For a few moments in 2008, the Redskins appeared ready to name Jim Fassel their head coach. May have been ready to do that twice. But, in the end, a message board revolt against his potential hiring persuaded the Redskins to keep looking. They settled on Jim Zorn. And now they’ll be looking for another coach this offseason, barring a major change in thinking.
Not that Fassel says he’s taking pleasure in what’s happened. Of course, with a potential opening soon, it wouldn’t be wise to knock them now. After all, he’s been in the running the past two times Washington has needed a head coach. However, he said it’s a genuine feeling.
“That’s unfortunate,” he said of Washington’s struggles. “All kinds of people say, ‘Are you getting satisfaction?’ No, I don’t get any satisfaction. I really don’t because I don’t want to live my life thinking that I get happy out of someone else’s misery. I’ve never lived like that. I’ve always liked Dan Snyder. I really enjoyed talking to him. I know how passionate he is about winning and he wants to win bad. That’s the starting point.”
Fassel, fired by the New York Giants after the 2003 season, has not coached in the NFL since being rejected by Washington. He coached Las Vegas of the United Football League to a championship this fall. He hasn’t worked in the NFL since the 2006 season when he was Baltimore’s offensive coordinator. Could the Oakland Raiders be in his future?
“I’ll get a couple calls,” he said of the NFL. “But at the end of the day I love doing this. My heart won’t be broken if I don’t take an NFL job. I didn’t do this to get an NFL job. I don’t care. I love coaching and that’s why I did this again. I had a good job in the broadcasting booth and a nice life. I could do anything I wanted to do and I threw myself back into this. I worked as hard as I ever worked. I was the GM and the head coach. We weren’t heavily staffed, but I loved it. I was getting up at 5 in the morning and working on football and really enjoyed it. As long as I enjoy it, I have no desire to do anything else. If something comes along, that’s OK. But only if it’s the right deal.”
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