Leaders Choose

Who they are going to go to :

for advice
to get the job done
to make a difference

Today President Obama is going to, or rather announced, his choice for the next supreme court justice.

He picked a colleague, someone he has worked with before and feels confident and comfortable with about being able to make a difference and get the job done.

(I’m not going to discuss the possible controversies here)

Shanahan and Allen are the new leaders of the Washington Redskins.

They have consistently chosen people they have worked with in the past and who, are leaders and or will get the job done.

Take the new look of the Redskins Backfield.

Each one of these guys, when healthy, will get the job done. Granted, they may not represent the power back necessary for an entire season anymore, but collectively they should last 16 games and perform well.





Donovan McNabb was brought in to provide instant on the field and off the field leadership and talent to not only the offense but to the entire team. He currently has all the key players on speed dial, including Sir Albert.

The one thing I read which caught my attention recently was when there was a rumor about T.O. coming to town; One of the first things Donovan did was contact Devon Thomas.

Not Santana Moss.

Not Malcolm Kelly.

Is it because Devon is becoming one of Donovan’s go to guys? Or someone who Donovan sees as having good potential but needs to be kept under wing in order to grow in confidence?

Of course it is still too early to tell, and with McNabb being as good as anybody at tossing the ball around to different people, it will be very interesting to see who he picks as his “go to” guy on the offense.

But, it got me thinking . . .

Could it be Devon Thomas?

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Holy QB Pass Batman...

Wow, with opening day for MLB and the Nationals, the NCAA championship game tonight, even Tiger Woods playing at the Masters, and the Pope involved with one of the biggest conspiracies; one would have thought these would be the top stories.

But noooooo! The Redskins, ever the media making hounds, trumped all of them. Even Tiger and the Pope!

I just can’t figure out why?

My first thought ... No not Philly and McNabb! What were they thinking ...

My second thought ... If you can’t beat them, steal their starting QB… AKA Sonny Jurgensen ...

My third thought ... Is McNabb really value added? Could they have done better with a 2nd and 3rd round pick in the draft?

My fourth thought… It’s all about the system, personnel and coaching staff.

And, it was probably worth a shot. But only time will tell.

First the stats.

Campbell:
Career: 61.2% completion rate, 6.63 yards per attempt, 82.3 QB Rating, pass attempt/TD ratio 18/1.

McNabb:
Career: 59.0% completion rate, 6.93 yards per attempt, 86.5% QB rating, pass attempt/TD ratio 12/1.

Don’t get me wrong, I think McNabb is a proven winner and leader.
Though he does appear to be a bit rusty with some of the NFL rules… ;-)

So what is the difference?

McNabb has had the benefit of a stable system and coach and in recent years good supporting players around him.

Campbell has not.

Shanahan likes the proven veterans . Yes there have been countless blogs and articles about him and Elway and that Elway was an established veteran, etc, etc.

And we all know that the old guys can still play… AKA Favre, Warner, etc, etc ...

But they need good and young personnel around them to help out.
And now the Redskins have two less opportunities to add good young talent.
This is one of the biggest and toughest decisions for any and every NFL organization.
Build around veterans or build with draft picks.

The old guys also need a good system.

Jurgensen was quoted as saying “some people never learn”. I think he was talking about Philly trading their QB.

I’m not so sure it couldn’t be applied to the Redskins organization. The only difference now is that I honestly, truly, believe Snyder is not calling the shots.

So, where does this leave the Redskins, Fans and the rest of us following the team?
Trust in leadership and “their plan”.

Shanahan took a .500 team (Denver) with a veteran QB and turned the organization around to be a .734 Superbowl winner!

During that time, Denver added 4 – 5 wins per year and Elway added 5 – 6 TD’s per season under Shanahan. Shanahan was also pretty good with the running backs too.

The big question is, would these turn around numbers be more likely with Campbell or McNabb?

The world will never know.

I think, as most seem to especially now, that Campbell is going to be traded for draft picks and or needed positions. Hopefully we can pick up a couple extra picks or move up to grab somebody good in a much needed position.

In order for any organization to be successful, you need good leadership, a plan, and personnel to execute the plan.

Over the past few years the Redskins have not had any of this. And they still have a ton of holes to fill. Especially along the front line.

But now, for the moment, they seem to have found a franchise QB.

Perhaps Mcnabb is the better leader and mentor and better at handling controversy and would be an excellent roll model.

I just hope he survives that long.

Only time will tell.

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