SB Nation DC: What If Vinny Cerrato Never Left?

[McD5]

Great article.

Regardless of religion, everyone should thank some God daily that this bonehead is no longer running this franchise into the ground.

And as for linemen, even if he did draft one in the 1st, there would have been no chance in hell of Jammal Brown in DC.

"Uhhhh, you mean like sacks and stuff?":ols:

It's amazing that people still stand up for this buffoon. It's battered wife syndrome. "Well, he didn't punch me in the face every single day."

[Califan007 The Constipated]

Good post, but I disagree with this part:

Here’s the kicker – because Cerrato doesn’t value protecting his quarterback, none of the offensive line upgrades would have taken place. Artis Hicks. Jammal Brown. Trent Williams. Selvish Capers. They’d all be elsewhere.

Hard to argue with this. Vinnie never once acknowledged that the o-line was a deficiency on last year's team, instead blaming the problems on injuries. He likely would have been forced to make some kind of moves with Samuels and Thomas departing, but it's hard to say how big a priority that would be. Probably a couple of Levi Jones stopgap-type moves, to go along with a late round o-line pick or two.

People here seem to forget that it was Vinny who:

- Drafted Chris Samuels

- Drafted Derrick Dockery

- Signed/traded for Randy Thomas

- Signed Casey Rabach

Paired with a still-healthy Jon Jansen, those four guys made up for a rather solid and productive O-Line...and it was Vinny who was directly responsible for 3 of those guys and at the very least part of the team who was responsible for the fourth guy. We tend to act like the only O-Linemen Vinny ever brought in here were 6th round scrubs and Stephon Heyer lol...the idea that Selvish Capers would NOT have been drafted by Vinny is a bit ridiculous...we got the guy in the middle of the 7th round. And Vinny DOES have a "history" of drafting OL late.

[Califan007 The Constipated]

Great article.

Regardless of religion, everyone should thank some God daily that this bonehead is no longer running this franchise into the ground.

And as for linemen, even if he did draft one in the 1st, there would have been no chance in hell of Jammal Brown in DC.

"Uhhhh, you mean like sacks and stuff?":ols:

It's amazing that people still stand up for this buffoon. It's battered wife syndrome. "Well, he didn't punch me in the face every single day."

It's more like people stand up for (or against) illogical arguments. The idea that, since Vinny was overall inept and incompetent as a "GM" every single criticism aimed at him is valid, is foolish. I know that's the preferred debating style of a few too many here, but for some others of us here it's irritating as hell lol :yes:...

[ECU-ALUM]

Great article.

Regardless of religion, everyone should thank some God daily that this bonehead is no longer running this franchise into the ground.

And as for linemen, even if he did draft one in the 1st, there would have been no chance in hell of Jammal Brown in DC.

"Uhhhh, you mean like sacks and stuff?":ols:

It's amazing that people still stand up for this buffoon. It's battered wife syndrome. "Well, he didn't punch me in the face every single day."

When I heard him say sacks and stuff quote I had a mouthful of Pepsi...it was a classic spit-take if I say so myself.

Kind of like a patient asking a doctor about their illness and the doctor saying, "You mean the stuff that's going on with your body?" :doh:

[hiswadeness]

I saw the thread title, and before reading the article I said to myself: Self, Vinny would have taken Clausen in the first, and ZERO O-line hekp. How transparent Vinny was. And best of luck to my man-crush Bruce Allen (he couldn't do worse than Vinney if he tried)

[Redskins Anonymous]

I don't know if I could just let the guy walk on the plane without picking on him. I believe a law should be passed in the DC area that allows for people to throw tomatoes, small dead animals, and bodily fluids at Vinny Cerrato anytime he is in public, but that's just me.

Good article. No doubt the Redskins would be coached by some handpicked moron had Vinny not been canned. Vinny's firing brought us back into the NFL.

[bikie]

vinny probably traded his first class seat for a bag of peanuts...

[themurf]

Awesome read Murf!

Thanks, and I hope all is well as you guys settle in to your new place.

People here seem to forget that it was Vinny who:

- Drafted Chris Samuels (in 2000)

- Drafted Derrick Dockery (in 2003)

- Signed/traded for Randy Thomas (in 2003)

- Signed Casey Rabach (in 2005)

It's 2010. You're bringing up what Cerrato did four times since 2000 as if it's the rule, and not the exception. Sorry brother, that argument ain't gonna stick. In fact, I'd have a hard time naming one single team over the last 10 years who invested less in pursuit of depth along the offensive line.

If you really would like to attempt to defend Cerrato, I'd recommend taking the controversial approach that Vinny actually did well drafting talent, he just needed someone overseeing him to tell him what positions to scout. That stance might have a chance.

vinny probably traded his first class seat for a bag of peanuts...

When I posted on Twitter that Vinny was on my flight, someone asked if he was out on the wing, ripping out wires. I found that amusing.

[pjfootballer]

Vinny would draft OL late, but the problem was, he didn't draft OL often. Take our draft this year. We had 6 picks and 3 of them were OL (Williams, Capers and Cook). We all like to joke that Vinny was an incompetant fool, but he had to know something about football to acheive his position. Part of his problem was the little guy to his left (Snyder).

[bikie]

When I posted on Twitter that Vinny was on my flight, someone asked if he was out on the wing, ripping out wires. I found that amusing.

hahahahah... enjoyed the article... thanks for posting it..

[TheLongshot]

- Drafted Chris Samuels (in 2000)

- Drafted Derrick Dockery (in 2003)

- Signed/traded for Randy Thomas (in 2003)

- Signed Casey Rabach (in 2005)

It's 2010. You're bringing up what Cerrato did four times since 2000 as if it's the rule, and not the exception. Sorry brother, that argument ain't gonna stick. In fact, I'd have a hard time naming one single team over the last 10 years who invested less in pursuit of depth along the offensive line.

But you were talking about the decade. Despite all the changes that had happened over the years, Vinny managed to keep together an OL that was pretty good for most of that decade. What really ended up derailing it was the lack of draft picks, and probably the decision to keep Jansen rather than replace him in 2007. Vinny does bear some responsibility for the decisions leading to that situation, but to say that Vinny doesn't recognize the importance of a good offensive line is questionable.

If you really would like to attempt to defend Cerrato, I'd recommend taking the controversial approach that Vinny actually did well drafting talent, he just needed someone overseeing him to tell him what positions to scout. That stance might have a chance.

It will be interesting to see what the final grade on the 2008 draft will be. It still has the potential to be one of the best drafts the Redskins had had in years. Despite the general opinion on here of Vinny, I do think he's a good personnel guy.

[onedrop]

Vinny?

[themurf]

But you were talking about the decade. Despite all the changes that had happened over the years, Vinny managed to keep together an OL that was pretty good for most of that decade. What really ended up derailing it was the lack of draft picks, and probably the decision to keep Jansen rather than replace him in 2007. Vinny does bear some responsibility for the decisions leading to that situation, but to say that Vinny doesn't recognize the importance of a good offensive line is questionable.

Let me simplify this for you: If a prostitute only got laid four times in the last decade would you say she's good at her job?

[SkinsTribeVA]

You got one thing wrong--after Mike Williams went out for the season, Cerrato wouldn't have just stuck with the OL group we have but he would've made a knee-jerk reaction trade for an OT. Enter Jamaal Brown or Jared Gaither. That seem like too good of a move for Vinny?--The kicker is he would've traded next year's 1st and 3rd for him...

[SkinsTribeVA]

double post, my b

[Hitman21ST]

You got one thing wrong--after Mike Williams went out for the season, Cerrato wouldn't have just stuck with the OL group we have but he would've made a knee-jerk reaction trade for an OT. Enter Jamaal Brown or Jared Gaither. That seem like too good of a move for Vinny?--The kicker is he would've traded next year's 1st and 3rd for him...

And it woulda been the wrong guy. He might have tried to make a play for Logan Mankins too

[Califan007 The Constipated]

Thanks, and I hope all is well as you guys settle in to your new place.

- Drafted Chris Samuels (in 2000)

- Drafted Derrick Dockery (in 2003)

- Signed/traded for Randy Thomas (in 2003)

- Signed Casey Rabach (in 2005)

It's 2010. You're bringing up what Cerrato did four times since 2000 as if it's the rule, and not the exception.

And YOU said he had a "decade of history" doing otherwise...so you were bringing up what Vinny has done over the last 10 years. Why fault me for reviewing those 10 years that you yourself brought up? lol...Now, if by "decade" you meant he has a 4-5 year history, then I'd edit your post if I were you.

Sorry brother, that argument ain't gonna stick. In fact, I'd have a hard time naming one single team over the last 10 years who invested less in pursuit of depth along the offensive line.

Again...you responded to Longshots claim that Vinny most likely would have replace Samuels with the 1st round pick...he did NOT say that Vinny would have made all of the O-Line improvements that Shanahan did. So your "decade of history" comment to back up your claim that Longshot was wrong is what I was commenting on...and, sorry brother, I feel I was far more accurate than you were. And again, if you had said "recent" history it might be another story. But you chose to portray the last 10 years as showing zero desire on Vinny's part to improve the OLine with anything other than late round scrubs.

If you really would like to attempt to defend Cerrato...

I wish people would stop relying on that tired, worn-out cop out of "defending Cerrato"...Your claim wasn't based on anything factual (we would NOT have drafted Capers if Vinny was still here?...WTF? ...And this is based on, what, exactly?), and I pointed out those areas that were not. It doesn't matter a hill of beans if you're talking about Vinny, Haynesworth, Snyder, Gibbs or Mother Theresa. If you can show othewise, then do so instead of trotting out the "defending Vinny" twaddle.

[VaSkinsNut]

The article is dead on, only thing I'd add is T.O. would likely be a Redskin and we'd likely have offered him a 3 year 45 million dollar deal.

[Califan007 The Constipated]

Let me simplify this for you: If a prostitute only got laid four times in the last decade would you say she's good at her job?

??

If a prostitute only CAN get laid once a year, and four of those times she got paid pretty well...I doubt I'd say that her "history" over that timespan shows that she can't earn a dime hooking even if she tried.

And again...nobody is saying Vinny did his job well...that's what the knee-jerk "Defending Vinny" stance ends up doing to legitimate discussions...lumping people into either the "Vinny sucked" or "Vinny did good" boxes. But the idea that Vinny never in a million years would have drafted Williams or did anything this offseason to upgrade the OLine isn't backed up by a "decade of history", no matter how much we all may hate the guy. It just isn't.

[AKM311]

Let me simplify this for you: If a prostitute only got laid four times in the last decade would you say she's good at her job?

Hate Vinny, but this comparison doesn't make sense.

Because the response would be....Did the lay last for majority of the decade?

[McD5]

Minus 2 points for using the word twaddle.

Minus another 8 points for playing semantics, and for defending arguably the worst GM in the entire league.

Vinny built the team from the wrong direction. Everyting but o-linemen first, and o-linemen came last.

Be thrilled he is gone. Unless someone here is related to him. That seems to be the only basis for defending the guy. He was incompetent.

[Califan007 The Constipated]

The article is dead on, only thing I'd add is T.O. would likely be a Redskin and we'd likely have offered him a 3 year 45 million dollar deal.

Vinny had ample opportunity to sign T.O. a few times during his tenure here...and each time he said "no". Why would he say "yes" this year?

[Califan007 The Constipated]

Minus 2 points for using the word twaddle.

Minus another 8 points for playing semantics, and for defending arguably the worst GM in the entire league.

Vinny built the team from the wrong direction. Everyting but o-linemen first, and o-linemen came last.

Be thrilled he is gone. Unless someone here is related to him. That seems to be the only basis for defending the guy. He was incompetent.

Oooh...I'm being docked points by McD5, the guy who's about 2,000,000 points in the hole as we speak lol ...

By the way, thank you for providing a perfect reason why people should stop using the "Defending Vinny" stance as an easy out. The mere fact that you continue to constantly do it should detract anyone else from wanting to follow suit. :thumbsup:

[themurf]

Hate Vinny, but this comparison doesn't make sense.

Because the response would be....Did the lay last for majority of the decade?

I asked if Cerrato did a good job of providing offensive line depth during his decade with the Redskins and was given four examples over a 10-year span. Considering the team has brought in more offensive linemen than that in the short time since he's been gone (A. Hicks, J. Brown, T. Williams, S. Capers, E. Cook), I'd say he failed.

[themurf]

Vinny had ample opportunity to sign T.O. a few times during his tenure here...and each time he said "no". Why would he say "yes" this year?

We agree on that. I don't think Terrell Owens would have been here, even if Cerrato was still around. I do, however, think Cerrato would have traded away a ton of picks for Vincent Jackson though.