Zorn gets job while another Jim gets jobbed

Cbsnews.com ^ | Feb. 10, 2008 | By Clark Judge

[Perdogg]

Jim Fassel deserved better than what he got from the Washington Redskins. And what he got was the shaft.

"This is a shock to me," he said after the team hired Jim Zorn as head coach.

You're not alone, Jim.

Jim Fassel believes his dismissal from nearby Baltimore convinced the Redskins not to hire him.

Fassel was supposed to be a slam dunk for the job once Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo returned to New York last week. After all, he helped put together the team's staff -- including the choice of Zorn as offensive coordinator -- and, according to Fassel, he had started to talk about a contract.

[Perdogg]

NFL PING

FReepmail scott says to be added to, or to be taken off the NFL Ping list... This is a fairly high volume ping list

[Perdogg]

NFL PING

FReepmail scott says to be added to, or to be taken off the NFL Ping list... This is a fairly high volume ping list

[Dog Gone]

The Redskins probably picked an utter failure as coach.

I see that as good news.

[MattinNJ]

Disclaimer-I am a G-man fan. Fassell is a good man and deserved better than this from that *&^% Snyder. While I hate the Cowboys, I have the ultimate respect for the Eagles and Skins.

When a reporter spoke to Justin Tuck after the Super Bowl about how the G-men utterly dominated the Patriots physically, Tuck said-"This is the NFC East"

[lepton]

When a reporter spoke to Justin Tuck after the Super Bowl about how the G-men utterly dominated the Patriots physically, Tuck said-"This is the NFC East"

Ya know, that's awfully haughty considering that the Patriots beat all four NFC East teams, and the Giants required BOTH a catch on the top of the helmet, and two dropped interceptions on the last drive.

The Giants played an excellent game...but easily could have lost.

[RetiredArmy]

Zorn was a so-so quarterback. He has only been a QB coach and this was his first OC job I believe. He has never been a head coach anywhere has he? And now they expect him to run an NFL team? This is not going to end well for Zorn. I give him a year and a half and Snyder will self destruct again and fire him.

[MattinNJ]

Agreed. I was not referencing who had the superior skill. I was talking about the physical battering the Patriots took. Their offensive line was overrun and Brady looked mortal back there because he was hit so hard, so often. They were forced to abandon the run, not because they were behind, but because they were beaten down.

The G-men forced the Patriots into an NFC East smash mouth game-that's why they won. They put themselves into a positon where, if they got lucky on a play or two, they would win. No question that insane catch was 1 in a hundred-if that.

Don't forget the Giants were driving in the end of the second half when Smith batted the ball up into the Patriots arms ending a sure 7.

[Uncle Ivan]

The Redskins will never be anything more than an also-ran as long as Snyder is the owner.

Maybe one of these days the media will treat him as badly as they do Jerry Jones...nah, I doubt it. At least Jones did play the game and understands it from that perspective.

[rsflynn]

Wow, they swapped out one bad coach named Jim for another. Looks like the Falcons got the better end of the Skins with their pickup of Mike Smith. A lot of folks were critical that the Falcons didn’t wait for Spag’s, but now he has a huge contact with the Giants and it doesn’t look like he’s leaving anytime soon, the hire of Mike Smith looks like a master stroke. It’s been tough being a Falcons fan lately, but at least we don’t have Dan Snyder as the owner.

[End Times Sentinel]

While I hate the Cowboys, I have the ultimate respect for the Eagles and Skins.

Feeling's mutual (sub G Men for Iggles on my part of course). In case you didn't know, pretty much everyone in Eagleville was rooting for the G Men against both the Cowboys and Pats, nice work out of your team.

Personally, I'm agnostic on Fassel, he was a competent coach at bare minimum and Fiensten's portrayal of him in "Next Man Up" (excellent read BTW) was very positive, but I pose this to you: Would you wish your worst enemy employment under Dan Snyder? I know I wouldn't.

There's a ton of Redskins fans that I admire and respect... and heck, even call family. My heart bleeds for every one of them knowing that Dan Snyder is quite likely at least 40 years away from a natural death, and it's quite likely that he'll continue to hold the reins of that team, calling moronic shot after ill informed decision. He's a cancer on the entire NFC east.

Aside: Manning made the plays when he had to, but Justin Tuck and David Tyree were battling for the MVP in that game BEFORE the final 5:00. Hell of a game, and hell of a season for your guys. Proud 'a ya from the City of Brotherly Love.

[dmz]

Zorn was a so-so quarterback. He has only been a QB coach and this was his first OC job I believe. He has never been a head coach anywhere has he? And now they expect him to run an NFL team?
______________

Bill Cowher did pretty well for himself, and I’d suggest his football career as a player was somewhat less distinguished than Zorn’s. Pittsburgh was his first head coaching jobs after about 7 years as an assistant.

Of course, I always hope the ‘skins tank.

[The Pack Knight]

I was very surprised at the hire, but I'm willing to give Zorn a chance. He's certainly done a good job in Seattle over the last few years, and the players seem to respect him.

I really don't think Fassel deserves a head coaching job after making such a hash of his last job in Baltimore. Being fired mid-season for having the worst offense in the NFL, only to have that offense experience a renaissance immediately after you leave, doesn't speak well of one's abilities. Add to that the fact that the firing came amid reports that he spent more time networking and griping about other coaches getting head coaching jobs rather than doing his own job, and it's easy to see why he might have been passed up.

Don't waste your sympathy on Fassel. If he'd just done his job in Baltimore, he'd be a head coach somewhere right now.

[proudpapa]

Explain how Fassel gets the shaft while his Offensive Coord. Neuheisel gets promoted to coach UCLA???

[The Pack Knight]

Fassel was offensive coordinator, and while he was calling plays the Ravens had one of the worst offenses in the NFL. His successor Neuheisel, on the other hand, was never given play calling responsibilities; Billick called the offensive plays himself last season.

Fassel did an abysmal job in Baltimore. By all accounts, he spent most of his tenure there asking those same types of questions. "Why did X get a head coaching job instead of me?" I wouldn't call what he got "the shaft."

If anyone got the shaft in all this, it was Gregg Williams, who was endorsed for the job by none other than Joe Gibbs himself.

[Uncle Ivan]

"Next Man Up" (excellent read BTW)

I like vanilla.

Go Cowboys.