In case it matters to anyone, Jim Zorn ruled out safety Reed Doughty for the finale because of his high ankle sprain. Not that there was any doubt, but Monday he called him doubtful and on his ESPN 980 radio show today said he wouldn’t play. Zorn made his final appearance on his show and is expected to be fired next week.
Among the highlights:
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On what positives he’s seen this season » The great development for us is the ability to keep the team intact, to not have different factions going in different directions. I’ve been proud of the group itself. I’ve been proud of the idea of when we’ve had injuries, guys have stepped in and played their hearts out. It’s a tribute to those guys, to our scouting and putting together guys that can play even though they’ve been in a backup role, they’ve taken it seriously. I also look at the atmosphere around the building with the players, the trainers, every part of our staff has been really concentrating on wanting to win and not looking outside the parking lot at their cars hoping to go home. Guys have been putting that effort in. That’s incredible to me, with the different pressure and circumstances that have surrounded our team.
On if he believes in the saying that what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger » I know this, as much as the season has been difficult, I’m a better coach today because of it all. Some people say you have to go through difficult times so you can get better. I’m certainly hoping as I push forward and if I get to push forward with the Redskins, that we will all get better because of the strain of a negative season.
On what Jason Campbell has learned the past few weeks » He has been growing by leaps and bounds the entire season. He’s done very well on the line of scrimmage. He’s taken some major responsibilities and physically he’s been hit. It’s taken its toll. But what if we were going to the playoffs, would he have been hit less? Maybe, because then there’s no injuries on our offensive line. But it’s still a physical game no matter how you look at it. He’s grown as a player. The hits do take its toll physically. But he comes back each week. He surprises us with some of the throws he’s making. He’s making some really good decisions and good throws.
On what area must improve for the team to get better » I would certainly say the offensive line will have to have some attention, there’s no question. But we will examine and look at every aspect. We’ll go from obviously top to bottom and from all sides to examine, to look at schemes, look at how we practice and how we prepare. … There’s a lot of good things going on here and I wouldn’t change a thing. And then there are things with injuries and abilities and maybe with some of the plays or schemes, both offensively and defensively and even special teams, that we would tweak. All of those things will be examined.
On if it’s hard for players to be motivated for the finale » Everybody will have their own way of preparing. Some will prepare because it’s what they do. I look at a guy like London Fletcher, regardless of the situation he’s going to prepare. We have a large contingency like that. Some guys are new and they’ll prepare because they want to grow with the program. And some guys just love the idea of going out and playing a great game. I believe on this team there will be very few guys that will just go out and go through the motions. If we do, it’ll show up on video. It won’t look good on their resume. And there will be a lot of evaluation in this offseason, early in this offseason and guys will want to prove they’re worthy of being a Washington Redskin.
