I Look Good in Cardinal Red

I start a new job Tuesday and feel energized and hopeful for the future. That wasn’t the case the past several months when the old job was taking its toll, wearing me out and making me feel lost.

With this new start, I decided to incorporate other beginnings in my life. For example, I will bring my own bags to the grocery store to do more for the environment. I will complete the chores on my to-do list on time and without grumbles. I will throw away the microphone to stop cursing at “kids” who beat me in online video games.

But perhaps my biggest change will be switching NFL teams. I have been a Washington Redskins fan since I asked my dad about football in 1976. Even my Vietnamese grandfather adopted the team when he moved to this country and Reston, Va.

“I love Doc Walker,” Hung Gui Cung would say. “He from UKLA.”

“No, grandpa,” I would reply. “He’s from U-C-L-A.”

Every time John Riggins or Gerald Riggs would plow through an opponent, my grandpa would roll on the floor laughing his dentures off and snorting rice out of his nose.

“John Riggo, he a character,” the Hungster would say.

Indeed, so many good memories.

But it’s time for a change. Just like my old job that left me tired, the Redskins under Daniel Snyder have worn me out. It’s an uphill battle every day to be a fan of this team. It’s like a constant fight. I yell and yell and yell that what they are doing is wrong, but Snyder never listens to me.

Let’s go back to this past season only. When Sean Taylor died, the fan base pulled together and the team bonded. Snyder was beloved for doing all the right things. The Redskins surged to the playoffs. There was hope for the future.

Then Joe Gibbs retired. The consensus feeling was that the organization and its fans wanted to keep the team intact and see how far they could take Gibbs 2.0. It turns out 2.0 was measured in inches and not Super Bowls.

From the beginning of the coaching search, Snyder did things that baffled experts. He held interviews at his mansion, and the candidates usually spent the night. He spoke with defensive coordinator Gregg Williams four times without success. Snyder revved up Redskins 1 and had a secret rendezvous with Jim Fassel that made no sense to anyone. The former Giants coach had not been linked to a top job in years.

Then Snyder fired Al Saunders, meaning that quarterback Jason Campbell would have to learn another offense. He hired Jim Zorn, who previously had never held a position higher than quarterback coaching. Zorn brings in the West Coast offense, which some have said is a system that is completely opposite of Campbell’s strengths.

Snyder also fired Williams and hired his assistant Greg Blache. On the outside, it would seem cruel treatment of a man who had the players’ support and had given the franchise three pretty solid years.

When this happened, the thought was Fassel was going to get the job. He had links to Zorn and Blache. But apparently enough outraged fans spoke up and changed Snyder’s mind.

Anyway, now Zorn is the coach. I have no idea if he’s ready. I’m sure he’s motivated, but that might not be enough in this circus. The search has turned the Redskins from an endeared team after the Taylor tragedy to once again being the laughingstock of the NFL.

I’m exhausted.

And I was ready to collapse after hearing the Redskins want to trade first- and third-round draft choices for old and selfish wide receiver Chad Johnson. Why? Haven’t they learned that good teams build through the draft? Enough of the old ways that didn’t work.

This team leaves me pooped.

So I figured my new team should be the Arizona Cardinals. They are close in color scheme. They have never won anything significant, so I can’t be accused of bandwagon jumping. And they have Russ Grimm, an old guard from the glory days.

Hello, Anquan Boldin and Larry Fitzgerald!

OUT AT HOME: The best thing about being unemployed is spending the day with my daughter. The worse thing is deciding what is an appropriate salary requirement. Hate that question.

VIDEO OF THE WEEK: I’m biased of course, but there’s nothing cuter in the world.