Dallas/Washington Primer

Brush up on your Cowboys and Redskins history:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cowboys-Redskins_rivalry

DALLAS WEEK

After an impressive victory at home against the Cardinals, the Skins travel to the BIG D to take on the Cowboys! Everyone I hear has been talking blowout hear, but I see a game down to the wire with a chance to pull one out.

Jason Campbell has been nothing short of spectacular this year. If he continues to protect the ball and move the football, this could be a great game.

Brian Mitchell vs. Clinton Portis

In case you have not heard...

Basically Portis is calling out Brian Mitchell for being a hater.

I, on the other hand, am voting for Brian Mitchell to receive the "Emmitt Smith Sports Journalism Award." I can not stand listening to him. It least Emmitt is good for a few laughs (because he is so horrible). B-Mitch had his own show, but guess what, he was moved to be a sidekick on the John Thompson show. I by no means love John Thompson, but at least he usually has coherent thoughts and he is articulate enough to provoke thoughtful discussion.

VITALS:

Portis
Height: 5'11
Weight: 231
Age: 27
College: The U

Mitchell
Height: 5'11
Weight: 225 (playing weight...)
Age: 40
College: SW Louisiana

If they threw down, I think it would be a pretty good fight. B-Mitch is scrappy and Portis has the youthful step. Pay Per View anybody??

Out with the Tavaris, In with the Gus

Welp, today the Vikings did something somewhat surprising to me. They indefinetely benched young QB Tavaris Jackson in favor for vet Gus Frerotte. Yes, the same Gus Frerotte who brilliantly rammed his head into a wall after scoring a touchdown for the Redskins. I think this will shatter the confidence of Jackson, as they are basically saying he can not get the job done. They believe they have parts in place at every position except QB and that if they kept Jackson in the lineup they were doing the team a disservice. There is no other way Tavaris can take this. Luckily for him, nobody thinks Gus can make it through a full season, so he better work hard and work hard during practice until his chance comes again.

I think there is two ways to go about nurturing a QB:
1. Throw him in the fire and give him the fully vote of confidence unconditionally and let him learn on the job. This will take at least 2-3 years. (Peyton Manning, Dan Marino, etc.)
2. Sit him for those 2-3 years and make sure he is fully prepared for his first NFL start. (Romo, Rivers, etc.)

With all that said, I think the Vikings have an exceptional team and this switch gives them a better chance to make noise this year. The Vikings better make it worth it, because I truly believe Tavaris Jackson will never regain his confidence, and he will never be a quality starter in the league. He may not have anyway, but he is certainly a long shot now.

Week 3: Arizona Cardinals @ Washington Redskins

This Sunday's match-up between the Cardinals and the Redskins could determine the direction of the season for both squads involved. The Cards come in at 2-0, and are looking to keep the ball rolling with Kurt Warner at the helm. The Redskins, coming off of their home opening win, are 1-1 and look to go up a game before they reach their toughest portion of their schedule.

I think the key match-up this game will be the Arizona Cardinals wide receivers versus the Redskins secondary.

WR Larry Fitzgerald vs. Shawn Springs
WR Anquan Boldin vs. Carlos Rogers

It will be key for the CB's to get safety help when needed which calls for Landry, Horton, and Doughty to be in position at all times. Boldin is extremely physical and Rogers may have a difficult time staying with him. Larry Fitz is just an all around beast and it will take Springs best effort to keep him at bay. Also important is that the Redskins get pressure on the edges from Jason Taylor and Andre Carter. Hopefully Taylor is healing up and is getting closer to reaching his prime playing condition.

Other notes:

With Malcolm Kelly and James Thrash limited with ankle sprains, rookie Devin Thomas may see more action. I think this could be very good for the offense because I believe once Thomas is comfortable with the offense, he brings a lot to the table as a third wide receiver. He gives them a true split end who can go up and get the ball, unlike his smurfy counterparts.

Look for Campbell to maintain his confidence level and avoid making big mistakes. His progress will be the limiting factor for this offensive group. He needs to make proper reads and work the ball to all of his options. It is no coincidence that Cooley had a good game last week and the Redskins won. They need to get him the damn ball!

Computer simulation shows Redskins as a slight favorite...

DeSean the Dummy: Part 2

Well, well, well....take a look at this clip from a high school all-star game a few years back.

Looks like DeSean does not learn from his mistakes. What a clown.

DeSean the Dummy.....

If you did not catch the MNF game versus the Cowboys and Eagles, you have to check out this bonehead play by rookie WR DeSean Jackson. It is frickin' hilarious.

I am pretty sure DeSean loves him some DeSean.

Changes at Punt Returner?

There are reports coming from Jim Zorn that seem to say that the Redskins are going to make a change at punt returner. The names being floated around include James Thrash and Santana Moss. It was also reported that Randle El would stay in the mix. I personally think Moss gives them the best chance for big plays but it is always a risk sticking your best wide out at PR, because he will take some hits.

Speaking of punting, Durant Brooks still has the vote of confidence from the coaching staff as they expect him to improve. Brooks had a poor showing against the Saints as he botched a FG hold and only had an average of 33 yards over his two punts. Hopefully he will improve fast because they had a servicable punter in Derrick Frost that they let go.

I will have a preview of the Week 3 game up on Wednesday.

REDSKINS VS SAINTS: EXTENDED HIGHLIGHTS

Check out a 4:35 version of this Sundays win.

WEEK 2 RECAP: REDSKINS 29, SAINTS 24

On a scorching hot Sunday afternoon, the Redskins kept on fighting and eventually overcame a two score 4th quater deficit to upend the New Orleans Saints. Jason Campbell looked spot on, the wide outs created separation and made plays, and Portis ran hard up the middle, all of which added to a strong defensive effort that gave the Skins a home opening win.

Some Key Points:

• Skins finally found Chris Cooley as he caught 5 passed for 72 yards including a key 22 yard catch on 2nd and long deep in their own territory.
• Jason Taylor had his first sack as a Redskin.
• Skins limited Reggie Bush in the running game, but allowed him to return a punt 55 yards for a TD.
• 2nd Rd pick Malcolm Kelly had his first receiption, a 6 yarder while Devin Thomas did not have a catch.
• Next week, Redskins host the Arizona Cardinals.
  

Offensive Player of the Game:

Jason Campbell, QB (24-36 321 yards, 1 TD, 0 Int) - Campbell played his best game as a Redskin. There is no debate about it. He threw the ball 36 time and had ZERO turnovers, which in itself shows progress. He stood in the pocket and made smart decisions throughout the game. While the offense stalled near the red zone many times, Campbell showed discipline not to force the ball and cost his team a chance to put points on the board.

Defensive Player of the Game:

Chris Horton, DB (2 Int, 1 FR) - The rookie filled in for Doughty (flu) and was in the right place at the right time throughout the game. Horton had two interceptions and a fumble recovery, all of which showed that he is capable of making a play when an opportunity presents itself. Although he may not start, he will get more and more defensive snaps.

Saints Lose Star WR for 4-6 Weeks

Well the Redskins caught a small break today as new came out that the Saints will be without starting WR Marques Colston for 4-6 weeks with a torn ligament in his thumb. That moves David Patten into the starting line-up along side of Devrey Henderson. Hopefully this makes the Skins defensive gameplan a little bit easier. My biggest concern however is still containing Jeremy Shockey. I think the Skins will bottle up Reggie Bush, but Shockey is just a beast.

Wednesday Notes

- Shawn Springs has been in practice this week and he should be a go for this Sunday against the Saints. He injured his calf on Sept. 1, was listed as probable for Week 1, but had to sit because it was too swollen still. Springs return to the starting lineup gives the Redskins a huge boost as it allows Smoot to step back as the 3rd CB. Springs is by far the best corner and he was sorely missed last week againast Plaxico & Co.


- Second round WR Malcolm Kelly was back at practice taking part in individual drills, but sat out 11-v-11 drills. He is nursing a knee problem that made him miss all of pre-season. He has always been an injury concern, so this is none too suprising.

Week 1 After-Thoughts

Well it has been nearly a week since the Redskins were defeated by the Giants in the NFL opener. At first it seemed like a tough loss to take, but it was a road division game that they were not expected to win. Although they looked ill prepared and outmatched in the first half, they played the defending Superbowl champs even in the second half. They made adjustments, and kept Eli and Plax from playing backyard football all over the field. This at least points to the fact that the new regime is capable of making needed adjustments on the fly and keeping the game competitive.

The offense though was a whole different story. Campbell never looked comfortable and the offense never got things rolling. The only score was set up by a long kickoff return by Cartwright into enemy territory. If they needed 8 yards, they got 7. If they needed 10 yards they got 8. Their lack of field awareness coupled with the lack of vision and decision making from Campbell lead to the ground game being stagnant as well.

My biggest concern however is the complete lack of involvement of Pro Bowl TE Chris Cooley. In my opinion he is your greatest weapon and you throw to him only a few times? I know I saw him open a few times and Campbell never even looked at him. This happened all preseason as well as his contributions were limited as it seemed the coaching staff did not know they had an All-World TE. Throw him the damn ball!

Week 2 will be better. The Skins are home and the Saints defense is not as good as the Giants. They have a rather porous run defense and I expect Clinton to run free. Hopefully Zorn will get this thing going, as DC will not be happy with this just being a rebuilding and learning year. They have the talent to win, and win soon.