National Football League

On Twitter, Redskins fans cheer departure of Joe Barry

Updated Mar. 4, 2020 6:51 p.m. ET

Fansided, R.C. Allen Jr./FanSided via Riggo's Rag

Redskins fans on Twitter showed their approval of the Washington Redskins firing defensive coordinator Joe Barry and staff Thursday.

That staff included defensive line coach Robb Akey and defensive backs aide Perry Fewell. Needless to say there was no love lost in their departure. Redskins fans on Twitter erupted in cheers about Joe Barry’s departure:

Joe Barry and all the defensive staff are gone! #Redskins pic.twitter.com/2N3BfNtA2b

— Zac (@DCzWall) January 5, 2017

And then came the celebrations:

Let's check in with Redskins Twitter…

(I'm at the bottom right by the way) pic.twitter.com/ZoNWsZfH4f

— Not Robert Griffin (@Pseudo_RGIII) January 5, 2017

Some fans made it pretty clear (Even in their Twitter handles) who they would like to see leading the defense:

Redskins Twitter after the news Joe Barry has been fired pic.twitter.com/iUkkqsRezH

— Hire Wade Phillips (@Alan_Bal21) January 5, 2017

Joe Barry just couldn’t keep up

The Redskins were next to last in opposing 3rd Down conversions. They ranked No.25 against the pass and No.24 against the run. Against opposing Receivers they were No. 26. Stack these numbers beside their offense and you’ve got a serious deep sigh. It was no surprise to anyone this happened. And while the Redskins defense did play decent Sunday against the New York Giants, they couldn’t counter the fate brought to Barry and company. This needed to happen. The tackling, holes left that a bus could drive through at times, the blown coverage – completely embarrassing to watch. It’s surprising, considering that a year ago the Redskins had one of top defenses in the league. Their finale this season showed something different, something tired.

Look for yourself at ESPN – there was no reason to lose that game. No one dominated. The biggest difference was time of possession.

The offense is not immune. But for now, the off season pruning begins in the defensive department. Head coach Jay Gruden was correct in this decision. There’s a lot of work to be done. The fans expected this to happen. Everyone knew the Redskins were going to evaluate and make decisions. If Barry didn’t think he was in the hot seat, then he’s at fault for being that out the loop. Looking through the threads there was a feeling of, “Oh. Well that was bound to happen.”