Raheem Morris Hired By Washington Redskins; Bucs Still Searching For Head Coach

Raheem Morris is gainfully employed once again, even if this may only be a temporary move. Morris was hired as the Washington Redskins defensive backs coach on Wednesday, but he holds an important out. According to head coach Mike Shanahan, Morris will be allowed to leave the Redskins with no penalty, should he accept a defensive coordinator job elsewhere.

The news comes from Rick Stroud:

The two sides are expected to schedule an interview at some point.

The Bucs job should be a considered a decent one with Freeman in place, plenty of cap space and the No. 5 pick in the 2012 NFL draft. On the other side, the Bucs aren’t known for spending a lot of cash so that may draw some people away.

It’s hard to blame the Bucs for wanting such a thorough change. The Bucs lost their final 10 games of the season, only two of which were by fewer than 10 points. During the final five games of the season, the average margin of defeat was 23.4 points. The Bucs gave up at least 31 points in all five of those games and allowed at least 41 points in three of their final four games. They had the worst rushing defense in the league and allowed 449 points, nearly as many as they did during the 2002 and 2003 seasons combined (460).

For more on the turnover, check out Bucs Nation and SB Nation Tampa Bay.

Morris released a statement through the Bucs confirming his dismissal.

The Bucs were almost a victim of their own success. They won 10 games last year which surprised just about everyone. That created expectations entering this season, expectations the Bucs couldn’t live up to. They finish the season at 4-12.

Morris and the Bucs had a surprise 10-win season in 2010 which meant they had expectations entering 2011. They started off well winning four of their first six before hitting a 10-game losing streak. Not only were they losing, but they were often getting blown out.

Morris’ Bucs career ends after three seasons -- three wins in 2009, 10 wins in 2010 and four wins in 2012.

Morris has the backing of some of the Bucs’ top veterans, but CBS Sports’ Mike Freeman wrote late Sunday night that the team is still looking into any ill effects that would be brought on by not bringing Morris back for a fourth season.

The day after the final day of the regular season -- known as Black Monday in NFL coaching circles -- is usually when teams decide the status of their head coaches for the following season. Freeman’s article makes it seem likely that Morris probably won’t learn his status quite that soon, but a decision seems to be looming regardless.

Sports Illustrated’s Don Banks is convinced that Morris is out, and explains why:

Gruden’s older brother, current ESPN analyst Jon Gruden, won a Super Bowl with the Buccaneers and coached the team from 2002 until he was fired following the 2008 season. The elder Gruden had received a multi-year extension the season before his firing, payments from which will end after this season (and could coincide with his return to an NFL sideline in 2012).

Barber has been in the league 15 years and is a staple of the Bucs so his words mean more than, say, a practice squad player. That said, the Bucs won’t make a decision on their future based on what a 36-year old player, who won’t be around much longer anyway, says. Nothing against Barber -- it’s just that this decision is based on the next 5-10 years and not the next 5-10 months.

We’ll see what the Bucs decide to do but a lot of folks in Tampa are awaiting Black Monday.

If he were in charge, according to the St. Petersburg Times, he wouldn’t fire himself (via National Football Post).

Rick Stroud, the same writer whom Morris was speaking with, said on the NFL Network this week that he disagrees with Morris’ take on the situation.