Will Steve Spurrier’s offense work in the NFL?
That question has been bantered about ever since the former Florida Gators coach made the jump and took over the Washington Redskins on Jan. 25.
Even Spurrier himself admits that the results with the Fun ’n Gun in Washington have been mixed, thus far, as the Redskins 1-2 record suggests.
“It wasn't a whole lot [of difference in making the jump from college coaching] the first game, then the last two games, it has been trying to get first downs, trying to score touchdowns, trying to move the ball and trying to stop somebody,” Spurrier said. “That has been our biggest concerns right there. We just have not played extremely well and have got beaten pretty good, so we are just trying to play better.
“Obviously, defenses are a lot better. Shoot, we all knew that, and they disguise better. They are faster and quicker and those kinds of things. As far as the type of coverages, most all the teams play them and play them well. Most of the colleges play similar coverages, but not quite as well as NFL teams play them.”
And in typical Spurrier fashion, he is already started the quarterback carousel, using the bye week to yank Shane Matthews from the starting lineup and replacing him with either Danny Wuerffel or rookie Patrick Ramsey. Coy as ever, Spurrier wasn’t announcing his starter just yet on Wednesday.
“We will announce something Saturday morning, that will probably be the best thing to do,” Spurrier said.
Unofficially, most expect former Heisman Trophy winner Wuerffel to get the nod.
Whoever takes the snaps, Titans coach Jeff Fisher said it will be not only a challenge, but also a first in trying to corral a Spurrier offense.
“He’s won wherever he’s been, and he’s going to have success here. It’s a challenge,” Fisher said. “I’ve never been put in a position where I’ve had to defend his offense up until this week, and it looks like it’s going to be a challenge.”
Titans guard Zach Piller, who played for Spurrier with the Gators from 1996-98, still has lots of respect for his old coach.
“He’s a competitor and I love him to death,” Piller said. “I thought it was an honor to play for him. We won a national championship and a couple of SEC championships, and I can’t say enough about him. He’s done a good job everywhere he’s been, so I wouldn’t count him out yet.”
Still, Piller says it appears that Spurrier is finding out life in the NFL is a bit different from the Southeastern Conference.
“Our offense at Florida, I think more than anything, having better talent than the other team, and finding a mismatch, whether it be finding a corner going up against Ike Hilliard or Reidel Anthony, or maybe their linebackers couldn’t cover Fred Taylor,” Piller said. “But in the NFL, there is such a fine line between winning and losing, there’s three or four plays in the ballgame that are the difference. Everybody has basically the same talent level. That could be a problem.”
Defensive end Kevin Carter also played for Spurrier at Florida, but said he never really paid attention to the offense while a Gator.
“I was 19. I wasn’t really thinking, ‘Hmm. Let’s break down Spurrier’s genius offensive scheme,’” Carter said.
For Carter’s benefit, Fisher pointed out that Spurrier’s scheme is really nothing he hasn’t seen before, but that stopping it sometimes can be another matter.
“They’re using receivers and tight ends and they use different progressions, and sometimes they’ll do some different route combinations, but we see everything at this level,” Fisher said. “So there’s nothing unusual about what he does. What they do is they do it well, and they try to be consistent.”
Spurrier hopes to see that consistency from his charges on Sunday.
“I think we all have to prove ourselves every week, every month, every year,” Spurrier said. “So certainly I know that, I don't have much of a track record in the NFL, one decent game and two lousy games. That is my track record, preseason doesn't count, as we all know.
“But actually I was telling our guys the other day that they were running better pass routes and seemed like we were more into it during preseason than we have been in the last couple of games. It is hard to figure out why, but hopefully we can play with a lot of smarts, a lot of effort and a lot of discipline.”