Washington will have a real GM for the first time since Charley Casserly.
The Commanders have not had a legitimate general manager since Charley Casserly.
Casserly was the Assistant General Manager serving under Bobby Beathard in the 1980s as Washington won two Super Bowls. When Beathard departed, Casserly was promoted to General Manager, and two seasons later, Washington won its third Super Bowl with Coach Joe Gibbs.
However, when previous owner Dan Snyder took the reigns in 1999, Casserly shocked us all, suddenly resigning just prior to the 1999 training camp. It should have raised flags for all of us.
Since that time, Snyder and Vinny Cerrato ran the team, making personnel decisions, and they beget Bruce Allen and then Ron Rivera.
These are times for Washington fans to raise their hopes, believing this owner, Josh Harris, is going to hire a new general manager who will rebuild this roster, draft well in the draft, and spend wisely in free agency.
Yes, whoever is chosen will make poor draft choices and sign unproductive free agents. They are human; they will err.
Yet, shouldn’t there be an encouraged fan base, knowing there have been so many years the once proud franchise has been without good leadership at the top of its football operations?
Ron Rivera was a nice guy, a good guy. He is not to be trashed. He is not to be slandered. Yet, he was ineffective, not producing a winning season in his four seasons. The franchise does need a major overhaul on the football side of the building.
Merely thinking this organization may include not only a coach who thinks what is best for “this” season but will also possess a GM who is thinking, “What is best for the next four years?”
Now that is a refreshing thought, to think this franchise will once again have leadership capable of rebuilding this roster.
Commanders Wire continues a countdown to the Commanders season opener for 2023 in 81 days. Who was Washington’s best player wearing number 81?
Any serious Washington football fan already knows the best No. 81 in franchise history is Hall of Fame wide receiver James Arthur Monk.
On a MNF game at RFK, October 12, 1992, against the Denver Broncos, Mark Rypien took a short quarterback drop, looked to his right, and connected with Monk on a quick-out pattern for a first down.
The RFK sell-out crowd instantly erupted. Fellow Redskins teammates immediately ran to Monk to congratulate him on becoming the all-time NFL leader in pass receptions. Here is the video of the historic moment.
In six NFL seasons, Monk collected over 70 receptions. In the 1985 season, Monk had 91 receptions. Even better, in the 1984 season, Monk broke Charlie Hennigan’s 1964 record of 101 receptions in an NFL season.
In the season finale, a thrilling home game at RFK against the then NFC East rival St Louis Cardinals, Monk set a then NFL all-time record with 106 receptions in the season.
Monk wasn’t finished being an NFL leader. The very next season (1985), he was the NFL leader in receptions yards per game at 81.7.
The former Syracuse Orangeman was physically tough, having played running back before converting to receiver his senior season. As a sophomore, Monk averaged 5.1 yards a carry in his 110 rushing attempts and then 4.2 yards per carry in his 136 rushing attempts as a junior.
In his senior season, Monk caught 40 passes for 716 yards averaging 17.9 yards a reception. It was enough to convince Redskins General Manager Bobby Beathard to make Monk Washington’s 1st round choice (18th overall) in the 1980 draft.
In his 14 years in Washington, Monk collected 888 receptions, gaining 12,026 (13.5 ypr) scoring on 65 reception touchdowns. Monk then played one season for the Jets (46 receptions) and Eagles (6 receptions) before retiring.
Monk was voted to the 1980s All-Decade Team. He was a three-time Super Bowl Champion with Washington and was voted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in the 2008 Class, along with long-time teammate Darrell Green.
Former Miami Dolphins director of player personnel Bobby Beathard died on Monday due to complications from Alzheimer’s disease. He was 86 years old.
Beathard joined the Dolphins staff in 1972 and worked in the front office through 1977. During that time, Miami won two Super Bowls and, obviously, had their perfect season in his first year with the team.
While in that role, the Dolphins drafted Leon Gray, Ed Newman, Nat Moore, Kim Bokamper, A.J. Duhe and Bob Baumhower, who all made Pro Bowls during their career.
After his time with Miami, he became the general manager of Washington (1978-88) and the San Diego Chargers (1990-2000).
He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2018.
Beathard worked for the Washington Redskins as general manager from 1978-88 and then the San Diego Chargers (1990-2000).
[Commanders Wire will focus on Beathard’s time as Washington GM]
George Allen had a winning record in all of his seven seasons (1971-77) as head coach and general manager. However, it came with a price. Beathard was hired as GM because Allen had traded away the future for the present (Allen’s present). In his exuberance to win now, he so often traded away too much for aging veterans.
Beathard took on a huge challenge as Washington did not even possess a draft choice in the first five rounds of the 1978 draft. The next draft was even worse, owning only three choices in the first ten rounds.
Yet, Beathard managed to scout well enough to select in the 1979 draft, Don Warren (4th rd), Rich Milot (7th rd) and Monte Coleman (11th rd).
In his third draft, he finally had a first-round choice (18th), and with it, he selected Art Monk who became a Hall-of-Fame wide receiver.
In 1981, Beathard hit it out of the park… several times!
First, he hired San Diego Chargers Offensive Coordinator Joe Jackson Gibbs to be the next head coach of the Redskins. He chose Gibbs, though Gibbs had not previously been a head coach at any level.
Secondly, his 1981 draft remains far and away the best in franchise history. He traded down from No.9 overall to No. 20 and selected Mark May. He traded a round-two choice to Baltimore for running back Joe Washington. He selected future HOF guard Russ Grimm in round three. Dexter Manley was his selection in round five. In round eight, he grabbed Charlie Brown, and in round nine, he seized on Darryl Grant. Concluding his draft, he took Clint Didier in round 12. What a draft!
If that wasn’t enough, following the draft, he then signed an undrafted free-agent offensive lineman, Joe Jacoby.
After 1981, Beathard most often would trade away first-round choices for proven veterans while building the depth of his roster with players from the lower rounds and undrafted free agents.
Trading away some choices brought him veterans such as George Rogers, Terry Orr, Raleigh McKenzie, Wilber Marshall and Gerald Riggs.
With choices he kept, he drafted Darrell Green, Vernon Dean, Charles Mann, Kelvin Bryant, Jay Schroeder, Barry Wilburn, Dean Hamel, Markus Koch, Alvin Walton, Mark Rypien, Kurt Gouveia, Brian Davis, Ed Simmons, Timmy Smith, Chip Lohmiller and Stan Humphries.
When the USFL folded, and there was a supplemental draft, Beathard selected Tony Zendajas, Gary Clark and Clarence Verdin. Beathard then sent a third-round pick to the Patriots for Ricky Sanders.
Two other notable trades were when he sent flashy running back/returner Mike Oliphant to the Cleveland Browns for steady, hard-working Earnest Byner and when he traded Jay Schroeder to the Raiders for Jim Lachey.
Finally, Beathard remarkably signed many undrafted free agents and players cut who had not been successful with another team, who actually contributed to the Redskins success in winning two Super Bowls and three NFC championships during Beathard’s tenure as Washington GM.
Such notable signings were:
Virgil Seay, Mel Kaufman, Neal Olkewicz, Nick Giaquinto, Greg Williams, Jeff Hayes, Pete Cronin, Alvin Garrett, Mike Nelms, Otis Wonsley, Todd Bowles.
Bobby Beathard’s hard work certainly brought Washington coaches, players and fans much enjoyment.
Bobby Beathard is one of only a few general managers in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He led Washington to two Super Bowl championships.
The most influential executive in the history of the NFL’s Washington franchise, Bobby Beathard, died at 86 on Monday.
Beathard played college football at Cal Poly before a brief stint in the NFL as a player. He was on the preseason roster of the then-Washington Redskins [1959] and San Diego Chargers [1961]. Interestingly enough, those would be the teams Beathard would spend the majority of his executive career with.
Beathard began his scouting career in 1963 with the Kansas City Chiefs. In 1968, he moved to the Atlanta Falcons, where he spent the next three years before landing a promotion with the Miami Dolphins in 1972 as the director of player personnel. The Dolphins won two Super Bowls while Beathard served in his role, including the famous 1972 team that went undefeated.
It was in 1978 that Beathard landed with Washington as the general manager. He built rosters that went to three Super Bowls, winning two, and was responsible for drafting multiple future Hall of Famers, such as Darrell Green, Art Monk and Russ Grimm. He is also the GM who hired Joe Gibbs as Washington’s head coach in 1981.
Beathard was Washington’s general manager for 10 years before resigning in 1989. After taking a year off, Beathard accepted the role as general of the San Diego Chargers in 1990 for 10 seasons.
Beathard built a Chargers roster that went to the first Super Bowl in their franchise history in 1994. He retired in 2000.
After retirement, Beathard earned spots in Washington’s Ring of Fame, the Chargers Hall of Fame and the Cal Poly Hall of Fame. In 2018, he received the ultimate honor as he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Fittingly, it was Gibbs who was there to introduce Beathard.
Beathard’s son Jeff is a national scout with the Washington Commanders, and his grandson C.J. just finished his sixth NFL season in 2022 with the Jacksonville Jaguars.
We’ll have more on the life and legacy of Bobby Beathard.
Pro Football Hall of Fame executive Bobby Beathard has died at 86
Bobby Beathard died Monday at the age of 86 after suffering from Alzheimer’s for recent years.
Beathard spent 11 seasons as Washington’s general manager from 1978-88 before joining the Bolts. Under his tenure, Washington captured a pair of Super Bowl titles (XVII, XXII).
Beathard was in Washington from 1978 to 1988, including the hiring of Gibbs, as well as the signing of some of the franchise’s best-known players, names like Dexter Manley, Art Monk, and Darrell Green, as well as the bulk of the “Hogs” offensive line.
He also worked for the Chargers from 1990 to 2000, including the franchise’s lone Super Bowl appearance. The Bolts went 11-5 and won the AFC West in 1994 before pulling off a pair of thrilling playoff wins to reach Super Bowl XXIX.
Dean Spanos, the Chargers Owner/Chairman of the Board, released the following statement.
“Bobby was one of the best judges of football talent in NFL history. For most, that alone would be enough. For Bobby Beathard, it doesn’t nearly do the man justice.
“Bobby was who we all aspire to be – a friendly, caring, giving, thoughtful human being who brought people from all walks of life together. He was the best GM in football; but he was also the guy sitting on his surfboard in the ocean that you caught waves with, jogged trails alongside and chatted up in the check-out line of the local market.
“He was the guy you felt like you’d known your entire life, even if it wasn’t but for five minutes at the gas station. He was just a regular guy who happened to be anything but. Bobby was, in fact, exceptional.
“He was one-of-a-kind. And he will be incredibly missed. On behalf of my family and the Chargers organization, we want to extend our deepest condolences to his wife, Christine, and the entire Beathard family on the loss of one of the best to ever do it, be it football or life.”
