WT: Just thinking out loud by the numbers

[bubba9497]

Just thinking out loud by the numbers

By Dan Daly

THE WASHINGTON TIMES

http://www.washtimes.com/sports/20031202-120402-9909r.htm

What do I think of the Redskins' crashing and burning this season? What do I really, really think? OK, here's what I really, really think:

1. I think they should consider themselves lucky. As another writer reminded me Sunday night, "If the Jets had had Chad Pennington and the Falcons had had Michael Vick, the Redskins would be 2-10."

2. I think the problem at Redskin Park is ... everything. Players aren't playing well enough, coaches aren't coaching well enough and management isn't managing well enough. A lot of cooks are spoiling this stew, not just one or two.

3. I think the Redskins should be required to make the playoffs before anybody in the organization utters the word "playoffs" again.

4. In fact, I think the Maryland legislature should pass a law to that effect.

5. I think I know now what it was like to live in 17th century France. Or is it stretching things to compare Louis XIV, who inherited the throne as a toddler (and ruled forever), to Dan Snyder, who bought the Redskins at 35 (and is threatening to own them forever)?

6. I think Steve Spurrier would have more credibility with his players — and so would his system — if the Redskins had been able to win more than two games in a row the past two seasons. The Redskins won five straight, I'll just point out, under Marty Schottenheimer in 2001 and five straight under Norv Turner the year before (preceded by streaks of four in '99, four in '98 and seven in '96). When you can't put a decent run together, it suggests that what you're doing doesn't really work.

7. I think most of the major issues confronting the Redskins were identifiable back in training camp (and were written about extensively in this newspaper). When you replace Stephen Davis with Trung Canidate, Darryl Gardener with Whoever and a seasoned defensive coordinator (Marvin Lewis) with the least experienced one in the league (George Edwards), you're asking for trouble.

8. I think the Redskins are a largely destructive force in the NFL. They damage a good Jets team by signing four of their players, but — and this is unbelievable — the players don't make the Redskins any better.

9. I think Spurrier doesn't understand the concept of offensive balance. Offensive balance doesn't mean calling an equal number of running and passing plays each week. It means having the ability to both run and pass effectively — so you can take advantage of an opponent's weakness. The Saints game was a classic example. The Redskins were facing a club that was ranked 27th in rushing defense and ninth in passing defense. So what does the Ball Coach do? He calls 45 passes (three of which resulted in Tim Hasselbeck scrambles) and 23 runs. It should have been the other way around.

10. I think Hasselbeck is Danny Wuerffel with more mobility.

11. I think Snyder and Vinny Cerrato's roster moves during the season have been shaky, to say the least. First they sign tight end Byron Chamberlain — only to discover that there's no place in the offense for him (which is why he's been lounging on the inactive list). Then they add a couple of dubious characters, defensive tackle Darrell Russell and offensive tackle Kenyatta Jones, to a team that already has chemistry concerns. This is how you build a winner?

12. I think if the Redskins are successful at all under Snyder, it will be an accident — kind of like the Cardinals sneaking into the playoffs in '98. The club simply lacks the structure to win long term. The owner is too involved with personnel matters, there's no strong GM, and the current coaching staff appears out of its depth.

13. I think Snyder has little to risk by changing coaches again after the season. Continuity is overrated, if you ask me. Continuity is only important if you've got something you want to keep. Besides, if a team can find the right guy — and Spurrier has given no indication of being the right guy — it can turn it around in a hurry. Look at Bill Parcells in Dallas. Look at Marvin Lewis in Cincinnati. Look at Jon Gruden last year in Tampa. Rebuilding jobs don't have to take two or three seasons if there's a reasonable amount of talent on hand.

14. That said, I think it's going to become harder and harder for Snyder to hire the Right Guy, because he has a track record now — one that speaks loudly. Oh, sure, somebody will always jump at the money, but will it be the best candidate or someone further down the list?

15. I think if Dan the Man is looking for a business model, he should check out the Patriots or Eagles. The owners of those franchises are very careful about who they give big contracts to. The Pats said goodbye to Lawyer Milloy this season — and may do the same to Ty Law next — and have lived to tell about it. Philly, meanwhile, bid adieu to Hugh Douglas and Shawn Barber, found less expensive fill-ins, and remains formidable. It might be time for Snyder to consider whether LaVar Arrington, Chris Samuels and Champ Bailey (assuming he's retained) should be occupying so much of the club's cap space. Is one LaVar worth, say, three starters?

16. I think none of these thoughts will have any impact on the running of the Redskins. Snyder is who he is. And if he hasn't figured it out by now, he probably never will.

[bubba9497]

I think this guy is just a hack, who wants to bash Snyder and Spurrier.

He has only a couple "thoughts" that are even worth discussing.

then again... no he doesn't, just another "they are wrong, I know more, yadda yadda yadda" hack job.

[The Sisko]

Quite the contrary Bubba. This may very well be the first article in which I agree with every single word, comma, and period in it. Oh, I forgot, I agree with the spaces in it too.

Sure it's a critical article. However, I'd like you to tell me one thing he said that isn't true. Sometimes, the truth hurts. If reading this type of piece is what it takes for the Danny to step away from the day to day running of the team and hire a real GM to run things, then so be it.

Other than these types of articles, I think our only hope may be if Snyder talks to his counterpart in Dallas and changes his ways. It's a sad day to be a Skins fan when Jerrah is one of your only sources of hope.

:anon:

[Heavy Jumbo]

I think the Skins are screwed this year.

I think I will still have high hopes next year.

HAIL SKINS!

[Skins24]

Originally posted by Buck

I think the Skins are screwed this year.

Really?

What makes you say that?

[TD_washingtonredskins]

I find it hard to shoot holes in what this guy is saying actually. Not a bad article...though I hope somehow he's wrong.

[OURYEAR#56]

I don't like fair wether fans. So we stink, but I like th eproduct we have on the field. if we tune a few areas we'll win a few games in a row. Steve did win three straight games last year to close out the season. I hope he wins four to shut some of these mutha f*ckers up.

[MikeB]

Ouch.

But very true.

[SlobberKnockinFootball]

Originally posted by Buck

I think the Skins are screwed this year.

I think I will still have high hopes next year.

HAIL SKINS!

Thank you Captain Obvious! :boobies:

[TD_washingtonredskins]

OURYEAR, Our team only won its final two games last year. We lost to either the Eagles or Giants, then beat the Texans and Cowboys.

Just keeping things straight.

[Heavy Jumbo]

Originally posted by brookboyz25

Thank you Captain Obvious! :boobies:

No Problem. :boobies:

[bigchuck]

Good article. Everything is true. Ive always said we need a good GM in here. Danny and bugeyes are a joke. Although I like some of the moves Danny and Buggy have done with this offseason, I think he 'll hurt us in the long run with the cap. Teams like the Pats and Beagles have stabality because they draft well. They pick LB's and CB's in the 3rd and latter rounds to make a impact 2 or 3 yrs later. So they can afford to tell bigtime free agents like Lawyer and Hugh to leave. Can we honestly say that we have depth at the Cb and Lb positions to tell Champ and Lavar to leave? or the O line for that matter with Jansen or Samuels?

I really like Rich Mckay in Tampa. The guy is smart and has an eye for talent. I hoped last year he would leave Tampa during the whole Marvin Lewis debacle. and Danny would be smart enough to call him up or fly Danny One down there to pick him up.

As a lifelong fan of the Redskins, I dont feel confident in the direction our franchise is headed. We are the now the joke of the NFL. I know this seems like a Danny bash thread but hes needs a football guy in the FO. Bugeyes is not the answer.

[RF4L]

Originally posted by bubba9497

I think this guy is just a hack, who wants to bash Snyder and Spurrier.

He has only a couple "thoughts" that are even worth discussing.

then again... no he doesn't, just another "they are wrong, I know more, yadda yadda yadda" hack job.

Not this time, bubba. Yusuf is right.

This is a solid article. Can you dispute his points?

[ummagumma]

The guy's a repetative hack...

I'm so sick and tired of hearing that the wins over ATL and NYJ don't count because they had injured players. The pundits NEVER cut us any slack when we have an injury or two or 10. If we didn't win, then there is a problem. It's a part of the game. By that token a few breaks and or better calls by officiating and we're 6-6. But that's part of the game too.

Other probelms...Did Parcells or Lewis rebuild their teams? Or simply motivate them? Gruden CLEARLY didn't rebuild the Bucs. He caught lightning in a bottle for a year.

[Ignatius J.]

Since some of you think this writer is worth his weight in sh!t.

Originally posted by bubba9497

1. I think they should consider themselves lucky. As another writer reminded me Sunday night, "If the Jets had had Chad Pennington and the Falcons had had Michael Vick, the Redskins would be 2-10."

this is crap. We are 4-8. We are what we are. As close as we came to 2-10, we are to 6-6. To imply that the reskins have not suffered from thier injuries is silly. Either cut both ways with this knife or leave it in the cupboard. Whatever this is, it isn't reporting.

Originally posted by bubba9497

2. I think the problem at Redskin Park is ... everything. Players aren't playing well enough, coaches aren't coaching well enough and management isn't managing well enough. A lot of cooks are spoiling this stew, not just one or two.

It's a good thing most food reviewers don't walk into the kitchen and start tasting stew as chefs are preparing it and then begin writing articles about how bad the chefs are. That's all I have to say about this.

Originally posted by bubba9497

3. I think the Redskins should be required to make the playoffs before anybody in the organization utters the word "playoffs" again.

4. In fact, I think the Maryland legislature should pass a law to that effect.

This is the dumbest part. Playoffs are the point right now. I want every talking plaoffs right now. I want them to feel and know what they are missing. I want them to want it so bad it hurts. What does this guy want? the lions?

Originally posted by bubba9497

5. I think I know now what it was like to live in 17th century France. Or is it stretching things to compare Louis XIV, who inherited the throne as a toddler (and ruled forever), to Dan Snyder, who bought the Redskins at 35 (and is threatening to own them forever)?

This is somehow factual?

Originally posted by bubba9497

6. I think Steve Spurrier would have more credibility with his players — and so would his system — if the Redskins had been able to win more than two games in a row the past two seasons. The Redskins won five straight, I'll just point out, under Marty Schottenheimer in 2001 and five straight under Norv Turner the year before (preceded by streaks of four in '99, four in '98 and seven in '96). When you can't put a decent run together, it suggests that what you're doing doesn't really work.

for all this talk of a credibility gap you don't see it on the field. Players are playing thier guts out. Whether its for spurrier or not, the problems are talent and some scheming. But MOSTLY talent.

If they get some continuity and have more time to get comfortable with thier assignments, it would be reasonable to see them play beyond thier talents, but to suggest that we havesome kind of super team is ludicrous at thispoint.

Originally posted by bubba9497

7. I think most of the major issues confronting the Redskins were identifiable back in training camp (and were written about extensively in this newspaper). When you replace Stephen Davis with Trung Canidate, Darryl Gardener with Whoever and a seasoned defensive coordinator (Marvin Lewis) with the least experienced one in the league (George Edwards), you're asking for trouble.

thi is somehow an indictment of our team? Or of our coach? None of these players or coaches wanted to be here. They wanted to leave and so they left. We knew these problems existed, but went for long term solutions: ie GE and players like dalton and canidate who were cheap and young, but who have shown flashes of serious talent. If they don't work out fine, but for once we're thinking longer term than justthis year. I think that's what we've needed all along, I guess this writer wouldhave rather given gardener a break the bank contract so that when he broke his back in a bar fight we'd be stuck paying him his 18 million signing bonus as disability leave.....

Originally posted by bubba9497

8. I think the Redskins are a largely destructive force in the NFL. They damage a good Jets team by signing four of their players, but — and this is unbelievable — the players don't make the Redskins any better.

this may or may not be true, but I feel like we've gotten better. I finnally feel like this team is gong somewhere. The saints game was a step backwards, and if that trend contiues, I'll change my mind, but the seattle,carolina,miami stretch was impressive enough for me.

Originally posted by bubba9497

9. I think Spurrier doesn't understand the concept of offensive balance. Offensive balance doesn't mean calling an equal number of running and passing plays each week. It means having the ability to both run and pass effectively — so you can take advantage of an opponent's weakness. The Saints game was a classic example. The Redskins were facing a club that was ranked 27th in rushing defense and ninth in passing defense. So what does the Ball Coach do? He calls 45 passes (three of which resulted in Tim Hasselbeck scrambles) and 23 runs. It should have been the other way around.

I think that it makes more sense to consider screen passes as rushing plays.

Originally posted by bubba9497

10. I think Hasselbeck is Danny Wuerffel with more mobility.

I actually agree with this. Hasselbeck is an excellent backup who makes quick decisions. He doesn't appear to have the arm strength to be an everyday starter, but his smarts and mobility make him an aset to the team. I think he's right in fact, but at this point I don't trust that he meant it well.

Originally posted by bubba9497

11. I think Snyder and Vinny Cerrato's roster moves during the season have been shaky, to say the least. First they sign tight end Byron Chamberlain — only to discover that there's no place in the offense for him (which is why he's been lounging on the inactive list). Then they add a couple of dubious characters, defensive tackle Darrell Russell and offensive tackle Kenyatta Jones, to a team that already has chemistry concerns. This is how you build a winner?

what are you gonna do? We picked up two pro-bowl players for nothing. How can you fault that?

Originally posted by bubba9497

12. I think if the Redskins are successful at all under Snyder, it will be an accident — kind of like the Cardinals sneaking into the playoffs in '98. The club simply lacks the structure to win long term. The owner is too involved with personnel matters, there's no strong GM, and the current coaching staff appears out of its depth.

we'll see.

Originally posted by bubba9497

13. I think Snyder has little to risk by changing coaches again after the season. Continuity is overrated, if you ask me. Continuity is only important if you've got something you want to keep. Besides, if a team can find the right guy — and Spurrier has given no indication of being the right guy — it can turn it around in a hurry. Look at Bill Parcells in Dallas. Look at Marvin Lewis in Cincinnati. Look at Jon Gruden last year in Tampa. Rebuilding jobs don't have to take two or three seasons if there's a reasonable amount of talent on hand.

Cinncinatti is a pplace that has had all the talent you could hope for walk through thier doors every year. That a decent coach manages to get them somewhere should come as a supriseto no one. Same goes for dallas. As for Gruden, he inherited a defense. What is he doing this year?

Originally posted by bubba9497

14. That said, I think it's going to become harder and harder for Snyder to hire the Right Guy, because he has a track record now — one that speaks loudly. Oh, sure, somebody will always jump at the money, but will it be the best candidate or someone further down the list?

If there is one thing we should have learned by now it is that snyder always gets his guy. It's not just the money, although that helps, but he is a schmoozer extrodinaire.

Originally posted by bubba9497

15. I think if Dan the Man is looking for a business model, he should check out the Patriots or Eagles. The owners of those franchises are very careful about who they give big contracts to. The Pats said goodbye to Lawyer Milloy this season — and may do the same to Ty Law next — and have lived to tell about it. Philly, meanwhile, bid adieu to Hugh Douglas and Shawn Barber, found less expensive fill-ins, and remains formidable. It might be time for Snyder to consider whether LaVar Arrington, Chris Samuels and Champ Bailey (assuming he's retained) should be occupying so much of the club's cap space. Is one LaVar worth, say, three starters?

I think that coles and thomas have been worth it. I think davis was not. I think gardener was not. What is this guy talking about? He has criticized snyder for the same actionhe is now reccomending......

yeah, this guy has it down....

Originally posted by bubba9497

16. I think none of these thoughts will have any impact on the running of the Redskins. Snyder is who he is. And if he hasn't figured it out by now, he probably never will.

I think he has figured it out. This year in fact. This past offseason was a great start. IF we keep it up we will see results for a long time. WE are finnally working towards the future here, and if these "future is now" bozos would get off his back, snyder might have a chance.

-DB

[Symbol]

I think that it makes more sense to consider screen passes as rushing plays.

Dude, that's why it's called screen pass, because it's not a running play, it's a quick pass to the running back or reciever. No pass can replace the running game, this is why last year the Patriots started to crash and burn until they realised that they needed to run the ball instead of pass the ball.