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The Washington Redskins released its new marketing video this week and it's pretty slick. It should be. The Redskins have had lots of practice. After all, Danny Snyder swapped out coaches five times this decade. That's five "new beginnings" sales campaigns.

Don't know about you, but I'm jaded. I wish Snyder was better at building a team than hyping it. We needn't rehash his football blunders here. They are too well known already.

I'd like to understand why Snyder does those things without resorting to name-calling. Here's my conclusion: the guy's a poor leader. He misapplies the entrepreneurial spirit that's worked so well in other ventures. He just doesn't know how to build a winning organization, much less a winning football team.

It's a business cliche that entrepreneurs who are so good at starting businesses often get in their own way when it comes to running a grown up enterprise. Why? Because entrepreneurs are innovators who create value. Their vision, their success arises from their hands-on involvement. That skill set so valuable for start-ups does not translate as well to established organizations.

Yes, Virginia, there is a difference between entrepreneurs and leaders. The difference is why you don't see entrepreneurs running GE.

Organizations, like the Redskins, need executives who foster excellence in every part of the group, mostly by teasing the best out the people in the group. That's where entrepreneurs like Snyder fail as leaders. Start-ups need visionaries. Enterprises need leaders who foster teamwork at every level, and leave team members free to be their best.

Here's Jimmy Johnson's rant about Snyder from October 2009:

"Realize that a great 53-man roster is what wins championships, not five or six high-priced stars. Dan Snyder builds his team like its fantasy football and that's a big negative. The Redskins need a GM who can prevent Snyder from making decisions while letting Snyder think he's involved. Who can work that magic? I don't know."

Johnson added that the Redskins have good scouts, "but nobody listens to them." That's poor leadership.Sadly, neither Johnson nor anyone in the local media expanded on that flaw. The roster itself was proof enough of the truth of the statement.

Snyder may have been listening to Johnson. He hired Bruce Allen as general manager three months later, his first true GM since he fired Charley Casserly in 1999.

Poor leadership expressed itself off field, too. The season ticket scandals exposed an out of control sales team and insensitive management too eager to sue season ticker fans in distress.

Snyder characteristically ducked on the issue. He left it to his general council, David Donovan, to respond to an irate fanbase. Donovan said at the time that he personally reviewed every decision to sue season ticket holders. The media brought out that the Redskins were the only NFL club to sue ticket holders. Yet, in fixing the mess, it was Donovan who Snyder named as team CEO.

Perhaps Donovan is the best business-side leader available. It's more likely that Donovan, like Vinny Cerrato, can be counted on to do things the Snyder way.

So, has Snyder changed?

A snippet from a recent CSN post by Rich Tandler suggests that he has turned a corner:

"Snyder is rarely at Redskins Park these days, and when he is there, his secretary is under strict orders to tell any player who wants to drop by to talk about an issue with the owner to go see Shanahan or Bruce Allen."  

There is so much more to building up the Redskins than Snyder keeping his hands off the football operation.

As a fan, I desperately want the new front office set up to work. But Donovan's place in it rankles me. For all of this to work, Snyder has to understand that his real team isn't the players. It's the front office. He has to be leader enough to have the right people in place everywhere. He has to form them into a cohesive unit and give his people the room to ply their expertise.

As one of my Big Blue executives explained to me, "I became a better manager when I started taking credit for the work of others." He said that in jest, but there's a lesson in it for Snyder.

Snyder was successful in his early ventures in college and with Snyder Communications because he made the difference. That's his style. He wanted to be the Redskin entrepreneur. He wanted to be the difference. To outsiders, Snyder's hands on approach to the Skins looked like so much egotism.

Danny Snyder is never more dangerous than the year after he hires a new coach (two years in Joe Gibbs' case). That's when he tinkers and tampers and injects himself where he should not. Next season is the true test for Snyder and Allen, recalling Johnson's prescription of "a GM who can prevent Snyder from making decisions while letting Snyder think he's involved."

After Schottenheimer, Spurrier, Gibbs and Zorn, I'm not going to declare success in advance just because Shanahan, Allen and Donovan are in place.  

It would help if all those guys understand that they aren't tampering with customer loyalty. It's fan allegiance that is taken for granted. Snyder doesn't own the Redskins, you see. He just owns the franchise rights to sell us Redskins stuff. Nothing about that gives him the right to mismanage our team. 

Points After: There's an evolution in my use of Snyder's name. He was "Dan Snyder" when he bought the team in 1999, later to be derided as "Danny" and "Little Danny" for the ridiculous decisions that followed. He was "Mr. Snyder" to me when Joe Gibbs returned, never more so than in 2007 when he banked a huge store of goodwill after Sean Taylor's death. I dropped the "Mister" for "Daniel" during the goat rodeo of the coaching search in 2008 and reverted to "The Danny" as last season's disaster unfolded. I would love to call him "Mr. Snyder" again, but Danny has to earn it. 

Whoa! Could there be a more boring sports topic than something about leadership, entrepreneurs, organization and other multi-syllable words? Sports consumers crave light reading with short sentences focused on players and how the team is going all the way. But this is important. It's why just bringing in another set of personalities won't work unless the guy at the top morphs into a genuine leader. I hope I've given you what to look for. And thank you so much if you've read this far.

The Washington Redskins is searching for a Director of Sales and Marketing with proven ability to sell million dollar strategic sponsorship deals to Fortune 500 companies. The position will be based out of Redskins Park, located in Ashburn, VA. The right candidate will have a proven record of sales success, will be self-motivated, and dynamic.

 Aspects of the job will include but are not limited to the following:

Apply for this position through teamworkonline.com

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Lebron James' super-hyped departure from one NBA team to another triggered a lot of thought in addition to our own about how free agency works in football.

Andrew Brandt, now president of National Football Post, used the occasion to bluntly explain why free agency does not work in the NFL.

Brandt spent his career at the pro level as an agent, then at various levels for football, including ten years as vice president of the Green Bay Packers. The Packer experience is significant since it was Green Bay's signing for DE Reggie White in 1993 that was a game changer in football free agency.

Yet, Brandt says in two articles that free agency rarely works as well in football as in other sports. In his words:

"Football is about schemes, sets, body types, coaching philosophies, etc. Tony Dungy loved fast, small linebackers, Bill Parcells likes big, stout linebackers: the Redskins employed a 4-3 defense last year, a 3-4 this year, etc. Coaching staffs change; players that fit the previous scheme do not fit the present one. And, of course, football players are completely dependent on teammates; the best players play less than half the game.

"For these reasons, moving parts are not as seamless as in other sports. A player may look enticing on a board of players eligible for free agency (or the Draft, for that matter) but the question that has to be asked and answered is not how good the player is, but how good the player will be in our system?"

That concept animates Redskins Hog Heaven's thoughts about all of Washington's free agent and trade moves of this decade. It's just so interesting hearing that idea expressed by a NFL insider.

Brandt points to the Redskins as one example to make his point. Who can blame him? But he buttresses his argument with cases from the Packers, Eagles and Patriots, too.

One man, or three in the case of the Miami James Gang, can make a bigger impact in basketball where pro coaches have less influence on their players and the only scheme is to shoot a lot. In football, not so much.

Brandt makes his case in a July 6, 2010, story in The National Football Post, with a follow-up on July 8, 2010.  

One last quote from Brandt from a story today: "Free agency is the price paid for drafting poorly."

Mike Florio of profootballtalk.com hints that the NFL will look at player-to-player tampering to keep a LaBron case from occuring in the NFL.

You can't keep genuine free agents from comparing notes. Some stories suggest that LaBron's move was cooked up by he and Dwyane Wade while Wade was under contract to the Maimi Heat. If that's the case, why wouldn't Wade be considered an agent of the team? And how could a league prove it unless one of the participants admitted to it? That's what's bothering the NFL.  

Some of my Bloguin football colleagues weighed in on L'Affaire LeBron.

Andy Furman, who covers the New York Giants on Ultimate NYG, is scathing in his criticism of ESPN's 70 minute LeBron James announcement that Furman calls as phony as a $3.00 bill. I agree, and like Furman, I watched the dreck anyway.

Nate Dunlevy, who covers the Colts on 18 to 80, says in his story on July 10, 2010 that LeBron James wasn't Cleveland's only traitor. Dunlevy point fingers at Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert and the media: Gilbert for the cruel firing of coach Mike Brown and for the failure to build enough talent in Cleveland to make LeBron want to stay.

Dunlevy is harder on the media for making a spectacle of the event then for criticizing LeBron for the frenzy they created. Of course the media faction that hyped the ESPN show are not the same people who criticized it, but the point is noted.

LeBron did something new and different. We've never see the like before. LeBron will be criticized for it until the next super star athlete-hero does the same.  

I've had my doubts about Washington Redskins tackle Mike Williams all alone. But what a story he is.

Williams' connection to Derrick Dockery gave him an in to Washington fans. He's part of the family regardless of the improbability of his quest to start at tackle. His 80 pound weight loss, his self-discipline, his willingness to fill in at guard instead of tackle made you pull for the guy.

So it comes as hard news that Williams is OUT for the season when blood clots were found near his heart. "Clot" and "heart" are two words you never want to hear in the same sentence.

The assumption going into training camp was that Artis Hicks was penciled in as starting right guard. Mike Shanahan liked Williams, so he figured to rotate Big Mike in and out of the line-up.

With Williams out, the Skins could rejigger the depth chart with Chad Rinehart, Edwin Williams and Will Montgomery, though none were as high on the chart at Mike Williams. Kory Lichensteiger played guard for Mike Shanahan in Denver in 2008.

Dockery had a hand in Williams joining the Skins last season. I wonder how this news impacts him.

We at Redskins Hog Heaven wish Mike Williams the best.

More buzz, courtesy of FOX Sports, that the Washington Redskins will make a move for San Diego's disgruntled bad-boy wide-out Vincent Jackson. (Hat tip to Extremeskins for pointing me to this story.)

Say what you will about Jackson's off-field judgement, but his stat line has improved in each of the past three seasons. With the addition of Donovan McNabb and a pair of new tackles, wide receiver was the next questionable area of the offense.

Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly may yet pan out, but Skins fans have seen enough of Vinny Cerrato's other talent decisions to leave us queasy about those two. Perhaps Mike and Kyle Shanahan feel the same, enough to push GM Bruce Allen to work harder to land Jackson after making no play for Anquan Bolden.

Adam Schein says it's practically a done deal for a second round trade pick. That would leave the Redskins with practically nothing to do after the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft. A third or fourth round pick goes to the Eagles for McNabb. The remainder of the two goes to the Saints for T. Jamaal Brown.

Any deal for Jackson should make the Skins more open to a second or third round draft pick in exchange for Albert Haynesworth.

Wouldn't  it be ironic if the Redskins receiving corps was boosted by a Norv Turner cast-off? Turner coaches a Down Field Offense scheme where Jackson is considered a deep threat. Jackson would come to a West Coast Offense that tends to favor quick strikes to the perimeter and yards-after-the-catch.

Sarcasm Alert: Everybody knows that players are interchangeable parts in these schemes and are only too happy to adjust because they can be equally effective in anything.

Terrell Owens (6-3, 224) and Brandon Marshall (6-4, 230) are archetypal West Coast receivers. Jackson (6-5, 230) fits that physical profile.

There wouldn't seem to be room on the roster for Thomas and Kelly if Jackson comes. So which of those two would be squeezed out by Jackson's arrival? The coaching staff is mum about that, and they should be. But if I were Malcolm Kelly, I'd be very nervous now.

Over the past 24 hours, the sports world turned its attention from football, both American and foreign, to Lebron James. ESPN took a page from the NFL's playbook to air a 60-plus minute special for LeBron's 30 second announcement that he is leaving Cleveland for the Miami Heat. Here are seven Hog Heaven thoughts about LeBron:

LeBron's Smart Set-Up--LeBron did what I wish more athletes would do. He signed a two-year deal with the Cavaliers in 2008 to set-up the auction for his services in 2010. Veteran athletes tend towards long-term deals, often to become dissatisfied when their performance outruns their pay. That's where the spectacle of Terrell Owens or Albert Haynesworth come from. Those guys clamor for the certainty of income while passing the injury and performance risks to their team. Then try to pout their way out of their deal if they become unhappy.

If athletes want the flexibility to max their future income or leverage their performance against their team, then take a short term contract like LeBron did. Worried about injury? That's why you buy insurance. LeBron didn't go to college and he's figured this out. Kudos to him.

The Cult of LeBron--James has yet to lead his team to a championship, yet his fans call him The King. The whole promotional campaign around his decision has been masterful. Let's not be too critical here. Pro-basketball encourages personality cults. Basketball fans seem to crave it more than in other team sports. (My opinion only. Comment if you disagree.)

Why not just name the team after the biggest star? Hasn't Cleveland been more about LeBron than Cavaliers? It's just a matter of time before some clever Miami pr type starts referring to LeBron, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosch as the "James Gang."

$100 Million Club--If a teen-age athlete asked my career advice, I'd push him towards basketball, baseball or even that Euro football thingy if he wants in on the $100 million club. Pro football players have shorter careers, earn less money and have higher risk for life-long affliction from the game than players of either of the B-ball sports. It's rare in the NFL for anyone other than quarterbacks to get nine-figure contracts. There is that one deal with that one defensive player. (Down here in Washington, we don't speak his name except to spit on it.) For every other NFL player, it's a rare deal.

The Inmates are running the NBA asylum--That's the impression left by "the decision." News accounts in the lead up to LeBron's announcement said that James met with Dwyane Wade and other free agent players to coordinate their contract demands and more. Wade and Chris Bosh signed with the Miami Heat before James' announcement. Season tickets for Heat games sold out in half a day, also before James' announcement. So roster decisions are set by a cabal of players rather than teams. If James, Wade and Bosh were companies instead of individuals, their actions would have been an illegal conspiracy in restraint of trade.

How is this good for the NBA? Live by the sword, die by the sword. The NBA fosters player cults more than a sense of team or even of titles, or defense. The average NBA team is valued at $350 million or so. Its top stars have contracts worth one-third of that. Those same stars have endorsement deals that may match the value of their contracts. The league lives by player cults, but the players aren't as dependent on the NBA as in the NFL. That doesn't strike me as healthy business climate.

More of these nine-figure contracts for the NBA's biggest stars mean lesser deals for the grunts who fill out the roster.

How is it that the LeBron James and not the NBA promoted that whole ESPN show? I can't image that the NFL, and certainly not a Daniel Snyder, would have let that golden goose slip through its fingers.

Poor Cleveland--LeBron leaves a legion of heartbroken fans in Cleveland, for whom I feel genuinely sorry. But how could the Cavaliers leave themselves so vulnerable? Crain's Detroit Business suggests that the Cavaliers will lose $250 million in value simply by losing LeBron. James was the one positive face Cleveland put out to the world. There's no Brady Quinn to fill the void. Eric Mangini is a void from an image standpoint.

How could a well-managed team have it's value so tied up to a single player and lose him? How can Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, who couldn't win a title in seven seasons with LeBron, guarantee to win a championship before LeBron gets one in Miami?

Would Tom Izzo have made a difference? Uh, no. Gilbert is a Michigan State grad. For a brief moment, the Cavaliers dangled the head coaching job in front of Spartans men's basketball coach Tom Izzo who wisely declined. Gilbert is a big supporter of Spartan sports, I bet. So Izzo would have had to talk to Gilbert as a courtesy if nothing else. But Izzo reportedly couldn't get LeBron to return his calls at the moment the king was orchestrating his future. It seems that neither Gilbert nor any coach he brings in factored in LeBron's thinking.

I like the effort. but it was a waste of effort.

Sigh! Twenty more days 'til training camp.

Point After: profootballtalk.nbcsports.com--LeBron situation brings player-to-player tampering into focus

Or not.

It's too soon to say. That doesn't stop sports handicappers from projecting how the NFL 2010 season will end. Football tout Vernon Croy is the latest to offer something, in this case his final standings of the NFC East:

1. Dallas Cowboys -- 10-6
2. Philadelphia Eagles -- 10-6
3. New York Giants -- 8-8
4. Washington Redskins -- 6-10

I never heard of Croy. Even if he's the smartest man in football, isn't it too soon to say?

The Cowboys had the best finish in 2009. The Redskins made the best moves of the offseason. But that's just on paper. Football isn't played on paper. It's played on television.

Can we, like, see a preseason game before we project how the regular season will play out?

I like a lot of the moves of Dannyhan's first season. Oh yes, boys and girls, the Danny is still in the background. But Washington hasn't paid stupid money to another over-hyped star from somebody else's team who will save the season. They have brought in a lot of older players who might be role contributors, or who might be another bust.

For my part, I'm going on the assumption that the moves thus far brought the Redskins back to level ground; meaning the Skins have a shot at 8-8. It's not like we're saying Super Bowl for sure. Nor are we saying that they sure won't be there either.

We just want to see these guys on this roster run plays from this playbook in a game before drawing any conclusions. Until then, we don't know jack.