by Jordy McElroy
The speculation surrounding Bruce Allen’s status with Washington Redskins owner Dan Snyder came to an abrupt end. After 10 long years of serving as the president and general manager of the Redskins organization, the pink slip finally came for Allen.
Snyder saved the team the melodramatic ending by doing the deed on the one day deeds such as this typically get done. Weeks were spent sharpening the proverbial guillotine so that Allen’s head could be the next to roll.
No tears were shed after the end of the decade-long marriage. It was about as emotional as someone releasing a balloon into the sky. Freddie Kitchens getting fired as the head coach for the Cleveland Browns hit harder than this.
It was proof that Allen had worn out his welcome with no playoff wins and nearly 100 losses in his tenure. There was talk of Snyder potentially reassigning him to another job title, but things had regressed to the point where the owner was forced to go full scorched earth.
The ugly fallout with seven-time Pro Bowl left tackle Trent Williams was likely the final straw. Williams opted to holdout from the team due to a lack of trust in Allen and the medical staff for allegedly misdiagnosing a growth on his head that ended up being cancerous. They were serious allegations that put the glare of the mainstream media microscope on the entire Redskins organization.
Not only is Allen out as president of football operations, but the Redskins are reportedly considering purging the training and rehabilitation staff as well.
It’s the right move for an organization in desperate need of hitting the reboot button.
Even if the bridge is forever burned with Williams, Snyder was forced into a position where he had to protect the team’s reputation for the sake of landing future free agents. Players need to believe in the front office and medical stuff.
Not only was Allen losing games, but he was losing off the field as well. It only took Snyder a decade to get off Jerry Jones’ time and get a real watch to realize enough was enough.
The team would obviously love to reconcile things with Williams entering the final year of his contract. They are in desperate need of a key cog on the offensive front to help protect 22-year-old quarterback Dwayne Haskins’ blindside. Perhaps Williams could warm up to the idea of at least playing out his contract and seeing how things unfold with Allen gone and Ron Rivera taking over as the new Redskins head coach.
The $13.2 million cap situation isn’t ideal, and the Redskins will have their work cut out for them in bouncing back from their worst regular season finish since 2013. Their pitiful campaign ended on Sunday with a 3-13 record, including three consecutive losses to each of their NFC East division rivals. It’s a dumpster fire situation that may cost Rivera a full head of hair while attempting to right the ship.
That still wouldn’t measure up to the years of agony the Redskins’ fan base has been subjected to with Allen in charge. The bad trades, horrendous negotiating tactics and insufferable contractual blunders had Black Monday feeling more like Hallelujah Monday for longtime Redskins fans.
It was the severing of the cord that should have been cut a long time ago. Even with a bleak future still on the horizon, the journey looks more promising than it has in years.