You wrote a great piece Boone, and I personally dislike Cowherd. But to play devil's advocate for a minute, history would show that his assumption is pretty safe.
How often do truly bad NFL franchises, the worst of the worst, turn it around to become great teams? I can't think of many. The one that jumps to mind, and something we should strive to follow, would be the Detroit Lions at this very moment. But that's taken a first round QB, a phenomenal WR, and a D-line that we might be talking about for the next decade. It took years and years of competent drafting for them to make the playoffs.
We may finally have the QB. And while we don't have Megatron, Pierre Garcon could be a highlight reel for the next five years. But both are learning new systems, and developing rapport with new players and coaches.
Awful franchises usually have a multitude of reasons for being lousy. Many aren't even visible to the public eye. Perpetual losing, just like it's counterpart perpetual winning, becomes a habit. And one that's tough to suddenly break from.
Of course, our improvements at both the GM and HC positions are a welcomed relief from the terrible course we were on, and both provide hope for our future. But realistically, just how much hope? We are still dealing with an owner who has been highly questionable at best, a HC who has had one playoff victory in the last ten years, and a GM who hasn't exactly built powerhouses. But that GM does have a last name that Redskins fans recognize and like.
A very rational argument could easily be made that we should expect about the same record as the Carolina Panthers had last season. As everyone knows, their QB dazzled, and broke rookie records. He was an absolute machine. But even with his stellar performance, when the dust settled, how did they look in the W-L column?
It's certainly possible that we could turn it around immediately--anything is possible of course. That's why they play the games. But would you bet that other wounded franchises like the Miami Dolphins, Buffalo Bills or Cleveland Browns will suddenly turn the corner?
It seems like lazy, biased reporting. And it may be. But it's safe. And it's safe because it's usually right when talking about organizations like ours.
It's so difficult to turn the ship so quickly, even if you are fortunate enough to have a Cam Newton at the wheel.
