Lighten Up On Snyder

[Longtimefan]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

We'll probably end up with Shanahan or Cowher in full control. And that will make everyone thrilled because it's not Cerrato. But it ignores the fact that Shanahan has been a terrible general manager and Cowher has never even been one.

Cerrato has done a lot in revamping the front office and scouting department the past two off-seasons and has done a decent job in the draft with the picks he has had to work with. The onus is on him entirely for the Taylor trade but it wasn't VC that pushed for the Redskins to send multiple picks for Duckett and Lloyd.

The smartest thing for the Redskins to do in my opinion (short of bringing Marty back!!! ) is to promote the well-regarded and respected Morocco Brown to General Manager and keep the scouting staff largely in tact.

This is the last statement I'm going to make on this subject, but just one thing on the Jason Taylor trade.

For me it was not so much the trade itself, rather the reason Cerrato gave to reporters in an interview when asked why he made it. He said [quote] "The morale of the team in the lockeroom went thud and felt he needed to do something to inflate the teams spirits after the loss of Daniels" [unquote]. Now you may beg to disagree and I won't fault you for doing so, but don't you feel that to be a rather odd reason for trading away what could possibly have turned out to be a starting player here for years to come? We're talking about a 37yr. old DE with diminishing returns being the reason for a decision that could so drastically affect the way you draft for the future. Hard to believe a player so far to the downside of his career could have such an impact on your lockeroom.

This is just one example of why the leadership of this team should not be trusted to people blessed with such shallow insight, plus Jason Taylor was never going to be a good fit for the defense.

[Skinny Tee]

Originally Posted by Longtimefan

This is the last statement I'm going to make on this subject, but just one thing on the Jason Taylor trade.

For me it was not so much the trade itself, rather the reason Cerrato gave to reporters in an interview when asked why he made it. He said "The morale of the team in the lockeroom went thud and felt he needed to do something to inflate the teams spirits after the loss of Daniels". Now you may beg to disagree and I won't fault you for doing so, but don't you feel that to be a rather odd reason for trading away what could possibly have turned out to be a starting player here for years to come? We're talking about a 37yr. old DE with diminishing returns being the reason for a decision that could so drastically affect the way you draft for the future. Hard to believe a player so far to the downside of his career could have such an impact on your lockeroom.

This is just one example of why the leadership of this team should not be trusted to people blessed with such shallow insight, plus Jason Taylor was never going to be a good fit for the defense.

Another interesting thing about that quote is, isn't that something your coach should be responsible for? Isn't that why head coaches are in the position they are because they improve facets of the team like morale?

And being that he was in charge of the Zorn hiring he's basically saying "The coach I brought in isn't good enough to inspire confidence in the depleted team I left him"


There are so many points of failure just in that one statement alone...good point out LongTimeFan.

[Paintrain]

I'm not defending Snyder by any means for some of his choices and decisions. I feel like he wants to win, above all things. He is a good/great businessman but seems to lack a lot of common decency and respect for the everyman.

I took a look from a football standpoint as his record in comparison to those I consider his peers, owners who took control of their teams between 1995-2002. You may be surprised how he stacks up in winning percentage and head coaches (not including interim coaches).

Robert Kraft (1994) 152-82, 65.8% winning percentage (3 Super Bowl wins, 5 Super Bowl appearances, 3 head coaches)
Jeff Lurie (1994) 137-103-1, 57.3% winning percentage (1 Super Bowl appearance, 3 head coaches)
Malcolm Glazer (1995) 113-111-1, 50.6% winning percentage (1 Super Bowl win, 1 Super Bowl appearance, 4 head coaches)
Paul Allen (1997) 101-101, 50% winning percentage (1 Super Bowl appearance, 3 head coaches)
Dan Snyder (1999) 76-84, 47.5% winning percentage (5 head coaches)
John York (2000) 60-84, 41.6% winning percentage (4 head coaches)
Woody Johnson (2000) 71-73, 49.3% winning percentage (4 head coaches)
Arthur Blank (2002) 55-73, 42.9% winning percentage (4 head coaches)
Al Lerner (2002) 42-86, 32.8% winning percentage (4 head coaches)

Snyder doesn't have us where we should be or want us to be, but one of the things that it seems is that he's not as bad as portrayed nationally or locally. It's ironic that we never hear about a quick trigger for York, Johnson, Blank or Lerner but they've changed coaches at a similar or higher rate than Snyder.

Hopefully the next move he makes will be to bring in a President of Football Operations to evaluate and determine the course for our franchises future.

[SFREDSKIN]

I'm all for bringing back Casserly or giving Morocco Brown a chance even though he's unproven but has been identified as a smart talent evaluator. Maybe Brown could turn out to be like Jerry Reese, who I think is currently the best young GM in the business.

[SmootSmack]

[quote=Longtimefan;599637]This is the last statement I'm going to make on this subject, but just one thing on the Jason Taylor trade.

For me it was not so much the trade itself, rather the reason Cerrato gave to reporters in an interview when asked why he made it. He said

"The morale of the team in the lockeroom went thud and felt he needed to do something to inflate the teams spirits after the loss of Daniels" [unquote]. Now you may beg to disagree and I won't fault you for doing so, but don't you feel that to be a rather odd reason for trading away what could possibly have turned out to be a starting player here for years to come? We're talking about a 37yr. old DE with diminishing returns being the reason for a decision that could so drastically affect the way you draft for the future. Hard to believe a player so far to the downside of his career could have such an impact on your lockeroom.

This is just one example of why the leadership of this team should not be trusted to people blessed with such shallow insight, plus Jason Taylor was never going to be a good fit for the defense.

Strong points. Taylor was ultimately a mistake because he's a pass rusher and Daniels is a run stopping DE. However, he is very influential in the locker room. Teammates look up to him. And the notion that the responsibility to motivate should fall entirely on the coach is highly inaccurate. Ask the Ravens how the locker room would feel if Ray Lewis is gone for the year or how the Bears felt when Brian Urlacher was injured and lost for the year