Rich Tandler's Real Redskins

Zorn now a ' hot ' OC candidate

This just came out on Adam Schefter's Twitter:

Another OC candidate the Seahawks are considering is Baltimore's Jim Zorn, a choice that would be popular in Seattle's locker room.

Zorn was the quarterbacks coach for the Seahawks from 2001-2007 before coming to the Redskins and he is a legend in Seattle for his play as the team's first quarterback. So after being pumped as a possible candidate for the offensive coordinator's job in Cleveland this morning, he appears in the afternoon as the candidate for another job. This is not saying that Zorn is necessarily a bad candidate for an OC position and that teams should run away from him screaming just because he failed as the head coach of the Redskins. He certainly didn't have the best talent to work with or the best management structure in place. Zorn had his plate overloaded as quarterbacks coach, de facto offensive coordinator and head coach. Quite a load for someone who hadn't been a coordinator before. But nobody had mentioned him as a coordinator candidate before this morning and now, according to reports, he has two teams that want to talk to him. Have to wonder if his agent is working the phones and trying to stir up some a promotion for his client.

Mitchell: Zorn ' s leadership " less than " Norv ' s

I don't necessarily buy into everything that Brian Mitchell says. But this statement about Zorn that he made on the Post Game Live today had a ring of truth to it:

Jim Zorn ’s quotes, RT ' s comments 08.07.09

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Here is what Jim Zorn said to the media today followed by what I have to say about what he said. On Fan Appreciation Day: "It's a big deal for us. The tradition here is the fans love the Washington Redskins. They come into our home basically, and we are inviting everyone in. We hope it's a big crowd. The big problem is there is one way in and one way out so there is traffic. Everybody has to be patient and enjoy the day. We are going to have a pretty good show, but it is going to be fast. You may not see the stars, but you are going to see a lot of great veterans and a lot of good rookies trying to make this football team. It will be spirited" Tandler: I still don't understand why this isn't being done at FedEx Field. As far as anyone knows, nothing has been done to prevent a repeat of last year's debacle. No more than a couple of thousand can comfortably watch the proceedings from the one side of the field onto which fans are allowed and last year there were 28,000. Thousands more didn't make it after being stuck in traffic. My advice if you're going—it you haven't left already, you're too late. On the number of plays he expects to run tomorrow: "I said 25 or 30 plays last year and we ended up with 68. I am going to try and run 40 plays on offense and maybe another 16 plays. I am keeping the red zone pretty much a script. We are going to just work it down; we are not going to play it out so that will limit the reps. I think each guy should get 15 to 20 reps if they are playing a whole series." Tandler: OK, so doing the math here I get 56 plays. None of those plays will feature Clinton Portis, Albert Haynesworth, Santana Moss or any other of nearly a dozen players who will be sidelined with "injuries". I put the word in quotes because of all of those who will be sitting out it seems that the only player who would be questionable if this was a regular-season affair is Carlos Rogers. His calf strain has kept him out for the past several days. On punter Hunter Smith: "I have a tremendous comfort zone with Hunter. We are going to punt tomorrow in non live situations. We are going to kick field goals and extra points. Each kicker will have a chance to do that. We are going to kick both kickers in the games in preseason." Tandler: Certainly the additions of Haynesworth and Orakpo will prove to have a more noticeable impact but don't underestimate the difference that the presence of Hunter the Punter will make. Suisham will really have to stink up the joint tomorrow and for all four preseason games and, even if he does that—a distinct possibility—there's no guarantee that Rayner will replace him. The team's 2009 kicker may not be on the roster as of now. On guard/tackle Chad Reinhardt: "I see a guy that came very prepared to this training camp. He is much more confident in what he is doing on the line of scrimmage. He knows his assignment. He is in great shape. He has changed his body strength and is competing very hard for a starting position." Tandler: I hope that by changing his body strength he got stronger. Although Zorn didn't talk about it last year, it seems to me that Reinhart, just like Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly, wasn't prepared for the rigors of an NFL training camp. Unlike the rookie receivers Reinhart didn't suffer from injuries but he was lost and he never recovered. This year he seems to know what he's getting into and it's showing in improved play.

Zorn to let vets sleep at home

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This story came out last week when I was knee deep in getting the book out, but I do want to address it. According to Jason LaCanfora, now of the NFL Network, Jim Zorn is going to let veteran players--those with four or more years of NFL service—spend the night at home during training camp. After dinner and the evening meetings they will get into their cars and drive home. I'm not sure what to think of this. On the one hand it's a nice perk to hand to the vets. On the other hand, what about team chemistry, camaraderie, sharing the training camp experience with the teammates? Is this just another way for a team known for having different sets of rules for different types of players to further draw lines of separation? I think that the latter point has some merit. It's not as bad as it used to be when the likes of Bruce Smith would be invited to enjoy brandy and cigars with the owner but there still is a star system in effect to an extent. This does add a little bit to that atmosphere even though guys like Anthony Montgomery get the same privilege as Albert Haynesworth. Football is the ultimate team and the more the guys are in the foxhole together—even when the foxhole is a multi-million dollar luxury conference center—the better. But it's not exactly like the time that the vets will be at home is quality team time. They'll be assembled as a team for some 12 hours a day. There isn't a whole lot going on in terms of socialization in the evening. It's not like Clinton Portis would be hanging out and shooting pool with Marcus Mason after dinner or anything. And we're talking about a total of about 18 days. In reality, the policy is unlikely to have an effect one way or another but, regardless, an effect will be perceived. If the Redskins are successful it will be because the treated the men like grownups. If they are mediocre it will be because the inmates are running the asylum. This isn't unprecedented. Brian Billick did it his last few years with the Ravens. Of course, Billick is now a TV analyst and not a coach. If Zorn wants to avoid the same fate as Billick his little favor to his veterans had better not come back to bite him.

Portis vs Zorn a lose-lose situation

Clinton Portis needs to shut up.

Jim Zorn needed to speak up.

In choosing to blast Zorn on the John Thompson show (boy, Snyder owning that station really has stifled criticism of the team, hasn't it?), Portis created a distraction at exactly the time that the team did not need it. After sitting out most of the second half of last Sunday's game against the Ravens, Portis had two full days to figure out what he was going to say about it on his weekly radio appearance on ESPN980 with the former Georgetown basketball coach.

He chose to be still angry about the fact that he sat out the last 30 minutes of the team's 24-10 loss and to express that anger in a mix of sarcastic comments and resignation.

In other words, he chose to show his spoiled, selfish, high-maintenance diva side.

Appearing on the same radio station later in the day, Zorn reiterated what he said on Sunday and Monday, that Portis sat out the half because he hadn't been able to practice all week. The Ravens were bringing a lot of different looks and blitzes ("exotic" blitzes as John Madden said about 1,000 times). Zorn felt it was important to have a back who actually had executed the protection schemes on the practice field in the game. That was Ladell Betts.

The problem is that Zorn had a few opportunities to talk to Portis about his line of reasoning, to explain his logic and to soothe the player's rather substantial ego. He thought that it was important enough to talk to the press about on Sunday night and Monday afternoon, but he didn't find the time to sit down with Portis and set things straight.

In other words, he chose to display his inexperience as a head coach.

Portis protested that he knew the schemes, that he had been at the meetings and had paid attention at practice. This seems to be the heart of his complaint.

"If I can run through the week, I'd practice. If I can't, then I ain't. And I'm not gonna force myself to go onto a field and do something crazy and then all of the sudden I'm out. What I need to be around for is Sundays, and that's what I try to be around for. So I mean, if you've got a problem with me not practicing and can't do it that way, maybe you feel like you need to sever ties, split ties with me? Split ties with me. But don't sit here and throw me out like I don't pay attention, like I don't know what's going on, like I'm making mistakes, I'm the problem.

If Zorn had explained to Portis that he understood why he couldn't practice during the week and that he simply had to do what he thought was best for the team, this whole issue could have been avoided. Portis could have spoken his mind behind closed doors and, while it's unlikely that he would have been happy about it, he would have had the chance to get it off his chest. Since he wasn't given the chance to do so, he decided to go nuclear and speak his mind to the world.

That doesn't mean that Portis had to do it. The part where he talks about severing ties is particularly galling. He just got a bunch of guaranteed money in the offseason and in doing so he made it virtually impossible for the Redskins to sever ties. Portis has had plenty of opportunity to shine under Zorn this year but when the road gets a little bumpy he starts to talk about bailing out.

It remains to be seen how much effect Portis' comments will have on the locker room. He's not exactly a leader on the team. His comments earlier in the year about his offensive line and about how the team didn't seem to be focused going into the game against the Rams have created a "Clinton is Clinton" mentality among his teammates. Some may grate privately at what he says but to a man they admire his attitude and production between the lines.

In other words, the ripple effects are likely to be minimal.

This time.

If Zorn continues to speak to his players though the press rather than taking his issues up with them in private, things could begin to get sticky.

My Jim Zorn Moment

I nearly had the Jim Zorn moment that Ryan O'Halloran of the Times experienced after the Lions game.

In case you haven't seen it, go to about the 2:00 mark in this video. You'll see Zorn get annoyed at a series of followup questions by O'Halloran, who was trying to find out about Zorn's thinking on the sequence at the end of the first half.

 

As you can see, Zorn gets angry and pounds his fist on the podium in frustration. As O'Halloran explains it in the WT, Zorn misunderstood exactly which series he was referring to in his questions. That led to the reporter rolling his eyes in frustration over his inability communicate to the coach and Zorn reacting in the way that he did.

I will vouch for Zorn's occasional propensity to misunderstand questions. After the Rams game, I asked him if he planned to make a point of going to Pete Kendall and Leigh Torrence, who publicly would be wearing the goat horns, and give them a pat on the back and tell them to keep their chins up after making very visible errors that helped cost the team the game.

Zorn apparently thought that I had asked if he would go to each player and chastise him for making a mistake and he said, "I'm not going to single Pete Kendall out. How many times is that going to happen to him again in his life?"

"I could be smart alecky here and ask if you really fell I need to go to him and teach him how to react?" Zorn said, looking right at me in a tone of voice that was a cross between annoyed and bemused.

I then tried to clarify my question, saying that I just wanted to know how he handled such situations.

After a few seconds he got what I was talking about and said that his teammates would pat Kendall on the back plenty and give him enough encouragement. And then he said, "I'll probably do that, too."

Not to try to probe too deeply into Zorn's mind here, but I think that he sometimes listens to the first few words of a question, decides what's being asked, and starts to formulate his answer before listening to the rest of the question. In the case yesterday he heard something to make him think it was a different series. In my case I used the word "goat" in reference to some of his players and that got him off track for the rest of the question.

I'm sure that there will other such moments in the weeks, months, and years to come. Hopefully, those of us asking the questions will learn to get to the point up front. And maybe Zorn will learn to suffer through the verbose questions that we sometimes ask and get to the nut of the issue.

The Zorn identity is emerging

When I was at the Washington Redskins training camp a couple of weeks ago, I noted that when the practice was over, Jim Zorn brought together the entire team in a massive, 80-man huddle. This has happened at the end of almost every practice I've seen. The huddle usually lasted 30 seconds, a minute tops. The coach—Gibbs, Turner, Schottenheimer, Spurrier—all pretty much did the same thing. It went something like "Good work men, lunch until one, position meetings at two," and the huddle broke up.

In contrast, on that day, Zorn kept the team huddled up for a good five or ten minutes. I was too far away to hear what he was saying, but he was using the time to talk to his team. It may have been a reaction to something specific that happened or he may have had a few things on his mind that he wanted to tell his players on one of the rare occasions during camp that the entire team is assembled in one place.

Today, Zorn did it again, but this time his tone was more strident as he had a point to make. From Matt Mosley's NFC East blog on ESPN.com:

But at the end of Tuesday morning's practice, he sensed a teaching moment for his team. We couldn't hear it from our end zone section almost 50 yards away, but apparently a defensive player took exception to something defensive coordinator Greg Blache said and squared off with him in a verbal exchange.

Zorn didn't say anything at the time, but after practice, he called the team over and talked to them at length about what it means to show proper respect. He knew his speech was resonating because several veterans were heard saying, "That's right" as he talked.

So, the word is that when practice is over, the ice bath and showers may have to wait a while as Zorn makes his point.

(By the way, in the paragraph immediately following the ones quoted above Mosley shows some poor form. He overheard a comment that Zorn made to Blache that was not for public consumption and he quoted it in the blog. It's one thing if something is yelled on the field; it's another matter completely if two coaches are having a private conversation. Mosley won't find himself welcome on the practice field at Redskins Park or anywhere else for that matter if he keeps telling tales out of school.)

Zorn also is showing that he will communicate with players in other settings as well, like through the media. In particular, rookie receivers Malcolm Kelly and Devin Thomas took some verbal shots from the coach during his post-practice news conference.

Of Kelly, Zorn said that "he wasn't in condition to go through a training camp like this."

"He really wasn't," the coach emphasized.

Come on, Z-man, let us know how you really feel.

Both Kelly and Thomas failed the team's conditioning test.

"If you can't pass that physical test that we give, then something's not right," Zorn said.

"It's sort of a pride issue."

A portrait is emerging of a coach who is chatty and laid back, the prototypical nice guy. He's in the cool tactician mold of football coaches.

That is, until someone crosses a line. At that moment the nice guy disappears and stern disciplinarian appears. He doesn't rant, at least not publicly, and, like his predecessor, he doesn't curse ever. But he will choose the appropriate venue and get his point across in no uncertain terms.

Join me for a live blog of Saturday's preseason game. Go here for details.

Schweigert released

I saw that Stuart Schweigert didn't look to good last night, but I thought he'd get some time to work out the kinks.

I was wrong.

Schweigert and Danny Verdun-Wheeler just were released.

Pete Schmitt, who could be the fullback to be named later, and safety Patrick Ghee were signed.

Zorn on QB rotation

Jim Zorn said on Friday that Jason Campbell will start at quarterback against the Colts and go for one series, maybe two. Todd Collins will finish the first half.

We knew all of that. What Zorn said after that, though, was interesting. He said that the plan was to have Colt Brennan play the third quarter and then he would insert Derek Devine into the game.

However, according to Zorn, if Brennan is moving the team, he will stay in. Essentially, Brennan can earn himself some more playing time by getting the job done.

In any case, the order will be switched next week against the Bills, with Devine getting the call right after intermission.

The Z Man

When practice was over, Zorn gathered the team for a good 10 minutes or so. Instead of just giving the lunch and meeting schedule as I've always seen coaches do, he was using it as a teaching moment for the entire team.

I'm sure that the players would rather be inside hearing all of that, but it loses its impact by the passage of time.

After the group session they broke off by positions and the assistant coaches addressed then for a short period of time before they headed to the ice baths and the locker room.

That's it for now. Later today I'll post some pictures and go into a little more detail about what I saw today, especially the quarterbacks.