After only two football seasons in the Redskins organization, the ‘offensive genius’ Steve Spurrier quit. In an official press release, he apologized to Redskins fans for “not achieving the level of success that we had hoped for.” Well duh.
He added that, “This is a very demanding job. It’s a long grind and I feel that after 20 years as a head coach, there are other things that I need to do.”
I guess have a winning NFL season wasn’t one of those things.
The Money
Details of Spurrier’s resignation have yet to be determined by his agent Jimmy Sexton and owner Daniel Snyder. The Redskins will likely be off the hook for the remaining $15 million in salary of the ‘ole ball coach’.
Snyder has to be disappointed that his honeymoon with the guy he wanted all along is over. But hopefully he doesn’t have to keep paying him. He did quit after all. Right? Or was it one of those forced quits to avoid seeing Steve Spurrier Fired in the headlines?
One could also point out that maybe Snyder should have to pay the remainder of the salary as a sort of “stupid tax“. There is a lot of “I told you so,” going around.
In With A Bang, Out With A Whimper
Spurrier’s dismal record of 12-20 was surpassed only by his abysmal 2-10 NFC East division record. He did however, look to have the Redskins on the right track early in the season with a 3-1 start.
Then the walls came crashing down as the Skins would manage only two victories in their last 12 games. Two.
Given Tools
In his second season, the man who was supposed to bring a high octane offense to the NFL could manage just a 23rd overall ranking. Ugh.
Last year Spurrier had the excuse of not having the ‘tools’ to execute his ballyhooed Fun ‘N Gun. In 2003, he could make no such claim. Washington brought in one of the top receivers in the NFL in Laveranues Coles to go with their young gunslinger Patrick Ramsey. They also made numerous additions to the offensive line to shore up protection for the quarterback. But none of it worked.
Poor execution, poor coaching, poor playing… all of it made it impossible for Washington to have any success.
What’s Next?
And so the Redskins begin their search for their 5th head coach in Snyder’s tenure. There are many coaches suddenly looking for work such as former Giants coach Jim Fassel, former Bears coach Dick Jauron, and former Cardinals coach Dave McGinnis. The Redskins could also look to a presently unemployed guy like Tom Coughlin, Dennis Green or Jimmy Johnson.
Whomever they hire… they will likely be cleaning house again in Washington. Never an easy thing to go through as an organization.
Edit: This blog was archived in May of 2016 from our original articles database.It was originally posted by Mark Solway.