When Scot McCloughan was finally fired by Washington earlier this month, a leak said that the GM was having alcohol issues. The other side of the story is that team president Bruce Allen was jealous of McCloughan and got rid of him for that reason.
Though McCloughan hasn’t spoken about his dismissal yet, we got a glimpse of his feelings via one of his former players.
Michael Robinson, who played for McCloughan in Seattle, spoke with the former GM on Wednesday and shared part of their conversation during an appearance on “The Wes McElroy Show” on Fox Sports 910 Thursday.
“He said, ‘Mike, I don’t have an issue right now drinking,'” Robinson said. “‘I haven’t touched a drink in a while. But of course they wouldn’t let me say it because they silenced me.'”
Robinson shares that McCloughan started “feeling the hate” from Allen.
“He knew the players loved him, and he started feeling the hate from Bruce Allen right around, well, he’s been feeling it, but when they didn’t let him speak (to reporters) at the Senior Bowl, he said to him that was his last straw, and he knew that he was on his way out,” Robinson told McElroy. “He said it was after a draft meeting, after the combine, Bruce called him up to his office and was just like, ‘Nobody likes you in this building. Nobody wants you here.’ And Scot was like, ‘Well, I guess I’m out of here.'”
McCloughan did not show up at the NFL Combine, which was highly unusual for an NFL GM. Those were all signs he was being pushed out. He ultimately was canned in early March.
McCloughan has a history of drinking problems, which Washington knew about when they hired him. But he also has an eye for talent that cannot be denied. It’s unfortunate Washington got rid of him so clumsily.
