ANALYSIS/OPINION
In one of his numerous postseason “I feel your pain” press conferences — this one after firing Mike Shanahan in 2013 — Washington Redskins president Bruce Allen mentioned a Christmas present he got from a player then on the roster.
“Josh Wilson gave me a great Christmas present, pretty telling, it was a book and it said ’Sometimes you win, sometimes you learn,’” Allen told reporters. “We learned too much this year, maybe, but we’ve got to learn to go in the right direction and that’s what we’re going to do.”
Allen didn’t say what the title of the book was, but it’s a safe bet it wasn’t any of these:
“How to Win Friends and Influence People.”
“The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
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“The Charisma Myth.”
“The Courage to Trust.”
Bruce Allen has now come to represent the opposite of everything that his father, George Allen, symbolized to Redskins fans — glory, success, winning.
The son’s legacy is shame, failure, losing.
Bruce Allen’s arrival was hailed as the start of the era of professionalism, and the end of the era of the Clown Prince of Redskins Park, Vinny Cerrato.
During his stint from 2002 to 2009, Cerrato’s record was 52-65.
Bruce Allen’s reign at Redskins Park? A record of 45-66-1.
Soon there will be a Bruce Allen press conference at Redskins Park, like the ones that have taken place since he arrived more than seven years ago, a symbol of the organization’s proud tradition who would bring order to the Redskins chaos, the savior who would take the “dys” out of dysfunction.”
There will be words that will come out of his mouth like these words shortly after taking over as general manager near the end of the 2009 season: “I haven’t felt the pain that has been associated with 4-9. Starting today, I feel the pain. I look forward to talking with the coaches, the personnel people, and having them explain to me their thoughts on what occurred.”
And these words in December 2013, after Shanahan was fired: “I feel very responsible. I think I said that at the beginning that everyone here feels responsible, and in my position it’s what creates the pain because I can see where we want to go, I can feel where we want to go, and I know that the players have that same drive. So I feel responsible for it. We’re all accountable for our record.”
Or these words, following his hand-picked coach Jay Gruden’s rookie 4-12 season in 2014: “We understand 4-12 is not acceptable to our great fans and it’s not acceptable to anyone in this building. I feel awfully responsible for it. We’re going to make sure we hold everyone accountable for everything that happened.”
“We either win or lose as a team, and it is my responsibility to make sure that we have all the people in place throughout the organization doing their jobs. As I said earlier, holding those people accountable — and that includes myself, and making sure if there’s a way we can do things to help this organization to win, to get back to the basics of this great franchise — that’s what we’re going to do. That’s my job to help figure out that puzzle.”
This was, of course, the infamous “winning off the field” press conference, but there is so much more that Bruce Allen has told Redskins fans that was far more offensive — like these words, it turns out, when he introduced Scot McCloughan as the team’s new general manager one month later.
“Last year when Dan made me president of the team, we were looking for ways to improve the Washington Redskins,” he said. “It really was my responsibility to find any way we can improve the organization. What I did say last week was we were looking to add someone. We’re looking for ways to add and change what we’ve been doing. When Scot became available and said he was ready to get into the saddle, that was really a no-brainer for us to pursue someone who has that type of talent. We believe strongly that with Scot’s vision and leadership, it’s going to help the Redskins win. That is our responsibility.”
Given the developments of McCloughan’s piece-by-piece execution by the team, resulting in his firing Thursday night — it should have become clear to Redskins fans that when Allen is talking about pain, he’s talking about your pain, not his. And when he is talking about responsibility, it is to himself, not the Washington Redskins.
• Thom Loverro hosts his weekly podcast “Cigars & Curveballs” Wednesdays available on iTunes and Google Play.
• Thom Loverro can be reached at tloverro@washingtontimes.com.
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