The-Hogs.net - Washington Football Discussion, Redskins to Commanders Era

MIAMI - They plum missed him.
Joe Gibbs ambled out onto the field here at Pro Player Stadium for a preseason game and a sellout crowd of 72,112 failed to acknowledge the return of a Hall of Fame coach.

That won't be the case Sunday afternoon at FedEx Field, where Gibbs provides a riveting story line as he leads the Redskins into the season opener against the Bucs.

``He's like Mick Jagger,'' said Tampa Bay coach Jon Gruden, who was 17 when Gibbs first arrived in the nation's capital in 1981. ``Joe Gibbs hasn't been on tour a lot lately, but he comes back and he rocks the house and does a heck of a job. There are some things you don't forget. That guy's got great command and he's a Hall of Fame coach. Once you're a Hall of Fame guy, you always are.''

Time isn't on Gibbs' side as he attempts to recapture past glory.

Some Redskin fans will still need him and feed him when he turns 64 on Nov. 25, but Gibbs has a new generation of supporters to win over after retiring on March 5, 1993, to build a highly successful NASCAR racing team.

``It's the same Joe, only smarter,'' said Washington quarterbacks coach Jack Burns, a Redskins assistant under Gibbs from 1989-91. ``He's more experienced and just as relentless. You can't help but feel the man's passion.''

After three Super Bowl victories and a 140-65 record in 12 seasons, Gibbs walked away from a 20-year NFL career that included a one- year stint (1978) as Tampa Bay's offensive coordinator.

When Steve Spurrier resigned after a 5-11 debacle, it took all of Gibbs' fortitude to tell his wife, Pat, that he was contemplating another string of long nights at Redskins Park.

``Pat goes, `Are you crazy? You can't do that again,' '' Gibbs recalled. ``I think the odds are stacked against me. To go back and be real successful is extremely hard. It's next to impossible, but it's a great challenge. I have a peace about this; I think I'm where I'm supposed to be now. It may be to get some real lessons, to get pounded around.''

For Bucs personnel executive Doug Williams, any pounding might as well start Sunday.

``Joe is what he is ... a character guy who knows people and knows his system,'' said Williams, who earned Super Bowl MVP honors for Gibbs' 1987 Redskins. ``Some people might say he's got his cronies back as assistants, but in Joe's case, these are the people he went to the dance with. There will always be a place in my heart for Joe Gibbs, but I sure hope he doesn't start off on a good foot.''

Eight years after being enshrined in Canton, Ohio, Gibbs isn't about to change his approach.

According to Williams, the Mocksville, N.C., native clings to an NFL formula for success that involves winning the turnover battle and rushing for at least 150 yards.

``Joe is such a warm and engaging person, and he's really at the genesis of what we do on offense,'' Rams coach Mike Martz said. ``The moving, the shifting, the bunch formations, the multiple formations. The only team to ever do that at that time was Joe Gibbs.''

A Bucs defense featuring three new starters will be challenged Sunday as Gibbs strolls the Washington sideline after an 11-year absence.

There are a few new wrinkles, and the onset of diabetes has streamlined his diet, but Gibbs seems trapped by his past. He can't wait to resume an NFC East rivalry against Dallas coach Bill Parcells, forged when the ``Big Tuna'' was hooked to the Giants.

``My life was all settled, all programmed until they carried me off the back porch of my house,'' Gibbs said of his startling return. ``It wasn't any one thing, it was a process. The racing team had been together for a long time and was in real good shape.

``The last part of the puzzle was I was thinking about it and the Redskins job came open. I kept praying for doors to close and they kept opening.''

Gibbs, who also has the title of team president, quickly established ground rules with meddling owner Daniel Snyder.

He swung a huge trade with Denver, swapping Pro Bowl cornerback Champ Bailey for running back Clinton Portis, who figures to provide Gibbs with the ball control he craves.

Returning to a new world order of salary caps and rampant free agency, Gibbs has found the players haven't changed.

``I don't think they're different,'' he said. ``People are people. Obviously there are some cultural changes, but I've always got along with that. The biggest thing is to get the right kind of guys and get a real team feeling.''

A five-year, $28 million contract affords Gibbs financial freedom, but he remains chained to a profession he began 40 years ago at his alma mater, San Diego State.

Gruden was barely walking at that point.

On Sunday, he hopes to extend a winner's handshake to one of his coaching idols.

``Joe Gibbs revolutionized football,'' Gruden said. ``His formations and personnel usage was something I had never seen before in 1990. For people like me, the guy's a creator.''