Joe's Gone The one thing that hit me as I watched Joe Gibbs retire, was relief. He looked so relieved to step away and say goodbye. Joe Gibbs did what he wanted to do. He is leaving the Redskins in better shape, than when he arrived 4 years ago. He tried to thank everybody who helped him in his second time around but I kept feeling, we should all be thanking him. Despite all the scrutiny he got for being conservative in his play calling, the burgundy and gold made the playoffs, 2 of the last 3 seasons. He made this team a winner again and the guys on the roster understood what it meant to be a Redskin.

From Clinton Portis to Stephon Heyer, everyone on the roster pulled for one another. Players were coming to the Redskins for all the right reasons. Sure everybody likes to get paid but everyone loved the direction. The Skins were moving forward as a team and Joe Gibbs was leading the way. He was the reason. Dan Snyder's image wasn't taking as many hits and that was because if anything went wrong, coach took all the blame. All Dan had to do was get Gibbs what he wanted and he could do that without a problem. Joe Gibbs was a security blanket for the whole Redskin family. He always took and handled all the blame but gave the praise and promise to the players. It's hard to find men like that in any business.

Joe Gibbs left to spend time with his family. There are no questions or doubts about that. Gibbs loves football and Nascar but he has always been a family man and that's part of the reason all of his ventures have been successful. Going to work with the coach was like working with your dad. You never wanted to let him down and he's trying hard to make sure he does the same for you. I guess we can talk about the future tomorrow and the rest of the playoffs but for today, let's remember what coach is, a Redskin and a family man. Awesome combination.  ¶ 11:44 AM