Redskins' Jay Gruden  at the midpoiint of Year 4
Jay Gruden
Jay Gruden  winced as  he  eased  himself  onto a leather sofa at Redskins Park this week. The Washington Redskins coach had strained a calf muscle while running   he  explained at the outset of a mid-season interview  and it was sore.
 Gruden  looked up and laughed as the 6-foot-5  319-pound Scherff  grinning at  his  joke  trudged past  a portrait of toughness lumbering toward the teamâs weight room.
âThereâs not one player on this team that I donât enjoy messing around with and talking to â  Gruden  said. âTheyâve all got great personalities. Theyâre great kids.â
âAfter a bad practice or a bad game   he âs the first one to let you know youâre not getting it done;  Jay âs gonna let you know itâs not good enough â explained Foster  currently on injured reserve  in a telephone interview. âBut  he âs also the first  after a great game or a great play  to say  âYou looked great out there! You guys are playing your hearts out!â  Jay  keeps it real with you. And  he  actually cares about you as a person.â
If Gruden makes it to 2018 in Washington   he âd become the first head coach to last five seasons under Redskins owner Daniel Snyder.
âKnock wood!â  he  chuckled when this was pointed out. âI still have to get to next season!â
Could it be that the seemingly imperturbable  Gruden  has a shot?
Asked about his demeanor earlier in the season   Gruden  confessed  âIâm a happy guy.â
In doing so   Gruden  broke the unspoken creed of old-line NFL coaches that greatness is one step removed from misery â that the price of postseason glory  for an NFL head coach  was physical and psychological well-being in the form of ulcers  anxiety and lack of sleep.
âIt can be miserable â if you have people around you [whom] you donât like to go to work with  and thatâs players and coaches  included â  Gruden  said of the job. âIâve got a great coaching staff  great training staff. And when Dan [Snyder] comes by  we shoot the [breeze] a little bit. Itâs fun.
For the Redskins to be 4-4 after so much off-season turnover is something of a surprise.  Gruden  lost both coordinators (offensive coordinator Sean McVay left to coach the Los Angeles Rams; defensive coordinator Joe Barry was fired after 28th-place performances in consecutive seasons). Snyder fired general manager Scot McCloughan the month before the NFL draft. The offense lost 2 000 receiving yards with the departure of DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon. All but one defensive assistantâs jobs turned over. And team president Bruce Allen failed to deliver the long-term contract for quarterback Kirk Cousins that he promised would be easily handled.
âI just think this day and age in pro football  you have to be ready to adjust and make changes â  Gruden  said. âYouâre never going to see the same roster one year to the next. Sometimes itâs coaching; sometimes itâs personnel.â
When McVay had the job   Gruden  said  the two retreated to their private offices  scripted plays independently  compared notes and âcame to a happy mediumâ on the best approach weekly.
This season   Gruden  is spreading the workload among  his  assistants: offensive line coach Bill Callahan  running backs coach Randy Jordan  tight ends coach Wes Phillips  wide receivers coach Ike Hilliard.
The number of injuries to the offensive line has made consistent offensive production even more challenging. The running game has struggled  and Cousins hasnât had time to throw deep consistently. So  Gruden  has fashioned a running game of sorts from a heavy diet of screen passes that Thompson has turned into big gains. The Redskins currently rank 14th in total yards  averaging 343 yards per game.
âWe might only rush for 70 yards one game but might throw screens for 150 â  Gruden  noted. âThere are different ways to skin a cat in a running game. Itâs easier said than done to go out there and just run the ball. Bruce [Allen] and Dan [Snyder] want to run the ball all the time; thatâs the old Joe Gibbs way. I get that. Iâd love to hand the ball off; it makes it easier for everybody.â
[TGT] winced as   [TGT]   eased   [TGT]   onto a leather sofa at Redskins Park this week. The Washington Redskins coach had strained a calf muscle while running    [TGT]   explained at the outset of a mid-season interview  and it was sore.
  [TGT] looked up and laughed as the 6-foot-5  319-pound Scherff  grinning at   [TGT]   joke  trudged past  a portrait of toughness lumbering toward the teamâs weight room.
âThereâs not one player on this team that I donât enjoy messing around with and talking to â   [TGT] said. âTheyâve all got great personalities. Theyâre great kids.â
âAfter a bad practice or a bad game   he âs the first one to let you know youâre not getting it done;   [TGT]  âs gonna let you know itâs not good enough â explained Foster  currently on injured reserve  in a telephone interview. âBut  he âs also the first  after a great game or a great play  to say  âYou looked great out there! You guys are playing your hearts out!â   [TGT] keeps it real with you. And   [TGT]   actually cares about you as a person.â
If  [TGT]  makes it to 2018 in Washington    [TGT]  âd become the first head coach to last five seasons under Redskins owner Daniel Snyder.
âKnock wood!â   [TGT]   chuckled when this was pointed out. âI still have to get to next season!â
Could it be that the seemingly imperturbable  Gruden  has a shot?
Asked about  [TGT]  demeanor earlier in the season   Gruden  confessed  âIâm a happy guy.â
In doing so   Gruden  broke the unspoken creed of old-line NFL coaches that greatness is one step removed from misery â that the price of postseason glory  for an NFL head coach  was physical and psychological well-being in the form of ulcers  anxiety and lack of sleep.
âIt can be miserable â if you have people around you [whom] you donât like to go to work with  and thatâs players and coaches  included â  Gruden  said of the job. âIâve got a great coaching staff  great training staff. And when Dan [Snyder] comes by  we shoot the [breeze] a little bit. Itâs fun.
For the Redskins to be 4-4 after so much off-season turnover is something of a surprise.  Gruden  lost both coordinators (offensive coordinator Sean McVay left to coach the Los Angeles Rams; defensive coordinator Joe Barry was fired after 28th-place performances in consecutive seasons). Snyder fired general manager Scot McCloughan the month before the NFL draft. The offense lost 2 000 receiving yards with the departure of DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon. All but one defensive assistantâs jobs turned over. And team president Bruce Allen failed to deliver the long-term contract for quarterback Kirk Cousins that he promised would be easily handled.
âI just think this day and age in pro football  you have to be ready to adjust and make changes â  Gruden  said. âYouâre never going to see the same roster one year to the next. Sometimes itâs coaching; sometimes itâs personnel.â
When McVay had the job   Gruden  said  the two retreated to their private offices  scripted plays independently  compared notes and âcame to a happy mediumâ on the best approach weekly.
This season   Gruden  is spreading the workload among  his  assistants: offensive line coach Bill Callahan  running backs coach Randy Jordan  tight ends coach Wes Phillips  wide receivers coach Ike Hilliard.
The number of injuries to the offensive line has made consistent offensive production even more challenging. The running game has struggled  and Cousins hasnât had time to throw deep consistently. So  Gruden  has fashioned a running game of sorts from a heavy diet of screen passes that Thompson has turned into big gains. The Redskins currently rank 14th in total yards  averaging 343 yards per game.
âWe might only rush for 70 yards one game but might throw screens for 150 â  Gruden  noted. âThere are different ways to skin a cat in a running game. Itâs easier said than done to go out there and just run the ball. Bruce [Allen] and Dan [Snyder] want to run the ball all the time; thatâs the old Joe Gibbs way. I get that. Iâd love to hand the ball off; it makes it easier for everybody.â