PFW: Redskins owner took a chapter out of an old book with new hope for success

[bubba9497]

Redskins owner took a chapter out of an old book with new hope for success

http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFL/NFC/NFC+East/Washington/Features/2003/gibbshired010704.htm

Is the fifth time the charm? Although Daniel Snyder has missed on his previous four head coaches in his five seasons, you have to think that Joe Gibbs is Snyder’s best hire — or best move, for that matter — since taking over the team. And what a great surprise this is. Snyder has always been one for the big splash, and in bringing back the man who delivered the franchise three Super Bowl titles in 10 seasons, Redskins fans are believers again after nearly a decade of discontent. Though his past leaps of faith have had about as much grace as a jackknife into a leaf-covered pool, bringing Gibbs back has “reverse pike triple somersault” written all over it.

Dick Vermeil has done it in St. Louis and Kansas City. Bill Parcells took the Cowboys to the playoffs. Jack McKeon won the World Series, for heck’s sake. So, the old guys can obviously still deliver the goods. So why not bring them back into the fold? For every hot assistant who surfaces as the glitzy candidate here or there each year, there remains a retired coach sitting at home, still itching for the chance to wear the whistle again. You can bet that Nebraska athletic director Steve Pederson has already checked to see when Dr. Tom Osbourne’s current term in Congress runs out. And Marv Levy, 78 years young, has already said he wants to coach again.

It’s like the movie “Cocoon” all over again. That movie, by the way, won a couple of Oscars in 1986, the year before Gibbs won his second title.

Joe Gibbs will succeed again. As the manager of his racing team, now one of the sport’s most respected empires, Gibbs proved his management skills are universal. So why can’t his system — 10 years removed — still work? After all, Vikings head coach Mike Tice still uses Gibbs’ offensive formula for success. Critics might say that the game has changed, the players have changed or that the way the NFL is run, namely with free agency, has changed. But Gibbs has shown the ability to adapt to his surroundings and be successful in any endeavor he takes on.

You want hard work? You got it. Before Jon Gruden was telling you how early he set his alarm for, Gibbs was sleeping at the stadium. You want discipline? Check. Gibbs’ clubs were known for their precision and self-mastery. Preparation is not an option with Gibbs — it’s a must. Now all those individual parts that opponents say should be able to make up a winner — LaVar Arrington, Jeremiah Trotter, Champ Bailey, Patrick Ramsey, Laveranues Coles and Chris Samuels — can experience a synergy they never have had before. This team will be good very quickly.

And perhaps the overlooked star in all this is Snyder himself. No one questions his desire to put together a winner. No one doubts his passion for this football club. No one doubts his motives for winning or his track record for financial windfall. That’s why being the owner of a football team is such a tricky job: You are part-fan, part-businessman, and balancing the two is a delicate art. The artless Snyder has missed on that act for the better part of five years.

But there’s no doubt that this has the makings of his most deft move yet. In trying to fit 10 years of garbage into a four-coach bag, Snyder set the team back a long way. In attempting to buy a Super Bowl with risky acquisitions, he set it back further. But by pulling his latest rabbit out of his hat, Snyder has taken a step in the right direction. Assuming he can relinquish control of the football side of things, Snyder has made his best move yet: bring back the benevolent leader and get out of the way. There is a great saying that applies here: Nostalgia is the desire to repossess what you never had. Boy, if that doesn’t spell things out for Snyder, I am not sure what does.

[Potato Sack]

Though his past leaps of faith have had about as much grace as a jackknife into a leaf-covered pool

WTF does that mean????? Either that's a terrible analogy or it just went right over my head. :laugh:

[JoeSkins]

I've never done a jackknife into a leaf-covered pool, so...I don't get it either.

[BG]

Talking about Snyder I guess...........

[TODD]

"bringing Gibbs back has “reverse pike triple somersault” written all over it."

????

this writer needs a course on figurative language.