Daniel Snyder has done as owner of the Washington Redskins what he has done in business. He creates a tremendous amount of pressure on his people to perform and holds them accountable.
Because of Snyder, there hasn't been a football team that I can think of with more pressure on it than the Redskins this season. By comparison, the Rams have no pressure to repeat as Super Bowl champions. They must be laughing at the Redskins. It's almost like people are saying, "Oh, by the way, the Rams won a world championship. But what about the Redskins?"
|  | | Has Redskins owner Daniel Snyder, left, bought himself a championship team? |
First, you have to understand what Snyder has done. He has assembled a very unique, star-studded football team. Through his actions in the offseason, Snyder has said he wants to win a world championship now.
What the Redskins have lacked the last couple of years is leadership in the big games. They never really had any big-name players on the team. So, Snyder signed some quality pro players. Not just Pro Bowl players, but quality people. Deion Sanders is extremely misunderstood by the general public because of his ability to market himself. Both he and Bruce Smith, two of the team's biggest offseason acquisitions, are great, hard-working football players.
The only reason Snyder could charge money for training camp now is that players like Sanders and Smith were there. It's like going to a movie. If Mel Gibson or Arnold Schwarzenegger is featured in a movie, the theater can charge money. Meanwhile, a movie full of no-name actors will rarely generate any attention. No one will want to pay the same amount for the movie unless one of the no-name actors becomes a star.
There is a youthful enthusiasm attached to Snyder because he is a 35-year-old owner. But if you assume something about Snyder, you'd better be careful because he is a very calculated, bright, ambitious owner. I remember a few years ago when everybody called Cowboys owner Jerry Jones a rebel because he was
advertising in the stadium and his players were wearing certain things on the sideline. Now Jones is looked at as one of the true innovators of football today, one of the new-breed owners. As Snyder grows into his role and becomes more a part of the NFL fraternity, he will continue to create something inventive as well.
Whenever I attend a Redskins practice, Snyder and I sit and visit. Snyder knows the game more as a fan. He will ask me questions, even though he already knows the answer. He will ask, "Well, what do you think?" But I know exactly what he thinks.
I am very candid and honest with him. I don't want anything from Daniel Snyder. I played for the Redskins, but I don't play for him and am not employed by him. We talk about different players, people and situations, and I think he has surrounded himself with good football people. Vinny Cerrato, while being a new general manager, has a long scouting background. Some of the deals Cerrato has made, coupled with the deals former general manager Charley Casserly made, have put the Redskins in a pretty good situation going into the future.
People in the Washington, D.C., area have great expectations for the Redskins. The team will need great leadership from many of the veterans they acquired and from a longtime Redskin like Darrell Green because at some point during the season the team will face adversity. When things are going well on a football team, everybody is a leader. The owner is happy, the coach is happy, the players are happy. Then when things go badly and they lose a few games, they will start to get criticized.
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I'm sure Norv Turner never tells the players that they will be 16-0. But if the Redskins start the season 2-2, I think Snyder will go nuts and will be extremely disappointed. ” |
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How the Redskins handle that criticism will be critical to the continuity of the team. I'm sure Norv Turner never tells the players that they will be 16-0. He expects tough times this season. But if the Redskins start the season 2-2, I think Snyder will go nuts and will be extremely disappointed.
The salary cap and free agency have stripped most teams of quality depth, but that's what the Redskins have. They are not only stacked at almost every position. At running back, they have Stephen Davis, Adrian Murrell and Larry Centers. Jeff George, who threw 26 touchdown passes last season in Minnestoa, is the backup quarterback because the starter, Brad Johnson, is a Pro Bowler. And at cornerback, they have two of the best to ever play the game, Sanders and Green, and Champ Bailey, one of the game's best young corners. The list goes on and on.
There are two things everybody is waiting for in Washington: Is this team as good as it is on paper? How will Snyder react if this team is not as good as it is on paper?
I like what Snyder has done to this team. I like his aggressiveness, the accountability he has created, and I like the quality of players he has been able to add. He is incredibly competitive. The fact he has the resources to do what he has done should be a dream for every young person.
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