bubba9497 Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 Snyder makes unkindest cuts http://www.washtimes.com/sports/20030831-121927-4270r.htm Frustration over final cuts surfaced yesterday at Redskin Park, where coach Steve Spurrier said owner Dan Snyder was responsible for dropping quarterback Danny Wuerffel and running back Kenny Watson. As the Redskins moved to the final 53-man roster in anticipation of today's deadline and Thursday's opener against the New York Jets, Spurrier was asked about the decision to keep Sultan McCullough over Watson. The coach's response made clear he wasn't pleased with some moves. "You're going to ask me about several players," Spurrier said, "and my answer is very simply this: When the coaching staff and the personnel department disagree about one or two players, the owner steps in and has the final say. That's the way we do things around here. So it was a team decision to keep the players we have around here. We all argue and discuss things, and then when the final decision is made, we all support it." Spurrier wouldn't say how many players that scenario applied to, but when the subject of Wuerffel came up — and the fact that he had been released became evident — Spurrier reiterated what he had said regarding Watson. "Back to my original statement: When there's a disagreement, the owner makes the final call," Spurrier said. Team sources confirmed that coaches were frustrated that Wuerffel and Watson were cut. Wuerffel was battling to be the No. 2 quarterback and was expected to be at least third-string, while Watson could have contributed on special teams and as an emergency tailback. Spurrier is very fond of Wuerffel, who won a Heisman Trophy and the national championship when the two were at Florida. And Watson won over coaches and teammates with his work ethic and productivity as a spot starter last season. Those who wanted to ax Wuerffel, though, believed he had done nothing in practices or preseason games to prove he's a true NFL quarterback. Indeed, until Wuerffel surged in the second half of Thursday's preseason loss at Jacksonville, he hadn't been particularly impressive. And while Watson may have been last season's No. 2 rusher (534 yards), the feeling was that he was only going to play special teams and that McCullough has a higher upside in 2004 and beyond. Whether yesterday's frustration will resurface in coming weeks or months is unclear. Club officials downplayed the dispute, saying this is a stressful weekend around the league and that final cuts are never easy. An upshot of Wuerffel's release is that Washington has no No. 3 quarterback. Rookie Gibran Hamdan also was cut — with the intention of being re-signed to the practice squad — and the Redskins have no emergency passer if both Patrick Ramsey and Rob Johnson go down in a game. "If we get two injuries in the game, I don't know what we'll do," Spurrier said. "There's nobody who can stand under center, drop back and throw it. We can always put in some single-wing plays. Sometimes the way our offense looks, that might not be too bad." Spurrier added that the club "certainly" would look at Wuerffel if they had an injury, noting that his preseason rating (84.2) was the team's highest. Other club officials supported that statement. Johnson was happy to have won the backup job, which seemed likely to go to Wuerffel given Spurrier's history and his quotes after Thursday's game. Johnson expects to boost his play now that he can focus on game planning each week rather than on learning Spurrier's entire playbook. "Obviously, we've got improvement to do," Johnson said. "I thought I played well in the first couple games. The last couple games ... it's preseason. Basically, now it's for real, and that's what we're all here for." Wuerffel had two stints as the starting quarterback last season, getting injured both times. He did help win the Nov. 24 game against St. Louis with a solid performance, and he threw three touchdown passes four days later in the Thanksgiving Day loss at Dallas. But his rating was 70.9 and he was sacked nearly once every nine times he dropped back. "Obviously, I'm very disappointed not to be a part of this team," Wuerffel said. "I'm frustrated. I felt like I competed well enough to be a part of the team." Watson filled in for Stephen Davis admirably last year. He rushed for 67 yards, including 42 on the final drive, when Davis missed the second half of the Oct. 27 win over Indianapolis. The next week Watson rushed for 110 yards in a win at Seattle. In a Dec. 22 victory over Houston, he and Betts became the first Redskins pair in 17 years to go over 100 yards apiece. Watson is a classic example of a player whom coaches love (because he works hard and gets the job done), but scouts shrug at (because he has none of the prototypical attributes). That's at least partly why there was no trade market for him. However, there now seems to be a fair chance he'll get claimed off waivers given a league-wide deficiency at running back. "Hopefully, somebody will give me an opportunity," Watson said. "I was pretty surprised and I'm a lot disappointed. I think I had a good opportunity this year, but they didn't feel the same way I did." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skins26 Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 Emergency 3 QB = Rod Gardner. Hell yeah give him a shot huh! Single Wing!??!?! Holy **** a single wing in the NFL.......if we go to Rod i bet we would do that. Or go normal with Rod man who's gonna stop it, rumor has it he's got a cannon, and he can run we know! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Wicked Wop Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 I think this basically says that if we need Wuerfel, he's a phone call away....I would look for the skins to add him and maybe put someone on IR down the road, especially if the skins are in playoff contention late in the year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffSchmeff Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 So basically if I'm reading this right, it was a power struggle between Vinnie & Co and the coaches. Spurrier backed Wuerffel, Hue backed Kenny, nobody blinked and Snyder went with his boy Cerrato's opinon. We'll see if he's right. I could care less about the Wuerffel cut because I think we could pick him back up or a street free agent that would be equally effective, but I think you go with the coaches when it comes to Watson. If Jackson wasn't going to bat for Sultan (and from what I read, it seems obvious he wasn't...why keep him when you can cut/practice squad him?), don't you think he is the best person to listen to here? He's the RB coach. I don't think it makes a huge difference in the grand scheme, but to cut a guy who could contribute (Watson) for a guy that will see little to no playing time (Sultan) just makes no sense to me. Let's all cross our fingers that the O moves the chains and Trung can pickup huge chunks of yardage on on draws and misdirection runs... /rant :2cents: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaffeen Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 I wonder if this is the beginning of the end. These are the types of things that can fester. I wish Synder would just let the coach have the final say instead of pretending that he is some kind of personnel guru. Synder should stick to managing his phone soliciters instead of his football team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Wicked Wop Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 I wonder if this is the beginning of the end. These are the types of things that can fester. I wish Synder would just let the coach have the final say instead of pretending that he is some kind of personnel guru. Synder should stick to managing his phone soliciters instead of his football team. I read a similar comment in another thread, about Snyder making personnel decisions. Fact is, some of us are quick to forget the personnel that Snyder/Cerrato brought in early in free agency with bascially everyone signing his praises. Clearly Spurrier wanted to keep Wuerfel on because of his loyalty and ability to help others...this was not enough for the FO, plus they figured they could bring him in as needed....fact is however, that he will likely be added near the end of the year, especially if this team is in the playoff hunt. As far as Watson....this was a painful decision anyway you look at it.....and I don't think for a second that the FO quickly came to a decision on releasing him. However Sultan proved that he has NFL abililty much like Watson, and can be a solid contributor on special teams....this along with the fact that Cannidate, Betts, Mort, and Sultan can offer everything Watson can do and then some as a RB....probably made this choice a little easier. Everyone is quick to point out Watson's production last year, but just remember that Betts had just over 200 yards less then Watson in far fewer opportunities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinswin Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 Snyder is planting the seeds of anarchy for sure. It's up to the coaches to decide who stays and who goes. You see..the problem is that Spurrier was going to cut Betts sorry A$$ but Snyder couldn't stand for that because then he would look even more foolish. Watson and Sultan are better then Betts and everyone knows it. Snyder is our anti-Christ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Wicked Wop Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 You see..the problem is that Spurrier was going to cut Betts sorry A$$ but Snyder couldn't stand for that because then he would look even more foolish. Watson and Sultan are better then Betts and everyone knows it. What you need to see is that this is not Spurrier's decision to make. Fact is he was brought here to run the team and have input, but not final decisions on personnel. Lets also remember that Snyder and Cerrato brought in people like Coles, Morton, Cannidate...etc so Spurrier has the personnel to run the system he wanted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NavyDave Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 Some of you guys are hilarious. Did Danny waive Champ, Lavar,Jansen or Samuels? Danny has saved me in expenses from replacing remotes if we kept waffle on the team. Watson was not gonna be a probowler. At best he is an overachiever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hitman56 Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 All I know is this: Gardner at QB gives us the same chance to win as Weurfful at QB. Everyone here has to feel that when Danny boy gets in the game we have no chance to win. So, why keep a guy on the team who does not help you win? I don't care if he and Spurrier are best friends, this is a business and winning is the most important thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheKurp Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 Originally posted by JeffSchmeff If Jackson wasn't going to bat for Sultan (and from what I read, it seems obvious he wasn't...why keep him when you can cut/practice squad him?), don't you think he is the best person to listen to here? He's the RB coach. I don't think it makes a huge difference in the grand scheme, but to cut a guy who could contribute (Watson) for a guy that will see little to no playing time (Sultan) just makes no sense to me. The rest of the league pretty much agrees that the Redskins have depth at the running back position. With the exception of Gillespie, it's pretty much a foregone conclusion that regardless of who the Redskins release at the RB position, they'll get picked up by another team. Ergo, Sultan would not have been available to add to the practice squad because he never would have cleared waivers before another team signed him. Some people in the Skins organization felt there is a bigger upside to Sultan than Kenny. Time will tell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blondie Posted August 31, 2003 Share Posted August 31, 2003 Originally posted by skinswin Snyder is planting the seeds of anarchy for sure. It's up to the coaches to decide who stays and who goes. You see..the problem is that Spurrier was going to cut Betts sorry A$$ but Snyder couldn't stand for that because then he would look even more foolish. Watson and Sultan are better then Betts and everyone knows it. Snyder is our anti-Christ. Oh lord. This one is a bit over the top, don't ya think? Blondie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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