Zorn in No-Win Situation

If recently emasculated Redskins head coach Jim Zorn has any sense, he'll seriously consider packing his belongings and taking the next flight out of D.C.. The situation in Washington, unfortunately, is looking more and more every day like a disaster just itching to unfold. And Zorn seems to be in a position now that he can't win no matter what he does.

With Zorn being stripped of play-calling duties and replaced in that capacity by a guy who has been out of the game for years and whose last big gig included calling Bingo games, it seems the coach's days are numbered. If the Redskins don't turn things around, Zorn is as good as gone, that's fairly obvious.

But here's the catch. If they do manage to somehow climb back into the playoff hunt, the credit won't go to Zorn. This recent shakeup will be pointed to as the catalyst.

Either way, Zorn's probably gone before next year, and yes, he may have been in over his head from the beginning. But he was brought into a situation where he had little say over the personnel on the playing field or the coaching staff. And he is shouldering most of the blame for not being able to take what he was given and mold it into a Super Bowl contender.

So he probably takes the fall by seasons end and owner Daniel Snyder will likely open the checkbook for one of the handful of championship-caliber coaches currently on the open market.

If Snyder wants to hire one of the available big-names, though, he is most likely going to have to offer full control over personnel. He's not going to land a guy with the pedigree of a Bill Cowher, Mike Holmgren, or Mike Shanahan without giving them final say over their staff and players.

And that could lead to the demise of Snyder's longtime right-hand man and executive vice president of football operations Vinny Cerrato.