A New Level Of Discontent Part I: Shanahan vs McNabb

Head Coach Mike Shanahan has been with the Redskins for nearly a year, and he already has two major confrontations with two of the biggest players on the roster. During training camp, it was Albert Haynesworth because he skipped the optional and mandatory offseason workouts. Today, its quarterback Donovan McNabb because of his below average play at quarterback, and he's in the epicenter of the Redskins offensive woes.

With under 2:00 to go in the 4th quarter, and the Redskins trailing 30-25, Coach Shanahan decides to put his backup quarterback Rex Grossman into the game because he was frustrated with McNabb interception on the previous drive and his concerns about McNabb's hamstring injury. On the very first play, Grossman was sacked, fumbled the football, and the Lions recovered it for a touchdown and sealed their second victory of the season.

Like other Redskins fans, I nearly lost my mind when Grossman was on the field in that situation. I did thought that McNabb suffered an injury after he throw the interception. But it turned out to be a coaches decision by Shanahan because he was frustarted with McNabb on the last interception and he went with his gut feeling. The day after the loss, Shanahan gives a different reason.

"When you deal with a two-minute offense and you don't have any timeouts, and you haven't done it in five weeks, and you're calling sometimes two plays [simultaneously] - you've got to hustle to the line of scrimmage, and you're calling plays that you haven't called in the two-minute attack - and you're actually working on cardiovascular endurance at the same time [you're] working on the clock, it's really hard to do that when you haven't practiced it and you haven't really put yourself in any strenuous activities because of your hamstrings. So I thought it would be in our best interest to go in a different direction."

If Shanahan just said that he had an issue with McNabb's inaccuracy in pass attempts and his below average performance at quarterback,  then that's fine. Philadelphia Eagles Head Coach Andy Reid had the same problem with McNabb and the media wouldn't blow this story out of proportion as it is now. The media will then put most of the blame on McNabb. 

But Shanahan reasoning to bench McNabb was so stupid, the media give some sympathy to McNabb. Shanahan actually thought that McNabb wasn't conditionally fit to run a two minute offense?? That has to be the biggest lie I've ever heard from a NFL head coach. McNabb led the team in rushing with 45 yards. If he was healthy enough to play for 58 minutes, why not play him for two more minutes?

Another factor is that McNabb isn't the main problem of the Redskins offense in general. He hasn't had any good protection from the offensive line all season.McNabb is the second most-sacked quarterback in the league and with the poor protection, he's probably a huge hit away from being knocked out the rest of the season. Despite drafting tackle Trent Williams in the 1st round, the Redskins are still struggling in run and pass protection. It is hard to overhaul an offensive line in one offseason, and the Redskins are probably a couple of drafts away from having a solid offensive line.

I understand why Shanahan is frustrated with McNabb poor play this season. The statistics proves his point. But to questioned McNabb's intelligence is ridiculous. McNabb has been in the league for 11 seasons, has been to 5 NFC championship games and one Super Bowl appearances. That alone speaks for itself.  However, McNabb has history of struggling with the two minute offense. Those struggles were evident in his four losses in the NFC title game and in Super Bowl XXXIX.

However, as bad as McNabb was last week, he still give the Redskins the best chance to win.Did Shanahan really thought that a rested and rusty Rex Grossman gives the Redskins a better chance to win in a two minute situation then McNabb?? The players on the roster believe that this is McNabb's team and they believe him every step of the way. The Redskins hasn't had that type of leader in the locker room in a long time. 

So what will happen during the second half of the season?? Shanahan said that McNabb is still the starter despite the benching, but does anyone believes what Shanahan said?? Shanahan has a long history of switching his starting quarterbacks in his NFL coaching career, and some of those moves backfired. So expect the unexpected if McNabb continues his below average performance.  More importantly, expect  McNabb to leave D.C. after this season when his contract expires unless they make a huge playoff run.

Coming up tomorrow, Part II will focus on the culture change in the organization.

Video of the Day: Comedian Danny Rouhier Goes Inside The Mind Of Head Coach Mike Shanahan

We Hit Rock Bottom Again

At around 1p.m. on Halloween, the Redskins are looking to get their revenge from last year's disappointing lost to the Detroit Lions. They were hoping to go to 5-3 into the bye week and set themselves for a possible playoff push late in the season.

At 4:30p.m., the Redskins leave the Motor City on the loss column with a 37-25 lost to the Lions.  But this was just more of the loss to the Lions. There is a major possibility that this loss will derail the Redskins season again because of head coach Mike Shanahan decision to bench his starting quarterback Donovan McNabb with under two minutes to go in the 4th quarter.

Since there was a lot of issues leading up to and after the benching, I will save my analysis on Shanahan's decision to bench McNabb for my next post.

However, I will analyze why the Redskins lost the game in the first place. First, the offensive line was terrible. They were beat up all day long against the Lions front seven. Therefore, McNabb was sack five times and had limited time to find an open receiver. Also, McNabb throw a terrible interception into triple coverage late in the 4th quarter. That interception led to a short touchdown drive by Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford and give the Lions the lead at 30-25. The Lions never trailed from there on.

In addition to the offensive line and quarterback problems, running back Ryan Torain suffered a hamstring injury and he did not return to the game. This led to Kelliand Williams being the only Redskin running back in the roster. The more I see the protection issues at the offensive line, the more I think that they miss running back Clinton Portis.

Portis is an great pass blocker for the team, and he is often the six man blocking McNabb in a passing game. Since Portis injury, McNabb has been sacked more often then he was during his first four games. Also, 3rd down conversions has nearly killed the Redskins chances in ballgames this year. They went 2-14 on 3rd downs. That is inexcusable against a poor Lions defense. 

If the offensive line continues their struggles and the offense does not covert on 3rd downs, the Redskins will lose more games late in the season. The Redskins are among the league- worst in 3rd down conversion rate.

The defense kept the Redskins in the game thanks to two takeaways. Cornerback DeAngelo Hall got his sixth interception of the season early in the 1st quarter. The defense also caused a forced fumble early in the second half. So far, the Redskins are tied for the league lead with 19 takeaways. However, those two takeaways didn't produce any points from the offense.

Special teams played a big role on both teams, but the Redskins had their first kickoff return for the touchdown in four years thanks to rookie Brandon Banks. Banks return a kickoff 96 yards for the touchdown to give the Redskins a 25-20 lead early in the 4th quarter. With the offense struggling to find any production, Banks could be the game-changer that the Redskins desperately need on special teams.

Next Week Game: vs Philadelphia
Time & Network: 11/15/2010 at 8:30P.M. On ESPN
Commentators: Mike Tirico, Ron Jaworski, and Jon Gruden

The Redskins will have two weeks to put their disastrous loss behind them and focus on the second half of the season. Despite all of their problems on offense, the quarterback, offensive line, and the coaching staff, a victory over the Eagles will give them three wins in the division and a sweep over their divisional rival.

Week 8 Preview vs Detroit

The true character of the Washington Redskins will be put into the test this Sunday as they face the Detroit Lions in Ford Field. The Lions are 1-5, last place in the NFC North, and coming off a bye week. The Redskins are 4-3 and sitting in second place in the NFC East. The last time the Redskins played in Detroit Michigan, they were humiliated. The Lions ended their 19 game losing streak and defeated the Redskins 19-14. The loss sealed the fate of former head coach Jim Zorn and Vice President of Football Operations Vinny Cerrato.

Fast Forward to Halloween 2010, the Redskins already match their last season's win total at four, and looking forward to going to their bye week with a 5-3 record.  The team is well-coached and has a defense that is aggressive and finding ways to create turnovers. However, this team has shown that they can play terrible against bad teams. This was the case in a week 3 loss to the S.t. Louis Rams.

So if the Redskins want revenge from last year's embarrassment and become one of the elites in the NFC, they will have to take the Lions seriously and be ready to play football. This team has the ability to play physical football for a 60 minutes and get off to a good start in some games. However, a bad turnover or sloppy play early could be disastrous for the team. 

The offense also needs to be consistent, convert on 3rd downs, and score some touchdowns in the red zone. They shouldn't have any problems since the Lions defense isn't good. This would be a good opportunity for quarterback Donovan McNabb to finally have a bounce back game after several sub-par performances. McNabb also needs to be accurate and limit turnovers. If there is too much pressure after a play-action fake, McNabb should just take a sack, and don't force anything.

The ground game should effective because the Lions have given up four 100-yards or more during the past five games. So I expect running back Ryan Torain should be having another good game and help take pressure off McNabb in the passing game.

The defense needs to continue their aggressive play and limit big plays. They will have a tough matchup in the secondary since they are covering wide receiver Calvin Johnson, who is one of the best receivers in the league. Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford will play in his first game since week 1 when he suffered his shoulder injury. Last year, Stafford put up big numbers against the Redskins by going 21 of 36 for 241 yards, and a touchdown. He also had a 87.8 quarterback rating.

Therefore, expect Jim Haslett to add more pressure on Stafford. Also, the defense does give up a lot of yards, but they are create turnovers and it has kept them in games. If the defense continues to play well, then the Redskins will have opportunities to get the victory.

Prediction: Ironically, the Redskins are 4-1 when they score 17 points, but they are 0-2 when they score 20 or more points. Those two losses came against Houston and Indianapolis. However, the Redskins should score more than 20 points today because the Lions defense have given up a lot of points. But the Lions have been very competitive in all of their games this season.

Therefore, I expect another close game today. However, I think the Redskins offense finally has a breakout game. McNabb will throw for two touchdowns, and Torain will have a rushing touchdown and his thrid straight 100+ yard game. More importantly, they will win their first game when scoring 20 or more points.

Enjoy the game everyone. It should be exciting close contest. Finally, have a happy and safe Halloween!!!

Redskins:28  Lions:24

Is The NFL Really That Stupid??

As you know, the NFL has mandated new laws on helmet-to-helmet hits to limit concussions from players. There were several hefty fines from players last week, and this week was no exception for Redskins defensive linemen Albert Haynesworth.

During DeAngelo Hall's 92 yard interception return for the go-ahead touchdown, Haynesworth delivered a block on offensive linemen J'Marcus Webb of the Chicago Bears. The video of Haynesworth hit can be viewed on NFL.com. The block occurred within 11 yards behind Hall as the cornerback ran down the sideline. Video replay shows that Haynesworth made a clean block on Webb. Coach Mike Shanahan praised Haynesworth for that hit on Webb. However, the league office wasn't happy about Haynesworth block at all.

Last Thursday, the NFL fined Haynesworth $7,500 for unnecessary roughness from his blindside hit on Webb. This is ridiculous. For example, let's just say if was Bears wide receiver Devin Hester running on that play instead of Webb. Would Haynesworth be fined for that hit on Hester? No, because Hester can easily catch up to Hall to make a tackle. So basically, Haynesworth gets fined because Webb was too slow to catch up to Hall during the return.

If NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell doesn't fix the disparity between what is a legal and a illegal hit, then fans could grow more discontent about the product on the field. The NFL is a contact sport. There is always going to be hard blows to the chest and the helmet. It's part of the game. While they trying their best to protect the players, the league needs to protect their brand too. The NFL has marketed and sell film footage's of big hits from linebackers, defensive ends, and safeties for years.  Remember, when you play in the NFL, it's a privilege, not a right. There are severe consequences in this sport, such as severe concussions, rib injuries, and torn ligaments.

I have no problem with the NFL protecting everyone, but you can't cross line on what the league has been know for decades, which is big hits on the field. That's one of the reasons why the NFL is the most-watched sport in America.

What are your thoughts on this? Do you think the NFL was wrong on fining Hanyesworth $7,500 for that hit on J'Marcus Webb?

Bend But Don't Break Defense Strikes Again

The Washington Redskins left Solider Field with a 17-14 victory over the Chicago Bears last Sunday in a game that was ugly from start to finish. Both offenses struggled to maintain possession of the football and there were a combined 9 turnovers in the game. At one point, I honestly thought that this was the worst football I have ever seen. Neither team really wanted to win this game, and both teams did whatever they can to lose. However, the Redskins won the turnover battle and therefore sealed the victory despite poor play from the offense.

The Redskins offense was just horrible all around.  Quarterback Donovan McNabb continued his inconsistent play by going 17 of 32 for 200 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. McNabb was also a victim of his receivers not catching the football early in the game. Despite the Bears pathetic performance on offense and great field position, the Redskins only scored 10 points the entire 1st half. The offense didn't much better either in the second half, but the defense bailed them out in critical situations. The good news is that Ryan Torain ran for his second straight 100+ yard game and he is quickly becoming a future starting running back for the Redskins.

However, the second half of this game was worthy of football comedy. Early in the 3rd quarter, the Bears had the ball at the goal line and in control to take a 10 point lead over the Redskins. Quarterback Jay Cutler decides to do a quarterback draw, and he was stopped short of the goal line by Albert Haynesworth and fumbled the ball. Haynesworth apparently jumped over the Bears's center and caused the fumble.  Haynesworth, who already had a field day against the Bears offensive line, was just creating havoc all day for Culter and the Bears offense. Also, the turnover was the first of many Culter committed  in the 2nd half.

Cutler throw four interceptions to Redskin cornerback DeAngelo Hall, which include a 92 yard return for the touchdown to give the Redskins a 17-14 late in the 3rd quarter. Hall's four interception performance in a single half ties an NFL record and it earn him NFC defensive player of the week honors. This is the second time a Redskin defensive player earned that award this year. Hall is also the third Redskin to have a four-interception game; the others were Sammy Baugh in 1943 and Dan Sandifer in 1948.

Another factor in Hall's amazing performance is Cutler's poor play at quarterback. He proved that he is today's version of Jeff George. Most of his interceptions he thrown were just awful, and his receivers ran the wrong route too. I'm just glad the Redskins never traded for him, otherwise it could be another disaster in the making.

Anyway, two of the Redskins most criticized players propelled their team to a 4-3 record, and a 6-1 record in the NFC. If the Redskins continue to find ways to win ugly in a wide open NFC, they could find themselves in the playoff discussion in December. However, the offense needs to be consistent, limit turnovers, and score more points. This team won't win anymore games if they continue to score 17 points per game. Finally, I am pleased that the defense is being more aggressive, and creating turnovers in key moments. They already matched their takeaway total from last season.

Next Week's Game: @ Detroit
Time & Network: 1.P.M on FOX
Commentators: Sam Rosen and Tim Ryan

This Halloween matchup provides a dangerous problem for the Redskins. The Lions are coming off the bye week, and they have plenty of weapons on offense led by wide receiver Calvin Johnson and rookie running back Jahvid Best. If quarterback Matthew Stafford is healthy this Sunday, then the Redskins could be in big trouble. Any team playing after a bye week in a dangerous team in the NFL, and the Lions are due for a big victory. Despite their 1-5 record, I think the Lions are a better team then the Bears, and they have been in every game so far this season. A preview of this matchup will be coming up this weekend.

Video of the Day: DeAngelo Hall's Four Interception Performance Aganist Chicago