Redskins Win Their 2nd Preseason Game That Was Filled With Injuries

Watching Monday's Night's game vs the Pittsburgh Steelers is a perfect example of why I hate preseason NFL games. Just too many players getting injured in a useless game. A notable injury that caught my eye and nearly send Redskins fans into coma was backup quarterback Kirk Cousins. 

During Monday's Night's  24-13 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, Cousins sprained his right foot in the second quarter. Cousins didn't return, and the MRI results were negative. Don't expect to see Cousins to play in the final two preseason games.

Cousins wasn't the only Redskins that got hurt during the game. Here is a list of injuries from both teams.

Pittsburgh Steelers Injuries: RB Levon Bell (Foot), FB Will Johnson (ribs), RB Baron Batch (stinger).

Washington Redskins Injuries: NT Barry Cofield (broken bone in the right hand), WR Leonard Hankerson (bruised right knee), WR Aldrick Robinson (bruised left thigh), RB  Keiland Williams (strained left knee).

So that's three injuries for Pittsburgh, and five for Washington. The good news is that most of these injuries appear to be minor. However, The NFL should do what college football does and get rid of the preseason entirely. No one wants to see their key starters get knocked out for the season in a meaningless game. It can easily change the outlook of the season for some teams.

Meanwhile, back to the actual game. Rex Grossman got a good load of playing time, and he played well in the first half by leading the offense to their first touchdown drive of the game.  Still, Redskins fans don't have to worry about seeing Grossman in the regular season since Cousin's injury appears to be minor.

The defense did a solid job all around. It was nice to see Ryan Kerrigan creating a turnover and scoring the game's first touchdown. With Orakpo back on the field, I expect Kerrigan to have a huge 2013 season.

Next 2 preseason games: Vs Buffalo at 4:30p.m. and @Tampa Bay at 7:30p.m.
TV: CSN and WRC-TV.
Radio: WTEM-AM, ESPN980.

Grossman will start the 3rd preseason game with the first team offense, which should expect to play the entire first half  vs Buffalo tomorrow afternoon. However, the 4th preseason game will feature rookies that want to stand out and make the 53 man roster or the practice squad. 

My expectation for the next two games are very simple. For the starters, avoid injuries. For the rookies, this is your chance to impress the coaching staff and your teammates if you want to make the final roster. 

Coming up next week: I will have a discussion on whether if the Redskins are an elite team in the NFL.

Preseason Week 2 Preview: Steelers vs Redskins

I don't care that much about preseason, so I will be brief on the preview.

Expect to see Jawan Jamison as the kickoff returner tonight, and maybe we will see him at the running back slot as well. If Jamson plays well either of those roles, then the Redskins will have plenty of option to choose at the running back position. Starters should play deeper into the early part of the 2nd quarter. So expect to see Kirk Cousins to be playing with the first team offense. Jordan Reed, Fred Davis, and Trent Williams will get their first preseason action tonight as well.

As for Rex Grossman, Pat White, and the other undrafted rookies, this is their chance to shine under the primetime lights.

Also, I hope no key starters get hurt in tonight's meaningless preseason game. The Redskins weren't so fortunate in Tennessee last week when they lost Phillip Thomas for the season because of a left foot injury. So far, the safety position for the Redskins has been cursed since Sean Taylor's death in 2007.

Lastly, happy 25th birthday to Kirk Cousins.


There you have it. Enjoy the game!!

A Glimmer of Hope Perhaps?

I rarely post tweets on my blog, but this one really caught my eye. Take a good look at Mike Freeman tweet for his Super Bowl 48 prediction.

Keep this is mind that Mike Freeman is a well-respected NFL analyst and he recently left CBS Sports joined Bleacher Report. Freeman has been critical of the Redskins organization and Mike Shanahan for a long time, so his Super Bowl prediction does carry some form of merit.

Also, the last time any NFL expert has picked the Redskins to go to the Super Bowl was in 2000, when the franchise was spending big time money on free agents. Ironically, 2000 was the last time the Redskins were coming off a division title from the year before.

Guess what happened in 2000? They finished 8-8.

In fact, 1991-1992 was the last time the Redskins made the playoffs in back to back seasons.

Now, do I agree with his prediction? Well, I dear hope he's right from a fan perspective, but realistically, I'm not sold on it yet.

The Redskins will have to rely heavily on their young secondary to improve from last year, and hope that RGIII can survive the entire season. Also, key players like Pierre Garcon, Trent Williams, Brian Orakpo, and Fred Davis have to stay healthy. The Redskins were 9-1 last season when Garcon is on the field, and 1-5 when he's not in the lineup.

If this team can accomplish all or most of these goals by end of the season, then they will have a chance come January. Remember, the teams that are the healthiest going into the playoffs have the best chance of winning it all.

On a final note, the Redskins do host the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday Night for Week 2 of the preseason. I will have a mini preview of  Mike Freeman's Super Bowl preview on Monday.

Donovan McNabb Needs to Shut Up

After the media driven endless saga between the relationship of RGIII and Mike Shanahan, another retired NFL player shows up in the news on trying to help out RGIII.

Yes, you guess it, it’s former Eagles and Redskins quarterback Donovan McNabb.

McNabb told NBC Sports Radio that RGIII is getting brainwashed by Mike Shanahan. Here are his quotes below from NFL.com.

"I'm just trying to help him, but clearly the young generation think they have all the answers. And he's going through a little turmoil right now of trying to get out on the field. And it's unfortunate, but that's where we're at right now as far as these young quarterbacks who think they have all the answers.

I honestly think that over there in Washington, he's getting brainwashed”

First off, you are not helping him at all. Let’s remember that this is the same player that had a terrible season for the Redskins and got benched by mid-season in favor of Rex Grossman.  Griffin, who exceeds in a big spotlight, will never listen to McNabb’s advice because of his mediocre track record in the NFL.

Secondly, he’s not getting brainwashed at all. Griffin wants to get on the field as soon as possible. He just needs to listen to Shanahan and do what’s best for the team and for himself. Also, if he was brainwashed by the Shanahan’s, then Griffin will never run the read option, lead the Redskins to a NFC East title, win the NFL rookie of the year award, and set rookie records for passer rating and fewest interceptions in a single season .

You can tell from his quotes that McNabb is sounding more like a grumpy old man than someone that would guide Griffin to having a good attitude. He already has a good attitude and knows how to present himself in the public eye. How are you going to fix something that isn't broken?

So here are my two words of advice to Donovan McNabb; 

Shut Up!!

There is No Drama between Robert Griffin III and Mike Shanahan, But the Media Wants You To Believe It

The DC Sports Media revolves on this format all year round.  Non stop Redskins coverage from late July to January, then it’s offseason and draft news in the winter and spring.  During that time span, you get some coverage of the Wizards, Caps, and  Nationals, and local collegiate sports, especially if schools like Maryland, Georgetown, VCU, or George Mason get into the NCAA Tournament in March.

However, if the Caps and Nationals have a very solid regular season and win their divisions, then the media will focus more on those teams and pray that one of them finally makes a championship run.  However, as the  Caps continue to disappoint in the playoffs, and the Nats having a terrible 2013 season, the media goes back to it’s roots to find anything to draw content, listeners and ratings.

Enter, the Washington Redskins.

It’s no surprising that the local media will heavily go all in on Redskins training camp coverage this year. The camp is in Richmond VA for the very first time. They are coming off their first division title in 13 years, and their star quarterback, Robert Griffin III has an incredible rookie season.

Then after the playoff lost to Seattle, and RGIII injured his right knee, the media has gone all in on Griffin's recovery during the offseason and at training camp.

So it leads to last Monday’s press conference. After completing the morning walk-through and being allowed to practice on 11-on-11 drills for the first time at camp, Griffin said this to the media.

Then it’s Mike Shanahan turn later that day. You can click on this link to get the video of his press conference.

Let's remember that this is the preseason. Griffin can complain publicly about his playing time and practice time and whatever he wants to. He's a very competitive athlete and he wants to be on the field. But if Shanahan plays him in a preseason game and Griffin gets injured, can you imagine the media firestorm that would come down on Shanahan? That alone is why Griffin won't play in the preseason.

Although, he's in a lose-lose situation, Mike Shanahan is handling this correctly. Griffin should stop complaining about his practice time and prepare as much as he can for the Redskins' first regular season game on September 9th against the Philadelphia Eagles. Shanahan should only start Griffin if he's 100% healthy. The Redskins already have a capable backup quarterback in Krik Cousins who can step in and lead the team in week 1 in case of any possible setbacks for Griffin.

Also, this knee injury for Griffin is normally a seven to nine month recovery. Griffin is at the seventh month of recovery, and since he hasn't missed any practice time at camp, his recovery progress seems to be very encouraging, and him and Shanahan are in the same page on that end.

As for this "rift," between them,  it's overblown because the media has nothing to talk about. Seriously, it's mid August. What else the DC sports media is gonna talk about? The Nationals are out of playoff contention and the Caps and Wizards don't start their regular season until October.

Therefore, the local media will try to spin as much controversy on this story as possible, even though there isn't one to begin with.

Anyway, back to Griffin.  He knows the plan, gets the plan and doesn't like the plan. That's understandable. However, I don't think Griffin is a selfish player. I think he's a competitive guy who wants to do everything because he thinks he's 100 percent. But the time to show he's ready to go is not in the preseason. Come September 9th, the Redskins will need Griffin back on the football field.

Washington Redskins Training Camp is moving to Richmond in 2013

For the first time since 2002, the Washington Redskins will hold their training camp outside of  Ashburn VA. According to ESPN 950 in Richmond, the Redskins will move their training camp to Richmond VA for the 2013 season.

"Sources tell ESPN 950 that the Redskins will move their training camp to Richmond starting in 2013. The team is expected to make an official announcement later today."

No new information on the exact location of the Redskins training camp, but Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell is expected to announce the move sometime today. 

This is a good move for the Redskins. They have a lot of fans in Central and Southeastern Virginia. The move will certainly draw more fans from the Richmond and Tidewater areas.

As for this season, training camp will be held at Ashburn for the 10th straight year.

Bringing the Take Back Part I

I'm planning to bring back Skins Take after a two year hiatus. A lot has changed for the Redskins. The team is going through a rebuilding process and they have mortgage their entire draft future on Robert Griffin III.

There will be more about myself and the Redskins in the next post. For now, enjoy seeing RGIII getting drafted by the Redskins and his interview with Jay Leno.