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joecrisp · 06-11-2004, 06:25 PM

I didn't say Snyder is free of any blame for the past five years-- he's learned some very hard lessons in that time, and most of them are his own fault. I'm just saying that the team he purchased wasn't exactly the model of success and consistency. Turner knew that new ownership would spell the end of the road for him unless he produced a playoff-caliber team, and Snyder permitted him to prove he could do that. After the '99 playoff season, many around the league suspected that the Skins were only a few key players away from being Super Bowl contenders, so Snyder tried to go out and buy those few pieces to complete Turner's championship puzzle. Keep in mind, there were a lot of people-- not just Skins fans-- that projected the Skins would indeed win the Super Bowl in 2000, after Snyder went on his now infamous and record-setting spending spree. When things started to go sour, Snyder was clearly upset that his enormous investment wasn't paying off in the win column, and he had a right to be. Turner's team-- much like Spurrier's future Redskins team-- lacked discipline and accountability, and that was ultimately their downfall. That was Norv Turner's prerogative.

So what does Snyder do? He hires one of the most discipline-oriented coaches in the league, hoping that Schottenheimer would instill the discipline and work ethic that Turner's team had lacked. He gave Schottenheimer the power and latitude that he had been criticized for denying to Turner. The vets chafed under Marty's iron-fisted approach, and Schottenheimer's unimaginitive gameplans put fans to sleep. That was Marty Schottenheimer's prerogative.

Spurrier makes himself available, and Snyder seizes the opportunity to hire one of college football's most legendary and creative offensive minds. Spurrier says he just wants to coach football, and leave the personnel decisions to the Front Office. One problem-- the team had been built around Schottenheimer's 3-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust philosophy. So the next year, Snyder goes out and obtains the weapons Spurrier needs to run his high-flying offense, using some very creative, if unorthodox, methods to do so. Spurrier fails-- due to a lack of team discipline, an inexperienced coaching staff, poor gameplanning, and even poorer execution on the field. Spurrier concedes his own failure, and walks away. That was Steve Spurrier's prerogative.

Finally, the moment all Redskins fans-- including Dan Snyder-- had been waiting 12 years for: Joe Gibbs decides it's time to coach the Redskins again. Snyder not only makes him the highest paid coach in the history of the league-- he also names him Team President, and gives him final say on all personnel decisions. Snyder gives Gibbs the carte blanche to pay whatever salaries are necessary to obtain the most experienced and knowledgeable assistant coaches available. Gibbs' staff assembles a wish-list of free agents and trade targets, and Snyder promptly goes out and gets them. Not once does Snyder claim ownership of any of the acquisitions as "his moves". Gibbs makes it clear to all who will listen that whatever decisions are made are made "as a team"-- Gibbs and the coaching staff huddling with Cerrato and the scouting staff, evaluating the talent available, and subsequently handing the prioritized shopping list to Snyder.

One potential problem: doom and gloom has been forecast for the Skins in terms of the future cap situation. Supposedly, Snyder-- a self-made multi-millionaire-- isn't smart enough to figure out that backloaded contracts eventually lead to future salary cap woes. Supposedly, he will have to dismantle Gibbs' Redskins after three years. Of course, that theory assumes that the salary cap continues to increase at a constant rate-- which would not accomodate contract structures whose inflation exceeds that rate. In reality, the salary cap is set to expand by an unprecedented margin when the new television contracts are negotiated next year. Will this provide enough cushion to completely negate the inflation of the contracts Snyder has recently signed? Maybe not-- but it will certainly leave the Skins in much better shape than many casual observers expect. If there's one thing Dan Snyder is not, it's a casual observer. Perhaps that's not such a bad thing after all.

06-11-2004, 06:25 PM	#3
joecrisp The Starter Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Charlottesville, VA Age: 49 Posts: 1,501	I didn't say Snyder is free of any blame for the past five years-- he's learned some very hard lessons in that time, and most of them are his own fault. I'm just saying that the team he purchased wasn't exactly the model of success and consistency. Turner knew that new ownership would spell the end of the road for him unless he produced a playoff-caliber team, and Snyder permitted him to prove he could do that. After the '99 playoff season, many around the league suspected that the Skins were only a few key players away from being Super Bowl contenders, so Snyder tried to go out and buy those few pieces to complete Turner's championship puzzle. Keep in mind, there were a lot of people-- not just Skins fans-- that projected the Skins would indeed win the Super Bowl in 2000, after Snyder went on his now infamous and record-setting spending spree. When things started to go sour, Snyder was clearly upset that his enormous investment wasn't paying off in the win column, and he had a right to be. Turner's team-- much like Spurrier's future Redskins team-- lacked discipline and accountability, and that was ultimately their downfall. That was Norv Turner's prerogative. So what does Snyder do? He hires one of the most discipline-oriented coaches in the league, hoping that Schottenheimer would instill the discipline and work ethic that Turner's team had lacked. He gave Schottenheimer the power and latitude that he had been criticized for denying to Turner. The vets chafed under Marty's iron-fisted approach, and Schottenheimer's unimaginitive gameplans put fans to sleep. That was Marty Schottenheimer's prerogative. Spurrier makes himself available, and Snyder seizes the opportunity to hire one of college football's most legendary and creative offensive minds. Spurrier says he just wants to coach football, and leave the personnel decisions to the Front Office. One problem-- the team had been built around Schottenheimer's 3-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust philosophy. So the next year, Snyder goes out and obtains the weapons Spurrier needs to run his high-flying offense, using some very creative, if unorthodox, methods to do so. Spurrier fails-- due to a lack of team discipline, an inexperienced coaching staff, poor gameplanning, and even poorer execution on the field. Spurrier concedes his own failure, and walks away. That was Steve Spurrier's prerogative. Finally, the moment all Redskins fans-- including Dan Snyder-- had been waiting 12 years for: Joe Gibbs decides it's time to coach the Redskins again. Snyder not only makes him the highest paid coach in the history of the league-- he also names him Team President, and gives him final say on all personnel decisions. Snyder gives Gibbs the carte blanche to pay whatever salaries are necessary to obtain the most experienced and knowledgeable assistant coaches available. Gibbs' staff assembles a wish-list of free agents and trade targets, and Snyder promptly goes out and gets them. Not once does Snyder claim ownership of any of the acquisitions as "his moves". Gibbs makes it clear to all who will listen that whatever decisions are made are made "as a team"-- Gibbs and the coaching staff huddling with Cerrato and the scouting staff, evaluating the talent available, and subsequently handing the prioritized shopping list to Snyder. One potential problem: doom and gloom has been forecast for the Skins in terms of the future cap situation. Supposedly, Snyder-- a self-made multi-millionaire-- isn't smart enough to figure out that backloaded contracts eventually lead to future salary cap woes. Supposedly, he will have to dismantle Gibbs' Redskins after three years. Of course, that theory assumes that the salary cap continues to increase at a constant rate-- which would not accomodate contract structures whose inflation exceeds that rate. In reality, the salary cap is set to expand by an unprecedented margin when the new television contracts are negotiated next year. Will this provide enough cushion to completely negate the inflation of the contracts Snyder has recently signed? Maybe not-- but it will certainly leave the Skins in much better shape than many casual observers expect. If there's one thing Dan Snyder is not, it's a casual observer. Perhaps that's not such a bad thing after all.