San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan's second NFL job was with the Washington Redskins. Shanahan worked under his father, Mike Shanahan, as the offensive coordinator for the ‘Skins from 2010-2013. He had some choice words about his time in Washington. When asked about his tenure there, the younger Shanahan didn't mince words.
Asked about the best parts of working as part of the Redskins staff, Shanahan mentioned working with his father and other capable coaches. When it came to the worst parts, he just said “Everything else,” according to Pro Football Talk.
This speaks volumes about Redskins owner Dan Snyder and general manager Bruce Allen. Washington has a reputation for having a comically dysfunctional front office, and it starts with those two. The Redskins have been mostly dormant in free agency in recent years, with the exception of massively overpaying safety Landon Collins.
Also, the Redskins have struggled with their culture frequently. According to recent reports, ex-head coach Jay Gruden wasn't much of a fan of then-Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins. Allen and Snyder were set on having him, and despite Gruden's concerns, took him anyway at No. 15 overall in the most recent draft. That is especially surprising due to Gruden's reputation as a great quarterback coach.
While the Haskins move is easy to discount as a lone incident, it's indicative of a more significant problem. Communication between a head coach and a front office is key to success. Things like not doing so will make the head coach search harder for the Washington Redskins down the line.
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