Conflicted with Gibbs chat. What do you guys think?

[The Sisko]

I agree with BallCoach and others who said that perhaps the best way to handle this is simply to get it out of the way early. Just ask a general question regarding the elephant in the middle of the room and then move on to other stuff. That way coach Gibbs can comment on it to the degree he wants to and have it out of the way. I think that would be a win-win for everyone concerned.

Just a quick comment. At one time I felt having you guys in the middle of these chats was a bit of a downer. However, after this week I have come to realize I was vastly overestimating the maturity of some folks on the board. This chat with coach Gibbs clearly illustrates the strengths of that model....and I think you know what I mean.

[Hogskin1]

All,

With the Gibbs chat coming Friday, I’m filtering through dozens of new questions to go along with the dozens of old questions we had. As you can imagine, the questions are changing to nearly one focus and nothing else. That focus being the decision at quarterback. As I’m ordering these questions and attempting to avoid duplication, I’ve found myself somewhat conflicted and worried about this chat for a very simple reason.

As a fan with knowledge of Coach Gibbs historically, he will not be very effusive on the topic of the QB. We are in season. He’s had a press conference and more quotes in a quote sheet we have on the board. He’s answered how he’s going to answer very likely. Peppering him with questions I can’t imagine him answering in any more depth than he already has and might shorten some of the other questions he might answer. We have very limited time with him and I’m already going to be leaving MOST people’s questions on the table, unasked.

My conflict is I don’t want to short change the interest of you guys in asking non-topical questions in the hope of getting more, better answers, but I also don’t want to lose that opportunity. I’m wondering if I should cut out most of the quarterback questions for now, perhaps revisiting them in another chat with the coach in the off-season when he is typically has more time to be effusive.

These are my thoughts. I am the keeper of the question list, so, if I go to Gibbs with nothing but QB questions or lacking any, it will be my choice. I’m just wondering what you guys think. This isn’t a vote. I’m not bound by your feedback. I just want to get a feel for the view of the community as to what they think I should do. I may disappoint the majority here or thrill you. I don’t know yet. I’m just seeking this conversation with you for my own needs.

Art.

Art,

I STRONGLY feel that there should only be one or at most TWO QB questions. There is no reason on earth for for than that.

AND, they should not be the FIRST or the LAST questions. Don't set a negative tone at the outset, and don't finish on a sour note. No matter what questions you present, there will be SOME negativity associated.

There are SO MANY great topics to ask about. I hope you are getting questions in the numerous other fertile areas.

John Shaffer

National Fantasy Sports Leagues, Inc.

[Grumpy Vet]

My opinion is to pitch him a softball on the QB subject and if he is swinging use your judgement on how far to go. Overall - I think no more than 4 - 5 questions would be plenty.

[Timurchin]

Ask him why he ran a conservative run play on 3rd and 7 with about 2 minutes left, instead of trying to complete a pass that would of iced the game. He did the same thing last year against Dallas. It's not just Gibbs, but a lot of coaches do that.

Sith baby I hope that I'm not messing up your action but I really don't know how this works heregoes: No disrespect to coach but that conservative call could be seen a mile away and I have seen him start trying to run the clock out and loose the game with the same type of play calling and how about when we were on are own goal and he was chunking the ball like it was the end of the world ? But who am I to second guess " the man ".

[Mooka]

He does owe us an explanation, because we are the ones who ultimately pay his salary, and everyone else's on the team. We are the customers. If he wants to tell us to go screw ourselves, then give him an opportunity to do it.

If he just said "Patrick was turning it over too much", that would be more than he said on Monday. If he did give that answer, you are then obligated to ask "What about the way Brunell played last year, and why the different treatment?". If you do not ask those questions, then the claim that the site has lost its indpendence will be substantiated, and the whole interview will be useless. You can ask those kinds of questions with tact and respect, but they have to be asked.

The coach shouldn't have to explain himself on choices of personnel. The explanation is self-explanatory, he thinks were a better team with Brunell, that Brunell is better right now, and that we have a better chance of winning with Brunell. I'm not sure what your looking for.

Art- my only input would be to stay away from questions that Gibbs will obviously shrug off. (like why he benched Pat or if he thinks Brunell will be better then last year) I would love to see questions about in-game adjustments or about what he has learned in his 2nd season back.

[Neophyte]

Art,

I see you have had a lot of answers. I have not read them all so maybe my opinion is not new.

I would not ask a single question about the change, at least not directly, and maybe not all. Every interview Gibbs has given in the last 4 days has revolved around this. You are right, he has said what he will say about it and we are not likely to get anything new from him. He is not going to give us specific examples of what he saw and frankly I believe I would think less of him if he did.

I say let it go. Gibbs will remember that the fans let it ride and wanted to talk about other things.

[Timurchin]

Art,

I STRONGLY feel that there should only be one or at most TWO QB questions. There is no reason on earth for for than that.

AND, they should not be the FIRST or the LAST questions. Don't set a negative tone at the outset, and don't finish on a sour note. No matter what questions you present, there will be SOME negativity associated.

There are SO MANY great topics to ask about. I hope you are getting questions in the numerous other fertile areas.

John Shaffer

National Fantasy Sports Leagues, Inc.

The QB issue is immaterial , if you turn the ball over you don't play -- it's as simple as that. The real question is how are we going to beat Dallas at that messed up shaddowie stadium of theirs and can we give them a big dose of old school ball control 3 yards and a cloud of dust in your face 12 minute long drives ?

[TriangleSkinsFan]

Limit the QB questions for sure. One, maybe a second to help clarify his answer for the first. I like the analogy someone else used....acknowledge the elephant in the middle of the room. But I think the question(s) should be phrased to get a response other than "MB has played his guts out in practice and we feel he'll do real good in there"

Something along the lines of...

Obviously the fans are wondering what is going on at the QB position, what can you tell us as fans to help us feel good that we are on the right track.

No mention of names, or plays, or stats, or starters, but make us feel good about the direction the team is headed regarding the QB. Fans always want the best chance to win, not everyone agrees on who that player is but something EVERYONE hates is wondering what the FO and HC are thinking.

Other than QB questions....

What can the offense do to make the kickers less important? We hate punting and lets face it TDs are more fun that FGs

Take us fans through the process of game logistics... When do they decide on the next play?, a play ahead of time?, on the spot? Is there a discussion? is one guy calling the plays? Who sends it in the the QB, Same type of Question for Defense and the packages getting used.

[jrockster21]

The coach shouldn't have to explain himself on choices of personnel. The explanation is self-explanatory, he thinks were a better team with Brunell, that Brunell is better right now, and that we have a better chance of winning with Brunell. I'm not sure what your looking for.

Art- my only input would be to stay away from questions that Gibbs will obviously shrug off. (like why he benched Pat or if he thinks Brunell will be better then last year) I would love to see questions about in-game adjustments or about what he has learned in his 2nd season back.

Mooka - the answer is obvious to any one with common sense and the slightest amount of rational thought processes in their brains. Unfortunately, AJ has neither of these and refuses to accept the obvious answer to the question. Either that, or he's just too stubborn. Or maybe he just has us all on ignore or something...I don't know.

[AJ_Skins]

I thought the idea from the Snyder chat was that the members post the questions, and the mods do their best to select a representative sample in terms of subject matter and number of questions asked. So what's the conflict? You're scared to ask him the questions that have been submitted, obviously.

[jrockster21]

Great point.

I'd like to hear questions about his everyday life, what music he listens to, what he does for fun on his own time etc... Favorite movies, favorite books...

Favorite extremeskins poster... :paranoid:

Yeah, we should ask Joe Gibbs, the best coach ever, who always dresses nice and answers all questions and is a great man, who his favorite extremeskins poster is....:paranoid:

[jrockster21]

Take this from an attorney who asks questions of witnesses who don't want to answer for a living: if you ask him direct questions, you'll never get him to open up. For example, "Why did you make the switch at QB?"

What I'd do is sprinkle the interview with more innocuous questions, such as, "What do you want Patrick Ramsey to improve upon during the course of this season?" The implications of a more open response to that question are far more innocuous than the other one, and BTW it also allows far less wiggle room. If he doesn't choose to answer, fine we can't force him to (unlike my deposition witnesses), but if he does then you've probably have some informative stuff.

I'm busy so I can't type up more right now, but that's the idea.

:applause: :notworthy :applause: :notworthy :applause: :notworthy :applause: :notworthy :applause:

Excellent idea. That question sounds like a winner...great post, redman.

[Art]

I thought the idea from the Snyder chat was that the members post the questions, and the mods do their best to select a representative sample in terms of subject matter and number of questions asked. So what's the conflict? You're scared to ask him the questions that have been submitted, obviously.

No, AJ, that's not it at all.

I will always ask the best, hardest questions I can of each person we get a chance to talk to based on what you guys are talking about. My conflict here is not that I'm afraid to ask him "hard" questions. It's I don't agree they'll actually BE that hard. Gibbs will almost certainly shut those down and go down the route of repeating already made statements. He's not going to open up.

Now, if I was JUST going to interview him, it might be different, where I could try to develop a line of thinking based on answers. Here, though, we're taking a totally random sampling of questions and hoping he'll give a lot of fun answers that are interesting. I think Gibbs is not exactly internet saavy, so, I'm not sure what he'll think about questions coming from "Sweet Sassy Molassy" in the first place.

I am as torn as the answers in this thread are. All sides have very good points.

[MidPennSkin]

I'd ask him only one or two at the most questions about the QB situation, but you can't just ignore the whole subject, or it will sit there like a 500 pound gorilla during the interview. Throw a couple of softballs, then a couple of QB questions, like:

Joe, the fans are wondering about the process you go through to decide who the starting QB is. To give the fans a better understanding of this, can you add anything to what you have already said in press conferences on this subject?

What are the main areas you think each of the 3 QBs needs to change to make the biggest improvements their game.

[Jimbo]

Art, there are so many more interesting subjects to cover than this QB switch. You and I both know he's not going to undress Patrick for us or anybody else so why bother? I don't see it as a copout to not ask the question because we've already heard his answer. It simply won't change and it will be a waste of time and space just rehashing it again. There are some excellent questions already in the question thread that I would prefer to hear answered.

That said, we probably wouldn't seem like real fans if it weren't at least mentioned. I trust you to do the right thing.

[prendizi]

Ask him a single 2 part question.

Coach, we've all heard the multitude of questions, answers, and suppositions regarding the quarterback switch. The fans seem to be split into two camps; those for Brunell, and those for Ramsey. It is my firm belief that the frustration the fans feel is not really over who should start, as neither has shown anything spectacular, but that there is a lot of confusion over how you arrived at the decision.

Can you please explain how you as a coach could allow an injured Mark Brunell to play 9 games last year (losing 6), and tell us what Mark has done that is so incredible that you would spend an entire off season, OTA's, training camp, and pre-season building the offense around Patrick only to bench him after 4 series?

[AJ_Skins]

Ask him a single 2 part question.

Coach, we've all heard the multitude of questions, answers, and suppositions regarding the quarterback switch. The fans seem to be split into two camps; those for Brunell, and those for Ramsey. It is my firm belief that the frustration the fans feel is not really over who should start, as neither has shown anything spectacular, but that there is a lot of confusion over how you arrived at the decision.

Can you please explain how you as a coach could allow an injured Mark Brunell to play 9 games last year (losing 6), and tell us what Mark has done that is so incredible that you would spend an entire off season, OTA's, training camp, and pre-season building the offense around Patrick only to bench him after 4 series?

Read this and see what you think...

[worm]

"Joe, as you are well aware, Redskins fans are passionate about their team to the point they strongly debate the composition of the 8 man practice squad. Obviously when there is a change at Quarterback, there are a plethora of questions and sentiments. What would you like the fans to know about the current quarterback situation in Washington?"

Then maybe a small follow-up based on how he responds and move on. This issue isn't going anywhere and you can be sure reporters will hound him for the same questions we all want to know. Let's be a little more creative...

I agree with this line of questioning. Although I would call him Coach..

[terpskins]

This is clearly the most pressing issue with the Washington Redskins and has been for some time. It is the first concern in the minds of many, if not most, fans. Certainly, I think you should dedicate an appropriate time to the issue. I may even go as far as to say, the point should be belabored.

Certainly, if the questions are supposed to be a reflection of the what's on the minds of the fanbase, there is no need for you to be conflicted. Ask and ask often. LOL. Good luck compiling your questions.

[GatorEye]

"Joe, as you are well aware, Redskins fans are passionate about their team to the point they strongly debate the composition of the 8 man practice squad. Obviously when there is a change at Quarterback, there are a plethora of questions and sentiments. What would you like the fans to know about the current quarterback situation in Washington?"

Then maybe a small follow-up based on how he responds and move on. This issue isn't going anywhere and you can be sure reporters will hound him for the same questions we all want to know. Let's be a little more creative...

I'd give this my vote as well. Get it out of the way early and let him feel like he's in charge from the beginning. Chances are we aren't going to learn much more about it anyway and then you can move on to other things that most likely we'd never get know.

To me, he'd probably be relieved to get it out of the way rather than waiting for you to drop the bomb on him later.

[matty dread]

I say ask him a couple on the QB situation, after all he has to be expecting that, and move on.

[McMetal]

I think it would be awkward not to acknowledge the issue in some way. Gibbs made a point in his announcement of the decision to mention the fans, and I think he knows some people are unhappy and I think he would like to take the opportunity to put some minds at ease. Not because he has to or needs to, but because I think he genuinely cares about the fans and our support. Maybe summarize everything into a single question right out of the gate and let him respond as he see fits and then move on to other topics. It needn't dominate the discussion, but it shouldn't be ignored either.

IMO...

[SkinsFTW]

I'd stay away from the QB questions because there won't be different answers but I would be tempted to find out how long he plans on sticking with Brunell this time.

If Brunell passes for sub 100 yards and plays similarily to how he did last year does Ramsey come back in? How many games like that would it take this time? We have already seen one.

I don't think I could handle another season of 13-10 and 9-7 games where the one single mistake in the entire game loses it for us due to a nonexistant passing game.

I'd think that a mistake or 2 from Ramsey a game would be offset by the offense he produces and good defense while the lack of offense produced by Brunell last year made it so that anything going wrong lost games. Even the Browns game would be a win last year if not for the headset fiasco more than likely. Single bad ref calls cost 1-2 other games while multiple bad calls cost 1-2 more. A single Portis fumble cost a game, a Brunell fumble cost another and almost the TB game. How much of this will be tolerated is all I want to know.

[Major Harris]

personally art, i think you should touch on the qb situation w/ 1 or 2 well thought out questions, but i agree with you that you won't get much from him. with it being the hottest topic in town, i think it has to be addressed, and gibbs probably expects it to be. however, imo, you should make it brief and get to other topics to get the most out of the chat. :2cents:

[pR0JEkT 21]

I would keep 1 or 2 questions about the QB situation, Im sure hes tired of talking about the same things over and over again. It would be best to void all questions to that topic so that all other questions can get answered. Thanks for your time!