NFL
By: Ryan Cooley
Jay Gruden was fired Monday, and Bill Callahan was named the interim head coach. This firing came to the surprise of no one. Bruce Allen then had a press conference that afternoon to talk about the decision to let Gruden go and the state of the Redskins.
During the press conference, Allen ensured that the Skins are in good hands and the future is bright. This, of course, is only believed by himself and Dan Snyder. Anyone that has kept up with the Redskins knows they are far away from being contenders and that they could not be in worse hands.
Here are the three biggest problems with the franchise right now
Dan Synder
Daniel Snyder purchased the Redskins in 1999. In his 20 years, he has been through seven head coaches. Snyder has made it clear he wants to win, but only his way. No business can be successful when the owner or boss is constantly breathing down everyone’s neck.
Snyder meddles in nearly every decision that is made. He has said before to newly hired coaches that they have the key to this team and to do whatever it takes to bring this organization back to success. That is, of course, until they make a decision that Snyder does not agree with.
Mike Shanahan voiced his displeasure with having to give up three first-round picks for RG3. He said, “I just didn’t think it was very smart to give up that much for a guy who we didn’t even know if he could drop back and throw.” For Snyder, that might as well have gone in one ear and out the other.
Snyder is the type of person that craves validation. We see this when he consistently signs big-name players like Haynesworth in 2009, Norman in 2016, and Collins this past offseason. He is always trying to land big names to impress others and to show that he is the man in charge. When an owner is more concerned about popularity and how he pulled off some big move, that team will never be successful.
Bruce Allen
“The culture is actually damn good.” These are the words that sputtered out of Bruce Allen’s mouth Monday afternoon. I cannot imagine thinking everything is okay when the team you put together is 0-5.
If this culture is “damn good,” I would like to know what it even is. I guarantee if anyone asked the players in the locker room what the culture is, they would get different answers. When you have a culture, it needs to be identifiable. The Patriots created the “Patriot Way” where every player is selfless and does their job. They do not care about personal stats; the only thing that matters is winning.
Bruce Allen is 59-89-1 with only three winning seasons since being hired in 2010. Whatever “culture” he thinks the Redskins have, is clearly not working. For him to say this team is in a good position for success instead of accepting the fact that he has failed in his 9 ½ years with Washington, shows just what type of person is running this once great franchise.
The Trent Williams Situation
Another problem with this team is their arrogance. That was on full display when someone asked Allen if they were going to consider trading Trent Williams. He quickly responded with a no and treated the question like it was the most ridiculous thing he had ever heard.
Reports came out at the beginning of Trent’s holdout that he was worth at least a first-rounder, if not more. Imagine having the audacity to make a player that has gone through all the ups and downs with this organization and not granting him his only request. Williams has made it clear he is done in Washington, yet Allen is content with letting him sit at home.
This is a team that needs desperate help, and while a first-round pick will not solve everything, it sure would help. I am not sure if they will ever come to their senses, but they have mishandled this situation as poorly as you can.
Overall, the firing of Jay Gruden does not mean much when you have two egotistical clowns running the show. I wish I could say that this team’s future is bright. However, even after a coaching change, this is simply not the case. Redskins fans are staring down a dark tunnel that has no glimmer of hope.
Until Allen is fired and either Snyder puts the Redskins on the market or finally puts his ego to the side, I do not see much of a chance that this franchise can sustain or at the very least, find success.
