Update [2007-4-25 15:17:5 by Skin Patrol]: Triumphant return of
Covering The Redskins who provides his own thoughts on the briefing. As always, it's the perfect recap. Money shot, my emphasis:
Snyder mentioned he met with WR Brandon Lloyd during the owner's meetings in Arizona and said that "we are really proud of him," for the shape he is in describing their get together as good.. No one had asked a question about Lloyd..
Diving right in...
Starting at War Cry! responding to Dan Snyder. Regarding Snyder's expression of disappointment over last year's 5-11 record:
Fact is, we've been there and done that, heard it and seen it, for seven years. Disappointment, things went wrong, injuries, blah blah blah, while we all sit and watch other franchises in the playoffs. In addition, I think fans are tired of hearing how the franchise is making progress, were on the right track, and things are looking up, but yet, year after year, we suffer more disppointment and disallusionment. Winning cures ills and in order to win, and win more than one season, a plan needs to be in place that provides stability, chemistry and 'buy in'to reach the consistency of teams like the Colts and the Patriots, and others who may have one off year, but consistently are in play come December.
Uhm, big
Hogs Haven ten-four on that.
Redskins Insider was at the conference and just missed the opportunity to ask Dan: Why yesterday? He's reclusive for the rest of the year, why did Snyder choose a Draft Briefing of aaaaaall the Q&A sessions to speak out? On Dan Snyder on Brandon Lloyd:
Have to say for me the highlight of the whole presser was Snyder's unsolicited revisting of his meeting with Lloyd at the owner's meetings in Arizona (Springs was there too I am told). He said the WR looks great and that "we're really proud of him."
Wow. So coming off that debacle of last season Lloyd spend a few weeks working out and he's getting platitudes from the guy who signs the checks.
Hog Heaven gets the award for the best structured post-briefing notes, far better than my cluster fudgesickled notes from yesterday. In case you missed Gibbs' reaction to the admission that Adams and Okoye and Johnson admitted to prior marijuana use (gasp):
Gibbs: is treating the reports that some players smoked pot as rumor. The Redskins are going by factual results of drug tests administered to players.
Good.
Running Redskins has recap central as well as pining frustrated on Dan Snyder's GM take. Lots of very prescient and compelling points in his post, so make sure to catch all of it, but here's my favorite:
Owner Daniel Snyder was quick to say at yesterday's press conference that a general manager was not part of "everything." He felt badly for the fans following the team's 5-11 season, but did not see team structure as the cause for the on-field results.
Both Snyder and Gibbs recounted that aggressive player acquisition has been a Redskins trademark since the 1980s. They might have pointed out that Bobby Beathard and Charlie Casserly, GMs both, were orchestrating those moves.
Master4Caster ultimately concludes that this is actually on Gibbs, as Snyder would defer to the Greatest of Redskins Icon on team structure matters; if Gibbs wanted a GM, he'd have one. Fair point that deserves some attention. Is Master right on here, reader(s)?
Melinda Waldrop's Redskins Huddle covers everything, though I give her the floor on Vinny's #6 strategy, which he made explicit at the briefing:
If the Redskins end up picking sixth on Saturday, Cerrato said that selection will take into account the overall board and the value of players still on it, not just Washington's specific team needs.
"When you're picking high like that, the biggest thing you don't want to do is draft for need and take somebody that's not worthy of that pick," Cerrato said. "What you want to get at the sixth pick is somebody that has Pro Bowl potential. ... If we're picking at sixth, we'll be looking for the best player available."
Snyder agreed, and said the Redskins have spared no expense trying to find that player.
I find this very unfortunate, though there are fans that swear by the "Best Player Available" strategy. My feeling is you pick Best Need Available, and if it's a stretch you trade down for more picks. Trading up
only makes sense -- to me -- when filling a need with an incredible prospect, and the best players in this year's draft are
not in need positions. I am baffled by our marriage to Best Player Available at #6.
Newspaper recap pending later today.
