Former Washington Redskins offensive line coach and architect of the famed “Hogs” in the 1980s, Joe Bugel, has died at the age of 80, according to ESPN’s John Keim.
At the time of this writing, no cause of death has been provided.
Bugel’s career spanned 32 years in the NFL, and he was mainly associated with his work while with the Redskins, where he coached the offensive line from 1981 to 1989.
Bugel served as the Redskins offensive coordinator and assistant head coach from 1983 to 1989.
Bugel also served as head coach of the Phoenix Cardinals (now the Arizona Cardinals) from 1990 to 1993.
Bugel would make his return to the the Redskins organization in 2004, when head coach Joe Gibbs made his return to the team, and would remain with the team until his retirement in 2009.
“Joe had an incredible passion for the game of football,” Gibbs said in a statement. “He came to work every day with such great excitement and his players had tremendous respect for him. The strength of our coaching staff on both sides of the ball was a key reason we had so much success. Bugel was such a big part of that and his impact was felt not only by those Redskins’ teams, but truly across the entire League. I will miss his friendship and I will always cherish our late-night arguments putting together the game plan each week.”
“His accomplishments as one of our sport’s truly legendary coaches speak for themselves. But the first thing I think of is how he lived his life and the kind of quality human being Joe Bugel was,” Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill said in a statement. “We join all of those who today celebrate his remarkable life and mourn his passing.”
“I am absolutely devastated by the news of Joe’s passing,” Redskins owner Dan Snyder said in a statement. “Joe was a larger than life figure and a true legend of his profession. He exemplified what it meant to be a Redskin with his character and ability to connect with his players along with a work ethic that was unmatched.”
