Gibbs Clears the Air on Coaching Status

Joe Gibbs emphatically reiterated his commitment to the Washington Redskins, quashing speculation that began with a misinterpretation of remarks he made at a NASCAR media day last week.

“I signed a five-year contract when I came here,” Gibbs said at a news conference Monday. “Most people sign three-year contracts. My commitment to the Redskins, I want to do every single thing I can to restore the Redskins to winning football games.

“I’d say that my commitment is a minimum of five years. I want to get the Redskins back to winning, and that’s first.”

Last week, Gibbs said during a NASCAR media tour in Charlotte, N.C., that his “time in football will be short” compared to his commitment to his racing team. He then repeated a variation of a lighthearted one-liner he used several times during last year’s 6-10 season: “If we don’t win a few more games next year, my time in football will be real short.”

Some commentators took the remarks seriously, prompting Gibbs to call reporters to Redskins Park to clarify his position.

“I was joking. I was telling a joke,” Gibbs said. “It’s amazing how a few people evidently don’t have a sense of humor.”

Gibbs touched on other matters, confirming that receiver Rod Gardner had been given permission to seek a trade and denying any interest in trading for Minnesota receiver Randy Moss, but those topics weren’t the focus of his agenda.

“I guess the moral of this story is I can’t joke,” he said.

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Maurice Clarett was a no-show at the college football All-Star challenge, an eight-player skills event taped by Fox TV at Dolphins Stadium in Miami for broadcast Saturday.

Clarett recently hired a new agent, who told organizers last week that the former Ohio State running back was pulling out to avoid possible injury before the NFL scouting combine, which is three weeks away.

At the combine a year ago, Clarett showed up overweight and declined to work out.

He’ll be eligible for the draft in April after his legal bid to make himself eligible for the NFL last year was overturned by an appeals court.

Clarett hasn’t played since being suspended by Ohio State after the 2002 season.

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Jim Hostler, a former New York Jet assistant, was hired by the San Francisco 49ers as quarterbacks coach.