Fat Albert

Day 5 of training camp for the Washington Redskins and their grossly overpaid, egocentric defensive linemen Albert Haynesworth has failed in several attempts to pass a mandatory conditioning test that would allow him to join his teammates in preparation for the upcoming season. Haynesworth famously avoided off-season team activities earlier in the year, electing to work out with a personal trainer.

An Idiotic Headline

A letter to the editor Washington Examiner Newspaper regarding a particularly stupid front page story on the Washington Redskins:

Re: Redskins are still Indians, November 17th.

Of all the professional sports franchises in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan area, the Washington Redskins are indisputably the most popular. So I get it that the Examiner would devote front page coverage to the United States Supreme Court's refusal to hear arguments from a group of Native Americans that the team's trademark is patently offensive. What troubles me is the meaning of the headline "Redskins are still Indians." Are you suggesting that the high court's action is tantamount to saying that Redskins is an acceptable term? (Suppose the situation was different and the team was named the Washington Honkies, would the headline read "Honkies are still white people"?) Or, that the current roster of players are Native Americans? And what is the point of trotting out the photograph of the buffoonish Zema Williams, the misguided negro who poses as Chief Zee and unofficial team mascot? (There is perhaps hidden meaning in an African American masquerading as an Indian for a team that had to be forced by the Federal Government to accept black players).

Snyder's Follies

Much of the discussion about the dysfunctional Washington Redskins has focused on the public emasculation of its head coach Jim Zorn whose days are numbered. The attention, however, is terribly misplaced because the one constant in Washington's descent into mediocrity is the owner Daniel Snyder. Snyder has single-handedly transformed Redskins into Oakland Raiders East.

And what has he done to earn this dubious distinction? 5 coaches in 10 years; thrown untold amounts of money at free agents - some clearly past their prime (Deion Sanders and Bruce Smith); terrible drafts and often no draft picks at all (3 choices from last year don't have 10 receptions among them); hired the supremely inept Vinny Cerrato to be in charge of football operations; fired Norv Turner whose record was 7 and 6 with only 3 games remaining in the season; fired Marty Shottenheimer who actually laid the groundwork for making the team competitive; hired Steve Spurrier who lacked both the temperament and commitment to compete in the NFL; brought Joe Gibbs back, putting him in charge of player personnel despite the fact that Gibbs was never very good at it even in the glory days; hired Jim Zorn as offensive coordinator before bringing in a head coach; bumped Zorn up to head coach despite Zorn having no previous experience and, in addition, entrusted Zorn with mentoring Campbell and play calling; brought in Sherman Lewis to be "another set of eyes"; after more than 20 games where Washington has failed to score 30 points in any game "asked" him to relinquish play calling and then handed the job to Lewis; announced later that Lewis will communicate the plays to Sherman Smith who will in turn relay the play to Campbell, Zorn's duties presumably are limited to challenging calls, deciding when to go for it on 4th down, etc.

Today the aforementioned Cerrato, VP for football operations, made it "perfectly clear" that Zorn will remain as head coach for the 2009 season and quite possibly beyond. Those of us who have been around Washington are familiar with one Richard Milhous Nixon who frequently prefaced statements, usually less than truthful, with the expression "let me make one thing perfectly clear." As with Nixon, Cerrato's declaration should be viewed with skepticism.

Portis's Incoherence

Washington Redskins running back Clinton Portis says the problems confronting the team aren't Daniel Snyder and management but the media and the fans. Making his weekly appearance on WTEM 980's The John Thompson Show, Portis's trademark incoherence was in full throttle - and about as impressive as the team's offensive output:

"I think it's just gonna come down to not worrying about the media," Portis said. "You know, everybody want input around here. Being in Washington, D.C. and having so much focus on this team, everybody want their way. It's a fan that want Jason Campbell benched, that want Colt Brennan to play right now, and Colt Brennan injured. You know, it's a fan that want me benched and they should have drafted Knowshon Moreno from Denver; look, they didn't, Denver did. It's always, 'Oh, this could work.'...

"Every time you look at headlines, every time you see a story, it's 'The Redskins suck, the Redskins can't do it, the Redskins down again.' We're 2-4, we've still got a lot of football left. Philly was 2-4 last year and went to the NFC Championship game. Philly did that as a team. I'm sure their fans was killing them, the papers was killing them, but somehow, some way, you've got to keep searching and keep trying to find a way until you find it.

"And I think the pressure [is] on Mr. Snyder, and he want to win so bad. And everybody's [saying] 'Oh, get him out of here, he need to sell the team, he's what's [wrong].' It's not him. I think he brings in everybody that he could possibly bring in that he think gonna help this team. I think if you look at the talent on our team, we've got a lot of talent. We've got great players. We've gotta go out and do it. It's no coaches playing for us, it's nobody in the front office playing for us. The scout evaluators, whoever they bring in, I mean, they evaluate talent. We've got talent. It's just the execution. So it's on us."

Fail to the Redskins

Carolina 20, Washington 17.

I am not the least bit surprised by this outcome. In a week where running back Clinton Portis calls out fullback Mike Sellers for not blocking, where bingo caller Sherman Lewis is brought in as a consultant (a move that undermines the head coach), and where the defensive coordinator no longer wants to talk to the media, how could it be anything else but another demoralizing performance? To paraphrase Denny Greene, the Redskins are who I thought they were: a mediocre team constructed by a dysfunctional organization, overseen by an egomanical, clueless owner flushed with cash but devoid of anything remotely resembling football knowledge.

Snyder's Media Empire

Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder has expanded his media empire with the purchase of WTEM 980 sports talk radio. With this action, two things are certain: (1) The Redskins will get even more coverage, which will come at the expense of the Caps, Nationals, and Wizards; and (2) Those personalities who have been especially critical of the 'Skins should start looking for other career opportunities because Snyder is unlikely to tolerate strong opinions that fail to adhere to the company line. Steve Czaban, Andy Pollin, Brian Mitchell, and Doc Walker come immediately to mind because they are among Snyder's most vocal critics.