Head coach Joe Gibbs reaffirmed his commitment to the Washington Redskins organization on Monday, saying that he expects to stay a minimum of five years with the team.

"My commitment to the Redskins is this: I want to do every single thing I can to restore the Redskins back to winning football games," Gibbs said. "And I'd say my commitment is a minimum of five years. Whatever we can do past that, I don't know. But I want to get the Redskins back to winning. That's first."

Gibbs addressed his status during a press conference at Redskins Park on Monday. He said he had been bothered by recent media reports that misconstrued some of his comments during a NASCAR media tour and suggested that he wouldn't coach the Redskins for the long haul.

Gibbs, who in 1991 established the highly successful Joe Gibbs Racing along with his family, clarified his comments on Monday.

"I said our dream is to continue forever with the racing, but in football you can't do that," Gibbs said. "My time in football is going to be shorter, meaning less time than racing, which is going to be forever."

Gibbs also said he was joking when he said last week, "If we don't win a few more games next season, my time in football will be real short."

But some media took the remarks seriously.

"I was joking--I was telling a joke," Gibbs said. "It's amazing how very few people evidently don't have a sense of humor."

When Gibbs, 64, returned to the Redskins organization on Jan. 7, 2003, he signed a five-year contract to serve as head coach. The Hall of Fame coach helped lead the Redskins franchise to three Super Bowl championships and multiple playoff appearances from 1981-92.

On Monday, Gibbs spoke directly to the fans in reaffirming his commitment to the Redskins.

"I just want to say this to the fans: I'm giving this everything I've got," he said. "I'm talking about the hours, the time and the commitment. And I think most people who are around Redskins Park and who do the research would testify to that."