Pasta Belly's Weekly Redskin Commentary

Paintrain · 02-25-2005, 05:09 PM

• No matter how the Laveranues Coles situation plays out in Washington -- whether he is released, traded or remains with the Redskins in 2005 (the least likely scenario) -- the very fact the team is prepared to dump its best wide receiver is further indication of how little owner Dan Snyder understands the significance of continuity. In each of the past two seasons, Snyder declared that the Redskins roster was stable, and that it would be the club's composition for at least the ensuing three seasons. But every time his club fails to reach the playoffs, Snyder panics and the turnover process begins anew. Make no mistake: Snyder deserves credit for his commitment to fielding a championship team. He definitely puts his money where his mouth is and, unlike many of his fraternity brothers in the NFL ownership clique, isn't satisfied with mediocrity or the league's healthiest financial bottom line. But football is a game in which a team can't afford to simply plow things under every season and start over in the rebuilding process. Just two years ago, the Redskins invested a $13 million signing bonus in Coles and sent the New York Jets a first-round draft choice as compensation for signing the fleet wideout as a restricted free agent. Common sense and, more important, football sense dictates that you provide those investments an opportunity to reap dividends. So what if Coles is unhappy with the Joe Gibbs-designed offense, a passing game that rarely goes vertical? The guy is under contract, and you make him play. The rationale that you don't want an unhappy player in the locker room, especially in the case of Coles, is vastly overrated. Coles is a player, a guy who will show up every Sunday, even when he isn't getting the ball enough. Word is that the football people in Washington, including Gibbs, aren't thrilled with Snyder's hair-trigger decision to jettison Coles, and, if that's the case, no one can blame them. Snyder operates under the theory that the grass is always greener, that you make yourself better by bringing in a busload of new players every spring, that free agency is his personal shopping mall. In the NFL, though, the franchises that most often succeed over the long term are the ones that give their own grass a little time to mature.

Hey Pasta Belly, I have 2 words for ya......

You're right. :frusty:

02-25-2005, 05:09 PM	#1
Paintrain Pro Bowl Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Ft. Lauderdale, FL Age: 53 Posts: 5,006	Pasta Belly's Weekly Redskin Commentary • No matter how the Laveranues Coles situation plays out in Washington -- whether he is released, traded or remains with the Redskins in 2005 (the least likely scenario) -- the very fact the team is prepared to dump its best wide receiver is further indication of how little owner Dan Snyder understands the significance of continuity. In each of the past two seasons, Snyder declared that the Redskins roster was stable, and that it would be the club's composition for at least the ensuing three seasons. But every time his club fails to reach the playoffs, Snyder panics and the turnover process begins anew. Make no mistake: Snyder deserves credit for his commitment to fielding a championship team. He definitely puts his money where his mouth is and, unlike many of his fraternity brothers in the NFL ownership clique, isn't satisfied with mediocrity or the league's healthiest financial bottom line. But football is a game in which a team can't afford to simply plow things under every season and start over in the rebuilding process. Just two years ago, the Redskins invested a $13 million signing bonus in Coles and sent the New York Jets a first-round draft choice as compensation for signing the fleet wideout as a restricted free agent. Common sense and, more important, football sense dictates that you provide those investments an opportunity to reap dividends. So what if Coles is unhappy with the Joe Gibbs-designed offense, a passing game that rarely goes vertical? The guy is under contract, and you make him play. The rationale that you don't want an unhappy player in the locker room, especially in the case of Coles, is vastly overrated. Coles is a player, a guy who will show up every Sunday, even when he isn't getting the ball enough. Word is that the football people in Washington, including Gibbs, aren't thrilled with Snyder's hair-trigger decision to jettison Coles, and, if that's the case, no one can blame them. Snyder operates under the theory that the grass is always greener, that you make yourself better by bringing in a busload of new players every spring, that free agency is his personal shopping mall. In the NFL, though, the franchises that most often succeed over the long term are the ones that give their own grass a little time to mature. Hey Pasta Belly, I have 2 words for ya...... You're right. :frusty:

Pasta Belly's Weekly Redskin Commentary

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