The song "Hail to the Redskins" may have to be amended to "Hail to Joe Gibbs."
The Revival Tour for the beloved coach who led the Washington Redskins to the greatest decade in their history begins Sunday with a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at FedEx Field.
Elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1996, Gibbs has returned to the scene of his glory after an 11-year sabbatical. Under Gibbs from 1981-92, the Redskins went 140-65 and won three three Super Bowls. Since his departure, they went 74-101-1 and won just one playoff game.
Gibbs ran a very successful NASCAR team and also was a minority owner of the Atlanta Falcons . But once Steve Spurrier resigned in Washington, Gibbs knew where he belonged. So did Redskins owner Daniel Snyder, who made Gibbs the highest-paid coach in NFL history with a five-year, $28.5 million deal.
The 63-year-old Gibbs also lured some of his old staffers out of retirement - offensive line coach Joe Bugel, offensive coordinator Don Breaux, tight ends coach Rennie Simmons, quarterbacks coach Jack Burns and offensive consultant Ernie Zampese.
"As far as I'm concerned the talent has always been here," Redskins three-time Pro Bowl linebacker LaVar Arrington said. "Now we have the coaching."
Jon Gruden coached Tampa Bay to a Super Bowl title just two years ago. But Gruden cleaned house in the offseason, turning over roughly half the roster.
Defensive tackle Warren Sapp , safety John Lynch and receiver Keyshawn Johnson were among those purged by Gruden. The offensive line features four new starters and running back Charlie Garner , receivers Tim Brown , Joey Galloway and Michael Clayton , the team's first-round pick, will have prominent roles in the Bucs' West Coast offense.
Bucs quarterback Brad Johnson played two seasons for the Redskins, earning a trip to the Pro Bowl in 1999. He had a career-high 26 touchdown passes last season, including four in a 35-13 win here last October 12.
The Bucs took advantage of Spurrier's poor protection schemes, recording six sacks and forcing four turnovers. This time, Bucs defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin better get ready to defend the "counter trey," one of Gibbs' staples with two-time 1,500-yard rusher Clinton Portis leading the charge.
The Redskins acquired Portis from Denver in the offseason for Pro Bowl cornerback Champ Bailey . Gibbs won his Super Bowl titles with three different quarterbacks. Mark Brunell , who was acquired from Jacksonville in the offseason, will try to become the fourth. He was 63-54 as a starting quarterback with the Jacksonville Jaguars from 1995-2003.
On defense, the Redskins added safety Sean Taylor , the fifth overall pick in the 2004 draft, cornerback Shawn Springs , defensive tackle Cornelius Griffin and linebacker Marcus Washington .
Matchup to watch: Buccaneers right end Simeon Rice against two-time Pro Bowl left tackle Chris Samuels . Rice has 15 sacks each of the last two years.
Series: Washington leads, 6-5, but Tampa Bay has won five of the last seven meetings.
Next week: Tampa Bay hosts Seattle, September 19 Washington at New York Giants , September 19
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