Clinton Portis on the JT Show

[Schneed10]

Portis is right on almost all accounts. But he needs to not air it out in the media, because that only makes matters worse. Instead of having a fractured locker room, now they have a fractured locker room visible to the public and the media.

Nevertheless, he makes numerous points all of which make me long for the steady leadership of Joe Gibbs.

- Never criticize your players in the papers, on TV, or on the radio. Don't say things like "we didn't execute." If you have a problem with a player, take it up with him in the locker room. Treat it like family. If you're going to criticize guys outside of the family, don't be shocked if they do the same to you.

- There's a reason you always heard Gibbs say "they fought their guts out." He wasn't going to admonish anyone in the press, he'd do it behind closed doors. Players respected him because he showed them that level of respect. You don't "command" respect, you earn it.

- Don't treat all players the same. There's a subtle caste system and seniority system in every workplace. Guys who bust their ass and prove they can perform at a high level deserve more leeway.

- If the head coach and team leader is going to personally tutor the QB, he needs to pay special attention to how the rest of the team views this. Campbell must be made to feel like one of the guys. As the QB he's the leader of the players, yes, but he's still a player. He cannot be above reproach, Zorn cannot continually defend him in the media while calling out other players.