On February 6, 1969 the owner of the Washington Redskins,
Edward Bennett Williams, introduced Vince Lombardi as the team’s new head
coach, executive vice-president, and part-owner at a press conference held at
the Sheraton-Carlton Hotel, two blocks from the White House.
The 55-year-old Lombardi was hardly an unknown quantity
to the assembled media, and his quip that “to set the record straight, I can’t
walk across the Potomac even when it’s frozen” reflected the high esteem to
which he was held, as well as the high expectations that accompanied his
arrival in Washington. He had led the Green Bay Packers to an 89-29-4 record
from 1959 through ’67, winning six Western Conference titles in those nine
seasons and five NFL Championships. Three of those league titles were
consecutive and the last two were topped by victories in the first two Super
Bowls. He stepped down as head coach at that point, although he remained the
team’s general manager in 1968.
Restless in a front office role, Lombardi was open to a return
to coaching, and while rumors had him going to any one of several teams with
coaching vacancies, he had hit it off well with Williams, who offered an
ownership share in the team in addition to complete control over personnel. There
had been a delay in the hiring due to the Packers being slow in agreeing to
release Lombardi from his contract, which had five years left to run, but the
way was finally cleared for him to move on (Phil Bengtson, who had succeeded
Lombardi as head coach, took over the GM duties as well).
Green Bay had been a losing team in the decade preceding
his arrival, and now Lombardi would be taking over a Washington club that had
not finished with a winning record since 1955. Most recently, they had gone
17-22-3 in three years under the guidance of Lombardi’s predecessor, Otto
Graham, and the best record was 7-7 in the first of those seasons. The team had
featured the passing game, with QB Sonny Jurgensen throwing to an excellent
group of receivers that included split end Charley Taylor, flanker Bobby
Mitchell, and TE Jerry Smith. But Jurgensen was coming off of a sub-par,
injury-plagued season in ’68 and Mitchell, moved back to his original position
of halfback, was less productive while Smith was shifted to flanker. Moreover,
Jurgensen would be 35 by the opening of the 1969 season and Mitchell 34, and
there was much speculation as to how the paunchy quarterback, known for his
after-hours carousing, would get along with the strict head coach, who
nevertheless spoke highly of him during the introductory press conference.
In his remarks to the assembled media, Lombardi also
emphasized the need to improve the running game, and Washington’s had been
mediocre in recent years. In 1968, HB
Gerry Allen led the club with 399 yards while averaging 3.2 yards per attempt.
The line had talent, most notably Pro Bowl center Len Hauss. The defense gave
up 4683 yards and 358 points in ‘68, but had able performers at linebacker and
in the backfield. OLB Chris Hanburger was outstanding, and Lombardi coaxed
35-year-old MLB Sam Huff out of retirement to lend his veteran presence. Pat
Fischer and Rickie Harris were capable cornerbacks, and SS Brig Owens
intercepted eight passes.
“As of now everybody turns out fresh and with a new
start,” summed up Lombardi regarding the personnel that he was inheriting.
“That’s the only decent thing to do. This is a new regime.”
The Redskins got off to a 4-1-1 start in 1969 before
giving up 41 points apiece in losses to the Colts and Cowboys, with a tie
against Philadelphia in between. The end result was 7-5-2, a notable
improvement and similar to the 7-5 record in Lombardi’s first year in Green
Bay.
Sonny Jurgensen was healthy and benefited from Lombardi’s
coaching, leading the league in overall passing in addition to attempts (442),
completions (274), completion percentage (62.0), and yards (3102), although he
was also sacked 40 times. While Bobby Mitchell retired during training camp, ex-Packer
Bob Long caught 48 passes for 533 yards (11.1 avg.) in his place at flanker.
Charley Taylor was solid once again with 71 receptions for 883 yards (12.4
avg.) and eight touchdowns and Jerry Smith was a consensus first-team All-NFL
selection at tight end with his 54 catches for 682 yards (12.6 avg.) and nine
TDs.
Gerry Allen and FB Henry Dyer were the starting running
backs in the season-opening game, but they were replaced by HB Larry Brown and
FB Charley Harraway in the second half, and it was Brown and Harraway the rest
of the way. Brown, a rookie eighth round draft choice out of Kansas State,
excelled once Lombardi recognized that a hearing problem caused him to be
habitually late off the snap count and had him fitted with a hearing aid. He
led the team with 888 yards on 202 carries (4.4 avg.), which was the highest
rushing total for a Washington running back in 18 years, and added another 302
yards on 34 catches. Harraway, who had spent his first three seasons with
Cleveland, gained 428 yards on the ground and caught 55 passes for 489 yards
while proving to be an able blocker.
Len Hauss again went to the Pro Bowl, but the offensive
line lacked overall consistency. The defense, while improved, still had holes,
giving up 319 points. The pass rush was lacking but, on the upside, Chris Hanburger
was joined by rookie Harold McLinton at linebacker, with good results, and the
backfield remained a strong suit, with Pat Fischer and Mike Bass at the corners
and Brig Owens and Rickie Harris at safety.
Unfortunately for the Redskins, and tragically for
Lombardi, there would be no second season to build upon the initial success. The
legendary coach was diagnosed with cancer the following June and died on
September 3, 1970. Bill Austin, an assistant coach in Green Bay who reunited
with Lombardi in Washington following a head coaching stint with the Steelers,
guided the club to a 6-8 record in ’70 and it would be another coach, George
Allen, who would take the Redskins to the playoffs in 1971 and the NFC
Championship in ‘72. Larry Brown, Charley Harraway, and Harold McLinton, as
well as Charley Taylor, Jerry Smith, Len Hauss, Pat Fischer, Brig Owens, and
Chris Hanburger, would be part of those playoff teams (so would Sonny
Jurgensen, but as an injury-plagued backup to Bill Kilmer). In his brief stay
in Washington, Vince Lombardi managed to lay groundwork that Allen would be able to build upon.
