Omigod, Let it go already!!!

From Don Banks at SI:

• That sound you hear off in the distance is Redskins owner Daniel Snyder firing up the engines on his private jet -- a.k.a. "Free Agency One'' -- in yet another of his many attempts to win a league championship in March. Snyder is at least getting more prudent with his free-agent purchases. But then, after you given millions to the likes of has-beens like Deion Sanders, Bruce Smith and Mark Carrier in the 2000 free agency period, everything's an improvement.

They are STILL looking back to 2000. Isn't this six years later? Didn't we only sign 2 FA's of consequence last year (Patten, Rabach) and the aquisitions from the previous year have been huge (Washington, Griffin, Springs)? Wasn't 2000 Danny's first or second year as an owner? Has he EVER made the Smith/Carrier/Sanders mistake again?

Yes he's aggresive - so what? Have you noticed, however, Mr. Banks that the Skins are attempting to first sign their own UFA's before they hit the open market this time around (sure, their not big names - but it is a commitment unseen before)?

Man the SI guys just LOVE to hate on Snyder.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/writers/don_banks/03/10/snap.judgments.fa/1.html

From Don Banks at SI:

• That sound you hear off in the distance is Redskins owner Daniel Snyder firing up the engines on his private jet -- a.k.a. "Free Agency One'' -- in yet another of his many attempts to win a league championship in March. Snyder is at least getting more prudent with his free-agent purchases. But then, after you given millions to the likes of has-beens like Deion Sanders, Bruce Smith and Mark Carrier in the 2000 free agency period, everything's an improvement.

They are STILL looking back to 2000. Isn't this six years later? Didn't we only sign 2 FA's of consequence last year (Patten, Rabach) and the aquisitions from the previous year have been huge (Washington, Griffin, Springs)? Wasn't 2000 Danny's first or second year as an owner? Has he EVER made the Smith/Carrier/Sanders mistake again?

Yes he's aggresive - so what? Have you noticed, however, Mr. Banks that the Skins are attempting to first sign their own UFA's before they hit the open market this time around (sure, their not big names - but it is a commitment unseen before)?

Man the SI guys just LOVE to hate on Snyder.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2006/writers/don_banks/03/10/snap.judgments.fa/1.html

I was thinking the same thing. When you read, it's like you want to check to see if the article is dated 2000.

Everybody likes to hate on Snyder. Why do you think they all kept bagging on us as we defied the critics 7 weeks in a row at the end of this past season?

I love how they say things like, "there goes Snyder, trying to buy a championship again". As if trying to WIN is a bad thing. Why aren't they kicking around and the tightwad deadbeat owners who don't even TRY to stay competitive?

And you can't win with these guys anyway. You bring a lot of great coaching talent on board and they find a way to critique that, too. Let 'em hate. It'll make it that much sweeter when the bandwagon runs them over next year en route to a divisional title.

Banks was one of the tools that said that we'd be fielding 25 rookies as well. It amazes me that people still hang on to the 2000 offseason like it was yesterday.. Granted the spending that Snyder has done hasn't resulted in a championship yet, but we've never been in 'cap hell' and other than Deion, Jeff George and Mike Barrow none of the signings have been disasters..

Well with the CBA signed - Mr Snyder is looking like a damn genius isn't he??? All these haters that said we would be in salary cap hell starting this year are all eating crow...actually I wouldn't doubt with some player restructures the skins will be one of the most active in the free agent market FILLING NEEDS.

dan just plans his cap management around an ever increasing cap number. new TV contracts mean a big boost, this cba means a big boost.

If the cba didn't raise the cap, we wouldn't be able to go out and get much in FA this year. we were forced to have a quite FA period last year too (though it was successful).

as long as good management is in place, danny doesn't hand out stupid contracts (lavar), and a new staff isn't brought in that turns over 50+% of the roster in one year, we should be fine.

Sos

Hell there are people on this board that can't stop banging on 2000 so of course the mediots out there are game for the same thing.

dan just plans his cap management around an ever increasing cap number. new TV contracts mean a big boost, this cba means a big boost.

If the cba didn't raise the cap, we wouldn't be able to go out and get much in FA this year. we were forced to have a quite FA period last year too (though it was successful).

as long as good management is in place, danny doesn't hand out stupid contracts (lavar), and a new staff isn't brought in that turns over 50+% of the roster in one year, we should be fine.

Exactly, good mgmt. & coaching has been the issue, & is now the difference from 2000.
Everybody gives the danny grief for the 2000 season & his coaching carousel, and he does deserve his fair share. But what if Gibbs were coach in 2000? That team was 8-8 & beat the best teams in the nfl; ravens, giants, rams to name a few. It was a poorly coached team though, they lacked a killer instinct & played down to the competition (plus S. Davis fumbled a couple games away). If Gibbs were coach,we'd have won it all. Danny's biggest mistake was not firing Norv immediately & hiring a coach he really wanted. He never wanted Norv but gave him a chance.
The signings have improved drastically since 2000 mainly because we've signed guys under 30, often under 28.
The Danny is not a likeable guy, & he rubs the media the wrong way & snubs them, but you have to think he's on his way to winning more than once. Dude bought the skins for 800mil at age 35 & got Gibbs out of retirement. One day he'll get the credit he deserves as a bad-ass biz man.

We're being hypocritical here guys. Every year we agree that SI fields more than its share of sophomoric journalists, and yet every year we act surprised that they continue to write such bad analysis.

Give it up. They aren't going to change. Good marketing is not the same as good journalism. SI is a marketing tool. They need bad guys around whom to rally the readers.