Akh's Thoughts: Wild Card

[akhhorus]

What we learned from the Skins’ loss to the Seahawks in the playoffs:

1-What bothered me most about this loss was how we lost. This team, considering everything we went through, shouldn’t have lost like they did. Showing up for a few minutes in the middle of 2 long brain farts just bothers me. This team should have lost on a 60 yard FG as time expired, or a hail mary pass, or some other wild play. Losing the way we did had no poetry in it.

2-The plan for this game by the Skins was just awful. Offensively, we telegraphed what we were doing by overloading the blocks. We took 2 quarters to adjust to Kearney. The defense stayed soft and playing the edges, even after the Seahawks made it clear that they saw it and were attacking the middle and flanks. We did eventually adjust to what the Hawks were doing, but when they made their 2nd adjustment, we didn’t adjust also. Its frustrating to see this over and over all season.

2a- The calls for the pass blocking were just awful. That was the key to the whole game. We didn’t go Max protect until they started dropping back into coverage. Which makes it worthless.

3-Obviously, the star of the game was LaRon Landry. He finally broke his turnover cherry, and had two of them in his first playoff game. They need to stop playing him so deep and let him roam, but this was a bright portend for his future. No stupid penalties either.

4-I would love it if Reed Doughty would become our starter at SS, but he’s such a liability in the blitz and pass coverage facets, that I just don’t see him having much of a future as a full time player for the skins. He is fairly good at run support, but true Cover-1 SS needs to do much more-and a Cover-2 SS needs to be much better in pass coverage.

5-The Oline, as I said before, was simply awful. Even the stalwarts Samuels, Kendall and Rabach looked shaky at times, and had some bad plays. They couldn’t protect Collins, they couldn’t open lanes for Portis, and the whole house of cards came tumbling down because of it offensively. I don’t know what the solution is for this. We’re getting Jansen/Thomas back for next year, but we need a better OG backup than Jason Fabini. Speaking of him….

5a-Ahem…Mr. Fabini..its bad enough that you were about as effective as a fricking mime against Seattle, but tackling Portis on one play just made your performance legendary.

5b-Heyer had a rough game. He struggled badly with Kerney-even with help from the TEs-but slowly caught up to the pace of his opponent.

6-While Portis didn’t have a good game, he was the reason we got this far. He had a very good season overall, but Seattle did what the good teams did against us all year and focused completely on stopping #26 all day.

7-Santana Moss and Shawn Springs, in the words of Tony Montana: “So long Mel. Have a good trip”. Moss is definitely still our best WR on this team, but his play overall has seriously regressed since 2005. Its not just the injuries, its not just not having another top WR with him, he’s not the same player. He has the speed/quickness, but even before the Taylor tragedy, he just didn’t look like he was in the game mentally. Springs, had some nice games towards the end, but for the money he’s due in 2008, and his total collapse when we needed him most, I don’t see how or why he stays—even with Rogers out until Bob knows when.

8-The old Todd Collins finally showed up. He had a nice run, but the Seattle defense watched the old 8mm film of him playing in the late 90s. He can’t handle pressure, and has a shaky deep ball. I hope he stays as a backup to Campbell, but realistically he’s probably going to take some minor payday from a team like Chicago or Balto.

9-I don’t know if this was Gibbs’ last game as coach. But what I can predict with full confidence is that if he does walk away, its going to be his decision, and not Snyder’s. Gibbs did a legendary job bringing this team together after the death of Taylor, but he did a terrible job up until then.

10-Honestly, I don’t know what the future holds for this team. This was a moderately disappointing season, filled with a ton of issues on and off the field to deal with. This team has a lot of the pieces you need, but they clearly need talent in some critical places. Whether they see these same issues and do anything about them will be the question of the offseason.

Player grades
Offense:
X WR Santana Moss 6. Some nice catches, but the INT play and other bad plays cost him badly.
Z WR Antwaan Randle El. 8.7. 10 catches, only 94 yards—he was the only consistent threat all day.
LT Chris Samuels 7.8. Generally solid, but had some false starts and bad blocks.
LG Pete Kendall 6.8. Meh. Unmemorable all day.
OC Casey Rabach 5.5. Called a terrible game all day.
RG Jason Fabini 1.0(and a kick to the nuts with a golf shoe). Worst. Blocking. Evah.
RT Stephon Heyer 6.75. Struggled badly to begin, he did recover nicely when they started to funnel Kerney inside more.
TE Chris Cooley 7.25. Solid as a receiver, but struggled in blocking.
QB Todd Collins 5.25. Had a nice run there in the 4th, but made some simply horrendous throws all day.
FB Mike Sellers 4.5. Dreadful all game long
RB Clinton Portis 6. Never got into a rhythm, and they went away from him far too quickly.
K Scott Suisham 6. Bad, BAD miss.
KR Rock Cartwright 7.25. Solid returns all day.

Defense:
DE Andre Carter 4. Andre Carter played?
DT Anthony Montgomery 6.5. He should have dominated Sims and Grey.
DT Cornie Griffin 7. Solid pressure up the middle all day.
DE Philip Daniels 4. Should have started the Cardboard cutout of Daniels
Kudos to Chris Wilson btw.
SLB Marcus Washington 5.7. Meh. He had a couple nice pressures, but otherwise meh.
MLB London Fletcher 6.2. They schemed away from him all day, and he wasn’t a factor.
WLB Randall Godfrey 6.25. Not a bad game, he had a couple nice blitzes and didn’t struggle otherwise.
Cb Shawn Springs 2. He’s Dj Hackett’s ***CENSORED BY SPENCE***. And they went at him all day long.
FS LaRon Landry 9.7(and have an asian hooker free on the staff of Akh’s Thoughts lol). Great game for his first performance in the playoffs.
SS Reed Doughty 6. Meh. He’s a solid run stopper, but not much else.
P Derrick Frost 6.75. One great punt, meh for the rest.
PR Antwaan Randle El INC. No returns.

Coaching:
Offense: D+
Defense: D+
Overall: D


Thoughts about the rest of the games:
Jags/Pittsburgh: When Big Ben is bad, he’s about the worst Qb in the NFL(especially since it looks like he thinks he’s the best in the NFL). The Jags would be a threat to the Pats, but the Stroud(and maybe no Henderson) and they don’t have a chance.

Giants/Bucs: Cowboys…Giants…who to root for….ARRRGHH

Titans/Chargers: A game about as exciting as Women’s Senior Golf.


Next week: Redskins Season Review aka “The Proscriptions”.

[nicefellow31]

What we learned from the Skins’ loss to the Seahawks in the playoffs:

1-What bothered me most about this loss was how we lost. This team, considering everything we went through, shouldn’t have lost like they did. Showing up for a few minutes in the middle of 2 long brain farts just bothers me. This team should have lost on a 60 yard FG as time expired, or a hail mary pass, or some other wild play. Losing the way we did had no poetry in it.

2-The plan for this game by the Skins was just awful. Offensively, we telegraphed what we were doing by overloading the blocks. We took 2 quarters to adjust to Kearney. The defense stayed soft and playing the edges, even after the Seahawks made it clear that they saw it and were attacking the middle and flanks. We did eventually adjust to what the Hawks were doing, but when they made their 2nd adjustment, we didn’t adjust also. Its frustrating to see this over and over all season.

2a- The calls for the pass blocking were just awful. That was the key to the whole game. We didn’t go Max protect until they started dropping back into coverage. Which makes it worthless.

3-Obviously, the star of the game was LaRon Landry. He finally broke his turnover cherry, and had two of them in his first playoff game. They need to stop playing him so deep and let him roam, but this was a bright portend for his future. No stupid penalties either.

4-I would love it if Reed Doughty would become our starter at SS, but he’s such a liability in the blitz and pass coverage facets, that I just don’t see him having much of a future as a full time player for the skins. He is fairly good at run support, but true Cover-1 SS needs to do much more-and a Cover-2 SS needs to be much better in pass coverage.

5-The Oline, as I said before, was simply awful. Even the stalwarts Samuels, Kendall and Rabach looked shaky at times, and had some bad plays. They couldn’t protect Collins, they couldn’t open lanes for Portis, and the whole house of cards came tumbling down because of it offensively. I don’t know what the solution is for this. We’re getting Jansen/Thomas back for next year, but we need a better OG backup than Jason Fabini. Speaking of him….

5a-Ahem…Mr. Fabini..its bad enough that you were about as effective as a fricking mime against Seattle, but tackling Portis on one play just made your performance legendary.

5b-Heyer had a rough game. He struggled badly with Kerney-even with help from the TEs-but slowly caught up to the pace of his opponent.

6-While Portis didn’t have a good game, he was the reason we got this far. He had a very good season overall, but Seattle did what the good teams did against us all year and focused completely on stopping #26 all day.

7-Santana Moss and Shawn Springs, in the words of Tony Montana: “So long Mel. Have a good trip”. Moss is definitely still our best WR on this team, but his play overall has seriously regressed since 2005. Its not just the injuries, its not just not having another top WR with him, he’s not the same player. He has the speed/quickness, but even before the Taylor tragedy, he just didn’t look like he was in the game mentally. Springs, had some nice games towards the end, but for the money he’s due in 2008, and his total collapse when we needed him most, I don’t see how or why he stays—even with Rogers out until Bob knows when.

8-The old Todd Collins finally showed up. He had a nice run, but the Seattle defense watched the old 8mm film of him playing in the late 90s. He can’t handle pressure, and has a shaky deep ball. I hope he stays as a backup to Campbell, but realistically he’s probably going to take some minor payday from a team like Chicago or Balto.

9-I don’t know if this was Gibbs’ last game as coach. But what I can predict with full confidence is that if he does walk away, its going to be his decision, and not Snyder’s. Gibbs did a legendary job bringing this team together after the death of Taylor, but he did a terrible job up until then.

10-Honestly, I don’t know what the future holds for this team. This was a moderately disappointing season, filled with a ton of issues on and off the field to deal with. This team has a lot of the pieces you need, but they clearly need talent in some critical places. Whether they see these same issues and do anything about them will be the question of the offseason.

Player grades
Offense:
X WR Santana Moss 6. Some nice catches, but the INT play and other bad plays cost him badly.
Z WR Antwaan Randle El. 8.7. 10 catches, only 94 yards—he was the only consistent threat all day.
LT Chris Samuels 7.8. Generally solid, but had some false starts and bad blocks.
LG Pete Kendall 6.8. Meh. Unmemorable all day.
OC Casey Rabach 5.5. Called a terrible game all day.
RG Jason Fabini 1.0(and a kick to the nuts with a golf shoe). Worst. Blocking. Evah.
RT Stephon Heyer 6.75. Struggled badly to begin, he did recover nicely when they started to funnel Kerney inside more.
TE Chris Cooley 7.25. Solid as a receiver, but struggled in blocking.
QB Todd Collins 5.25. Had a nice run there in the 4th, but made some simply horrendous throws all day.
FB Mike Sellers 4.5. Dreadful all game long
RB Clinton Portis 6. Never got into a rhythm, and they went away from him far too quickly.
K Scott Suisham 6. Bad, BAD miss.
KR Rock Cartwright 7.25. Solid returns all day.

Defense:
DE Andre Carter 4. Andre Carter played?
DT Anthony Montgomery 6.5. He should have dominated Sims and Grey.
DT Cornie Griffin 7. Solid pressure up the middle all day.
DE Philip Daniels 4. Should have started the Cardboard cutout of Daniels
Kudos to Chris Wilson btw.
SLB Marcus Washington 5.7. Meh. He had a couple nice pressures, but otherwise meh.
MLB London Fletcher 6.2. They schemed away from him all day, and he wasn’t a factor.
WLB Randall Godfrey 6.25. Not a bad game, he had a couple nice blitzes and didn’t struggle otherwise.
Cb Shawn Springs 2. He’s Dj Hackett’s ***CENSORED BY SPENCE***. And they went at him all day long.
FS LaRon Landry 9.7(and have an asian hooker free on the staff of Akh’s Thoughts lol). Great game for his first performance in the playoffs.
SS Reed Doughty 6. Meh. He’s a solid run stopper, but not much else.
P Derrick Frost 6.75. One great punt, meh for the rest.
PR Antwaan Randle El INC. No returns.

Coaching:
Offense: D+
Defense: D+
Overall: D


Thoughts about the rest of the games:
Jags/Pittsburgh: When Big Ben is bad, he’s about the worst Qb in the NFL(especially since it looks like he thinks he’s the best in the NFL). The Jags would be a threat to the Pats, but the Stroud(and maybe no Henderson) and they don’t have a chance.

Giants/Bucs: Cowboys…Giants…who to root for….ARRRGHH

Titans/Chargers: A game about as exciting as Women’s Senior Golf.


Next week: Redskins Season Review aka “The Proscriptions”.

Good points. I've enjoyed reading your thoughts all year. Keep up the good work. BTW, I couldn't agree with you more about the Titans/Chargers game. That game was meh!

[TrueOracle]

RG Jason Fabini 1.0(and a kick to the nuts with a golf shoe). Worst. Blocking. Evah.


Classic. Fabini looked about as slow as Neo in The Matrix... only there was no matrix.

[nicefellow31]

Classic. Fabini looked about as slow as Neo in The Matrix... only there was no matrix.

Fabini was like a computer virus that was put on the team by the Cowboys. I heard Vinnie Cerrato say on "Redskin Radio" that Bill Parcells told Fabini to sign with the Skins because Joe Bugel was the line coach. He secretly knew the Fabini was a joke and wanted to get one last shot at Coach Gibbs. :lol1:

[TrueOracle]

Giants/Bucs: Cowboys…Giants…who to root for….ARRRGHH


5 cyanide tablets in my left hand. A short stock, sawed off Mossberg 12 gauge in my right aimed at my dome. I'll take my chances with self mutilation/death before I ever hope for a DallASS win.

[akhhorus]

5 cyanide tablets in my left hand. A short stock, sawed off Mossberg 12 gauge in my right aimed at my dome. I'll take my chances with self mutilation/death before I ever hope for a DallASS win.

I hate Mossbergs. Too unreliable. Give me a H&K left handed shotgun anyday.

[silverspring]

I agree with most of your review but again i differ with you concerning the defense. A D+ for GW seems very low. I actually thought GW called a good game. I was impressed with all the different looks they gave hasselback and all the movement they showed changing from blitz to coverage. It certainly confused hasselback a couple times. With taylor gone, rogers hurt and springs not having a great game you would think that seattle spread offense would have done even more damage. Sure hasselback connected with his receivers but the defense still held strong for the most part. They were forced to work with a very short field all game and forced a lot of 3 and outs. I don't think there was one 10 play drive on them much less a drive that was longer than 50 yards. It is tough being on the field so much and on a short field at that.

If i recall last time we played seattle in the playoffs it seemed like we were playing a on a short field from the defensive side and a long one from the offensive side all game too. Special teams certainly didn't help the cause except for the mix play.

[Biggie]

Great job as always man. The entire offensive line looked about as effective as an umbrella in a hurricane.

[riskus]

Didnt cooley drop two passes in the game? Thats not really solid. Especially when one of them give us first and goal inside the 5.

[akhhorus]

I agree with most of your review but again i differ with you concerning the defense. A D+ for GW seems very low. I actually thought GW called a good game. I was impressed with all the different looks they gave hasselback and all the movement they showed changing from blitz to coverage. It certainly confused hasselback a couple times. With taylor gone, rogers hurt and springs not having a great game you would think that seattle spread offense would have done even more damage. Sure hasselback connected with his receivers but the defense still held strong for the most part. They were forced to work with a very short field all game and forced a lot of 3 and outs. I don't think there was one 10 play drive on them much less a drive that was longer than 50 yards. It is tough being on the field so much and on a short field at that.

Williams did made a good adjustment in the 2nd half which slowed them down, he played man press and more cover-1. Landry got both his INTs off of that. But why did it take him 2.5 quarters to do that, and why didn't he get back to mixing things up--especially against a Vet Coach/QB combo on offense who would absolutely adjust again? This isn't the same Williams from 2005(and 2004). This is the scared of vet Qbs Williams. And thats not useful for the future of this team. I thought he was rather dreadful-again-against Seattle.

[CNYSkinFan]

Bye bye fabini...nice to know you. Say hello to Cory Raymer and get your game check from Seattle

[akhhorus]

Didnt cooley drop two passes in the game? Thats not really solid. Especially when one of them give us first and goal inside the 5.

Compared to Moss/ARE, he looked the best of them with the drops. Collins wasn't helping things with his overthrows though.

[riskus]

I think you are letting cooley off a little easy but i dont remember the ARE drops.

[NCskinsfanatic]

Good insight and a pretty accurate assessment akh, not much there to disagree with. We coulda, shoulda played better but we let Seattle dictate what we could and couldnt do. The OL was indeed dreadful, the front four...non-existent. I agree Springs is done here, Moss I'm not so sure.

[jaylen]

I think overall you're way too hard on the season in general. It was a very good season considering all that occured they stood up as men and were accountable they gave a way a ton of games which comes when have the sort of game changing injuries we had it was like we were hitting the reset button with a new starter too often this year.

We're close to being really good, Springs should be a goner but not Moss he's lost something mentally but if we can get a number 1 guy here and slide him to our number 2 guy we'd be okay with ARE in the slot.

I agree we need a monster rushing the passer.

I think we're close to being really good 1st 2nd seed good.

[akhhorus]

I think overall you're way too hard on the season in general. It was a very good season considering all that occured they stood up as men and were accountable they gave a way a ton of games which comes when have the sort of game changing injuries we had it was like we were hitting the reset button with a new starter too often this year.

I'm sorry, but even with the peak of injuries, this team was able to rattle off 4 straight wins. They had it in them, but Gibbs doesn't give "the speech" until we're on the floor. I'm sick of losing in October, then scrambling for the last playoff spot. This wasn't a very good season. It was barely a good one.

We're close to being really good, Springs should be a goner but not Moss he's lost something mentally but if we can get a number 1 guy here and slide him to our number 2 guy we'd be okay with ARE in the slot.

I agree we need a monster rushing the passer.

I think we're close to being really good 1st 2nd seed good.

Unless we make some obvious upgrades, we don't have a chance at a top 2 seed, especially if we have our usual october/november swoon. And I don't know if they will make the obvious upgrades-they haven't shown that they're willing to do that.

[skinsfan45]

overall accurate assessment, maybe a little generous on some (r u playing nice because its the last game of the season?)

the main thought i agree with and am the most upset about was the game plan we showed up with - did they realize they were playing speed defense Hawks? it sure didn't look like it and the almost refusal to deviate from an offense thats NOT working is beyond my scope of understanding

we had calls for pass blocking? r u sure?

Mr Dirty Thirty - can that intensity be bottled?

Reed - nice guy, i think he can be an asset, give him a little more time (and since we're talking about him - anyone who prays, please remember his son)

the o-line - i'd have to go to sailor college to accurately describe that and then i'd be banned

ditto, Fabini

Heyer - i like him, yes he struggled yesterday but i like him

CP - he is such a weapon and i agree he was not used enough

Santana and Shawn - i'm leaning in the same direction as u r - which i hate because they both seem to have such a great work ethic and a desire to give 100% to this team

Todd - man did not stand a chance

Gibbs - hearing him talk about making changes makes me think he is finally open to the possibility that what worked his first go just may not be the ticket now - i hope so

as for the grades -i'm with u for the most part
i think i would switch the scores for Cooley and Heyer

Chris Wilson has some serious potential, IMO

ARE - why was he on PR? a waste but on offense, a bright spot

LL - don't know why Asian, but whatever he wants

Frost - he make some nice tackles so props for that

Mike - it wasn't him, he was held hostage by the hawks and replaced with an angry Kili Letofu, who was signed on with the hawks just for this game:Peace:

i didn't see a mention for Torrence but i thought he did a good job

and for the honorary Redskin, Mr Pete Taylor - we could all benefit from spending time with him -

[shally]

good stuff..

we lost this one in the trenches.. when you consistently cant make 1 yard on third or 4th down, you can forget about winning

i dont understand how we can physically whip both the giants and vikings d lines (okay, maybe dallas didnt exactly care as much.. but the giants and vikes sure did) and then get pushed around for 4 quarters by the seahawks.. it wasnt just kerney. the entire d line got penetration and pushed our o line back into collins face continuously

i have long thought that our d line was overrated.. still do.. when the most exciting presence on your d line is wilson, is says volumes..

we need all 3 first day picks in the draft to be used for the o and d lines.. 2 for 1 and 1 for the other. yes, we need skilled players, but if we dont get those lines humming again this is going to happen over and over. schemes cant cover up for that kind of deficiency man on man

[Biggie]

I think we're close to being really good 1st 2nd seed good.
I disagree. We have one young player that is quality depth on the offensive line (Heyer), and besides that we're completely at the mercy of injuries. We have badly aging players on both lines and serious issues in the secondary.

[akhhorus]

overall accurate assessment, maybe a little generous on some (r u playing nice because its the last game of the season?)

Wait till next week.

the main thought i agree with and am the most upset about was the game plan we showed up with - did they realize they were playing speed defense Hawks? it sure didn't look like it and the almost refusal to deviate from an offense thats NOT working is beyond my scope of understanding

Yeah, that was just awful. Speaks to everything I've been saying about the coaching issues.

[oldskinfan]

I actually feel better about the team after this loss than the one in 2005. The D carried them into the playoffs and really won that Tampa Game, but the offense w/ Brunell was DREADFULL.

I think JC will learn a lot from seeing how TC ran the offense and through the timing passes. I think he will improve a lot.

My wishes for 2008

- Another pass rushing DE
- A big tall receiver for crossing routes since JC tends to throw them high
- More O-line depth through the draft

[Jon Creveling]

AKH ,man please explain under what criteria did Phil Daniels earn a 4? I swear the only play I can remember of note was the Hawks 2nd play of the game when he pressured the q.b. into throwing it away rather than running it! Did I miss something? ps LMAO at the Cardboard poster suggestion!:) You know Phil in preseason when you invited all the fans to keep an eye on the D-line , some of us actually did.

[akhhorus]

AKH ,man please explain under what criteria did Phil Daniels earn a 4? I swear the only play I can remember of note was the Hawks 2nd play of the game when he pressured the q.b. into throwing it away rather than running it! Did I miss something?

He didn't throw any blocks for the Seahawks Rb, same as Carter lol.

ps LMAO at the Cardboard poster suggestion!:) You know Phil in preseason when you invited all the fans to keep an eye on the D-line , some of us actually did.

The man wanted us to see how offensive blocking is done I guess lol.

[skinsfan36]

man fabini does suck and should be nowhere near redskins park after he cleans his locker out

[SkinsfaninNJ]

Good write up as usual.

I can't believe the Skins lose, the Giants win, and Manning doesn't make a mistake.

I feel like I've kicked in the groin this weekend.

[Epochalypse]

I give the Redskins credit for coming out of this season with a winning record after everything they went through. The defense was actually solid until they got tired at the end after so many offensive failures. And those failures were due in large part to injuries. As much as I hear how about how you shouldn't count injuries since everyone deals with them, we had too many to ultimately overcome. We made the playoffs with a backup quarterback who hadn't started a game in ten years behind an O-line featuring an undrafted rookie at tackle and Fabini (may God have mercy on his soul) next to him. And that O-line went against the second best pass rushing team in terms of sacks in the loudest stadium in the NFL. Oh and the Seahawks have been a playoff team the past five years so they have a bit of experience. Yes there are issues that need addressing but how about giving them some credit for getting to the point they got when they could have thrown in the towel months ago.

[Hr fan]

Great stuff Akh, but a few questions.

1. It seemed to me TC got by 4 games because there was no film on the plays being called, JC not being allowed to use them. The 4th game didn't count - the Girls were flat and just plain not showing anything against the chance they might play us in Rnd 2. Looks like we have a QB that knows the playbook but hasn't the physical ability to execute it (his long passes were in the air for an awful long time, even when they were complete) and a QB that is physically capable but who doesn't know the playbook and its complex reads. (BTW I will believe JC is franchise after he develops solid 4th qtr results.)

2. Yes the Oline was dreadful, but seemed only to act normally when someone is assigned to hit Rabach. He doesn't hold up well in this circumstance IMO and the scheme seems to break down. Agree on Fabini, but am grateful that a player as seriously eroded as he is showed up for 17 games.

3. That Carter didn't show is balanced against Walter Jones, arguably the best OLT now that Pace is compromised by injury. Daniels is 2 yrs beyond utility. Also, it seemed to me that the Hawks were doubling Montgomery rather than Griffin. Speaks volumes if true. Like our speed rusher Wilson, but on 3rd and 3 or less I would run right at his 240# frame and dare MW to reach into the past for a stop.

4. At WR I agree that Moss may be woth more for what he would bring than for his gametime performance. He is no Gary Clark, who ran out every pattern. He is a player that ignores the pleas of his 1st year strarting QB to spend offseason time getting familiar with each other. ARE goes over the middle, and has speed. He is not the homerun threat Moss is but brings it every O play (I totally agree that he shouldn't return punts, he obviously doesn't like it.) I don't know what the coaches have against Caldwell, but if they aren't going to use him give him a chance elsewhere. We can hope Mix becomes a factor. In NY he was Plaxico injury insurance. Here his college time with JC may be the missing WR chemistry we need so badly, assuming both become familiar with the playbook.

5. The back 7 on D have obvious flaws, but any back 7 will show their flaws if the opposing QB can use a rocking chair. The pundits have said improving the pass rush is paramount to improvement, which our coaches apparently don't believe. GW calls a limit-the-disaster game because he has no confidence in our cover given the amount of time the QB/WRs are expected to have. When the team goes from 31st to 8th in D there is some merit to that thinking, but it removes agression without which a D can not become elite.

6. Portis has been amazing to me. With a subpar O line, Ds keying on him, and no consistent passing threat his results are truly exceptional. On the other hand, Sellers seems to be slipping, particularly in poise during the last few games.

IMO we are going to be fooled into thinking we are close to being good by the second playoff appearance in the last 3 yrs. What is the real team - the one that made so many games close regardless of the opponent and losing many leads, the team that cleaned Detroit's clock, or the team that was manhandled by NE. I think our results exceeded our capabilities, and the factors leading to diminishing capacity such as age/injuries aren't going to improve. This is not despair - if the fo gets vet help at CB/S, we develop or acquire LB help, and maybe get a WR then draft a pass rusher first and foremost while drafting virtually only O and D linemen we can improve given the coaching staff we have. If we rely on players with eroding skills who know what to do but are incapable of doing it I am prepared to be pessimistic.

[jaylen]

I'm sorry, but even with the peak of injuries, this team was able to rattle off 4 straight wins. They had it in them, but Gibbs doesn't give "the speech" until we're on the floor. I'm sick of losing in October, then scrambling for the last playoff spot. This wasn't a very good season. It was barely a good one.



Unless we make some obvious upgrades, we don't have a chance at a top 2 seed, especially if we have our usual october/november swoon. And I don't know if they will make the obvious upgrades-they haven't shown that they're willing to do that.

Well they upgraded a pitiful defense from almost dead last to top 10.

I think they'll make the necessary changes they have been willing in the past.

Problem is some of the players they get don't perform well and thats the gamble I'd guess.

The early season woes are very odd and has alot to do with our preparation coming out of camp I'm assuming. We tried the off season differently allowed the players to do their own things and we still started slowly.

I think alot of the slow start has to do with not being able to force our will on teams in the warmer weather. Our power running doesn't,work until it gets colder it seems.

As Portis said the team forged a special bond and I believe him, I think it carries over into next season.

I think we make a special run next season.

[shally]

Well they upgraded a pitiful defense from almost dead last to top 10.

I think they'll make the necessary changes they have been willing in the past.

Problem is some of the players they get don't perform well and thats the gamble I'd guess.

The early season woes are very odd and has alot to do with our preparation coming out of camp I'm assuming. We tried the off season differently allowed the players to do their own things and we still started slowly.

I think alot of the slow start has to do with not being able to force our will on teams in the warmer weather. Our power running doesn't,work until it gets colder it seems.

As Portis said the team forged a special bond and I believe him, I think it carries over into next season.

I think we make a special run next season.

unless they SERIOUSLY upgrade both the d line and the o line, we arent going anywhere significant next year either

our o line is OLD.. even projecting that both heyer and lo alexander become fixtures next year, it is pie inthe sky to expect that we get injury free seasons from jansen, kendall and thomas.. without those 3 guys playing at top form the o line is weak again and we all saw what effect it had on both
TC and JC

as for the DL, i can only say that i hope the front office was watching what the quick, aggressive and strong seattle DL did to all of our blocking schemes.
fixing the DL is the single most important thing they can do this off season..if i start hearing the same garbage as last season (the d line is fine..) around free agency and the draft time, we can forget about going deep in next season's playoffs.. it is that simple

[akhhorus]

Well they upgraded a pitiful defense from almost dead last to top 10.

Do you honestly think that the defense is among the top ten in the NFL? This is the same defense that for 12 weeks couldn't stop an elderly woman with the flu, then had 4 very good weeks.

I think they'll make the necessary changes they have been willing in the past.

Based on what? They rarely do that in the offseason.

The early season woes are very odd and has alot to do with our preparation coming out of camp I'm assuming. We tried the off season differently allowed the players to do their own things and we still started slowly.

We have early/mid season woes every year under Gibbs. Its bloody pattern behavior.

I think alot of the slow start has to do with not being able to force our will on teams in the warmer weather. Our power running doesn't,work until it gets colder it seems.

As Portis said the team forged a special bond and I believe him, I think it carries over into next season.

I think we make a special run next season.

Based on what? That we'll stop our usual mid season collapse a couple weeks earlier?

[shally]

Do you honestly think that the defense is among the top ten in the NFL? This is the same defense that for 12 weeks couldn't stop an elderly woman with the flu, then had 4 very good weeks.



Based on what? They rarely do that in the offseason.



We have early/mid season woes every year under Gibbs. Its bloody pattern behavior.



Based on what? That we'll stop our usual mid season collapse a couple weeks earlier?

that bothers me a lot.. why cant gibbs get a team to realize that games won or lost in november and october count as much as games in december ?

in fact, maybe even a little more since resting starters in december is valuable.. something we never get to do.

[jaylen]

Do you honestly think that the defense is among the top ten in the NFL? This is the same defense that for 12 weeks couldn't stop an elderly woman with the flu, then had 4 very good weeks.



Based on what? They rarely do that in the offseason.



We have early/mid season woes every year under Gibbs. Its bloody pattern behavior.



Based on what? That we'll stop our usual mid season collapse a couple weeks earlier?

Again we went from damn near dead last to top 10. No matter what you think the stats are obvious and so was the effect on the games.

If you can't see that Landry, Fletcher, Smoot helped improve our defense than I don't know what to tell you.

We were much better on defense. Our scheme's were iffy but our personnel was better.

Throw Chris Wilson in there as well.

So if they were willing to add an obvious upgrade at lb, safety,and corner why wouldn't they make more upgrades this off season.

They don't hit on every attemtped upgrade they thought Lloyd could play a couple years ago but they are willing to try.

So saying they aren't willing isn't accurate.

Most teams go through stuff during the course of a season, look how Dallas finished the season stumbling. So ours happens mid season

Its the NFL, I agree Gibbs does seem to have this pattern, but he's also had a pattern of playing the best when it counts most and that matters as well.

If we solve our early season woes a few weeks earlier we'd had hosted the game against the Seahawks and might be still playing.

Every season that doesn't end in a SB isn't a dusappointing season.

With what went on they could have folded the tent and caved but they didn't they fought hard and made the postseason it was a great story and a good season considering we lost our best plauyer.

[AGibbsGirl]

I hated that we did not score until the 2nd half but I was pleased that we held them to 13 so far into the game, the D lived up to their end for 3 1/4 Qtrs...too bad that does not make for a sucessful gamplan...

Gus, help me to understand why our offensive play calling is so bad? What grade would you give Saunders for the year? I am not a fan, I think everyone knows that, and I refuse (homer girl) to dump the entire blame of shotty play calling on Gibbs (Not that you did, I'm just saying...)

PS: Between the death of ST, Gibbs grandson's cancer, Buges daughter's cancer and all of the injuries...I am ready to put '07 behind us and not be too mad about it!

[akhhorus]

Again we went from damn near dead last to top 10. No matter what you think the stats are obvious and so was the effect on the games.

When Williams finally got hit in the head with a snow shovel and stopped playing the Cover-2, the defense suddenly looked better. But what did we see in the playoffs? Cover-2. A chimp with a heroin habit could figure out that the Cover-2 doesn't work for us, but Williams doesn't.

If you can't see that Landry, Fletcher, Smoot helped improve our defense than I don't know what to tell you.

I didn't say they didn't. I'm saying the defense is still undermined by the coordinator.

We were much better on defense. Our scheme's were iffy but our personnel was better.

And the difference in performance from the C2 to the C1 was so dramatic that is begs the question why Williams still played the Cover2 in Seattle.

Throw Chris Wilson in there as well.

I've been pimping Wilson since the preseason. He's not good enough to play full time.

So if they were willing to add an obvious upgrade at lb, safety,and corner why wouldn't they make more upgrades this off season.

Because they missed the glaringly obvious hole at DE.

They don't hit on every attemtped upgrade they thought Lloyd could play a couple years ago but they are willing to try.

Considering that we got ARE, there's upgrading, and then there's overkill.

So saying they aren't willing isn't accurate.

Except that for how long have we ignored the obvious hole at LDE?

Most teams go through stuff during the course of a season, look how Dallas finished the season stumbling. So ours happens mid season

And yet Dallas had a better season.

Its the NFL, I agree Gibbs does seem to have this pattern, but he's also had a pattern of playing the best when it counts most and that matters as well.

And unless he comes into december with a winning record, it doesn't matter. Just to make the playoffs in his return, he's had to rip off amazing win streak just to be the last playoff team. Thats not good.

If we solve our early season woes a few weeks earlier we'd had hosted the game against the Seahawks and might be still playing.

If my aunt had testicles, she'd be my uncle. Gibbs can't seem to get them to play hard until they're up against the wall.

Every season that doesn't end in a SB isn't a dusappointing season.

I didn't say that since they didn't make the super bowl, its a disappointment.

With what went on they could have folded the tent and caved but they didn't they fought hard and made the postseason it was a great story and a good season considering we lost our best plauyer.

It was a great story, but we shouldn't have to win 4 in a row just to make the final playoff spot. Thats not a good season.

[akhhorus]

I hated that we did not score until the 2nd half but I was pleased that we held them to 13 so far into the game, the D lived up to their end for 3 1/4 Qtrs...too bad that does not make for a sucessful gamplan...

Gus, help me to understand why our offensive play calling is so bad? What grade would you give Saunders for the year? I am not a fan, I think everyone knows that, and I refuse (homer girl) to dump the entire blame of shotty play calling on Gibbs (Not that you did, I'm just saying...)


This will be answered next week with the "Proscriptions". Feel free to google that if you want a vague preview lol.

[AGibbsGirl]

This will be answered next week with the "Proscriptions". Feel free to google that if you want a vague preview lol.

Ah yes, I did see that you posted that already, I will anxiously await your proscription....well, unless you plan to fry Gibbs...

[Charlz]

Didnt cooley drop two passes in the game? Thats not really solid. Especially when one of them give us first and goal inside the 5.

Good point. Cooley & Co. dropped easy catches on critical plays ALL year. IMO - a few less fumbles (CP, LB), and a few less dropped passes (SM, CC), and the Skins would have had two more wins on the season.

Sadly the D-line pass rush has not improved nearly enough and Saunders aquisition has not yielded a more potent offense.

Overall, a heck of a efffort with a team beset by the loss of several critical starters not to mention the blessed ST, may he rest in peace.

[Farmer Ted]

Again we went from damn near dead last to top 10. No matter what you think the stats are obvious and so was the effect on the games.


I think footballoutsiders (http://footballoutsiders.com/stats/teamdef.php) has the best explanation of the Skins defense during the Williams era. They have their own rating system, but they also rate the week-to-week variation in defensive performance (1 being most erratic and 32 being most consistent). Here's how they rate the Skins from '04-07.

Year Rank Variance
2004 4 26
2005 4 24
2006 32 32
2007 6 2

So what does that say? The Skins D was strong and consistent from '04-'05. Hell, it was practically the same both years. In '06, it was perfectly consistent and perfectly awful. This year, on average it was a strong defense, but it was totally inconsistent, which was kind of obvious if you watched all of the games.

[SkinsfaninNJ]

I think footballoutsiders (http://footballoutsiders.com/stats/teamdef.php) has the best explanation of the Skins defense during the Williams era. They have their own rating system, but they also rate the week-to-week variation in defensive performance (1 being most erratic and 32 being most consistent). Here's how they rate the Skins from '04-07.

Year Rank Variance
2004 4 26
2005 4 24
2006 32 32
2007 6 2

So what does that say? The Skins D was strong and consistent from '04-'05. Hell, it was practically the same both years. In '06, it was perfectly consistent and perfectly awful. This year, on average it was a strong defense, but it was totally inconsistent, which was kind of obvious if you watched all of the games.

Great info and I think it is somewhat accurate. I don't know if we were the second most erratic defense in 07 since we never really dropped too far in the rankings, but we were inconsistent for sure, even from one half to the next.

I wish Williams woke up much earlier in the season.

[Battle Cat]

You are really giving Cooley a free pass. That catch that he dropped after we recovered the kick off was the biggest play in the game for us. He catches that ball that was perfectly thrown and we would be up 7 points in the 4th. Also we lost 2 games this year in part because the other teams punter totally out performed Frost. 1. being the Tampa Bay game and the other this game.

[akhhorus]

You are really giving Cooley a free pass. That catch that he dropped after we recovered the kick off was the biggest play in the game for us. He catches that ball that was perfectly thrown and we would be up 7 points in the 4th.

I didn't say he was perfect against Seattle, but as compared to the rest of the receivers, he looked solid.

Also we lost 2 games this year in part because the other teams punter totally out performed Frost. 1. being the Tampa Bay game and the other this game.

What? We lost the Tampa game because of 6 fricking turnovers. We lost this game because of turnovers and poor offense also, not because their punter pinned us back all day.

[bergiemoore]

What? We lost the Tampa game because of 6 fricking turnovers. We lost this game because of turnovers and poor offense also, not because their punter pinned us back all day.

They're punter had some nice shots, but they worked on a short field all day, as a result of the Skins offensive impotence, and the ST coverage unit giving up big returns. They didn't have to move very far to get into position to pin the Skins back.

[Battle Cat]

I didn't say he was perfect against Seattle, but as compared to the rest of the receivers, he looked solid.



What? We lost the Tampa game because of 6 fricking turnovers. We lost this game because of turnovers and poor offense also, not because their punter pinned us back all day.
I said in part because of the punter. When we were pinned back in both games Frost would give them the ball at the 50. When Tampa Bay and Seattle were pinned back their punter put us back on our side of the field. That was a big reason in my opinion why we lost both games. That and the fact we hardly ever get any punt return yards.

[akhhorus]

I said in part because of the punter. When we were pinned back in both games Frost would give them the ball at the 50. When Tampa Bay and Seattle were pinned back their punter put us back on our side of the field. That was a big reason in my opinion why we lost both games. That and the fact we hardly ever get any punt return yards.

We didn't do much with the ball even when we started in Seattle's territory in the first half.

[Battle Cat]

We didn't do much with the ball even when we started in Seattle's territory in the first half.
True but we still need a better punter. And better coverage wouldn't hurt. Frost made the tackle or pushed the guy outta bounds I can remember either 2 or 3 times.

[akhhorus]

True but we still need a better punter. And better coverage wouldn't hurt. Frost made the tackle or pushed the guy outta bounds I can remember either 2 or 3 times.

Actually, I think our STs are pretty good. We could use some upgrades there, but we have other major problems.

[shally]

Actually, I think our STs are pretty good. We could use some upgrades there, but we have other major problems.

ST's are solid even though i think that ARE did far too much dancing
and running sideways..BUT he didnt fumble a single punt..

[jtovb2005]

5 cyanide tablets in my left hand. A short stock, sawed off Mossberg 12 gauge in my right aimed at my dome. I'll take my chances with self mutilation/death before I ever hope for a DallASS win.

Lol, minus all the crazy stuff dito. Screw the cowgirls.

[Battle Cat]

ST's are solid even though i think that ARE did far too much dancing
and running sideways..BUT he didnt fumble a single punt..
What do you think about Frost? Suisham is a good field goal kicker but some of his kick offs are atrocious and not just in the Seattle game I know the wind was blowing. Plus that miss from like 30 or closer, wow. But I say we keep Suisham and get rid of Frost. I also think Cartwright may be gone but that is another story.

[hail2skins]

I'm sorry, but even with the peak of injuries, this team was able to rattle off 4 straight wins. They had it in them, but Gibbs doesn't give "the speech" until we're on the floor. I'm sick of losing in October, then scrambling for the last playoff spot. This wasn't a very good season. It was barely a good one.
Who said it was Gibbs. Maybe it was the players themselves. I do blame the coaches for some of our losses because of their conservative game plans, but I don't think it was some speech from Gibbs that got them to reel off 4 straight wins.

Also, I'll take a defense that moves from the bottom of the league to the top 10 and at the same time minimizing the amount of points they surrender per game. Average out the Pats game, and they'll probably be a bit higher in that category.

[shally]

What do you think about Frost? Suisham is a good field goal kicker but some of his kick offs are atrocious and not just in the Seattle game I know the wind was blowing. Plus that miss from like 30 or closer, wow. But I say we keep Suisham and get rid of Frost. I also think Cartwright may be gone but that is another story.

gibbs won a superbowl with kelly goodburn as punter..he was ranked last inthe nfc

as long as frost is not getting a bunch of punts blocked i think gibbs will roll with him again next year..

the only time gibbs tried to draft a punter (i think it was gibbs) he drafted david bunn inthe third round.. he didnt even survive camp.

frost will survive as starter but will get some competition next year to keep him sharp

[jtovb2005]

We looked like the pre 4 game win streak Skins for the most part if you ask me, at least the defense did. Didn't give up many points but for awhile let the Seahawks pass their way up and down the field to use clock and get first downs.

The game was lost on the Offensive line though imo. Early part of the game the offense really struggled to do much of anything. I don't know if I blame that on crowd noise too much, they just seemed to get shoved around.

On the subject of Reed Doughty why can't he improve his pass defense skills? He seems to have made big strides from last year. Shoot even this year there were those that said he should not be on an NFL field. I don't think that is anywhere near true. He might not be star material but I think he is good enough to stick around.

Pretty clear we need a big play guy on the defensive line too. What's his name on the Seahawks pretty much was a 1 man wreaking ball for them. We don't have anyone that makes that much of an impact for the whole season.

[SkinsfaninNJ]

Actually, I think our STs are pretty good. We could use some upgrades there, but we have other major problems.

We need more production in our punt returns.

[tuckahoeskin]

I hate Mossbergs. Too unreliable. Give me a H&K left handed shotgun anyday.


H&K = good choice.


One thing to add to your original post, you neglected to credit Fabini on a 2nd tackle of Portis, later in the game, further downfield when he tripped him. Cut him. Cut him. Cut him. Cut him.