Done In D.C.?
2 min read
By ZACH MORETTI
On Oct. 6 of this year, the Washington Redskins brought in Sherman Lewis to be a “consultant” for the team’s offense. Executive vice president for football operations Vinny Cerrato told reporters that, “Nothing changes. Jim’s (Zorn) still calling plays. Everybody’s still doing what they’re doing. It’s just a fresh set of eyes.”
But following the Redskins 14-6 loss to the previously winless Chiefs this past Sunday, something did change as head coach Jim Zorn was stripped of his play-calling duties and that responsibility was handed to Lewis.
What may be worse for Zorn is that the Redskins front office has lost so much faith in him that they feel more comfortable with a guy calling plays who has been with the team a mere two weeks and hasn’t coached in the NFL since 2004.
It was previously stated by this reporter that it seemed highly unlikely that Zorn would be fired mid-season. However, the acquisition of Lewis makes this possible as owner Dan Snyder now has someone in place who has experience with the West Coast Offense and can call the plays should Zorn be let go.
The team could then appoint the defensive coordinator Greg Blatche as the interim head coach and have him continue to run the defense while Lewis could take over as the quarterback’s coach on top of the play-calling duties he has already been assigned.
This would allow Washington to do the inevitable and cut Zorn loose now as it has become clear that he is basically a lame-duck coach that won’t be returning after this season anyway. Unlike in baseball or basketball, letting a coach go in football mid-season rarely works out for that team in that season.
But the Redskins may have realized that they aren’t going anywhere regardless of who is at the helm, as they are currently 2-3 despite having one of the easiest NFL schedules to this point.
It has been clear for some time that Zorn would be done in Washington when the season came to a close. But now it appears that if the Redskins were to fall to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 7 on Monday Night Football, that Zorn could be fired following that contest and management could put the new pieces in place as the team heads into their bye week.
