Updated: December 17, 2009, 10:14 AM ET
Cerrato resigns, Commanders hire Allen
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The
Washington Commanders have hired former
Tampa Bay Buccaneers general manager Bruce Allen, shortly after executive vice president of football operations Vinny Cerrato resigned, sources told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter.
The Commanders already have complied with the league's Rooney Rule and have interviewed at least two minority candidates, an NFL source told Schefter.
A news conference was expected to be held Thursday afternoon to announce the hire.
Cerrato
In a statement released by the team Thursday morning, Cerrato said he has had numerous conversations with team owner Daniel Snyder over the last few weeks about the team's future.
"We agreed that the franchise needs someone different in this position," Cerrato said in a statement released by the team. "I'm thankful to Dan Snyder and other members of his ownership team for the opportunities I've been given over the years."
The resignation was first reported by ESPN 980 in Washington.
Allen's father, the late George Allen, coached the Commanders in the 1970s and led the team to Super Bowl VII.
Cerrato, who has been highly criticized for his player personnel moves, has been Synder's right-hand man for nearly all of Snyder's 10 years as owner of the Commanders.
For the past two seasons, Cerrato has held the post of executive vice president of football operations. This year's Commanders are 4-9 and have struggled in part because of a lack of depth along the offensive line.
"Of course, I am disappointed with this year's results, but I strongly believe that with outstanding draft picks and encouraging performance by our younger players, we have laid a strong foundation for the franchise," Cerrato said in the statement.
Cerrato added that he has "had the pleasure of working with some great coaches such as Joe Gibbs, Greg Blache and Sherman Lewis" -- notably leaving out the current coach, Jim Zorn, whose job status is also tenuous.
Cerrato has been a favorite punching bag for fans in recent years, receiving criticism often in tandem with Snyder. One fan infamously used a pair of signs to refer to the pair as "Dumb" and "Dumber" at a game this season.
Cerrato was one of the first major hires after Snyder bought the Commanders in 1999. He was fired in 2001 by coah Marty Schottenheimer after Schottenheimer was given control of football operations. A year later, Snyder fired Schottenheimer and rehired Cerrato.
Although Cerrato's title changed over the years, he remained a significant front office voice in player decisions. The results have been far from encouraging: The Commanders have won only one playoff game since 2000.
Cerrato's power within the organization increased after coach Joe Gibbs' resignation two years ago, and there have been plenty of hits and misses among his player choices.
This year, Cerrato gave Zorn an offensive line without a single reserve who played in the NFL last year -- even though two starters were coming off significant injuries. Both of those starters soon were out for the season, and the resulting scramble for a starting five hampered the development of the offense.
Cerrato was previously was a scouting and player personnel director for the
San Francisco 49ers and recruiting coordinator at Notre Dame under Lou Holtz.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
