The Redskins and head coach Jay Gruden have agreed to an extension that will keep Gruden under contract through the 2020 season, which John Keim of ESPN.com was the first to report. Gruden had two years left on his original five-year pact, all of which was guaranteed, and this new extension tacks an additional two years onto the end of that deal.
As ESPN’s Adam Schefter observes, this marks the first time club owner Dan Snyder has extended a head coach since he bought the team in 1999. No head coach has lasted more than four years under Snyder, who has had seven head coaches and one interim coach during his tenure.
Interestingly, this move comes just as fans and analysts are beginning to wonder if Snyder is up to his usual tricks with respect to GM Scot McCloughan. As PFR’s Sam Robinson wrote last night, McCloughan is absent from this weekend’s Combine, which has caused agents of free agents to question the stability of the organization. Indeed, agents and other league insiders wondered if there was more to the story than the team is letting on — McCloughan’s absence has been officially attributed to the death of his grandmother — and some agents are taking this as a sign to steer their clients away from Washington.
Gruden, 50, has guided the Redskins to a 21-26-1 record during his first three years at the helm, but he has gone 17-14-1 the past two years, and he captured an NFC East title in 2015. It is the first time Washington has posted consecutive winning seasons since 1996-97.
The Redskins, though, remain at an organizational crossroads given the uncertainty that surrounds their GM and their quarterback situation, and given the fact that Gruden will be working with two new coordinators in 2017, Greg Manusky (DC) and Matt Cavanaugh (OC).
Check off one of Cousins contract demands.
Odd choice. Maybe he signed really cheap??
he ruined Alfred Morris’ career.