The Future Leader in Washington

I'd like to take this opportunity to address you, the reader, and apologize for any forthcoming bias that may appear in this, or future blogs. See, I have been a die hard Redskin fan since I could walk, and have been babbling about how they are the greatest professional franchise since I could talk. So when I say that the Giants win over the 'Skins last weekend was more a product of Joe Gibbs telling his team to throw the game at halftime so that Tom Coughlin would retain his job, and in doing so, eliminate the Giants from ever being a contender, I'm not serious...totally.

Think about though. How could the Redskins, who had given up one touchdown all season, enter halftime up 17-3 and in a nice rhythm, blow a game to the Giants by not getting a second half first down until the final drive. That's ridiculous. That'd be like a number one seed in the NBA Playoffs with the league MVP on their team dropping to the number eight seed while the MVP shoots 38% for the series. Oh and ironically the coach of the eight seed used to coach the one seed. But I digress.

Watching Ladell Betts trip on 4th and goal from the one made me sick. It made me sick for a lot of reasons. The main reason was because I know, like every competent sports fan, that great teams, make great plays. The Redskins haven't been a great team since I've been old enough to appreciate it. The closest we've come was back in 2005 when we made our magically run into the playoffs and beyond. That team made some great plays. The Monday Night miracle, when Mark Brunell threw two fourth quarter bombs to Santana Moss for touchdowns, the Antonio Brown kick return against the Cardinals and Sean Taylor's fumble returns against the Eagles and Bucs to name a few. All of those were huge plays. The all led to victories that we needed to have.

I'm not saying that the Redskins necessarily needed to win the Giants game. However, heading into your bye week with a perfect record has to feel pretty good. Still, I just can't shake the feeling that a great team would have won that game. A great team would have finished the Giants early in the second half and cruised to a 3-0 record. The Patriots would have done it. No doubt about it. There were a lot of positives that came from that game and I think that when all is said and done that loss could do a lot of good for the Redskins. For one, young Quarterback Jason Campbell looked fantastic. He made some mistakes but the one word to describe him best is, "poised." With Campbell under center, I have complete confidence that the Redskins have a chance. I have never felt that before. I say again, I have never felt that before. I didn't feel that when Trent Green was there, when Brad Johnson was there or even when Brunell was in Pro Bowl form. Everyone can see the physical tools that Campbell posses. He's 6'5, can run, has a cannon arm and has great accuracy. The thing that impresses me the most, however, is the calm that he emits on the field.

What happened next, as they say, is history, but the confidence I gained in our young quarterback is a sign of great things to come. Shortly after the game I had a buddy of mine text me with these words, "Tough loss man, but how bout Campbell! What a player!" My sentiments exactly. The confidence knowing that Joe Gibbs made a good decision trading back into the 2004 first round to grab Jason Campbell is calming. Knowing that the Washington Redskins will have the same starting quarterback under center next season for the first time in over a decade is exhilarating. And the fact that that quarterback is Jason Campbell is exciting.

The Redskins may have dropped their week 3 game to the Giants but they now have two weeks to think about it and figure out what happened and fix it. This team has shown a lot of promise on both sides of the ball and as the season goes on and Campbell continues to improve, so will the Redskins. Not many people out there have confidence in the Redskins. Even the last few years being a die hard fan I never truly had confidence in them per se. This year, regardless of what happens, I have confidence that we will contend and have the ability to beat any team that we play. I believe this because Jason Campbell believes this. One other aspect of a great team is it only goes as far as it's leader takes them. And after last week's performance, it looks like number seventeen is about to take the Redskins for a ride.

-Brad Vipperman

(written on 9/26/07)