Finally ...

[Henry]

Someone finally realizes Snyder isn't the same owner he was two years ago. From today's USA Today:

"Laid back: He didn't fire the coach. He criticized no one publicly. He worked behind the scenes to make things better.

Daniel Snyder promised he'd let Marty Schottenheimer run the Washington Redskins, and he has been as good as his word.

He kept quiet through a five-game losing streak. He said nothing as the Redskins reversed course and won five in a row. He's getting the hang of this.

In a lengthy conversation at Redskins Park in Ashburn, Va., Snyder acknowledged struggling with his feelings and took pride in sticking to the game plan.

"It hurts so much to lose, not only to be 0-5 but to lose any game," Snyder said. "I think I said at the National Press Club when we were 0-4 that it's not come together as quickly as Marty or I or the fans would like, but I thought it would and I stood by that."

Whence this newfound patience?

"Patience has always been a strength for me, even though I'm high energy and have a high drive to win and win today," he says. "It's always been persistence, patience and more persistence."

The introspection that comes with defeats has also provided an education over the three seasons Snyder has owned the Redskins.

"You sure question yourself. You look in the mirror, you look around you, you wonder what's going right and what's going wrong. That's part of it. You say, 'How do I get this right?' Being 0-5 was a very big surprise for everyone. Hopefully I'll never experience that again."

There's also a bit about the Cards. Now that they've won 3 in a row they're the flavor of the week. Frankly, I prefer it that way. For the full story:

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/nfl/nfcbeat.htm

[@DCGoldPants]

I like how Danny gets props but at the same time....it wouldn't matter. He's the boss and either you like him or hate him. I know deep down he wants to win as much as we do. That's cool with owners like Angelos up in B-more just trying to make $$, Danny wants to win win win.

me too

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[bulldog]

Snyder is learning that the less he says in public about what he 'will do' allows him greater flexibility and less scrutiny down the line.

Why telegraph your emotions or intentions? His dislike for Norv was too public. Because Norv was such a quiet and unassuming type, the only way to fire him without bringing down calls of harshness or lack of sensitivity was to make it based on wins and losses, coldly and objectively.

Unfortunately, Snyder chose 11pm after an emotional loss to pull the switch.

Remember JKC's firing of Jack Pardee? He allowed Pardee to finish out a horrible 6-10 year in 1980 in which the team was actually 3-10 at one point and only became somewhat respectable with a modest winning streak at the end of the season in garbage time.

He brought Pardee in. He brought Beathard in. He listened to both and then fired Pardee. He never said anything negative about Pardee in public or indeed never made any mention of him thereafter.

Beathard went on to conduct a search for a new coach and that was the end of it.

Snyder needs to treat Marty the same way. This is a business. Either Marty delivers or he fails to deliver and is removed. One win or loss either way should not color the decision, it should be based on the preponderance of the evidence over time.

At 5-6 Marty has made some mistakes that have cost the team dearly.

Would another coach have taken this team to the playoffs or won the division? Would another coach have replaced Jeff George in February and moved on?

Snyder has to wait until the end of the season to weigh that against what Marty has done positively, in drafting Smoot and Gardner as well as bringing in some promising youngsters in Brandt, Pierce, Ohalete, etc......

He also gets points for resurrecting the career of KiJana Carter and starting to develop other younger players such as Zeron Flemister, Bryan Johnson and Derrius Thompson who were around but rarely if ever considered by Norv Turner.