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There seems to be no question that Daniel Snyder has almost single-handedly destroyed a once beloved NFL powerhouse. Every Washington fan knows far too well the destructive impact this selfish egomaniacal owner has had on our team. Some inside the franchise have had the temerity to speak up and take a stand against Snyder. Numerous women, low-level executives, and former employees have courageously stepped forward to share their stories about the dysfunctional, misogynistic, hostile environment Snyder tolerated, encouraged, and facilitated. They did so despite full confidence that Dan Snyder would stop at nothing to threaten, punish, and silence them.
Where the hell are all of the former coaches?
Norv Turner.
Steve Spurrier.
Joe Gibbs.
Jim Zorn.
Mike Shanahan.
Jay Gruden.
The silence is deafening.
These men spent years seeing Snyder operate. They know who he is and what he is. They each no doubt spent years literally navigating around and observing the dysfunction that was Daniel Snyder. Any one of them could be a powerful voice in the effort to bring some justice to a once great franchise and fanbase.
Some will argue that these coaches were 'on the football side of things', and were probably blissfully unaware of any wrongdoing or Snyder-inspired mischief. If you believe that, you probably believe that stuff spewing from the overhead pipes at Fed Ex Field is crystal clear spring water. There is scant separation between 'the football' and 'non-football side' at an intimately small environment like Redskins Park in Ashburn. It's not a big place. If you worked there for years, you saw and heard everything you ever need to in order to determine what kind of an owner, boss, and man Dan Snyder is. These coaches know plenty.
Yet has anyone heard anything substantive from any of these men regarding what went on during their tenure? Bueller? Bueller?
I haven't.
Joe Gibbs - who was our head coach exactly 1 season prior to the infamous nude cheerleader video being made - has made nary a peep about Snyder and what he knows or does not know. Were Gibbs and others interviewed by Beth Wilkinson or Mary Jo White? We are talking about individuals who may have been closer to Snyder during their tenures than almost anyone else. And yet, we've heard next to nothing from Gibbs, Norv Turner, Mike Shanahan, or Jim Zorn. Truth be told, if these coaches had any kind of integrity they wouldn't need to be asked - they would be stepping forward voluntarily and expressing support for the women and other employees who were systematically abused at the hands of Snyder for decades. I am particularly disappointed in Joe Gibbs who is a self-avowed Christian and is universally seen as a moral and decent man. And yet Gibbs has been utterly silent on this whole scandal.
I know criticizing Saint Joe is unpopular. I've been angrily lambasted on social media for questioning Gibbs silence. But where is he? Does any fan doubt that Gibbs quickly figured out what kind of a man Dan Snyder is and what kind of environment he created around him? I have believed for years that it wasn't family illness or a desire to spend more time with loved ones that drove Gibbs to end his 2nd tenure so suddenly. I believe it was Snyder himself, and Gibbs increasing awareness of his lack of integrity and basic human decency that likely sent him packing.
I wrote Joe Gibbs an impassioned letter entreating him, as the franchise's most respected former leader and as the moral compass of this team, to make a statement. I got no response which sadly did not surprise me. But he remains silent.
But Joe Gibbs isn't the only former Head Coach to remain utterly silent. To my knowledge, none of these coaches have gone on public record regarding what they observed during their tenures.
Why haven't media members and major news outlets gone after these head coaches? Where is the public pressure on them to speak up regarding what they saw and heard? Seems to me that would make a hell of a story for ESPN or the Washington Post.
Why the utter silence from leaders and men who are mostly considered decent human beings? Keep in mind,
I fear I already know the answer. Perhaps the brotherhood of the NFL is so intensely protected that speaking out against a fellow member, even one as horrible and despicable as Dan Snyder, is forbidden, even treasonous? Maybe it really is 'Protect the Shield' at all costs? Maybe seeing women and men systematically harassed, demeaned, belittled, abused, and victimized is not a big enough sin to warrant violating the NFL's most cherished mandate - the first rule of Fight Club is don't talk about Fight Club.
Where the hell are all of the former coaches?
Norv Turner.
Steve Spurrier.
Joe Gibbs.
Jim Zorn.
Mike Shanahan.
Jay Gruden.
The silence is deafening.
These men spent years seeing Snyder operate. They know who he is and what he is. They each no doubt spent years literally navigating around and observing the dysfunction that was Daniel Snyder. Any one of them could be a powerful voice in the effort to bring some justice to a once great franchise and fanbase.
Some will argue that these coaches were 'on the football side of things', and were probably blissfully unaware of any wrongdoing or Snyder-inspired mischief. If you believe that, you probably believe that stuff spewing from the overhead pipes at Fed Ex Field is crystal clear spring water. There is scant separation between 'the football' and 'non-football side' at an intimately small environment like Redskins Park in Ashburn. It's not a big place. If you worked there for years, you saw and heard everything you ever need to in order to determine what kind of an owner, boss, and man Dan Snyder is. These coaches know plenty.
Yet has anyone heard anything substantive from any of these men regarding what went on during their tenure? Bueller? Bueller?
I haven't.
Joe Gibbs - who was our head coach exactly 1 season prior to the infamous nude cheerleader video being made - has made nary a peep about Snyder and what he knows or does not know. Were Gibbs and others interviewed by Beth Wilkinson or Mary Jo White? We are talking about individuals who may have been closer to Snyder during their tenures than almost anyone else. And yet, we've heard next to nothing from Gibbs, Norv Turner, Mike Shanahan, or Jim Zorn. Truth be told, if these coaches had any kind of integrity they wouldn't need to be asked - they would be stepping forward voluntarily and expressing support for the women and other employees who were systematically abused at the hands of Snyder for decades. I am particularly disappointed in Joe Gibbs who is a self-avowed Christian and is universally seen as a moral and decent man. And yet Gibbs has been utterly silent on this whole scandal.
I know criticizing Saint Joe is unpopular. I've been angrily lambasted on social media for questioning Gibbs silence. But where is he? Does any fan doubt that Gibbs quickly figured out what kind of a man Dan Snyder is and what kind of environment he created around him? I have believed for years that it wasn't family illness or a desire to spend more time with loved ones that drove Gibbs to end his 2nd tenure so suddenly. I believe it was Snyder himself, and Gibbs increasing awareness of his lack of integrity and basic human decency that likely sent him packing.
I wrote Joe Gibbs an impassioned letter entreating him, as the franchise's most respected former leader and as the moral compass of this team, to make a statement. I got no response which sadly did not surprise me. But he remains silent.
But Joe Gibbs isn't the only former Head Coach to remain utterly silent. To my knowledge, none of these coaches have gone on public record regarding what they observed during their tenures.
Why haven't media members and major news outlets gone after these head coaches? Where is the public pressure on them to speak up regarding what they saw and heard? Seems to me that would make a hell of a story for ESPN or the Washington Post.
Why the utter silence from leaders and men who are mostly considered decent human beings? Keep in mind,
I fear I already know the answer. Perhaps the brotherhood of the NFL is so intensely protected that speaking out against a fellow member, even one as horrible and despicable as Dan Snyder, is forbidden, even treasonous? Maybe it really is 'Protect the Shield' at all costs? Maybe seeing women and men systematically harassed, demeaned, belittled, abused, and victimized is not a big enough sin to warrant violating the NFL's most cherished mandate - the first rule of Fight Club is don't talk about Fight Club.
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