Just Resign, Jim Zorn

by John Morgan on Oct 19, 2009 4:11 PM PDT Comment 35 comments

Dear Jim Zorn,

Yesterday your boss cut your balls off. I've been there, but I never stood for it. It's been a tough run the last two years and it's possible you were not prepared to be a head coach. You have turned two years of struggles into recognition and respect from an influential few, but you have also become an object of ridicule. You attempted to transfer some of the blame by benching Jason Campbell. Only for his replacement, 37 year old journeyman Todd Collins, to play even worse and effectively lose the game for you.

Players are openly questioning your decision making. The Washington media has fueled every fire it could set. Dan Steinberg is posting pictures of your face and giving them ridiculous names. The Redskins are tanking. They play in the toughest division in football. This season will not be salvaged and you will not be retained when its over.

What can you keep that the media can't spin, sully and profit off? What can you keep that can't be publicly stripped? What can you keep from the best opportunity of your life gone to hell?

Your dignity. Just resign, Jim. You weathered the worst of it. The NFL has a short memory. Don't be Dan Snyder's fall guy anymore. Don't let the vultures pick from your bones. And don't put on the good face and grit your teethe through another press conference. Pack up, get out, enjoy your time off, your wealth and remember you're an intelligent man that forgot more about football than your detractors will ever know.

Sincerely,

A Seahawks Fan

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I was kind of thinking the same thing on the way to work this morning

You probably leave some money on the table, but if you’re just staying for that you become the punchline for another joke; the one whose punchline goes “We’ve already established what kind of woman you are. Now we’re just haggling over price.”

"Those who fear disorder more than injustice inevitably produce more of both." -- Rev. William Coffin

by dcrockett17 on Oct 19, 2009 4:25 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I love that line/logic/joke.

by LantermanC on Oct 19, 2009 4:59 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I'd sign this letter.

Seattle loves you Z-Man, just come home.

by DJ C-Raig on Oct 19, 2009 4:26 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Agreed

He’s been in over his head since he got the coaching job in the first place. Can anyone remember a team starting the season without even hitting 18 points at any point in their first 6 games?

October 11th, 2009: The day Justin Forsett became loved by Seahawks fans forever.

by SSreporters on Oct 19, 2009 4:39 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Hey look some hope!

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2010095578_apfbnseahawkstatupu.html?syndication=rss

October 11th, 2009: The day Justin Forsett became loved by Seahawks fans forever.

by SSreporters on Oct 19, 2009 4:38 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Never give up, never surrender.

Wouldn’t resigning cost him a lot of money? If I quit my job, I get no pay. If I get fired, I get paid a month and severance pay, plus extended health benefits. Sure he’ll get a job offer no matter what, but a 50 K is nothing to sneeze at.

by LantermanC on Oct 19, 2009 4:58 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I disagree

I thought the same thing about Marvin Lewis for the longest time, that he should just resign and say to hell with Bengals management. Instead he kept waiting for a firing that never came and he’s managed to get himself a respectable team again. The difference there though is that I knew Lewis was a good coach, or at least had the potential to be. I don’t think thats the case with Zorn.

I’d also worry that the NFL would ostracize him or attempt to punish him for quiting. I wonder if doing that is something that would hurt his chances on future coordinator or assistant positions. I’m pretty confident that there are at least a couple teams that would hold it against him and why do anything that would limit your options? It’s not like he’s going to hurt his reputation any further by staying on. All he would be doing at this point is walking away from money.

by Nate Dogg on Oct 19, 2009 5:20 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I was thinking about the "ostracization factor" myself.

I don’t care how bad a situation is, the NFL is for the most part a league of men, and men don’t step down when they are being relied upon, however dark the situation may be.

Bird Law in this country isn't governed by reason.

by whiskey chainsaw on Oct 19, 2009 5:48 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

He is not being relied on

except to scapegoat.

by John Morgan on Oct 19, 2009 6:12 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

This is exactly the kind of thinking that I would worry about

by Nate Dogg on Oct 19, 2009 6:14 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

"Seems" like a bigger problem than it probably is

I think most people in the know figured that Zorn might be in over his head just based on the circumstances surrounding the hire. You go from position coach, to coordinator, to head coach in one week and it’s clear you were the worst case scenario. I’m surprised Snyder didn’t go get a caretaker coach like Fassel and just hand him a staff.

All that is to say I don’t think anyone would hold walking away against Zorn if they were ever predisposed to like him.

As for Zorn leaving money on the table, it’s no small consideration to be sure but I wouldn’t be surprised if Snyder paid Zorn his money just to avoid turning Zorn into a sympathetic character. It’s not like he campaigned for the job.

"Those who fear disorder more than injustice inevitably produce more of both." -- Rev. William Coffin

by dcrockett17 on Oct 19, 2009 6:49 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Isn't resigning from Snyder's organization almost on a par with resigning from Al Davis's?

Would anyone really hold that against him?

(On the other hand, taking a job in either of those organizations in the first place…)

by Mr Fish on Oct 19, 2009 6:26 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Theoretically if Zorn resigned or was fired would Mora invite him back to Seattle.

If so what in capacity? I hate Knapp and anyone would be an upgrade over him, in my opinion.

by David89 on Oct 19, 2009 8:24 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Any particular reason why you hate Knapp?

by BrianL on Oct 19, 2009 9:21 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Don't like his play calling. 3 and short vs SF and he calls a deep fade into the endzone.

Trying to force the run (though he hasn’t done it as much the past 2 weeks). And his resume is less than impressive.

by David89 on Oct 20, 2009 8:30 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

You mean a D was probably pressed up to stop short gains, and tried to beat them over the top?

Fire the bum.

I’m sorry, but IMO, nit-picking a few individual play calls is the most pointless and annoying form of arm-chair QB’ing around. Unless it’s a total bone-headed mistake that a 10-yr old playing Madden wouldn’t make (and admittedly NFL coaches sometimes make those, but they’re rare) 99% of the time It’s just hindsight-fueled, results-based bitching: If it works, it’s a great call. If it doesn’t, the play-caller’s an idiot.

If that fade in SF worked, you wouldn’t be complaining about it. If the attempted deep toss to Butler worked vs. ARZ, everybody would be hailing Knapp as an aggressive genius who backed off the Cards’ pressure and got the team right back in the game on one play. If he calls fewer run plays in any of the previous games, then you’re complaining that he’s letting the D squat on the pass and tee-off on the QB.

In every game, there’s going to be some great play calls that are ruined by bad execution, and there are going to be some bad calls that work anyways because of great execution or talent. Knapp’s just like any other OC out there – his resume looks a helluva lot better at the stops where he’s had better talent.

Scheme is what matters most. What formations does the O use? How does it disguise plays or mask it’s intentions? How does it create mismatches? Does it put players in situations that best suit their talents? In other words – calling a fade route isn’t necessarily good or bad. What’s more important is how it utilizes the talent to exploit the D being shown. Fade to Hoosh in man coverage – solid play call. Fade to a double covered Branch, not so much.

Based off everything I’ve seen & read so far, Knapp’s overall scheme looks solid. I may disagree with a few of his strategy decisions, but I can understand the context & logic behind them. We haven’t been hurt by poor play-calling. We’ve been hurt by poor execution and inadequate talent

"I'm tired of chasing after my dreams. I'll just find out where they're going, and catch up later." - Hedberg

by jteckmann on Oct 20, 2009 10:17 AM PDT up reply actions 1 recs

Yep

If you lurk in various message boards around the league you’ll find it’s a near universal that “our play-calling is terrible.” Like you I see individual play calls that make me shake my head, but there are reasons for most of it. For instance, the several screens and bubble screens they try every week. Never seen a team as utterly inept at executing them as the Seahawks, but Knapp is trying different things to take some of the steam out of the pass rush.

by Santolina chamaecyparissus on Oct 20, 2009 11:57 AM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

You are truly a voice of reason.

It is appreciated.

by redwolf75 on Oct 20, 2009 1:49 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Zorn doesn't have the connection to Mora that he had to Holmgren

I could see him joining Holmgren as an assistant if the Walrus decided to coach again next year.

"Its not that I can't read and write, its just that I don't like to read and write."
-Charlie

by ninjasocks on Oct 19, 2009 10:58 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Before joining his staff, Zorn didn't really have any connection to Holmgren either

What he had (and has) is a Seattle connection — and that’s why, in a typical display of homerism, some people are saying he should come back.

by Mr Fish on Oct 20, 2009 4:03 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Well . . .

that would make more sense then.

"Its not that I can't read and write, its just that I don't like to read and write."
-Charlie

by ninjasocks on Oct 20, 2009 10:16 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Nailed it

Frankly, bringing in a snitch/fore-gone replacement like Sherm Lewis was pretty low. Then publicly forcing you to give up play calling…

That’s too much for me too stomach. I feel for the guy. And I hate how Snyder runs that organization. Zorn may be part of the problem, by virtue of his inexperience, but he’s far from the cause. I’d say running the team like the Yankees in a capped league, shitting on the draft, and gutting your system every other year had a lot to do with Washington’s demise. If anything I’d resign just to not give Snyder the opportunity to fire me.

Hopefully he can land on his feet, though. If Marinelli can find a job (and Matt Millen on ESPN, lol), so can Zorn.

by WABronco on Oct 19, 2009 9:29 PM PDT reply actions 0 recs

Huh, I would have never suspected that John Morgan was Aseahawksfan.

; )

by kearly on Oct 19, 2009 10:58 PM PDT reply actions 1 recs

resign while you still have your dignity Zorn.

If all goes bad (well for some) then maybe Holmgren will be coaching here next year and Zorn comes back as an assistant again.

I ROCK out with my HAWK out, therefore I am....

by durteehawk on Oct 20, 2009 9:23 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

"Yesterday your boss cut your balls off."

Yeah, that was pretty low. Not that we expect anything different from the Redskins.

The Redskins are tanking. They play in the toughest division in football.

Not sure about that one.

Your dignity. Just resign, Jim.

Then he gets called a quitter, not just in DC but everywhere. It was kind of a conundrum for him, getting his big coaching break but getting it from a team that grinds even good coaches into spam.

by Santolina chamaecyparissus on Oct 20, 2009 11:43 AM PDT reply actions 0 recs

I agree-- he'd then be a quitter

He should stay on, and if they keep losing he can share the blame with the Bingo caller.
In this situation, I’d stay until they fired me. RIght now everyone thinks he’s in over his head and wasn’t ready. How mad can you be at someone thrust into a job they aren’t ready for?

If he quits he becomes less of a victim of circumstances and becomes something worse. He should never quit.

by Kryten on Oct 20, 2009 12:30 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think the quitter idea is hollow.

Leaving a bad circumstance where you are the target of abuse is brave. It’s not like Zorn would be going Petrino on the Skins. He could step down gracefully and begin separating himself from a sinking ship.

by John Morgan on Oct 20, 2009 12:39 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

yeah

people are going to see him how they want to see him. He can’t concern himself with that as he has zero control over it.

by Kevin M Smith on Oct 20, 2009 12:48 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

But still...

He’d be a guy who bailed when the going got rough. Not a tag I’d want.

by Kryten on Oct 20, 2009 1:15 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Also, there's no graceful way to abandon a ship that he helped sink.

by Kryten on Oct 20, 2009 1:43 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

I agree with you,

but I think the general perception would be more along the “quitter” lines.

by Santolina chamaecyparissus on Oct 20, 2009 2:51 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Not sure about which part

The NFC North has a slightly better top three (by point differential) but also the Lions. Washington is 2-4.

by John Morgan on Oct 20, 2009 12:36 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Depends on your criteria

If the best division is the one with the best W-L then it’s a tie with the NFCN. If it’s the mountain that must be climbed by the last place team, which is actually what I thought you were driving at, then it’s the NFCS or AFCN. It’s also worth noting that the NFCE gets to beat up on the AFCW this year, KC and Oakland having already played 6 of their 8 NFC games.

As much as they like to panic in DC the fact is that they only need a modest win streak of two or three games and they’re right back in the wildcard hunt, given how inconsistently Dallas and Philadelphia play.

by Santolina chamaecyparissus on Oct 20, 2009 2:50 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs

Washington is behind most of the NFC in the wildcard hunt, including Seattle

I think it’s very unlikely they beat out Chicago, Green Bay, Atlanta, Dallas and one of San Francisco, Arizona and Seattle. Which isn’t to say they should quit, but only that they are a rather long ways from being in the hunt.

by John Morgan on Oct 20, 2009 3:27 PM PDT up reply actions 0 recs