Possible free agent targets

Now I by no means pretend to know what Vinny Cerrato has planned for the opening of free agency on Feb. 29 (and I don't think he does either) but the following projections are what I feel the team should do to address the holes we need to fill.

(Editor's note: I realize I promised the completion of my mock draft this weekend however, because I am so unfamiliar with most of the prospects right now I will post a new mock draft after the completion of the combine, once I can do more research on the topic.)

Despite Jim Zorn's recent comments about both Santana Moss and Antwaan Randle El being good fits for the offense, it appears Cerrato and company think the Skins need a more durable WR. And even though free agents may not be a priority, the buzz is D.J. Hackett could be reunited with Zorn this offseason.

I personally think if we brought back midseason signees Keenan McCardell and Reche Caldwell, we should be fine. Size doesn't catch passes, talent does and I think there are enough guys in the current group with talent that we can get away with being a little undersized. This is not a position to worry about in free agency.

If we go after anyone in free agency, I think the one guy we should seriously consider is Justin Smith. This guy gets after the QB and paired with Andre Carter, these two would wreck havoc on opposing OL's and provide the type of pass rush we haven't seen since the days of Dexter Manley and Charles Mann. The only problem with this scenario would be that Dan Snyder would have to go back to his old ways of whisking people away on Redskins 1 before they knew what hit them. Smith will demand top dollar and will probably be out of our price range (is that an odd statement to anyone else?) 15 minutes after free agency opens.

An option at safety could be Mike Doss. If he too isn't vastly overpaid once this thing gets underway, he could be a valuable leader brought in to fill a tough hole. He isn't Sean Taylor by any stretch of the imagination but he could be the guy who helps seal the wound.

If you haven't gotten it from this post already, all signs point to the Redskins actually building through the draft for once. Gone seems to be the influence of George Allen bringing aging veterans looking for one last run. If that truly is the case, we may finally get that permanent turnaround we've been searching for since Snyder bought the team. Maybe the guy has finally learned his lesson.

Coaching news and notes

There's been a lot of news to catch up on since Jim Zorn was "promoted," so here are the highlights:

There's a stump in the backfield - or at least coaching Clinton Portis and company. Stump Mitchell has taken over as running backs coach ...

And on a related note, Earnest Byner gets screwed in the whole coaching fiasco and is now without a job after getting a 1-year contract not too long ago. For a great piece on the coaching change, visit Curly R.

The offense has a new head man as well as former Titans assistant coach Sherman Smith has been named OC. Smith fills the last open spot on the staff while Zorn has retained that he will call the offensive plays - a la his mentor Mike Holmgren.

That wraps up all the definitive moves, the only other thing is don't believe the Ocho-Cinco rumors. After reports said the Skins were interested in acquiring Chad Johnson from the Bengals, multiple sources from Cincinnati said Johnson is not available. So that means it will either take the Skins a lot more than what would be wise to give up or an organization actually means what it says.

Zorn promoted to head coach

Even though he hasn't done a single thing for the Skins yet, newly named offensive coordinator Jim Zorn has already earned a promotion - to head coach.

It what has to be the strangest - and probably worst - coaching search in league history, it apparently seems that the only person who didn't have a problem with Zorn being hired as OC was Zorn himself.

If we weren't a laughing stock before, we probably are one now. Taking an early look at 2008 - before any moves have been made - we are probably lucky to get through this season with one head coach.

My head hurts too much to try and make any more sense of this hire, so I will just leave it at this: I guess it's better than Jim Fassel right?

Zorn hired, Williams out

According to ESPN, the Skins finally hired Jim Zorn as offensive coordinator, despite the fact the team doesn't have a coach.

My only comment on this hire at this point is isn't it weird to hire an OC before a head coach? Just a thought.

Also, ESPNEWS has been reporting that Gregg Williams is no longer a candidate for the head coach position and that he actually fell out of favor during his 4 interviews. That must have been some falling out considering he was given a huge raise not too many seasons ago to not pursue other head coaching jobs so he could take over for Joe Gibbs when he left right? Or did I only dream that since no one seems to be mentioning that now.

Well, at least we don't have the problems the Raiders do. People complain about him but at least he hasn't lost it like "Tracksuit" Al Davis. Some things never change.

Another tribute for Taylor

I saw this story floating across the news wires today and thought this was a pretty cool tribute.

Similar to what Major League Baseball did to honor Jackie Robinson this past year, Skins Pro Bowlers Chris Cooley and Chris Samuels will wear No. 21 to honor the late Sean Taylor at this year's Pro Bowl. It's a fitting tribute since Taylor is the first person voted to an All-Star team since 1986, and it should be fun if for nothing more than to see DL flattened by OL.

On the coaching front, it seems Jim Fassel is still considered one of the front runners for the coaching position but there is activity on the OC front as the team interviewed Seattle QB Coach Jim Zorn for the position.

Regardless of how this all plays out, we should at least be a different team offensively in '08.