MSN.Foxsports.com: Shanahan and Allen form dream front office in D.C. (MET)

[skinsince72]

It's amazing how quickly one can reinvent themselves and change the perceptions of many. Dan has made all the right moves lately.

While it still may take several years before any of the die hard are convinced, Dan is certainly making huge steps forward. I've said all along his intent should be commended and his decisions should be mocked.

Personally, I like having him as the owner. If he gets these lessons down, he can help point this team in the right direction for the next 30 years.

[Arsenic]

I'm no GM, but we're still exchanging draft picks for vets which is what we begged Vinny & Co not to do.

True.. but its a little different. With the latest move, we're still acquiring a later pick. If we lose a 3rd, we gain a 5th. If we lose a 4th, we gain a 6th. (Please correct me if I'm wrong). So, if we can manage to scout better than others, we dont lose the chance of acquiring the same number of quality players.

As for the McNabb trade, we HAD to pull the trigger. You have to give yourself the chance to "Win Now" and McNabb definitely increased our chances of doing so. We needed a QB intelligent and experienced enough to run the show and be an extension of our coach on the football field. Sure, we want to build for the future. However, I think we've all grown tired of losing football games. If we can manage to win now while also building for the future, I think we'd all be in favor of such.

Now I agree, this was a good article, but Allen has never been part of a franchise that he helped lead to a championship. He helped bring the Raiders to the Super Bowl, but he wasn't part of the team that Gruden won a super bowl with in Tampa. He got to Tampa right after they won the Super Bowl.

The Tampa team was built by Tony Dungy.

Regardless of the past, I think what we're seeing has been night and day. Its very obvious, in only 8 months, that a good plan is in place and is being executed perfectly. Even with the AH situation, that seems to be a mess, I feel that Allen & Shanahan are competently in complete control of everything. Many here are skeptic, having been let down so many times, and that's understandable. None of our past FO's & Teams, though, had the same feeling as the current Washington Redskins, to me atleast.

In ONLY 8 MONTHS this team has a very high ceiling. I'm excited; I'm always excited. Even though we've yet to play a sdingle down, its safe to say that we're in better hands with Allen & Shanahan. Wayyyyy better hands.

If we can win some games early, LTFO.. With the determination and brilliance I'm seeing, this team will continue to drastically impove every single week.

Hail!

Given what they've had to work with this offseason, they seem to have done a solid job on the surface. Then again, we have yet to see how all of this is going to come together.

True.. Regardless, though, I'm 100% convinved that we're BETTER than last year.

Alex Marvez did a really good job with the article.

Definitely! Infact, this could be my favorite article of the offseason. Does anyone doubt that one of the many pieces to Allen's gameplan is re-shapeing the bossman's image? I'm telling you... this current FO is the real deal. LTFO NFC East! We're back!

[gutlead74]

I think this combo is great, I am just guarded from experiance and from all

the geezers.

[HailGreen28]

Right, because he invested so much money to take over the team he loves, to intentionally destroy them as a testament to his ego. :doh:

Snyder can literally do no right on this board. He gets zero credit for doing what is right and all the blame when something goes wrong. And the same old lines are trotted out each time to vilify him. It gets tired....

The thing is: About the only way Danny did right was handing over the reins to Gibbs. The Shanahallen era isn't decided yet.

I don't think anybody questions Danny's fandom. Just his competence at any football GM-type decisions.

[redskindan07]

Hallelujah..........

[HailGreen28]

I hope we nab a SB under Shanny in the near future.

But let's be real: We're doing what we do every season, praising the current front office when the team they're building hasn't taken a single snap in a real game.

Ultimately, win/loss and playoff record will determine how smart they are.

[skinfan133]

Now that's the spirit!

fool me once, shame on you. fool me twice, shame on me. fool me 10 seasons in a row, well then I'm just a moron.

I'm patient and willing to give this change a chance, but part of me knows this just stinks of the same old, same old strategy...

[Ashburn Dave]

I hope we nab a SB under Shanny in the near future.

But let's be real: We're doing what we do every season, praising the current front office when the team they're building hasn't taken a single snap in a real game.

Ultimately, win/loss and playoff record will determine how smart they are.

I've never praised any FO that Vinny was a part of.

Even without playing a game yet it should be easy to see that the changes in the FO this year is for the better.

Wins are the final measure and they will come with this new FO.

[SWFLSkins]

Finally the ride we have been waiting on. :laugh::logo::laugh:

[Jeff in D.C.]

Well, it seems like they're still in "win now" mode with the trades for McNabb and Brown. I'm no GM, but we're still exchanging draft picks for vets which is what we begged Vinny & Co not to do.

The circumstances of this situation is night and day from when Vinny was here. A few things you have to remember CG - Shanny will be 58 in August, he won't be here for more than 5 years and probably not even that long, so to start a rebuilding process would essentially waste Shanny's talent as a coach while he's here.

Secondly, Bruce & Shanny are making good, competent decisions. Vinny and yes, even Joe, made horribly incompetent player personnel decisions which led to a 12-20 record the last two seasons. McNabb is a proven pro-bowl QB in this league and Jamaal Brown is a proven pro-bowl LT. Bruce & Shanny aren't being stupid with giving away draft picks like Vinny/Joe did. McNabb has several more good years left, and Brown is 29 so this hasn't been a draft picks for average old guys philosophy since Bruce & Shanny got here.

The only two choices a franchise in the Skins position has is 1. win now or 2. tear it down and rebuild from scratch. #2 doesn't work because you have a SB winning coach who will be here for a max of 5 seasons.

[Jeff in D.C.]

Snyder can literally do no right on this board. He gets zero credit for doing what is right and all the blame when something goes wrong. And the same old lines are trotted out each time to vilify him. It gets tired....

I give Danny credit for a number of things, but at the same time most of the blame is warranted because he's the owner and he's made a bunch of really bad decisions. Danny means well, but the thing he should have learned all of these years was HOW to go about trying to win. When JKC was owner he hired Bobby Beatherd who in turn hired Joe Gibbs, and JKC sat back and collected 4 NFC titles & 3 Lombardi trophies in 10 seasons. In signing Albert Haynesworth - the question should have been asked: does he have his head on straight? Will this player be a good locker room presence? Will he give 100% on the field and be in shape? Should I give this player $41 million guaranteed? If he had done his homework, he would have decided that the answer to all of these questions was "no", but he gave him the contract anyway.

Danny's problem is that he has thought that simply spending money will win games and appease the fan base, instead of realizing that the entire organization has to be sound from top to bottom with a scouting department and player personnel people. When I was 15 I knew what the Skins secret to success was, and Danny hasn't gotten it in 11 years of ownership until now.

[heliKCx17]

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Debbie downer.

[ECU-ALUM]

For the first time in a long time....I am excited about this upcoming season. It feels like this organization is finally moving in the right direction.

Thank you Mr. Allen, Coach Shanahan, and to Mr. Snyder thank you for hiring these two men, letting them do their jobs and staying in the background.

[COWBOY-KILLA-]

Music to my ears!! Stay away please, Danny Boy!!

[madden lot]

Right, because he invested so much money to take over the team he loves, to intentionally destroy them as a testament to his ego. :doh:

Snyder can literally do no right on this board. He gets zero credit for doing what is right and all the blame when something goes wrong. And the same old lines are trotted out each time to vilify him. It gets tired....

:applause::applause::applause::applause::applause:

[respectgibbs]

Somewhat of a problem with his statement that he NEEDS a coach with tons of experience for him to be hands-off because he can trust that coach.

What that tells me is that (and especially after the zorn failed experiment) that we'll NEVER have a young, fresh, Gibbs 1.0 1981 coach in here. We'll never have the opportunity to bring in an unproven gem.

Not that it's necessarily a bad thing, but I don't like the idea of us always having to bring in HOF coaches (perhaps washed up by the time they get here) for Synder to be hands off and "not worry".

[TheLongshot]

Kyle is being groomed to take over when Mike leaves, there will be no deterrence from that plan, I dont want any HC's not named Shanahan for another decade.

Well, at least until the team sucks, then everyone needs to go.

True.. Regardless, though, I'm 100% convinved that we're BETTER than last year.

It would have been a major effort NOT to be better than last year. Again, how much better is the question.

[Califan007 The Constipated]

Somewhat of a problem with his statement that he NEEDS a coach with tons of experience for him to be hands-off because he can trust that coach.

What that tells me is that (and especially after the zorn failed experiment) that we'll NEVER have a young, fresh, Gibbs 1.0 1981 coach in here. We'll never have the opportunity to bring in an unproven gem.

Not that it's necessarily a bad thing, but I don't like the idea of us always having to bring in HOF coaches (perhaps washed up by the time they get here) for Synder to be hands off and "not worry".

Kyle

[Califan007 The Constipated]

Well, at least until the team sucks, then everyone needs to go.

It would have been a major effort NOT to be better than last year. Again, how much better is the question.

I would imagine a ****load better lol...that doesn't mean it will be reflected in the win/loss column immediately, though.

[redskins55]

I am more than confident that we will see a lplayoff caliber team here for the years that Shanahan coaches. This organization simply needed a proven head coach and we've got that again. Maybe Shanny can finish what Gibbs started. Gibbs made us a playoff team again so hopefully Shanny will make us Championship bound.

[BadKarma]

Snyder made a ten year commitment to Mike and Kyle with this move, anything less is unacceptable, we have to establish a coaching legacy here instead of going for the quick fix every other year.

[Mr. Sinister]

Snyder made a ten year commitment to Mike and Kyle with this move, anything less is unacceptable, we have to establish a coaching legacy here instead of going for the quick fix every other year.

That sounds nice, but anybody who thinks that an opener is going to give a guy 10 years to set a foundation is kidding themselves. If we win, and win consistently, the current guys in charge will get to stay for as long as they. But if we continue to lose, than the house will be torn down in year 4-5. No team is going to commit to ANYTHING for 10 years, without seeing some results first.

[MustangSteve]

Well, it seems like they're still in "win now" mode with the trades for McNabb and Brown. I'm no GM, but we're still exchanging draft picks for vets which is what we begged Vinny & Co not to do.

What choice did we really have, to keep a qb we would never win with? Or deny a qb who has taken some mediocre teams to the SuperBowl and many championships? At least we have a great chance to win now, and in the future years to come as well, something this team wasn't going to do under the leadership we had.

[Rocky21]

I give Danny credit for a number of things, but at the same time most of the blame is warranted because he's the owner and he's made a bunch of really bad decisions. Danny means well, but the thing he should have learned all of these years was HOW to go about trying to win. When JKC was owner he hired Bobby Beatherd who in turn hired Joe Gibbs, and JKC sat back and collected 4 NFC titles & 3 Lombardi trophies in 10 seasons. In signing Albert Haynesworth - the question should have been asked: does he have his head on straight? Will this player be a good locker room presence? Will he give 100% on the field and be in shape? Should I give this player $41 million guaranteed? If he had done his homework, he would have decided that the answer to all of these questions was "no", but he gave him the contract anyway.

Danny's problem is that he has thought that simply spending money will win games and appease the fan base, instead of realizing that the entire organization has to be sound from top to bottom with a scouting department and player personnel people. When I was 15 I knew what the Skins secret to success was, and Danny hasn't gotten it in 11 years of ownership until now.

Exactly. QFT!

Hiring a seemingly competent GM is the first step and I want to give Snyder credit for that but 10 years of ill will will not disappear over night.

The Redskins have lost more games than they have won under Snyder's stewardship of the organization.

[TD_washingtonredskins]

Well, it seems like they're still in "win now" mode with the trades for McNabb and Brown. I'm no GM, but we're still exchanging draft picks for vets which is what we begged Vinny & Co not to do.

The goodwill surrounding Redskins park is certainly encouraging, and you can feel the optimism from the comments from players. Allen and Shanny have earned the benefit of the doubt, and I'll continue to trust their decision making until proven otherwise. I would like to see a little more outward emphasis on building this team for sustained success in the future though.

Otherwise, I think its tough to argue that they haven't been top notch this offseason.

They might be in win-now mode, but there is probably a plan instead of just seeing who becomes available and trying to throw money at names.

Win-now doesn't have to be bad...I mean, isn't that the point each and every year in the NFL?? The key is to make sure that you can win now AND win in the future. I think with a competent GM/coach we are much better positioned to do that than we were with Cerrato.

Edit: In my opinion, the key is to play (and hopefully win) with your veterans now while you're restocking your future starters and depth. Hopefully we become a team that is 45-53 players deep. Under Cerrato, we were about 15 players deep. We have always had some very good players (Portis, Moss, Cooley, Samuels, Jansen, Washington, etc.), but the rest of the starting lineup and our depth was rounded out with below-average players. That meant that we had no future starters and no contingency plan if we sustained injuries. I think what we'll find if this front office is competent, is that we'll be grooming our future QB, RB, etc. while McNabb and Portis/LJ are playing over the next 2-3 years.