Redskins: Why Jay Gruden should not be on the hot seat in 2018

Jay Gruden has provided stability to the Redskins. And for that reason, he shouldn’t be on the hot seat during the 2018 season.

After the huge mess that was the 2013 season, the Washington Redskins brass felt it was time for a fresh start. On January 9, 2014, Jay Gruden signed a four-year, $20 million contract with the team. Gruden was a head coaching candidate for many teams even before 2014, but ultimately ended up taking the Redskins head coaching vacancy that was previously held by Mike Shanahan. Gruden has spent four seasons as the Redskins head coach, and throughout those four season he has been the most consistent coach the Redskins have had since Joe Gibbs 2.0.

Jay Gruden entered a messy situation with the Redskins in 2014. The previous season the team posted a record of 3-13 and finished dead last in the NFC East. Robert Griffin III put up mediocre numbers after only playing in 13 games due to injury. In Gruden’s first season as head coach, his No. 1 priority was clear: Find his starting quarterback.

The 2014 season saw a carousel of starting quarterbacks. RG3 started a total of seven games, Kirk Cousins started five games, and Colt McCoy started four games. The team posted a record of 4-12 and finished last in the division. While the season was a failure, it wasn’t a total waste. Gruden found his starting quarterback in Cousins who would start every game for the next three seasons. Cousins would be the first starting quarterback for the Redskins to start all 16 games in consecutive seasons since Jason Campbell in 2008 and 2009.

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In 2015, Gruden had the stability he needed at the quarterback position to run his offense. The Redskins would win four straight games to end the season and clinch the NFC East title for the first time since 2012. They started out strong in their Wild Card matchup with the Packers, but would ultimately lose and were eliminated.

The 2016 season is arguably Gruden’s best season as a head coach. Even though the team did not make the playoffs, the Redskins had the third highest ranked offense in the league. The team finished the season with a record of 8-7-1. It was the second consecutive season that the team had recorded a winning season, which is something that had eluded them since 1997. In the offseason, Gruden signed a two-year extension with the team.

In 2017, the Redskins record dropped to 7-9, and they placed third in the NFC East for the second year in a row. The season was plagued with injuries, and that significantly impacted their record.

It’s hard to blame Jay Gruden for this. Yes, every good team should be able to overcome injuries with depth and still win. But, the Redskins suffered constant injuries throughout the year, and were never able to get healthy after Week 2. The coach has no control over the health of his players. If the injuries were even half of what they were, last seasons team could have easily had a winning record.

Gruden has brought the Redskins stability, something that this organization has been lacking for quite some time. Prior to 2014, this team was a mess and constantly one of the worst in the league. There were a few bright spots here and there, but never on a consistent basis.

As a head coach for Washington, Gruden is 27-36-1. His win percentage, at 43 percent, is the highest of any coach since Joe Gibbs’ second stint with the team. While the record may not be great, this is the most consistent the team has been in over a decade.

Next: 3 reasons the Redskins offense will improve in 2018

The team has gotten much better this past offseason. They have gotten younger on both sides of the ball and they have finally addressed the defensive line problems. Alex Smith under center gives Jay Gruden a veteran to run his offense, and a quarterback that’s not afraid to use his feet and make throws off schedule. Expect to see a big improvement this coming season.

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