This week the nation’s capital begins another autumn of discontent, or should I say weekly whining.
The Washington Redskins take the field Thursday night for the first real game of the NFL season. The local team, which pulled off a 9-7 record last season, meets the New York Giants, which won the Super Bowl.
In New York. Before a national audience. With a new coach. Oddsmakers say the Giants should prevail.
If the Giants win, I say this town will be awash with weepers and Friday-morning quarterbacks and one frustrated owner, Dan Snyder.
A loss Thursday night could portend four months of depression for Redskins fans, which means almost everyone in the Washington region. Local lore has it that the only thing that unifies Washingtonians is rooting for the Skins. A Redskins loss on Sunday throws a depressive pall over Monday.
Why have the Redskins been so mediocre for the last few years?
Many blame Dan Snyder, the impetuous, young mogul who loves the Redskins more than money. Fans say the Redskins are so-so because Snyder has squandered big salaries on fading stars, and he has tossed coaches who displease him. Jim Zorn will be the sixth coach since Snyder bought the franchise in 1999.
The only thing Snyder has done to escape general enmity by Redskins fans was to hire legendary coach Joe Gibbs in 2004. In my view, luring Gibbs out of retirement was his biggest mistake. Gibbs couldn’t connect with the new breed of pro football players and never figured out how to manage the play clock. But Gibbs’ biggest mistakes were his hires at the most important position: quarterback.
When Gibbs took over four years ago, Snyder gave him control over the sideline and the hiring. His first move was to snatch quarterback Mark Brunell from oblivion, after the Jaguars dumped him. Gibbs gave him a seven-year contract for $43 million. Brunell was a dud. In a game that required quickness, his legs were leaden.
As Brunell faded, Gibbs drafted Jason Campbell and crowned him the franchise quarterback. Only he’s not.
Campbell is a good quarterback. He has a strong arm and a stout body, two requirements of quarterbacks in the era when defensive players can ruin a season with one tackle. Campbell is a sweetheart, too, which is one reason Gibbs liked him.
But Jason Campbell lacks quickness. The ball leaves his hand as if in slow motion. He lopes when he runs. He’s vulnerable to the blitz.
He has not been accurate. He throws interceptions.
Gibbs quit at the end of last season and returned to NASCAR racing. Jim Zorn, a quarterback by training, took his place. Zorn has drilled Campbell at every move, from taking the snap to delivering the ball.
But on Thursday night, Jason Campbell will be Zorn’s cross to bear, thanks to Joe Gibbs.
E-mail Harry Jaffe at [email protected].
