National Football League

Shanahan showing Skins who's boss

Published Aug. 10, 2010 2:57 p.m. ET

foxsports

There is no question who is boss here. Dan Snyder may own the Washington Redskins, but new coach Mike Shanahan runs this team.

Tight end Chris Cooley said it best. “Everything here now runs through Mike,” Cooley said. “There are no assumptions of what the head coach wants. He is very clear. I think the other difference from a year ago is I would say Jim Zorn was trying to prove himself as a head coach, so that didn’t stop guys from running to Dan or whatever. There are no thoughts that if we start 1-3 that he’s going to be fired at the end of the year. Mike’s the guy and if we want it to work, we are going through Mike.”

Inside linebacker London Fletcher, who has been a rock wherever he’s played in the NFL, said that Shanahan has brought “credibility, a professional attitude and accountability” to the Redskins.

“That environment was really lacking here last season,” Fletcher said. “A lot of times last season by Wednesday we had no chance to win because we really lacked professional leadership, because not everybody was on the same ship so to speak. Every guy on this team knows now if they don’t do it the right way, including me, they are not going to be here.”

To build and maintain this competitive atmosphere, Shanahan and new general manager Bruce Allen brought in over 20 new players, not counting rookies.

“There are not six guys on this team who are immune from anything, including me,” said Cooley, who will have to fend off Fred Davis. “What they’ve done is make our team better and make everyone compete. Outsiders want to think that Mike and Albert (Haynesworth) were having some kind of spat, but all Mike was doing is asking Albert to do what everyone else has to do and I think (other players) were completely cool with it.”

“We’ll see how it goes with him,” Fletcher said of Haynesworth. “If he buys into the 3-4 defense, he can be a monster for us and make us a better football team.”

Before he accepted the $21 million bonus in April, Haynesworth was told he could go somewhere else, no harm done. But if he took the money, he was going to have to do it Shanahan’s way, which meant no special treatment. At the end of his career back in Denver, Broncos future Hall-of-Fame quarterback John Elway was treated the same way by his head coach.

Shanahan may be considered a great offensive mind on the sidelines, but he is also old fashioned in that he believes in details and accountability. It’s part of the reason why he won two Super Bowls with the Broncos and had nine winning seasons there in 14 years. He and Denver owner Pat Bowlen seemed to be buddies, but at the end of the 2008 season Bowlen ended the marriage.

“Of all places, I never thought I’d see you here,” I said to Shanahan.

Shanahan laughed. He knew exactly what I meant because he also believed he’d retire as the Broncos head coach.

But Shanahan, who turns 58 later in August, also seems to be relishing the new challenge. He doesn’t mind proving himself all over again and that point of competiton has been driven home with his players. For example, his former running back in Denver, Clinton Portis, has shed 15 pounds in order to best compete with Larry Johnson and Willie Parker to be the starter.

“With as many people as we have brought in here, I believe it has brought a lot of competition to the team,” Shanahan said. “We have a bunch of potential free agents who are competing for their futures. I agree, it’s kind of a perfect storm.”

Allen, who is reveling being here because this is where his father, George, was once the head coach, noted that training camp has been pretty serious. “It’s like the players are afraid to even trash talk because they really aren’t sure whether Mike would approve or not,” Allen said.

And unlike what Bill Belichick has done in New England, removing any pictures of the Patriots’ Super Bowl past, Allen and Shanahan are constantly reminding the players that this flagship franchise was once an NFC powerhouse and they should strive for greatness.

“Bruce is pretty proud of that plaque he put up honoring all the great assistant coaches this franchise had in the 1980s,” Shanahan said. “A lot of those guys were coaches I looked up to. I remember coming here in 1985 while with the Broncos to talk football with the Washington coaches because we were playing the NFC East teams that year. Then we ended up playing in the Super Bowl against each other. The league outlawed that kind of fraternization after that.”

Every football detail, every instruction that one of his assistants makes to players in meetings, is monitored by Shanahan because he tapes every meeting and often reviews them. It is a coaching technique he learned from the late Bill Walsh, who had such a system with San Francisco 49ers.

“It’s a great way of knowing that your coaches are teaching the philosophy that you want,” Shanahan said. “Walsh told me that he contacted the top 20 companies from the Silicon Valley to come up with a system and install it. When I went there as an assistant before I spoke to any players, I spent four months watching film of their meetings to make sure I knew Walsh’s passing philosophy.”

The other major addition here is 33-year-old quarterback Donovan McNabb. Shanahan, who knows something about quarterbacks, was the only serious pursuer of McNabb when the Eagles were considering trading him.

“Every team that wins a Super Bowl usually has a great quarterback,” Shanahan said. “It’s tough when you make decisions for your team. Because the contracts are so great for quarterbacks, they had to make a decision (between McNabb and Kevin Kolb) on one of them. I think it worked out great for us. When we play the Eagles, you can bet that Donovan will want to prove to them that they made a mistake.”

In the same breath, Shanahan said he remains “shocked” that Denver unloaded Jay Cutler. “We were No. 2 in offense with Jay and had a very young offensive team,” he said.

“It means a lot to have a quarterback of his caliber,” Fletcher said of McNabb. “He’s still in the prime of his career, a proven player who really knows our division.”

“Donovan has been fantastic so far,” Cooley said. “He’s great for me and also great for this offense. We have really struggled the past few years. Hey, everybody liked Jason (Campbell), but no one was a good fit for the offensive line we had last year. I really like the improvement we’ve made on the O-line.”

The makeover of the offensive line includes No. 1 pick Trent Williams at left tackle, former Saint Jammal Brown, a two-time Pro Bowler, at right tackle and proven Minnesota backup Artis Hicks at right guard.

The Redskins were 0-6 in the NFC East last season while finishing 4-12, the club’s worst record since 1994. Shanahan likes to call the East the money division “because every owner is committed to winning,” he said. “Look at Dan. No one has spent more money on players than him recently and he’s done that because he really wants to win. Jerry Jones is the same way. Philadelphia has a great track record and now the Giants are moving into a new big stadium. All four of us have great stadiums and fans. I’ve already been over there to see the new Giants’ stadium. Those owners, too, are committed to winning.”

Fans may view Shanahan as a passing coach, but he readily admits he will never be throwing the ball like Andy Reid does. “That style works for the Eagles,” he said. “Andy has had a lot of success that way. But I have always been a run-first coach like the Giants are. We will find a way to run and be successful.”