They didn’t see it coming. Then again, after thinking about it, they’re also not all that surprised. The pieces added up: the Redskins are out of the playoffs and the offense is struggling. The quarterback is the position of change.
So when the Redskins benched Donovan McNabb and inserted Rex Grossman, the players expressed some surprise, but also shrugged their shoulders and moved forward.
“He’s definitely won a lot of games and he’s done things in this league,” Redskins corner DeAngelo Hall said. “But sad as it is, this is a what have you done for me lately league and he hasn’t won a whole lot of games for us. They felt it was time to figure out if Rex was a guy we should keep around here or not.”
Tight end Chris Cooley said, “It never surprises me. It’s always different. There’s always something new here. But that’s the NFL.”
Hall is one of McNabb’s better friends on the Redskins and has talked to him about the move. But he didn’t want to say what was discussed. Hall did say he didn’t think the move was handled in a disrespectful manner.
McNabb was told about the move after practice Thursday; the team was told Friday morning.
“No, not disrespectful,” he said. “Had it been done in a sneaky matter, maybe. From what I’m told, coach Shanahan has been upfront with Donovan from day one. He was upfront all week with him. I don’t think it’s disrespectful.”
Grossman’s offensive teammates point to his experience in this offense. Though he’s only in his second season in Kyle Shanahan’s offense, having played for him in Houston, Grossman’s knowledge is evident, teammates say.
“No doubt, Rex knows the offense,” Cooley said. “It’s just his ability to get through plays, to know the reads, to know what guys are doing, to call plays.
“The hope for our offense and more for Rex is that he can operate at a high level. We haven’t scored a lot of points; we’re out of the playoffs. So hopefully we can score some points and do some good things.”
Teammates noticed that Grossman’s reps in practice had increased lately. What they don’t know is who will be the quarterback beyond this season.
“That’s not for me to answer,” Cooley said. “What I can tell you is we’re out of the playoffs. We haven’t scored a lot of points in the past few weeks and it’s a great opportunity for Rex.”
Receiver Santana Moss, like the others, said he was surprised. But added that there’s no time to dwell on any move.
“We got to a point in the season where you still want to win, but [Shanahan] wants to see what he has next year,” Moss said. “He wants to see if these guys can be the same guys he’s counting on for next year. This is an opportunity most guys would want and I hope Rex goes out there and does his thing.”
