Mike Shanahan watch focuses on "Da Plane! Da Plane!" -- of Redskins owner Daniel Snyder

Daniel Snyder, owner of the Washington Redskins, has been described as a "tour de force of executive douchery" -- a meddler on par with the Oakland Raiders' Al Davis, albeit one who tends to avoid wearing the sort of glasses usually sported by elderly women. Mike Shanahan, who lived the...

By Michael Roberts

January 4, 2010

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Daniel Snyder, owner of the Washington Redskins, has been described as a "tour de force of executive douchery" -- a meddler on par with the Oakland Raiders' Al Davis, albeit one who tends to avoid wearing the sort of glasses usually sported by elderly women. Mike Shanahan, who lived the Davis nightmare before taking the top job with the Broncos, would be well advised to steer clear... but he probably won't.

Indeed, NBC Sports is among the news agencies reporting that Snyder's plane touched down in Denver this morning -- and may have already departed after figuratively dumping a shitload of money on Shanny's lawn.

Such a quick appointment could be controversial in some quarters, since the NFL has stated repeatedly that teams need to interview minority candidates for head coaching openings -- and if that's been done in the Redskins' case, it's for ass-covering purposes rather than an actual interest in giving someone other than Shanahan a shot at taking over the D.C. squad.

Then again, Snyder has a history of getting his way, and if he wants Shanahan to helm his franchise, he'll almost certainly get him. Which means by this time next year, Big Mike will either have the Skins back in the playoffs, or he'll be ready to choke the life out of Danny boy. Either way, it should be entertaining -- unlike the last three weeks of the Broncos 2009 season...

Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

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