You could say Jay Gruden's honeymoon is over, but that would suggest he had one. Like most Washington Redskins head coaches over the past 20-plus years, Gruden inherited a mess.
After a challenging first season in which he had more foot-in-mouth moments than victories, Gruden still must prove he's the right person for his job. He'll have to overcome obstacles of his own making and a toxic workplace environment that, in part, derailed more accomplished men. If Gruden learns from his mistakes, he may wind up being the partner sharp new general manager Scot McCloughan needs to rebuild the Redskins. If he doesn't, Gruden could become yet another problem for a franchise beset by them. And as he tries to prove his worth to a new GM, he could have an unlikely ally.
By helping Robert Griffin III, Gruden would take steps in the right direction in his own career.
Hired to win and teach Griffin to become an elite pocket passer (and not necessarily in that order), Gruden went 4-12 in 2014 and Griffin, to put it kindly, made no discernible progress. Gruden also poured gasoline on the fire, with brutal honesty in his public assessments of Griffin, who during one stretch was benched for the second time in as many seasons.
In the treat-everything-as-if-it-were-a-matter-of-national-security NFL, Gruden's candor was both refreshing ... and highly inappropriate. Even if a starting quarterback is inept -- there's no better way to describe Griffin's performance the past two seasons -- no coach, let alone the guy in charge, should reveal his contempt for a team's most important player. It was a very bad look. Looking back, Gruden seems to get that.
In the offseason, Gruden has been very circumspect in his comments about Griffin, whose Redskins career could end after this season if he fails to recapture the magic of his spectacular rookie year. Following organized team activities Tuesday at Redskins Park, Gruden continued to choose his words carefully, eagerly offering that Griffin has been "doing fine, and [simply needs to] show consistency. Robert has great work ethic. That's never been a question. I'm satisfied, in that regard."
Of course, it doesn't take a veteran scout to realize that Griffin may be a project in the pocket for as long as he's in the league. And no one needs to tell McCloughan, who's a scout's scout, that franchise quarterbacks possess innate traits such as pocket presence and great decision-making ability. You either have it or you don't. Griffin has displayed little.
For Gruden and his staff, the scary thing is that Griffin, who clashed with former Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan, actually has been receptive to coaching. The problem is, after kickoff each week, Griffin seems to forget most of what he learns.
"Playing in the same system for the second year ... you should show improvement; lots of improvement," Gruden said, ramping up his critique of Griffin, albeit ever so slightly.
"Just by hearing concepts, seeing the plays over and over again and dealing with the pressure [Griffin should be better]. We have high expectations. We expect significant strides to take place from Year 1 to Year 2."
Gruden shouldn't be judged on whether Griffin regains star status. With everything that has gone wrong for Griffin and his apparent limitations in the pocket, applying such a high standard to measure Gruden's success would be ridiculous. Instead, Gruden should be evaluated solely on whether he does his best to support Griffin on and off field. That's all Gruden can do.
Although Gruden always strives to put players in the best position, "you never stop learning as a coach," he said. "You always can learn something about your team and yourself. The older you get the more experience you get, and it was a learning experience last year."
And while he was too tough on Griffin, Gruden wasn't stern enough in handling the locker room. At times after losses, players were more upbeat than they should have been for a group that went 7-25 the past two seasons. Occasionally, Gruden must wield a hammer.
"Half the battle in coaching is getting the most out of your players, trying to figure out what buttons to push," Gruden said. "I feel pretty good in that regard in Year 2."
Last season, the group's lack of professionalism -- once, reporters interviewing Griffin in the middle of the locker room at the direction of a high-ranking team official were shouted out of the room -- reflected poorly on Gruden, who acknowledged he wasn't fully prepared for the fishbowl existence that comes with leading the Redskins. Washington's problems on defense only increased the scrutiny.
Looking for a change in defensive philosophy, the Redskins fired Jim Haslett with a year remaining on his contract. With an opportunity to hire a proven coordinator, Gruden dipped back into his past and added Joe Barry, with whom he worked in Tampa Bay. Generally, Barry received high marks for his work directing Buccaneers linebackers. The reviews on his only stint running an entire defense weren't as good: In 2007 and 2008, the Detroit Lions ranked last in the league in yards and points allowed.
Needing help, Gruden hired a friend. I get that. But coming off such a difficult season, Gruden should have turned to someone with a history of turning around defenses. The fact is, Barry doesn't fit that help-wanted ad. Regardless, Gruden believes he nailed it, which is good, since the move is among many on which Gruden will be held accountable.
An argument could be made that one, two, three or four seasons would not be enough time to fairly assess Gruden's development. As supporters of Gruden in the organization are quick to say, not even New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who's second to none in this generation, could quickly untangle the mess that has resulted in Washington finishing last in the NFC East six of the last seven seasons and eight of 11. And Super Bowl winners Joe Gibbs and Mike Shanahan failed to win consistently under owner Daniel Snyder. Seldom does anything good occur when an organization's culture is bad.
But McCloughan brings hope. By acquiring big, physical players to bolster a roster in disrepair, the proven team-builder has shown he's ready to be part of the solution. It's Gruden's turn to show something as well, and the irony is he can best accomplish that with the help of a quarterback he didn't want.