Apparently Clinton Portis isn't the only person fed up with first-year head coach Jim Zorn. Redskins fans have had enough, too, it seems. So, naturally, with three games left in the season and Washington, after a 6-2 start, now staring at 7-6 and very slim playoff hopes, the discussion has turned to ... who should replace Zorn.
Makes sense.
The DC Examiner's Rick Snider writes that Zorn "may be vying for his job over the final three games," which, frankly, sounds like a huge stretch, although owner Dan Snyder has a history of impetuousness.
Sports talk callers aren't the only ones wondering whether the Redskins might have Bill Cowher on speed dial for 2009. Redskins Park sources are also pondering if the team's 1-4 collapse to practically ruin its once sure playoff chances could also claim the coach. "The honeymoon is definitely over," said one team insider of Redskins owner Dan Snyder and Zorn. ...I can't imagine that Zorn's job would be in jeopardy, even though the team's won just once in the last five weeks. And assuming that Cowher really has no plans to return to coaching in 2009 (although I suspect getting complete control of player-personnel decisions and $10 million a year might make the decision more difficult), are there other names out there worth the trouble?
Snyder may be readying a season-ending option should the team collapse. Team insiders say losing to Baltimore, 24-10, on Sunday especially rankled the owner, who doesn't like falling to a regional foe. While Snyder will surely dismiss any report of changing coaches, he did the same in October 2001 over Marty Schottenheimer, who was later fired after finishing 8-8 in his only season.
Schottenheimer, maybe, but I'm pretty sure Snyder's not going down that road again. Jim Fassel was passed over a year ago, Josh McDaniels is a lot like Zorn, and then there are names like Brian Billick, Steve Mariucci and Denny Green, former coaches, once successful, who now earn a living as teevee analysts.
Shorter version: Zorn's the Redskins' best option, which I thought was obvious until reading Snider's column.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
12-10-2008 @ 11:28AM
Adam said...
I'm not happy with what's going on with the Skins, but I also don't think that ANOTHER coaching change would fix anything. Few expected any success out of the Redskins this season, saying that a West Coast Offense took 2 or 3 seasons to fully get into, so I'd give everyone, including Campbell and Zorn, at least until the end of next season to get things going.
Maybe (hopefully]) Zorn should bring in an offensive coordinator at the most, but he should remain head coach.
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12-10-2008 @ 11:58AM
Owen said...
I agree with Adam. As frustrated and disappointed as we all are, and having had no real expectations until we were 4-1 and had beat 4 playoff teams, incl. Dallas and Philly on the road, I give Zorn another year or 2. I believe he can be a terrific coach. An offensive coordinator would probably work better, take the pressure off him.... and as much as I love him... I believe Joe Bugel needs to move on..... Hurt saying that.... be smart, not hasty, get that O-line and D-line up to par so we can compete. Hail 2 em !!
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12-12-2008 @ 2:24PM
gwarden said...
i think we need to address the o line as well. i think we need more depth. we are getting a lot of veterens who are still good but they get hurt to easy. what we need is to get rid of springs on defense. he has hurt us more in the past few years rather than help us. if we keep him bring him in on passing situations only in nickle. i think we need to go down the feild in the passing game a little more. zorn is a good coach he needs to give campbell more protection and maybe use short passes early to open up the defense and then hit them deep. i think that we should go for somemore youthful oline and linebackers. youth in general. we have the tools to have a good draft so lets use it
12-10-2008 @ 12:03PM
Rob said...
It's not the coach - it's blocking. Point-blank. The only change we need around here is to build up the line (both sides of the ball, actually). We have the QB, the RBs, and the receivers (some proven, some promising), just need some blocking. The blocking was solid during the 6-2 run and not since. Is it not obvious to everyone else?
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12-15-2008 @ 4:18PM
Jeff said...
Rob, I believe you have it wrong. The problem with the redskins offense is that there is no leader at QB. J. Campbell cannot read defenses, change plays at the line, and he is clue less as to where to throw the ball. He very poor at pocket awareness and can't seem to step up in the pocket. Sure Portis is great running back but when defensive cordinators put 8 to 9 men within the box and Campbell can't throw the slant you don't score points. Remeber when Campbell went out with an injury last season the only thing that changed was QB position. Does it seem to Redskins Fans that at the beginning of this season there was no competition at the QB position given how poor Campbell's performance was and how a veteran like Collins's got the job done. Smell's like the owner is meddling in the coaching of the team.
12-15-2008 @ 5:22PM
Rondeau said...
Rob
you are 100% . You are clearly a student of the game or you have played. . our lines have been a problem for years. We cannot pass protect so we cannot throw deep. Teams figured this out half way through the season so they rush the passer and double team moss..taking away the slant. Game over.
12-10-2008 @ 12:16PM
Edward M. Quinn, Jr. said...
It is so easy to point the finger at the head coach and QB, but let's face it folks, the problem with the Skins at the moment falls on both the Offensive and Defensive lines. We have gone through several draft years not drafting an Offensive or Defensive lineman. It's been a decade now that we haven't drafted either and now it is coming home to haunt us. Any professional QB like Campbell can be a good one if he is given time to throw and the receivers are given enough time to get open. This does not happen often enough due to the poor play and talent of the Offensive line. On the other side of the ball, teams can wait until the final quarter and pick us apart since there is practically no pass rush from our ends and we aren't talent enough up front to stop anyone with a bulldozer of a runner. We have blown threw several receivers in the draft and we have even given up draft choices hoping to get a great receiver. We have failed in that department for sure. So until we get serious about beefing up the Offensive and Defensive lines, we can hire a different head coach each and every year, and we still won't get very far or near the playoffs.
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12-10-2008 @ 12:41PM
Kent said...
The problem I have wth the redskins coaches they don't think a rookie of any position can make a different. they sit'em for a year maybe give them a shot the next year. We need to put kelly in the game, Randel el should be a third screen. Let's get rid of players like Marcus Washinghton, Fletcher, thrash, Griffin,Daniel, we need to rebuild our D line and the entire linebacker position. The O line needs depth maybe get rid of Jansen, Samuel have one or two more good years in him.
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12-10-2008 @ 3:29PM
Brandon said...
Kent, i think you need to re-think about replacing the linebacker spots because ever since London Fletcher got here he has done nothing but impress people. as for Marcus Washington he has been slowed by injuries over the couple of years being here and when he has played he played very well. like many peopl have said we need to attack the o-line and d-line positions not the linebackers. oh and we need to address the secondary also, Fred Smoot NEEDS to go and we need to look into free agency to find some well experienced and well-skilled DBs for next season.
12-11-2008 @ 7:42AM
Steve said...
Hey Kent WHY get rid of a player like " Fletcher " This guy is ProBowl material this year ,if you have the time go check out his stats,like most of the defence he has played his butt off this season and if anything the defence has kept us in all the games this season the way they have played " its the offence that needs sorting out " we might have lost last weekend BUT check out what the Ravens done the second half , untill through no fault of there own being that the defence didnt have time to catch there breath they did nothing.. our offence also came up with a big FAT 0 through the whole match and the points we did get were through defence playing GREAT..
12-10-2008 @ 12:49PM
Larry said...
Hey, I'm so old I remember Jim Zorn from his junior college non-playing days at Cerritos College in Southern California. If I remember right, Jim didn't miss a practice, meeting, drill, or opportunity to help anyway he should. In tweo years, he played a total of ONE actual game minutes.ONE minutes in two years. Yet he never said a peep to the press.
Then he stunned lots of folks when he ended up as a starter/record setter at Cal Poly, and then played 11 seasons in the NFL! No one ever accused him of having the greatest arm or the greatest legs. But he had fire in his belly and an intense desire to play hard every play.
I'm sure Clinton Portis wants to play every offensive down .
I'm equally sure Jim Zorn wants to win every game.
Maybe the guys that play for Zorn should show the same humble toughness he's got, working on a sense of team accomplishment rather than ego.
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12-10-2008 @ 12:57PM
Prince said...
Well, the way I see it, is that we need help on the O-line, if we can't keep anybody out, Jason can't have time to throw the ball, the running game gets bogged down and no points on the board. We really need to beef up the O-line and then the D-line. We can't keep any of the top defenses out, they run over us and that leads to trouble for Campbell.
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12-10-2008 @ 1:12PM
patrick.b.white said...
Dan Synder needs to hire a foot ball mind, someone like a Bill Polian, built the colts and the Carolina teams in their early exsistence, Then build through the draft, over haul the scouting department. I'm tired of of other teams having that kind of success and being competitive for years. Where would the skins defense be if we could have scouted and drafted a Justin Tuck or a Demarco Ware. The poor play of the offensive line has religated Jason Campell to the bad habits of last year that Jim Zorn had worked so hard to correct. The only thing I would say about Zorn is that he needs to be more flexable, I.E. if the offense is stagnent go to a no huddle to jump start them, increase the tempo. As for the defense, Greg Blanche needs to go, he has some talent on defense but his schemes do not fit this defense
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12-10-2008 @ 2:09PM
patrick said...
are you kidding me greg blache needs to go... the redskins have the 5th overall defense in the nfl... the problem is not defense.
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12-10-2008 @ 2:48PM
angry fan said...
No I'm not kidding, He has a lot of defensive talent but yet only 12 turnovers. Ray Charles could pick up the Skins blitz packages, they are horrible. It is too easy to pick up a gap control blitz which the Redskins run, its designed to apply pressure. They need to blitz to wreck havoc, punish QB's and create turnovers. He doesnt not put them in correct pre-snap positions to make plays. Watch the defense of the steelers or Ravens and watch how they blitz one side and zone the other side of the field. With the problems on the offensive side of the ball, they need that even more. They are a good defense, but not a dominant defence.
12-10-2008 @ 2:25PM
Ben said...
So far the posts don't sound like the Skin fans are eager to replace Zorn, so I suggest the author find another way to attract attention. C. Portis has a big mouth and is 99% for himself vs his team. The media has made him a royal pain.
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12-10-2008 @ 2:30PM
LA26 said...
As someone who lives in the area and who follows the team somewhat since Synder has came to town I've noticed a few things about the ownership.
The redskins current culture is set for mediocre performance at best.
What I mean by that is this....Jason Campbell is the ONLY player to my knowledge that the skins have tried to develop.
Each off-season the Redskins get some old vet. with his best days behind him in the off season and they trade away value draft picks which could be used to develop talent.
Redskins have picked up 2 stars since Synder has been there from the draft....Sean Taylor & La'Ron Landry.They were already stars so I didn't include them with my case I was making about Jason Campbell.
They've only had one successful pick up from Free Agency has been Clinton Portis.The rest of there free agent singings in the past 5 years have been mediocre at best.
Synder is looking for the quick fix.That is something that doesn't happen in the NFL.It appears that there measure of success by if they win the title or not instead of consistently progressing as a club towards one.
History constantly repeats itself under new management because they plan for the hear and now instead of the future.
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12-10-2008 @ 3:15PM
the posse said...
I KNOW ONE THING IM TIRED OF LOSING WITH ATEAM THAT WE HAVE BRING BACK GIBBS!!!!!!!!!!!!
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12-10-2008 @ 3:30PM
Daniel Vagnerini said...
First off, London Fletcher is a beast and the best player on our D-Fense. Yes O Line and D LIne are not super caliber this team will take 4 years and a QB change down the line to do so. In 2 to 3 years this offence will be Colts. I am a die hard fan but I am a realist. Jason Campbell is good but hes no fierce leader that everyone on the team respects. SO they will delay the inevitable for now. Release Suggestions(Bugel, Randle El, Thrash, Samuels, Jansen, Griffin, Daniels, Springs, Suishum,Jason Taylor) all get paid ridiculous salaries but dont play like it, so put it somewhere usefull such as. OT, C, OLB, WR, KR, K, P, DE, DT. GM) ohh ya Vinny Ceratos coc addiction got in the way of our draft pics good job you got a one year investment in trade of 2 10 year investments. You are terrible.
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12-10-2008 @ 4:07PM
Lex said...
I say give Zorn the time it takes to make his plan work and it will.
Campbell is just too slow, legs and eyes, to be the top QB we need
The O line is not helping and should be up graded. The D line has done a good job for the most part but you can't expect them to play 40 min every game. I know talent when I see it and Colt could be the guy we need. let collens take the starting QB job for the rest of the year so Colt can see what a starting QB looks like. Keep Zorn.
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