End for Vinney Cerrato Doesn't and Shouldn't Mean End for Jim Zorn

Two days ago, I heard news that immediately put a gigantic smile on my face. The Redskins had announced that Executive Vice President of Player Operations (A.K.A General Manager) had “retired.” 

Truthfully, I am almost certain that he was given the boot from the position. Since Cerrato arrived in the nation’s capital as GM, my hometown team has only successfully made the playoffs twice. This is an embarrassing fact for a team holding the NFL’s biggest and loudest fanbase.

Me being a part of this now sorrowed fanbase, I was thrilled hearing the news of his departure. Evidently, Snyder has yet to leave, which continues to leave a big taboo on our franchise; but the exodus of Vinny is a step towards the re-building process.

I was already ecstatic this day over the “good-bye” of our woeful G.M, so you can imagine the joy I received in more when Bruce Allen was named the latest manager. He has had a great resume in the L, and his dad, George, led our franchise to a super-bowl as coach.

Resume and tradition: a great match for our new-found manager. He would no doubt commence the stages of getting rid of the veterans and replacing them with the much needed fresh talent.

All was going well—then I heard the rumors that curved my smile upside down. The news arrived from a friend claiming that Mike Shanahan was in deep and intense conversation of head-coach under Bruce Allen.

At first glance, Shanahan seems like a fantastic piece to the puzzle; he’s won back to back super bowls down in Denver, and is now a candidate for the H.O.F. He was undoubtedly a fantastic coach; that is a fantastic coach for the Broncos franchise. A franchise that has a reputation of a vertical passing offenses, exactly the style Mike coached.

The Redskins, in contrast, have a deep West Coast Offense, with a developing West Coast Q.B. Secondly; the Redskins have had five coaches in ten years, Gibbs being the only coach in position for over two seasons.

Zorn would actually somehow be one of three coaches to finish two seasons under Snyder. These facts are scary, if not depressing. A prodigious franchise should never juggle coaches, especially when you’re not good at juggling.

Watching the movements of consecutive different coaches is hard from a fan’s standpoint—imagine from the players point of view. Just imagine: imagine being told after a season the offense would be transformed from A-Z, you would have someone different to listen to everyday at practice, that you actually might not even be starting because of the change of position.

Campbell might have been hit the hardest, this season being the first in which he has played the same offense two years in a row.

It must be tempting for the players to just want to quit, just to get away from this mournful organization. Zorn leaving would just add to the drastic shuffling of head coaches. This is not to say Zorn is needed here in Redskin organization, or to say that he has done a decent job this season. Zorn has not passed the head-coach “exam” this season, and has definitely not played the team to their top potential.

But he most certainly is a very talented coach. He has discovered talent not yet discovered in Quinton Ganther, Fred Davis, and has kept faith in Campbell where faith is most needed. With a healthy starting line-up his first season as coach, led the ‘Skins to a 6-2 start.

Then the seemingly small tribulations of injuries to the front-five caused a patch-work offensive line. They went on to lose six of the next eight to finish the season. Then this season, with so much on the line, Zorn brings out two players who have never started an NFL game, and won who has not played for three years to formulate a somewhat successful offensive line.

To finish off my admiration for Zorn, he has somehow managed to convey to become a more than respectable QB in the league.

Zorn is now working with a team fulfilled of injuries, and without a true star player. Shanahan has never coached a team without a leading player.

There is no reason to get rid of Zorn in this stage of his and the player’s careers, and no reason to bring in the already-accomplished Shanahan. Vinny couldn’t see this:

This is hoping Bruce Allen will.