Is Washington Redskins' Vinny Cerrato a Watered-down Matt Millen? (Comparison Chart)
by KevinE on Jun 4, 2009 11:53 AM EDT
in Parodies (Having a Laugh)
66 comments
I recently came across a Washington Post article from 2005, where Mike Wise spoke with Vinny Cerrato about his worst decisions and lessons learned:
"Biggest regret? Probably in 2000, signing all those older guys," Cerrato said. "I learned you can't put a lot of signing bonuses on veteran players cause they're not going to play out those years. That was a mistake I made and learned from. Bruce Smith, Deion and Mark Carrier were the big ones...Now, we try to avoid dead money, money that counts against your cap and doesn't go to anybody."
(The Redskins are among NFL leaders with $16 million of their 2005 salary cap devoted to players no longer on the roster).
This is pure comedy. Fast forward four years to today and the Redskins are almost exactly at $16 million in dead cap money (Brandon Lloyd leading the charge at $5mil+). In my opinion, Cerrato correctly fixed the problem with signing veterans past their prime, but we certainly have not fixed the problem of building through the draft. It's the blue-print every Super Bowl team has, yet the Redskins front office chooses to go the George Steinbrenner route. Assuming Washington doesn't lose a draft pick for the Haynesworth tampering, the Redskins will have all their 2010 draft picks (minus the 6th round pick due to the Jason Taylor acquisition). Not bad! Let's just pray the Skins stay healthy so the trigger happy front office doesn't unload them for more free agents.
Even today, the distaste for Cerrato in DC is quite high, so that got me thinking (it is known to happen), how many similarities does Cerrato have with Matt Millen, arguably the worst GM of all time? Here's my findings:
| Matt Millen
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Vinny Cerrato
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loves to draft WRs in the first 2 rounds1
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has drafted only bust QBs2
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passed on Demarcus Ware & Shawn Merriman in the 2005 draft3
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supported by the owner but none of the fans
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under .459 total win percentage in tenure
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less than 1 year as an ESPN analyst
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given extension/promotion despite not making the playoffs
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has a Super Bowl ring with the Redskins
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fired by potential future Hall of Fame coach4
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demoted draft day decision-making by Hall of Fame coach5
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had a losing record in his collegiate playing career
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has cool, Chuck Norris-esque mustache
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| 1 | Calvin Johnson, Mike Williams, Roy Williams, Charles Rogers <---> Devin Thomas, Malcolm Kelly, Fred Davis, Taylor Jacobs | |
| 2 | Joey Harrington, Drew Stanton <---> Patrick Ramsey, Todd Husak, Sage Rosenfels, Jordan Palmer | |
| 3 | Joe Gibbs was running the show this year so Cerrato cannot take all, if any, of the blame. We'll dole this one out to the Skins as a whole (although Cerrato did take some credit for the Sean Taylor pick, which I thought was all Gregg Williams). | |
| 4 | Marty Schottenheimer | |
| 5 | Joe Gibbs | |
I couldn't find much on Cerrato's times at Notre Dame when they won the championship, though Dan Steinberg uncovered a gem, which led the NCAA to add a rule named, the "Vinny Cerrato Rule."
Cerrato's resume included a stint as chief recruiter for Lou Holtz at Notre Dame, where he'd gained notoriety for impressing prospective recruits by standing on the Notre Dame sideline during televised games feeding them play calls in advance via cell phone--a tactic the NCAA later banned with a special "Vinny Cerrato rule."
I guess when it comes to tampering, the Redskins' front office know how to safely tip-toe around the boundaries!!
"They were all watching the game," Cerrato said. "I knew they would be. So I called their houses all over the country, and I said: 'This is Vinny Cerrato from Notre Dame. I'm on the sidelines at the Orange Bowl. You watching?' And then I'd tell them what the next play was going to be."
2 recs |
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guaranteed a washed up Shawne Merriman is in a Skins jersey next year
From Richmond to the District
by pas493 on Jun 4, 2009 12:08 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
B Lloyd
anybody know when this guy stops raping our salary cap?
I'm to young to Die Danny...don't make me do it tomorrow....
by Rekka on Jun 4, 2009 12:09 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
In what way? Do you think he’s pure comedy gold and like to see him make blunder after blunder? Or are you genuinely impressed with his grasp of being an NFL personnel guy?
by killianskid34 on Jun 4, 2009 1:07 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I like his fiestiness and grit.
And his willingness to work inside the gray areas. He’s made some mistakes, but most GMs do. He’s done a lot of good things too.
by SSBlitz on Jun 4, 2009 2:21 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
He’s made more mistakes than most. He would have been fired 2 years ago if he worked anywhere else
"You will remember the night you were struck by the sight of [18] thousand fists in the air" -Disturbed
by snowburnt on Jun 4, 2009 3:36 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I like that he's comfortable taking risks.
More so than a lot of GMs. Moves like getting Portis and Santana have worked out great. I’m optimistic that the recent Haynesworth and Hall acquisitions will work out great too. But with these prolific player moves, you get prolific mistakes like Lloyd and Taylor (which had a lot of potential to be great at the time). He’s been learning from these hits and misses and I’ve been generally impressed with the team’s direction over the past two years (Zorn era).
by SSBlitz on Jun 4, 2009 4:30 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Giving out the biggest contracts in the league, trading a 2nd round pick for Jason f-cking Taylor, and the debacle of Zorn’s hiring.
What’s not to like!?!
by smutsboy1 on Jun 5, 2009 10:03 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Ask Redskins fans
if they were pumped to have Jason Taylor on the D-Line at the beginning of last year, and the majority would say yes.
He was injured and didn’t really fit in the scheme, so his production went down. To say in hindsight that a second round pick was too much is easy, but at the time it was a fair deal.
by SSBlitz on Jun 5, 2009 11:54 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
+1, agreed
From Richmond to the District
by pas493 on Jun 5, 2009 12:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
First of all, me and most of the Skins fans I watch with every Sunday hated the deal the minute it was made. We need(ed) draft picks, not 34-year old players.
Secondly, it was a terrible deal. Taylor was about to be cut by the Dolphins. We shouldn’t have given them any pick, let alone a SECOND ROUNDER!?
Our team had no business trading picks for a player in their mid-30’s. It’s the kind of shortsightedness that is the hallmark of Snyderrato.
by smutsboy1 on Jun 5, 2009 12:47 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Snyderrato doesn’t value draft picks very high.
Snyderrato love big names, and Jason Taylor has a bigger name than Demetric Evans.
Snyderrato panicked and was scared to go into the season with solid but unspecatcular starters like Demetric Evans.
Take your pick…
by smutsboy1 on Jun 5, 2009 3:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I love Portis and Santana, but I wouldn’t say they’ve worked out great. I don’t remember that we paid as much for Santana, but Portis I think we may have retrospectively.
They’re great players, Portis has flashes of brilliance, almost getting the rushing yards title (but fell short after the O-line fell apart) this past year and is a brilliant blocker, but running backs are a dime a dozen. Consider the money we paid for Portis, think about 90% of it being used to get a top flight O-line, anyone would be good behind that.
Santana has his moments every season but then he gets double or triple covered and our secondary receivers are not good enough or too short to take advantage of the coverage.
We could have signed both Haynesworth and Hall for 50-75% of what they got, particularly Hall. Nobody wanted him, I think he’ll be good, but I think we over paid. As a result, we have less money to pay the role players that are essential to championship teams.
He’s too comfortable taking risks I think…it really seems like he’s playing with a computer game he can reset rather than hundreds of millions of dollars.
"You will remember the night you were struck by the sight of [18] thousand fists in the air" -Disturbed
by snowburnt on Jun 5, 2009 10:47 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I'd agree with some of this...
But Tampa actually offered more than what the Redskins did for Haynesworth. Giants were in the $80+ mil ballpark.
Saying RBs are a dime a dozen isn’t necessarily true. Ask Detroit, Oakland, Tampa, Atlanta (prior to Burner).
by KevinE on Jun 5, 2009 10:54 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Oakland and Tampa are both fine at RB, and then you have teams like the Vikings and Chargers who have multiple starting-caliber RBs.
Financially speaking, we have been wildly over-invested in the RB position since Portis got to town.
by smutsboy1 on Jun 5, 2009 11:01 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
OAK, TAM
I guess my point is that they’re mediocre at best. Cadillac looked to be a bust and they went through a boatload of different RBs trying to find one that works.
Skins haven’t really had that problem
by KevinE on Jun 5, 2009 11:10 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
that still doesn’t mean we’ve been cost-effective at RB.
Portis is a stand up guy and very talented, so I hate speaking ill of him. But for his production he’s overpaid, and we’re over-invested in a position at which it is relatively easy to find decent production.
by smutsboy1 on Jun 5, 2009 12:50 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
Agree 100%
I wasnt saying Portis is cost-effective, I just meant he has been reliable where the Skins haven’t had to deal with multiple mediocre RBs rotating in.
Having said that, there aren’t many Redskins that are cost-effective. London Fletcher stands out as one that does tho.
by KevinE on Jun 5, 2009 1:07 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
You’ve made an effective argument for Cerrato being a bad GM.
"You will remember the night you were struck by the sight of [18] thousand fists in the air" -Disturbed
by snowburnt on Jun 8, 2009 12:23 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Pretty much my point.
Love Portis, but his bang for the buck isn’t there.
"You will remember the night you were struck by the sight of [18] thousand fists in the air" -Disturbed
by snowburnt on Jun 8, 2009 12:22 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
If you have a good O-Line your running back almost doesn’t matter (ask Denver)
"You will remember the night you were struck by the sight of [18] thousand fists in the air" -Disturbed
by snowburnt on Jun 8, 2009 12:21 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Really?!
He’s done a lot of good things? Can you list them for me? I mean this team has no O line this year! Cerrato is a stooge, I’m sorry. I hate to be a pessimist, but I see Bugel being fired at the end of the year unless one of two miracles happen : 1. Bugel can somehow, through the grace of God, get this collection of has beens and never weres to play well and all have career years – OR- 2. Cerrato finally gets canned by Snyder, who has an epiphany that Cerrato just doesn’t know what the he’s doing. Of course, these two contingencies are contradictions but whatever. I just hate going into another season thinking that if the Skins had better o-line play, they could actually contend again.
by JP1199 on Jun 5, 2009 5:14 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I’d hate to see Bugel go…he’s done a lot with a little here. It would be too much to ask them to ditch Cerrato probably
"You will remember the night you were struck by the sight of [18] thousand fists in the air" -Disturbed
by snowburnt on Jun 8, 2009 12:24 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Jim Bowden vs. Cerrato
city is full of great GM’s
From Richmond to the District
by pas493 on Jun 4, 2009 1:37 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
George McPhee and Ernie Grunfeld are aite!!
by KevinE on Jun 4, 2009 1:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
yea i know i like them too
but Bowden and Cerrato are soooo bad it brings down the whole city
From Richmond to the District
by pas493 on Jun 4, 2009 2:36 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Ugh
Nats are an utter disaster. How does Manny Acta still have a job? He has single handedly lost multiple games…even the announcers during the game ask why he’s not doing certain things.
crap, sorry, back to Redskins.
by KevinE on Jun 4, 2009 2:48 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
haha its ok i gotta let it loose every now and then too
From Richmond to the District
by pas493 on Jun 4, 2009 3:08 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
The funny thing is everything they were good at last year they’re bad at this year and vice versa.
This year they’re hitting the ball and getting runs, they just can’t close. Ayala and Saul did screw up more often than not in relief which is still a major issue…but the starting pitching staff is pretty top notch, if only they can catch a break.
Also, their farm system went from crap to respectable over night thanks to some moves by the front office (and the existence of a front office). So that bodes well for the future (if they can figure out how to finish a game.
"You will remember the night you were struck by the sight of [18] thousand fists in the air" -Disturbed
by snowburnt on Jun 4, 2009 3:39 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
The Caps/McPhee/Leonsis are everything the Redskins/Snyderrato are not.
Much to my sadness (although as a Caps fan I couldn’t be happier).
by smutsboy1 on Jun 5, 2009 10:04 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I just can't stand to listen to Vinny talk
It makes my ears bleed.
It’s like there is a random word generator in his head, and it spits out a series of words that add up to absolutely nothing.
by Ken Meringolo on Jun 4, 2009 2:17 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Out of fairness...
Wasn’t Rod Gardner on Schottenheimer?
by Ken Meringolo on Jun 4, 2009 2:18 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
also out of fairness,
At least the WRs that Millen drafted were good and started showing immediately. None of Cerrato’s picks have done anything of note.
"You will remember the night you were struck by the sight of [18] thousand fists in the air" -Disturbed
by snowburnt on Jun 4, 2009 3:41 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Charles Rogers
Was a complete bust. He did nothing.
by KevinE on Jun 4, 2009 3:52 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
And the other three have only a rookie year of play.
As disappointing as it was, wideouts shouldn’t be expected to come out and be superstars in their rookie year. Yeah, it happened to a couple who were forced into starting roles, but that doesn’t mean Thomas, Kelly, and Davis are busts.
But yeah, Rogers was a bust.
by SSBlitz on Jun 4, 2009 4:15 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Matt Millen has a superbowl with the redskins?
by SSBlitz on Jun 4, 2009 2:22 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
yep
He actually won one with the Raiders and Niners too. I believe for the Super Bowl game with the Skins he was deactivated though.
by KevinE on Jun 4, 2009 2:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
He was on the sidelines in streetclothes when the Redskins won in Minneapolis. He was a good cheerleader that year, though.
by killianskid34 on Jun 4, 2009 3:00 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Best Skins LB corps ever
Wilbur, Monte, Andre Collins, MIllen, Gouveia, and Ravin Caldwell.
Has Monte retired yet?
by CJHutch on Jun 4, 2009 5:13 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
His moustache reminds me of Sgt. Slaughter more than Chuck Norris.
by SSBlitz on Jun 4, 2009 2:44 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Jeez I’m bad with the typos today. You know what I meant…
by SSBlitz on Jun 4, 2009 2:45 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Definitely Sgt. Slaughter...
"Sure it’d be great to be playing with 10 good fingers, but 8 will do just fine." – Jon Jansen
by VA_Skin on Jun 4, 2009 8:42 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I'd rather have Millen than Cerrato. At least Matt has eyelids.
by CJHutch on Jun 4, 2009 5:06 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Lesser of 2 evils?
Millen’s ’stache is better than Cerratos bug-eyes??
"Sure it’d be great to be playing with 10 good fingers, but 8 will do just fine." – Jon Jansen
by VA_Skin on Jun 4, 2009 8:43 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
I am telling
you guys Holmgren is coming!
by RedskinCali63 on Jun 4, 2009 8:52 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
In all fairness
as creative and potentially accurate as this comparison is, we do need another year to prove that Cerrato’s handpicked QB Brennan and WRs are true BUSTS.
Question:
Would, “has freaky, Nancy Pelosi/psycho eyes,” be another for Cerrato, or WHAT?!
"Sure it’d be great to be playing with 10 good fingers, but 8 will do just fine." – Jon Jansen
by VA_Skin on Jun 4, 2009 9:49 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
A picture with lasers shooting out of them would be cool.
But I’m too lazy to make it. Haha.
by SSBlitz on Jun 4, 2009 10:54 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
that sounds like
the Norv Turner argument. As in keep giving him another year. He’s been in lil Danny’s ear for 9 years , and he’s made many more awful decisions than decent ones. Really, the best additions to the team came from Gibbs, after he showed Vinny the door.
by CJHutch on Jun 5, 2009 8:27 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Really, the best additions to the team came from Gibbs, after he showed Vinny the door.
Schottenheimer was the one who showed Vinny the door. Not Gibbs. Correct me if I’m wrong, but Cerrato was the Director of Player Personnel from 2002-2008? That’s why he takes credit for his involvement in drafting ST21, Rocky, Rogers, etc., even though Gibbs did make the final decisions as HC and President.
I agree that he’s “been in lil Danny’s ear for 9 years.” But, as the VP of football operations (HDIC), Vinny Cerrato has brought in Haynesworth and Dockery in free agency, re-signed Hall, and is directly responsible for the drafts in ‘08 and ’09. It’s too early to say whether the players from those 2 drafts are studs or duds.
"Sure it’d be great to be playing with 10 good fingers, but 8 will do just fine." – Jon Jansen
by VA_Skin on Jun 5, 2009 1:59 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
it is not
too early to say last years draft was a mistake. Whether the 3 top guys turn out to me studs or duds won’t change that. By all accounts, a 2nd rounder should be a starter for you, if not right away, at least within a year or two. So, let’s say Thomas finally gets his head out of his a$$ and bumps Randle Nil to #3. You’ve still got 2 other guys who have no shot at starting anytime soon. The best we can hope with Davis is that he has a solid year or two with us so we can get good value for him in a trade before he bolts in FA. Do you really think he’s gonna want to stick around with Cooley the most popular guy in town? Not a chance. And, whether it’s Thomas or Kelly who “breaks out” to unseat ARE-not, do you think there’s ANY chance the other one will be able to move Moss to the bench? Nope, not a chance. Therefor, you have at least two, probably 3, guaranteed backups that you acquired with starter value. Way to go Vinny!!
by CJHutch on Jun 6, 2009 9:43 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
For the past 2-3 seasons, our offensive production has gone almost exclusively through CP, Moss, and Cooley, via JC. Moss and ARE are both 30, which means that in the coming years, their production will start declining (ARE is already there). We desperately need young, fresh receivers to step up and be able to complement Moss. It’s possible (though not probable) that both Thomas and Kelly could bump Randle El back in the rotation. What if Moss gets injured? Then we will need our young WRs even more! Zorn has made comments about running a lot of 2-TE sets this year that will include both Cooley and Davis. All of these situations and reasonings are why labeling last year’s draft as a “mistake” already is, IMO,
metaphorically equivalent to a premature ejaculation.
IF Thomas, Kelly and Davis go out and put up the same numbers again this year as they did last year, then I’ll be right there with you. But like I said before:
… anyone who knows football should be aware of the fact that, generally, there is a 1-3 year learning curve for QBs and WRs transitioning to the NFL. DeSean Jackson and Eddie Royal were the exception to that rule, but 8-9 times out of 10, WRs take a little time to get acclimated.
"Sure it’d be great to be playing with 10 good fingers, but 8 will do just fine." – Jon Jansen
by VA_Skin on Jun 7, 2009 4:15 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
sure
getting acclimated takes time. I wasn’t expecting any of those guys to light up the league. But I did expect SOME sort of production. Forget about Davis sleeping in. His field time is going to be limited no matter how early he wakes up. Without a Cooley injury, he has no chance of starting. Personally, I like Kelly better than Thomas. He seems to work harder, and he’s bigger. The problem is, the reason he dropped to the 2nd round was because of his knee problems, which happens to be the same reason he can’t get on the field. We’ll see if that changes. And as for Thomas, he had the best opportunity to contribute last year, and he didn’t make the best of it.
Now, all that said, the reason I say that draft was a mistake is because we drafted 3 guys who do one thing, so they are not only competing with vets, they’re competing with each other. And we did this with MANY other pressing needs. Don’t get me wrong, I hope Kelly AND Thomas turn into Pro Bowlers. My gripe is with Cerrato, who is the worst decision maker at such a high post in the league.
by CJHutch on Jun 7, 2009 8:27 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
Cerrato looks like the twin brother of the runaway bride...you guys remember this woman right?
don’t stare directly into her eyes
by Ken Meringolo on Jun 5, 2009 12:14 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs
Is that the one that wore the diaper?
by SSBlitz on Jun 5, 2009 12:21 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
No, it’s the one that ran away from the wedding and pretended to be kidnapped. After they found her she was arrested for wasting the police’s time.
man, look at that adam’s apple…
"You will remember the night you were struck by the sight of [18] thousand fists in the air" -Disturbed
by snowburnt on Jun 8, 2009 12:27 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
hahaha the runaway bride
hahaha that picture is great – i wish we had holmgren – i do wonder how shitty cerrato has actually done, and how much should be chalked up to snyder’s deciding input, it’s unquantifiable but true, at least to me. Is Cerrato really that bad, aside from very likely being a kissass to Dan (despite this probably being a requirement for employment as a coach or with ownership, e.g. see Gregg Williams)..
by Abstract Capital on Jun 10, 2009 9:34 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs
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