Zorn is the pro, with the answers

by dr WNC on May 19, 2008 1:23 PM EDT

For me expectations are high for the Redskins this year, I believe in the so called "west coast offense" and everytime I read a Q&A from Zorn the confidence is evident as well as the team chemistry.

Before the start of the Redskins Beach Blitz, Jim Zorn spoke with The Virginian-Pilot's Bob Molinaro about preparations for his first season as head coach.

Q&A with Jim Zorn by Bob Malinaro...The Virginian-Pilot

The story is simple questions with the coach providing simple answers, some of the ones which give me the confidence about the upcoming season.

What has surprised you most about the Redskins?

How together the players are. They're all going in the same direction. I think they have a lot of faith in the kind of program Mr. Snyder has been trying to build.What has surprised you most about the Redskins?

Year-in and Year-out the team who goes on to win the superbowl is not always the best team, typically it's the team which gets on a good run and a team which is "A TEAM". Redskin fans point to the 2007 1st game with the Giants, which was the turning point o their season, as they came back to win. I tend to follow this reasoning, if the Giants had started 0-3 they would not have won the Superbowl, Tom Coughlin is most likely no longer the coach and talk of Eli Manning not being the franchise QB, but the Giants came together and had a good run. The most surprising thing from Zorn about the Redskins, "how together the team is" all 22 starters returning this is special and very different from other years in that the Redskins are the same team with additions, not additions to make a better team as in the past.

When you lie awake at night, do you ever wonder if you were ready for the leap from Seattle's quarterback coach to NFL head coach?

Before I got the job, I had always felt that I'd known what the formula was for becoming an offensive coordinator in the National Football League. The thing that always was perplexing is, what is the formula for becoming a head football coach? Because it just seemed to change yearly or by owner. When I became head coach for the Washington Redskins, I think it played true to that thought: that there really isn't one formula. So I don't try to lie awake at night thinking, "Yeah, I had the right formula for it." As you know, the way it happened is a little bit different than the way it happened elsewhere.

Because you've never been a coordinator, some Redskins fans may be worried that, to put it bluntly, you are in a little over your head. What do you say to them?

I haven't felt overwhelmed. I haven't said, 'Oh my gosh, what have I done; I shouldn't be here.'

That's the truth.

Everytime I read about how Zorn was made the coach or became the coach everyone wants to point out how it was unorthodoxed, yes it was different but head coach choices are different every year on how they are chosen and the key is Zorn has confidence he can do this and do it well.

Has it hit you yet what kind of pressure you're going to be under?

Remember, you're talking to me in the offseason. My answers kind of seem like, 'Oh, gosh, everything's great, this is fun.' But I understand what's coming, too. That's one of the things that I've expressed to the players. Everything is great now and we're all energized, but there are hard decisions to be made during this football season, because it's just long and difficult.

To achieve playoff status at the end of this year, it takes a lot of sacrifice at the beginning and middle of the year to have a chance to do it in the end.

The proof will be after a loss, after two losses. Are we still together, are there no grumblings, do we understand what we have to do to correct some of the shortcomings?

I like the "realist attitude with an injection of optimism", Zorn understands the players, the motivation, and what it takes to be a winner. So, yes, be it a new system with new coaches I am maintaining the high expectations with a 2008 season of more than 10 wins. GO REDSKINS!

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I also enjoy

the attitude and realism that Zorn brings to the table. I hope for a playoff birth with at least one win in the postseason. With the tuff competition in the NFC East, 10 wins could be a tall order, but I can see it happening. With a new system with new coaches and players it will be very interesting to see how it all come together but I’m very optimistic, I hope the fans are patient with Zorn & his staff as they go through growing pains.

by CptChaosSidekick on May 19, 2008 2:51 PM EDT 0 recs

You learn a lot more about a coach

after a loss than a win. I think his intuition about if/when his stress level is really put to the limit is spot on; if we open the season at 0-3, he’ll know what it means to be a HC in the NFL.

Go register. Or else.

by Skin Patrol on May 19, 2008 3:31 PM EDT 0 recs

Like what I hear

I gotta say I continue to be impressed with the guy. It just seems like everyone connected with the team is taking a huge breath of fresh air. I hope our attitude carries over into the regular season. I know our players will prepare vigorously for every game despite the fact that Jim Zorn approaches things with a more laid back approach.

I love to hear that we are so unified as a team, and it’s really no surprise after last season. Everything from the players is positive.

The offense is obviously going to be different, but I have a really good feeling about it. I love the big receivers we picked up in the draft…I cant imagine this team not putting up 7-10 more points a game.

I think that our defense is going to play great this year. Things should be about the same as last year. I expect Landry to have a huge year.

Most of all, there wont be enormous amounts of pressure on the players game in and game out. It had to be exhausting going out there every week knowing that you were playing for the reputations of so many people. Obviously Gibbs is a Hall of Fame coach, rebounding from a poor year defensively and trying to prove that GW has still got it, and on top of that pressing oh so hard to show something from that giant playbook of Al Saunders. That’s alot.

There was even pressure to prove that Dan Snyder could buy himself a contender with a high priced staff and over-priced free agents. Now everyone is taking a step back and trying things a different way so there really arent any expectations. Let’s just go out and see what happens. There are going to be some growing pains and that is really the only expectation. I’m just hoping Jim Zorn continues to be a master at putting people at ease. Maybe he can atleast make this season a little bit less stressful than last year.

I’m in for 10 wins. I dont think McNabb has enough left to make them into a contender, there’s too much weight on the shoulders of Westbrook. Giants will slip a lot, just have a hunch. Looking forward to seeing what we can do this year.

by Romans12 on May 19, 2008 9:27 PM EDT 0 recs

Hunch on the Giants

The Giants are a team waiting to implode, I will not be surprised and almost expect the G-men to finish last in the NFC east this year, not making the playoffs. It should be an exciting year for NFL football!

by dr WNC on May 20, 2008 6:33 AM EDT up 0 recs

Well...

I’ve been among those predicting a Giants implosion for years, given that the narrative on Tom Coughlin is that… he’s coaching a team on the verge of implosion.

And yet, year after year, they make the playoffs.

I hope you’re right, obviously, and that the Giants stumble to last place in the NFC East, but I’ve been making that prediction wrongly for too long to accept it now. I think their defensive line is simply too good to permit a precipitous fall.

Go register. Or else.

by Skin Patrol on May 20, 2008 8:59 AM EDT up 0 recs

Zorn as a pro

I agree with the other posters who say they are – or becoming – more impressed with Zorn. As reported in the press, it seems all his statements and his answers to interrogatories and grounded in common sense and well seasoned knowledge of how football players must play the game.

In so far as the jump from QB coach to head coach, while very unusual, it, in of itself, does not prove or disprove his ability to be a head coach. An analogy is hiring someone to lead almost any organization. A good CEO – football owner, and Dan Snyder has learned much about being an owner of a football team – knows what traits an individual must have to relate to the players and the front office. He also knows what kind of coaching philosophy he wants to help his team be successful. Through all the interviews, some with the rising stars in this league, apparently Snyder (and Cerrato?) kept coming back to Zorn due to whatever interaction occurred during his interview for the Offensive Coordinator position.

I believe that Zorn knows football. He was a successful quarterback. He has the ability to read defences. He has learned the offensive side of offensive game strategy and some play calling. He has studied under one the best coaches in the leaque, Holmgren. He has coached QB’s to be far more successful than others thought they could be. Coaching is about improving players so they play at their highest level; coaching is about strategy; and, head coaching is about creating a high performing team. It is this last point that is the real unknown about Zorn. How well will he pull all the parts together and lead the team through a long season, and respond to an unforgiving fan base.

The NFC East is one of the toughest conferences currently. The Redskins have a couple of potential holes ( McIntosh’s knees, Griffin’s back, Rogers’ knee, Campbell’s ability to change techniques and learn the WC system). It is not an easy road.

I think the most important thing in determining whether Zorn is going to be successful is whether we see steady improvement in the Redskin’s performance through the course of the season. The W-L statistic and how effective the team is in executing plays during the second half of the season is how I will evaluate Zorn’s ability as a head coach.

It is my fervent hope that Snyder has finally found that person who will prove to be a great head coach.

by saratogan on May 20, 2008 10:05 AM EDT 0 recs