Washington Redskins Need a Change In Philosophy

Mike Shanahan will not be the Washington Redskins head coach in 2014. At this point, its just a matter of when that decision will officially be made.

Washington dropped their fifth straight game Sunday to the Kansas City Chiefs, losing 45-10. It was the team’s third straight home loss and it happened in front of an announced crowd of 56,247. That number was probably cut more than half by the start of the third quarter. By fourth quarter it was probably about 1,500 people left to witness what was the worst attended game in FedEx Field history.

If there’s two things Washington Redskins Owner Dan Snyder doesn’t like, it’s empty seats and losing.

The past three weeks have been full of reports “leaking” out prior to Washington’s games. Most recently, Sunday’s ESPN report citing sources that say Mike Shanahan considered quitting prior to the team’s playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks. The report says that Shanahan has been dissatisfied with the relationship between Owner Dan Snyder and QB Robert Griffin III.

Shanahan had an opportunity to completely knockdown the rumors in his post game presser, like he always does — but he didn’t.

“First of all, I want to talk about some of the things that were floating around this morning,” Shanahan said in his opening statement. “It’s not the right time or place to talk about my relationship with [Redskins Owner] Dan Snyder, or it’s not the right time and place to talk about something that happened a year ago. I will get a chance to talk to Dan at the end of the season, and I will give him some viewpoints from me, and I’m sure he will give me his thoughts. I’m not sure what direction we will go, but we will communicate that at the right time. I take full responsibility for this game today.  I didn’t have the players ready to play. I thought they were ready to play. We did, obviously, horrendous on special teams. We gave up big play after big play. We didn’t tackle like we normally tackle on defense. Offensively, we did a couple of good things, [but] couldn’t get anything going in the second half. I will put that all on me.”

It was one of the most bizarre press conferences Shanahan has ever had as Washington’s head coach. He had numerous of opportunities to refute the report, but he didn’t. Why? Because the report came from a legit person out of Shanahan’s camp, if not the man himself. Accountability is not in Shanahan’s DNA, so what does he do? Take an easy shot at the owner of the Washington Redskins.

Accountability is an issue in that locker room. Its one of the reasons there’s a disconnect between the QB and the guys in charge of the offense.

Here’s the thing, yes Dan Snyder and Robert Griffin III have a good relationship. But so did Jim Irsay and Peyton Manning — now it’s Andrew Luck. Former Washington Redskins’ CB Shawn Springs talked during the team’s post game show about how he witnessed New England’s owner Robert Kraft interact with Tom Brady in ways he wouldn’t with any other player. Springs said Kraft would even join Brady for a jog on the treadmill during his tenure with the team. The Owner-Franchise QB relationship is nothing unique for Snyder and Robert Griffin III. It happens with most, if not all franchise QBs. But Shanahan (or people in his camp) sought an easy opportunity to take criticism off himself and cast blame on the perceived “meddling owner.”

The truth is, Dan Snyder isn’t the guy he used to be thanks to GM Bruce Allen. Although things seem very grim in Washington, the culture is not what it used to be. The team just needs to win. In order to do that, they’ll need a change of philosophy.

Bruce Allen isn’t going anywhere. And for the Washington Redskins, that’s a great thing. He’s one of the few people who Snyder trusts and will answer to.

As said, Mike Shanahan’s departure is inevitable at this point. When the move is made, Washington will begin their coaching search with a criteria of no retreads, an offensive mind and a guy who can further develop Robert Griffin III.

For the past several weeks, we’ve discussed Griffin’s former coach Art Briles as the top candidate to replace Shanahan. He continues to be the top target.

In a conference call Sunday night, Briles was asked about the Redskins’ job — “I’ve had zero contact with anybody,” he said. “I’m a Baylor Bear. So that’s all I’m concerned with.” Two sources close to him say that although Briles has not been contacted about the job, he hasn’t closed the door on a move to the NFL.

Bruce Allen and Dan Snyder like Art Briles. They also know the team has the one guy who could convince Briles to leave the state of Texas — Robert Griffin III. It would be the change of philosophy the team needs. He believes in physical, fast football. He’s also a motivator and simply a guy everyone likes. If you follow Baylor football, you’d know that he’s excellent with media. He’d be a great fit. But the biggest obstacle will be getting him out of Texas. He’s coached there for 43 years.

One thing is for certain, Washington will have a new head coach. However, unlike the past, this won’t be a culture change or rebuilding project. This is a team that has a franchise QB and is capable of winning the NFC East in 2014. Bruce Allen is key to keeping the culture in tact. A move that’s likely to happen is Allen moving up to Team President and the team hiring a true GM. Mike Shanahan has had the final say on player personnel during his tenure. Having a true GM and a good Head Coach is a combination Dan Snyder has never had or tried. The favorite for that position appears to be current Director of Player Personnel, Morocco Brown. He’s a guy who the team trusts and likes a lot.

The Washington Redskins are not that far from being a good team. But this ego-filled, forced script philosophy is old and tired. They need to focus on putting the right pieces around their franchise Quarterback before it’s too late.

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