Charlie Joiner Charles B . Joiner Jr . ( born October 14 , 1947 ) is a former American football player who starred in professional football for eighteen seasons , virtually exclusively at the position of wide receiver . He retired with the most career receptions , receiving yards , and games played of any wide receiver in NFL history . He was elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1996 . Joiner was last the wide receivers coach of the San Diego Chargers . He was hired by the Chargers on January 23 , 2008 , following seven seasons in the same coaching position with the Kansas City Chiefs . Joiner graduated from Grambling State University in 1969 and was drafted in the fourth round by the American Football League ' s Houston Oilers . He started his career as a defensive back , but he made the switch to wide receiver in his rookie year after being carted off the field from a hit by Denver Broncos running back Floyd Little . Joiner played for Houston until 1972 , when he was traded to Cincinnati . From 1972 to 1975 he played for the Cincinnati Bengals . In 1975 he was traded to the San Diego Chargers , with whom he remained for eleven seasons before retiring as a player after the 1986 season . Before leaving the Bengals , he set a franchise record with 200 receiving yards in a single game . It was with the Chargers ' high flying " Air Coryell " offense under coach Don Coryell that Joiner had his most productive years , exceeding 1 , 000 yards receiving in a season four times and going to three Pro Bowl s ( 1976 , 1979 – 80 ) . Joiner was selected All - Pro in 1980 and 2nd Team All - AFC in 1976 . Although he never played in a Super Bowl , Joiner helped the Chargers reach the AFC title game in the 1980 and 1981 seasons . In the 1980 AFC championship game , he caught 6 passes for 130 yards and 2 touchdowns . In January 1982 , he played a key role in San Diego ' s 41 - 38 divisional postseason overtime win over the Miami Dolphins in a game that is known in NFL Lore as The Epic In Miami . Joiner caught 7 passes for 108 yards in the game , including 2 key receptions on his team ' s game winning drive in overtime . His 29 - yard reception on the penultimate play of the game set up the winning field goal . Joiner finished his 18 AFL / NFL seasons with 750 receptions for 12 , 146 yards and 65 touchdowns . He retired as the then - NFL leader in career receptions , yards , and games played by a wide receiver ( 239 ) . Joiner credited his success and longevity to Coryell : " Thanks to Coach Coryell ’ s offense and his revolutionary passing game , he prolonged my career , from the day I got to the Chargers until the day I retired . I will forever be grateful to him and what he did for the game of football . ” In addition to good health and longevity , Joiner was an intelligent player and precise pass route runner . Hall of Fame coach Bill Walsh called Joiner " the most intelligent , the smartest , the most calculating receiver the game has ever known . " Following his playing career , Joiner successfully transitioned into a receiver ' s coach with the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Diego Chargers . Joiner was the last former American Football League player ( Oilers , 1969 ) to retire from Professional Football , in 1986 . In 1999 , he was ranked number 100 on " The Sporting News " ' list of the 100 Greatest Football Players .