Gunther Cunningham passed away at age of 72

[O.city]

Former Chiefs coach Gunther Cunningham dead at 72 https://t.co/dWYIraBHpc

— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) May 13, 2019

[Rausch]

Originally Posted by Frazod

Yeah, and he probably wanted to straight up murder Sutton and everybody on the defense, too.

Gun was the perfect example of the hero living long enough to become the villain. When the game moves past you it does so overnight.

Gun was about stopping the run and rushing the passer. When the game shifted to more of a passing game it became about coverage and rushing the passer. Stuffing the run was no longer important and it took a number of years for some coordinators to catch on.

A defense has to prevent being predictable. It doesn't matter what you run - if an offense knows where you'll be they can beat you. And while working harder, wanting it more, and sticking to it might be the right way to attack life it's not the cure-all in the NFL like it use to be.

I loved Gun's personality and that personality made me cheer for him despite out dated philosophies as a coordinator.

I'll miss him. And in a world of kinder-gentler everything I think the world will miss guys like him...

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

After a decade-plus of some of the most pathetic and pussified defense I've ever seen, I don't give a damn that Gunther Cunningham wasn't the smartest DC in the league.
what I do care about, is that he was the very embodiment of what an NFL defense was supposed to be about; toughness, aggression, and absolutely refusing to quit. Gun took pride in beating the shit out of our opponents and that is something we desperately need to get back. I can think of no greater tribute or honor than for the Kansas City Chiefs defense to come out swinging in 2019, and tearing the heads off of our opponents from start to finish. That would be acceptable.
RIP.

[redfan]

Leave it to JoPo to write a fantastic article about a guy not a lot of folks outside of the KC/Det area would know. I really wish Gun was still around the org to see what happens in the near future. I never thought he was given the proper tools to succeed in KC, but 'thems the breaks' in this league. Really loved his fire on the sidelines.

[gblowfish]

JoPoz took a lot of shit for writing his book about Paterno, but there's no denying he's a great writer.I saw Gun a lot in his days with KC. He coached some in the booth, and some on the sidelines. When he was DC he chewed smokeless and was spitting all the time. When he became HC they made him give up chew (he was on camera too much) and he started chewing sunflower seeds. He could cuss a blue streak to make a longshoreman blush. It was obvious he loved his players. DT's death really affected him deeply. He was one of my favorite all time Chiefs coaches, not head coach, but staff coach. He was genuine, passionate, a maniac. The kind of guy you want on your staff. I think the Chiefs should do a patch for him on the jerseys this season.

[Rausch]

Originally Posted by Sweet Daddy Hate

After a decade-plus of some of the most pathetic and pussified defense I've ever seen, I don't give a damn that Gunther Cunningham wasn't the smartest DC in the league.
what I do care about, is that he was the very embodiment of what an NFL defense was supposed to be about; toughness, aggression, and absolutely refusing to quit. Gun took pride in beating the shit out of our opponents and that is something we desperately need to get back. I can think of no greater tribute or honor than for the Kansas City Chiefs defense to come out swinging in 2019, and tearing the heads off of our opponents from start to finish. That would be acceptable.
RIP.

My favorite was after we lost the No-Punt game to the Colts in the playoffs they re-hired Gun. I believe his quote was "the sonofabitch will punt this time" or something very close. We physically beat their ass when we played them the following season...

[Sweet Daddy Hate]

Originally Posted by Rausch

My favorite was after we lost the No-Punt game to the Colts in the playoffs they re-hired Gun. I believe his quote was "the sonofabitch will punt this time" or something very close. We physically beat their ass when we played them the following season...

As we should. Coaches that carry competitive grudges and seek to destroy their opponents are exactly the kind of coaches that you need on a defense.

[Jimkcchief88]

Originally Posted by milkshock

A good man. Had a no BS approach he would not have allowed the disgraceful defense we witnessed last season.

Exactly RIP guns!!

[Jimkcchief88]

Originally Posted by Sweet Daddy Hate

After a decade-plus of some of the most pathetic and pussified defense I've ever seen, I don't give a damn that Gunther Cunningham wasn't the smartest DC in the league.
what I do care about, is that he was the very embodiment of what an NFL defense was supposed to be about; toughness, aggression, and absolutely refusing to quit. Gun took pride in beating the shit out of our opponents and that is something we desperately need to get back. I can think of no greater tribute or honor than for the Kansas City Chiefs defense to come out swinging in 2019, and tearing the heads off of our opponents from start to finish. That would be acceptable.
RIP.

This.

[Jimkcchief88]

Originally Posted by Rausch

Gun was the perfect example of the hero living long enough to become the villain. When the game moves past you it does so overnight.

Gun was about stopping the run and rushing the passer. When the game shifted to more of a passing game it became about coverage and rushing the passer. Stuffing the run was no longer important and it took a number of years for some coordinators to catch on.

A defense has to prevent being predictable. It doesn't matter what you run - if an offense knows where you'll be they can beat you. And while working harder, wanting it more, and sticking to it might be the right way to attack life it's not the cure-all in the NFL like it use to be.

I loved Gun's personality and that personality made me cheer for him despite out dated philosophies as a coordinator.

I'll miss him. And in a world of kinder-gentler everything I think the world will miss guys like him...

Funny part is the game hasn’t really changed all that much. If we would stopped the run and rushed the passer we would have beaten TB12 in the AFC Championship game.

[FlorentinePogen]

Tim Grunhard had a good interview about Gunther on 810 about an hour ago:

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by Rausch

My favorite was after we lost the No-Punt game to the Colts in the playoffs they re-hired Gun. I believe his quote was "the sonofabitch will punt this time" or something very close. We physically beat their ass when we played them the following season...

I think he was also the one who called out Paul Hackett for giving up on third downs. He mentioned being up in the booth and asking Paul why he was throwing three yard passes on third and eight, and Hackett said something like, "We'll pick up a few yards and it'll help us when we get the ball back later". Gunther strongly disapproved of that mindset.

Man, I still hate Paul Hackett.

[Hammock Parties]

Deeply saddened about the news of Coach Cunningham. Coach was an all around great guy. Although he was a "field general" who demanded excellence on the field, he was a players coach. He always put players in the position to make plays. My prayers go out to his close ones. ��

— Neil Smith (@NeilSmith_NFL) May 14, 2019

[gblowfish]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

I think he was also the one who called out Paul Hackett for giving up on third downs. He mentioned being up in the booth and asking Paul why he was throwing three yard passes on third and eight, and Hackett said something like, "We'll pick up a few yards and it'll help us when we get the ball back later". Gunther strongly disapproved of that mindset.

Man, I still hate Paul Hackett.

Throwing short of the first down sticks on third down makes me crazy.

[lcarus]

Originally Posted by FAX

Rest in peace ...

There are some good players in Heaven, Gun. Line 'em up.

FAX

This. If there's no football in heaven, what's the point

[jerryaldini]

Love **** family fun night. My kind of attitude. Enough with chuck e cheese. Unfortunately, when you google **** family fun night you get disgusting incest porn. Peace to his loved ones.