Offseason Excitement Begins

It was a great year for the Washington Commanders.

Jayden Daniels turned out to be phenomenal. You worry about him being Archie Manning, Sonny Jurgensen, or John Elway. With the team thinking a great QB is all they need. I don't think the football operations people feel that way in D.C.

There are some in the media who absolutely feel that way. There are great Quarterbacks who didn't win championships because management placed everything on their shoulders. 

Maybe the best thing Jayden accomplished was integrating new people in the offense as they came in. And realizing who was next man up. Getting the next men up involved.

That may help take the pressure off Adam Peters in the player acquisition department. At least on offense. 

They have work to do on defense. I'm not convinced you can stop the run with two linebackers. No matter how great those two are. My bias is three or four. If you run big nickel. It should be three d-linemen and three linebackers. I thought they had enough to win with and they did win but they never improved against the run. It was a season-long struggle. If the scheme wasn't part of the problem, there would have been noticeable improvement by the playoffs.

But Peters and Quinn know what they need. And if they have a scheme in mind on defense they will have to populate that scheme with people, mentally and physically, who can execute it. 

The other thing is, a defining quality of this Commanders Defense was the effort was off the charts. I can't help but think oftentimes they ran out of gas. To some extent, playing up tempo will gas your own defense. It makes the fourth quarter hard. Unless you have excellent second teamers you'll never be out of danger. Gunning the engine did not help this defense.

They played ball control at times. And the effects of up tempo were often offset by the NFL's best two-minute offense. Regardless, the defense couldn't put their capes on for four quarters. That's depth. Scheme. And complementary football. That's all got to get better.

I'm personally going to look at good tacklers and corners good at man coverage with power on the interior offensive line, offensive tackles who have tight end speed, an edge, and maybe a receiver or running back. We'll see what's happening in mock drafts. Try to define who's who and see what magic Peters can make in free agency.

But hands down, this was an impressive first season from Josh Harris and his football guys.

A Lazy, Uninspired, Lethargic, Entitled Commanders Football Staff

You know, come to think of it, we don't PLAY TO WIN in Washington.

Things began to trouble me earlier this week and I'm not seeing anything dissuading me from the slow creeping depression that I guess was there from the time Jacoby Brissett was benched.

These guys, the new contingent in charge of the Washington Commanders, apparently believe they have a lot of time to build a winner in Washington. They were out of time when they bought the team. Seems like a case where somebody sold you a house somebody was murdered in and you didn't get the memo.

To hear Dan Quinn talk, with his notions of succession in the coaching staff, you'd think he was expecting to be here years on end. That's entitlement. That expectation is going to cut short his stay. The NFL stands for NOT FOR LONG and if you are not serious about WINNING THIS YEAR you probably should spare yourself the trouble coming for you in year two when you get fired and just get the hell out.

I guess we should not be surprised at the lack of urgency apparent in this new staff since the exemplars of lack of urgency, the Dallas Cowboys, were smashed by a more motivated team in the playoffs. That was Quinn's team. They may have been a number one defense but they were also Number One in not giving a damn.

The Free Agency Period, which this Bruce Allen like General Manager appears ready to forsake, features some players who could help Washington.

There are veteran Quarterbacks available Washington should have a serious interest in. The three rookies people are swooning over in this years draft are dodgy at best. Two are not going to make it through the season. The third will be out of gas and decoded as his former team mate was by week 10.

Adam Peters seems to be a laid back kind of guy. Like nothing bothers him.

Seems like LOSING should bother the hell out of you. And the resemblance to Allen lies in the sense you get he is part of the "brotherhood", the OLD BOY NETWORK. I mean he looks like Bruce Dern when he smiles. I hope that means he is as MEAN AS BRUCE DERN. 

Bruce Dern, somebody who shot JOHN WAYNE in the back, would not be laid back about losing. He might smile but that just meant he was about to ATTACK.

The other disturbing thing about this new crew is they are NBA Guys. NBA Guys think they have forever to build a winner. They tank a season they don't care what the fans think. Five years later they are still tanking and they still don't care what the fans think.

That is not going to keep an NFL Franchise in Washington. 

I need to see these guys getting some work done in Free Agency or I'm going to bail. Divest in 2024. Because when help is available and you don't seize the opportunity there is something wrong with you.

I applaud those of you willing to sit through yet another embarrassing double digit loss season. 

It's like your Grandmother telling you you have to put up with a job that makes you miserable and you wake up one day and you've been miserable half your life.

That's what is in the offing for young Washington Football Fans. Don't put up with it because your parents put up with it. 

Hold their feet to the fire or kick them the hell out of your life. Life is too short.

I Got a Bad Feeling About This

Listening to a trusted ex-Redskin on the radio this morning, a cloud descended upon my person.

I had been thinking WWGAD? What would George Allen do? With these Washington Commanders?

I was thinking he'd start Jacoby Brissett. Start the Vet QB. Steady as she goes. Trade Sam Howell for draft picks plural. Trade the Number Two for some offensive line help. Sign some vets on defense. 

I know damn well, George Allen would say, we'll have a championship team next year.

But then I listened to that podcast and I admit I was triggered. Maybe the Commanders did tank last year. Lost on purpose! At the behest of the new owner. 

When you think about it, it makes a certain amount of sense.

It's a certain NBA-style spin on things. They tank unabashedly in the NBA. Josh Harris, new owner of the Commanders, is an NBA Owner. One of his advisors is a former Top NBA Executive. And Harris, backed up by a local sports punditry that has never known what a winning football team looks like, has stated he hopes the fans will be patient. With all the losing he's going to do, I assume.

His on purpose losing. As the Pro Football Focus people have noted in support of Harris's obligatory losing philosophy, it is going to take many years for the pathetic, woe-begone Washington Commanders to build a winning team. 

So we're looking at the Washington Wizards 2.0 as well as Ron Rivera 2.0 is that it?

There's something breathtakingly fraudulent about obligatory losing. It was suspicious last year when Jacoby Brissett was benched AFTER BEING NAMED THE STARTER. The only way to win a ballgame deliberately sabotaged.

That's a conspiracy theory, shout the loser commentariat! Yeah, Dudes, and if my grandmother had wheels she'd be a wagon.

You guys lose. You talk all the time about losing. You predict nothing but losing. You want the team to lose. You want the fans to lose. You must be making a killing off losing. Otherwise, you wouldn't pray to it so much.

The Number 2 pick Harris's obligatory losing WON will undoubtedly NOT produce a winning result. Harris is playing with fire here. Assuming the fans will be patient.

Not this fan. This isn't the NBA. Tanking manufactures losers en masse. Losing is a filthy habit and I doubt Washington has kicked it because they've kicked it a thousand times. Plus, there is no Kareem waiting in the Draft. Most QBs fail miserably in the NFL. 

You're saying one of these three is a generational talent?

The odds are against it. I'd sign a veteran QB the first chance you get. A veteran QB, ANY VETERAN QB, is far and away better than the rookie you are planning on starting. 

George Allen said let the rookie QB do all his losing starting for somebody else. Let somebody else lose on purpose. 

As the aforementioned Redskin Great himself implied, how can we take Harris seriously when he or his coaching staff says they're going to win? When they lost deliberately? How do you know when to start winning?

You've already overdrawn your account, Mr. Harris. YOU are 4-13. You don't get any more 4-13s. You are lucky you got away with the first one.

Maybe there are young guys out there willing to put up with more of this losing crap. A.K.A., development hell. More power to them. Hopefully, they win something before all our young guys give up their ghosts. 

Not me. I got one foot in the grave already. I need to cherish the Super Bowl Memories I do have. Not let this religious losing erase them.

Shove your development hell, Mr. Harris. You make Lombardi turn in his grave. I can see the Old Man now. You mean you don't play to win?!?!

I'm too old for this S$%#)*!

Harris is a Lucky Guy

Josh Harris started his era off right on Monday. The parting of the ways with Ron Rivera will be a blessing for both sides. 

Rivera is ready for his next phase. He has turned his misfortune in D.C. into a pot of gold for Harris. This is easily the most opportune offseason Washington has faced since the hiring of Bobby Beathard. Rivera has put the team in position.

The Commanders have money. They have draft picks. They have transformational capacity. How they proceed will be fun to watch. 

Can they win right off the bat? Yes. Can they win right off the bat AND five years down the road? Yes. The former has mainly to do with good coaching. The latter with getting a good GM/front office in place.

There are a lot of good candidates out there for both positions. Harris has picks and money. It is a good time to have picks and money. The timing couldn't be better for Josh in that respect.

I'm personally enamored with joining the Harbaugh Football Family. Wooing Jim Harbaugh to town would save some valuable time. He just won a National Title with Michigan. He could join the rarefied air of Jimmy Johnson and Pete Carroll and win both a Natty and a Lombardi. He had the best O-Line in college ball. He is not allergic to running the ball. And his defense was a swarm of sharks.

The Commanders would be a well-coached ball club.

Harbaugh getting hired would get a jump on the rest of the field. The NFL is a horse race. Getting the post position would be excellent.

Not getting Harbaugh my second choice would be Mike Harbaugh, er, uh, Mike Macdonald (looks like the D is a d which means he's a Highlander), the young guy from the Ravens who is a frequent dinner guest of the Harbaughs.

It is good coaching that will put butts in seats in 2024. That's essential because franchises can be moved if not enough gluteal maximises show up.

Foundation repair is the business of the Front Office.

Time is of the Essence

There are structural things in place in the NFL which will retard the progress of the Washington NFL franchise as they construct a new era of football. 

The primary retardant is Time. Time is against them. I would be surprised to learn the New Owners didn't maximize their opportunities to pursue front office personnel. They have had time for research. It is not unreasonable to expect a New GM right off the bat. If not, valuable ticks off the clock will ensue.

Yes, for you clock managers out there, if the Commanders are to do well this offseason clock management will be the thing.

The NFL, at least last I heard, doesn't allow interviews of assistant coaches still in championship contention. For an organization that claims to be a proponent of equal employment opportunity, that's a disgrace. Big name assistants like Ben Johnson may find themselves bereft of opportunities even though they are sought after. 

There are people available for consideration right off the bat for coaching duties. Bill Belichick and Jim Harbaugh being two who could also double as GM. Eric Bieniemy is in the building and should be interviewed as a matter of course. David Shaw is out there. The tempo would thus be just about the same as if you had incumbents in place. Then that would clear a path for a less rushed approach to free agency and the draft.

But before we get to all that, seems like it would be expedient to see a Jacoby Brissett advertisement against Dallas. As part of research for the new era. And as part of Brissett's pay scale elevation cultivation. And if some in the new group want to pass on Brissett, a nice sign and trade may harvest some veteran leadership, offensive or defensive, for next year.

Jacoby comes in and pounds Dallas he's a jewel. 

They pound Dallas and they increase ticket sales for next year. 

They get pounded by Dallas it doesn't matter a whole hell of a lot. Except if it ends up humiliating Sam Howell once again. He doesn't need that. Sam would be eliminated from the conversation and I don't think that would be quite fair given the fact he has had, worts and all, a fairly solid first year starting in the NFL.

To a certain extent, Josh Harris and Company have had a head start in the GM department. In everything else they are pressed for time. 

The final gun in the Dallas game is the starting pistol in a race against Time.

In Theaters January 6th. Rated G for everyone.

Five of My Favorite Xmas Tunes

While I am wondering if Santa somehow has the magic in his satchell to gift Sam Howell with three 500 yard passing games to end the 2023 Football Season with a team record 5,000 yards, a little Christmas Cheer might be in order.

1. Favorite Things by John Coltrane

2. In Dulci Jubilo by Mike Oldfield

3. Donde Esta Santa Claus by Augie Rios

4. Linus and Lucy by Vince Guaraldi

5. Feliz Navidad by Happy kyazze featuring Rosco

Merry Christmas one and all.

 

New Team Starts Up in January

Seems like the Washington Commanders don't really do anything substantive until January when most observers believe current head coach Ron Rivera will be relieved of his duties.

That is when the fun begins. The fun ended, if we are to believe Montez Sweat, and I don't see why not, with the Chicago Bears decapitation of the Rivera Regime a while back.

There are a few games left to be played during the which I expect the Commanders to be the exhibition team otherwise known as the Washington Generals. Old timers may recall that the Generals were the team the Harlem Globetrotters always whipped in their sports entertainment exhibition games.

In basketball, the Generals were the equivalent of the Three Stooges. Some Globetrotter tricks were performed off their foreheads. Slapstick basketball.

With the Washington NFL franchise, a routine transformation takes place around this time of the football year when their pretense of being a professional football team is entirely shed in favor of becoming the league's practice dummies. 

The Football version of the Washington Generals.

I'm sure the Rams have sent Ron Rivera a honey-do list detailing the schemes they'd like to test their guys against. Maybe they have a play they want to bounce off the forehead of Casey Toohill. Maybe they want to fine tune their double moves versus Forbes.

Maybe a circus performance would be sufficient motivation for the Commanders but I doubt it. I was hoping EB had some entertaining trick plays. Maybe The Green Bay Sweep. The Statue of Liberty play. The Richard Nixon Play. The Swinging Gate.

I was thinking a return to 1966 might be fun. With Sam Howell doing his best Jurgy and McLaurin making like Bobby Mitchell.

But nothing fun is about to happen because, as Sweat pointed out, they are just waiting for the end of the season. 

There is no reason to watch them then. It is garbage yards, garbage points, and garbage games from this point forward. It brings back memories of Bill Callahan and Terry Robiskie. 

Got to find something else to occupy my time with on Sundays . . . again.

Commanders Over Cardinals

Yesterday's Commanders win was a good one in a bugaboo game against a well-coached and passionate Arizona squad thankfully undefeated by the overwhelmingly obnoxious disrepect they had to endure for months previous to the contest.

Arizona is on film now. This was their best chance to surprise people. The element of surprise will get more rare as their season goes along. But if they can teach themselves to practice and play as hard as they did against Washington, they can be a headache THIS year. And if they get their QB back, who knows?

Washington's concerns about the offensive line were not dispensed with. Arizona sacked Sam six times. It was a glaring stat. The Broncos no doubt took note.

Got to back that rush off with the run. That's why they call it run-pass-option. There has to be a run threat. Can't wring hands about what they should have done with offensive line personnel. It is still an open question. But if they can't get better it will be tough on Quarterback room. You can't expect your QBs to withstand six sacks a game.

You have to understand, fairly or unfairly, you are training your quarterback to panic when you give up that many sacks. This is a particularly resilient young man at QB for Washington. So maybe you won't see it in his face. But make no mistake. He got the message. Don't ignore basic psychology.

Sam did not have his best game. He tried to do too much on the fumble that burped up an Arizona defensive TD. The Cardinals did what good defenses do against young QBs. They attacked. They got in the throwing lanes. They put their hands up after two seconds. Sam faced a team that had a plan for him for the first time this year. Maybe in his career.

He has to know Denver will copy what worked against him. 

But I would characterize his game Sunday as Kilmeresque. Billy Kilmer would have up and down days but when push came to shove he would win the ballgame for you. He was the Rooster Cogburn of NFL Quarterbacking. Perhaps not coincidentally, Bill Kilmer oversaw the proceedings in the Owner's Box with Josh Harris and Sonny.

After Sam suffered his setbacks, he showed True Grit and he put the ball in the end zone. Just like Billy.

Montez Sweat played like a monster. Abdullah Anderson had some plays. Jamin Davis was intense. Ridgeway was at the bottom of the pile again. Forbes broke up the last desparation heave by the Cardinals. The Legal Team of Payne and Allen laid down the law. 

The Defense carried the team. Sam was all the offense there was. The tight ends need to be more of a presence. Robinson, Gibson, and C-Rod need more touches. Gibson had that first down on a well-executed screen. Sam was not good on those throws to B-Rob in the flat. Don't make B-Rob go acrobatic to catch the ball. Gives the defense a chance to close.

If you are going to hit snags, it is best to hit them in a win. And in an early win. When there is a whole lot ground left to cover.

 

Parade Trading Post: Ding Dong Wicked Witch for Super Bowl

I'm not liking the Karmic feel of having a parade to celebrate Dan Snyder's departure as Owner of the Washington Commanders. I think it is a paradox. 

I think people who want to do that don't really want him to go. They got a lot of energy invested in Dan Snyder as a demon. They'll still be talking about him deep into the 2023 Season and Beyond, especially if they can't locate a scapegoat to take his place. Other people suspect that as well.

It's co-dependency.

Some people are dependent upon Dan for clicks. Outrage is the new mascara. Getting people riled up. Starting barfights. It works. People listen to the podcast or click on the blogpost.

All it does is raise your blood pressure. Doesn't move the chains.

So I'm thinking of going to the Football Gods Trading Post and making an energy exchange. For a Super Bowl Parade, I'm offering the Dan Snyder Parade. As a ritual sacrifice. As maybe compost to grow something different. To increase the overall level of football joy in the world and in the League. 

I'm offering the Football Gods a place in Washington Commanders football to set down roots.

And to remember them.

New Owner's Nothing-to-Do-List

There are two teams whose football zeitgeist reminds me of the spirit of the 2023 Washington Commanders. One is the 1999 St. Louis Rams. The other is the 1984 Miami Dolphins. On both of those teams, second year Quarterbacks took their teams to the Super Bowl.

The 1998 Rams were abyssmal. The franchise was like Washington's in trouble. They had a veteran Head Coach in Dick Vermeil who would go 4-12. Vermeil, once George Allen's special teams coach, changed his offensive coordinator, appointing Mike Martz, formerly Quarterbacks coach for the Washington Redskins, to that position.

Former Redskin Trent Green had been the plan at QB. He would quarterback one of Vermeil's Kansas City teams to a 13-3 record. But he was injured. And in strode gunslinger Kurt Warner in only his second year in the League. He tossed 41 touchdowns. Five of those TDs were collected by Marshall Faulk who caught 87 passes and rushed for nearly 1,400 yards. Faulk had changed the rules of football, according to Vermeil.

Martz became Rams Head Coach and for three years torched the league with his offense. Does Eric Bieniemy have the same career track? EB has talented receivers. Like the Rams did. And a pass catching running back. And a second year Quarterback. 

The great Jim Hanifan, coach of the Best Offensive Line in History, the 1991 Washington Redskins, coached the Rams Offensive Line. The jury is still out on this Commanders Offensive line.

Dan Marino tossed 48 TDs in his second year. Led the Dolphins to a 14-2 mark before losing to a 49ers Team people were already calling the Team of the Decade in the Super Bowl. 

Is Sam Howell Dan Marino? Is Sam Howell Kurt Warner? No. But he doesn't have to be. In today's NFL, Sam Howell could toss 48 TDs and still not come close to Marino or Warner. They were sackable pocket passers. Howell is of the RPO Age. But he could put up similar numbers to relatively similar effect.

He's potentially that explosive. I'm saying the NFL may be walking into a minefield with Howell. And Howell has a comparatively better defense.

Yes, he could be a bust. But it doesn't take a lot of guts to make that prediction for any NFL Player. Just as an aside, better football times are going to take some getting used to by the negative Nancies.

This is why I anticipate a soft landing for the New Owner.

He can do a few fan friendly things. But from a football standpoint, for the time being, the Owner has a Nothing to Do List.

Five Chief Concerns

There is not much going on in football. The standard everybody is going to the Super Bowl Stuff.

The chief worries in Washington are:

1. The Owner

2. The Offensive Line

3. The Offensive Line Coach

4. The Size of Emmanuel Forbes

5. The Quarterback

The Quarterback is always a chief worry in Washington, even when the position is solid. People want confirmation of Sam Howell's worthiness. My feeling is he will at the least be good enough. Good enough is good enough to win and go to the playoffs. Jacoby Brissett is also good enough in almost the exact same measure. But nothing will be known for sure until four or five games into the regular season.

The size of Emmanuel Forbes is unimportant. There will be NFL head games played. Other teams will try to run right at him if only to crush his psyche. See, all the talking heads are right about you. You're so bony I can walk my dog with you. But Forbes will be OK. He might create a takeaway mindset in team-mates. That'd be good.

The Offensive Line Coach is Travelle Wharton. I guess we have to wait for the Owner's arrival to get confirmation.

The Offensive Line was improved by free agency and the draft. Is it enough? It badly needs healthy players. People who don't play aren't going to help. It is going to come down to health. I wish it came down to talent. But that isn't the history here the last few years. The "best" players tend to be on the injured list. That has to change or really we're not going to advance beyond last year's win total.

There are ways to compensate. They say run the ball to hide a bad line. That worked a little bit last year. You can also play the young guys. Just bite the bullet and put youth on the field. And run the ball.

But we won't know about the line until the season is half over. It is hoped they are improved enough that we'll be able to say they are good enough. It is the same as the QBs. Good enough will win and make the playoffs.

Good enough should permit the passing game to function well enough to score more points than last year. It is a scandal to have the receivers we do and not get them the "damn ball".

Of course, the chief concerns could take on a new character when the new owner gets here and gives the go-aheads necessary to make further gains.

 

Bozo, Liar's Poker and Born Free

It is interesting watching the draft speculators spin wheels on who is gonna draft who in this year's NFL Draft. 

Why don't they just come out and say everybody is gonna draft everybody? I am a bit surprised they haven't declared that the Washington Commanders with the Number 16 Overall Pick will take Quarterback Bozo T. Clown from Circus University, a.k.a Count Gore De Vol. 

Some people maybe don't like the Commanders drafting a Quarterback because it gives the lie to Ron Rivera's pronouncement that Sam Howell is QB1. Maybe they think Riverboat Ron is playing Liar's Poker. I really don't care if he is or not. We'll know who the QB is in the Week One postgame. Don't worry yourself over it. 

I don't think the Commanders taking a QB in this year's draft means anything other than they need three and they are being prudent. Maybe they want Eric Bieniemy to have a rookie he can tutor. My only thought would be the pick should be mobile and not allergic to the pocket. He's got to trust his line. He can't be bailing out on every play. That basically says he thinks practice was a waste of time.

The line has to earn his trust of course. There is offensive line help available in the draft. The Commanders still need help in that department. They are looking at the DBs. Outside of those positions they'll be taking whoever they want.

It will be interesting how many of those 30 visits get drafted by the team. I guess the O-Linemen they met with might. Seems like a gimic to satiate fan curiosity more than it is anything else. But if you are curious about those visits Rico at Street Scores is your source. Especially if you like knowing the Commanders' picks before they pick them.

But everybody seems to have the same people on their 30 visits list. 

The Ownership situation is looking good. But the final tally on that is unavailable until late May. The Draft is coming up soon and afterwards we'll get a handle on the thought processes of this Commanders Organization. Their self-assessment is gleaned from the draft.

A good time will be had by all. But it is sweeter for us in Washington this year because we are being released from prison. 

Makes me feel like breaking out in song.

Are We Now Post-Apocalypse?

I guess you know why I ask. Yeah, the news the Commanders have been sold. I will wait for final confirmation. 

I will say that the NFL, not just the Washington Commanders, is lucky to the point of overt blessedness if it proves true that Magic Johnson is now a part of the league. There is no greater competitor. There is no matching his athletic joy. 

If you were lucky enough to live through the Magic-Bird years you know what is coming. Larry Bird and Magic Johnson were the very definitions of athletic competition. There will be no backing down. And there will be passion for the game.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves. 

I was listening to Steve Spurrier on Kevin Sheehan. He said his second year he wasn't the one deciding who the quarterback should be. He also said he expected Bobby Beathard to be his general manager. These points are on Dan Snyder. 

Many things are on Dan Snyder. Probably the worst thing is the destruction of the Washington Redskins. The history is essentially gone. Present day fans have little memory of the greats who matriculated here. They've only known the Snyder Era. A bleak time in a history that is no longer history. Truly an apocalypse.

I'm not going to forget the Redskins. I'm not going to forget the men who played here. They truly brought magic to D.C.

We recently celebrated Easter. There's no better time for magic to return to Washington.

There was no deeper dead to return from than the land of the dead we've been traversing through.

Can a Player Guarantee Performance of a Guaranteed Contract?

The answer to my mind is "no" but there are so many issues with the question you could get exasperated and drown in quicksand.

What does an NFL football team consider to be "performance"? Should the performance match the salary? How can NFL quarterback performance equal a quarter of a billion dollar salary? Aren't you claiming the quarterback is all you need to play football? Isn't that doom-decisive for your football team?

A billion dollar quarterback and 50 people making veteran minimum? That is union-busting for the NFL Players Association. Its job is to prevent a plantation economy not create one.

You would have to have a perfect clinical history, would you not, if you demand 250 million in GUARANTEED money implying you will be there every game to perform the contract? Isn't it near impossible for any player, even a clinically perfect physical specimen, to make that guarantee?

I don't know if the NFL/NFL Players Association CBA even addresses "nonperformance of contract" because it is looking like that is what this is. Ostensibly, if nonperformance were adequately covered there would be no problem signing people to guaranteed contracts. But there apparently is a problem.

No one in the construction industry would survive very long not performing according to contract.

Beyond one or two years, I'm astounded there are owners out there willing to guarantee contracts which are inherently not performable. 

At what point does dead money zombify the league? Ultimately paying something for nothing destroys you. In the real world. The NFL is not the real world. 

But even circuses go out of business.

Fix the Field

Making massive changes to coaching and personnel would be a huge mistake for any new owner coming to Washington.

Fixing the field at FedEx ought to be priority one. In case it isn't obvious, let's review why.

Robert Griffin III's career was essentially ended by FedEx Field. Alex Smith's career was essentially ended by FedEx Field. Ryan Fitzgerald's career was ended at FedEx Field. Nick Gates' career was almost ended at FedEx Field.

Of those four catastrophes, three required major surgical interventions.

Maybe this is why Mrs. Jackson's baby boy should think twice about Washington.

If the new owner wants to make an immediate major impact, fixing the field is the way to do it.

We're Not Your Chumps Anymore

The situation in Washington, as has been noted by the pundits, is fluid. I guess to fill time the commentators are hurrying to do final assessments on the Commanders' roster.

But that can't be done yet. The final grade on NFL rosters is the day after the Super Bowl and that is a long ways off. 

The roster is more like a formation. It is set in motion during the offseason like a tailback sent wide by the QB.

It is a chessboard where moves are made to put the team in position to do something.

Like what? Like make the playoffs. Like win the division. Like win homefield advantage. Like make the Super Bowl. Like winning the Super Bowl.

There are moves yet to be made. By the Commanders and by the entire league. 

Some of them will tip the hands of the people who make them. It will be a tell to me that the Commanders aren't interested in contending if they make no move to draft offensive linemen. They have flaws elsewhere. But the offensive line was a clear weakness and was decisive in some of the losing that was done. 

And yet, had it been a tad stronger and a tad healthier the team would have been in the playoffs at a minimum. 

Preliminary steps have been taken in that regard. The job still needs to be finished. We need to see healthy guys on the roster to expect improvement in wins and losses.

Currently, the talk is about quarterback and cornerback. It should be about the O-Line and the O-Line Coach. Who will that be?

There are intimations from the Press Corps that the Commanders are somehow obligated to talk to Lamar Jackson. That's problematic. The issue with Jackson is a league issue. It's about whether roster annihilating contracts should be guaranteed. It is about Quarterbacks with a dangerous style of play they can't guarantee desiring guarantees they'll get paid for work they may not do. Is guaranteeing a quarter of a BILLION dollars for work that may not be done a fair deal? 

Football is a dangerous game and people get hurt. Few football people are psychic, however. Maybe in the future a player can use a time machine and bring back game film to the negotiating table and say hey look this proves I play the whole season next year. Guaranteed money is a form of injury insurance. The Players Association is asking for the player to be paid for the work he would have done had he not been subject to the occupational hazard of playing football.

I think we'd all like a shot at that deal. Imagine what we could get never having played a down. Wow.

But that's a labor issue. It is league wide. It is not up to the league's chumps to go fund me the players. That is for the League and the Players Association to work out.

My sense is the League feels guaranteed money is one way they get ripped off. There may be a guaranteed sum they would be morally obligated to pay. But a quarter of a billion?

That's an understandable reason NOT to pursue Lamar Jackson. If Peter King, Mike Florio, or anyone else who believes the Washington Commanders have a moral obligation to make Lamar an offer is willing to provide reinsurance regarding the matter, I'd say let's do it. But that's not going to happen. These are geniuses with our money. Theirs is not up for discussion. Even though it would expose how much faith they really have in Lamar Jackson. 

Teams have been burned by this concept too many times. Why is Washington an okay place to get burned? You say we're dumb now for not doing it. But I'd bet 250 million you'd say we were dumb for doing it later.

My feeling is the days where we are the league chumps are numbered.

Or at least, Peter, we're not YOUR CHUMPS anymore. 

That said, at the right price, I'd sign Lamar. Waiting for the new owner's input of course.

After all, it is his money.

Is War Coming to Washington?

There has been a war between The Washington Post and Daniel M. Snyder since the inception of Snyder's ownership of the Washington NFL Franchise. 

There has been a war between Daniel M. Snyder and the D.C. Sports Media since the inception of his ownership.

The only war Snyder, who must be a closet Neocon, has avoided is a war with the NFL.

Now one is looming. 

Recent news Snyder was "blocking" Jeff Bezos from bidding for ownership of the Washington Commanders would if successful "block" the NFL from an enormous influx of cash. The NFL, ostensibly, has final say on ownership of the team. We in D.C. know this from the Milstein episode which resulted in Snyder's bid to buy the Washington Redskins getting approved. 

The NFL didn't think Milstein had the money. They thought Snyder did. Milstein withdrew his bid when he concluded the NFL would not approve it. Snyder's bid was approved. Snyder was a "monster" the League created.

We're headed toward Snyder submitting a bidder the NFL rejects because it thinks there's a better bidder out there. 

But now that possibility is trumped by Snyder's request that the NFL indemnify him from lawsuits. 

I don't know about you but that seems like a shot across the League's Bow. 

There is no way in deepest hell the NFL will indemnify him for any losses incurred as a result of his ethics challenged ownership. Snyder knows that. He is looking for a fight. It seems Danny Boy's envy of the big boys is becoming florid. His compensation disorder once again rearing its ugly Bonapartist head.

I've never been privy to the League taking a franchise away from an "owner". I don't know if it has ever been done before. 

 

Do Not Fire Ron Rivera

It looks like the Ownership situation, as has been the case for over twenty years, is a handicap for the Washington Commanders as they attempt construction of their 2023 season. 

I would love to see Eric Bieniemy in D.C. But he's a better fit as Head Coach of the Arizona Cardinals or Offensive Coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens. The Cardinals would challenge for a playoff spot. The Ravens could challenge for a Super Bowl. Both personally beneficial for Bieniemy. 

And if he saw that report on the "New Owner" being interested in hiring Sean Payton, why would he see any reason to commit to the Commanders before football harmageddon happens?

There are two worst-case scenarios in the ownership situation. Dan Snyder stays. The New Owner wipes out the team. We don't have much luck in D.C. We are working on it. But I can see both scenarios playing out.

The Commanders could challenge, if reports of the New Owner's activities are true, for 0-16. Let's recall for a second the most vivid example of a new owner wiping out an existing staff. The new staff was 8-24 their first two years. They eventually won two Super Bowls. 

But . . .

The Cowboys at that point were 3-13. The Commanders today are 8-8-1. The Commanders can challenge for a playoff spot in 2023 . . . if left in tact. If dismantled, they can only challenge for the Powder Puff Championship of the World. 

It's back to being the practice dummies of the NFL.

There are some in Washington ready for a wipeout. I guess they are used to moaning and complaining about losing teams and waxing poetic about development.

The team is structurally ready to take the next step. Now is NOT the time to take a step backwards while the "New Owner" learns how to do football. 

A wipeout would indicate to me the owner knows nothing about football. He or she can't tell a good roster when they see one. Seems to me that is not much of a change from Danny Boy. 

But some say the New Owner has a right to pick whoever he wants to coach the team and players to play for it. So did Danny Boy. Boy, did he ever exercise his rights!

If I were you, "New Owner", I would allow Rivera to finish his contract. Spend the time researching and consulting. If Rivera gets to the Super Bowl, the Head Coach is one less worry you have.

If you expect me to believe a wipeout is in order, then you expect me to buy a high rise on the moon. 

Losing sucks, New Owner. We most of us are sick of it in D.C.