His teams have gone through three full-time head coaches and one interim head coach. His teams have employed myriad offensive and defensive philosophies. His teams have started nine quarterbacks and drafted two passers in the first round. And his teams have two playoff wins under his watch.
Yet, Sports Illustrated ranked Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder as the fifth-best owner in the NFL.
No, really, they did.
If the bottom line in the NFL is winning, ranking Snyder fifth is mind boggling. Since 2000, the Redskins have had records of 8-8, 8-8, 7-9, 5-11, 6-10, 10-6 and 5-11. In 1999, Snyder was the owner but took over so late in the offseason, his camp didn’t play a big hand in building that playoff team.
According to a press release by SI, Michael Silver ranked the owners "taking into account many factors –- business savvy, devotion to league growth, aggressive pursuit of winning with one overriding consideration: If you're a fan of the team in question, do you want this person making the big decisions?"
Silver's top five: Robert Kraft (New England), Jerry Jones (Dallas), Jerry Richardson (Carolina), The Glazer Family (Tampa Bay) and Snyder. I agree with Kraft and his family as No. 1. The Patriots are the model franchise in the league. I'm not as sure about Richardson, Glazer and Snyder. I would have put Indianapolis' Jim Irsay –- because of the Colts' success -- and Pittsburgh's Dan Rooney –- because of the Steelers' consistency -- in the top five.
Silver's bottom five: Wayne Weaver (Jacksonville), William Clay Ford (Detroit), Ralph Wilson (Buffalo), Tom Benson (New Orleans) and Mike Brown (Cincinnati). Can’t argue with any of those five although I would have made room for Minnesota’s Zygi Wilf and Arizona’s Bill Bidwell.
Here’s how I think Snyder stacks up in the four areas Silver took into account:
Business savvy: You don’t become a zillionaire by not having smart business sense. Snyder did that ... but not in football. As for his acumen within the NFL, he’s done plenty of things to maximize income at FedEx Field and by securing sponsorship deals with several major corporations.
Devotion to league growth: Snyder is part of a group exploring ways to help the league grow in the digital world ... yet FedEx Field is the ONLY stadium in the NFL without wireless internet access in the press box.
Aggressive pursuit of winning: No question, Snyder pursues free agents with gusto and is willing to spend any amount of money on coaches or free agents (but not necessarily free agents on his roster). It’s just what he pursues in his lust for winning that gets him in trouble.
Do you want this person making the big decisions?: Judging by my e-mail inbox the last six months, Redskins fans like Snyder's money but they don't want him making the decisions. You folks want a general manager, if not somebody with a different title but with similar power.
Of Snyder, Silver writes that the owner will get it right "eventually." That day might come when Snyder follows the lead of Baltimore Orioles owner/asbestos expert Peter Angelos and hires an experienced hand to run the front office.
Other Redskins notes
* The Redskins will open training camp on Friday, July 27. The camp will no longer be "built by Home Depot." Remax is on as the new sponsor, which will give their executives inside-the-ropes VIP credentials to eat stale peanuts, drink warm Diet Coke and get an up close and personal view ... to the Redskins stretching in 90-degree heat.
* Between July 27 and Aug. 14, the Redskins will have five two-a-days. They will have 16 practices and one scrimmage before opening the preseason at Tennessee.
Comments (5)
happy 4th of july now i got that out the way. I think Dan is on the right track , i also believe Mr. Snyder is very misunderstood . He 's just a Owner who is also a DIEHARD FAN. So, what i think he needs to do is learn how to seperate the two . with that said he has come a long way from 1999 . I wouldn't want another chief but snyder
Posted by Andre' A. | July 4, 2007 1:34 PM
Andre'A. has it right, as does SI, for once. Yes, Snyder has made mistakes and yes he meddles, but who hasn't/doesn't? Funny how these issues plagued Jerry Jones until the Cowboys started winning consistently. They will fade away for Snyder too when his players and coaches start performing up to expectations. Probably this year!
Posted by John Cook | July 5, 2007 12:02 PM
Having perosnally worked for the Redskins for three years (1999-2001) I can honestly say that Danny will NEVER GET IT RIGHT!
His Ego his out of control and he dosne't think he can make a wrong decison........
The only way, Washington returns to the glory days is when Danny sells the team.........Until then folks, NOTHING CHANGES!
Posted by bob | July 9, 2007 8:12 AM
I largely agree with this analysis, though want to remind that Silver doesn't equally rate the qualifications. He places especial emphasis on the last criteria, the one that many fans would disagree sharply with as regards Dan Snyder. If we are to take Michael Silver at his word, it's hard to justify Snyder's placement given the metric provided.
Posted by Skin Patrol | July 9, 2007 10:16 AM
I have to agree with Bob. So, we had one playoff apperance with Coach Joe at the helm. The brain trust decided to "fix" it after that one year and loused it up royally. I will say it again "WITH THE CURRENT BRAIN TRUST IN PLACE AND NO DRAFT CHOICES" the Skins will be losers for years to come. Get used to it folks
Posted by Hundow | July 14, 2007 11:15 PM