Lombardi: Firing Jay Gruden won't save Skins

By 106.7 The Fan

Related

How much did firing Jay Gruden really change the direction of the Washington Redskins?

If you ask former NFL executive and Radio.com NFL Insider Michael Lombardi not very much because the franchise has already struck the iceberg. 
"I don't really have a reaction (to Gruden's firing). I think, to me, you're throwing a deck chair off the Titanic," Lombardi said Monday on Grant & Danny. 

Of course, Lombardi contends Gruden "wasn't a great head coach" as the team was "disorganized, out of shape, there was no attention to detail, there (were) a lot of things wrong."

"But there's fundamental problems with Washington, there's fundamental problems with the organization," Lombardi told 106.7 The Fan. "We can laugh about it. I feel badly for Redskin fans because they understand that there is an institutional problem."

And those deeper problems will continue to haunt the franchise even with Gruden gone after an 0-5 start in 2019. 

"It's deeper than just Jay Gruden, it's deeper than just that. It's an institutional problem and when it becomes an institutional problem, making one move doesn't really matter," Lombardi added.

Lombardi, who has been an outspoken critic of the Redskins under owner Daniel Snyder and team president Bruce Allen, believes the problem comes from the top of the organization. When asked if Allen will remain president after this year, Lombardi had a sarcastic response, but one that may not be too far off from reality.

"I think he not only survives it, (he) probably gets a bonus," Lombardi told 106.7 The Fan. "If they could probably give him a better title than President, he'd probably will get that. I mean, he ain't going anywhere. Here's the problem: They don't know what the problem is. You can't fix a problem if you won't admit it."

"They want to win there way," he said of Allen and Snyder, who combine for a 59-89-1 regular-season record since 2010.

When asked by The Fan if the failures of the Redskins come down to institutional arrogance or ignorance, Lombardi said, "I think they just feel like they haven't gotten the right coach." And Snyder and Allen believe "it's really more of the coach's fault than it is their fault."

The problem for the Redskins going forward, as Lombardi points out, in the small circle of the NFL, "Everyone knows it's a horrendous job as long as Dan keeps the current regime in place. It's a horrendous job." 

Washington will find somebody to take the job, but "can somebody actually function well (there)?"

Lombardi, sardonically, would have one question for the Redskins team president, "Why don't you become the head coach?"

"You make all the decisions, you draft the players, you tell 'em who to play, you tell 'em who to condition, why don't you just get out of your coat and tie and maybe just coach the team?" Lombardi said of Allen. "Why don't you do that?'

Follow @BenKrimmel and @1067theFan on Twitter.