Is Snyder setting Zorn up for failure?

[JBarrett82]

Just another conspiracy theory for a down time during the offseason. With using the top draft picks this year on offensive players, Snyder appears to be doing the new coach a favor. I really hope Snyder didn't do this to stack the deck against Coach Zorn and make him a one-and-done fall guy for his replacement, the big fish that couldn't be caught this offseason. That's Bill Cowher in case you were wondering. Also, Snyder's first choice runs a different style of defense requiring different players. I would absolutely love nothing more than to see Coach Zorn succeed here and really do great things for the organization, but part of me can't help but wonder when the FO reverts back to its old ways, or gets impatient with a rookie head coach. I know he's been in the league for a long time, but I hope he thought about this scenario before he took the job and I hope he can get through the season without having to constantly be looking over his shoulder. I hate to think about things like this, but you can't help it with the track record this FO has. Some good people have been run out of town. And Zorn, who may look like a deer in headlights at times, may be the next unsuspecting fall guy. I don't want to see it happen, but it can't be ruled out. I know I'm crazy, but you can't tell me that absolutely noone else out there hasn't had a thought like this cross their mind...

[USS Redskins]

I have a friend who has a relative in the front office staff.... they believe this is absolutely the case. Snyder wants Cowher more than he wanted Gibbs, according to them.
Its almost a no lose situation for Snyder - if Zorn is a complete disaster, then he throws $60 mill at Cowher and gets the man he wants. If Zorn does well, then he will be hailed as a great owner with good insight, patience, blah, blah... and everyone is happy.
I have no faith in Zorn at all. How can you when the man has no coordinator/head coaching resume? But I am hoping that he is that hidden gem.....

[Aireskoi]

In what way is he setting him up for failure? By drafting guys who will help the offense?

[BALLz]

In what way is he setting him up for failure? By drafting guys who will help the offense?


Also, what say does Snyder have in who we draft. Cerato is the one making those decisions isn't he.

[chow184]

I have a friend who has a relative in the front office staff.... they believe this is absolutely the case. Snyder wants Cowher more than he wanted Gibbs, according to them.
Its almost a no lose situation for Snyder - if Zorn is a complete disaster, then he throws $60 mill at Cowher and gets the man he wants. If Zorn does well, then he will be hailed as a great owner with good insight, patience, blah, blah... and everyone is happy.
I have no faith in Zorn at all. How can you when the man has no coordinator/head coaching resume? But I am hoping that he is that hidden gem.....


yeah and I have common sense that tells me if thats the case cowher would stay the hell away from DC.

Cowher would want to run the show anyways(FO role),which means no vinny(and no snyder meddling),and snyder isn't getting rid of vinny any time soon.

[Heidenreich]

I hate the off season

[MEANDWARF]

This would be a good question for Marty Schimietroagjoaiggogier.

[Larry]

I can't say that the draft is setting him up.

But yeah, the way they hired him? Making him a coordinator, then promoting him to head coach a week or two later? Come on, the guy has "temp help" written all over him. And to then expect him to take over a team that's just lost it's top two levels of management, when he clearly doesn't have the support of the owner?

If Zorn can pull it off, then he's a better coach than Joe Gibbs.

[mistertim]

If we agree with you will you stop posting?

[Cooley4President]

I hate the off season

Concur.

No, he's not setting him up for failure. Owners make unpopular decisions (like dumping a coach after 1 year) all the time, what does he care what we think? He could do anything and we'd still pay for our tickets and sport the Skins jerseys.

[Rdskn4Lyf21]

Just another conspiracy theory for a down time during the offseason. With using the top draft picks this year on offensive players, Snyder appears to be doing the new coach a favor. I really hope Snyder didn't do this to stack the deck against Coach Zorn and make him a one-and-done fall guy for his replacement, the big fish that couldn't be caught this offseason. That's Bill Cowher in case you were wondering. Also, Snyder's first choice runs a different style of defense requiring different players. I would absolutely love nothing more than to see Coach Zorn succeed here and really do great things for the organization, but part of me can't help but wonder when the FO reverts back to its old ways, or gets impatient with a rookie head coach. I know he's been in the league for a long time, but I hope he thought about this scenario before he took the job and I hope he can get through the season without having to constantly be looking over his shoulder. I hate to think about things like this, but you can't help it with the track record this FO has. Some good people have been run out of town. And Zorn, who may look like a deer in headlights at times, may be the next unsuspecting fall guy. I don't want to see it happen, but it can't be ruled out. I know I'm crazy, but you can't tell me that absolutely noone else out there hasn't had a thought like this cross their mind...

1. I agree you are crazy, admitting it is the first step.

2. I'd be willing to bet no one else has had this cross their mind.

[SonnyJ]

I have a friend who has a relative in the front office staff.... they believe this is absolutely the case. Snyder wants Cowher more than he wanted Gibbs, according to them.
Its almost a no lose situation for Snyder - if Zorn is a complete disaster, then he throws $60 mill at Cowher and gets the man he wants. If Zorn does well, then he will be hailed as a great owner with good insight, patience, blah, blah... and everyone is happy.
I have no faith in Zorn at all. How can you when the man has no coordinator/head coaching resume? But I am hoping that he is that hidden gem.....

I have an uncle who has a friend who has a cousin who has a nephew whose mechanic has a dog that is "friends" with the dog of one of the secretaries for the team, and the scuttlebutt is that Danny, Vinny, and Jim(my) love to have marathon sessions of cutthroat on the racquetball court. Danny is having the time of his life - who says you can't buy friends?

It's a no-lose situation for Snyder - even if Zorn sucks, he's improving his racquetball game immeasurably, plus people are still going to buy tickets and merchandise. If Zorn works out, then the only guy who would take the job puts Snyder in the spotlight (we know how he seeks that out) and he can work his nefarious evil over a wider range of people, eventually taking over the world and holding it ransom for ONE MILLION DOLLARS!!!!

[fansince62]

No.

they're feeling their way through to a new way of doing business.

[Valenski]

Dumb thread......

[JBarrett82]

In what way is he setting him up for failure? By drafting guys who will help the offense?


By giving him the help/guys he wants/asked for to make his offense work, if he can't do with everything he had asked for and been given, he failed, making it easier for him to be fired and bring in Cowher like he wanted to all along.

[bedlamVR]

1. I'd be willing to bet no one else has had this cross their mind.


I know i didn't... wow this offseason is longer than ever ...what is it now may?

[Popeman38]

I have a friend who has a relative in the front office staff.... they believe this is absolutely the case. Snyder wants Cowher more than he wanted Gibbs, according to them.Irrelevant. My dog thinks Snyder loves Zorn and will give him plenty of time to adjust.
Its almost a no lose situation for Snyder - if Zorn is a complete disaster, then he throws $60 mill at Cowher and gets the man he wants. If Zorn does well, then he will be hailed as a great owner with good insight, patience, blah, blah... and everyone is happy.
I have no faith in Zorn at all. How can you when the man has no coordinator/head coaching resume? But I am hoping that he is that hidden gem.....The same lame argument, repeated a month later. Come up with something original. Andy Reid had no experience. Harbaugh in Baltimore has no experience.

[SonnyJ]

By giving him the help/guys he wants/asked for to make his offense work, if he can't do with everything he had asked for and been given, he failed, making it easier for him to be fired and bring in Cowher like he wanted to all along.

I never thought of that - set someone up for failure by giving him everything he asked for.

It's genius. That Snyder is one crafty bastige.

[Califan007]

By giving him the help/guys he wants/asked for to make his offense work, if he can't do with everything he had asked for and been given, he failed, making it easier for him to be fired and bring in Cowher like he wanted to all along.
You may need to look up what "setting him up for failure" actually means lol...I'm gonna set you up for failure by giving you everything you need to succeed!! :doh:

[USS Redskins]

Irrelevant. My dog thinks Snyder loves Zorn and will give him plenty of time to adjust.The same lame argument, repeated a month later. Come up with something original. Andy Reid had no experience. Harbaugh in Baltimore has no experience.

wow - its mind boggling that lack of comprehension on this subject.
I dont have any faith in Zorn for a good reason - I dont know anything he has done, so how could I?
Hope is much different than faith - I have allot of hope and little faith.
Hopefully he will instill some faith.

Tell your mom to change your diapers when you are done crying about it.

[Fifty Gut]

I hate the offseason and I hate stupid people. Snyder is one of ours. He's a Washingtonian. He wants to win just as much as we do. Quit with the bull**** conspiracy theories already.

[Rdskn4Lyf21]

I hate the offseason and I hate stupid people. Snyder is one of ours. He's a Washingtonian. He wants to win just as much as we do. Quit with the bull**** conspiracy theories already.

Great point Gfunk....

Snyder is a huge fan of this team and will do whatever it takes to win. Yeah, he has made mistakes, but all of the people thinking he is just a money hungry bastard that doesn't care are dead wrong.

[aarobinson]

Vinny Cerrato is possibly an idiot, but he can evaluate WCO personnel as well as anyone in the league. Zorn is a perfect hire to pair with Vinny, if he's really going to be our GM. I think we're stuck with both of them for a couple years too if it doesn't work, barring total disaster. But I think we'll be a winning team again next year, especially if our red-zone offense comes around, and this will be a non-issue. Our team has the potential to dominate if healthy next year imo.

[BALLz]

I'm can't wait till we when the superbowl and see how some of you guys manage to spin it into a negative. I already know what JLC will say, but some of you guys seem a lot more creative than him.

[JBarrett82]

You may need to look up what "setting him up for failure" actually means lol...I'm gonna set you up for failure by giving you everything you need to succeed!! :doh:

Its simple, if zorn asked specifically for these guys and said that they would be part of the solution to make his system work along with the guys already in place, and say he fails miserably...its easy to let him go.

*EDIT*Look, I want Zorn to succeed as much as anyone else does. I like the guy and I think he could provide a spark to this team and get them over the hump and do some great things here. I'm just afraid that this offseason has been misleading. I really hope Snyder has learned his lesson from past mistakes. I hope things continue on this path of prudent spending and really concentrating on the draft. I like the way things are being done now. I'm just not 100% sold that things will remain this way, that's all.

[BALLz]

Its simple, if zorn asked specifically for these guys and said that they would be part of the solution to make his system work along with the guys already in place, and say he fails miserably...its easy to let him go.


Thats not setting him up for failure, thats Zorn actually failing. Now, If Zorn had asked for players A, B and c and they gave him players F, R, and Q and they still expected him to win, you might could make the set up argument.

[mbws]

Cowher is waiting out John Fox for the Panthers job.
Just an opinion.

[theivorhick]

I know what you mean. I've been thinking the same thing. All we can really do is hope that this team is able to learn quickly and rally behind Zorn. I honestly don't want Cowher here. I like having new blood. Besides, if he does end up coming, you're just talking about ANOTHER new offense and ANOTHER new defense... How can we expect our players to be successful if they keep having to learn a new system year in, year out?

[JBarrett82]

Cowher is waiting out John Fox for the Panthers job.
Just an opinion.

I agree, and I'm not even sure if/why he would consider coming here except for piles of cash. in carolina he'd be close to home

[xxHAILxx]

I Hate Threads Like These That Dont Have Much To Do About The Game

[HoyaSkins28]

sorry bud dont think so. it doesnt make sense that the way he would be setting him up for failure is by drafting offensive weapons for him to succeed with. doesnt add up.

[Califan007]

Its simple, if zorn asked specifically for these guys and said that they would be part of the solution to make his system work along with the guys already in place, and say he fails miserably...its easy to let him go.
That's not setting him up for failure, though...setting someone up for failure is when you put them in a situation in which it's next to impossible for them to succeed. The scenario you just described is the ideal situation to succeed in. If Zorn fails miserably after getting the guys he says he needs to succeed, that's not due to Snyder setting him up for failure. It would be due to Zorn just not being good enough.

[Popeman38]

wow - its mind boggling the lack of comprehension on this subject.It is not mind boggling. There is plenty of comprehension, you just are dead set on negativity.
I dont have any faith in Zorn for a good reason - I dont know anything he has done, so how could I?All he has done is develop a QB who wasn't expected to be a Pro-Bowler into a Pro-Bowler and a Top 10 QB over the last 5 years. Why wouldn't you think he is qualified to be a HC? In addition, Holmgren's QB coaches have a history of developing into good HC. The Bill Walsh coaching tree is accepted. Why does Zorn not het the same treatment as a Bill Walsh coaching disciple?
Hope is much different than faith - I have allot of hope and little faith.
Hopefully he will instill some faith.You have no faith? Why bother rooting for the team if you expect failure but hope to be surprised and give a reason to believe?
Tell your mom to change your diapers when you are done crying about it.Worry more about the basis for your posts and less about me.

[Birdlives]

Doesn't make a whole bunch of sense. If he couldn't woo Cowher in the first place, why bring in Zorn at all? At that point why not give Gregg Williams the head spot and set him up to fail and get Cowher next year?

Why drag things out to find a HC outside the orgainzation when he could just as easily have promoted from within and created the same losing atmosphere and fire Williams? That certainly would have left him in a better light with the fans and the press. If Cooke could do that to Petibon, Snyder could do it to Williams.

Think about it. He hires Williams, the fans and the press aplaud him. When Williams takes our borderline playoff team and misses the playoffs, he can can him and look like a hero.

Why go out and get all the criticism he took in bringing in Zorn? I know many think Snyder isn't a particularly good football guy, but he's certainly not stupid either.

[SoCalSkins]

A position coach in his mid fifties not having moved up the coaching ranks is pretty much the definition of a failure. Snyder hired a failure and gave him an opportunity to succeed. Snyder handed over the keys to a team coming off of a 4-0 run and a team that made the playoffs 2 out of the past 3 years.

Zorn hasn't earned the right to coach the Skins or even a top college team through his resume. It was a horrible hiring process and in the end the Redskins settled for Zorn and Zorn settled for the Skins. The marriage of convenience will work if Zorn wins in year 1, otherwise he gets exactly what he wanted out of the Redskins, money. It is a win win for Zorn. No one needs to feel sorry for the former Cowboy that he is being setup for anything. 3 weeks before he was hired by the skins he was pretty much kicked to the curb by the Seahawks, the team he preferred to stay with.

[BAFGA]

I'm withholding any sort of judgement on whether he's going to fail until I actually see him coach in a game. We don't know how he's going to be. If he succeeds, then Snyder looks like a genius. If he doesn't, then it's not like Snyder has looked bad before. He can handle the criticism.

I will say a QB coach in Holmgren's offense is pretty much 2nd in command.

[RedlightG20]

Couple of things...

If Snyder is setting him up for failure, why did he pass on Williams for the HC position in the first place?

Why would Snyder gamble on the head coaching pool for next year? What if Cowher or any other coach on Snyder's radar does not want to coach? What if the coaching pool gets worse every year? Why put all your eggs in one basket?

If Snyder gets rid of Zorn after 1, 2, even 3 seasons, he's an idiot. Getting rid of coaches so quickly will make the Redskins head coaching job less desirable--no one wants to get fired. That in turn will drive up the price to get a quality coach in here.

This thread blows. I don't even know why I bothered posting in here.

[essex03]

Lets say that Danny is indeed setting him up for failure...
What guarantee do we have that we will get Cowher next season after all is said and done?!
This speculation is dumb. NEXT!

[Rdskn4Lyf21]

A position coach in his mid fifties not having moved up the coaching ranks is pretty much the definition of a failure. Snyder hired a failure and gave him an opportunity to succeed. Snyder handed over the keys to a team coming off of a 4-0 run and a team that made the playoffs 2 out of the past 3 years.

So he's the definition of a failure because he's been a quarterbacks coach for 9 of the past 10 years and he's succeeded at it?

[Veretax]

The thought did cross my mind that we didn't draft DLine or LB because we might be changing Defenses in the near future. food for thought anyways.

[dieselfan44]

What's wrong with this board is people who have thirty something posts and post garbage like this. I think our FO has made the turn and has started to realize the correct way to run a franchise. Doesn't common sense tell you that Dan would have hired one of the other coaches if he wanted some pawn for a year. Instead he hires a guy that is a rookie head coach thus he will be almost forced to give him sometime to develop. He knows that if we have a bad year (which I don't think will happen) and he fires Zorn, he will get executed in the media for not giving the rookie a little more time. BTW if the Panthers have an off year again, Cowher will be in Carolina....where he lives now....Bank on it.

[Stew]

When Zorn was hired the way he was, after all of Snyders top choices bowed out on their own, and all that was left were lap dogs (Mooch and Fossil Fuel) and Zorn with no experience, when that happened I wondered if he wasnt a filler for a season.

Id like to think that Snyder is a shrewd enough business man that he wouldnt do something half assed like that, and he would have paid what it took to get Cowher a year early if thats what he really wanted. Snyder and Cerrato sound pretty sincere with their belief in Zorn, and I am willing to put my faith in that, and in Zorn being around for more then one season. If we go 3-13 or worse, or anything in that neighborhood actually, Id expect him to get the ax. Even with not touching our defense from last year, I think we couldnt be that bad, so I dont htink Snyder is setting Zorn up for disaster, I just dont think Snyder is betting the farm on Zorn just yet. Snyder is going out and trying to get Zorn some offensive muscle to start an offense off potently in the beginning of the season. We play half of our devisional games in the beginning of the season. Id concentrate on our fire power right out of the gates too.

Snyder has made public efforts to get CJ, Boldin, Williams, and even up until right before Briggs signed, we were in the market for him as well. Snyder is trying. he isnt withholding that big ol pocket book, he is actually looking at bang for the buck. Do you see what we didnt do to land B. Johnson or Hacket.. neither of those players were worth what we would have paid for them in previous seasons.

People say the biggest indicator of the future is looking a the past. I just dont think that is a fair statement to use in this situation, because it looks like this old dog (Snyder) is learning new tricks, and it looks like he is learning from and correcting some old habits.

[SoCalSkins]

So he's the definition of a failure because he's been a quarterbacks coach for 9 of the past 10 years and he's succeeded at it?


I would not call his time in Detroit a success by any stretch. Besides Hasselbeck, who was a Holmgren project from Green Bay, who has Zorn developed? Good QB coaches typically move up far more quickly.

If he was considered a good coach he would have been offered jobs either as a coordinator in the NFL earlier or at the college level. No one came calling even after the SB appearance.

[JBarrett82]

What's wrong with this board is people who have thirty something posts and post garbage like this. I think our FO has made the turn and has started to realize the correct way to run a franchise. Doesn't common sense tell you that Dan would have hired one of the other coaches if he wanted some pawn for a year. Instead he hires a guy that is a rookie head coach thus he will be almost forced to give him sometime to develop. He knows that if we have a bad year (which I don't think will happen) and he fires Zorn, he will get executed in the media for not giving the rookie a little more time. BTW if the Panthers have an off year again, Cowher will be in Carolina....where he lives now....Bank on it.

I hope you're right. i want to believe this FO has learned from the past and is changing its ways. I want Zorn to stay around for a number of years. coaches need a good 4-5 years to get themselves fully acclimated to a new team. and i 100% agree with you that Cowher is the next coach of the Panthers, I don't particularly want him here. I want Zorn to succeed. I like his energy and enthusiasm and think he could do great things here if given a real chance.

[[[ghost]]]

I really hope Snyder isn't using Zorn only for a year to prepare for Cowher. That would be a year devoted to learning an offense that we wouldn't even incorporate the next year.

[SoCalSkins]

]']I really hope Snyder isn't using Zorn only for a year to prepare for Cowher. That would be a year devoted to learning an offense that we wouldn't even incorporate the next year.


Unless he has a deal in place with Zorn to take the OC position under Cowher.

[Rdskn4Lyf21]

I would not call his time in Detroit a success by any stretch. Besides Hasselbeck, who was a Holmgren project from Green Bay, who has Zorn developed? Good QB coaches typically move up far more quickly.

If he was considered a good coach he would have been offered jobs either as a coordinator in the NFL earlier or at the college level. No one came calling even after the SB appearance.

He didn't have too much time in Detroit to make much of an impact. Basically he is batting 1000% with Hasselbeck being a Pro Bowler.

I just think calling him a failure is a bit of a stretch.

[Xameil]

By giving him the help/guys he wants/asked for to make his offense work, if he can't do with everything he had asked for and been given, he failed, making it easier for him to be fired and bring in Cowher like he wanted to all along.

:doh: yeah I bet coaches HATE when the owner/GM give him players they want/need

[Dan T.]

When you thought up this theory, did you imagine Dan Snyder bellowing a Dr. Evil-style, maniacal laugh while rubbing his hands together?

Bbbbbwwwwuuuuuaaaaaahahahahahahahaahaha!

Bbbbbwwwwuuuuuaaaaaahahahahahahahaahaha!

Bbbbbwwwwuuuuuaaaaaahahahahahahahaahaha!

[Da Champ]

Great point Gfunk....

Snyder is a huge fan of this team and will do whatever it takes to win. Yeah, he has made mistakes, but all of the people thinking he is just a money hungry bastard that doesn't care are dead wrong.

hopefully they move the team back to dc then... :D

[XtremeFan55]

Cowher is waiting out John Fox for the Panthers job.
Just an opinion.



my opinion also....since Cowher will have his pick of jobs when he's ready to return and I highly doubt he wants to work under our FO situation.....

besides Cowher doesn't run a WCO...and we are drafting and coaching that type of offense for 2008....we either stick with it or JC will someday turn 30 and be learning his 15th offense in 16 years.....if he's still playing by then...

[Flycoach]

No way.

1) Dan Snyder took WAY too big a hit in the way he went about hiring Zorn. 2) If Snyder ****canned Zorn after 1 year, do you really think that would Cowher want to come here? 3) I believe that Snyder is hoping that he found his Joe Gibbs in Zorn, a relatively unknown entity, a-la Jack Kent Cooke finding Joe Gibbs the first time around.

[Oldskool]

I knew that the coming of May Day would bring out all the conspiracy nuts and here's further proof.

[Cane Corso21]

I have a friend who has a relative in the front office staff.... they believe this is absolutely the case. Snyder wants Cowher more than he wanted Gibbs, according to them.
Its almost a no lose situation for Snyder - if Zorn is a complete disaster, then he throws $60 mill at Cowher and gets the man he wants. If Zorn does well, then he will be hailed as a great owner with good insight, patience, blah, blah... and everyone is happy.
I have no faith in Zorn at all. How can you when the man has no coordinator/head coaching resume? But I am hoping that he is that hidden gem.....

I have a friend whos sister's boyfriends aunt is married to the son of a guy who knows a guy who used to work for the Redskins................give me a break it doesnt matter because none of us no what the real deal is, and we wont until the season is over.:doh:

[Stadium-Armory]

I don't think The Owner needs to set him up for failure. Much less concoct a plan to do it. The Owner can just fire him.

[moviedude25]

Stupid,

Hell no he's not setting Zorn up. Let me see, how about I give you a few million dollars to be the lame duck coach? Who the hell wouldn't take that deal? Thats not setting someone up unless lining there pockets with millions is a bad idea?

What the hell was Zorn doing prior to this job? Only being the best QB Coach in the league. If he fails here I bet you he will have no problem jumping right back into coaching QB's. Zorn's not got anything to lose in this deal.

If anyone's screwing someone in this its Zorn screwing Snyder. He gets paid, gets a chance to be a head coach something he's always wanted to do, and has low expectations to meet. If its 1 and done he's lost nothing. If he suceeds then he's the most saught after dude in the league. If he fails, hell its expected. All Zorn's gotta do is leave here next season, say Snyder sucked so bad he left, and he's in the clear and Snyder's gotta find a new coach with already screwed up reputation. Good luck with that dude, maybe Barry Switzer wants to coach again????

Snyder isn't screwing anyone here

[CGSKINS]

Some of you people around here are ****ing crazy.

[MoeRedskins]

[QUOTE=USS Redskins]I have a friend who has a relative in the front office staff.... they believe this is absolutely the case. Snyder wants Cowher more than he wanted Gibbs, according to them.
[QUOTE]

well my roommates second cousin's dental hygingiest has a sister who works as an usher and SHE SAYS that Snyder is going to go after Brett Favre as player coach.

Look, Snyder isn't going to tank it for 1 year to bring in Cowher. He doesn't have that type of patence.

[Passizle]

I have a friend who has a relative in the front office staff.... they believe this is absolutely the case. Snyder wants Cowher more than he wanted Gibbs, according to them.
Its almost a no lose situation for Snyder - if Zorn is a complete disaster, then he throws $60 mill at Cowher and gets the man he wants. If Zorn does well, then he will be hailed as a great owner with good insight, patience, blah, blah... and everyone is happy.
I have no faith in Zorn at all. How can you when the man has no coordinator/head coaching resume? But I am hoping that he is that hidden gem.....

There is only one problem with that. Cowherhas been quoted as wanting to coach again... He has also been quoted as not wanting to coach in DC... period

[skindogger47]

I have a friend who has a relative in the front office staff.... they believe this is absolutely the case. Snyder wants Cowher more than he wanted Gibbs, according to them.
Its almost a no lose situation for Snyder - if Zorn is a complete disaster, then he throws $60 mill at Cowher and gets the man he wants. If Zorn does well, then he will be hailed as a great owner with good insight, patience, blah, blah... and everyone is happy.
I have no faith in Zorn at all. How can you when the man has no coordinator/head coaching resume? But I am hoping that he is that hidden gem.....
Snyder wants Cowher so we set a WCO in place? That doesn't make any sense at all. Why not keep Saunders and promote GW if you're just setting up for failure? At least that way you don't have to overhaul your coaching staff and offense twice in two years.

[skinsarethebest]

If anything, it's the opposite

In some ways, I think this is a lesson learned from the Gibbs II years
I was always surprised Gibbs never used his first pick in the draft on offense -- yup, that's right, in his four years here, not once was the first player we took a player on the offensive side of the ball -- i think he was so concerned with making sure Gregg Williams got the blue-chip talent he needed that the offense was just assumed to be able to produce under the tutelage of Gibbs and then Saunders

I love this draft -- Snyder and Cerrato seem like they've done everything they can to make sure we DON'T have the offensive woes which have plagued this team the last few seasons

[Mooka]

Just another conspiracy theory for a down time during the offseason. With using the top draft picks this year on offensive players, Snyder appears to be doing the new coach a favor. I really hope Snyder didn't do this to stack the deck against Coach Zorn and make him a one-and-done fall guy for his replacement, the big fish that couldn't be caught this offseason. That's Bill Cowher in case you were wondering. If Snyder wants Cowher, he'll fire Zorn and hire Cowher.

He doesn't need to lose on purpose and ruin our team in the process.

[SiestaBob]

Dumb thread......I agree with you. Some people have nothing to do except become trolls on another teams web site.

[redskinsrmylife]

2. I'd be willing to bet no one else has had this cross their mind.[/QUOTE]this is'nt as crazy as you think

[Polo3]

Mods please delete this thread...Nonesense....

[BAFGA]

Mods please delete this thread...Nonesense....

Aw come on....this thread isn't that bad.

[zskins]

Wasn't there speculation last year about Cowher buying a house in VA and his daughter going to GW next year?

[HogNose]

Any Man that would try to setup someone for failure and cackle as he did it deserves to be hanged. I seriously doubt Snyder would want to see his franchise eat dirt for a season so he could have Big Jaw coach his team. Snyder has his issues, but I wouldn't want to believe wanting his team to fail is one of them.

[ArmchairRedskin]

I don't want Cowher. He's ultra conservative, first of all, and I just don't think I want a man coaching my team that has won a Super Bowl with another team. Neither should Snyder.


Btw, hiring a coach and setting him up to fail is just a stupid notion. Some of you guys need mental help.

[Ernie5]

This is pure off-season moron stuff. Among other things, this draft has Zorn's fingerprints all over it. Snyder wants to win; I seriously doubt he cares who wins for him.

[Califan007]

The only people who think this theory has any merit are the ones who already hate Snyder and it takes next to nothing for them to believe the worst about him.

[Geoff_K]

If we agree with you will you stop posting?

I will agree if he stops :silly:

[Forever21]

This BS again? really?

[skin1106]

:mad: yawn!

[DarrellsMyHero28]

We need a Hall of Shame for threads

[CM916]

Why have we sucked since 1993?


-18 QBs
-16 Kickers
-6 Coaching Changes

We seem to have the first two settled and I think everyone involved knows we have to start it all over again if we don't make this work. They hired Zorn to be the next Joe Gibbs not just an embarassing placeholder. Snyder always wants to win, he wouldn't intentionally waste a season.

[Emoshag]

I know what you mean. I've been thinking the same thing. All we can really do is hope that this team is able to learn quickly and rally behind Zorn. I honestly don't want Cowher here. I like having new blood. Besides, if he does end up coming, you're just talking about ANOTHER new offense and ANOTHER new defense... How can we expect our players to be successful if they keep having to learn a new system year in, year out?

I like Bill Cowher, but if Snyder was thinking he would be the viable go-to coach when he decided to wear that headset again, I woul dhave to ask why we tooled up for a WCO (completely without same or abandon) to bring in a guy who has the exact opposite offensive philosophy?

If Snyder said "Bill, the job is yours, but Zorn will be the OC" Cowher would scoff and give him the finger. So with all the picks we made in the draft this year, we aren't married to a WCO, but it would be hard to make that many personnel changes to instill a different offensive scheme.

Maybe?

[MASHDEMBOYS]

Snyder needs to check his e meter...fricking idiot geek that never played football

[Emoshag]

Mods please delete this thread...Nonesense....

Man. The art of conversation and discussion is lost on some people. Conspiracy theories or not, discussing things of this nature is the best way to connect with others.... even if you disagree with that person.

And I disagree with anyone who thinks Snyder is pitfalling Coach Zorn. But I do not think the cutthroat business savvy is gone from Dan Snyder, so does he have a back-up plan.... you better believe it. Is it a good one, who knows.... but you don't make those kind of decisions without a plan B, even if its not viable.

[Califan007]

Why have we sucked since 1993?


-18 QBs
-16 Kickers
-6 Coaching Changes

We seem to have the first two settled and I think everyone involved knows we have to start it all over again if we don't make this work. They hired Zorn to be the next Joe Gibbs not just an embarassing placeholder. Snyder always wants to win, he wouldn't intentionally waste a season.
THANK YOU for saying "since 1993" lol...all I ever hear is "the Skins have gone downhill since Snyder took over". And all I could think was "So, 1993 through 1998 was all a horrible dream? Whew!!"..

[10fttall]

There's no reason for Snyder to be so sneaky. If this was really the way he felt, he and Zorn would have spoken differently when Zorn was announced. Perhaps not explicitly naming him an interim coach, but maybe even sending a subtle message like announcing a 1 year contract with options to extend.

If he really is going into this hoping to switch in 1 year, I don't see any benefit to all the effort that has been made to act like Zorn will be around for the forseeable future.

[Est.1932]

Thats a really stupid idea... He cares to much about this team to want it to fail, how would that help the fan base that is slowing slipping... You need to check yourself...

[mhearn]

it would definitely suck, but if anything i'd imagine zorn being a 2-3 year guy unless we tank and pull a dolphins. i was excited when i heard we grabbed him, if he was fired without more than a fair chance id be pretty pissed.

[Xameil]

THANK YOU for saying "since 1993" lol...all I ever hear is "the Skins have gone downhill since Snyder took over". And all I could think was "So, 1993 through 1998 was all a horrible dream? Whew!!"..


I propose a new theory....Snyder was set up to fail ;)

[Califan007]

I propose a new theory....Snyder was set up to fail ;)
:laugh: :applause:

[Horatio]

Here's the real skinny on Snyder:


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...6112800720.html (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/28/AR2006112800720.html)


Forward Motion

Dan Snyder has an $800 million football team, the splashiest coach in the NFL, devoted friends, a beautiful family. If that were enough, maybe he'd be able to sit still for a second


By Peter PerlSunday, September 15, 2002; Page W01

The hard rubber ball smacks off the front wall, and, just as it hits the polished wood floor, Daniel Snyder, the owner of the Washington Redskins, is all over it. He smashes it hard and low into the right corner, so I have no chance. Now it's Snyder's serve: He wins the first point, then the second. I haven't played racquetball in years; Snyder plays, quite competitively, at least three times a week. Very quickly, Dan Snyder is getting bored.

"I'll spot you 11 and we play to 15," he says.

http://m1.2mdn.net/viewad/817-grey.gif (http://ad.doubleclick.net/click;h=v8/36bf/0/0/%2a/x;44306;0-0;0;11148068;19067-208/40;0/0/0;;~aopt=2/1/27007b/1;~sscs=%3f)"No way," I say.

"I'm spotting you 11. You got 11, I got 2; 11 to 2, and I'll still beat you."

We'd been talking about playing racquetball since I'd first met him six weeks earlier in his office at Redskins Park to propose writing an article about him. He'd had decidedly mixed feelings. "You're gonna trash me. The media always trashes me," he'd said, eyeing me skeptically over the rims of his eyeglasses as he sat, swigging a bottle of water, his shiny black shoes propped on his large, handsome rosewood desk. He seemed convinced this story would be like others that he said have portrayed him as brash, arrogant, aggressive, greedy, meddlesome. I assured him that trashing him was not my intent.

"You smoke cigars?" he said, abruptly veering the conversation.

"Uh, once in a while."

"You drink beer?"

"Yeah."

"You play racquetball?"

"No, not really. . ."

"Good, I can beat you," he said, smiling. "We'll play for money."

I laughed. "How much we playing for?"

"How much you got?" He smiled boyishly.


http://m1.2mdn.net/viewad/817-grey.gif (http://ad.doubleclick.net/click;h=v8/36bf/0/0/%2a/x;44306;0-0;0;11148068;19067-208/40;0/0/0;;~aopt=2/1/27007b/1;~sscs=%3f)
"Not quite as much as you," I said to the man who by age 34 had built a $2 billion international advertising empire and put together the $800 million bid for the Redskins, the most ever paid for a North American sports franchise, and who now, at 37, owns arguably the richest team in the National Football League and still has probably a few hundred million left over. Despite wealth and fame, he described himself in our first meeting as a fundamentally simple fellow: "I smoke cigars. I drink beer. I play racquetball," he said. "I'm a guy's guy."

Having thereby established how much we had in common, Snyder agreed we would "hang out" a bit, do some interviews and play racquetball. But in the following days and weeks, he lost interest in all of that, even the racquetball. "I don't want you to see how competitive I am," he said in a phone call. "I'm insane when I play. I wanna win." But finally, he relented and scheduled a match at Redskins Park, with a challenge: "Hey, Pete, you ready for a can?" Snyder asked, his voice oozing locker-room bravado.

"A what?"

"A can," he said. "I'm gonna open a can of whup-ass!"

Racquetball is the ideal sport for Dan Snyder. It is intense hand-to-hand combat in a confined space. He likes the action fast and furious. He plays all the angles, and he loves to go for the kill shot. It's also a sport in which he is not hampered by his somewhat diminutive stature: He's almost 5 foot 9, although in various media accounts he's been shrunk to 5-6 or even smaller, while being labeled, among many other things, a "pint-size pompous jerk."

Even with the handicap, he beats me, 15-13. I ask if we can take a break for a drink of water. He says no, we have to play again, right now. This time he spots me 13 points, and still beats me, 17-15, barely breaking a sweat.

But then we are joined by his regular racquetball partner, Redskins personnel director Vinny Cerrato, a lean, muscular former college quarterback at Iowa State. They play a ferocious match for the next half-hour, and Snyder is getting beaten. Only now do I see what Snyder meant when he told me several times in the past weeks, "I'm still a kid . . . I'm just a kid." As he is losing, he pouts. He grimaces. He curses. He shakes his head in disgust. He hits the wall with his fancy racket. Then he kicks the wall with his new Reeboks. He gets so mad at one point, he jumps up and down in a tantrum, pounding both feet simultaneously.

Then Snyder rallies, and he comes back to tie Cerrato at 10-10. Now, he's taunting, "C'mon! C'mon!" He turns to shout a challenge at Cerrato after winning a point, "C'mon, [two-word expletive]!" After much more cursing, kicking and theatrics, finally, Cerrato prevails.

Afterward, I ask Snyder why he is so driven to win, all the time, in all aspects of his life. He answers dismissively: "I don't have a clue." Then he and Cerrato share a laugh about just how competitive they are: Not long ago, Cerrato learned his wife was pregnant with their first child, a boy. Snyder and his wife, Tanya, who have two young daughters, were coincidentally expecting their first boy. So, from the obstetrician's office, Cerrato announced his big news by calling Snyder and leaving a message on his cell phone: "My boy's gonna kick your boy's ass." Then Snyder called back and left his friend a most unusual congratulatory message that consisted of only two choice words.

Daniel M. Snyder gets so nervous on Redskin game days, he spends a good deal of his time in the bathroom. He has the seemingly boundless enthusiasm and energy of a child, an internal engine that is always running at one of two speeds: fast and faster. He is excited by new things: products to sell, players to sign, marketing ideas to try out. He often just can't wait until morning, conducting much of his business in late-night phone calls because he doesn't like to sleep. He wolfs down burgers and ice cream, and loves going to movies. His frenetic pace and constant motion prompted Tanya, his wife of eight years, to give him the nickname "The Torpedo."

Like a willful child, Snyder sometimes can appear impetuous or insecure. After buying the team in 1999, he quickly fired or otherwise eliminated dozens of Redskins employees, including some he had assured, in writing, that their jobs were safe. He then hired but rapidly lost a handful of new executives who were turned off by his blunt, demanding style. The next season, he became the talk of the NFL by spending an unprecedented $100 million on payroll, buying free-agent superstars like Deion Sanders and Bruce Smith in what seemed a frenzied need for immediate fulfillment. His big spending, coupled with his highly publicized firings of three head coaches in a 13-month span, earned him a reputation as hotheaded and impulsive. In the merciless world of 24-hour sports journalism, Snyder became "Boy George," a reference to much-reviled New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, and "The Danny," a comparison to the self-importance of onetime billionaire "The Donald" Trump. The nationally syndicated comic strip "Tank McNamara" parodied him for months as a money-mad mogul and named Snyder its "Sports Jerk of the Year" for 2000. "I get the impression that if Dan Snyder went one-on-one with Saddam Hussein," a Fox sports commentator said then, "you'd root for Saddam Hussein."

Young, rich and forceful, Snyder became the embodiment of the 21st-century sports owner, a sort of Rorschach image of wealth and power: Some saw in him the shape of a cold, calculating bully who raised prices while ruthlessly eliminating all traces of the previous paternalistic Redskins owners, Jack Kent Cooke and his son John. Others saw in Snyder a marketing genius bringing a long-overdue vitality to a proud but faded franchise, the ultimate diehard fan whose love for the team and whose wallet are joyfully boundless.


http://m1.2mdn.net/viewad/817-grey.gif (http://ad.doubleclick.net/click;h=v8/36bf/0/0/%2a/x;44306;0-0;0;11148068;19067-208/40;0/0/0;;~aopt=2/1/27007b/1;~sscs=%3f)
In Snyder's early tenure, "the mind-set that permeated was management through fear and intimidation," says John Maroon, the former Redskins public relations director who quit less than a year after he was hired. That first year, "it was my way or the highway . . . There was a palpable fear among game-day employees," says Phil Hochberg, the longtime voice of the Redskins public-address system until retiring after the 2000 season.

"People do get intimidated by Dan, and by me," says Karl Swanson, a self-described Snyder "henchman" who worked for his advertising firm and is now a vice president of the Redskins. Snyder is a challenging boss who relentlessly asks questions, expects answers, rewards excellence and doesn't tolerate mediocrity, Swanson says. "Everybody knows it can get rough-and-tumble--and it's fun. Unless you have the confidence and the ego to support your own beliefs, then you won't be very happy here."

As he begins his fourth season owning the Redskins, Snyder is trying to achieve a new maturity and stability, both for the team and for himself as owner. "He wants instant gratification. He says that's not true, but I tell him, 'You have to learn to be patient,' " says former Redskin quarterback Sonny Jurgensen, a Snyder friend and confidant. "He understands it, but he gives you the impression that he does not--but he really does, I think."

The problem for Snyder is that he is not winning. Not enough to suit him, anyway, as underachieving Redskin teams have gone 8-8 the past two seasons and haven't made the playoffs since 1999. That's why Snyder this season spent a record $25 million on a five-year contract to hire the University of Florida's Steve Spurrier, one of the most successful and charismatic coaches in college football history. The size of the Spurrier deal infuriated other NFL owners, because it raised the salary bar for all other pro coaches. It renewed Snyder's image as the man who would pay anything for a Super Bowl and, therefore, the man everyone loves to beat.

His will to win is so consuming that Snyder has little time or inclination to look backward on his humble past. He grew up in a close-knit but financially struggling family, occupying modest apartments in Silver Spring and Rockville. He was an unremarkable student with little interest in school, a notably limited attention span and few close friends. He dropped out of the University of Maryland soon after he dropped in. His greatest passion as a kid was putting on his white Redskins jersey, with Sonny Jurgensen's No. 9, and eating his mother's special "Redskins chili" while watching on TV with his sister and parents as the legendary quarterback led his beloved team to victory.

Now, the same kid with the perpetually youthful face is preparing to move into a spectacular 14-acre compound overlooking the Potomac River that formerly belonged to King Hussein of Jordan. Snyder paid $10 million to buy the estate in Potomac--and tore down the king's 11,444-square-foot limestone and stucco mansion to build something better. His sister and parents still live nearby, except now they are all multi-millionaires from the years they worked, often without pay, to help him build a company that became Snyder Communications Inc. He flies cross-country and abroad in his 12-passenger Challenger jet with the Redskins logo. His shorter hops will be aboard his new $6 million Eurocopter, painted in the team's burgundy and gold. He spent $20 million to build a 166-foot yacht in Rotterdam, with a crew of 12, but then sold it when he decided he didn't have the time to enjoy it. And the nerdy kid who had few friends in high school is now almost constantly surrounded by his business and sports buddies, a devoted posse of Snyder followers including Jurgensen, the Hall of Fame quarterback and broadcaster who is now his cigar-smoking comrade and trusted football adviser.

The transformation of Snyder from a little-known businessman into a Washington celebrity has been at times bewildering for him. He proudly displays the photographs and positive stories, reveling in his presence in gossip and society columns, but he still covets his privacy and smolders with anger about each of the shots he has taken in the media. "I became portrayed as a meddling jerk and a rich Harvard kid driving daddy's BMW," he says. "[Expletive]! I dropped out of college, and we didn't even have a car till I was 17 . . . The people who've trashed me don't even know me," he says. Yet for weeks Snyder remains evasive; he repeatedly avoids requests for a sit-down interview; he proffers an invitation to his home, but changes his mind; he agrees to a private dinner, but midway through the meal calls a close friend to join us, suggesting I interview him instead.

Snyder goes through five newspapers a day and has three television monitors in his office, but says he's finished paying attention to media criticism. He believes he remains quite popular with the one constituency that he says really matters to him, the one he says shows him an overwhelming approval rating by faithfully renewing season tickets: "I represent the [expletive] fans, and the fans are good! The fans are right!"

In his first years owning the team, Snyder acknowledges, "I came on too strong. I made mistakes . . . I just do stupid things sometimes." But he points to his remarkable business career as evidence that "I can be patient. I didn't get where I am without being patient." He says he is trying to learn how to apply that quality to his greatest passion. "Winning? It's just me. I like to compete . . . Show me someone who is comfortable with losing and I'll show you a loser."

On the lush green field, all four potential Redskin quarterbacks are taking snaps simultaneously in a synchronized sequence that looks beautifully balletic. They backpedal, dip their heads, swing their hips, swivel their shoulders, and unleash tight spirals under the watchful eye of Coach Spurrier. It is opening day of June minicamp at Redskins Park, and Snyder's attention is riveted, particularly upon No. 11, Patrick Ramsey, the 6-2, 217-pounder from Tulane University who is the Redskins' first-round draft choice and designated "quarterback of the future."

"You see that arm? You see the zip? You see the way the ball moves?" Snyder asks, his voice rising, his cadence quickening. "Watch his arm! Watch this! Watch this!" Snyder is sitting on the sidelines in a plush white boat chair, alongside Jurgensen and Snyder's longtime business mentor and minority Redskins owner, Fred Drasner. Snyder is literally bouncing in and out of his chair. Jurgensen's quietly puffing his way through a big stogie at 10 a.m., and Drasner is talking about a diet that lost him 21 pounds, which brings up one of Snyder's favorite topics: food. At play, Snyder is often planning one or two meals ahead, asking his friends where they want to have lunch or dinner. Or he is reminiscing about great meals past. "Man, I had the best piece of pie last night," Snyder tells Drasner. "Old Angler's Inn. Oh man! Great pie!"

His enthusiasm quickly swings back to the field. He seems to know most of his players--strengths, weaknesses, work habits, personalities, salaries, wives' or girlfriends' names. But he's particularly interested in rookies he helped recruit, like Ramsey and Rock Cartwright of Kansas State, who's just made a great play. "You see that catch?" Snyder exclaims. "He's like 5-6, 240. I call him 'Thumper.' You see him run? See that?"


http://m1.2mdn.net/viewad/817-grey.gif (http://ad.doubleclick.net/click;h=v8/36bf/0/0/%2a/x;44306;0-0;0;11148068;19067-208/40;0/0/0;;~aopt=2/1/27007b/1;~sscs=%3f)
"You just like him 'cause he's your height," Jurgensen says. "Maybe the only guy you're bigger than." Jurgensen laughs and so does Snyder.

The quarterbacks take turns throwing, and now it is Ramsey. "You see that zip on his ball?" Snyder exclaims. "He is a big boy! He's a man! . . . Whaddya think, Sonny?"

The moment has come for the legendary No. 9 to make his pronouncement, which he does with the solemnity of a papal ruling. Sonny rests a hand on his ample gut, lets go a puff of white smoke from his cigar and declares: "He's got the best arm of the four."

Snyder smiles. For the moment, all is right with the world. It's not just a promising QB that makes him happy, particularly because Snyder knows a strong arm alone doesn't produce a winning quarterback. More important is the promise of a new coach, the hope that Spurrier can rekindle the magic of Joe Gibbs, who led Cooke's teams to three Super Bowls. Dan Snyder does not like to dwell on his turbulent, almost comical history with coaches. He still harbors harsh feelings for Marty Schottenheimer, whom he fired a year after excitedly declaring that Schottenheimer was his coach of the future. He believes Norv Turner also had to go, although he acknowledges now it was "stupid" to fire him with three games left in the 2000 season, when the team still could have made the playoffs. Neither former coach would comment about Snyder for this story.

Soon, Snyder lights up a big cigar. "It just feels much better this year," he says. Snyder insists his relationship with Spurrier is the real thing, not like all the others. "With Spurrier, just watch him out there. He is coaching. He is not managing the team, but coaching the players. He is inspiring them. He is talking to them. Teaching. It's a wonderful thing to watch . . . Now, this is enjoyable."

The appeal of the Redskins to Snyder sometimes seems mystical. For years as a kid, he constantly wore his lucky Redskins belt buckle. After he bought the team, he had a silver Redskins buckle custom-made by a jeweler in New York as a charm to bring victory.

As a child, he rarely got to go to games, and then usually in the nosebleed seats. At RFK Stadium and on television, the avid young fan would catch glimpses of Jack Kent Cooke, the city's long-reigning sports monarch, holding court in his owner's box. As Snyder rose in the business world--and languished for more than a decade on the season-ticket waiting list--he told friends and family that he harbored the dream of one day owning the Redskins, although today he likes to claim, unconvincingly, that he only became seriously interested after Cooke's death in 1997.

Snyder says he regrets never knowing the flamboyant, often-outrageous elder Cooke. Then, in one of the few anecdotes he offers about his past, he volunteers that he actually met Jack Kent Cooke once, briefly, when Snyder was 27 and he took a young lady on a weekend date to see the Redskins play the Buffalo Bills in the 1992 Super Bowl in Minneapolis.

Snyder says he wangled his way into the VIP area where Cooke was presiding over the gleaming silver Vince Lombardi Trophy. Brimming with joy at the Redskins' victory, Snyder says, he felt a sudden urge to kiss the Super Bowl trophy. So the fresh-faced kid approached the 79-year-old Cooke and asked if he could. The sometimes cantankerous Cooke at first seemed taken aback by the bold request, but then replied, in his characteristic fashion: Of course, my dear boy.

So the young businessman smooched the gleaming trophy. Snyder's date thought he was crazy, and the relationship didn't last. I ask him why he did it. "Too many beers, I guess," he says. "I don't really know."

[preachtheWORD]

Conspiracy Theories = LAME.


The same people who say Snyder is trying to buy a Super Bowl, and that Snyder will pay for any overpriced player he thinks will make the Skins winners are NOW saying that he is setting the Skins up to lose? You can't have it both ways.

There is only one common theme here - a lot of people don't like Snyder, so they are eager to believe anything bad about him.

But guess what ... Regardless of how anyone feels about Snyder, he is here to stay.

Let's leave the conspiracy theories to people who line their hats with tinfoil to keep the government from reading their thoughts ...

[TotalRecall]

Dumb thread......

I agree. They picked the BPA in the draft (at least in the first 3 rounds). If they had a better pick for the d-line, they would have gotten him.

[Thoth]

yeah and I have common sense that tells me if thats the case cowher would stay the hell away from DC.

Cowher would want to run the show anyways(FO role),which means no vinny(and no snyder meddling),and snyder isn't getting rid of vinny any time soon.

Snyder likes drafting receivers or flash players, so the 1st 3 picks were not inconsistent with what he wants, though he would have preferred to effectively trade Thomas, Davis, and next years 1st rounder for Oicho and pay Oicho millions more. That would have gotten Cowher here--an even worse cap situation and no 1st rounder his 1st year as coach. If Snyder is wanting Cowher, he is a tool in setting himself up for it.

If we tank this season, what does he do? He may say to himself, Cowher couldn't do worse than we've been, and agree to whatever it takes to get him here, probably keeping Vinny but giving Cowher final say. Cowher would probably realize this might hooch him, but would just want the money guaranteed to a degree. After Redskins gig, he's set for life even more, if Snyder meddles, he just rides off with a platinum parachute.

You can bet your butt Cowher would scuttle our primadonna vets, take the cap hit now, and draft pass rushers and OL.

I think its going to be more difficult of a decision than people realize. Suppose Zorn has a good but not great season. 9-7 to 10-6, we either just miss the playoffs, or enter them and go one and out. . .what then? Do you give Cowher a million in a suitcase to give Zorn one more year, if he puts himself on the market?

[helmanan]

Though it is a plausible theory, albeit of the conspiratorial type, I do not foresee Dan Snyder making any moves that will hurt his public image. I believe Snyder has learned to fear the wrath of the fan base and media alike. How else would one explain the lengthy hiring process, and the inexplicable decision to NOT hire Jim Fassel when every indication was that he was the de facto candidate for the job?

In my limited view I believe DS has made strides in reforming how people perceive him and his organization. And I think he knows that he will be skewered if he decides to abandon the opportunity to build the franchise under Zorn, while he provided more than ample opportunities to Spurrier.

Again, this is mere speculation, but it seems DS has learned to value the notion of patience and stability, judging from his behavior pattern over the last few years. I think the light has finally come on for him, much as it would for a wide-eyed rookie entering his second year.

[Thoth]

I'm can't wait till we when the superbowl and see how some of you guys manage to spin it into a negative. I already know what JLC will say, but some of you guys seem a lot more creative than him.

I can't wait either.
But without a front-4 pass rush and a younger, more durable OL, it won't happen.
Let's try:

Winning the division.
Getting a bye week in playoffs.
Beating an elite team.
Making it to championship game. . .


Before we talk smack about winning the SB.
Maybe, as much as we love the team, we're a little negative (I'd call it critical or logical rather than simple knee-jerk negativity) because none of these results have been achieved, yet homers think we're SB bound. What in our track record of the past decade would lead a thinking person to expect this result?

We're the bad guys for wanting results, and questioning the motivation of the most meddling and ineffective owner in sports? I can't wait to see the excuses guys like you come up with, when we once again get crushed by elite teams because we can't rush the QB, or if our OL is injury prone again. JLC questions Redskins propaganda, in many cases with irrefutable facts, ie salary cap/spending analysis articles.

Just so I'm clear here: Phillip Daniels and Andre Carter are going to put enough pressure on Tom Brady or Peyton Manning (one of the two teams we'd probably play in the Superbowl, assuming we get past Dallas, Giants in playoffs) to prevent these QBs from decimating our secondary? Cause that's the only way we're going to win the SB. The Giants had a probable HOFer in Strahan, plus 2-3 other SOLID pass rushers, and just barely beat New England. We lost to them by like 50 points. I know, with a more wide-open O, we only lose by 25 points. But I'm sure bringing up these FACTs, I'm just being negative, like JLC.

By continually behaving like a Brat playing fantasy football, Snyder has set up every coach except Gibbs for failure.

Dream on, homer, and pass the kool-aid.

[tiger187126]

there's going to be a bidding war with miami if we want cowher, and i don't believe he would like the situation in dc

[RUst21]

Lets say that Snyder did want Cowher as coach next year, then he would've had to start getting certain players this year.

Cowher is a Defensive Coach who uses the 34 D.

We do not have the big bodies up front or the rush LBs that are needed to make the defense succesful. It is impossible to get all the players necessary for the D in one offseason. So IMO it is highly unlikely that Snyder has some sort of plan to bring Cowher in next season, and if he is then that just confirms our collective belief that he is a moron. :laugh:

[Redskins:Victory_or_Death]

Here's the real skinny on Snyder:


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/conte...6112800720.html (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/11/28/AR2006112800720.html)


....You should be drawn and quartered for bumping this thread.

Which I have now done. :doh:

[dent19]

If this is true, why would any of us be fans of this team?
Im glad theres golf to get me thru this off-season stuff...

[worstSeat]

OP isn't the first to suggest this. It's really a pretty obvious take... my only addition to the conspiracy theory is to wonder if Zorn is preparing to take a back seat to Cowher and stay on as the OC. Would explain why there isn't one now, but that's as looney a theory as I could come up with.

Viva la off season.

[[[ghost]]]

I agree that we aren't the team everyone is penciling in to win the Super Bowl, but I do believe that, assuming we stay healthy, we can do a lot better than 9-7. With the additions we've made, and assuming our OL can stay healthy, we could have easily beaten Dallas (at Dallas), Tampa Bay, Buffalo, and quite a few other teams. Course, thats all bullhocky, thinking like that, but its still somewhat of a comfort and motivator.

Point is, health and a new offense would be the only thing to hold us back this season.

[Redskins:Victory_or_Death]

Set up for failure??

Like in that Baseball movie Major League with Willie Mays Hayes and JoBuu??

Well then there is only one thing the Redskins and Zorn can do.......

Win the Whole F**king thing.

If the team starts using inspiration like the following... We will be forced to kill you. Stop giving the F.O. ideas! :laugh:

[BaltimoreRedskin]

Just another conspiracy theory for a down time during the offseason. With using the top draft picks this year on offensive players, Snyder appears to be doing the new coach a favor. I really hope Snyder didn't do this to stack the deck against Coach Zorn and make him a one-and-done fall guy for his replacement, the big fish that couldn't be caught this offseason. That's Bill Cowher in case you were wondering. Also, Snyder's first choice runs a different style of defense requiring different players. I would absolutely love nothing more than to see Coach Zorn succeed here and really do great things for the organization, but part of me can't help but wonder when the FO reverts back to its old ways, or gets impatient with a rookie head coach. I know he's been in the league for a long time, but I hope he thought about this scenario before he took the job and I hope he can get through the season without having to constantly be looking over his shoulder. I hate to think about things like this, but you can't help it with the track record this FO has. Some good people have been run out of town. And Zorn, who may look like a deer in headlights at times, may be the next unsuspecting fall guy. I don't want to see it happen, but it can't be ruled out. I know I'm crazy, but you can't tell me that absolutely noone else out there hasn't had a thought like this cross their mind...

I've thought of it too. Especially since Coach Iron Chin just bought a house in Northern VA last year... Word on the street is that he was under the impression Gibbs was retiring, you know, WHEN HIS CONTRACT WAS UP (and not retire early) and would become coach then...

[wildbill1952]

No.

Try the decaf.

[dizzinator53]

This whole conspiracy theory is what my father seems to think as well. He says "Snyder has already talked to Cowher and has him waiting in the wings." If Zorn does well or not, it's a win-win situation for Snyder. The more we have lost, the more my dad has become anti FO and usually anti Campbell.

He has made a comment to me every year about the term "Happy Feet"... saying the QB has them (No matter who it is) leading the team.

[jimster]

And Zorn, who may look like a deer in headlights at times,


Huh? We've had one mini camp. When has he looked like a deer in headlights?


If this were true, why not just interview two people and hire Willams as HC a week after Gibbs retirement, keep Saunders, and then can them after a year? Why take a month conducting a thorough search, interviewing 11 people, waiting for the Superbowl to interview one guy, allowing your supposed lame duck coach to bring in his own assistants, change the offense, draft according your new coaches systems, etc, etc? Not to mention the damage it would do to Snyder and the team's rep down the road.

The Marty example is a bad one in this case because he was let go because of his GM gaffes, not coaching. Snyder tried to talk Marty into remaining coach, Marty refused.

[Big Mac Patty Wack]

If he was setting him up to fail, he wouldn't havwe authorized Cerrato to draft players specific for a WC offense like Zorn's. He has too much invested in Zorn to pull the plug this year.

[dizzinator53]

Huh? We've had one mini camp. When has he looked like a deer in headlights?


If this were true, why not just interview two people and hire Willams as HC a week after Gibbs retirement, keep Saunders, and then can them after a year? Why take a month conducting a thorough search, interviewing 11 people, waiting for the Superbowl to interview one guy, allowing your supposed lame duck coach to bring in his own assistants, change the offense, draft according your new coaches systems, etc, etc? Not to mention the damage it would do to Snyder and the team's rep down the road.

The Marty example is a bad one in this case because he was let go because of his GM gaffes, not coaching. Snyder tried to talk Marty into remaining coach, Marty refused.

He said "Zorn MAY look like a deer in headlights this year."

[SkinsNatsFan]

Here's the real skinny on Snyder:

...



You can't create any more of your own threads, so you bump a dead thread that had a ridiculous premise by quoting a 6 year old article. Good times.

[Jumbo]

And for circumventing his NNT, Horatio will now be unable to post anything and can only read for 2 weeks.

[angel2]

I hate to be the one to pop your Cowher baloons, but you have to go back to the days when Coach Cowher was in charge of the drafting of players and the results of those drafts and compare the results in wins and loses. It took the Steelers several (I mean several) drafts to get a winning product on the field.


Cowher was a patient man. He had to be because the Steelers didn't invest big money in FAs as say the Skins did. His drafts eventually produced some good results towards the latter part of his stay with the Steelers. His signature in drafting players was defense first. He didn't see good results in his offensive draft selections until he began to roll the dice with some suspect talent.

Cowher did well because of his team's market value or lack thereof. He made a good thing work for him and rightfully was annoited a good judge of talent, especially on the defensive side. So the question must be asked if he could come to the Skins and perform the same magic? I have my doubts because of the circumstances and the fact that the Skins are a good team.

He was a Steeler's player and knew what made them good during their SB years. Could he do that great drafting with a team like the Skins, Ravens or the Cardinals?

I really believe those guys who were pulling for Cowher to take the Skins to the next level were missing the point of the Zorn hire. That being, Zorn has the ability to coach any team in the NFL and be successful. Zorn knows what it takes to win in this league. Of course, it helps to have a fairly good team to start your career as a head coach.

I just don't think that Cowher would have as much luck with the Skins as Zorn will have.

[MPASkinsFan]

Snyder wants to win more than he wants Cowher. If Zorn is a winner, Cowher's name will never resurface again.

[REDSKINZ-RIDEORDIE]

I know i didn't... wow this offseason is longer than ever ...what is it now may?



No bull................