Yahoo Sports: Shanahan stumbling after wrong decisions at QB

[#98QBKiller]

This is on the front of Yahoo Sports this morning.

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AkLPTT.0zhbRjGchdLi6i2s5nYcB?slug=lc-carpenter_mike_shanahan_redskins_qbs_donovan_mcnabb102511

Shanahan stumbling after wrong decisions at QB

To think one gamble would matter so much.

Mike Shanahan was never going to have much time to make the Washington Redskins great again. He took the job as the team’s head coach telling people he thought he had two seasons before owner Daniel Snyder would want to run his team again. If Shanahan could win in these first two years then he believed he could probably keep control. And with Shanahan everything is about control.

What he never seemed to grasp – or maybe didn’t care to see – was how deep the franchise’s decay had become, how much work it would take to rebuild a disaster in 24 months and how much he’d have to be right when picking his next quarterback.

Once he decided Jason Campbell(notes) wasn’t the team leader, he had two choices: draft or trade for the team’s quarterback of the future, or jump the development process with someone experienced hoping to make the Redskins competitive sooner. In the end, he bet heavy on crumbling and stubborn Donovan McNabb(notes) and never found that quarterback to grow. Now, 22 games into his time as the ruler of the Redskins, he is left with the legacy of a failed McNabb experiment and two journeymen who can’t seem to hold onto the job no matter how many chances they get.

And with a 9-13 record in Washington you have to wonder if it is ever going to work for Shanahan and the Redskins, because staking your reputation on John Beck(notes) and Rex Grossman(notes) is probably not going to bring the playoffs again this season.

Shanahan is a quarterback man. Everyone knows this. It is supposed to be one of his great strengths. He tamed John Elway enough to win two Super Bowls in Elway’s final two seasons. He rode Jake Plummer to the AFC championship game and he built up Jay Cutler(notes) before the axe fell in Denver. He showed he can take three unique players with diverse skills and mold them into his offense.

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[KDawg]

I read this earlier. I think the entire premise of the article is off. Where's the proof that Shanahan said he thought he only had two years? I've never heard him say that.

[Lombardi's_kid_brother]

I don't know about the two years thing, but it is highly likely that Shanahan's tenture here will be defined by the McNabb trade.

[Riggo-toni]

I'm no Snyder apologist, nor am I a huge Shana-fan, but El Dano is not going to step in if the team falters this year.

[#98QBKiller]

I read this earlier. I think the entire premise of the article is off. Where's the proof that Shanahan said he thought he only had two years? I've never heard him say that.

I don't know about the two years thing' date=' but it is highly likely that Shanahan's tenture here will be defined by the McNabb trade.[/quote']

I don't know if I agree with the two years thing either but I agree with the general message of the article: that Shanahan has done a good job of adding youth and depth to the team so far but he hasn't added a leader via QB yet and that may be to his detriment ultimately.

[MattFancy]

I read this earlier. I think the entire premise of the article is off. Where's the proof that Shanahan said he thought he only had two years? I've never heard him say that.

If he thought he only had 2 years, no way would he have gone with Grossman/Beck as our QBs this year.

[tiger187126]

if shannahan thought he only had two years he wouldn't be here right now.

[SkinsHokieFan]

I don't know about the two years thing' date=' but it is highly likely that Shanahan's tenture here will be defined by the McNabb trade.[/quote']

Similiar to Gibbs and the Brunell trade. If he doesn't make that trade, or makes a different decision at QB, Gibbs 2.0 is totally different

[KDawg]

I don't know if I agree with the two years thing either but I agree with the general message of the article: that Shanahan has done a good job of adding youth and depth to the team so far but he hasn't added a leader via QB yet and that may be to his detriment ultimately.

The article can say that, and to a point, it's accurate. Shanahan hasn't added a quarterback...

But who would he have added? Which FA should he have added this year? Which QB should he have added in the draft? FA would be tough, they would have had virtually no time to learn the system. Carson Palmer proved last week you can't just plug and play.

In the draft, Newton and Locker likely would have fit. Newton was way out of reach, Locker went early, Ponder went early. That left us with Gabbert, who Shanahan clearly didn't want, as he traded his rights away, essentially. And for the record, not that my football opinion is anywhere near Shanahan's, but I agree with that move.

What were the other options this past year?

His screw up was on McNabb and not getting a young QB instead. But since McNabb, there have been few options... Until this years offseason.

[Boss_Hogg]

this article is BS, he signed a 5-year contract worth millions, Snyder would lose a lot if he fired Shanahan.

[authentic]

What were the other options this past year?

His screw up was on McNabb and not getting a young QB instead. But since McNabb, there have been few options... Until this years offseason.

...There weren't any, but the question continues to be recycled and repackaged every week. SMH

[KDawg]

...There weren't any, but the question continues to be recycled and repackaged every week. SMH

It's somewhat nauseating.

[Forever21]

Similiar to Gibbs and the Brunell trade. If he doesn't make that trade, or makes a different decision at QB, Gibbs 2.0 is totally different

I don't know about that. Maybe a little bit but not drastically. Now, if Gibbs had traded up two spots and drafted Rodgers over Campbell history may have been quite different.

I think this article is garbage. It is not researched or thought it. It is the easy way out journalism about the 'Skins that we have seen over the last number of years. Nothing to it at all. Yahoo is not a reliable source for news of any kind.

[KDawg]

I don't know about that. Maybe a little bit but not drastically. Now, if Gibbs had traded up two spots and drafted Rodgers over Campbell history may have been quite different.

Or maybe it wouldn't have been. Maybe the adversity Rodgers faced in Green bay fueled him. Maybe sitting behind Brett Favre taught him things to do AND things not to do as a quarterback. Maybe him not starting made him really focus on the smaller nuances of the game.

Or maybe he would have been better in DC

[G.A.C.O.L.B.]

The article can say that, and to a point, it's accurate. Shanahan hasn't added a quarterback...

But who would he have added? Which FA should he have added this year? Which QB should he have added in the draft? FA would be tough, they would have had virtually no time to learn the system. Carson Palmer proved last week you can't just plug and play.

In the draft, Newton and Locker likely would have fit. Newton was way out of reach, Locker went early, Ponder went early. That left us with Gabbert, who Shanahan clearly didn't want, as he traded his rights away, essentially. And for the record, not that my football opinion is anywhere near Shanahan's, but I agree with that move.

What were the other options this past year?

His screw up was on McNabb and not getting a young QB instead. But since McNabb, there have been few options... Until this years offseason.

Exactly.

Also I've always heard that Locker would've be our pick if he had been there.

[wrecker]

I think this offseason will define Mike Shanahan. He needs to hit on a QB, post a winning record next year and at least be a 6th seed playoff team. He also needs to fire his son and either call the plays himself or find someone else.

If these things don't happen then he will be gone after next season.

[authentic]

I think this offseason will define Mike Shanahan. He needs to hit on a QB, post a winning record next year and at least be a 6th seed playoff team. He also needs to fire his son and either call the plays himself or find someone else.

If these things don't happen then he will be gone after next season.

And why exactly does he need to fire Kyle?.... Do tell.

[Bobbyst21]

I cant remember exactly, But didnt Mike tell Danny that if he wasent willing to give him at least 3 years of him running the team his way, then dont bother hiring him? Or was it the full 5? To think any coach could come in here and fix this sunken ship in 2 years is ludicrous.

[SKOALSKIN]

People talk about the McNabb trade like we gave up the farm. It wasn't 2 first rounders, it was a second and a 6th. Jason Campbell didn't exactly light it up for Oakland. The problem is that we are razor thin on the depth chart. 2 more drafts like 2011 and our pantry is suddenly full again. As far as I'm concerned this is another ******* that's digging for an

[Capt Rich Fla]

I'm not a Shana-fan either, but to his defense, you can't draft a whole new team. I think he did the most with what he had as far as draft picks. We can hopefully get a QB this time.

[Skins Wingman]

it seemed like shanahans plan all along to wait until the 2012 draft to get his guy. adding mcnabb should have brought us short term success in the mean time. mcnabb, grossman, and beck are all stop gaps until next years draft.

[da#1skinsfan]

Terrible article. Assumptions all around. The biggest one being WE ARE 3-3!!!!!!! We as fans certainly have reason to be pessimistic, but who says the season is over???

[wrecker]

And why exactly does he need to fire Kyle?.... Do tell.

Because the play calling has been terrible and predictable for the most part this season. I have found myself scratching my head more times than when Zorn was calling the plays.

I also feel Kyle cares more about being a Genius offensive coordinator than he cares about winning games. He seemed to be calling plays thinking he had Joe Montana instead of Rex Grossman behind center.

[Jeffro]

Hindsight is AWESOME! I'd love to know what the armchair QBs think Shany should do.... Because as far as I can tell, it's not like he had great choices. He was damned if he did, damned if he didn't. If he didn't draft defense in the early rounds for starters which was our biggest weakness last year despite the QB debacle then people would have killed him for not helping the defense, if he wouldn't have drafted o-line people would have killed him, if he would of prioritized a QB over O-Line people would have killed him saying the QB could never be successful with that line.. blah blah blah.

He can't do anything right.. Welcome to the Redskins. The guy is trying to rebuild the best he can with what he has, it's not going to be easy and its going to take some time. If Danny boy (which I don't believe) thinks that Shanny (and Shanny too for that matter) was going to somehow make this team a winner in two years then nothing is going to save us, we're destine for complete failure going forward.

We've got to continue to make solid FA acquisitions for youthful players, add depth in all areas, draft franchise players and try to compete the best we can in the meantime. With that said, a franchise QB decision needs to be made very soon, aka this draft and if Luck is the guy we need to try to figure out a way to make it work because until that spot is solidified and you've got a rookie who's at least on the field getting experience this is going to be an insanely long process that I'm not sure many people can continue to endure.

[Forever21]

Or maybe it wouldn't have been. Maybe the adversity Rodgers faced in Green bay fueled him. Maybe sitting behind Brett Favre taught him things to do AND things not to do as a quarterback. Maybe him not starting made him really focus on the smaller nuances of the game.

Or maybe he would have been better in DC

Absolutely. Man there's no telling. Circumstances have such an effect on how a player (especially QB's) end up doing in their careers.

I like to think that Rodgers would have been good/great regardless. But perhaps being rushed into starting here and only learning behind Brunell instead of Favre would have meant Rodgers only developed into a good QB instead of an MVP caliber guy.