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Redskins head coach
Marty Schottenheimer
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Can this really be happening? A team that was the butt of jokes from coast to coast
just six weeks ago is in position to contend for the playoffs. After dropping their first
five games of the season, often in humiliating fashion, the Redskins have fought their way
back to respectability.
We won’t hold last week’s loss against them. It simply must be God’s
will that the Cowboys will beat the Redskins, as Dallas has now done so nine times in a
row.
But the fact that the Redskins remain just two games behind the NFC East-leading Eagles
is a tribute to head coach Marty Schottenheimer’s resolve — and evidence that
this Washington team resides in the worst division in the NFL.
When the Redskins were dropping games left and right in the first month and a half of
the season, Schottenheimer became an easy target. There were rampant reports that team
owner Dan Snyder — not known for his patience — would fire the coach at
season’s end. There was evidence that the team was beginning to lose trust in the
coaching staff. There were many rumors surrounding the club’s future, the most
entertaining of which alleged Schottenheimer was actually hoping he would be fired so he
could collect the remaining millions of dollars left on his contract and fade back into
the realm of retired coaches.
Apparently, that was all a bunch of hooey. Reactionary reporting as a team struggled in
the worst way.
Lose a few games, and the world is your enemy. Win a few, and the world is your friend.
Currently, Schottenheimer has a lot of friends.
I’ve heard some talk that Schottenheimer deserves consideration as Coach of the
Year. That may be a bit much. Coaches of the Year don’t lead their teams to 0-5
records. However, I do have the utmost admiration for what Schottenheimer has been able to
accomplish since such a horrific start.
Skeptics were quick to accuse Schottenheimer of being out of date with his old-school
ways. The coach’s recipe for success, they said, would not work on a team that had
several strong-willed veterans who were used to a gentler approach practiced by former
Redskins head coach Norv Turner.
While there may be some validity to those criticisms, you have to respect a guy who
sticks to his guns. Schottenheimer held steadfast in his beliefs. He repeatedly said that
his way has worked in the past, and that it would work again.
For those who didn’t believe, the Redskins’ resurgence is proof that
Schottenheimer was right. I have to say that because Schottenheimer has resisted any
temptation to say, "I told you so."
"We have not made any significant change because to do so would have invalidated
what we started out talking about, and we were not going to do that," Schottenheimer
said last week. "And I would feel if you were in fact to change, you would probably
run the risk of going downhill because there would have been no credibility in the things
you believed in in the first place."
Those things that Schottenheimer believes in have made him one of the most successful
head coaches in the history of the NFL — if you judge solely on regular-season
records. He currently holds a career record of 150-91-1. Only one other current NFL head
coach, Dan Reeves, has posted more career victories. Among the current crop of NFL
coaches, no one has coached more teams into the postseason — something Schottenheimer
did 10 times as the leader of the Browns and Chiefs.
Of course, the knock on Schottenheimer is his lack of success in the postseason, where
he has failed to earn a Super Bowl berth. His postseason record of 5-11 is nothing to brag
about.
But before you win in the postseason, you have to reach it. Few coaches have been
better than Schottenheimer in that regard.
"People have characterized me in the past as stubborn and hard-headed and one
thing or another, and that’s probably the thing that I relied on,"
Schottenheimer said. "I had every confidence we would get the thing turned around
here. It takes time, though. You can’t walk in and effectively change 40 percent of
the personnel group and add new coaches and things of that nature and expect that after
four preseason games you are going to step in line and start off where you think you can
be. I just continue to stay the course because I had every reason to believe that it would
resolve itself."
People in Washington tell me that Schottenheimer has been on an even keel throughout
the highs and lows of the season. He looks and acts the same now after a win as he did
earlier after a loss. His ability to stay calm in the face of adversity and resist the
temptation to publicly rip his players (are you listening, Jim Mora?) has earned him
respect.
Perhaps the fact that Schottenheimer has weathered his share of storms gave him the
confidence to ride this one out. Think back to 1988, when his Browns were predicted by
many to win the Super Bowl. In the first game, QB Bernie Kosar went down with an injury.
Gary Danielson and Mike Pagel also were forced from the lineup. Schottenheimer had to hand
the reins of the offense to Don Strock, who had to be recruited off the golf course. Six
times during that ’88 season, Schottenheimer had to change quarterbacks, and yet he
was able to lead the team to a 10-6 record and into the playoffs.
Of course, that’s where things fell apart, with the Browns losing in the first
round. But like I said earlier, you have got to get to the postseason before you can worry
about winning in it.
Given the wacky way this NFL season is unfolding, I wouldn’t put it past
Schottenheimer to guide his Redskins into the playoffs. |
