Bill McPeak

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American football player and coach (1926–1991)

title: "Bill McPeak" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1926-births", "1991-deaths", "detroit-lions-coaches", "eastern-conference-pro-bowl-players", "miami-dolphins-coaches", "nfl-announcers", "nfl-general-managers", "new-england-patriots-executives", "new-england-patriots-scouts", "pittsburgh-panthers-football-players", "pittsburgh-steelers-coaches", "pittsburgh-steelers-players", "sportspeople-from-new-castle,-pennsylvania", "players-of-american-football-from-lawrence-county,-pennsylvania", "st.-louis-cardinals-(football)-announcers", "washington-redskins-coaches", "washington-redskins-executives", "washington-redskins-head-coaches", "nfl-offensive-coordinators"] description: "American football player and coach (1926–1991)" topic_path: "law" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_McPeak" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary American football player and coach (1926–1991) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox NFL biography"]

Field	Value
name	Bill McPeak
image	Bill McPeak 1961 (cropped).jpg
caption	McPeak in 1961
number	37, 84
position	Defensive end
birth_date
birth_place	New Castle, Pennsylvania, U.S.
death_date
death_place	Foxboro, Massachusetts, U.S.
height_ft	6
height_in	1
weight_lb	208
high_school	New Castle
college	Notre Dame
Pittsburgh
draftyear	1948
draftround	16
draftpick	142
statlabel1	Games played
statvalue1	105
statlabel2	Games started
statvalue2	82
statlabel3	Fumble recoveries
statvalue3	7
coachregrecord
pfr	McPeBi00
pfrcoach	McPeBi0
pfrexec	McPeBi0
::

Cleveland Browns (1949)*
Pittsburgh Steelers () | pastcoaching =
Pittsburgh Steelers () Defensive line
Washington Redskins () Assistant
Washington Redskins () Head coach/general manager
Detroit Lions () Offensive coordinator
Miami Dolphins () Offensive coordinator
Chicago Winds (1975) Offensive coordinator
Philadelphia Bell (1975) Offensive coordinator | highlights =
Super Bowl champion (VIII) | statlabel1 = Games played | statvalue1 = 105 | statlabel2 = Games started | statvalue2 = 82 | statlabel3 = Fumble recoveries | statvalue3 = 7 | coachregrecord = | pfr = McPeBi00 | pfrcoach = McPeBi0 | pfrexec = McPeBi0

William Patrick McPeak (July 24, 1926 – May 7, 1991) was an American professional football player and coach in the National Football League (NFL). He was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the 16th round of the 1948 NFL draft, playing nine seasons for them. He also was the head coach of the Washington Redskins and offensive coordinator of the Miami Dolphins.

Playing career

Born in New Castle, Pennsylvania, McPeak was a star defensive end for the University of Pittsburgh. He was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers where he played from 1949 to 1957. During the final two years of his playing career he also became an assistant coach for the team.

Head coaching career

In 1959, McPeak joined the Washington Redskins as an assistant under head coach Mike Nixon. After Nixon's dismissal following the 1960 NFL season, McPeak was promoted to head coach and general manager on December 19, 1960; he was the youngest head coach in the league at the age of 34. He remained in that position until 1965. It was McPeak that persuaded team owner George Preston Marshall to go with Norm Snead as their quarterback with their first round pick in 1961 (over players such as Fran Tarkenton, picked two rounds later by Minnesota). A five-win season in 1962 was their highest in five years; it was the first with Bobby Mitchell, who they traded for to make the first black player in franchise history.

McPeak got a two-year contract and raise after winning six games in 1964. He was then fired after the next season.

Although the Redskins did not have a winning season under McPeak with an overall 21-46-3 record, the team acquired players, many of whom would become future Hall of Famers, that would eventually play a part in their later winning years. They include Sonny Jurgensen, Bobby Mitchell, Charley Taylor, Jerry Smith, Len Hauss, and Chris Hanburger.

McPeak was fired after 1965 for Otto Graham, who was given a ten-year contract by team president Edward Bennett Williams.

Later coaching and scouting

After spending the 1966 season as a color commentator for St. Louis Cardinals games on CBS, McPeak joined the Detroit Lions as an offensive coordinator in 1967, a position he held until 1972 when he moved on to the Miami Dolphins to replace Howard Schnellenberger who became head coach of the Baltimore Colts. His tenure in Miami would last for only two seasons due to complications suffered after a stroke, which he spent several years recovering from. He would later join the New England Patriots after returning to health, where he became director of scouting for twelve years.

McPeak died of a heart attack on May 7, 1991, at the age of 64 at his home in Foxboro, Massachusetts.

References

"Bill McPeak". Sports Reference LLC.
"Bill Cowher Is Ready To Coach the Washington Redskins".
https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1979/07/24/mcpeak-returns-to-football-as-head-scout-for-patriots/714ad93a-a35e-4fed-a
"Remembering the 30th Anniversary Season".
(December 12, 1964). "REDSKINS RAISE M'PEak's SALARY; Sign Coach for Two Years at Substantial Increase". The New York Times.
"Washington Redskins". Sports Illustrated Vault | SI.com.

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