Largent rips Redskins for Zorn treatment

Hall of Fame receiver Steve Largent said during a radio interview Tuesday that Redskins coach Jim Zorn considered resigning when owner Daniel Snyder decided Zorn would no longer call Washington's plays.

Largent, who caught passes from his old friend for the Seahawks between 1976 and 1984, ripped the Redskins and Snyder during an interview on KJR radio, saying he believed Snyder's decision was an attempt to force Zorn's resignation. A story about the interview was posted on ESPN.com.

Zorn did consider resigning, Largent said, but ultimately decided not to quit on the team.

"Yes, he did consider it, and no, he did not want to give up those responsibilities," Largent told KJR, "but they went to the point of pulling out his contract and saying, 'You have got to do whatever the owner tells you to do.' ...

"But in my opinion, and this is just totally my opinion — Jim has never said this, never implied this — I think what [owner] Daniel Snyder was trying to do was to force Jim to resign so he was not liable for his contract any longer. And Jim is just not going to do that."

Largent said he speaks to Zorn just about every day.

"[Zorn] inherited everything that he has to work with today and yet all the blame is being laid on his feet because he can't make them a Super Bowl champion, which I could have told you two years ago, they don't have a Super Bowl-quality team," Largent said. "And so it doesn't matter how good a coach you have, you are not going to get there with the players the owner gives you.

"I know it's frustrating for Jim. He is making the best of it."

Former longtime NFL assistant Sherman Lewis, recently hired as a consultant, has been tasked with calling plays for the Redskins (2-4) for their Monday night game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

"I think it will be humbling and it will be embarrassing, but not for Jim," Largent said. "I think it's humbling and embarrassing for the Redskins and the Redskins owner and management that made the decision.

"To think that you can bring a guy in from a retirement center who is pulling out Ping-Pong balls in the bingo games — and literally, that is what he was doing in Detroit — bring him down here for two weeks and say, 'You are going to call the plays for the next game against the Philadelphia Eagles, a division opponent, on "Monday Night Football," ' and think that is going to be successful, that is a joke."

Zorn said Wednesday: "I need to have composure. I need to understand what the reality of the situation is, and I think our players expect me to rise up. We expect them to play under adverse conditions. We expect them to risk it all. ... I'm conscious of what's going on. I'm not naive about what's going on, and yet I have to just hold back on any feelings and make the decisions."

Zorn said Lewis "doesn't know the protections" and "doesn't know the blitz schemes."

Said backup quarterback Todd Collins: "It is unsettling. I've never gone through this before. I've never had a play caller get changed in the middle of the season."

Notes

• Arizona wide receiver Anquan Boldin remained uncertain for Sunday night's game against the New York Giants with a sprained ankle after sitting out the Cardinals' practice.

• Dallas Cowboys running back Marion Barber (thumb) and linebacker DeMarcus Ware (foot) joined the injury list but should play this weekend against Atlanta.

• The Carolina Panthers signed safety Keith Lewis after cornerback Dante Wesley was suspended for one game for his hit on Tampa Bay punt returner Clifton Smith.

• Chicago Bears strongside linebacker Pisa Tinoisamoa needs season-ending surgery to repair ligament damage in his right knee. Quarterback Jay Cutler's two-year contract extension calls for approximately $20 million guaranteed and roughly $30 million in new money, The Associated Press reported.

• Woes at wide receiver prompted the St. Louis Rams to trade starting linebacker Will Witherspoon and a fifth-round draft pick to the Philadelphia Eagles for Brandon Gibson, who holds career records at Washington State for receiving yards (2,756) and touchdowns (17).

• Buffalo Bills quarterback Trent Edwards (concussion) missed practice, making backup Ryan Fitzpatrick the likely starter at Carolina this weekend.

• Colts safety Bob Sanders, the 2007 NFL defensive player of the year, hopes to make his season debut Sunday at St. Louis.

• New York Jets wide receivers Jerricho Cotchery and Brad Smith returned to the practice field, while Braylon Edwards was limited but is not expected to miss any time. Jets safety James Ihedigbo and linebacker Marques Murrell were each fined $5,000 by the NFL for their roles in a scuffle with Buffalo's Derek Fine.

• Running back Ahman Green, who has been out of football since the Texans cut him in February, signed a deal to return to the Green Bay Packers.

• Twelve Cleveland Browns players, including Pro Bowl nose tackle Shaun Rogers and five other starters, missed practice with flu-like symptoms. Browns linebacker D'Qwell Jackson has undergone surgery in New York to repair his injured shoulder.

• Miami Dolphins linebacker Matt Roth practiced for the first time this season, and he might play Sunday against the Saints.

• Minnesota Vikings Pro Bowl cornerback Antoine Winfield did not practice because of a sprained right foot.