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The Redskins: A franchise on the brink
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The first thing that I did when I decided that this article must be written was to look at old maps of the DC area and see if FEDEX Field was built on the site of an Indian burial ground. That would explain a lot of the craziness that has gone on in the Redskins organization in the past decade.
Alas, there is no Indian burial ground.
I then decided to see if the Native American group that has been pursuing a law suit to get the Redskins to change their name since 1992 might have put a root or a chicken foot or what ever the Native American answer to voodoo’s badjuju is on the organization.
Alas, they ain’t talking.
The last thing that I did was to see if Dan Snyder was born under a bad sign. The astrologist laughed at me. Apparently, no one with that much money can be born under a bad sign.
The reason that I decided to write this article is that as I was watching the Redskins play the Eagles Monday night, I was struck by the apathy that pervaded FEDEX Field. The fans looked like they were tired and wanted nothing to do with what was happening on the field. The ‘Skins offensive players looked as if they would rather be anywhere else in the world than on that field. And Jim Zorn looked like he was three times removed from anything that was happening. Only the ‘Skins defense, who looked like they were actually there to win a football game and the ‘Skins cheerleaders, who are smokin’ hot no matter what happens on the field looked like they had any vested interest in what was happening.
My question is this: Who is to blame for this apathy???
The Redskins have been an inferior product since ownership was transferred to Daniel Snyder. This one man has made a series of disastrous managerial decisions that has brought this once proud franchise to its knees. His impatience is legendary and that alone has been a major factor in the downfall of the Redskins.
Snyder repeatedly says that he wants a winner and he wants one now.
What strikes me as odd is that for a man that says that he is committed to winning and who has been successful in other ventures, Snyder makes major decisions without ever considering the consequences of them. The sum of those decisions is the product that you see on the field each Sunday.
A side effect of those decisions landed Jim Zorn, a guy who had never even been considered for a coordinators job, as the ‘Skins head coach.
What??? Money can't fix this???
Jim Zorn got the job as head coach because no one else wanted to work with Snyder and Vinny Cerrato. It’s that simple. The dynamic duo, (Snyder and Cerrato), already had Zorn in place as their new offensive coordinator, so when their search for a coach to replace Joe Gibbs failed, they simply promoted Zorn and acted as if he was their choice all along. The fact that they completely alienated Gregg Williams and Al Saunders in the process didn’t even enter their minds.
Later, after the wonder boys became disenchanted with Zorn, (as they are wont to do with head coaches), they made a move that was designed to make Zorn quit. Snyder and Cerrato got together and took away Zorn’s play calling authority and gave it to Sherm Smith, a guy who has not been associated with the league for four years.
Unfortunately for Snyder, Zorn is either too thick to see the writing on the wall, or he is holding out for the separation money that he will get when Snyder fires him. I’m going with the latter on this one.
Show me some of that money....then I'll leave quietly
One failure after the next:
Let me lay it out for you. In any NFL organization, the most important positions are owner, general manager, head coach and quarterback….in that order.
The owner is the owner. It is his money that gets put up in any venture so he has the last word. No one had to write that rule. That’s just the way that the world works. That is the owner’s right.
The owner’s responsibility to the club is to either be knowledgeable and be engaged with all decisions, or to be smart enough to hire people that know what they are doing in order to make the organization into a winner. Daniel Snyder has done neither. He lacks football knowledge and he has not surrounded himself with smart people. He has failed miserably in his capacity as the Redskins owner.
The buddy system:
The general manager’s job is to manage personnel and make player related decisions. This position with the ‘Skins was once occupied by the likes of legendary GM’s Bobby Beathard and Charley Casserly. Those men knew how to put together winners.
In 2009, the role of Washington GM has fallen into the hands of Vinny Cerrato. Cerrato’s occupation of this vital position has had dire consequences for the ‘Skins. Cerrato is nothing but a Snyder sycophant.
Looking at Cerrato’s past experience, I see nothing that qualifies him to be a general manager of an NFL franchise, other than the possibility that he answers any question that Snyder has with yes sir, yes sir, three bags full and that he seems to be able to reassure Snyder on regular basis that the baby is not ugly.
Given Cerrato’s past experience, he looks more suited to running a recruiting program for an FCS school, than having anything to do with the NFL at all.
Given his performance as GM, which has been laughable, I see nothing that leads me to believe that he should still have a job with the team. He has addressed none of the Redskins lingering needs…starting with the shambles that they call an offensive line. Maybe if he had fixed that issue, the ‘Skins might not have needed ten quarterbacks over the last eleven years.
A man that is paid to be clueless
The revolving doors:
When you look at the list of coaches that have been shown the door in Washington, the fact that Cerrato is still an employee of the Redskins organization is testament to Dan Snyder’s mismanagement.
Since taking the reins after the death of Jack Kent Cooke, Snyder has had six head coaches….did you hear me??? The guy has been the owner for eleven years and he has had six head coaches!!! The kicker is that Joe Gibbs came back for four of those years and this is Jim Zorn’s second year, so the other four coaches which included Steve Spurrier, Marty Schottenheimer, Terry Robiskie and Norv Turner were only there for an average of one season apiece.
How can anyone expect to build a winner when the offense and the defense are learning a new system every year??? The cavalcade of coaches makes absolutely no sense. If Snyder would have stuck with Schottenheimer, he would have already made it to at least two NFC Championship games by now.
Adding to the confusion as to who is calling the shots, Snyder has had ten starting quarterbacks since he became the man in DC. They have included:
Brad Johnson, (who went on to win a Super Bowl in Tampa)
Jeff George, (the first in a long line of head cases that Snyder has pursued and overpaid)
Tony Banks
Shane Matthews (A Spurrier boy from Florida)
Danny Weurfel (Ditto)
Tim Hasselbeck, (Never should have been in the NFL)
Pat Ramsey
Mark Brunell
Todd Collins
Jason Campbell (Starter for the last three years - His position has always been tenuous at best, but he has been the starter)
The Redskins players do not know who is going to be coaching them year to year, nor do they have any idea who might be under center. There is absolutely no continuity within the organization.
Two of the most important jobs in the Redskins organization are being held by people that have no clue as to what they are doing and the other two essential positions are constantly in flux.
In the NFL, you have to build a winner on solid ground. Constantly jerking two of the most important people to your team around is simply a recipe for failure. It has become a recipe that ‘Skins fans have become very familiar with.
I for one do not know how can anyone expect the Redskins to win six games per year, much less a Super bowl???
Which leads me to this:
Dan Snyder may be one hell of a guy. He obviously knows how to make money, or he wouldn’t have had the wherewithal to purchase an NFL franchise. This is just supposition on my part, because I do not know Daniel Snyder personally. I do however know the type of man that Dan seems to be. Being involved with Naval Aviation for twenty plus years gave me more than ample opportunity to become familiar with the personality type.
Dan seems to be the type that is under the impression that since he is expert in one arena that his expertise extends into other venues. There is nothing more dangerous than this type of person when they are in charge of a project that is outside of their field of expertise.
Dan’s field of expertise is broadcasting and business. It damn sure ain’t football.
The Solution:
Simply firing Jim Zorn and installing a new head coach, (provided that Snyder can find one that is willing to work with him), is not the answer. Redskin fans have seen that song and dance before. It hasn’t worked.
Some folks are calling for Vinny Cerrato’s job. To them I say that you absolutely correct, but getting rid of Cerrato is the tip of the ice berg.
The fundamental change that needs to take place in order for the Redskins to be a winner has to take place within Daniel Snyder.
The problem comes down to one simple issue. That issue is that Daniel Snyder is not a football guy and his ego will not allow him to see that he is not a football guy.
The only way that the Redskins are going to develop into winners is for Snyder to get rid of Cerrato and to hire a seasoned NFL general manager that truly knows how to evaluate talent and will work hand in hand with a head coach of his, (the new GM’s), choosing to build a winner.
Snyder then needs to give that general manager the authority to sign or release players as needed without consultation. Snyder also needs to give up his nasty habit of bringing in over rated head case players that for one reason or the next, he has become enamored of.
The last thing that Snyder needs to do is to get the hell out of the GM and head coach’s way and let them do their jobs.
That means that Snyder would have to stay out of the way for at least three years in order to let these potential candidates un%@&$ the damage that has been done by him and his buddy.
Then he would have to stay out of the way for an additional three years while the franchise was being rebuilt into a winner.
Sadly, these things will never come to pass. Redskin’s fans simply need to embrace the idea that Snyder will continue to run their team into the ground. Then, when they have completely lost interest and have given up any hope of things getting better, he will use the Redskins as a tax write off. This will come to pass because Dan Snyder will never admit that he is the crux of the problem and he will never sell the franchise.
I am beginning to wonder if Dan Snyder might be related to Al Davis.
Thanks for stopping by and reading this tripe.
Peace
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