Fan from Annapolis said, with justifiable scepticism,
As of now, I want to believe Gibbs, it's just that I can't be sure that any players exist who will excell and then not ask for the salary to back up their skills (as much as those skills might come from being on Gibbs' team). Loyalty of that type doesn't seem to be considered a virtue anymore in the NFL.
Recall that the Gibbs teams rarely had all-pro players. The SB 17 team had Theisman, Riggins, and Butz, each of whom had been somebody else's first round pick, they had Mark May, and they had Monk -- who helped get them to the playoffs, but was hurt in the last regular season game. The rest of the team was made from 10th rounders and undrafted free-agents. Ah, yes, and Dexter Manley was about a 4th round pick. I have the broadcast tape, and I remember that one of the announcers, maybe Merlin Olsen (how's that for a name from the past?), said, with as gasp, "this is a team full of strays and free agents and castoffs!"
OK, does that matter?
Maybe, yes, it still does.
- Gibbs never lets anyone know how good he is. Bill Walsh was the self-proclaimed genius of the '80s, and Gibbs was "that other guy"...
- It rubs off. It's leadership by example, rather than boss-ness. The players come to imitate Gibbs in attitude.
- Even in pro-sports, professional respect counts, often more than individual $. I expect that the Redskin players will begin to play for Gibbs's respect and praise. If Champ Bailey wants money more than he wants respect from the best coach in pro-football, then that's a character defect.
- Gibbs-Petibon-Bugel chose players like Bostic, Big Joe J., Charles Mann, and kept guys like Don Warren, Olkiewicz and Monte Coleman. All were good, but none of them were flashy players at flashy positions. Even the great players at the glamor positions fit the Gibbs way. Compare Darrell Green to Neon Deion, or to Champ Bailey. Who would wyou want in a big game?
- Those players fit into the Gibbs/Petibon/Bugel system, which starts from the offensive and defensive lines. Those positions are more likely to have workmen players, who have a typical salary below the glitzy backs. That's hopeful.
