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In beating the Eagles in their nest last night, there were a number of plays you could point to as being critical--not the least of which was Laron Landry's game-ending decapitation of Philly wideout Kevin Curtis to seal the deal. But if you were a fan looking for something a little defining or divining, the Skins offensive series to end the first half was probably the stretch of play that gave you that first tingle that maybe the team was onto something.
Getting down the field from their own 27 to the Philadelphia 1-yard-line was a process of tension and guts. A neck-snapping sideline juke here, a brisk QB scramble there, culminating in Antwaan Randle-El's twisting, whole-body effort to advance the ball as far as possible. From there, the Skins sputtered, picked up some dumb penalties, started moving backwards. But thanks to a weird decision from Andy Reid to ice kicker Scott Suisham that gave Joe Gibbs the needed extra minute to sack up and take a shot at the end zone, we got to watch the Savior toss a perfect pass right into Captain Chaos' breadbasket for the touchdown. Washington went into the locker room with the lead and never relinquished it.
If the Redskins came into last night's game needing to elevate their game from the previous week's too-close struggle with the Miami junior varsity, they got the step-up in a number of areas. First and foremost, the Redskins defensive backfield played outstandingly. Every time the Monday Night Football crew highlighted their work, you saw blanket, white-on-rice style coverage. No massive meltdowns, and great tackling. As a result, Donovan McNabb was constantly checking down and frequently caught in the teeth of a pass rush. And, once again, Al Saunders kept the faith in a balanced offensive attack, keeping invested in the running game in spite of some early struggles. He mixed up the gameplan, however, with a bolder mix of pass plays than the week before--deep shots from the outset that tested a Eagles secondary that grew more dilapidated as the game wore on.
The lone bright spot for the Eagles last night was the play of their do-everything running back Bryan Westbrook, and it's a wonder that someone in Philadelphia hasn't yet arranged for Philadelphia coach Andy Reid to be formally introduced to him. The Eagles ran twenty-three plays inside the Redskins 30-yard line last night, and Westbrook's name only got called on eight of those occasions (and he did not get the ball at all inside the red zone on Philly's final drive). During the game there was much talk of the criticism that has historically been heaped on McNabb (and, in fairness, the Eagle QB certainly didn't help his cause, constantly missing receivers high). I maintain that Andy Reid's puzzling in-game decisions have played a bigger role in the Eagles' failings than McNabb has, and last night was a good example of this.
But hey, don't look now, Washington's defense has only given up a single touchdown in two games. Last night, they were impregnable in the red zone and flat-out ruled on third down. And while Wilbon's on the record in finding the offense to be "hardly high-octane," I'm inclined to keep that particular book open--there's still room for potential growth. A lot will depend on how the offensive unit handles another critical loss on the offensive line--starting guard Randy Thomas went down last night with a torn triceps muscle.
This Sunday, Washington hosts whatever-the-hell team the New York Giants' organization decides to send us.
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this will start a ton of trouble, but here goes . . .
is it really necessary to devote this much time and space to the redskins?
1) they no longer play in dc.
2) their name is horrible and racist.
3) i bet you (and i admit that i have no scientific data to back this up) that at least a strong plurality of the people who actually live in dc are not fans of the redskins and root for other teams . . . like the eagles. whenever the eagles play in dc there are many, many more mcnabb jerseys walking around than redskins jerseys.
so, pretty please, no more redskins? at least until they actually play in dc again?
If you don't want to read about the Redskins don't read about the Redskins. There are legions of Redskins fans in D.C., but you probably don't run across them in your circle of friends.
go giants!
No trouble at all, actually. We're going to continue to devote at least a preview and recap to each game.
I'd like to personally commend you on your whole, "They don't actually play in DC" line of argument. That's probably the most ADORABLE thing I've read in a long time.
As far as Philadelphia fans and their proportionate representation at DC franchise home games, I'd suggest you take in a Caps-Flyers match or a Nats-Phillies tilt for a trenchant dose of perspective. Playing within the accorded boundaries of Greater Washington doesn't seem to help those teams very much.
Still: YOU=TOTAL CUTIE PIE! *pinches cheeks* KTHXBAI!
I won't get into the whole team nickname debate but you obviously haven't been to a Redskins game if you think there are more people at the games wearing the opposing team's jersey than Redskins jerseys.
Some interesting statistics about who Redskins fans really are...
-- Fans who are college graduates: Washington, D.C., 20%
-- Fans who are African-American: Washington, D.C, 12.8%
-- Fans who earn over $75,000: Washington, D.C., 30.7%
-- Fans who earn over $100,000: Washington, D.C., 21.4%
JPK, shut up please.
1. Plenty of teams don't play within the city limits, but they are associated with the Metro area. What a stupid comment. Giants, Jets, etc etc.
2. Wasnt this argument dropped years ago? Funny that the only people offended by this are hippie losers that hate football anyway.
3. You have obviously never been to a Redskins game. Sure other teams fans are here, theyre at every game, but its especially easy to get Philly fans here when they are 2 hours away.
Every article on DCist isnt for the masses. There's plenty I don't want to read about, so I skip it. Just get over yourself and your stupid arguments and get back to hating sports, you flower child loser.
JPK - Shut your hole.
I know it's hard to believe, but some people are actually from DC. And somehow, someway-- FEDEX field sells out the largest stadium in the NFL. So how does that work if there are no fans?
And if you're from NYC, are you not supposed to be a fan of the Giants or the Jets b/c they play in Jersey?
I want the Skins back in DC as much as the next guy, but your argument is worthless.
it's interesting how someone could put a tongue-in-cheek comment up on a blog and get so much nastiness thrown their way.
i'm stupid, i'm a hippie. i'm adorable (?). geuss that was supposed to be ironic. not sure what the point with the statistics and and the caps/nats games comment was all about, but whatever.
and they say eagles fans are the nasty brutes . . .
please explain to us how your comment was tongue in cheek. stupid, yes. tongue in cheek? in retrospect, i bet you wish it were.
JPK...I understand where you're coming from. I, sadly, have been in contact with complete schmucks like you before.
Honestly, why would you comment that you don't want a DC blog about everything DC to not comment on the most beloved sports franchise of DC. I never saw you bitch about the Caps, Nats or United posts? You've shown your ignorance - congrats!
And eagles fans are nasty brutes...they would've not only called you an adorably stupid hippie...they also would've come over to your house and cock-slapped your mother after kicking your dog
god i hate those bastards...awful people
to all-
i thought it was clear that my comment was coming from a bitter eagles fan. while i certainly do not care for the redskins, it's a joke. let's move on with our lives.
hugs and kisses-
nasty brute
HAIL TO THE REDSKINS!!!
And they'll be back in D.C. someday, anyway.
REDSKINS FOR LIFE!!!! HAIL TO! FUCK YOU JPK
JPK, you're such a donkey-fucker. Nothing in your original email implied you are sucky fan of a choke team. You're an idiot.
Redskin fans are a bunch of hater-ass 'bamas. THe QB is a tool, Joe Gibbs is just a senile old fart. The Dallas Cowboys have more fans in this area -- get it Washington, Dallas.Cowboys. -- than the 'Skins.
CowBOYS is right. Because the last man associated with that bunch of degenerates and reprobates was Tom Landry. And he's long gone. However, I'm surprised that a Cowboys fan has access to and knows how to use a computer. I guess great progress is being made wiring trailer parks for the internet.
honestly...i now apologize to JPK for calling him an idiot...he's not...at least not compared to the mouth-breathing troglodytes who are the cowboys fans...and speaking of chokes, way to not win a playoff game in 90 years
While the Skins secondary looked good, I'm not sure it wasn't a case of the Eagles not having particularly good receivers. To my eyes, it looked like McNabb has Westbrook to throw to, and then a bunch of guys who ought to be backups. McNabb's getting a lot of heat, and he didn't look good, but he doesn't have much help either.
Either way, Hail to the Redskins.
You're totally right in that regard, Graham. Campbell benefits from having receivers that have the skills to make a QB look good (Santana's recent case of the dropsies notwithstanding), whereas Donovan's stuck with a fleet of guys who are more or less coatracks that can run. Though that Jason Avant guy (guard Avant! Avant Garde!) seemed to be able to get to some balls. Outside of Westbrook, the Philly offense isn't exactly loaded with much fantasy football potential--which is probably why my man A.J. Daulerio drafted Westy in the first round of the Deadspin draft. Also: he's a total homer!