# Prior to last night’s kickoff, NBC broadcasters Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth were talking up Dallas as one of the teams to beat in the NFC. I have to question if they watched the first-team play a single snap in the preseason. We had our concerns about how the new-look Redskins (in scheme and pants) would perform, but weren’t convinced that they would be outmatched. Last night’s game was destined to be ugly, with the defenses expected to dominate and the offenses (well, maybe the Redskins more than the Cowboys) expected to struggle. Thanks to a mistake-free performance on offense and two horrible Cowboy mistakes, the Redskins won 13-7 and own the best record in the NFL (along with 13 others, of course).
For anyone who has watched this team muddle their way around the field the last few years, there were two aspects of last night’s performance that instilled some warm fuzzies. The Skins finally have a quarterback that doesn’t drop to the ground or throw the ball away at the first sign of pressure, and the protection schemes are giving him an opportunity to make a play. Dallas threw blitz after blitz at Donovan McNabb in the early going, but McNabb was either able to get the ball down the field or get out of the pocket, as he notably did on a 17-yard scramble to pick up a first down. Mike Shanahan’s playcalling in the first half was heavy on play-action passes, which require more time to setup; and the line, helped on blitz pickups by Clinton Portis, held Dallas to only one sack and three hits in the game. McNabb finished with an unspectacular 15 completions in 32 attempts for 171 yards — but most importantly, he didn’t turn the ball over.
