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Jan 8, 2008 8:28 am US/Central
Joe Gibbs Resigns As Redskins Coach
WASHINGTON (AP) ―
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Joe Gibbs led the Redskins to the playoffs in an emotional run that followed the death of safety Sean Taylor. (File)
AP
After the toughest season of his Hall of Fame career, Joe Gibbs knew he needed to walk away from the Washington Redskins and devote more time to his wife, children and grandchildren.
He resigned as coach and team president of the Redskins on Tuesday, three days after a playoff loss ended an inspirational late-season run that followed the death of safety Sean Taylor.
The 67-year-old Gibbs said Redskins owner Dan Snyder tried to persuade him to stay on during a conversation that lasted until about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday.
"My family situation being what it is right now, I told him I couldn't make the kind of commitment I needed to make," Gibbs said during a news conference, standing a few feet from the three silver Super Bowl trophies he won during his first tenure with the Redskins. "I felt like they needed me."
One of his grandsons, Taylor, was diagnosed with leukemia a year ago at age 2. Gibbs frequently talks lovingly about his "grandbabies," and he made an overnight trip to North Carolina on Sunday to be with his family, interrupting the postseason routine of meetings that usually follow the final game of the season.
"I had real good visits with everybody, and at that point when I started back to D.C. and got on the plane that afternoon, I kind of had a real strong feeling in my heart of what I felt like I should do," Gibbs said.
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