The witch is dead

Sing it now, friends.

Vinny Cerrato, the universally despised president of football operations for the Washington Redskins, resigned early Thursday morning.

Ding Dong! The Witch is dead. Which old Witch? The Wicked Witch!
Ding Dong! The Wicked Witch is dead.
Wake up - sleepy head, rub your eyes, get out of bed.
Wake up, the Wicked Witch is dead. He's gone where the goblins go,
Below - below - below. Yo-ho, let's open up and sing and ring the bells out.
Ding Dong' the merry-oh, sing it high, sing it low.
Let them know
The Wicked Witch is dead!

By the way, I'm giggling like a schoolgirl that the best way to describe Cerrato is "universally despised." God.

But, the rumor is that the Redskins have hired for Tampa Bay general manager Bruce Allen to run the show. Allen is the son of former Redskins coach George Allen.

To me, it's pretty clear that Dan Snyder really wanted a big change. If he didn't want a change, he wouldn't have fired Cerrato (which is what happened, regardless of whether Cerrato "resigned.")

So, goodbye Jim Zorn. Goodbye Jason Campbell (probably).

Allen was the GM in Tampa for a long time. His former head coach in Tampa was Jon Gruden, who, coincidentally, is calling the Redskins-Giants Monday Night Football game this Monday night in D.C. Do you guys really believe in coincidence?

Look for Gruden in D.C. next year.

PR nightmare

The Redskins have a PR problem. A big PR problem.

First of all, the Redskins lost to the Eagles Monday night. Sorry for my late commentary on that - I was out of town without a computer or a permanent internet connection. Also, to be honest, I'm not sure what else needs to be said about this year's team on the field. They've been ripped by everyone near and far, and ripped for everything - talent, coordination, play calling - everything.

And while I'm still calling for the Redskins to be "blown up," the real shame for the team right now is the public relations hell storm that is or is about to be called down.

As has already been cited, the Redskins have been suing their own fans because they simply couldn't afford tickets anymore. But now, as the team continues to lose game after game, the Redskins' security forces seem to taking away many of the fans' freedoms at the game itself.

The team recently has banned signs inside FedEx Field. To prevent injuries, the team says. I'm sure it has nothing to do with various signs criticizing the team. The Redskins already have banned bags, so, you know, if a fan wanted to wear a paper bag on his or her head, that wouldn't be allowed. Also, media can no longer interview tailgaters in the FedEx Field parking lot.

So what of it?

It's a bad showing all the way around for the Redskins. They have a public relations nightmare on their hands, and it seems like they're in complete denial.

On a side note, it seems like they're in complete denial about a lot of things this season.

It's quite clear that the Redskins don't want to see their fans complain. I can understand why, but sometimes you just have to admit that something isn't working and move through and past it. Admit failure and move on. This team seems unwilling or unable to do this. The team acts like everything is just fine, and maybe it's because the team technically can turn it around and make this a successful season. Maybe once the team is at 2-9, they'll admit things just aren't working.

But taking away fans' ability to show displeasure with the team is a bit over-zealous. Taking away signs, making fans change "Anti-Snyder" T-shirts, or turn them inside out, is ridiculous. Read about fans' experiences at FedEx here.

As for the team itself, I think it's about time some young guys started playing.

Boy, I wish we had a young QB to try out and see what he can do. Someone, perhaps, like Colt Brennan or Chase Daniel? What a waste.

How to lose control of a perfectly good football team

It really is amazing how fast things can go from "Horny for Zorny" to "FIRE HIM!!!!"

Just a few months ago, Zorn was entering his second season, offseason spent bolstering his team's talent. 2009 was to be a playoff-run year.

Now, the team is a mess. They've faced six straight winless teams and won just two games.

Thank god for the Tampa Bay Bucs, or they might be the worst team in the NFL. And I'm not totally convinced that if the Bucs played the Redskins again, there wouldn't be a different result.

One of the worst things about this year's team is that the defense isn't very bad at all. The Redskins' defense is ranked fifth overall, third for pass defense. They had five sacks Sunday against Kansas City (1-5). Another absolutely wasted defense. Last year the Redskins finished with the fourth-ranked defense. A waste.

Adios Zorn
A year ago, Dan Snyder and Vinny Cerrato hired Jim Zorn as an offensive coordinator while looking for a new head coach. Zorn was brought in to call plays and manage the offense. But when Cerrato and Snyder couldn't find another coach they wanted, they offered Zorn a shot at the head coaching job.

A year and a half later, with the offense sputtering, they've taken play calling away from Zorn. So what exactly is Zorn going to do now? Is he a good game manager? All he's wanted to do was to call plays. He had never called plays before he came to the Redskins. But he comes to the Skins and they unexpectantly make him the head guy.

Snyder and Cerrato went looking for the next Mike Tomlin and unfortunately found the next Jim Zorn. Oops.

The team is a mess.

What exactly will taking the play calling away from Zorn do? Isn't this just a precursor to firing Zorn midseason? The problems with the offense go way beyond play calling. Snyder and Cerrato already brought in "consultant" Sherman Lewis to take a look at the offense. Now they take the play calling duties from Zorn. Is there any other way to undercut the man's authority and his responsibilities?

Speaking of problems with the offense ...
Why the hell did Cerrato/Snyder dump Chase Daniel when they put Colt Brennan on IR? The Redskins have no young backup on the team. With Brennan on IR, Todd Collins looks like he's going to be the guy from here on out. Which does nothing good for the future of the team. When Cerrato stashed Brennan on IR, it would have been a great idea to keep Daniel around to learn. But instead, Daniel is now in New Orleans and probably infinitely better off than he was here.

Jason Campbell is done. It's becoming very clear that his five-year experiment is over. The problem remains that there is no one ready to take over for him.

I'd like to see what Brennan has, but it's looking more and more like we will never see what Brennan has because he's injured in this critical situation. The Redskins might be forced to draft a young QB without first seeing what Brennan can do. And if the Redskins do draft a young first-round QB, Brennan might as well be as good as gone.

One thing is clear
This team is a mess.

We'll see how it all shakes out, but I don't expect to see Zorn last past the bye week, which comes after Monday night's game against the Eagles.

It's a shame, too. The defense is good enough for a playoff run. But the offense is bad enough to lose the rest of the team's games.

For the good of the team, Snyder must make a decision

Danny Snyder and Vinny Cerrato's special relationship has been well documented.

It's a relationship that has spanned almost 10 years and over that time, the Redskins have been nothing if not mediocre. Some years a little more, some a little less. But doubtlessly mediocre.

And it's a relationship that, for the good of the Redskins, must end.

The roster
The Redskins have the oldest roster in the league with an average age of 27.60 and average NFL experience of 5.55 years.

But who on the roster right now is absolutely isn't expendable? Certainly not Campbell. Portis hasn't converted a third- or fourth-down (and 1) seemingly all year. Maybe Samuels or Dockery on the line. Not sure about any of the receivers. Maybe Moss, but he's wildly inconsistent. Anyone on defense? Maybe Haynesworth, but he hasn't proved his worth yet. Neither has Orakpo.

Everyone else could be replaced.

While we're talking about Orakpo, why the heck did we draft him to play a typical linebacker? He's a passrushing fiend, yet we have him playing basically a drop-back, read-and-react linebacker? Makes no sense.

Why does Cerrato have five running backs on the roster? We have Portis, Betts and Cartwright - who are basically the same type of back and very little upside - and then Alridge, who the Redskins haven't used yet but has a lot of upside. Betts and Cartwright are veterans who are not needed. They're good running backs, but provide the same thing that Portis brings to the table.

Campbell is not a West Coast Offense QB. Not sure why Cerrato brought in a WCO coach to teach a deep-ball passer how to run a WCO. Collins is too old to be anything other than a backup right now. Brennan has a lot of upside but really hasn't shown it quite yet. Oh, and he's on IR. Daniel showed a lot of upside, but Cerrato decided to jettison him.

Alright, I'll say it
First off, Snyder must fire Cerrato, and this time not bring him back. It'll be a tough decision to fire Cerrato, but it's something that Snyder must do if he wants the Redskins to ever get better on the field.

This team needs a complete overhaul. It's full of aging veterans - take a look at the defensive line (Wynn, Carter, Daniels) - who, while they have great experience - aren't exactly helping this team out right now.

It's pretty clear that Campbell probably won't be the Redskins starter next season (unless for some reason he has a great rest-of-the-season. Maybe take the time now to overhaul the team. It's going to take some time, but in the longhaul, it'll be worth it. Fix the offensive line first. Then get a quarterback who can make quick decisions and run the team from the line of scrimmage. He doesn't have to necessarily have a big arm. Don't worry too much about the running back or receivers - they are very easy to find.

Defensively, I think there are some key young guys in place. Horton and Doughty are playing well. Orakpo has potential, but please, use him wisely. I like Rocky McIntosh. The Redskins need to find a replacement for Fletcher, who is getting a little up there.

All is not lost
This year isn't over by a long shot, and the team can turn it around and avert disaster. I don't necessarily think Zorn is a bad coach. I just think he's trying to do too much and failing at everything. If he wants to truly be a head coach, he can't be the one calling the plays. He also can't be coaching QBs.

He has to manage the game.

The team needs to do a better job at using the weapons it has. Use Fred Davis more. The guy is a great athlete, but he's only had five catches in his two-year career. Create a few packages a game for him. Use Kelly and Mitchell more on high, deep stuff. There's some young talent there.

Use Alridge with what he does best. Get him out in space and let him run. He's the only speed runner on the team. Use that.

Use Orakpo better. Have him be pretty much a pass-rushing linebacker. Bulk him up. Don't worry about dropping him back in coverage, that's not what he does well. Move him around and blitz him from multiple angles to confuse offenses. The guy is a weapon. Use him.

Play some more bump-and-run on the defense. Be more aggressive. Attack with Landry more. The guy is a rocket when blitzing. He is a natural aggressive safety, should be playing close to the line and attacking it. Don't drop him back in coverage too much, you're taking him out of the game.

If the Redskins start looking like they'll be out of the playoffs, which I'm not saying they'll be, look for some big changes on the way.

The team can turn it around this year, but they must start playing smarter football.