WELCOME BACK SHERM...
My first job in the NFL was working for the 49ers, and I was very fortunate to be around some great young coaches and some very skilled veteran coaches. One of the younger ones in 1984 was our running backs coach, Sherman Lewis. Lewis had coached at his alma mater, Michigan State, where he was a very fine running back who finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1964 to Roger Staubach. Lewis joined the 49ers in 1983 and was the team’s running backs coach for three of the Super Bowl titles before he followed Mike Holmgren to Green Bay. With all the success he achieved in San Francisco and then Green Bay, Lewis became an attractive candidate as an NFL head coach. He had a handful of interviews, some of them out of courtesy and one with Dallas that he seemed very close to attaining.
APSherm Lewis' last job in the league was with the Detroit Lions.
In 2004, at the age of 62, Sherm had had enough of the NFL and decided to retire. His last job was with the Lions, near his beloved Michigan State, so the transition to retirement was easy and smooth — until Vinny Cerrato called and brought him back to pro football for a consulting gig with the Redskins. Now, I love Sherman, and I love his spirit and friendly, outgoing personality, but this move by the ‘Skins front office is another indictment of their lack of understanding of the team’s problems on offense.
Yes, Jim Zorn could use some help, but he needs contemporary help, not help from someone who’s been removed from the game for five years. The ‘Skins do not need to get back to the roots of the west coast offense; their problem is that their roots are already too basic. Zorn lacks the ability to bring the west coast offense to new levels. He knows the levels well -- in fact, his play sheet looks exactly like Mike Holmgren’s sheet in Seattle, down to the font. So what can poor Sherm do besides deposit the checks from owner Daniel Snyder?
This decision to bring in Lewis indicates to me that the front office thinks it has a coaching problem, not a talent problem. They’re watching the same tape as the ‘Skins fan who ripped me for not getting Chad Rinehart’s name right and for not jumping on the bandwagon after their impressive second half against the Bucs (even Ray Gustini declined the bandwagon last week). For the record, Rinehart is really bad, whether I got his first name right or not, and the ‘Skins looked as bad in the second half as they did in the first.
APIs Clinton Portis the same back that Redskins fans saw when he first landed in Washington?
Where does this notion come from that the ‘Skins are so talented on offense? (Hint: the front office.) Clinton Portis is not the same back; he goes down easily now and doesn’t have the lower body strength to run through arm tackles. He had a clear first down at the end of the Bucs game, which would have sealed it had he just been able to run through. They lack skill players on the outside, they lack playmakers and they lack an offensive line that can handle power. Offensive tackle Chris Samuels made Bucs defensive end Gaines Adams look like he belonged as the No. 4 overall pick for the first time all season.
So what can Sherman do to help the ‘Skins offense? Not much, I’m afraid. If the front office really wants to be proactive, it might consider hiring an outside party to independently evaluate the roster as it compares to the best teams in the NFL. They won’t do that because they wouldn’t like the results.
And we all know that self-inflicted wounds are easily avoidable.
Follow me on Twitter: michaelombardi
sherm is just the token black guy. snyder wants to fire zorn and hire shanahan or holmgren. but the nfl's affirmative action rule means he has to interview a black guy first. but no legit black coach will want to interview because he knows he will only be a token. so snyder hires a black guy who has been out of football for 5 years pays him a million dollars to "consult" for one year and give and interview for the head coaching job. that way he can be the token without looking like a token.
Actually, Gaines Adams was dominating Stephon Heyer, particularly on the first drive. Go watch the tape....
Not that it makes it any better.
And yes, the problem with the Redskins is the first face that Dan Snyder sees every morning in the mirror. He's just the only one that doesn't know it. Poor, pathetic Dan.
Meater gets it right except his first sentence. Snyder and Cerrato are constantly rolling the dice by overpaying big name veterans, looking for quick fixes.
Alright Michael,
Your trashing of the Skins is almost becoming comical and shows your complete lack of professionalism. Let's make a deal. If the Skins win 9+ games this year, I get to write a piece in the NFP. If they don't, you can spend an entire Sunday @ the Post thrashing me by name and trashing to Skins. I'm completely sure you'll take the deal, but take a stand by your convictions. Talk is cheap.
By the way, you completely contridicated yourself in this paragraph:
"They’re watching the same tape as the ‘Skins fan who ripped me...after their impressive second half against the Bucs "
"and the ‘Skins looked as bad in the second half as they did in the first."
What would we do w/o Lombardi?
Too true Mike. Unfortunately Snyder continues to think that he can use techniques that were successful in the business world in football. Until he accepts that he does not know much about the game and hires a real GM who can properly evaluate talent and end the idea of "Snyder's pets" (would Portis be still in DC if Bobby Beathard/Charley Casserly were there?) we will continue to suffer.
Mr. Lombardi, I hesitate greatly to differ with your assessment of Sherman. I still remember when he was the purported OC in GB. It was widely perceived that Holmgren was the official OC, and Sherman was just there to implement Holmgren's gameplan. The Packers did their best to drum up interest in having another team bring in Sherman as a HC. Still, when they needed a new HC, after Holmgren moved on to Seattle, Sherman was available; instead they chose Ray Rhodes. Why would they do that? Could it be because they knew Sherman wasn't HC material, but felt obligated to help the Rooney Rule? I don't know, but those are the facts. Now, the Cowboys being interested is logical. After all, these is the guy (JJ) who selected Switzer and Phillips as coaches. Sherman would have fit right in.
The Daniel's decisionmaking really does spin your head. He was all set up to hire Jim Fassel, then didn't because (supposedly) the fan base would be pissed off about hiring a Giants castoff. He reacted by hiring somebody so not ready for the job that overmatched just begins to describe it, and now he's surprised they stink and the fans are still pissed off. Oh, yes, and reacting to an O-line that disintegrated down the stretch last year by spending the GDP of a small asian nation on his defense. That's solid judgment.
My bet is that Shanahan and Holmgren are just making noises about being interested in the Redskins job to drive up their prices elsewhere. No one good will want to come here, and Cerrato and the Daniel will be scouring the stadium, looking for scapegoats.
Yeah, there is a talent problem on the skins, but Mike Wise of the Washington Post has this right. Bringing in Sherm Lewis now allows him to learn the personell and the offensive language, so that when Zorn is let go on the bye week, and Blache is named head coach he will have someone who can call the plays for him on the offensive side of the ball because Danny Boy apparently loves his defensive coordinator.
"At this point someone like Lewis might actually be more help--as an experienced guy who can see the obvious--rather than the newest guru of the month."
===
I agree that in a functional organization it could work. But all the noise coming out of Ashburn makes it clear that Zorn et al were not consulted about hiring Lewis and that none of them want him there at all. That doesn't bode well.
Meanwhile Vinny Cerrato is spitting out idiotic quotes about how Sherm doesn't have a defined role, and how he wasn't familiar with what Sherm had been doing the last few years. Really? So you just bring a guy in mid-season without a clear idea of what he's supposed to do, knowing full well the stink it will cause? I know in my work when we hire a consultant we 1) have a specific job in mind and 2) know his CV. But hey, we're kooky like that.
Also note that def. coordinator Greg Blache suddenly announced he will no longer be talking to the media. Seems like the Skins' most mature coach has finally gotten fed up with the foolishness.
I think the Mike Wise theory Rich laid out (Lewis as interim OC) is probably right, or Lewis is just the front office's spy in the coaching staff. Maybe Cable won't be the only NFL coach to punch out an assistant this year.
Mr Lombardi,
User "dldavidlong" is 100% CORRECT in his statement.
In fact I would like to hear your thoughts on this very situation. Many teams seem to do the "token" interview of the minority coach when they clearly have a non minority candidate already in mind to hire. What do NFL executives think of the "Rooney rule" in general?
@Jason Dezen -
Talk IS cheap. I'll put $100 down that the Skins don't win 9+ games. Everyone here reading can serve as witness if you put your money where your mouth is.
Dezen, reread what Lombardi wrote, he didn't contradict himself.
"fan who ripped me for not getting name right after their impressive 2nd half" was the FAN's take -- the fan thought the 2nd half was impressive and that that should've impressed Lombardi.
Lombardi then says, "it wasn't impressive." Ergo, he was not impressed either with the fan's reasoning or the Redskin's 2nd half.
No big name coach is coming in there unless they run the whole show and kick Cerrato to the curb or have him overseeing parkiing and concessions.....
How in the world can anyone suggest that Blache will become head coach anytime during the current season...he refuses to talk to the media! Blache is burned out and wants nothing more than the season to end, so he can retire.
Until Snyder accepts that his business model for running the Redskins is flawed they will continue to spiral downward.
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Oct 08, 2009
07:17 PM
I doubt any of what you wrote is news to the front office or Snyder. They can't dump Portis because of cap issues. They tried all summer to get rid of Jason Campbell and replace him with either Cutler or Sanchez. Obviously they see Zorn as in over his head. He was nearly fired at the end of last season. They recognize the O line as a problem, but for some reason, tried to use bandaids when major surgery is required. They could have drafted Michael Oher but went for Brian Orakpo instead. They could have drafted Phil Loadholt but pissed their second away on the panicky trade for Jason Taylor last year.
It could be worse. They could be the Browns. But years of poor personnel moves accumulate, and splashy free agent signings don't make up for it. As for Zorn, he has made some erratic decisions, perhaps because of the pressure onhim. At this point someone like Lewis might actually be more help--as an experienced guy who can see the obvious--rather than the newest guru of the month.
Whatever. They will all be gone at the end of the season barring some kind of miraculous turnaround.