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Originally Posted by BigHairedAristocrat
Yeah i did, thanks for pointing that out - i guess i'm not very good at multi-tasking...
I agree that perception is a big issue here - what fans want is a Head Coach and GM (whether one person or two) who are "bigger" than Snyder. Frankly, the fans need to feel that the franchise is being run by someone who a) demands immediate respect and b) knows what theyre doing.
Regarding Snyder, I think his involvement mainly relates to offseason player acquisition issues. I think Haynesworth was a great addition to the team, and his impact has been significant, but I don't beleive that Snyder didn't have any input there. I also would be shocked to learn if Snyder wasn't the primary force in pushing to acquire Cutler and Sanchez in the offseason. And do you really think the current playcalling situation is all of Cerrato's devising? Cerrato may have been the one to suggest Sherm specifically, but I fully beleive that he was brought in in an attempt to get Zorn to quit (after Snyders attempts to lure Shanahan [and possibly Gruden and others as well] had failed. A neutral GM wouldnt give a crap about trying to save the owner money by trying to force a coach to resign instead of being terminated (with pay).
I honestly think Cerrato would be fairly good at his job somewhere else - he just either doesnt have the balls or authority to tell snyder to stay out of his way here. I seriously doubt that anyone from the outside (who doesnt play racquetball or go on skiing vacations with the owner would have the same reservations.
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I see your point overall, but it's the owner's team. Better said, it's the owner's business. There really can't be any such thing as a neutral GM. It's the owner's money he's playing with and it's the owner he reports to. No General Manager is going to act without input, sometimes significant input from the owner (or owners). It's like any business. It's the case throughout the league. Some owners may not be as in the public eye as Snyder so it may not appear to be that way, but that's how it is. As I've said before, the only owner I've ever heard that's really entirely hands off is Paul Allen. But even he steps in when it comes to organizational changes.