Those Assistants Are Planning Your Demise, Coach
Yesterday’s victories by the Baltimore Ravens and Washington Redskins proved one thing. Like politics, coaching in the NFL is more about with whom you surround yourself than the experience you have.
Jim Zorn returned to Seattle and pulled out a 20-17 win against his former employer, the Seattle Seahawks. So momentous was the victory, that Hip Hip Hooray resurfaced in the victorious locker room, and Shaun Suisham’s failures won’t be the hot topic in today’s media.
Locally, the Baltimore Ravens pulled out a much-needed 36-7 win against the visiting Philadelphia Eagles, the former team of Ravens head coach John Harbaugh. And in case you didn’t hear, the Ravens also managed to end Donovan McNabb’s playing days in Philadelphia, as he was benched in favor of the far less effective, Campbell’s Chunky soup-less Kevin Kolb.
In the case of the Washington Redskins, Zorn has to be considered a surprise of epic proportions. He followed the second go-round of the legendary Joe Gibbs, and inherited a team that made the playoffs in 2007, but had the feel of rebuilding around it.
When he was named head coach, the collective “Who?” in the NFL world cast out an immediate aura of 5-11, but the Redskins have been the complete opposite of the predictions. Zorn has made an MVP out of Clinton Portis, a future-elite quarterback out of Jason Campbell, and a mockery of the sporadically-updated FireJimZorn.com.
In Baltimore, Harbaugh has instilled discipline in a unit that was rebuilding, and started the season with a rookie quarterback at the helm. Would anyone have believed last year that at this point this year, the Ravens would be tied with the New England Patriots in the AFC Wild Card chase?
The Ravens defense has met expectations, and the offense has exceeded them. And while there are plenty of tests ahead in the next few weeks, there’s a hint of swagger that has returned to Charm City football.
It’s good for the Baltimore-Washington area to have two good teams, particularly when they play each other in two weeks. But it’s great that they are being led by fresh faces who know not the pressures they should be under, and have no clue that because of their success, the local expectations will be Super Bowl or Bust in 2009.
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