Gibbs Says Goodby to Redskin ‘Family’ : Pro football: After 12 years with Washington, coach says he is retiring because of health concerns and a desire to spend more time with his wife and two sons. Petitbon will take over.

The Joe Gibbs era ended Friday--suddenly, dramatically and unequivocally.

After 12 years, 124 regular-season victories, five NFC East titles, four conference championships and three Super Bowl victories, Gibbs, coach of the Washington Redskins, announced his retirement in a nationally televised news conference.

Gibbs, 52, said he was stepping down because of health concerns and a desire to spend more time with his family.

Assistant coach Richie Petitbon, a defensive specialist for the Redskins, will replace Gibbs.

“This is the toughest decision I have ever made in my life,” Gibbs said at the news conference, attended by as many players and front-office employees as reporters. “The only thing I would ever put in front of this family here--I have two families and the Redskins are a family--is that I have two boys I want to spend more time with.”

Gibbs went on for 25 minutes, fighting back tears as he talked about his years on the sidelines.

“This came as a complete shock,” Redskin owner Jack Kent Cooke said.

Not to Gibbs. He began changing his lifestyle last season after learning he had “migraine equivalence”--a nervous condition.

It was not surprising to hear that the years as a workaholic had begun taking their toll on Gibbs.

Even in the often insane world of football coaches, Gibbs was exceptional. Although he didn’t live far from the Redskins’ training complex, he went home only two nights a week, Sundays after games and Fridays, when the entire coaching staff is traditionally off because many coaches have kids playing youth or high school football.

The rest of the week, Gibbs would stay at work, watching films long into the night, then falling asleep on a cot in his office.

After being told of his medical condition last year, Gibbs altered his diet and began to get more rest.

But, in the end, he said, he knew had to take this final step.

“I’ve never been around anybody who pushed as hard as he did,” said Bobby Beathard, now general manager of the San Diego Chargers. Beathard, when he was Washington’s general manager, hired Gibbs for the Redskins.

“He was the only one who would know when it was time to step down,” Beathard said.

The other big factor was Gibbs’ family.

He has a wife, Pat, and two grown sons, J.D. and Coy, a linebacker at Stanford.

“I want to go and see him play,” said the senior Gibbs of Coy. “I want to sit in the stands and just be a dad. There’s a window of opportunity with my family. I just want to try a different kind of life for a while.”

Although many players were stunned by the news, quarterback Mark Rypien was not among them.

Not after a recent visit Gibbs had made to Rypien’s house.

“He was asking me about my family, and he spent a lot of time talking to my little girls,” Rypien said. “The conversation didn’t revolve around football the way it usually did. You had kind of an indicator there. It made sense when I thought back on it, and I thought, ‘Maybe this will give him the peace of mind.’ ”

After last season, Gibbs underwent several rounds of tests, including one at Mayo Clinic, and was told he needed rest. He stressed that his medical problems are not life-threatening.

“I’ve been checked by the best, and I’m going to be fine,” he said. “I’d like to spend longer than five months (the off-season) getting to feeling great again. Every doctor has assured me that I am going to be fine. It is just going to take awhile.”

Gibbs leaves quite a legacy. One of only three coaches to have won three Super Bowls, he has a regular-season mark of 124-60. As a strategist, he refined the one-back offense into a potent pro formation since picked up by many others.

Gibbs’ coaching career began at San Diego State in 1964. He later coached at Florida State, at USC under John McKay, at Arkansas and, as an NFL assistant, with the St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Chargers.

Gibbs’ retirement certainly won’t be spent in a rocking chair. The owner of a NASCAR racing team, Gibbs plans to remain heavily involved in that venture. Dale Jarrett, who won last month’s Daytona 500, was driving a car owned by Gibbs.

Will Gibbs ever coach again?

He wouldn’t rule it out, although he acknowledged that he “couldn’t imagine coaching anywhere but the Redskins.”

One of Gibbs’ predecessors with the Redskins was George Allen, a devoted workaholic in his own right.

“I always called the opposing coach at 10 o’clock Wednesday night,” Allen once said, “and if nobody answered, I knew we would win on Sunday.”

Gibbs was always there to answer the phone. And that, ultimately, took him out of coaching.

Gibbs’ Record

YEAR, TEAM W L 1981 Washington 8 8 1982 Washington 8 1 1983 Washington 14 2 1984 Washington 11 5 1985 Washington 10 6 1986 Washington 12 4 1987 Washington 11 4 1988 Washington 7 9 1989 Washington 10 6 1990 Washington 10 6 1991 Washington 14 2 1992 Washington 9 7 Totals 124 60 Postseason 16 5 Overall 140 65

*Joe Gibbs’ Record

REGULAR SEASON

Year, Team W L 1981 Washington 8 8 1982 Washington 8 1 1983 Washington 14 2 1984 Washington 11 5 1985 Washington 10 6 1986 Washington 12 4 1987 Washington 11 4 1988 Washington 7 9 1989 Washington 10 6 1990 Washington 10 6 1991 Washington 14 2 1992 Washington 9 7 Totals 124 60

POSTSEASON

YEAR, TEAM W L 1982 Washington 4 0 1983 Washington 2 1 1984 Washington 0 1 1986 Washington 2 1 1987 Washington 3 0 1990 Washington 1 1 1991 Washington 3 0 1992 Washington 1 1 Totals 16 5 Overall 140 65

HIGHLIGHTS

1982--Won first-round playoff against Detroit, 31-7; Won second-round playoff against Minnesota, 21-7; Won conference championship against Dallas, 31-17; Won Super Bowl XVII against Miami, 27-17.

1983--Won conference playoff against Rams, 51-7; Won conference championship against San Francisco, 24-21; Lost Super Bowl XVIII to Raiders, 38-9.

1984--Lost conference playoff to Chicago, 23-19.

1986--Won first-round playoff against Rams, 19-7; Won conference playoff against Chicago 27-13; Lost conference championship to New York, 17-0.

1987--Won conference playoff against Chicago, 21-17; Won conference championship against Minnesota, 17-10; Won Super Bowl XXII against Denver, 42-10.

1990--Won first-round playoff against Philadelphia, 20-6; Lost conference playoff to San Francisco, 28-10.

1991--Won conference playoff against Atlanta, 24-7; Won conference championship against Detroit, 41-10; Won Super Bowl XXVI against Buffalo, 37-24.

1992--Won first-round playoff against Minnesota, 24-7; Lost conference playoff to San Francisco, 20-13.

* UNITAS AILING

Hall of Fame quarterback John Unitas is treated for chest pain after undergoing knee surgery and is listed in serious condition. C7