WP: The Redskins might be playing to evaluate players, but it’s too early for Mike Shanahan to say so

[Lavarleap56]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports...91c_story.html

By:Mike Wise

You know what the real kick in the gut was Sunday? Not a one-win Carolina team handling the Redskins on their home field. Not fans high-stepping out in the fourth quarter as if they had been told to evacuate. Not almost 200 of the team’s most distinguished alumni — Super Bowl winners and Hall of Famers alike — witnessing their successors disgrace their memory.

No, the real blow came afterward, from the head coach. Of all the people to give up on the season, really, who knew Mike Shanahan would be the first?

“When you lose a game like that, now you’re playing to see who, obviously, is going to be on your football team for years to come,” Shanahan said after his team’s third straight loss and ninth in the past 10 games at FedEx Field. “Now we get a chance to evaluate players and see where we’re at. Obviously we’re not out of it statistically. But now we find out what type of character we’ve got and how guys keep on fighting through the rest of the season.”

Hear that, men? Seven games left to shore up job security. You’re not playing for the postseason anymore. You’re playing for the film room, to see if the decision-makers deign you worthy of a 2013 salary.

[RansomthePasserby]

Maybe they'll play better now that they know their jobs are on the line...

[Boss_Hogg]

I'm hoping it was just a "heat of the moment" thing. I'm sure Mike will explain more tomorrow. I dont think he has quit, I just think he's frustrated, pissed, and maybe burned out.

[zskins]

Maybe they'll play better now that they know their jobs are on the line...

Shanny using reverse psychology to motivate his player. I am sure no coach does that.

[WhoRUSupposed2Be]

It's always been about emotions when it comes to this team... You can't get mad when the head coach says it publically because realistically this team is not good enough to overcome their own stupidity at times.

It's fine to be emotional and I'd rather Shanahan say this **** out loud for these players to hear it... Today was an embarrassment and soon or later these players have got to take exception. It is absolute weak sauce to be keep putting this **** at the foot of the coach when these players are paid to perform.

I truly believe we have some coach killers on this team that need to be driven away.

[Gibbs Hog Heaven]

Utterly unacceptable and unprofessional.

In an ideal World, he'd suck up this ****storm and apologize to his team.

Hail.

[Laron Burgundy]

Yeah, I see that as a motivation thing. And to be realistic, at 3-6 we would have to go 6-1 to even stand a shot at the playoffs, more likely 7-0. Mind you, our closing schedule isn't exactly a cakewalk. Obviously we're not tanking the season for a draft pick, but injuries and bad coaching on d have decimated a promising season. I hope more than anything that Haslett gets canned during the bye week and we see improvement in that unit during the last 7 games.

[windsofcreation]

I'm glad he said it. Screw all the reverse psychology. He's being realistic. This team does not deserve a playoff spot. He knows it. We all know it.

[Genghis Khan]

I'm already looking at the upcoming free agency and the draft. I guess he's just being realistic. With our defense we will continue to lose.

[SkinsTillIDie]

Mike Wise:

The problem with the Daniel Snyder era is that too many decisions have been made out of emotion instead of logic.

Mike Wise 1 paragraph earlier:

New No. 1s at strong safety, free safety, both cornerback positions, inside linebacker, outside linebacker and right tackle starts to address the personnel upgrade required.

This is about as emotional and reactionary as it gets. We have "new No. 1s" at free safety, strong safety and outside linebacker -- they've just been sidelined all year. And will be back next year.

Josh Wilson isn't a bad corner at all; he's just not a #1 corner. He shouldn't be tasked with shutting down an opponent's top receiver. And he can't do his job properly if the safeties behind him are downright atrocious.

Just as a great pass rush makes a secondary look better, vice versa. Just as great cornerbacks allow safeties a certain freedom, vice versa. It's all interconnected, all 11 players. Because of injuries, suspension, and a huge cap hit -- with last offseason's resources spent predominantly on the offense (cap money in pursuing wide receivers, #1, #2, #3, #4, #6, #6, #7 picks all on offense) -- our defense has been depleted.

An offseason of getting healthy, and an offseason of being just as aggressive as addressing defensive needs as we were addressing offensive needs last offseason -- using the bulk of our cap space, and #2, #3, #4, etc. picks -- we will be far and away improved.

I don't think anyone can deny the enormous steps we've taken on offense this year. One more offseason and I think we may see the same on defense, everything finally coming together.

And frankly, Mike Wise, if playoffs are no longer legitimately at stake -- and they're not, let's not kid ourselves -- something needs to be. "Playing for pride" obviously hasn't worked. Playing for each other doesn't seem to have. Playing for your jobs, one way to ensure everyone takes each and every practice with seriousness and professionalism. The exact opposite of "monotonous practices" as you suggest.

[Diss]

I'm as pissed at Shanny as anyone, and I have zero faith in him at this point.

But I think this whole "evaluating players" thing is really being blown out of proportion. Aren't you always "evaluating players," especially when you've been racked with injuries and have unproven guys stepping in to positions that they normally wouldn't fill? He even said, "statistically we're still in it." I didn't read those comments as him giving up.

Then again, maybe he should.

The truth of the matter is this: who cares what he says at this point? That's the biggest problem. What he says is meaningless, because he doesn't produce and he hasn't produced in almost three years now. If he'd said, "We're gonna keep fighting to make the playoffs," would anyone take that seriously, with this horrendous team?

The press will jump all over this and it will be dissected by these morons on talk radio, but I'd much rather hear some interesting analysis on what specifically he's doing that isn't working, on why Danny Smith still collects a paycheck, on how terribly Kyle calls games sometimes, on why his teams have yet to showcase any real heart for any sustained period of time, on why his home record is beyond belief horrible, etc., etc.

[Painkiller]

You know what is funny about all this...when Shanahan made the trade for McNabb EVERYONE was criticizing him for not coming out and "admitting" that the year was a "rebuilding" year. Remember the arguments? "You don't go get McNabb if you are rebuilding" "McNabb was brought here to win now" etc.

and now, he speaks pretty candidly about the team's prospects to the media, and many of these same people (Wise, Reid, etc) say he's wrong to be so candid.

[SkinsTillIDie]

Utterly unacceptable and unprofessional.

In an ideal World, he'd suck up this ****storm and apologize to his team.

Hail.

Apologize to his team? The team that has failed to show up for 2 consecutive weeks, when the season was on the line? With everything to play for?

Players should be apologizing to Coach. I doubt there's anyone involved in the organization who cares more about winning than he does, who works harder or longer, to give his team the best chance to win.

The players have let us down. The players have let Shanahan down. They should be worried about their jobs, and complaining to the media -- anonymously or not -- is only indicative of where the priorities should and shouldn't lie. Care less about what your coach has to say in the media and more about taking pride in your job and winning individual matchups.

[Destino]

I'm glad he said it. Screw all the reverse psychology. He's being realistic. This team does not deserve a playoff spot. He knows it. We all know it.

Well if anyone should know the shortcomings of a roster it's certainly the guy who picked all of them.

[WhoRUSupposed2Be]

Utterly unacceptable and unprofessional.

In an ideal World, he'd suck up this ****storm and apologize to his team.

Hail.

He doesn't need to apologize for his emotional rant... These are grown ass men or so called professionals... Not teenie boppers. Even of Shanahan was an ******* for saying it, it still needed to be said because outside of our RG3 and Alfred Morris, this team has drastically underperformed and it is the veterans that are making the team worse than ever.

Something has to give and I don't care about any millionaires feeling when it comes to underperformance.