What about Russ?

As we enlarge our coaching search, I have been wondering why Russ Grimm is not a serious candidate to return to his team and take over for his coach.

When Joe Gibbs returned 4 years ago, wasn't it he who wanted to pry Grimm away from the Pittsburgh Steelers to run the offense? And wasn't it those same Steelers who held onto him with their kung fu grip, saying the only way Grimm would leave was if he was to become a head coach somewhere. So what happened?

When Bill Cowher retired after the 2006 season, Grimm and Steelers OC Ken Wisenhunt were the players' favorites to take over the job. However, the Steelers went with Vikings DC Mike Timlin and said goodbye to their offensive masterminds. Wisenhunt still picked up a head coaching job, taking over in Arizona, but Grimm was not so lucky.

Wisenhunt took care of Grimm, bringing him to Arizona, but again it only seemed like a matter of time before Grimm would take over somewhere. But much like his induction to the Hall of Fame, Grimm is still waiting for the phone to ring on a head coaching offer.

It was speculated early on that Grimm could be a candidate to take over in Washington, but in the hordes of candidates Dan Snyder has brought in, Grimm was not one of them. Given Snyder's penchant to relive the glory days it would seem Grimm would have been a good fit for his former team.

Instead, we spent our time hiring coordinators and waiting for other coaching candidates to become available for interviews. We may do okay if we actually hire Giants DC Steve Spagnuolo, especially after what he did to the mighty Patriots, but it still would've been cool to see Grimm head up the latest version of the Skins.

Hopefully the way this process has been drawn out, we will find our perfect fit and Grimm will finally get a well deserved shot with someone.

Are we being deceived in the coaching search?

Bram Weinstein brought up an interesting point in the Redskins Radio e-mail today, saying that the apparent "lack" of information being divulged about the Skins coaching search is very similar to the last time, when Joe Gibbs ended his retirement to resurrect the franchise.

I'm not a huge Weinstein fan, but I do like his comment about waiting for owner Dan Snyder to "pull a rabbit out of his hat." He still thinks the job goes to D coordinator Gregg Williams or recent interview Jim Mora Jr., but I think Snyder is still trying to see if he can convince Bill Cowher or someone with successful, previous head coaching experience to take the helm. I'm for this idea, especially since the Big Tuna already has a new gig.

I've let my thoughts on this matter be known in previous posts and hopefully this matter will be settled soon. There is only so much you can say about a covert coaching search.

Who will be the next coach?

Now that the media carousel is spitting out tons of names for the vacant head coaching gig, let's take a look at who may actually be on the radar:

1. Jim Schwartz (Tennessee defensive coordinator): The first official interview, I find it hard to believe that while he is one of the hot candidates this offseason he will actually get the job. If Dan Snyder decides to hire a defensive minded HC, I think another former Titan DC will get the job. Which brings us to ...

2. Gregg Williams (Washington assistant head coach-defense): This in house candidate and former head coach seemed to be named the successor to Joe Gibbs the moment Gibbs hired him to run the defense. However, the longer this process drags out and the more big name candidates interview for the job, the less likely it seems Williams has the job locked up.

3. Al Saunders (Washington assistant head coach-offense): Another former head coach in the league, Saunders was brought in two years ago to punch up the offense. Unfortunately, I don't know if the offense was really that much better under his guidance and I don't really see him as a likely choice to succeed Gibbs.

4. Bill Cowher (former Pittsburgh head coach): This is the exact type of big splash Snyder has made in the past and he could do a lot worse than hiring the former Steelers head guy. However, Cowher has repeatedly said he wanted to take two years off before coaching again which would put his return in 2009. But we know from experience that if Snyder wants something bad enough, he will usually throw enough money at it to make sure he gets it. So if Cowher feels the need to get rich again, he will probably have the opportunity.

5. Russ Grimm (Arizona assistant head coach-offensive line): Gibbs wanted to bring his former lineman in to run the offense when he returned but Pittsburgh wouldn't let go of him. One of the fans choices to replace Cowher, Grimm was passed up and followed Ken Wisenhunt to Arizona. It's probably not likely Grimm will be hired but it would be fun to see the old "Hog" take control of a team he helped get to 3 Super Bowls as a player.

I personally still think Williams has to be the favorite to get the job but if Cowher can be swayed out of the booth, the job is his. Either one would be a good choice to run the Skins and have the type of mentality needed to keep this team headed in the right direction.