1. Can’t say that many were sad to see Vinny Cerrato exit. Cerrato, suffice to say, was a difficult person to talk to. Even those who worked alongside him used to say that one day he seemed like their best friend and the next it was as if he didn’t know them. That was my experience. Once, I went a while without speaking with him; he knew who didn’t respect him. A few weeks later I was standing outside Redskins Park and he walked up with his baby motioning at me saying to his infant son, ‘Hey, look, there’s John!’ Next day I saw him: no recognition of my presence. Just odd. After Jim Zorn was hired, though, he started to change a little bit. He was more forthcoming than in the past. But that started to change in the past year again, starting with Jason Taylor and then Jay Cutler. Most GMs fib to the media, so you can handle that. But most don’t do it when you have legit information. If you asked former Redskins GM Charley Casserly if they were going to make a move on a particular day he would say no. But if you asked that same question and asked about a specific player, he would tell you what was going on. He knew how to play the game with us.
2. Vinny was tough to deal with from the start. Just not good in front of the media. At times he didn’t seem like a bad guy, but he was just never comfortable and created problems where they didn’t need to exist. He made it difficult for himself. Once, after Jerry Rice was released, Bram Weinstein and I were talking to Cerrato about a couple things. I asked him if they’d have any interest in Rice. Reasonable question, right? After all, this was during the period where they signed every big name. His response? “That’s a stupid question. That’s a stupid question.” He repeated it again at which point I let him know that I got his point.
3. Not every player, but enough didn’t trust him that it made a difference in their confidence that he could actually fix whatever holes existed. Heard from one former player today, without prompting, about Cerrato. He did not trust him one bit; called him a ‘total dirtbag.’ But others, such as Santana Moss, seemed to get along with him. We all know Brian Mitchell’s disdain for him; he spoke up about the atmosphere in the building and was cut. And coaches through the years have felt that Cerrato often worked against them. That changed under Gibbs, but it was his reputation.
4. Found this odd today: as Jerry Gray was talking to the media, serving as the defensive spokesperson, Greg Blache walked up the stairs. If you’re the defensive boss, this is a day where you should be the one out in front of the media. Period. I also found it odd that they did not trot out the Lombardi Trophies to put in front of the podium for the press conference. Can’t remember the last time they didn’t bring those out. But it’s about time; this group hasn’t won a darned thing.
5. Those I spoke with about Bruce Allen, and there were a number of people I spoke with, a couple things stood out. In each case, they spoke about his ability to get along with various types of people. It’s why coaches seem to like him. One former work associate, a longtime NFL guy, called him the most complete GM he’d ever been around because of his versatility. Others say he’s not a personnel guy, but that they do like him and think he’s a good executive. Apparently, one reason the Bucs hired him is because he was one of the few guys who could work with Jon Gruden.
6. Allen will bring a level of professionalism to the organization that has been missing. They’ll always have issues unless the owner is held back a bit, but at least now they’ll be viewed a little differently. I’ll have a blog posting with comments from Doug Williams in the morning. But he talked about Allen’s ability to hire the right people. In fairness to Cerrato, I don’t think his scouting department is bad, nor do I think others in the front office are bad. On the contrary. In reality, the problem is that Dan Snyder, despite what he says, is heavily involved. Cerrato took a lot of bullets for the owner. You’d hear things from others, scouts or personnel types, that, for instance, the draft information that scouts would compile would sometimes not make much of a difference. If the owner wanted them, for example, to draft big receivers then that’s what they would have to do.
“If you don’t have the autonomy to really do the things you want to do and ownership has to clear them and Snyder feels he has a valid opinion and he wants things done sometimes his way, it gets jaded,” one GM said. “To say what kind of job he did, I can’t sit here and give you a clear-cut answer to that.”
7. This has to be the most bizarre season that I’ve covered the Redskins. I’ve seen consultants come in before, but a switch in GMs at this point just adds to the craziness (even if you do applaud the move). Oh, and the play-caller switch. It is good in that Allen can now get his bearings on the situation and make a better assessment on what must be done.
8. Jim Zorn has little chance of keeping his job. I don’t think you make this change to keep Zorn, do you? No, you don’t. This move was designed to lure other big name coaches. After all, every big name coach out there, from what NFL sources have said, wanted Cerrato shoved aside. Now he is. Now you hire the coach for the next five to 10 years. At least that’s the hope for them. Five years in this league, and with this owner, would be a lot.
9. It was clear how much this day took out of Snyder. He looked exhausted, probably emotionally drained from having to see Cerrato exit. He did not look like the happiest of people when talking to the media. I’m sure he is thrilled to have Allen on board. But he’s losing a confidante.
10. The last time Jon Gruden was in town for Monday Night Football was when the Redskins made the play-calling switch. Now he comes back and is greeted with his old boss, someone he trusts, is back in a position to hire … a coach! How about that timing? But Mike Shanahan’s name is still the one I heard most from others today. Does that mean he’ll get the job? There’s too much time left in this process to say anything is for certain.
