Redskins Pay Price For Moves

Redskins associate head coach Al Saunders, left, isn't seeing eye-to-eye with players such as wide receiver Brandon Lloyd, right. (By John Mcdonnell, Left, And Preston Keres -- The Washington Post)

When the Redskins signed Archuleta in March, they made him the highest-paid safety ever. But like Carter, he was years away from his last big season (2003), and had serious disk injuries in 2004, scaring off some teams. Several league executives said Archuleta is best used as an additional linebacker around the line of scrimmage.

"He didn't have a good year last year, either," the longtime general manager said. "He's an in-the-box guy. He's not a good coverage guy. This isn't any different from what he was before."

By signing Archuleta, the Redskins decided that last year's starter at his position, Clark, was expendable. Clark's departure for the Steelers has left a void in the locker room, Redskins players say, and has particularly affected safety Sean Taylor, whose play has faltered this season.

Taylor has had considerable off-field issues since being drafted in 2004 -- including arrests for DUI and felony gun charges (he was convicted of neither) -- and Clark, a devoted family man, was said to be a positive influence.

Taylor would often eat at his house and play video games with Clark's children, team sources said. On the field, Clark had mastered the defense and would talk constantly with Taylor, aligning him, shouting directions, helping him anticipate the next play.

At least two veterans have called Clark this season for suggestions on how to reach Taylor, team sources said, and believe Taylor's problems in coverage and making in-game adjustments are directly related to Clark's departure.

"When you have a guy that's a little bit distant or introverted, sometimes it only takes one out of 53 guys to reach him," said one veteran Redskin, asking that his name not be used. "Ryan was that guy for Sean, and it's a big loss. Now Sean is trying to teach Adam and help him along, but that's not who he is. He's a guy you just need to get pointed in the right direction on the field, make sure he knows his assignment and let him go after the ball."

Clark's agent, Joel Turner, said that had the Redskins offered something close to Pittsburgh's deal -- $7 million over four years with $1.65 million guaranteed -- at any point in the 2005 season, Clark would have remained in Washington. Keeping Clark at that rate also would have given the team additional money under the salary cap to add a top place kicker or linebacker.

Time Is Running Out

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Over time, the class of 2006 might rebound -- or it might be remembered as the second coming of the free agent class of 2000, when the team spent millions on Deion Sanders, Mark Carrier, Jeff George and Bruce Smith but had little to show for it on the field. When Gibbs arrived in 2004, high-ranking members of the front office said they had learned from those mistakes.

The Redskins remained wedded to free agency, they said, but were targeting younger players and were more cognizant of intangibles such as attitude and camaraderie. Gibbs said he was looking for "character guys."

"We've always been big in free agency," Gibbs said. "I'd hate to think what the team would look like if we didn't have the free agents we have. Obviously, they're a huge part of what we do here. We've chosen to be active in it."

Some around the league wonder whether the Redskins' formula can work -- and whether the problems with the franchise run deeper.

"You bring in all these guys from different teams every year, but then how do you establish what a 'Redskin' is?" said one former high-ranking official in the Washington organization. "They've been drafted someplace else, were taught to play someplace else. . . . The draft breeds loyalty."

Numerous NFL executives suggested that Washington's front-office structure -- without a strong general manager, with the coach also the team president -- is flawed. That Gibbs, who did not have control over the roster in his first stint as Redskins coach when there was no free agency in the NFL, and Snyder are both so enthralled with free agency that it causes problems, they said.

By going after big-name free agents each March, they are trying to circumvent the growing pains of rebuilding in favor of a quick fix, it being only natural for a head coach to think about the immediate future and not the long term.

"There isn't anyone there who can say no to Joe and say no to Dan when they want to spend that much money every year," the former team official said. "Until they have that person there, I don't think it's really going to turn around."

Snyder has relied on Vinny Cerrato for football decisions since he bought the team in 1999, when he fired incumbent general manager Charley Casserly. When Marty Schottenheimer took over as coach in 2001, he did so only by gaining control of personnel decisions as well; Cerrato was fired. Despite winning eight of his final 11 games, Snyder wanted Schottenheimer to relinquish authority; the coach left at the end of the season and Cerrato returned.

"Dan couldn't wait to bring Vinny back," the former Redskins official said. "He couldn't wait."

Snyder also hired Joe Mendes as vice president of football operations in January 2002. Mendes espoused a more stringent fiscal approach. Steve Spurrier became the head coach, and took the job on the condition that a proven general manager be hired as well. Spurrier pushed for Beathard, sources said. Snyder mulled several options; he hired no one.

The Spurrier period was disastrous, Mendes was let go in the spring of 2003 and Cerrato has been promoted twice since. He is now very close to Snyder. The Redskins have a 38-49 record with Cerrato in the front office, not counting the 1999 team that was set before Snyder took over operations of the franchise, or 2001, when Schottenheimer made the decisions.

Gibbs has been an advocate for Cerrato since arriving in 2004, and when asked last week if he would advocate a change to the front-office structure or any individuals atop his staff, he said no.

"Vinny is someone through this whole process I feel bad for, because Vinny has given everything he's got," Gibbs said. "And I feel bad for Dan, because I know right now Dan feels helpless, and Dan's done his part and you feel bad for those guys."

Given the dynamics between Snyder and Gibbs, the owner's boyhood idol, and the established reliance on free agency, interpersonal relations for any outsider could be tricky, anyway.

"They could change at some point and build through the draft, but I doubt it," the NFC personnel executive said. "They need a GM in there, but Vinny is the owner's right-hand guy, there's no secret about that. I don't know if anyone could come in and really do that job with Joe there and with Vinny there."

Regardless of what transpires in the future, the present is a very uncomfortable place for the Redskins to be. Most of the newly acquired players are under enormous pressure to produce, and public scrutiny of the franchise is on the rise. Going from a team that won six of its last seven games last season (including the postseason) to one that has dropped five of its first seven this season, despite all the spending in between, is hard for many at Redskins Park -- or around the NFL -- to fathom.

"They have the most expensive coaching staff ever assembled," the former team official said. "They have a head coach who won three Super Bowls, the most expensive payroll in history and an owner who will do anything for the head coach, give him whatever he wants. They went out and got all the players they wanted -- it's not like they didn't get their guys. But they're not good on offense or defense, they lead the league in penalties and they are an undisciplined football team. What's the excuse? What excuse could they possibly have?"