Greg Blache came to the defense of Redskins owner Daniel M. Snyder on Thursday.
Blache, who has bowed out of media sessions the last month for personal reasons, decided to address comments by John Riggins in an interview on Showtime's "Inside the NFL." Riggins' comments were directed at Snyder.
The interview was transcribed on WashingtonPost.com and picked up by Pro Football Talk, the popular NFL news and rumors site.
"This morning when I came in, I turned my computer on and I was looking at Pro Football Talk and I saw a comment that John Riggins had made about Mr. Snyder and it really bothered me the more I sat there at my desk," Blache said. "There has been a lot of criticism about [Mr. Snyder] over the last few weeks. This is a man I've known for six years, since I've been here. And in the six years, I've never seen John Riggins here. I met him once at the Beach Blitz down in Virginia Beach--never seen him in the building.
"So, to hear such a vicious criticism of somebody I consider not just my employer, but a good friend, bothered me. As much as I hadn't been talking to the media, I felt like this was something I needed to do. Somebody needed to stand up and set this record straight.
"The comment that was made was 'a dark heart'--that's totally, totally untrue. The problem is the fans don't get to know Mr. Snyder like we do. They get an impression from things that are written and from things that people say. Let me just tell you something, for a person that's been here for six years, that's gone to him for things that I needed in my family, there are times he's come to me when he's heard about issues in my family and offered his assistance.
"It's unsurpassed. He's one of the most generous, kind individuals you'll ever meet. My wife and I are involved in hospice and there have been countless times he's come and helped us with issues and stuff with hospice. To see that and get the feeling that that's what everyone on the outside is hearing about this person, I decided it was time to come and set the record straight. It's enough. It really is.
"We've had criticisms from people outside the building saying who Dan Snyder is and who he isn't. They don't know Dan Snyder and that's the problem. Trust me because he and I, we work together. I'm not going to tell you that this is a utopia. There are no utopias in football, and there are no utopias in life. At the same time, enough is enough.
"In every story, there is one person's side, another person's side, and then behind it all there is a third side and it's the truth. I just felt like it was time for somebody to come and throw a little truth out there. We keep hearing these other sides, these other factions, and to be quite candid, the third side--the truth--is that all [Mr. Snyder] wants to do is win. That's all he wants to do.
"He will spend his money, he will spend his time, he wants to win, he is here for the people, for the fans, for the Washington Redskins. Nobody pains more when we are unsuccessful than Dan Snyder. There is nobody that cares more about the fans than Dan Snyder. There is nobody that wants to win here more than Dan Snyder.
"Just to set the record straight I just think it was wrong. I wish the best for Mr. Riggins and all his endeavors and whatever he does. For me, that was enough. For me to wash my face in the morning and to feel like a man, or to talk to my kids about doing the right thing, I needed to come here and make this comment today.
"I have no other interests in it. I have a contract for next year so it's not like I'm trying to dig something up and if they send me home, the way coaches contracts are written, they have to pay me anyway. Quite honestly, this is unsolicited but from the heart and something that I thought I needed to do."
After Thursday's practice, head coach Jim Zorn was asked about Blache's comments.
"I would concur," Zorn replied. "Dan Snyder is a guy that absolutely cares about other people and he does not have that kind of attitude. I haven't been here all that long, and I haven't been here as long as Greg has been here, but I have seen time and again Dan reach out to anybody in this program and even in the secondary parts of the program and help in any way he can when there's a need. I've seen it.
"I would concur with what Greg had to say about Dan really caring about winning. Some of the words that said are just so harsh. Gosh, it's just all the time, it seems like everybody is down. Part of that is on me because we're losing, and that creates issues. I think more of the problem than anything is losing."
