The Washington Redskins over the past decade or so have become known around the football world as the champions for their wheeling-and-dealing in free agency and overall off-season maneuvers. Whether it is a new player or a coaching acquisition, the burgundy and gold have made quite the splash over the years.
In 2015 things are no different as this season is off to a scorching pace as well. Immediately after their porous 2014 campaign mercilessly came to an end, the team endured one of the most awkward and embarrassing press conferences that I or anyone who has covered this team has ever witnessed. Team President and former General Manager Bruce Allen totally sidestepped questions about the team’s direction with regard to personnel and scouting. To his credit however, he hinted at changes that could be made in the front office. The line that struck a resounding chord was Allen’s infamous: “We are winning off of the field.”
That quote is what has summed up the Redskins during the (owner) Dan Snyder era. A once proud franchise on the field has had to constantly beat the drum about what they are doing off of it. In a sport which focuses on what is accomplished between the hash marks, the team known as a monument in the Washington, D.C. community has had to remind its devout fan base of this off-the-field winning over and over again.
Talk about striking out at the plate by not even swinging. Sorry… wrong sport.
Since that ill-fated day, Allen’s prognostication has come true. The team has made changes to the front office as long-time talent evaluating Ace and former San Francisco 49ers’ GM Scot McCloughan was hired into the same role in Washington. This was a strong move by the Redskins and should instantly enhance their drafts and talent grades. McCloughan is well-respected around league circles and is considered one of the brightest minds in the business when it comes to finding and grading talent.
The next series of moves that were made were to the coaching staff. The team brought in Bill Callahan as offensive line coach, replacing Chris Forrester. Callahan is an offensive line guru so his hire is sorely needed for a much maligned unit. He can also become a voice for head coach Jay Gruden who may need a person who has experience in the role of running a team. Callahan was previously head coach for the Oakland Raiders as well as one at the University of Nebraska for the Cornhuskers.
Washington also brought in Perry Fewell to light a fire in the secondary. Fewell comes from the New York Giants where, although highly regarded, he was under fire for a poorly performing defensive unit that he oversaw as coordinator. His strength as a secondary’s coach however should not be denied as he has been widely successful when coaching that position. He replaces former secondary coach Raheem Morris who has been hired under the same role for the Atlanta Falcons.
The team hired a new defensive coordinator in Joe Barry. He replaces the mercurial Jim Haslett whose defensive units struggled to find and maintain a rhythm. For all of the young talented players on the Redskins’ defensive side of the ball, the unit could never play cohesively and seemed to be built as a way to showcase individual talents.
Barry must find a way to get 11 guys to fly to the ball and make plays for a full game.
Speaking of making plays, Gruden has entrusted his two young quarterbacks on the roster with a new position coach in former NFL quarterback and longtime assistant Matt Cavanaugh. Cavanaugh will be stuck with the dubious task of getting the most out of Robert Griffin III and Kirk Cousins’ talents.
Griffin is the undisputed leader as the opening-day starting quarterback so far. But if that does not matriculate, then the young signal caller will assuredly be ousted out of D.C.
For all of the success RGIII had in his rookie campaign — during which he was NFL Rookie of the Year — the past two seasons have been filled with innuendo and drama. Some of this was brought on by Griffin’s early success but it was also caused, in part, by the organizations “hell-bent” ways to establish him as its cash cow and savior all in the same breath. No matter what he does — short of leading this team into the playoffs (and perhaps a Super Bowl appearance) — the local airways and fans will question whether or not he is a bust.
In defense of the two young quarterbacks, if the moves made this off-season had been made when they were each first- and fourth-round draft picks in the 2012 draft, none of these issues would have surfaced.
Only time will tell if the new coaching hires and additions to the front office will work… or, whether the draft picks made under a full time GM will pan out.
The team must find the right pieces to be competitive over the long haul. It must acquire the type of players who will be successful both on the field and in the locker room. This upcoming draft will be one of the most important ones in recent memory as the team needs to be dead-on with their top picks. The Redskins do not have the luxury of drafting and hoping that down the road the player pans out. Instant success is needed and fortunately for Washington, there are several prospects who can immediately come in and make a difference (my full draft preview is coming).
History however, is not on the Redskins side. But then again, they previously were not functioning as a typical NFL team before the McCloughan hire.
One thing is for sure… they have, yet again, poured out that thick burgundy and gold Kool-Aid that they pass out every off-season to their fans. This time though, the Kool-Aid might actually taste sweet. I know fans hope so.