Lots here at Ryan O'Halloran's Redskins 360 Blog, and I can't well list it all. There are two points in particular I want to address as they're getting a lot of mileage among Redskins fans -- emphasis mine:
This is the only time all year that The Danny talks to the media. From a beat writer's perspective, this stinks because he is heavily involved in personnel decisions and negotiates most of the big-money, free-agent contracts. I would like to get his perspective on why so-and-so is a good fit for the Redskins and why so-and-so wasn't worth the money they were demanding. Because the team doesn't have a general manager, the need for the owner to be available more often would give the fans (and media) a chance to gain insight into the way the Redskins operate.
What many of us would like answered is to what degree is Snyder involved? Is it Coach saying "We want Player X" and Dan saying "We will pay Y"? Or, given how the Briggs deal went down, is Dan Snyder initiating trades? Worse, is Dan Snyder initating trades based on his evaluation of a Football player (which, as far as I can tell, he wouldn't have any special insight on anyways)?
Let's not leap to conclusions. The Press Conference made clear that Joe Gibbs makes the final decisions on player personnel, but that doesn't mean Dan Snyder's fingerprints aren't on the players we acquire. He has input in closed door meetings that take place between Snyder, Cerrato, and Coach Gibbs. I do not think he goes to those meetings to look pretty.
On a General Manager (again, emphasis mine):
2. Snyder said hiring a general manager was not considered... He is convinced the current front office structure - listening to scouts and assistant coaches give their reports and then the Snyder-Gibbs-Cerrato trio making the decision - works and will continue to work. Thing is, no person in their right mind would accept the GM job if Cerrato was still in the building... Snyder said there wasn't an uproar to hire a GM two years ago, following a playoff appearance. That's not entirely the case. I believe hiring a GM after a playoff year would have been applauded by Redskins Nation.
And of course he's correct. Redskins Nation, myself included, had no problem applauding the hiring of Al Saunders who was absolutely going to turn our team into the Best Offense In NFL History as some told it (like me!). Adding a General Manager would have been seen as just another proactive means of ensuring prolonged success after an anomalous winning season. And perhaps it would have done just that, as an additional brain in the room when we (apparently) collectively decided that Adam Archuleta over Ryan Clark was a good idea, for his large contract, might have recognized the sheer insanity and put the quietus on it. An additional warm decision making body in the room might have identified that we would've been better off simply drafting a WR in the 3rd round rather than trading the pick to San Fransisco for Brandon Lloyd. A GM could have been the one to argue against the TJ Duckett trade, as mortgaging our future for a guy we didn't intend to use is laughably short sighted.
I still want a General Manager.