For the Washington Redskins, the 2005 regular season was an unpredictable series of dizzy highs and swampy valleys as the team went from looking like a playoff shoo-in to an NFL also-ran. With only the thinnest post-season hopes remaining, however, the Skins made Tony Kornheiser look like a genius and rattled off December wins even as critical competitors – the Falcons, the Vikings, the Cowboys – hit the skids. It all culminated in yesterday afternoon’s…

After the Washington Redskins and the Arizona Cardinals slogged their way through a first half that made an outright joke of the notion of professional athletics, Washington got even and then got over by a 17-13 score in a game that kept their razor thin playoff hopes alive. The first half was largely given over to a surreal orgy of turnovers, mutually engaged in by both squads. Mark Brunell offered up a trio of…

For a football team climbing toward a playoff berth from the mushy middle of the conference standings, the way that ball bounces can make you or break you. Last week, after the win over Philadelphia, the fortunate bounces emerged as a talking point among the Redskins’ players—all of whom seemed keenly aware how important it was that they got to those loose balls whenever the need presented itself. Against Tampa Bay, however, the Skins…