Bgo.c.d.: 2-2 = 4

[Tarhog]

Some call it ‘addition by subtraction’.

I call it refreshing. Whatever you call it, the strategic plan to return the Washington Redskins franchise to respectability, and perhaps beyond, is materializing before our incredulous eyes. And it’s a beautiful sight to behold.

Engaging in something akin to an organizational enema, Bruce Allen and Mike Shanahan have raised that liter bag full of warm, sudsy water to the ceiling and let ‘err rip. Listen closely Redskins fans. You can almost hear the audible sigh of relief from Ashburn, echo through the Maryland and Virginia suburbs.

Wormer? He’s a dead man! Marmalard? Dead! Niedermeyer? Dead!

Haynesworth? McNabb? Well…you get the idea.

I don’t know if Fat Albert and the former Super Bowl MVP (Man Vomited in Public) were bad guys. I just know they were bad for the Redskins. And their departure signals a couple of important changes at Redskins Park.

We’re going young. It’s a year later than it should have been, but its happening. The Redskins have so many new youthful faces, players are sporting required ‘Hi, I’m ______’ nametags at training camp. There haven’t been so many ‘yes sirs’ uttered at training camp since George Allen was running the show. Even many of the vets the Redskins are bringing in these days are on the south side of 30. And this new commitment to youth means only one thing. Shanahan and Allen may eschew the ‘R word’, but make no mistake about it, this team is engaged in the most dramatic rebuilding effort the franchise has seen in a long, long time.

Attitude matters. Let’s face it, the Burgundy and Gold locker room positivity meter jumped 20 points in just the last 72 hours. Between Haynesworth laying down on the ground and refusing to get up for a couple of seasons and McNabb’s continuous pout-fest, the Redskins have barely been able to muster the energy to actually play football. Granted – when you knowingly bring two established divas to DC and pay them a king’s ransom - you get what you asked for. Still, that the powers that be have concluded enough is enough, regardless of the cost, is impressive. Couple the departure of malcontents #1 and #2 with moving Clinton Portis out to pasture, and ending the Hands of Stone era, and you’ve magically discovered the recipe for a decidedly calmer, more focused, and stable roster. Save the drama for your mama…indeed.

Effort and discipline trump raw talent. Really? Every football coach, from Pop Warner to NFL, pays lip service to that mantra. And for good reason, since as much as anyone who’s ever watched ‘Rudy’ 20 or 30 times on TNT can attest, it feels good to believe it. But sometimes, it’s just a damn lie. You have to modify that outdated, corny old idea just a little to get to the point. Effort and discipline and good talent working together trump superior raw talent with ego and selfishness. I believe that. And by the Power of Greystoke, I think the guys leading our beloved Redskins finally believe it too.

I’ll confess something. Even if this ragtag bunch of anonymous no-names (let’s call them ‘The Under-the-Hill Gang’) can’t beat the better and more talented NFL teams in the next couple of years, I’ll relish that we’re trying hard, doing the right things to build a winner the right way, and take my fan lumps with a smile on my face – something I haven’t been able to muster in years.

And so it begins. A new era, not just a season-opening email marketing slogan, but the real thing dawns for our Redskins and each of us as fans. When our glorious Redskins rush out onto FedEx Field a short month or so from now to do battle, I’ll be there to cheer what’s his name, you know…that guy, the new kid, the others we just picked up, and whatchamacallit with as much enthusiasm as I’ve had in years.

Addition by subtraction. It’s starting to add up for me – and I think it equals….hope?

Click HERE to read other BGO.C.D. blog entries.

[HailinginSeattle]

Excellent post, I couldn't agree more! HAIL!

[RonYoungEra]

great post..nice read..thanks!

[Dallsux]

Nice read. I can't wait to see "whatchamacallit", "that guy", & "what's his name" making plays. I have felt the refreshing cool breeze from Redskins Park all the way down here in glamorous Mobile, Al. & it is awesome to feel that our Redskins our moving in the right direction. I am aware that it will probably be a few years before we are a true contender, but we can finally now collectively say, "this is how you do it." I am so excited now for football season...Nice post Tarhog. I agree completely.

[lovemaskins]

Very well said. Integrate the derivative, and the Redskins are back.

[s0crates]

"The under-the-hill gang." I like it.

[scruffylookin]

I agree with everything you said here Tarhog.

This should have been done last year but I'm pleased it's happening this year.

We have not seen a true rebuild like this in nearly 20 years. Though I think Marty was going in that direction (dumped contracts in year 1) but never had the chance to continue.

[TSO]

Nicely done; well thought out and just as well written! It's great to see ES back in action like this again.

As for the subject matter, I pretty much am in total agreement with you here Tarhog. I'm just extremely excited to see who becomes the next Redskin superstar this year. I don't think enough people realize just how many guys Shanny has brought in who are on the cusp of greatness but just need that opportunity to shine. He's giving them that opportunity, and in many instances it's behind guys who have been there and done that so they have no question as to what it takes... but once they prove they can do it, they go in that instant. Shanny has proven he's not tied to the hip to some guy simply because he's a vet. I think that's the very reason all of these Free Agents who have proven themselves as hard workers and productive contributors that were just stuck on the wrong side of the depth chart on their respective teams have chosen to come to a team like ours right now. They know they can become key members of a team here.

Again, I can't wait for this season to unfold. We are about to witness an actual Redskin team grow from the ground up! These guys will be our guys... they will become valuable players around the league as Redskins and even if we cut our ties with them in the future we will get value for them because of it. It's awesome. For instance, I think that, right now, we could even get a pick for a guy like Brandon Banks if we feel like other guys can outplay him. That's the kind of depth we're building here. It's great to see us actually having the option to unload a weapon and get value while just plugging in another weapon at the same time.

The one thing I do disagree with, however, is the notion that this is coming "a year too late". Shanahan did the right thing by going all in last year because there really was no telling what kind of team we were and whether or not we were just awful because of poor coaching. You take the chance and try to win knowing that, at the very least, you'll come away knowing how far you are from the ultimate goal as well as establish the winning culture every championship team has. That's what last year was. He found out how far we were and there were no "if's" left to ponder on. Every position, every player and every unit's place in the grand scheme of things is now more apparent than ever.

More evidence proving this is what happened is how, as the season progressed and the team's weaknesses and strengths became more apparent, you saw Shanahan make more and more changes in putting the younger guys in as well as seeing how the team fares without McNabb. He pretty much went into total experimentation mode right before our eyes without actually destroying the chemistry of the team to the point where nothing could be gleamed out of it. What I mean by that is the young guys that were given a chance weren't just give a chance for the sake of it, they earned it by proving they could do it in practice. Furthermore, he put in the QB most familiar with the scheme so that other guys couldn't have the excuse that they were open or not put in the best position to succeed because the QB himself was learning.

I've been real quiet around here because I almost feel like I'm one of the only ones seeing all of this with all the complaining that happens around here. I know that's definitely not the case, of course, and I'm sure so many feel the same way which is why they're silent as well. None of us feel like getting into it with the most vocal around here as there's really no point. I just am really, really excited to watch this team grow right now into something special. I feel like it can this year as well because it has already started. We've got guys all over the depth chart who will make their careers as Redskins. They will, from the onset, be Redskins. Shanahan has already begun the rebuilding in my mind, and it's well underway.

[MR2Drift]

Good article lets just hope that Snyder will support Shanny for few more years at the very least. Last thing I want to do is build an offense and defense and blow it up and have to rebuild for new schemes.

[Oldfan]

I’ll confess something. Even if this ragtag bunch of anonymous no-names (let’s call them ‘The Under-the-Hill Gang’) can’t beat the better and more talented NFL teams in the next couple of years, I’ll relish that we’re trying hard, doing the right things to build a winner the right way, and take my fan lumps with a smile on my face – something I haven’t been able to muster in years.

Amen, Brother.

To achieve any worthwhile goal, you have to be both willing and able to do it. In due time, we will find out if the team's decision-makers have the ability to find talent. But, for now. I can root for people who are willing to build the right way.

[Tarhog]

Thanks for the great comments guys. Redskins fans really are some of the most loyal. The pain, uproar,and criticism we've heard and been a part of is based mostly on, not losing (as a lot of folks might believe), but in the obvious lack of an effective plan of any kind. I think we're seeing the start of one now. Yeah, winning cures everything. But even a couple competitive seasons during Gibbs II didn't solve things as we reverted right back to rudderless uncertainty when he bolted. Better days are ahead.

[HailToTheRedskins14]

I also think one of the reasons we couldn't do this last year was because of the bad cap situation we were in. I don't know if this was an option last year or not. I seem to remember the NFL-no cap situation being talked about as helping more for the future than for last year. I think this all started last year and we did about the best we could with the players & finances we had last year.

Still slightly shaking my head on the McNabb fiasco but whatever. I take it as a small gamble and I got no problem with that. We all need to realize that there will be lots of mistakes made over Shanahan's term here, but as long as the big picture is going in the right direction we should turn out pretty good.

EDIT - Also, it was a well written article.

And I posted the draft picks for the next two years in another thread but I'll re-post 'em here.

2012 : 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 4th, 5th, 6th, 6th, 7th

2013 : 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 5th, 6th, 6th, 7th

18 picks so far for the next two years, and who knows what kinda magic Shanahan will pull after what he did this past draft.

[Mania]

The process started last year as best it could. Bruce Allen cleared money from the books. He did this by restructuring contracts and putting the bulk of the money into last year in anticipation of a huge free agency in 2011. However, because of the uncapped year their weren't many good and YOUNG players available. The reason for this is that a player isn't eligible for free agency in an uncapped season until he has completed 6 seasons vs. The four seasons needed in a capped season.

Shanahan was able to find some gems from the practice squad, late round draft picks, and undrafted free agents that are now starting or providing strong depth for us.

Hail Skins The rebuild is underway.

[Tarhog]

Although you guys raise some good points, I'll disagree slightly on last year. If you recall, Shanahan and Allen were adamant prior to the season (and throughout it) that they weren't 're-building'. Maybe that was smoke intended for fans, or for the marketing department. The intended audience for those proclamations may have been Dan Snyder himself. I think the McNabb crapshoot came about partially because Shanahan and Allen thought they could do both simultaneously.

And I think a year of struggling to be competitive, and figuring out the Redskins weren't a team just a few 'plug and play' vets away from being competitive, had a big impact on where we are right now, and a total commitment (whether they'll ever utter the word 'rebuilding' or not) to a major rebuild from the ground up.

[Darth Tater]

Tarhog,

They made a lot of claims we now know now were pretty much BS. Where they rebuilding? At any given time, you need to be doing several things at once such as maximize on any opportunities created by a year that is out of the ordinary (if you look at NFL history, many of the big power shifts came to the coach best and quickest to to take advantage of opportunities of a weird year). Technically, no but they were demolishing pretty much a lot of the remainder of the past and putting us in the position to actually have the resources to rebuild while being in best possible position to take advantage of any opportunities that presented themselves. There was some failure of execution (McNabb for instance) but they did develop a good plan.

[Tarhog]

Fair points Darth, particularly on the financial component. The McNabb and Haynesworth debacles may be the best thing to have happened to the Redskins in a long while - as they will be a constant reminder of the perils of throwing money, or big names at the problem, and hoping they fix it.

[bigtroop]

noice......