Understanding the salary cap

The minute detail for the salary cap is mind numbing. Manipulating the cap is key to the Redskins free agent acquisition strategy. For future reference, Running Redskins added "Salary Cap FAQ" to the blogroll to the right. The FAQ was prepared by Al Lackner at askthecommish.com.

The Redskins spend a lot of time manipulating the cap. Vinnie Cerrato is considered a cap master manipulator. We'd rather see the team put more resources in scouting draft choices they can sign for less, keep longer and grow into Washington stars, rather than buy some other team's stars. But, I rant.

The Redskins projected 2007 salary is $111.3 million. Team salaries in 2007 is capped at $109 million and the Redskins are trying to create cap space by reworking player contracts.

As you follow the team's salary cap moves and resist the latest free agent hype, refer to the Salary Cap FAQ to understand what's going on.

Photo: Danny and Vinnie and Joe. The Washington Post

Washington Redskins

The spirit of Norv

A January 26 post on The 'Boys Blog says that even if Norv Turner does not come to the Cowboys, his system will. The post links to an article in a 49ner blog that describes Turner's system in some detail. Go take a read. It's pretty interesting.

Speaking of the Niners, HC Mike Nolan gave his thoughts on Colts DE and soon-to-be free agent Dwight Freeney.

“I would rather have a big, tough, mean, ornery son of a gun who gets eight sacks and stuffs the run than someone who gets 14 sacks and gets his (performance) bonus,”

That's his opinion. What does Daniel Snyder think?

Norv Turner image: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/

Dallas Cowboys

Gilbert

Last season, Gilbert Arenas learned to lead. This season, he learned to win!

Congratulations Gilbert Arenas on your All-Star selection.

Poster: http://www.tapetki.uq.pl/

Norv returning East?

According to reports on ESPN and elsewhere, Norv Turner is on Jerry Jones' short list of candidates for the Cowboys head coach position.

We aren't sure how to take that here at Running Redskins. Norv is a top drawer character guy and a first class offensive coordinator. We've said before that Turner is a better OC fit for "Redskins football" than Al Saunders. But, head coach? There's no getting around that 58-82-1 won-loss record, albeit under trying circumstances.

In Washington (48-59-1), he coached through a transition of ownership from The Squire, to the Cooke estate, to the foundation's sale to the despised highest bidder. The Washington fan base shared Dan Snyder's growing disdain for Turner, but was very sympathetic to the insults Turner suffered from an insufferable owner.

The Redskins managed two winning seasons out of Turner's seven years here. Talent was part of the issue. Heath Shuler was the quarterback in Turner's inaugural season. Gus Frerotte followed. You may see them in the halls of Congress, but not the Hall Of Fame. Turner gave new life to Henry Ellard's career, but eventually the team had to turn to Michael Westbrook as the lead wide receiver. Over time, the Skins lost the mental toughness that was characteristic of the 1980s teams. Word around the league was if you hit the Redskins hard early in the game, they would fold.

Oakland was a no-win situation for Turner and everyone else who's been there recently. That's an ownership issue. Can't blame Turner for that. The 49er offense, with Turner as offensive coordinator, showed improvement with poor talent. QB Alex Smith steadied his performance (2890 yds, 16 TDs, 16 Ints, 74.8 QB rating) and Frank Gore emerged as a power runner late in the season (1695 yds, 8 TDs). Power running is trademark of a Turner team.

Redskins fans would applaud Turner's appointment expecting the same results as at the Redskins and Raiders. Hey, turnabout is fair play.

Norv Turner-Brad Johnson photo: The Washington Post
Daniel Snyder photo: www.sportsencyclepedia.com

Washington Redskins

Grimm sees red

Russ Grimm joined the Arizona Cardinals as assistant head coach - offensive line. He resumes his partnership with Ken Whisenhunt who was DC on Bill Cower's staff with the Steelers.

Grimm probably had the deal in the works since Sunday afternoon when he learned that he would not be the next Steelers head coach. One wonders if he should have waited a day or so to understand if he would be considered for the Cowboys opening. Maybe he heard they would not look his way, or maybe he just didn't care for the personalities involved.

Grimm was not selected for the Steelers opening and likewise lost out to Whisenhunt for the Cardinals job. The universal assumption that Grimm was a shoo-in for Pittsburgh no doubt had an effect. He was named a candidate for the Bears head coach position that went to Lovie Smith in 2004. There might be a positive side effect. Attention to Grimm's career highlights his performance as a Hog just weeks before the Hall of Fame vote on the class of 2007.

Yesterday, Al Davis selected Lane Kiffen as the Raiders head coach. I applaud young Kiffen, I really do. But, he is also an example of why there is a Rooney Rule. The kid's never been a head coach and has never coached in the NFL. At least Steve Spurrier, Butch Davis and Nick Saban held the top job at the Division 1-A level. Like many college coaches, they weren't successful. (Jimmy Johnson succeeded under very special circumstances). There are at least 12 African-American NFL coordinators, not to mention the other 52, who were stronger candidates on paper. A few candidates flat refused to be interviewed. Youth, inexperience and a weak resume may be just what Dr. Davis ordered.

A Raiders player with coaching aspirations must look at that and shake his head. Perhaps he could get himself adopted by Tony Dungy or Don Shula or Jim Mora. Famous last names seem to help.

Russ Grimm

Tony and Lovie and Mike and Russ and Bill

What a coaching caravan! On Saturday, Mike Tomlin was reported to be Dan Rooney's choice as Steelers head coach. Then the Steelers announced that no coaching decision had been made, which is akin to putting the cat back in the bag. You may try, but the cat ain't going.

Then on Sunday, Lovie Smith became the first black coach to lead his team to the Super Bowl, beating his mentor Tony Dungy to the honor by four hours. Then the Steelers said never-mind, Mike Tomlin really is the next head coach. We just hadn't had the chance Saturday to tell Mike, or assistant coach Russ Grimm, the leading candidate for the job. Before we interviewed Mike, that is. It's a real shame Russ had to read that in the papers instead of the email we were going to send him.

It's not like Russ was screwed out of an opportunity. That job in Oakland is still open, even though the Raiders have become a coaches graveyard lately. Plus, Grimm's Steeler buddy, Ken Whisenhutt is hiring assistants down in Arizona. If Russ can stomach JJ and TO, he can send a resume to Dallas where Big Tuna has jumped ship. Of course, the Rooney Rule mandates that Dallas interview at least one minority candidate, just as the Steelers did. The Steelers are owned by Dan Rooney, who led the committee that created the rule. Of course he would take it seriously. Who's to say JJ will. After all, NFL rosters have been 70% African-American for, oh, three decades now. Just because players become assistants who become coordinators who become head coaches, that doesn't mean the Cowboys can find a highly qualified minority candidate. How many could there be?

The Steelers can talk all they want about Tomlin leading them in a new direction. I'm convinced the real reason Grimm didn't get the job is because Steeler management kept confusing him for Andy Reid. That's Russ on your left. Or, is it on the right?

If all else fails, Grimm could find a home with the Redskins. There's always room for another coach at Redskin Park. Grimm, one of the original Hogs offensive linemen, is an icon in the Washington area. He is a 2007 candidate for the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

I swear, I'm absolutely positive, I saw an article called "Williams to scratch to keep coaches" and I'm mostly sure that it was on redskins.com. When I went back to link to it for scathing commentary, it was completely gone. Wiped out. Erased. Never existed. Maybe the Redskins thought it was ludicrous to publish a story about how Gregg Williams would work to keep his coaching staff in tact after the atrocious year the defense had. Or, maybe the higher-ups knew that Dale Lindsey was to be axed two days later. Or maybe I haven't taken my pills today.

Since this was written, The Raiders named Lane Kiffen as their next head coach. Tony Dungy's coaching tree continues to grow with that appointment. Lovie Smith, Herm Edwards, Mike Tomlin, Rod Marinelli were Dungy assistants in Tampa Bay in 1996. Kiffen is the son of Monte Kiffen, the Buccaneers defensive coordinator who came to Tampa Bay to be on Dungy's staff. Mention "tonydungy" on your resume and get a job.

Bill Parcells decided to hang up his spurs (again). Good riddance. The guy's been a thorn in my side since the 'eighties.

Photos: Russ Grimm, www.steelers.com; Andy Reid, www.philadelphiaeagles.com

Screed Alert: BCS is Bogus

The Bogus Championship Series should be blown up. None other than Ralph Nader says so in his article "Breaking the BCS."

The Bowl Champion Series should be labeled for what is it - a monopolistic enterprise to protect the big money interest of the major college football conferences and major Bowls. All that national championship stuff is pure hype, as you can read in Nader's article and numerous rants by sports writers (including me).

The Bowl performance of the two best football schools in my own Big Ten conference and of Boise State reinforce the need for a true playoff system. I've heard the no-playoff arguments by the conference presidents. They just sound silly. Division 2 and Division 1AA can manage playoffs, but not Division 1A? Don't insult our intelligence.

The BCS is all about the money. It's not about good football.

BCS

Skins release Dale Lindsey

The Washington Redskins released linebacker coach Dale Lindsey this evening. For more on the story, go to Hog Heaven.

Lindsey reached a level of notoriety for his run in with LB LaVar Arrington. His feud spilled over in public comments about LaVar before the first NY Giants game in October. The Redskins fortunes declined with the performance of the defense. Linebacker play was off from its 2005 performance, with Warrick Holdman considered a weak link throughout the season.

Also out, the NFL turned down an offer by Britney Spears to tout the NFL Network in a Super Bowl commercial. Spears has announced her intention to restart her career after initiating divorce proceedings against husband Kevin Federline. She recently generated a spate of publicity of a type the NFL has shied away from since the infamous Janet Jackson incident.

The Redskins deny a rumor that FedEx field was named for Federline.

Washington Redskins

You too can be a Washington Redskins Cheerleader

Auditions for the 2007 Washington Redskins cheerleader squad begins April 6, 2007. Candidates must be at least 18 years old, with a high school or G.E.D. Applicants must also have a full or part time job, be a full or part time college student or have a family. (Guess single, pre-maternal, unemployed people need not apply no matter how attractive or talented.) Those selected for the 2007 squad are required to participate in the photo shoot for the 2008 swimsuit calendar to be shot in an exotic Caribbean location - no exceptions! Cheerleaders are paid $75 per game and receive a pair of season tickets for performing before the largest audience in the NFL.

Candidates are judged on

• Showmanship
• Dance Technique
• Personal Appearance/Figure (Oh YEAH!!!)
• Personality
• Communication Skills
• Energy
• Kick Technique
• Photogenic Round - Finalists

The Redskins are offering an audition class for interested parties at a cost of $300. Audition students do not have to pay the $25 application charge to try out.

For more detail and to download the application form, look here.

The cheerleader squad was established in 1962 as the Washington Redskinettes. They are now billed as "The First Ladies of Football." The cheerleader squad is another of Redskin founder George Preston Marshall's innovations. Marshall also established the NFL's first team band and fight song. Those moves were his attempt to boost the family entertainment value of the NFL. The band and the cheerleader squad reflected Marshall's personal and business attitude that the Redskins were the team of the South. Like the South itself, "Negroes" were unwelcome on the Redskinettes. In the 1960s, the Redskin band played Dixie between choruses of Hail To The Redskins. The cheers for Dixie were louder than Hail.

In Washington's colorful past, people of color were not invited to join the all white team named Redskins.

The Redskins were the last team to integrate its football roster, but the first to add African-American Redskinettes. At one time, the Redskins had the most diverse cheerleader squad in the league. I think that's still true. This must be acknowledged on Martin Luther King Day.

My personal favorite cheerleader? Michae' Holloman who was recently named Miss Maryland USA 2007. Her profile lists her profession as Strategic Communications Specialist. Like that blond on the HDTV commercial, I totally don't know what that means, but I want one.

Photo: Cheerleader Tina, www.procheerleaderblog.com
Photo: Cheerleader Michae', www.redskins.com
Photo: Conductor of the Band, http://flickr.com/photos/littlerottenrobin/

Washington Redskins

Whispers of the Redskins return to DC

I've posted and laughed before about the District of Columbia's wish to lure the Redskins back to city limits. Maybe Daniel Snyder wants a chuckle, too. Washington Post columnist Marc Fisher reported last Thursday that the secretive Redskins owner quietly met with city officials about a stadium deal. According to Fisher "Three top D.C. officials say that Snyder had meetings about his stadium project with outgoing D.C. Sports and Entertainment Commission Chairman Mark Tuohey and Williams, in the final days of his administration."

"I would love to have the Redskins back," said Kwame R. Brown (D-At Large). "I am not interested in the scenario we had with baseball. The checkbook is not open for every sports franchise that wants to come to Washington. But I'm all for a stadium if we don't have to pay anything." (Emphasis mine)

Dream on. After watching the baseball deal, Snyder isn't coming back without a gimme from the city. Here's a thought District residents, rich people don't stay rich spending their money. They stay rich spending other people's money. Your money!

The story suggests the city would cede development rights on adjacent property to Snyder. Six Flags on what is now Langston Golf Course anyone?

FedEx is twice as large as old RFK. That's twice the parking, twice the congestion, twice the tailgating, twice the noise and twice the pollution of a 57,000 seat stadium. Sell that one to the neighborhood. Oh no, no, no. Pennsylvania Avenue, East Capitol Street and Benning Road weren't built for that much traffic.

Amazing that governments will do nothing to keep a sports team when they have them, yet will do anything to get a team back.

This story keeps coming up. It has legs and seems to be going somewhere. The Redskins themselves refute the story as reported in Tim Lemke's article in the Washington Times.

Washington Redskins

Redskins SB XXII on NFL Network Monday

According to a post on The Warpath discussion board, the NFL Network will broadcast film of the Super Bowl XXII, Redskins vs. Broncos game that was played on January 31, 1988.

The Redskins had no chance to win that game according to the pundits. Then Doug Williams and the Skins had that marvelous second quarter.

The show is scheduled for 8:00 PM, EST, Monday January 16. The NFL Network is counting down all of the Super Bowl contests, ranked by an opinion of experts, until they get to the number one Super Bowl winner. If they are showing Super Bowl XXII on Monday, that implies that the experts believe the '87 Redskins to be the 11th best Super Bowl winner.

Foolish experts. Everyone knows the '87 Skins were the greatest Super Bowl team!

Photo: Super Bowl XXII images, nfl.com

Washington Redskins

Robiskie dumped

Former Redskins interim head coach Terry Robiskie was dumped again, this time by the Cleveland Browns. See the full story here.

Robiskie was dumped by the Redskins at the end of the 2000 season. He was named interim head coach when Daniel Snyder dumped Norv Turner as head coach with three games remaining in the season. The Redskins were 1-2 under Robiskie's tenure. Snyder then turned coaching and management over to Marty Schottenheimer who went 8-8 in the 2001 season before being dumped to make room for Steve Spurrier, whom Snyder hyped would revolutionize football. Spurrier turned the tables on Snyder by dumping the Redskins in 2003 season after going 12-20 as Redskins coach. Snyder won tremendous public accolades when he lured Washington legend Joe Gibbs out of retirement to be president, head coach and chief scout for the Skins in 2004.

The Redskins have gone 41-55 since Robiskie was dumped in 2000. Schottenheimer's record is 47-33 since being dumped by Snyder.

There is no indication that Robiskie ever told Snyder to take a dump, although Norv Turner might have. Robiskie and Spurrier are the only Snyder-era coaches not to return with new teams to dump on the Redskins.

Seeking stability, coach-in-chief Gibbs said he would neither dump his coaching staff nor dump the Redskins' approach to free agents. He implied that he would not dump Brandon Lloyd and hoped something could be worked out to keep the Archuleta situation from going to the dumpster.

It seems there will be no more dumping on the Redskins.

Photo: nfl.com

Terry Robiskie
Washington Redskins

Tony Oh No

So, Pro Bowl voters, still think Tony Romo deserves that vote?

Photo: Associated Press / John Froschauer

You've just GOT to go see this one: Tony Romo fakes out Charlie Brown

This is just so wrong

A self-described "very attractive younger couple" in Philadelphia agrees to let you watch in return for two tickets to tomorrow's Eagles-Giants playoff game.

Philly fans!

Photo: www.zandvleitrust.org.za/

When you criticize Tank Johnson, you help the terrorists.

Admit it. If the the terrorists attacked your neighborhood, you'd want Tank Johnson somewhere nearby, wouldn't you.

Tank Johnson of the Chicago Bears is not to be confused with Tank Williams of the Minnesota Vikings.

Tank Johnson

Post mortem - Assessments of Redskins "Issues"

There's a difference between sports writers and sports bloggers. Writers have figured out how to make a living at this. When you get paid, it's working your "craft." When you don't, it's working your passion. Yup, that's blogging.

Writers can work full time to develop sources and develop original content built on quotes and confirmation. Blogger's work late into the evening because our time is committed to our income -- which isn't from blogging. Our stock-in-trade is insightful analysis. In this symbiotic relationship, writers' stories are raw material for blogger commentary, not to mention the images we "borrow," with attribution, of course. I'm convinced that writers get a lot of their story ideas from blogs, never with attribution.

In the aftermath of this season's disaster, local writers are publishing a raft of in-depth stories on why the Redskins did so poorly. All of it points to the top of the organization. Bloggers have been touching on it from the season's midpoint. Here are a few articles that Redskins bloggers will play off of from now to draft day.

Associated Press
Redskins biggest need? How about a general manager, by Joseph White, staff writer
Redskins growing weary of Gibbs' year-round routine, by Joseph White, staff writer

The Washington Post
Problems at the Core, by Jason LaCanfora, staff writer
Of Two Minds On Offense, by Howard Bryant, staff writer
Coordinator Assumes Old Defensive Crouch, by Les Carpenter, staff writer

The Washington Times
Lunch pail, pride beat big spending, by Dan Daly, sports columnist (Jan. 2005)

The Washington Examiner
Cue the Darlings of Downtime, by Rick Snider, staff writer
Rick Snider: Free agency is proving costly, by Rick Snider, staff writer
Suspect Architect, by John Keim, staff writer, a must read

The infamous ESPN article by Tom Friend, Reeling Redskins awash in troubles

WTEM AM - SportsTalk980
Clinton Portis' candid interview with Doc Walker and Smokin' Al Coken on SportsTalk 980. Portis names a few names. A must hear.

My blogging colleagues have started adding their gifted insight to these articles. Lee at The Redskins Report questions if Vinnie Cerrato is the real issue in the poor free agent class.

The always clever writers at The Curly R have serialized their thoughts in Too Many Cooks: 2006 Season in Review.

Skins Patrol at Hog Haven challenges the notion that fast offenses make bad defenses.

Anthony at Hog Heaven offers suggestions for what Daniel Snyder can do to fix this.

Photo: FedEx Sky, Anthony Brown

Washington Redskins

Cool slides - Redskins Giants

Although it ended badly, Littlerottenrobin posted an amazing set of game photos on flickr.com. You can see it as a slideshow here.

And no, I am not related to rottenrobin.

Photo: Touchdown, posted by littlerottenrobin at flickr.com

Washington Redskins

Saban

Nick Saban is at it again. He jumped ship for the money, this time leaving the Miami Dolphins for the University of Alabama Crimson Tide.

Saban was the best football coach at Michigan State since Duffy Daugherty. Disregard Duffy's record and maybe Saban was the best Spartan coach ever. Daugherty never had to cope with a four years of NCAA sanctions as Saban did from 1995 to '98. His Spartan teams went 35-28-1 during his tenure. MSU was positioned for a return to football prominence when Louisiana State University offered him an alluring $1.5 million a year, doubling his MSU contract.

LSU always managed to recruit talent, but never parlayed it into national prominence until Saban's arrival. Between 2000 and 2004, Saban led the Tigers on a 48-16 tear, winning the 2004 Sugar Bowl and BCS (Bogus Championship Series).

Saban joined the Miami Dolphins for the 2005 season. He shocked the football world by luring controversial running back Ricky Williams out of his self-imposed exile from football. Williams was facing league sanctions for substance abuse violations. The Dolphins rushed to a 9-7 in Saban's first season, but relapsed to 6-10 this season.

Alabama offered Saban a rich $32 million eight year contract that you just knew he was going to take. That's the thing with Nick, the first time he's offered a $60 million deal, he's outta there.

Ironically, Saban is replacing Mike Shula, son of Dolphin icon Don Shula. The younger Shula is proof that there is no coaching gene. His record at Alabama is 26-23, although that does include 10-2 run and a Cotton Bowl win in 2005. But 'Bama lost four straight games to in-State rival Auburn; a very good Auburn that included Jason Campbell, Carlos Rogers, Cadillac Williams and Ronnie Brown. Shula was fired on Thanksgiving weekend 2006. His brother, David, coached the Cincinnati Bengals to a 19-52 record between 1992 and '96.

Somehow, I doubt either of the Shula brothers will be considered for the Dolphins vacancy in spite of the Shula connection. Now, the Redskins have a couple of deputy coaches . . . .

I am impressed that the Wikipedia entries for both Saban and Shula have already been updated with today's coaching changes.

Photo: barnesandnoble.com

Nick Saban
Crimson Tide

The year best forgotten

2006 NFC East Final Standings

TEAM	WON	LOST	PCT	PF	PA	DIV	CONF
Eagles	10	6	.625	398	328	5-1	9-3
Cowboys	9	7	.563	425	350	2-4	6-6
Giants	8	8	.500	355	362	4-2	7-5
Redskins	5	11	.313	307	376	1-5	3-9

The Eagles: Andy Reid takes another step towards the Hall of Fame and a Coach of the Year nomination. The Eagles didn't just sneak in the playoffs. They burst through with the best conference and division record in the East -- without Donovan McNabb or Terrible Owens.

Jeff Garcia stepped into exactly the right system for him to succeed. He is a west coast quarterback matched to one of the two best west coast practicioners in Andy Reid. Mike Holmgren is the other. There's power when the right player with the right attributes are matched to the right system.

Stars emerge from the right system. Edgerrin James is a good running back, but a great one in the right system. Star power doesn't transfer to a new team unless the star lands in the right scheme for their talent, as Garcia and oh, say, Adam Archuleta, prove.

Name a single star wide receiver on the Eagles. Go on; I dare you. The system makes them . . . adequate.

The national press disses Brian Westbrook, but he get love here. The DC native managed a score per every 174.2 yards of offense this year. Heck, it takes Tiki Barber 425 yards to get a score. Clinton Portis is still the best in the East in this stat with one score for every 99 yards -- and he was hurt. Yes, he's a Redskin, but this is a Redskin blog. Westbrook and Garcia are why the Iggles will advance to the second round of the playoff at least.

Love the way this team is managed. Still don't like the fans.

The Cowboys: Their overall record puts Dallas in second place, but their division record is pathetic. New York the second best East team on the basis of their 4-2 division record.

Tony Romo saved Dallas' season. Coach Parcells reportedly wanted Tony RO all along. So why didn't he start him from game one? Did JJ have something to do with that? Another question for Jerry - did Terrell Owens do more for your team than Keyshaun Johnson would have done? In your opinion? Want my opinion? No, of course not.

I'm a Redskins fan. I'm not allowed to say anything positive about the 'Boys, but when you lose at home to the Detroit Lions, well bashing just becomes cruel.

The Giants: Injuries and turmoil will sink this team in the playoffs. Naming Kevin Gilbride as offensive playcaller was a smart move, but now the Eagles are on notice. Besides, how smart do you have to be to run Tiki Barber for 238 yards? Even with Tiki, they are one & done.

The Redskins: The problems on this team provide numerous ripe targets for offseason blogging. I, for one, will not scapegoat Mark Brunell or Adam Archuleta. The worst that can be said of Brunell is that he was efficient but not effective. His stats were decent, better than Jason Campbell's actually, but not good enough to lift a team in trouble. Campbell did things, good and bad, that Brunell did not. Fans accepted flubs from Campbell that they would not from Brunell. His deep throws gave hope that the Skins could comeback in a game. Inserting Campbell did not change the team's fortunes because quarterbacking was not the problem.

Neither was Adam Archuleta. Fans forget that Arch was signed to be a hitter when the team's designated hitman was expected to have a Dade County address. But Sean Taylor escaped legal jeopardy (and has been a model citizen since) and Archuleta was out of place from that very point. Sure there was talk about run support and pass pressure, but coverage is the primary role of defensive backs. Gre-doubleG didn't conceive Archuleta in deep coverage when the Skins signed him. Nor is it Archuleta's job to scout his weaknesses. That's front office work and THAT'S the critical weakness with the team. We'll blog about that over the next few weeks and months.

(Jason LaCanfora got the ball rolling with his lenthy article Problems at the core in today's Washington Post. He wrote "But at the core of the team's troubles, the sources said, were two deeper concerns: A fatally flawed personnel setup led to inaccurate decisions and Gibbs's strategy of relying on free agent acquisitions and trades alienated some players, jeopardizing his hold on the locker room." Can't fix the Redskins until you fix that.)

Meanwhile, the Redskins will sit home in January and wonder what happened.

Coaching icon Joe Gibbs is safe in Washington this year, 'though even he couldn't survive another 5-11 season. Elsewhere, the ax has fallen in the Not For Long league. Denny Green (5-11) and Jim Mora (7-9) were dismissed today. Michael Vick is a coach-killer. It is widely assumed that Tom Coughlin will join that group after the Giants lose to the Eagles next week.

Washington Redskins
Philadelphia Eagles
Dallas Cowboys
New York Giants

Broncos CB Williams Killed

Denver police reported that Denver Broncos cornerback Darrant Williams was killed in a drive-by shooting Monday morning. Not the news you want to wake up to on New Years Day.

Condolences to Williams family and to the Denver Broncos organization.