621 | 17 | 7 | .708 | |||
NFL
NASCAR
Halls of Fame
Other
In 1992, Gibbs co-authoredJoe Gibbs: Fourth and One,[27] and in 2003, he co-authoredRacing to Win. The books resemble a business and life how-to book and motivational guide as he discusses his successes and mistakes in his career, offering the lessons he learned as tips to the readers. In 2009, Gibbs wrote the bookGame Plan for Life which discusses his life in football; how his religious faith can help others and outside of sports, as well as key topics that are important to people trying to lead a contemporary Christian lifestyle.[28]
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