Of Two Minds On Offense

To some players and coaches, Coach Joe Gibbs's constant reiteration of the phrase "Redskins football" during a pivotal Nov. 20 meeting meant only one thing: a clear repudiation of associate head coach-offense Al Saunders, above. (Tracy A. Woodward - The Post)

There were some successes. Saunders said running back Ladell Betts, a player he had watched since high school, could be a star. He said Chris Cooley could be a dangerous tight end. Both enjoyed outstanding years.

"You knew there was going to be resistance to change, and my feeling was to incorporate new elements into what the team was doing well," Saunders said. "If we were 9-5 instead of 5-9, I don't think we'd be having this conversation. But the fact is you have to have those tangible successes. Otherwise, when things don't go well, the natural tendency is to retrench, to go back to what you were doing."

Even so, it became clear from the start of training camp that neither Gibbs nor Saunders appreciated how different Saunders's offense was. No one understood this better than Brunell, who would study daily during the summer with Collins, who played under Saunders for six years in Kansas City. At times during training camp, Brunell would grow frustrated at the complexity of the new offense. Collins would tell him to relax, that it took about a year to learn.

"I don't have a year," Brunell told Collins. "I've got less than 30 days."

'Soft or Finesse'

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Gibbs reinforced the November speech with muscle. Leading up to the Redskins' home game against Carolina on Nov. 26, he shortened practices but increased their intensity. November in the NFL is a time when teams rarely use pads in practice, but Gibbs ordered the opposite. The Redskins held full-contact practices on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Everything in practice was done at Sunday-level game speed.

"We had some statements made by some great players on other football teams that said, 'That's not a Joe Gibbs type of team,' because they knew who we were and what we were all about. That kind of offended us. I knew it hurt Joe," said Joe Bugel, Gibbs's longtime lieutenant and the Redskins' assistant head coach-offense. "Just playing in the NFC East made it that way, and we never wanted to be considered soft or finesse. That word doesn't go well with Joe. When we heard that, it struck a nerve. And then he laid the cards on the table."

They would emphasize the heavy running plays, the ones that demoralize defenders in the fourth quarter. They would hit their teammates as if they were Cowboys, Eagles or Giants.

"He said we're going to do it this way. No negotiation, 11-on-11, game conditions," Bugel said. "Before, you went, but you didn't try to knock people down. Now, we're trying to knock people over."

In the weeks leading up to the change, Gibbs had simmered inside, beginning with a 19-3 loss to the New York Giants at the Meadowlands on Oct. 8, and boiling over after a 20-17 loss at Tampa on Nov. 19. Losing the game was one thing, but against the Buccaneers, in Campbell's first start, Saunders called 34 passing plays against 20 rushes.

To some Redskins coaches and players, Gibbs's emphasis on running inside and off-tackle was another example of the distance between him and Saunders. Though Saunders boasted power ground attacks featuring running backs Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson with the Chiefs, a feeling persists that Saunders is more interested in exotic offensive chess maneuvers than winning the psychological battle with the opponent with physical play.

"The NFC East is about brutality, about kicking someone's ass," said a high-ranking Redskins coach, who asked not to be identified. "[Bill] Parcells, [Tom] Landry, Philadelphia, Joe Gibbs. It's not about yards. When we get a two-yard run up the middle, we applaud, because we know we've taken something out of that defense, and we'll keep taking it until we've beaten them down."

'Here, We Keep Score'

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In the final six games of the year, after Gibbs's speech, the Redskins returned to their traditional style, rushing 210 times, an average of 35 times per game. In the previous 10 games, the Redskins ran the ball just 279 times. The team still lost four of the final six games but finished the season fourth in the NFL in rushing.