Getting The Shaft From Joe Gibbs

Yesterday morning, I was in a bit of a rush out the door, so I didn't hear that Joe Gibbs had decided to replace Patrick Ramsey as the starting QB here in Washington with Mark Brunell until I got to the office.

Not that I was terribly surprised that Gibbs gave Ramsey the early hook (and I wasn't the only one). After all, this was the same Joe Gibbs who traded three picks (a first, third and a fourth) for a chance to select Auburn QB Jason Campbell in the 2005 NFL Draft.

It was at that point that I concluded that Ramsey was finished, despite what Gibbs would later say about the starting job being an open competition, and that Ramsey was the presumed starter heading into training camp.

Here's Mike Wise of the Washington Post:

Gibbs strung Ramsey along like a girlfriend he knew he was never going to marry. He took a mentally fragile young player and never truly instilled the confidence in him that Ramsey needed to thrive. Long before he benched Ramsey and went back to Brunell on Monday, Gibbs handled the quarterback situation with about as much aplomb as a fast-food shift manager firing a fry cook on the spot.

Ok, how about Mike Wilbon?

After paying lip service to being committed to Ramsey as his starter, Gibbs gave Ramsey all of three series Sunday. Bad blind dates last longer than that. Okay, we all pretty much knew it was a matter of time before Gibbs might want to get a look at Brunell, his hand-picked choice to play the position. But three series ? That's not a short leash, it's a choke collar. It's like he was looking for some reason to yank Ramsey, and the hang-'em-high sack that sent Ramsey to the sideline was the bit of intervention that gave Gibbs his opening. If I were Ramsey, having been undermined for the second straight season, I'd be enraged. Frankly, that's a move I expect from Mike Martz, coach of the St. Louis Rams, not Gibbs, a man of patience and faith to whom one's word means everything.

And though Tony Kornheiser probably knows less about Xs and Os than any other columnist in town, that didn't prevent him from getting this call right:

After Ramsey nearly got decapitated in the second quarter Sunday — nearly found himself starring as Ichabod Crane in “The Headless Quarterback” — Coach “Joe” sought comfort in Mark Brunell. Or as Dick Stockton repeatedly and inexplicably called him, ” Scott Brunell.”

Though we later learned that Ramsey was medically cleared to play, Gibbs pressed on with Brunell, whose best offensive play was a pass interference call that negated a 55-yard Chicago interception return. Gaining confidence with every pass he threw that wasn’t intercepted and run back for a touchdown, Brunell’s signature move was to turn and hand off to whoever was behind him. It could have been Tom Hanks; it wouldn’t have mattered to Brunell.

I'm sure most Cowboys fans are looking forward to next Monday night in Dallas as much as Monkey McGee.

Now Ramsey, who held out as a rookie and almost forced a trade to Chicago, and then demanded a trade when Gibbs drafted Campbell, apparently wants out of town again, and who can blame him? Here's Tom Knott at the Washington Times:

Patrick Ramsey has every right to be seething after being kicked to the curb 26 snaps into the season.

His was not an opportunity to exhibit his wares. His was a mirage, a magic trick. Now you see it. Now you don't. His anointment merited a Bill Clinton-like exercise in parsing. It all depended on the meaning of starting quarterback.

Something tells me Gibbs won't appreciate the comparison to the former President. Then again, maybe he doesn't care. After all, Gibbs isn't exactly a Spring chicken any longer, and something tells me he doesn't think he has all the time in the world to make things work in his second go-round here in D.C.

Eric 06:48 AM

Trackback Pings

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.ericmcerlain.com/mt/mt-tb.cgi/5111

Comments

Posted by: at September 14, 2005 09:46 AM

Posted by: at September 14, 2005 09:47 AM

Post a comment