The Long, Overdue Return of "Dear Mr. Snyder"

Today: The definition of insanity.

We’ll keep it short, after all, where do we really  begin ?

Previously, the Dear Mr. Snyder feature was a T.A.H. regular—lots of hair-pulling, teeth-gnashing, and belly-aching about horrible decisions and terrible losses. But, now things have sunk so low, what’s the point ?

How low, you ask? So low, that long-time Washington Post columnist Tom Boswell accurately described it as “the bleakest moment in the history of the Redskins franchise.”

First off, the good news. It’s not a record to be 2-4 after playing six teams that were all winless when you played them. That’s because no team has ever played six winless teams in a row—never mind, losing to four of them.

Ouch.

Secondly, let’s not blame Jim Zorn. Remember when you hired him, or should we sa y promoted him from the position of Offensive Coordinator (a position for which he had never served, nor did he ever do so for the 'Skins before you promoted him) to head coach, nobody else wanted the job.

Yes, that’s correct—nobody would work for you. You couldn’t find a viable candidate. Good coaches turned you down. There was talk about hiring Jim Fassell…As they say on SNL: "Really? What? You couldn’t get Buddy Ryan to answer the phone?"

So the problem isn’t the coach, who may or may not be head coach material—we will never know now, will we? The problem is the front office, and last time we looked, you, dear Mr. Snyder, were at the very front of said front office. Problem identified, yes?

Ex-Cowboy coach and Super Bowl winner Jimmy Johnson recently put it best when he pointed out that building an NFL team isn’t like building your fantasy football team. A handful of high priced players does not a good team make. You need to build an entire roster. Ten years of mediocrity and you haven’t figured that out yet?

Guess what the Redskins have these days? A handful of high paid guys who are, in fact, quite good. But we don’t have a good quarterback. Yes, we know you tried to get Cutler and Sanchez (five interceptions yesterday, yes, five in one game) and now it’s obvious why. Jason Campbell looks more and more like a career journeyman quarterback, but that’s okay because we have Todd Collins, another career journeyman quarterback, waiting in the wings to save the day or get tackled for game crushing safeties—you decide.

But, it’s not the QB’s fault either. It’s not the offensive line’s fault because, simply put, we don’t have much of one. While you were off spending $100 million on Albert Hayensworth, you were ignoring an aging offensive line that last year included at least one undrafted free agent. Here’s what you did to make that important component of every good NFL team better—nothing. When All-Pros Randy Thomas and Chris Samuels got hurt, we were pretty much doomed.

So we have a patch work, semi-talented offensive line blocking for a journeyman quarterback (Campbell) and a just-slightly-past-his prime warrior of a running back (Portis), whose lead blocker (Sellers) either doesn’t know what he’s supposed to do after nine years in the NFL or just simply doesn’t give a crap. And to make matters worse, at critical times yesterday, the Redskins' leading receiver Chris Cooley was standing on the sidelines.

Nice offense.

Oh yeah, and you drafted two wide receivers, neither of which has had a big impact on a drive not to mention a game or a season.

Granted, the defense is pretty good, but they are spending too much time on the field and surely getting discouraged by the offense’s slack.

Simply put, it’s time to fix this mess.

It’s really not that hard. Suck it up and muddle through the status quo until the end of the season. At season’s end, hire a legit of production, a good general manager and an experienced head coach. Give them the authority they need to build a complete team.

Stop getting distracted by the shiny objects (expensive skill position free agents), and remember that good football teams are built around offensive and defensive lines. Didn’t Coach Joe ever mention that?

Then go to Tahiti for three years. Do not take a sat phone or a computer. Do not talk to the general manager or the head coach for those three years. If you stay away, you might be able to restore one of the storied NFL franchises.

Remember the definition of insanity. And, don't make us repeat it.

Your loyal fan,
Editor T.A.H.

P.S. Your fans are pissed…like really pissed. Don’t believe us? Click here to read the Washington Post 's Dan Steinberg’s postgame interviews with some very unhappy loyalists after yesterday’s debacle.