My Open Letter to Dan Snyder
January 29, 2019
by Steve Thomas
Dear Mr. Snyder:
I’d like to take a few minutes of your time to present you with some key ideas about your franchise and how you can turn things around once and for all. I’ve been a fan of this team for a very long time, Dan (may I call you Dan?), and I’m a former season ticket holder. Not to mention, I’ve been publicly obsessing over the Redskins for four years now on this website. I think I know this team better than most, and, respectfully, better than some of the people working for you at Redskins Park. The fans really turned on this franchise this season in a way that I didn’t think was possible. It hurt my heart to see Fed Ex Field empty, week after week, and fans barraging your office with #FireBruceAllen messages and phone calls. If you haven’t noticed, we’ve hit new lows in futility and apathy here. I’m not sure you understand this, because you don’t have quality people around you, but honestly this team isn’t close on the field, and it’s become a disaster off the field. Given all of that, I thought I’d help you out by giving you a strategic plan to follow to get this franchise back to where it belongs. Follow these steps, in order, and I promise things will improve.
#1 – Hire a shaman to break Bruce Allen’s hold on you. I’m not sure exactly what Bruce has done to have such a stranglehold on your mind despite his years of failure on the field, off the field disasters, and PR-related drama. You’re a smart man, sir, so I know he isn’t using logic and reason. The only conclusion I can reach is that Bruce has figured out how to place a supernatural mind-control curse on you. In light of that, the first thing you need to do is hire a shaman to break this curse. You need to be able to think for yourself, free from the nonsense with which Bruce fills your head day after day. In all seriousness, I strongly recommend that you come to realize that this man isn’t good for you or your franchise. He’s doing a bad job. The team president is there to make you look good and run the team in a competent, professional manner. Right now, neither is happening, and there’s no sign that it’s about to happen. The first step to recovery is to realize you have a problem.
#2 – Fire Bruce. This man does not need to a part of this organization any more. Show him the door, immediately. Do not offer him some other position in the front office. Tell him to exit stage left, right now. Your team has rotted all the way down to the core, and the only way to fix it is to start over. Burning it all down (hypothetically; don’t start lighting real matches) means starting at the top. Bruce is not a quality executive: he makes poor decisions, is too focused on himself, is an egomaniac, isn’t trusted around the NFL, and most damning, doesn’t know what he doesn’t know. Bruce fancies himself a football guy, but he isn’t. Cut this dude loose, Mr. Snyder, and start over.
#3 – Talk to the press. Immediately after you fire Bruce, hold a “no holds barred” press conference to announce the move and establish a new tone and direction for your franchise. Have Tony Wylie write a prepared statement for you to read right at the start. Apologize for the state of the franchise, take responsibility for the last 20 years by publicly telling everyone that it’s been your fault as the owner, and promise that it’s a new day for the Redskins franchise. Tell everyone in the statement that you’re going to make things right, that’s it’s going to take time, and ask for the patience and support of the fans. Then stay and take questions from the media – the local beat writers, the national media that will probably be there, and of course The Hog Sty (we wouldn’t miss this). Answer every single question asked, no matter how long it takes, until there’s nothing left to ask. Make sure to have your public relations staff send out the entire transcript to the media, because this will be a seminal moment for your franchise, and everyone should read it.
#4 – Hire a new team president. Your next step is to hire a new team president. This person needs to be a complete outsider. Don’t promote from within and don’t go with someone you’ve known for a long time, because, frankly, that hasn’t worked out so well thusfar. Jump on Redskins One and head directly up to Boston and talk to Bob Kraft (not right now; he’s busy this week) about who he thinks would be a good fit and his general thoughts about how to run a team. That man clearly knows how to win. If Bob won’t take your call, there are others – the Rooney family keeps winning with the Steelers, for example. DO NOT CALL JERRY JONES – if you haven’t noticed, his franchise hasn’t had any more success than yours, and he’s pretty much a terrible GM. The point is, find a winner. Find a new team president that has been in a winning sports culture for years and understands what it takes to build a consistent winner. This next step is the most important part:
Empower him or her to do the job.
Tell your new team president that he or she has carte blanche to run the organization is his or her image, including firing anyone and everyone necessary, no matter the cost and no matter who it is. You need to let this new team president rebuild from ground up, and it’s going to cost some money. Things are a mess, Dan, and fixing it isn’t going to be cheap or easy. Here’s your direction to your new president: win at all costs. Win no matter what, within the rules. Nothing is more important than becoming a consistent winner. Let this person hire a general manager, new coaching staff, scouting department, and business staff. All of it if he or she wants to do so. Don’t worry so much about things like the quarterback and the draft; those are small-picture ideas for the football staff, whereas your job is on the macro level. I promise that if you get this team back on the right track, the money will take care of itself in the form of increased attendance and better sponsorship deals, which will eventually lead to greater cash flow and higher market value for the team.
#5 – Hire Steve Thomas as your new general counsel. I’ll do a good job, I promise. I come with some experience. Who else is willing to give you the cold, hard truth like I am?
#6 – Hit the IMAX theater on the yacht. Once you’ve done all of this, you will have earned yourself some time off. Take that new personal cruise ship of yours down to the Caribbean somewhere and relax, taking comfort in the fact that you’ve finally dragged the Washington Redskins out of the ditch and put it back on the road to competence and success. Let your new organization work. Your new team president needs to be able to act without interference or being second guessed. There’ll be some ups and downs; just roll with it. At this point, you’ve finally put the correct team in place, so let them do their thing.
Mr. Snyder, this isn’t going to be easy. In fact, this will be the defining time in your tenure as owner. Once the Redskins finally win their next Super Bowl, you’ll be able to look back at this moment and know that this was the turning point. This is the point in the movie in which the heroes, after almost losing everything, come back from the precipice to triumph over evil.
You can do it, Dan. I have faith in you. And who will you have to thank once it’s over? Your new general counsel.
Sincerely,
Steve Thomas