Mike Shanahan, with his job under scrutiny, defends his tenure, says cap penalty hurt

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Mike Shanahan said Monday he believes the Washington Redskins are headed in the right direction under his leadership despite this season’s struggles, delivering what amounted to a defense of his four-year coaching tenure in the face of mounting criticism following Sunday’s loss that dropped Washington into last place in the NFC East.
Speaking at a news conference at Redskins Park, Shanahan deflected questions about his job security but said the Redskins will have a chance to improve their roster next season after a two-year salary cap penalty expires.

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“I think you’ve got to take a look at a number of things when you take a look at the direction of a football team,” Shanahan said. “I think when you take a look at the offensive numbers . . . that just doesn’t happen naturally with a lot of new players. We talked about it last year. We had six new players on our team, and putting up the numbers that we’re putting up are pretty impressive, especially with losing the $36 million salary cap over those two years time frame.”
Shanahan’s comments came a day after the Redskins’ record fell to 3-7 with the 24-16 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. The Redskins have a record of 24-34 under Shanahan, who signed a five-year contract worth about $7 million per season when he was hired by owner Daniel Snyder. The Redskins have failed to build on last season’s NFC East title, forged with a seven-game winning streak to close the regular season, and fans and some media observers increasingly have speculated Shanahan won’t be back for a fifth season.
Shanahan declined to respond directly to a question Monday about whether he thinks the Redskins’ results during the remainder of this season will determine his future with the team or whether he instead has been given assurances by Snyder he will return next season.
“I don’t talk about those things during the season for obvious reasons,” he said.
It does not appear that such an assurance has been given. A person familiar with the Redskins’ planning said in recent days it was “too early” to know whether Shanahan’s job is safe beyond this season. NFL coaches often are given an extension to avoid coaching in the final season of a contract.
The Redskins are in the second season of dealing with their two-year, $36 million salary cap reduction imposed by the NFL for the manner in which the team structured players’ contracts during the sport’s season without a salary cap in 2010. Shanahan said that penalty has hurt the team. But the Redskins, he said, will be able to do more in the upcoming offseason and beyond.
“You don’t have the type of depth,” Shanahan said. “But you’re able to put a very solid football team together. And in the future, it will get better because we do have the ability to get more depth. We’ve got the ability to add some players on both sides of the football, and that gives you a chance to get better as a football team.”
Redskins players vowed after the loss in Philadelphia to continue to play hard during the remainder of the season. The Redskins host the San Francisco 49ers, the defending NFC champions, Monday night at FedEx Field to begin a three-game home stand.