Does He Make You Zorny, Baby?

[MTK]

Jim Zorn is the sixth-most popular coach on ESPN’s NFL Coach Ratings, with a 91% approval rating.

That’s up from 33% in Week One.

Once again, the rookie coach has shown that he’s fast taking the Redskins from lead-squandering underachievers to a team that isn’t going to try and run out the clock with a three-point lead and a half to play. For the second week in a row, the Redskins scored a game-winning touchdown in the fourth quarter, unlike last year’s 5-halftime-lead-squandering squad. After these first three weeks under the new regime, it seems that Jim Zorn has taken Joe Gibbs’ run-out-the-clock, mediocre offense and used the same talent to make one that is more than willing to deliver the coup de grace. It’s refreshing. And effective.


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[Smooter]

I think this is copyright infringement on my sig. I'll let it pass since you're in charge though. lol.

Those bottom four crack me up though.

[MTK]

I'm innocent, I didn't write the article

[53Fan]

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I think we've struck gold with Zorn. I'm very excited about our future. I expect our offense to hit heights we have'nt seen since our Super Bowl years. If not this year, very soon.

[GMScud]

Great article. It made me all warm and fuzzy.... until I read the last couple of sentences. "...exposed Reed Doughty as possibly the worst starting safety in football. He got burned so bad he'll probably need skin grafts." And then I think of TO...

Someone posted a comment on the article stating that Mel Kiper had Horton ranked as a 2nd rounder going into the draft. Can anyone confirm that?

Anyway, that was a good read. Goes to show how important turnovers are. Campbell's 8 lost fumbles and 11 ints last year compared to ZERO this season is a huge, huge difference.

[DirtyLandry]

Originally Posted by GMScud

Someone posted a comment on the article stating that Mel Kiper had Horton ranked as a 2nd rounder going into the draft. Can anyone confirm that?

I cant say if he ever had him going in the 2nd, but I believe he had him as the 4th ranked safety. He Also had Colt Brennan going in the 3rd early on.

[That Guy]

colt and horton were straight up steals.

[That Guy]

the rookie coach has shown that he’s fast taking the Redskins from lead-squandering underachievers to a team that isn’t going to try and run out the clock with a three-point lead and a half to play.

wonder who that's aimed at... *cough*

[DirtyLandry]

Originally Posted by That Guy

wonder who that's aimed at... *cough*

It's appropriate. I think we set some kind of record with leading at half and then blowing it. In the last four years, with the exception of maybe 2 games, I never celebrated a win until the clock hit 00:00.

[redsk1]

We were a playing not to lose team, i think we've changed that alot under Zorn.

I don't think Doughty is that bad. I'm not sure if he should start or not but he played very well in the 2nd half of the season last year. So, I'm not going to write him off yet. I do like Horton alot though. It's a good problem to have.

[hooskins]

It's all about the Zorn Identity.

[Monkeydad]

OK, who voted against him? It's down to 90%.

I voted yes to cancel someone's vote out.

[over the mountain]

hes only been here for alil bit but i like zorn alot. hes a straight talker who seems to think of every facet and possibility in the game. plus so far he has made great adjustments to the team, game to game and half to half. now i have real confidence that if something isnt working for us in the first half Zorn will identify the problem and make proper adjustments.

i just cant over of the first game where he harped on JC when he wasnt able to avoid, reset and throw to moss. game 2, exact play JC avoids resets and throws a td bomb to moss. normally change takes such a long time its hard to really see it happening but with zorn you see the adjustments and changes right before your eyes. and his press confrences are so insightful, you wanna know whats going on with the skins dont miss his press confrences. i think he gives too much insight into his thinking and approach.

go skins!!

[djnemo65]

While I've never understood the methodology behind those approval ratings articles I do think it would be difficult to argue that Zorn has not exceeded expectations through three games.

[Zorn on the 4th of July]

Bill Simmons, aka "The Sports Guy" on ESPN.com, doesn't seem to feel the love. This is from today's column:

Poor Jim Zorn looks like he's wound tighter than a substitute teacher at Watts High. And it's not like a Mike Shanahan thing in which it looks like he's trying to melt a referee's brain; it's more of a "Don Draper running into an old friend from the Korean war back when everyone called him Dicky" type of nervous intensity, like he's battling a complex about never having been a head coach before. If Dallas beats the Skins by 25 this Sunday, I could see Zorn screaming, "I'm in charge here! OK? All right? I am the one in charge!!!!!!" and losing the locker room for good. He should start drinking red wine during games. I don't see this ending well.

(The good news: When Bill Cowher takes the job, CBS will have a four-man studio show again. That's right, more air time for Shannon Sharpe! Every one of his sentences should be preceded by a dentist saying, "You should start feeling the Novocain right about now.")

I'm not posting this to hate on Bill Simmons, I actually think the guy is a fantastic sports writer . . . it's just surprising that he's so far off in his analysis of Jim Zorn and the sentiments of 'Skins fans. At least he picked Washington to beat the ELEVEN point spread this week.

But losing the locker room for good? That's incredibly off the mark. It's ridiculous. Bill Simmons must've attended the John McCain Soundbyte Seminar.

Jason Campbell is 9th in overall QB rating right now, and the eight ahead of him are all household names. This is not an accident. This team was ONE play away from being 3-0.

Poor Jim Zorn is doing just fine. I knew Jim Zorn would be okay in the first press conference, when he flubbed the team colors but realized that Jason Campbell has to squat too low to get the snap. Finally. Detail-oriented football.

Personally, I think there was something in the water in Cerritos, California in the mid-60s. Exactly what it was, I don't know--but it seems to work out well for the Redskins.

I can't wait for next week's inevitable "whoa-the-Redskins-are-actually-kinda-good-who-saw-THAT-coming" column, by Bill Simmons.