Well, the Redskins found another way to lose a game yesterday, there were some good things, more bad ones and a few headscratchers.The only good thing about losing as many games as they have this year is that they still have their top draft picks next year (for now) and it's looking more and more like a top 5 pick...can't wait until April!
There were many positive things in the game yesterday, the most encouraging sign of the game yesterday was that the defense was able to hold the Cowboys to only 7 points playing without Albert Haynesworth and without creating much of a pass rush in the meantime. They played tighter coverage than usual and LaRon Landry looked like the top draft pick that they thought he would be as he was flying all over the field and put the fear of god in Roy Williams who looked scared out of his mind when he went across the middle. Witten was a non-factor and Romo, other than the last drive of the game, couldn't hit anyone.They did give up a ton of yards on the ground but that was to be expected without Haynesworth in the middle, something that should signal to those who don't see how valuable he is that without him the defensive line isn't even close to being as good everyone wanted to think they are, he is the anchor against the run and the pass rush, and is a central player in the defense. That being said, they played well enough to win and deserved the shutout.
The offense was up to its usual pathetic performance as they failed to sustain any drives and could only muster up 4 field goal tries, hardly an impressive outing from the group although Jason Campbell likes to pat himself on the back for "stepping up" as he said in post-game interviews, that alone tells me that this guy does not get it but we'll get to that later. The special teams was not very good as they missed 2 field goals, the second of which was a 50-yarder but definitely makeable.The first one was only 39 yards but, after the debacle by the refs, it wasn't as easy as it should have been. Cartwright was great, he has always been a core player and a symbol of what this team needs more of, guys that give it their all and don't worry so much about their entitlement to things like a starting position. It seems like some guys just have a spot eventhough they don't earn it (Randle-El as a returner....WTF???) and other just don't play their best. The offensive line held together pretty well, Jones was once again solid as he shut out DeMarcus Ware, not exactly an easy feat and kept the Cowboys with their constant blitzes and pass rush off of Campbell for the most part.
The coaching was not very good once again as Zorn didn't even try to put the ball in the endzone with 15 seconds to go in the first half on a 3rd down before one of the most incredible displays of idiocy that I have ever seen from the referees, the whole 8 minute delay to figure out that Campbell had gotten rid of the ball before stepping out of bounds was beyond stupid, it was laughable. The decision to not punt on the last field goal attempt was understandable but, with the flow of the game, it seemed like a punt would have been a better option as the Cowboys hadn't done much the whole game. That being said, what needs to happen for Blatche to understand that when he plays soft coverage and only rushes 3 or 4 against a quarterback that doesn't handle blitzes that well and hadn't done anything to that point, he is asking for his team to lose. Why not try at least one or 2 blitzes, if they make a play, so be it, at least you could have taken the chance and might of forced another turnover and then, game over!
This game was not lost by mediocre play, it was lost by the coaches. Campbell played decently, he did make some nice throws and hung in there a couple of times when he was about to get hit like on the play to Cartwright over the middle that went for a big gain because he did something that he rarely does, he made a quick decision. The mistakes made by this coaching staff seem to pop up over and over every game and it's across the board, except for Danny Smith who seems to be the best coach on the staff.
The offensive coaches can't seem to "coach" up the young receivers, even-though when Thomas got his hands on the ball yesterday he made some quick moves and his kick return showed that, if given the chance, he might be able to break a big one at any time. Davis seems like he is improving and makes tough catches in traffic and hold onto the ball for the most part. Kelly showed a nice burst of speed after he caught the pass on the sideline and streaked up the field for a 30-yard gain. All of these players are the ones that most Redskins fans have been waiting to see perform for almost 2 years now and have only been given some flashes of what they can do, is it them or the coaches? Most people have thought that the problem is the players but after watching them carefully for the past few games, it doesn't look like they are as bad as we thought. Maybe if there wasn't this mafia-like status of the some players, they might get a chance. If Randle-El could ever give up his punt return duties to Thomas, he might show that he can provide a spark to a team that desperately needs it. The Redskins have had no return game for the past 2 or 3 years, something that is unfathomable on a team that has proven time and time again that they can't move the ball...what are you waiting for? If Zorn could realize that playing scared only gets you fired, he might of had a chance to learn on the job and he could've become a decent NFL coach, as it stands now, he will likely be a special assistant or a quarterbacks coach in a few years...what a shame.
The defensive coaches let their team down yesterday. The Redskins defense played very well yesterday, Landry was all over the field hitting people left and right, Orakpo and Carter were getting in Romo's face on many 3rd downs and caused him to throw sooner than he wanted to and collapsed the pocket on a regular basis. The secondary played OK, they were helped out by some bad throws by Romo but overall played a bit tighter than usual and didn't allow any big plays. So why, why Greg Blatche do you call off the dogs on the most important drive of the game and play that crappy prevent defense that only leads to giving up huge chunks of yards in a short time. Romo had 6 or 7 seconds on every play of the final drive and, coming as no surprise, was allowed to move around until he found his man. This is inexcusable for a defense that had a chance of shutting out their biggest opponents on their home field and possibly putting the dagger in the heart of a very soft team that is always a game away from total collapse? If I was on his defense I would be furious that he didn't dial up at least a few blitzes or mixed his coverage up more.
The overall reality of the game yesterday was that the Redskins beat themselves. The fact that they went for the field goal in the 4th quarter was the only sign that they were attempting to win, everything else they did, including the decision to not throw the ball in the endzone at the end of the first half, showed that they were, once again, scared to lose. This is what this season has been, a series of games that are lost because of conservative, predictable calls on both offense and defense that don't allow the players the freedom to win or lose the games on their own. Not to say that the team is good enough to be a contender, the fact that the coaches don't ever become aggressive hurts the players, especially on running plays and defense. Maybe next year, with a new coach, new quarterback, new running back and a reconfigured offensive line, the team might get some coaches that want to go for the kill when they have a chance, if not, it will just be another season like this one....lost.
P.S. - A little venting.....
1. Jason Campbell continues to amaze me in the post game interviews. He constantly complains that the fans are on his for his poor play and loves to play the victim at all times. He continuously states that he and others have to step up and become leaders, the question is, when? When is he going to be a leader? When is he going to show up and play a good game and also make the big play at the end of the game to win it? When is he going to accept the fact that he has played very poorly and has not shown anyone that he deserves another chance to be the starting quarterback here? He needs to quit his bitching and play better, period! He is a nice guy and seems to be a very classy person as he showed in the offseason by not saying anything eventhough they tried to trade him for a bag of peanuts, but he is a whiner and that is not a attribute that a quarterback can have. This team has many issues, bad coaching, bad personnel decisions, overpaid and underplaying stars and many more but the leader of the team has to be the quarterback and Campbell, for all of his good qualities, is not a leader, period!
2. Randle-El. He needs to stop taking any punts, no matter what the situation is he is going to call for a fair catch or dance around back and forth to gain a yard, he is killing this team and has been doing so for years. He is a good slot receiver, let him concentrate on that and use Thomas for returns, he seems to be the quickest of the receivers other than Moss and could use the playing time.
3. Young players - the Redskins need to but all of the first-year and second-year players in the game more so that they can see now what they have. What's the point of waiting for the last game or two to see what they can do, why not now? It's not like the team has shown anything good in the first 10 weeks of the season so what could it hurt? Probably nothing but this team unlike most other professional teams can't tell players that they are no good, it's obvious that the coach has no power over his players and that some of them know that they can be starters even if they play like crap.
Just some extra points that drive me nuts about this team...amongst many others.
Keywords: Carwright, Jason Campbell, Jim Zorn, Randle-El, Washington Redskins
