Washington Redskins: Scot McCloughan changing culture

The Washington Redskins have long been known as the champions of the off-season, often frivolously spending cash on high-priced, big name free agents in hopes of quickly fixing holes on their roster. But, as the Redskins would come to learn, that’s not the way to build a roster capable of winning for an extended period of time. The best way to build a championship caliber roster is through the draft and then, after the nucleus of your team has been assembled, sign free agents.

Just days after the 2014 NFL season came to an end, Washington took steps to do just that. On January 8th, 2015, the Redskins announced the hiring of general manager Scot McCloughan. Best known for his ability as a draft scout, McCloughan brings a plethora of football knowledge to the table.

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In 1994, after spending 3 years as an outfielder in the minor leagues, McCloughan joined the Green Bay Packers as a regional scout. He remained a part of the Green Bay scouting department for 5 years. After raising his clout around the league, he was hired as the director of college scouting for the Seattle Seahawks.

McCloughan’s stint in Seattle came to an end in 2005, when he joined the San Francisco 49ers to oversee their player personnel. He held that position until 2008, the year that he was promoted to general manager. McCloughan’s role as San Francisco’s general manager didn’t last long, as he and the team decided to mutually part in 2010.

After breaking things off with the 49ers, McCloughan returned to Seattle as a senior personnel executive. So, all in all, he has worked for three successful franchises. He spent five years in Green Bay, five years in San Francisco, and a total of eight years in Seattle.

During his tenures in San Francisco and Seattle, McCloughan played a part in drafting several adept players. Some of the more notable players that McCloughan helped draft are Shaun Alexander, Steve Hutchinson, Frank Gore, Michael Crabtree, and Patrick Willis. Not a bad haul, and that’s before mentioning the fact that he assisted Seattle in drafting Richard Sherman, Bobby Wagner and Russell Wilson.

The amount of talent that McCloughan has drafted in the past is encouraging. Having the ability to identify good football players is key, and it’s something that McCloughan excels at. But it means nothing if the team can’t properly develop them. To ensure that doesn’t happen, McCloughan has added a slew of talented coaches, coordinators, and trainers.

In an effort to improve their porous offensive line, the Redskins hired Bill Callahan. Before coming to Washington, Callahan worked for the Dallas Cowboys. Callahan’s presence helped turn the Dallas o-line into arguably the best in the NFL. The fact that Dallas spent three first-round picks in four years on offensive linemen doesn’t hurt. That shouldn’t discount Callahan’s ability as a coach, though. If anything, it proves that he’s able to get the most out of his players.

Nov 2, 2014; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III (10) at the line of scrimmage against the Minnesota Vikings in the first quarter at TCF Bank Stadium. The Vikings win 29-26. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports

If Callahan is able to get Washington’s offensive line up to speed, their quarterbacks will certainly be thankful. Collectively, the Redskins’ signal callers were sacked a total of 58 times. The most sacked out of the group was Robert Griffin III, who was taken down behind the line of scrimmage a total of 33 times.

Not all of those sacks were due to a lack of protection, though. A good amount of them came from Griffin not going through his progressions fast enough. It’s something that Griffin will have to improve if he wants to succeed as a quarterback in the NFL. Luckily for him, the Redskins hired quarterback coach Matt Cavanaugh to help improve his technique as a passer. In total, Cavanaugh has been involved with the NFL for 30-plus years. He spent 14 years as a quarterback and another 17 as a coach.

The changes that Washington has implemented on the offensive side of the ball are promising; everything that has been done so far has been necessary. The changes that McCloughan has orchestrated on the defensive side of the ball are equally as promising.

Former San Diego Chargers linebackers coach Joe Barry is now the Washington Redskins defensive coordinator. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

Before McCloughan signed with the Redskins, the team had already parted ways with defensive coordinator Jim Haslett. Washington nabbed San Diego Chargers’ linebackers coach Joe Barry to replace Haslett as the leader of the defense. He’ll be called upon to get he most out of Washington’s young players. He won’t be alone in the effort, though.

Shortly after hiring Barry as their defensive coordinator, the Redskins brought Perry Fewell aboard as their defensive backs coach. Before coming to Washington, Fewell served as the defensive coordinator for the New York Giants from 2010-2014.

It’s clearly evident to McCloughan, and pretty much any football fan with eyes, that the Washington Redskins have a lot of faults. From top to bottom, the organization needs a complete overhaul. The culture that McCloughan wants to instill in Washington is already beginning to show.

Bringing in new coaches is a good start, but it’s just that, a start. The next step is drafting smart and spending wisely. The draft is still a bit away, so we can’t fully tackle that quite yet.

We do know that McCloughan, thanks to Rich Tandler of CSNWashington.com, plans on drafting the best player available. It’s a smart draft strategy for a team with as many holes as the Redskins. It will ensure that Washington receives a talented player that’s capable of making an impact from Day One. Drafting for need often leads to teams reaching for a player that’s not actually worthy of being selected at that slot. Too many reaches will ultimately hamper the development of your roster.

After drafting smart comes spending wisely, which is something that the Redskins are not known to do. Washington, more than any other team in the league, has a history of splurging during the free agency period. That hasn’t been the case this year.

The Redskins are playing it safe and laying low. They’re signing strong role players like Stephen Paea and Ricky Jean-Francois. According to Andrew Walker of Redskins.com, the team is re-signing their own players and developing them instead of trying to buy players on the open market.

For once, the Washington Redskins are doing everything right and I believe the addition of McCloughan has a lot to do with it. He’s building a strong football culture in Washington, and that’s something that this organization has needed for a long, long time.

Next: Should the Redskins trade down in the draft?

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