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Hot Topic
So much for the "where's Gregg going?"
sweepstakes.
Redskins assistant head coach/defense Gregg Williams,
perhaps the hottest candidate for an NFL head coaching job, isn't going back
home to his native Missouri, or to Houston, where he began his NFL career, or
to Minnesota, where he would be reunited with former Washington cornerback
Fred Smoot.
Williams signed a three-year contract extension on
Tuesday to remain in charge of the Redskins' defense.
"It makes me very happy and it makes my family very
happy," Williams said in an exclusive interview with Redskins TV.
"My family loves living here. It was a unanimous decision by the family.
I'm very loyal and respectful to (Redskins owner) Dan Snyder and (coach) Joe
Gibbs for giving me this opportunity. It's been a great time in Washington and
hopefully I can stay an awful long time. It's nice to see the respect Dan and
Joe gave me in this new contract."
Williams, who coached Buffalo to a 17-31 record in three
seasons from 2001-03 before assembling top 10 defenses with Washington the
last two seasons, was thrilled to get the new deal done before the Redskins
play their first postseason game since 1999 on Saturday at Tampa Bay.
"We've got to be focused on Tampa Bay and I'm glad
to get this thing taken care of today," Williams said. "We've got to
be locked on, ready to go, cued in to win this game. We can get this
completely off the table right now and get focused when the players get back
in here tomorrow."
Not that Williams, 47, doesn't want to be a head coach
again.
"I want to be a head coach again," he said.
"I think I'll have that opportunity again. I knew I had those
opportunities this off-season. But that's not the most important thing. It's
what am I doing, where is it at and who's it with? I really like what I'm
doing. I really like where I'm at and I really, really, really like who it's
with."
Down the road, Williams is interested in succeeding
Gibbs, who's 65 and has three years left on his contract.
"When that time comes, that's a bridge that we'll
cross when we get there," Williams said. "But the fact that I get a
chance to coach side-by-side with the only Hall of Fame coach still coaching
today is a tremendous opportunity for me and I'm very happy for that."
Player
Notes
--QB Mark Brunell, playing on a sprained right knee, was
off-target badly last week at Philadelphia, but still finished the season with
a 23-10 touchdown-to-interception ratio and a solid 85.9 passer rating.
Brunell is expected to see more practice time this week and be healthier for
Saturday's wild-card game at Tampa Bay, against whom he passed for 226 yards
with two TDs and two interceptions in a 36-35 loss on Nov. 13.
--After sparkling when Brunell was hurt on Dec. 24
against the New York Giants and getting most of the practice reps last week,
QB Patrick Ramsey didn't play, as usual, against the Eagles.
--RB Clinton Portis's 112 yards on 27 carries gave him
nine 100-yard games and five in a row to tie Rob Goode's 54-year-old team
record. With 1,516 yards, Portis shattered Stephen Davis' 4-year-old Redskins
single-season rushing record and finished fourth in the NFL. Portis gained a
season-high 144 yards on 23 carries the first time he faced the Bucs. Portis
led the Redskins with 68 points on 11 rushing touchdowns and a two-point
conversion. He also threw a TD pass.
--RB Ladell Betts carried five times for 30 yards against
the Eagles and finished the year with 338 yards on 89 carries despite not
starting a game and missing four games with injuries. Betts had 45 yards of
offense and a 94-yard kickoff return touchdown at Tampa Bay.
--WR Santana Moss had four catches for 83 yards against
the Eagles to surpass Hall of Famer Bobby Mitchell's team record with 1,483
receiving yards. Moss' 84 catches in his Redskins debut have been topped only
by Art Monk (1984, 1985, 1989) and Laveranues Coles (2004). Moss tied for the
NFC lead in third-down catches and was second in yards.
--H-back Chris Cooley had a season-worst two catches for
8 yards against the Eagles but still led all NFC players at his position with
a Redskins-record 71 catches, was tied for the lead with seven TDs and was
third with 774 yards.
--TE Robert Royal didn't catch a ball against
Philadelphia, finishing with 18 catches for 131 yards compared to 13 for 118
during his first two seasons combined.
--K John Hall's 25-yard field goal against the Eagles was
his first in three weeks. He finished 12-for-14, missing from 45 and 52 yards,
and was 27-for-27 on PATs.
--DE Phillip Daniels didn't have a sack at Philadelphia
after recording five the two previous weeks. He still led the team with a
career-high eight sacks. Daniels also forced the fumble that FS Sean Taylor
returned 39 yards for the clinching TD with 2:16 remaining.
--MLB Lemar Marshall's interception in the fourth quarter
set up Clinton Portis' 22-yard touchdown run that put Washington ahead to stay
with 12:19 to play. Marshall led the Redskins with four interceptions this
season in his second year as a starter, his first in the middle.
--SS Ryan Clark ended Philadelphia's last threat with an
interception, just as he did in the first victory over the Eagles on Nov. 6.
It was Washington's first sweep of Philadelphia since 1988.
