Kirk Olivadotti survived three coaching changes with the Redskins. And assistant head coach/defense Gregg Williams long has talked up Olivadotti’s coaching ability.
But he never had a group to call his own. Until now.
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Olivadotti will replace the fired Dale Lindsey as Washington’s new linebackers coach, offering a stark contrast to his predecessor. Olivadotti, who has been with the Redskins since 2000, has served mostly as a quality control coach. He eventually became a special teams assistant and, this past season, a defensive line assistant as well.
After Olivadotti’s promotion, the Redskins aren’t expected to make any more changes on their staff after firing Lindsey on Tuesday.
Lindsey is the first coach Gibbs has fired in his 15 years. Lindsey clashed with linebacker LaVar Arrington last season, a battle that, some sources say, left a bitter aftertaste with the current group of linebackers.
Also, Lindsey was known for his honest — and sometimes harsh — public assessments of his players. He also created a mini-controversy with remarks about Arrington before Washington’s first game against his new team, the Giants. That clashes with what Gibbs typically likes. Lindsey’s strength was developing young players — he worked with Shawn Barber and Derek Smith in his first two years in Washington.
Olivadotti is much more low key and declined requests to be interviewed this past season.
His trick will be to get the unit to be much more productive than in 2006. Rookie second-round choice Rocky McIntosh rarely played until the final two games; Lindsey said he did not know the defense well enough before then. Middle linebacker Lemar Marshall was largely unproductive, though coaches believed that stemmed from offseason surgeries.
