Redskins: Five reasons to be optimistic about the Scott Turner hire
By Ian Cummings
No. 1 – Like O’Connell, Turner needs a chance
No one wanted Kevin O’Connell to stay because he was this proven offensive guru guaranteed to revamp the Redskins attack unit. People wanted O’Connell to stay because he was a young coach with potential and familiarity with the players. He wouldn’t have been guaranteed to succeed, but last season, he had a clashing coaching staff and a revolving door of weapons to use. He needed a legitimate shot, with a stable coaching staff and more authority on offense. So did Scott Turner.
Turner was made the Panthers offensive coordinator for the final four games of the 2019 regular season. In that time, Perry Fewell was the Panthers head coach, the Panthers offense itself was ailing from injuries, and backup signal caller Kyle Allen had regressed to the mean, providing subpar play at quarterback and eventually giving way to Will Grier, who was very bad in two starts. Turner did what he could, but much like O’Connell in Washington, he wasn’t immune to the circumstances around him.
Essentially, if you were clamoring for O’Connell to get a shot, like I was, then you should be on board with Turner getting that same shot, because their situations were all too similar in 2019.
Now in O’Connell’s place in D.C., with the endorsement of Ron Rivera giving him security, Turner has the time and stability he didn’t have in Carolina, and with the talent, present and incoming, on Washington’s roster, he can take time to design his own offense, and implement his own concepts, ones that involve analytics, forward-thinking, and a little bit of Norv Turner’s flexibility.
Additionally, unlike Washington’s previous staff, Turner likely won’t experience resistance from the head coach in 2020. Ron Rivera is a defensive coach, and while he’s not a stringent supporter of analytics, he makes a point out of letting offensive coaches have the final say offense, and he does a nice job delegating on the offensive side of the ball. Unlike other defensive coaches, Rivera isn’t known to micro-manage the offense, all for a philosophical hill to die on.
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It would’ve been nice to see Kevin O’Connell blossom in an increased role, with more freedom. But as it turns out, we might see another young offensive coach do the same in his place. There’s plenty of reason to be optimistic about Scott Turner, and what he might bring to the Redskins offense.