By DERON SNYDER (as published in The Washington Times)
Several hours after firing Jay Gruden as head coach, Washington Redskins
president Bruce Allen addressed the media at team headquarters. He holds news conferences
about as often as Washington makes the playoffs, but there was no avoiding this
one.
It was time to take questions and provide answers, a daunting task for team
executives with a 59-92-1 record. However, Allen was ready. He had committed
his talking points to memory and was prepared to repeat them like a needle skipping
on vinyl albums.
We’re all disappointed. We’re not hiding from our record. We’re going to
keep working.
He was big on “we,” not so much on “I.” When asked directly about his
personal accountability for the ‘Skins’ sorry state of affairs, Allen stayed
stuck in the groove. “We’re all involved in this,” he said.
“I absolutely want what’s best for the Washington Redskins and we’re going
to make sure we do it.”
If that’s the case, he should fire himself. Owner Dan Snyder clearly won’t
do it, making you wonder what he sees.
By DERON SNYDER (as published in The Washington Times)
LANDOVER, Md. – At this stage of the Washington Redskins’ season – five games with nary a win – and this juncture of owner Dan Snyder’s two-decade reign of error, you’re justified in asking yourself an honest question:
What’s
the point?
The
self-reflection is for fans, not the players and coaches who absorb literal and
figurative beatings each week. Those employees are compensated for preparing, practicing,
and playing, the latter done faithfully even when the other duties aren’t reflected
in the outcome.
And
remember, no matter how bad you feel, frustration in the ‘Skins’ locker room
was higher than anywhere else in metropolitan D.C. after Sunday’s 33-7 defeat
against the New England Patriots.
“0-5
is not fun,” quarterback Colt McCoy said. “I’ve never been 0-5. I doubt that
many guys in that room have been 0-5. But it’s not for lack of effort.”
He
got the start, playing his first game since suffering a leg injury Dec. 3. He
actually led “led” Washington on a 67-yard scoring drive on the team’s second
possession, by executing deft ballhandling on a 65-yard touchdown run by Steven
Sims. McCoy faked an inside handoff to Adrian Peterson and gave the ball to
Sims, headed around right end. A juke and a couple of missed tackles on the
sideline gave Washington a lead that it nursed for a whole 10 minutes.
There
were moments when you entertained wild thoughts, imagining that the winless
home team would topple the undefeated Super Bowl champs. But those were
fleeting and spiritless visions, despite New England being held to a touchdown
and two field goals at the break.
By DERON SNYDER (as published in The Washington Times)
Washington
isn’t supposed to – and probably won’t – beat the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National
League Division Series that begins Thursday night.
Which
means the Nationals have a great shot and just might pull it off.
Storybook
seasons always have happy endings between the front cover and the back cover,
but they typically come up short between the two foul poles. Eventually, either
the pitching implodes, the bats go silent, or fluke plays and errors are ruinous.
The favorite celebrates and the underdog is vanquished.
But
every now and then, a Kardiac Kids-team survives long enough to hoist the trophy
after the final out. (Whether OUR hearts can withstand the tense drama along
the way is a different subject.) In defying the odds and common sense, unlikely
champions provide locals with fond memories for a lifetime.
Prior
to the NL wild-card game, the Nats’ provided playoff memories that were unforgettable
but not fond. A quartet of NL bluebloods had shredded Washingtonian dreams. The
Cardinals, Giants, Dodgers and Cubs – with stirrup-socks older than our upstart
franchise – issued stark reminders that baseball, generally, mostly hurts.
For
a change, though, postseason pain gathered its belongings and relocated across
the diamond Tuesday. It made itself comfortable amongst the Brewers. It became
fast friends with flame-throwing reliever Josh Nader and outfielder/MVP-replacement
Trent Grisham. It also established a meaningful relationship with everyone else
on Milwaukee’s roster.
The
Nationals were left for dead on May 23, when they owned the league’s
second-worst record. Their prognosis wasn’t much better when Hader entered
Tuesday’s game with a two-run lead that needed two innings of protection. Washington
wasn’t supposed to prevail under those circumstances, wasn’t supposed to break
its streak of bad luck and poor timing in win-or-go-home games. Yet, here we
are.
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