Washington Redskins: Scratch Gruden From Redskins Head Coach List. Zorn To Stay?

Scratch Jon Gruden from the wish list of potential head coaches for the Washington Redskins.

Gruden found a new voice on Monday Night Football and signed a lucrative multi-year contract with ESPN to continue.

That development might be good news for current Redskins head coach Jim Zorn.  

I suspect that Daniel Snyder's adolescent rage over the Redskins performance last month was a huge turn-off for the big name coaches Snyder targeted as replacements.

Snyder's entreaties to Mike Shanahan after the third game of the season must have reeked of Al Davis to Shanahan. Davis fired Shanahan as Los Angeles Raiders head coach after the fourth game of the 1989 season following a 1-3 start.  

Mike Holmgren, another dream candidate, said in a recent Chicago radio interview that he did not like the way Washington was treating Zorn. Holmgren implied that he would not be as nice about it as Zorn if he were treated the same.

Gruden signed the ESPN deal after taking a good look at Cleveland (1-8) as he did with Washington for a Monday night game in October.

Gruden was traded to Tampa Bay by Al Davis in 2002 for two first round draft picks. The Raiders have been in a decline so steep that even Norv Turner could not save them.  

Gruden's enthusiasm and unique speaking style begs for a Frank Caliendo impression as John Madden and Howard Cosell once did. The broadcast booth feels like fun to him.

With Gruden off the list, Bill Cowher and Tony Dungy firmly retired and Shanahan and Holmgren sure to demand intolerable assurances from Snyder, Zorn may be the only man standing for Redskins coach in 2010.