For Redskins Dan Snyder, patience is needed to transcend past

Something unexpected happened for the Redskins in 2019.

Backed into a corner, with a closing contention window, a quarterback situation mangled beyond compare, and an ever-mounting pressure to change their unchangeable ways, the circumstances were all adding up to cultivate a perfect storm; a storm in which Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder’s trademark impulse won out against all reason.

On the night of the 2019 NFL Draft, there was electricity in the air, and veiled insider reports suggested that Snyder was doing what he’d done so many times before; he was taking over. Taking matters into his own hands. In a desperate, tyrannical bid to be the hero.

Those same reports went into detail, that the Redskins draft room was split in half; that some coaches wanted Daniel Jones, and others wanted Dwayne Haskins. And that Snyder, the ultimate over-ruler, had taken the reigns, and was preparing to trade up into the top five to take the Ohio State product, giving up a mass amount of assets and resolve in the process.

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It was the perfectly-scripted Snyder storm, in prime conditions, like the edge of a cold front swirling around the edge of a warm front to create a swirling vortex, careening into dirt and churning up an apocalyptic cloud of dust. But then, with the expectations rising to a sharp, steep precipice, something unexpected happened.

The Snyder storm never came.

The Redskins did not trade into the top five. They did not trade into the top ten. Amidst rumors that they were prepared to trade up for Daniel Jones or Dwayne Haskins, the Redskins stayed put at pick No. 15, and patiently waited as the quarterback they’d wanted all along, fell right into their lap. Then they traded back into Round 1 to take Montez Sweat, capitalizing on opportunity and hesitance across the league. Then they scored a number of value gets on Days 2 and 3, to punctuate a draft performance that was uncharacteristically strong.

On draft night, the Redskins helped finesse a division rival into picking an average quarterback prospect far too early. They waited patiently to get the quarterback they wanted all along at No. 15. And they supplemented the acquisition of that quarterback with a strong rookie class filled to the brim with young talent and potential.

There were select picks that could garner scrutiny, but as a composite whole, the Redskins 2019 draft class was widely regarded as one of the league’s best. 18 NFL analysts were polled after the NFL Draft, grading all 32 teams, and the Redskins ended up tied with the New England Patriots with a GPA of 3.74. Four analysts gave the Redskins an A+, and ten others gave the Redskins an “A” of some sort. By all accounts, large and small, prestigious and quaint, Washington won the draft. And for once, they won it because of Dan Snyder’s patience.

There’s been speculation, in the offseason, that Snyder, in his aging state, is learning. They say wisdom comes with experience, and experience doing the wrong thing can be invaluable, to those who recognize it as such. Snyder hasn’t showed this awareness before; his impulse has been noted not just for its severity, but for its spontaneity and its brash indifference. Even after the team’s brightest moments over the past 20 years, Snyder’s impulse has rebounded with furor, and sent the team back into limbo each time.

Now, however, Snyder has overseen a great draft. But it’s not this alone that is of note. Snyder oversaw an excellent draft, in the conditions that had provoked his impulse in the past. He showed self-control and trust in his partners, two qualities that had been painfully lacking, previously.

If this is the first step in Snyder’s personal renaissance, and the first step toward cohesive long-term progress, then this newfound patience needs to become the standard.

Redskins 2019 53-man roster projection 1.0. dark. Next

And if nothing has truly changed, the truth will come soon enough.

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