Nepotism: Is it Killing the Skins?

[Elephant]

I have an ongoing conversation about the Shanahan family dynamic and have finally come to agreement with my friend that the Kyle Shanahan hire was not a good one.

When he was first brought on board I was mildly excited considering he coached the #1 offense in the NFL and he would be under the tutelage of his HoF father.

Well since, we have seen an offensive coordinator who has been far from good. But unlike any other OC, he has yet to be reeled in by the HC. He consistently makes poor play calls and has gone nearly 2 full games with just 3 points.

With any other OC the leash would have been tightened, but we see little to no direction from the HC. My friend suggests it is because the father is less likely to call his son out. I find myself in agreement.

It looks like Mike Shanahan's downfall could be the inability to do something about his son's poor coaching. Not what I expected when they hired Mike Shanahan.

 

[riggins44]

Not sure if Kyle or Beck just not comfortable throwing deeper than check downs and screens. Too many missed throws by Beck. Afraid to say Grossman is better.
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[Elephant]

I agree Beck is horrible, but the play calling was suspect long before Beck took the starting position.

 

[Boone]

I don't know...but if I have to choose between the two of them, I'll take junior and get Dad the hell out of town.

I think KS can be a good OC and possibly head coach down the road - just a feeling I have. I have zero confidence in the head coach, who it appears to me maybe just wanted one big final paycheck, vs. being hungry for the NFL and to show doubters he was still a premier head coach.

Kyle has very little to work with. No O-line, no exceptional talent at WR, certainly no quarterback. Those things are on Allen and Shanahan, not him.

 

[Bulldog]

Where the problems began were when Shanahan ignored Kyle in making the trade for Donovan McNabb.

That was actually a case IMO of the opposite of nepotism. It was a case of 'I know better than my son'.

If this was Joe Gibbs and Dan Henning as the OC in the glory days objected to a trade that strenuously it is doubtful Gibbs would have made the deal.

But that was a case of professional coaches that came up together through the ranks.

Bringing in an experienced coach was an improvement for the Redskins who had suffered through the Jim Zorn era.

BUT, there were two caveats Shanahan made that were questionable.

One was to allow him to name the GM.

The other was to bring in his son in so prominent a role.

It was a no-win for Kyle. If the team lost and didn't perform well he would be blamed and if the team won his father would get the credit.

He should have stayed in Houston with Schaub, Arrian Foster and Andre Johnson and proven himself in the postseason.

Then he could have moved on somewhere else based on merit alone.

 

[fansince62]

until there's talent on offense...especially at QB.....can't judge young Shanahan

 

[servumtuum]

until there's talent on offense...especially at QB.....can't judge young Shanahan

I tend to agree. There are probably 20 NFL teams or more in which Kyle Shanahan could have stepped in as OC and had better results than he has had here.

 

[Chris]

I wonder how many great coordinators there are out there with ****ty qb's like ours and what their records are.

 

[Jimbo]

I can't help but wonder how many coordinators out there would attempt to call a game that caters to the QB's strengths instead of trying to force sub-par QB's to adapt to YOUR offense, no ifs-ands-or-buts.

Sticking with John Beck is pure arrogance. Allowing your son full control of the offense, even when you can't score, is not only arrogant, it's nepotism at it's worst. Then again, Mike asked for it when he hired his son. While that part isn't Kyle's fault, Kyle hasn't shown any type of ability to adapt his offense to his players.

Unfortunately, this is the same old Mike. Once a player gets in his doghouse, i.e. Rex and his 4 picks, it's almost impossible to get out. Knowing how Shanahan operates, I don't expect to see Grossman play again this year unless Beck gets hurt.

 

[fansince62]

I can't help but wonder how many coordinators out there would attempt to call a game that caters to the QB's strengths instead of trying to force sub-par QB's to adapt to YOUR offense, no ifs-ands-or-buts.

Sticking with John Beck is pure arrogance. Allowing your son full control of the offense, even when you can't score, is not only arrogant, it's nepotism at it's worst. Then again, Mike asked for it when he hired his son. While that part isn't Kyle's fault, Kyle hasn't shown any type of ability to adapt his offense to his players.

Unfortunately, this is the same old Mike. Once a player gets in his doghouse, i.e. Rex and his 4 picks, it's almost impossible to get out. Knowing how Shanahan operates, I don't expect to see Grossman play again this year unless Beck gets hurt.

Jimbo....KS did ok in Houston. We simply don' have the talent on offense. There is no QB, no true threat WR...and the o-line?

I'll reserve judgment until he has real tools to work with. At the end of the day...the players have to execute...that's 80-90% of it. this cast obviously can't do that.

where I will agree is that the Shanahan's badly misjudged on the QBs. First the McNabb debacle. Then Rex "knows the system" when he never played in any games in Houston. And finally, their love for Beck driven by some ancient draft year.

 

[Fear The Spear]

It's almost like having the virtually fire-proof Vinny Cerrato here, all over again. Mike and Kyle are even more inseparable than Danny and Vinny.

Pisses me off. We're stuck with another Nepo-Vinny.

 

[Rymanofthenorth]

what killed us is the ego of shannahan, in his first year he was sure that he could coach this team into the playoffs , he traded picks for vets, he then sabotaged himself by screwing our defence up massively. Look at Houston and how quickly they turned that defence around. all we needed was for him to make some changes on the offence and shore up the defence, instead he tried to do too much and didnt admit his failure until this offseason when he yet again ignored our oline woes.

 

[Sarge]

Bottom line is that if this was any other NFL team and was scoring as few points as we are, the OC's job would be on the line. At the very least he be forced to adjust his scheme

 

[Boone]

I'm not saying that a lack of accountability (as you're describing it) is a good thing. But holding a revolving door of offensive coordinators accountable hasn't gotten the Redskins very far over the years. I guess it's good to know you can fire a guy if he isn't able to perform. But maybe that's not always a good thing, given our organizational patience level. We make all kinds of excuses for players who need 'more time' - but coaches we expect great things from right away.

And there are all kinds of pressure - having your Dad as a boss may qualify as quite a bit of incentive not to suck - I don't know...it would motivate me a lot more than the threat of termination, but maybe that's just me.

 

[riggins44]

From what I saw yesterday from Beck, can't blame Kyle. Several times he locked in on Davis or Helu, when we had a open WR in the 10-15 yrd range. This isn't Kyle's fault.

I wonder if all the short passes and screens called by Kyle was just the fact he had to call them to cover for Beck. Beck seemed to lost the mojo he had when came in Eagles game off the bench.

In comparing Beck to a pitcher, he may be a better relief QB than starter. Basically a decent back up. If he was a quality stater or had potential he wouldn't have bounced around for a number of years.

Mike Shanahan said in preseason he could win with Beck and Grossman and stated his reputation on it. Well it looks like his rep is taking a hit.

 

[fansince62]

we need guys who can block and a franchise QB. we don't have either right now. it's this simple: there isn't enough offensive material to work with to deploy the playbook in creative ways. you don't run much if you're constantly lookng at 3rd and six. you don't cal lfor a lot of deep passes if your QBs don't see open recievers and the average pass protection time is 3 secs or less. KS did well in Houston. This team hs talent at RB and TE. Uncertain whether we have latent talent in the rookie WRs. we know where the line stands. the QBs should be TV analysts next season.

You can't judge KS until there is something to work with. He can't call an intelligent game with so many weak spots on offense.

 

[Sarge]

Perhaps, had we not gone into the season with no backup guards, we wouldn't be having this problem

 

[Lanky Livingston]

until there's talent on offense...especially at QB.....can't judge young Shanahan

Bingo. The analysts were commenting on how many wide-open receivers Beck just flat-out missed. Can't judge Kyle until there's a QB capable of being an NFL quarterback - John Beck is not.

 

[Lanky Livingston]

I can't help but wonder how many coordinators out there would attempt to call a game that caters to the QB's strengths instead of trying to force sub-par QB's to adapt to YOUR offense, no ifs-ands-or-buts.

Getting WRs open caters to ANY QB's strength, unless they just flat-out SUCK. John Beck just plain sucks - he is the problem with this offense, end of story.

Sticking with John Beck is pure arrogance. Allowing your son full control of the offense, even when you can't score, is not only arrogant, it's nepotism at it's worst. Then again, Mike asked for it when he hired his son. While that part isn't Kyle's fault, Kyle hasn't shown any type of ability to adapt his offense to his players.

Agree - they should have switched to Grossman in the Bills game. I hope we see a switch this week - you can SEE the receivers getting frustrated after every play. They may be interceptions, but at least Grossman THROWS the ball to wide-open WRs on deep routes.

 

[Lanky Livingston]

what killed us is the ego of shannahan, in his first year he was sure that he could coach this team into the playoffs , he traded picks for vets, he then sabotaged himself by screwing our defence up massively. Look at Houston and how quickly they turned that defence around. all we needed was for him to make some changes on the offence and shore up the defence, instead he tried to do too much and didnt admit his failure until this offseason when he yet again ignored our oline woes.

Houston has a dominant, ball-control offense. They had two backs go for over 100 yards yesterday, meaning their D barely saw the field. Also, they've been close to being great for several years now, so there was no "turn-around." If we had any kind of offense, our defense would be a top 10 unit, there is no doubt in my mind.