Gibbs: It's Time to Focus on Family

In four years with the Redskins, Gibbs compiled a 31-36 record, with two playoff appearances.

Joe Gibbs cited family reasons as the primary factor for his retirement as head coach and team president of the Redskins on Tuesday.

ASHBURN, Va. - Joe Gibbs cited family reasons as the primary factor for his retirement as head coach and team president of the Redskins on Tuesday.

Gibbs had traveled to his home to Charlotte, N.C., on Sunday afternoon to spend time with his family., including his wife Pat and sons J.D. and Coy.

On his return flight on Monday, he knew he wanted to retire.

One of the top concerns for Gibbs and his family was the health of his 3-year-old grandson Taylor, who is being treated for leukemia.

"When I came here [in 2004], my family was in one set of circumstances," he said. "Now it's totally different. It was a tough year for Pat, and that means a lot to me. J.D. and Coy are down there, and then there are all the things we went through with Taylor. It was just a lot of things. I don't think it was any one thing.

"There were a couple of things that were said that just grab you. And when I left there, getting on the plane, I had a real strong feeling what I wanted to talk to [Redskins owner Daniel M. Snyder] about."

Gibbs said that his family would have been supportive if he had decided to come back for a fifth season.

Said Gibbs: "Almost all of them said the same thing to me: 'If you want to keep going, we'll go with you.' It's just that I felt, after sitting with my family, that's not something I should do."

Four years ago, on Jan. 8, 2004, Gibbs had returned to coach the Redskins after an 11-year hiatus.

Since then, Gibbs compiled a 31-36 record, with two playoff appearances.

In his first stint as Redskins head coach, from 1981-92, Gibbs helped guide the franchise to three Super Bowl championships. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1996.

Gibbs's overall record is 154-94 in the regular season. He was 17-7 in the postseason.

During his first stint with the Redskins, Gibbs was famous for working late hours and sleeping in his office.

Upon his return in 2004, he thought he could manage the work-life balance better so that he could spend more time at home, but he soon realized "that wasn't going to work."

"Before it was all said and done, I was right back to [working late hours]," Gibbs said. "And I think that's the way it is supposed to be. I don't think I can do it any differently. And the coaches work so hard. We wouldn't know what to do if we went to bed at 11 p.m. I just couldn't make it go a different direction."

And after four seasons, the lure of his family was too strong.

"I have always said that the most important thing that Pat and I are going to leave on this Earth are going to be our kids, our grandkids and the influence you have on others.

"My family situation being what it is right now, I told him that I just did not feel like I could make the kind of commitment that I needed to make going forward this year," he said. "Knowing what my family situation was, I felt like they needed me."

Gibbs knows what he is leaving. He said he has loved every minute as Redskins head coach.

"I love the Redskins--I am a Redskin," he said. "I think it is one of the all-time great opportunities in the world to be the coach of the Washington Redskins.

"It's the greatest sports franchise in the world. It has the greatest fans in the world and it's a place where football is really important. That is the way I treated it."

Back in Charlotte, N.C., Gibbs will return to his NASCAR family business. He founded Joe Gibbs Racing in the early 1993 and it remains a big part of his life.

His son J.D. runs Joe Gibbs Racing, while his other son Coy--who was a Redskins assistant coach from 2004-06--is starting a moto-cross venture.

"[Joe Gibbs Racing] is real important to all of us," Gibbs said. "We spent years building it, and it's a huge part of our family. That will be a big part of my life and a big part of me."

Story by: Gary Fitzgerald

Courtesy: Redskins.com

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