Enemies within at Redskins Park

[Sarge]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...07/28/AR2009072802538.html?hpid=news-col-blog


There are games within games being played at Redskins Park. Forget their NFL rivals, the Redskins apparently have enough opponents inside their own building, where it seems everyone is choosing up sides.

The team and its own management have become adversaries. That was the clear implication this week when Vinny Cerrato, the executive vice president of football operations, asserted that he built a playoff-quality roster. Given that the Redskins are 2-5, we're left with only one possible conclusion: Coach Jim Zorn must have screwed things up. It couldn't possibly be the fault of Cerrato, or the man for whom he serves as a lead suit, owner Daniel Snyder.

On the other side are Zorn and the assistants and players loyal to him, who are fighting to retain some control of the team, and to preserve their reputations against the insinuation they are incompetent. When Zorn stepped up to the podium after the latest loss to the Philadelphia Eagles he went out of his way to say "I stuck my nose" into the play-calling, and he pointedly took credit for the call resulting in their final touchdown.

 

[Henry]

Eh. Sally Jenkins still bugs the crap out of me. Even considering our situation she was laying it on a little thick. Wilbon's the one who's been hitting the mark a lot lately.

 

[Hog Fever]

I can’t stand Sally Jenkins as a rule and have said as much on several occasions. I haven’t had any problems with her columns this year though. I don’t think her tone towards the organization has changed any, I think mine has.

 

[Neophyte]

 

[Sarge]

You know, a lot of people have dogged Sally Jenkins over the years, but her stance towards the Skins really hasn't changed during that time. I've agreed with most of her colunms because she seemed to know some things about the danny and the way he does business that a lot of people didn't want to believe. Maybe now some folks are coming around

 

[servumtuum]

It's almost always very difficult to like the people who tell us things we don't want to hear-whether it's accurate or not. I guess that's just a normal human characteristic. Eventually, as in the Sally Jenkins case, when so many other sources corroborate what she'd been saying, we gradually, if grudgingly, accept the fact that she was telling it like it is.

I've learned over the years that the phrase "consider the source" is dangerous. It's led me many times to disregard information that I should not have. I try now to disregard the source and dig for information that either substantiates or disproves what's being said.

 

[China]

I found this image accompanying a link to the column:

Wow. Mr. Bugeyes. This needs to be captioned. He looks like he just got stunned by the mind control ray Danny is using on him to control what he says and does.

 

[Chris]

Eh. Sally Jenkins still bugs the crap out of me. Even considering our situation she was laying it on a little thick. Wilbon's the one who's been hitting the mark a lot lately.

I'm with you, Henry. I picture her with a big grin on her face when she hit the send button.

 

[Sarge]

I found this image accompanying a link to the column:

Wow. Mr. Bugeyes. This needs to be captioned. He looks like he just got stunned by the mind control ray Danny is using on him to control what he says and does.

Arnold and Grace Lee's lost brother?

 

[riggins44]

For a long time wasn't a fan of Sally Jenkins. She always seemed so negative. Looks like she was right in the long run about Snyder and the team.

Wonder if Snyder will try to buy the Post and fire her?

 

[servumtuum]

China, thanks for the inspiration.

 

[Sarge]

That's good Serv

 

[EatSleepRedskin]

Well done, Serv.

 

[Bulldog]

this all happened in Miami when they went 1-15.

in the long-run it doesn't matter. all of these actors are going to get the hook at the end of the season, including some of the players that feel free to use the media as a tool to castigate their own coaches and teammates.

in the past Snyder could rationalize 7-9 or 8-8 and say the team was just a few players away.

but with the specter of a 3-13 or 4-12 type team on his hands I think he realizes that nothing short of cleaning house is going to rescue him personally with the fans and media.

for that reason I think Vinny will be washed out with the tide this time.

the severity of the fall in 2009 guarantees that.

 

[fastwb]

Jenkins has always pissed me off in the past because she doesn't seem to know football much at all so its tempered my overall opinion of what she had to say. I agree though that this year she seems to be making a lot more sense. I just have a really hard time hoping they finish with 3 or 4 wins even if it really does look like it will take that kind of collapse for Danny Boy to seriously consider making the changes necessary to turn things around.

 

[Boone]

Jenkins?

Even a blind squirrel finds an acorn once in awhile
Posted via BGO Mobile Device

 

[Yusuf06]

Jenkins has always pissed me off in the past because she doesn't seem to know football much at all so its tempered my overall opinion of what she had to say. I agree though that this year she seems to be making a lot more sense. I just have a really hard time hoping they finish with 3 or 4 wins even if it really does look like it will take that kind of collapse for Danny Boy to seriously consider making the changes necessary to turn things around.

You might want to read Serv's post about "considering the source".

Jenkins may not be the most knowlegeable writer about football, though I'd argue she knows more than many of us gave her credit for. However, what she did pick up on in spades was the dysfunctional nature of our F.O. and its connection to Snyder's personal dysfunction.

Sometimes it's easy to miss the forest for the trees...or to have the less than flattering details we don't want to see blocked out by the B & G colored shades. I think many are reflecting on negative comments made about Jenkins (and others) over the past few years and feeling a little ashamed...at least I hope they are.

Even though the vindication is not in any way pleasant to me to have been right about Snyder all these years, I'd be lying if I said the charges of being a traitor, fair weather fan, hater, chicken little etc. does cut the bitterness of our current situation for me, even if only ever so slightly. It would have far more preferable to me to have been 100% wrong about him, or for him to have learned his lesson and been forced to swallow the sweet brew of success while tasting just a hint of bitterness at having been wrong.

Let's just hope that somewhere along the line Snyder recognizes the bitter taste that has almost been covered up by the sweetness of financial success and finally decides that he's in over his head. If that day ever comes, we'll almost surely return to the kind of success we used to be accustomed to since Snyder's open wallet in search of the best VP/GM money can buy would have to truly scare the crap out of the rest of the NFL.

 

[Destino]

In the end is doesn't matter who wins the tug-o-war here because there can only be one outcome. There is only one player that can't be fired and that of course is the owner. Vinny will be sacrificed to appease the fans and Zorn will be fired because Dan is upset.

The question is will Dan Snyder learn the lesson or will his ego prevent any personal growth on his behalf. This is no small lesson for Dan, if he does what he is supposed to do here, turn over team management to a professional it will be received by the media as an admission that he couldn't do it. Is Dan a big enough man to do this?

I have my doubts.

 

[The Burgundy Ghost]

Pass. I know what I know about the Redskins.

I also know that I don't like Sally Jenkins' articles.

 

[bird_1972]

Is Dan a big enough man to do this?

I have my doubts.

It's less about whether Dan is a big enough man to do it. This isn't about his ego. It is more about whether he is a smart enough man to do it. I honestly don't think he is.

As a disclaimer, before I hear about how he is a billionaire, and therefore he is automatically smart - especially when it comes to running a business, keep in mind that the kinds of businesses he succeeded in were ones that rewarded hustle and not organizational accumen. Unfortunately, that is precisely the skill that is needed here. See how well the stock prices of Six Flags and Johnny Rockets are doing these days.

I don't think Snyder has it.

He wants to "hustle" the way he did to build his telemarketing business and find ways to make money (something he was quoted as saying was his main motivation in life). I don't think he is "smart enough" to realize how best to recognize managerial talent and put a culture in place to maximize the success of those around him.