Firehawk week 4 preview, WWD!

[firehawk157]

Washington Redskins (2-1) at Dallas Cowboys (3-0) at 4:15 on Fox
Announcers: I don't know, but venturing a guess, given he's done them all, Troy Aikman and Joe Buck

Injury Report:
Washington - Jason Taylor (out), Stephon Heyer (questionable), Malcolm Kelly (questionable)
Dallas - Kyle Kosier (out)

Vegas spread: Dallas by 10

Useless stats that everybody thinks proves something: I'll go a little different right here. Last year, TO scored 4 TDs as he destroyed the Skins' secondary. I'm sure you're thinking, but surely, that's an important statistic! However, consider the statistic. First off, that was compiled when Sean Taylor was still alive, but injured, so he wasn't in the game (hold on, I'm getting there). So what the Skins did is in order to allow Landry to keep growing in the SS position we had him in, we put Reed Doughty in as FS and asked him to cover sideline to sideline. Of course, very few safeties can do this (Landry, Dawkins and Ed Reed come to mind). Of course, not being complete dolts, the Cowboys said, no way Reed Doughty can cover TO deep and the rest is history. What's changed is we have Landry back there and you'd be a fool to think he won't do at least 4 times better.

History lesson: The Cowboys and Redskins rivalry goes back even before there was a Dallas Cowboys. Tex Schram, the potential owner of a franchise looking to join the league, kept getting blocked by George Preston Marshall, who owned the Redskins, because his franchise claimed almost all of the southeast fanship and was afraid that the Cowboys may cut into his profits. So, Tex copyrighted "Hail to the Redskins" and told Marshall that he couldn't play it at games until he agreed to let the Cowboys into the league. Marshall agreed, Tex gave him back the song and it hasn't gotten any better since. Notable moments in the rivalry was a 21 point comeback in 1999 by the Quincy Carter-led Cowboys, the 1982 and 1972 conference championships where Washington dismantled the Cowboys on arms of Theismann and Jergenson, the 2004 go-ahead TD throw by ancient Vinny Testeverde to Patrick Crayton who got behind the late Sean Taylor. The 2005 "Monday Night Miracle" double bombs to Santana Moss from equally ancient Mark Brunell which broke a streak of 15 games lost out of 16 and a 10 year win drought in Dallas.

Key to Redskins' offensive success
1) Campbell's rhythm... Campbell has definitely been a lot better getting the ball out quickly, accurately and to the right guy, but two games does not a career make, he has to prove he can do it against defenses that aren't the Cardinals or Saints. He needs to go through his progressions quickly (though, truthfully, I don't really think the Cowboys are showing that great of a pass rush right now) and evade the blitz to make plays down the field. His ability to frustrate the pass rush will go a long way towards winning the game.
2) Holes in the running game... Early in the game, the running game has been lacking, the holes aren't there and Portis isn't creating like he should. Regardless, when talking about a run below 3 yards, you usually should be looking to put the blame on the line, anybody in the world should be able to gain 3 yards if the offensive line does it's job. They also need to make the run to the right a threat as well. The Cowboys have looked relatively vulnerable up the middle, so maybe spreading it out 3 or 4 wide, forcing the cowboys to counter with their nickel or dime packages and running it in between the tackles might be the best method to gain those yards.
3) How Dallas deals with Cooley... LJ Smith had a decent game and he's half the TE Cooley is. They tried to alternate CB and LB coverage with varying success, I'm curious if they just don't stick a S or CB on Cooley. However, knowing the Cowboys and their zones, they may just try to guard the flats and middle and send extra guys and take their chances.

Keys to defensive success
1) Romo... I really can't figure out why he's been so inconsistent lately. The Eagles and Packers are a decent defense but I can't tie it to pressure or great coverage, it just seems to turn off and on pretty randomly. The thing I really think ices it though is he hasn't seemed as good when he is on. Now having said that, he's still a good QB and the leader of a 3-0 team, so he has to be pretty good but I think the Skins can pull this out unless Romo plays better.
2) Barber up the middle... We didn't have a problem with Reggie Bush, but Brandon Jacobs and Edgerrin James gave us fits and they are both power runners. Obviously, we have a problem if this is the case, rather than an abberation, because Barber is running behind a lot of beef back there. If Barber is chunking off huge gains in the first, the defense is in for a long night.
3) How Washington deals with Witten and TO... I'm curious as to how they plan on dealing with them both. Obviously, you have Landry, who's athletic and physical enough to do a very credible job locking down Witten. But if you move him up guard him, I don't trust any corner in the league one-on-one with TO and I don't trust any safety on the roster to provide the kind of range that would be needed to be able to cover other parts of the field if shaded to TO's side. A LB won't do it so I'm curious as to how they plan on it. Right now, I think they'll load heavy on Witten's side with two LBs and have one of them guard Witten with whoever is the strong safety playing Robber. So the LB can play underneath and jump the short routes and the S can guard the deep. That's just me and I'm sure is full of holes.

Answers to the questions I had last week...
1) Can we manage to get together a string of good games or are we doomed to inconsistency? So far, so good... This week will go a long way to condemning us or lifting us.
2) Can we finish drives? All signs point to yes. Good redzone play by the team here.
3) Will we regret not sacrificing virgins to the football gods for not allowing the Anquan Boldin trade? Not really. He had a middling game but we definitely kept him under wraps.
4) Can we consistently get pressure again, or was last Sunday an abberation?
We did a credible job I thought, but it's definitely still an area for improvement.
5) Can we get away with as many penalties as Dallas does, week in and week out? Absolutely not.

New questions I want answers to...
1) Can we look competitive against a team with Super Bowl aspirations?
2) Can we know when to make adjustments and when not to (keep Springs or Rogers on TO instead of that wierd hybrid coverage we saw in the last half last year)?
3) Can we actually give Portis some real running room, especially to the right?
4) Can we deal with a power rusher?
5) Are the refs particularly blind to Dallas infractions?

[Dolla Bill]

Awesome write up. This is becoming a great weekly feature. Keep up the good work.

[Sweepea436]

Awesome write up. This is becoming a great weekly feature. Keep up the good work.


What he said ^^^ I look forward to these.....

[hail2skins]

On the main page for all to see

[Biggie]

Nice work. I think we're all eagerly expecting the answers to those questions.

[firehawk157]

Nice work. I think we're all eagerly expecting the answers to those questions.
Sorry about the delay, I try to get it out on wednesday, but with work as it is... Ugh. I changed around the format a bit to talk about the history of the rivalry for some of our newer members. I could have gone on and on and on, but I wanted that history section to spark some reminscing (I remember when the Skins beat Dallas...) There's still hope:)

[BraveHeartFan]

Washington Redskins (2-1) at Dallas Cowboys (3-0) at 4:15 on Fox
Announcers: I don't know, but venturing a guess, given he's done them all, Troy Aikman and Joe Buck

Injury Report:
Washington - Jason Taylor (out), Stephon Heyer (questionable), Malcolm Kelly (questionable)
Dallas - Kyle Kosier (out)

Vegas spread: Dallas by 10

Useless stats that everybody thinks proves something: I'll go a little different right here. Last year, TO scored 4 TDs as he destroyed the Skins' secondary. I'm sure you're thinking, but surely, that's an important statistic! However, consider the statistic. First off, that was compiled when Sean Taylor was still alive, but injured, so he wasn't in the game (hold on, I'm getting there). So what the Skins did is in order to allow Landry to keep growing in the SS position we had him in, we put Reed Doughty in as FS and asked him to cover sideline to sideline. Of course, very few safeties can do this (Landry, Dawkins and Ed Reed come to mind). Of course, not being complete dolts, the Cowboys said, no way Reed Doughty can cover TO deep and the rest is history. What's changed is we have Landry back there and you'd be a fool to think he won't do at least 4 times better.

History lesson: The Cowboys and Redskins rivalry goes back even before there was a Dallas Cowboys. Tex Schram, the potential owner of a franchise looking to join the league, kept getting blocked by George Preston Marshall, who owned the Redskins, because his franchise claimed almost all of the southeast fanship and was afraid that the Cowboys may cut into his profits. So, Tex copyrighted "Hail to the Redskins" and told Marshall that he couldn't play it at games until he agreed to let the Cowboys into the league. Marshall agreed, Tex gave him back the song and it hasn't gotten any better since. Notable moments in the rivalry was a 21 point comeback in 1999 by the Quincy Carter-led Cowboys, the 1982 and 1972 conference championships where Washington dismantled the Cowboys on arms of Theismann and Jergenson, the 2004 go-ahead TD throw by ancient Vinny Testeverde to Patrick Crayton who got behind the late Sean Taylor. The 2005 "Monday Night Miracle" double bombs to Santana Moss from equally ancient Mark Brunell which broke a streak of 15 games lost out of 16 and a 10 year win drought in Dallas.

Key to Redskins' offensive success
1) Campbell's rhythm... Campbell has definitely been a lot better getting the ball out quickly, accurately and to the right guy, but two games does not a career make, he has to prove he can do it against defenses that aren't the Cardinals or Saints. He needs to go through his progressions quickly (though, truthfully, I don't really think the Cowboys are showing that great of a pass rush right now) and evade the blitz to make plays down the field. His ability to frustrate the pass rush will go a long way towards winning the game.
2) Holes in the running game... Early in the game, the running game has been lacking, the holes aren't there and Portis isn't creating like he should. Regardless, when talking about a run below 3 yards, you usually should be looking to put the blame on the line, anybody in the world should be able to gain 3 yards if the offensive line does it's job. They also need to make the run to the right a threat as well. The Cowboys have looked relatively vulnerable up the middle, so maybe spreading it out 3 or 4 wide, forcing the cowboys to counter with their nickel or dime packages and running it in between the tackles might be the best method to gain those yards.
3) How Dallas deals with Cooley... LJ Smith had a decent game and he's half the TE Cooley is. They tried to alternate CB and LB coverage with varying success, I'm curious if they just don't stick a S or CB on Cooley. However, knowing the Cowboys and their zones, they may just try to guard the flats and middle and send extra guys and take their chances.

Keys to defensive success
1) Romo... I really can't figure out why he's been so inconsistent lately. The Eagles and Packers are a decent defense but I can't tie it to pressure or great coverage, it just seems to turn off and on pretty randomly. The thing I really think ices it though is he hasn't seemed as good when he is on. Now having said that, he's still a good QB and the leader of a 3-0 team, so he has to be pretty good but I think the Skins can pull this out unless Romo plays better.
2) Barber up the middle... We didn't have a problem with Reggie Bush, but Brandon Jacobs and Edgerrin James gave us fits and they are both power runners. Obviously, we have a problem if this is the case, rather than an abberation, because Barber is running behind a lot of beef back there. If Barber is chunking off huge gains in the first, the defense is in for a long night.
3) How Washington deals with Witten and TO... I'm curious as to how they plan on dealing with them both. Obviously, you have Landry, who's athletic and physical enough to do a very credible job locking down Witten. But if you move him up guard him, I don't trust any corner in the league one-on-one with TO and I don't trust any safety on the roster to provide the kind of range that would be needed to be able to cover other parts of the field if shaded to TO's side. A LB won't do it so I'm curious as to how they plan on it. Right now, I think they'll load heavy on Witten's side with two LBs and have one of them guard Witten with whoever is the strong safety playing Robber. So the LB can play underneath and jump the short routes and the S can guard the deep. That's just me and I'm sure is full of holes.

Answers to the questions I had last week...
1) Can we manage to get together a string of good games or are we doomed to inconsistency? So far, so good... This week will go a long way to condemning us or lifting us.
2) Can we finish drives? All signs point to yes. Good redzone play by the team here.
3) Will we regret not sacrificing virgins to the football gods for not allowing the Anquan Boldin trade? Not really. He had a middling game but we definitely kept him under wraps.
4) Can we consistently get pressure again, or was last Sunday an abberation?
We did a credible job I thought, but it's definitely still an area for improvement.
5) Can we get away with as many penalties as Dallas does, week in and week out? Absolutely not.

New questions I want answers to...
1) Can we look competitive against a team with Super Bowl aspirations?
2) Can we know when to make adjustments and when not to (keep Springs or Rogers on TO instead of that wierd hybrid coverage we saw in the last half last year)?
3) Can we actually give Portis some real running room, especially to the right?
4) Can we deal with a power rusher?
5) Are the refs particularly blind to Dallas infractions?


Outstanding write up man. Absolutely enjoyed this insight. I have just one, tiny, thing to comment on.

LJ Smith's decent game. If by 1 catch for 10 yards is what you mean by decent then, yeah, he had a decent game. :P

Now Donald Lee had a 5 catch game...for 41 yards. That's good enough for decent and Winslow had 5 for 47 and a TD.

I always worry about match ups with Cooley cause he's very good, and can move around, but no more so than I worried about Winslow who I believe is better. Cooley is DEFINATELY quite a bit better than LJ or Lee though. So he presents a lot bigger match up problem than those two.

Should be an exciting game and once again loved this write up. Great stuff.

[Lavar703]

Just so you know, Quincy Carter wasnt in the NFL in 1999, it was still Troy Aikman. He threw the bomb to Rocket Ismail.

[BigHairedAristocrat]

I think the biggest mistake our defense can make in this game is putting double coverage on Owens. The Cowboys simply have too many weapons for that to work. We should limit him if we simply put Springs on him and have Landry do his job.

Our offense is going to have to score alot of points to keep us in this game. We simply can't settle for field goals. Our redzone offense has got to score touchdowns.

[firehawk157]

Just so you know, Quincy Carter wasnt in the NFL in 1999, it was still Troy Aikman. He threw the bomb to Rocket Ismail.
Are you sure that was Aikman that tossed that? It might have been 2000...

[esmith1790]

Great week fellas, it will be a great game. I am not sure if i will be going to the game or not yet, so if i go and the boys lose, i dont wana here, where are the boys fans at to man up and take the loss.

I think there will be alot more of Felix in this game. Screens and out of the back field to get him in space. What the boys have been working on is still the same thing of witten and owens on the same side, but this time bringing felix out into the flat which is vacant from Owens and Witten working deep and middle. Not sure a LB can get out to get him in time.

Also, from the Philly game, the cowboys have been using both Barber and Jones in the backfield to gether some and when a blitz comes in either 1 takes the blitz and the other jets out to the flat for a hot-read quick pass. Baber was burning the eagles on this type of play.

Our team should be at full strength now minus kosier at LG. With Spencer back this should help our pass rush.

We will see how the skins OL handles the 3-4 this year with the new WCO installed.

[native skin]

Sorry about the delay, I try to get it out on wednesday, but with work as it is... Ugh. I changed around the format a bit to talk about the history of the rivalry for some of our newer members. I could have gone on and on and on, but I wanted that history section to spark some reminscing (I remember when the Skins beat Dallas...) There's still hope:)

I was totally loving that part.

[The Skinsinator]

Excellent write-up Firehawk. I just hope we get off to a strong start as we did last year. I like your point alot about Landry back there now to guard TO more. Basically he is the reason they did beat us in Dallas last season. We have to stop the run much much better than we did v. Arizona.

[guess88]

Also, from the Philly game, the cowboys have been using both Barber and Jones in the backfield to gether some and when a blitz comes in either 1 takes the blitz and the other jets out to the flat for a hot-read quick pass. Baber was burning the eagles on this type of play.

This setup worries me a bit. They run a formation with Jones and Barber in the backfield, with TO and Witten in... that's a lot to account for. Blache's gonna have to get real creative... I don't even know how to match that up.

[Lavar703]

Are you sure that was Aikman that tossed that? It might have been 2000...

Positive, I remember my blood boiling as I watched the former version of Reed Doughty "Matt Stevens", trail the play.

[Death_Venom]

Aother good read Firehawk. Thanks for giving something to chew as we await the showdown........

[Patrick]

Notable moments in the rivalry was a 21 point comeback in 1999 by the Quincy Carter-led Cowboys, the 1982 and 1972 conference championships where Washington dismantled the Cowboys on arms of Theismann and Jergenson, the 2004 go-ahead TD throw by ancient Vinny Testeverde to Patrick Crayton who got behind the late Sean Taylor.

Enjoy you write up firehawk157 ........ BUT it's ..........JURGENSEN ........ HOFer's at least deserve to have their names spelled correctly ;)

[BraveHeartFan]

Positive, I remember my blood boiling as I watched the former version of Reed Doughty "Matt Stevens", trail the play.

Correct it was Aikman that threw the TD to Rocket, in overtime, to win that game in 1999.

[redskin_rich]

Positive, I remember my blood boiling as I watched the former version of Reed Doughty "Matt Stevens", trail the play.

Yeah, half our secondary was on the bench suffering from cramps at that point. We gave up 27 pts in less than 10 minutes.

[Ibleedburgundy]

You the man firehawk!

I'm thinking Zorn makes good use of the 2 TE set this week, particularly in the red zone. Dallass' oversized LBs can blitz, let's see them in coverage.

[Wild Bore]

Notable moments in the rivalry was a 21 point comeback in 1999 by the Quincy Carter-led Cowboys, the 1982 and 1972 conference championships where Washington dismantled the Cowboys on arms of Theismann and Jergenson, the 2004 go-ahead TD throw by ancient Vinny Testeverde to Patrick Crayton who got behind the late Sean Taylor.

Enjoy you write up firehawk157 ........ BUT it's ..........JURGENSEN ........ HOFer's at least deserve to have their names spelled correctly ;)
Actually, it's........ KILMER.

[skinsfan36]

nice write up fire hawk laughed at the last line. it is bs that the cowboys get away with what they do

[BraveHeartFan]

nice write up fire hawk laughed at the last line. it is bs that the cowboys get away with what they do

His last line makes no sense, at all, seeing as how Dallas, going into the Greenbay game, lead the league in penalties, with GB right behind them. So I really don't see how anyone can say the refs are blind to their penalties.

[firehawk157]

His last line makes no sense, at all, seeing as how Dallas, going into the Greenbay game, lead the league in penalties, with GB right behind them. So I really don't see how anyone can say the refs are blind to their penalties.
If the refs weren't blind, Dallas would have twice as many penalties as they do now. Even worse, most are declined because there's MULTIPLE infractions on each play. I counted 3 blocks in the back on one punt return. And how are they going to assess that unnecessary roughness penalty on Green Bay (the fight between Martellus Bennett and somebody else on a punt return)? How did they decide that one? He didn't start it. My view is if somebody didn't take it past the point of a scuffle or you didn't see who actually started it, let it go. Nope, instead they decide to call it on Green Bay. WTH? And don't even get me started on the Eagle's game... I don't think I've seen any more blatant infractions as I did in that game.

[firehawk157]

You the man firehawk!

I'm thinking Zorn makes good use of the 2 TE set this week, particularly in the red zone. Dallass' oversized LBs can blitz, let's see them in coverage.
Ware's decent, not good enough that he's going to lock down Cooley, but decent. But Spencer and Greg Ellis, yikes, that would have me worried if I was a boys fan.

[firehawk157]

Correct it was Aikman that threw the TD to Rocket, in overtime, to win that game in 1999.
Sorry about that, I didn't have time to fact check most of it since I've been swamped at work. I apologize for the errors.

[saratogan]

Great write up. Salient points Firehawk!

Key to Redskins' offensive success
1) Campbell's rhythm...; 2) Holes in the running game; 3) How Dallas deals with Cooley My additions are:
The answer to each of these involves the ability of our offensive line executing its assignments effectively the majority of the time. If they can give Campbell adequate pass protection (he is showing he can go through his progressions more rapidly now than before) I feel he will find open receivers and we will move the football. I am not keen on him doing much running considering the size and talent of their linebackers, however. Our running game is not yet producing the ypc that I would like to see. Having many second and 8’s or 7’s in this game will make it rough going; thus, potentially putting us in too many 3rd and long play calls. If we can not get an adequate rushing game, it will be a tough game offensively. Somehow, I think we will eek out a very low 100 yards rushing game – enough to help the passing game succeed. I did not see much of Davis in the last game. I wonder if we will see much more of Yoder and Davis in this game, both for blocking and short and medium passing so as to put huge pressure on their large linebackers? I hope to see a lot of passes to our TE's, RB's to neutralize their rush. Maybe Kelly and Thomas get a few passes and Moss gets TD bomb.

The way to neutralize them is speed or quickness over strength and size.


Keys to defensive success
1) Romo...; 2) Barber up the middle... 3) How Washington deals with Witten and TO... We can not keep from scoring, the question becomes keeping them from scoring too much. Our young tackles are going to need to step up big time (both against the rush and push up the middle so it allows the ends to rush Romo. McIntosh finally became comfortable with his knee last week. I think he is subconsciously over any concerns about his reconstructive surgery. Washington will need to have a big game. I agree that our best corner, Springs, will be on TO, but who will be the deep person most of the time to help out? If we can keep TO to a touchdown, we will be in the game. What kind of d-game plan will Blache design?? Our deep person will be the key to help minimize the big plays and the quick scoring. (We can ill afford having a deep person running to catch up on a deep ball.)

[BraveHeartFan]

If the refs weren't blind, Dallas would have twice as many penalties as they do now. Even worse, most are declined because there's MULTIPLE infractions on each play. I counted 3 blocks in the back on one punt return. And how are they going to assess that unnecessary roughness penalty on Green Bay (the fight between Martellus Bennett and somebody else on a punt return)? How did they decide that one? He didn't start it. My view is if somebody didn't take it past the point of a scuffle or you didn't see who actually started it, let it go. Nope, instead they decide to call it on Green Bay. WTH? And don't even get me started on the Eagle's game... I don't think I've seen any more blatant infractions as I did in that game.

And every single fan of every single team can say that exact same team about every single other team in the league. Infractions are missed on practically every single play all day/night long in games. It happens. It's not unique to anyone team.

In the Eagles game where they missed two Face Mask Penalties on Dallas (I saw them like everyone else) there was also a face mask missed by Bryan Westbrook, where he reached up and grabbed the defenders face mask which is now supposedly not allowed, and then on the TD pass to Westbrook there were two very clear holding penalties on the WR's, blocking in the endzone, not called.

And of course there was that phantom PI on Henry, in the endzone, that should have been PI on the WR for grabbign Henry by the jersey and pulling him into the reciever, cause he knew he couldn't catch the pass.

At the end of the day, so what? Calls get missed all the time against every team. It's hilarious when any fan (And that includes my fellow Cowboys fans who do this) cry about the calls they don't get, or the calls that go against them that they don't think should, like it's unique to their team or something.

It happens to everyone's teams every single week of the year. I get frustrated, just like everyone else, when refs miss calls, or make bad calls, or don't make calls, or whatever you want to lable it as but I know, at the end of the day, the fans of that other team are just as upset about all the same things so it evens out.

Edit: On the Bennett/GB thing that is pretty common knowledge that refs are not going to generally get the guy who started it or see the stuff at the start they're going to get the guy whose stupid enough to be the LAST guy to do something. That's pretty common knowlege they only point it out in almost every ball game (They being the announcers) that you don't want to be the last guy seen doing something in that situation. That's why you're taught to walk away and not continue on in those things.

[firehawk157]

Great write up. Salient points Firehawk!

Key to Redskins' offensive success
1) Campbell's rhythm...; 2) Holes in the running game; 3) How Dallas deals with Cooley My additions are:
The answer to each of these involves the ability of our offensive line executing its assignments effectively the majority of the time. If they can give Campbell adequate pass protection (he is showing he can go through his progressions more rapidly now than before) I feel he will find open receivers and we will move the football. I am not keen on him doing much running considering the size and talent of their linebackers, however. Our running game is not yet producing the ypc that I would like to see. Having many second and 8’s or 7’s in this game will make it rough going; thus, potentially putting us in too many 3rd and long play calls. If we can not get an adequate rushing game, it will be a tough game offensively. Somehow, I think we will eek out a very low 100 yards rushing game – enough to help the passing game succeed. I did not see much of Davis in the last game. I wonder if we will see much more of Yoder and Davis in this game, both for blocking and short and medium passing so as to put huge pressure on their large linebackers? I hope to see a lot of passes to our TE's, RB's to neutralize their rush. Maybe Kelly and Thomas get a few passes and Moss gets TD bomb.

The way to neutralize them is speed or quickness over strength and size.


Keys to defensive success
1) Romo...; 2) Barber up the middle... 3) How Washington deals with Witten and TO... We can not keep from scoring, the question becomes keeping them from scoring too much. Our young tackles are going to need to step up big time (both against the rush and push up the middle so it allows the ends to rush Romo. McIntosh finally became comfortable with his knee last week. I think he is subconsciously over any concerns about his reconstructive surgery. Washington will need to have a big game. I agree that our best corner, Springs, will be on TO, but who will be the deep person most of the time to help out? If we can keep TO to a touchdown, we will be in the game. What kind of d-game plan will Blache design?? Our deep person will be the key to help minimize the big plays and the quick scoring. (We can ill afford having a deep person running to catch up on a deep ball.)
I honestly think we'll stick Landry deep because if we stick Springs on TO and let him know he has help with the fly route, we're good. Other than that, we have Sam Hurd, who despite his decent performance against GB, I don't think is a good player. But point is, he'll beat you deep if he's going to beat you at all and a deep centerfielder like Landry could lock down those fly and post routes, allowing our corners to play press. Rogers on Crayton one-on-one is golden. That just leaves Witten and he's the one we've got to worry about. I say we go heavy on whichever side he is with our LBs and bring our SS (who should be Horton but I don't know if that's what the coaches think) in the short middle to guard against seam routes and posts. That's just me, this Dallas offense really isn't unbeatable. Sure tackling, good pursuit angles and locking down TO and Witten is key to beating these guys. Their defense can be had (Eagles proved this).

[BraveHeartFan]

Ware's decent, not good enough that he's going to lock down Cooley, but decent. But Spencer and Greg Ellis, yikes, that would have me worried if I was a boys fan.

Except that it's highly unlikely that Ware, or Ellis, will actually cover Cooley. They'll chip him (As Dallas has been doing with the TE's in their first three games) and then it's a corner, usually Henry, who covers them. They're able to do that this year because of all the depth they have at corner.

And, beyond that, if it's something the Redskins jump into while Dallas is in their base 3-4 (Assuming they were in hurry up or something where Dallas couldn't sub) then it would be Zach Thomas who would cover the TE anyway (As he's done some in the opening 3 games) and he's a much better coverage linebacker than those two.

Sorry about that, I didn't have time to fact check most of it since I've been swamped at work. I apologize for the errors.

No problem there. I was just clarifying it for the guy who asked. :)

[firehawk157]

And every single fan of every single team can say that exact same team about every single other team in the league. Infractions are missed on practically every single play all day/night long in games. It happens. It's not unique to anyone team.

In the Eagles game where they missed two Face Mask Penalties on Dallas (I saw them like everyone else) there was also a face mask missed by Bryan Westbrook, where he reached up and grabbed the defenders face mask which is now supposedly not allowed, and then on the TD pass to Westbrook there were two very clear holding penalties on the WR's, blocking in the endzone, not called.

And of course there was that phantom PI on Henry, in the endzone, that should have been PI on the WR for grabbign Henry by the jersey and pulling him into the reciever, cause he knew he couldn't catch the pass.

At the end of the day, so what? Calls get missed all the time against every team. It's hilarious when any fan (And that includes my fellow Cowboys fans who do this) cry about the calls they don't get, or the calls that go against them that they don't think should, like it's unique to their team or something.

It happens to everyone's teams every single week of the year. I get frustrated, just like everyone else, when refs miss calls, or make bad calls, or don't make calls, or whatever you want to lable it as but I know, at the end of the day, the fans of that other team are just as upset about all the same things so it evens out.

Edit: On the Bennett/GB thing that is pretty common knowledge that refs are not going to generally get the guy who started it or see the stuff at the start they're going to get the guy whose stupid enough to be the LAST guy to do something. That's pretty common knowlege they only point it out in almost every ball game (They being the announcers) that you don't want to be the last guy seen doing something in that situation. That's why you're taught to walk away and not continue on in those things.

Yeah, okay. You'd be a fool to think certain teams enjoy certain favors from the officials (I hardly think it's unknown that Colts and Pats linemen don't get called for holding as much, Irvin didn't get called for pass interference, etc...). To say that the Cowboys, who get called for plenty, don't also have more calls slip past than less successful teams is a bit naive.

Now, I'm not saying there's some super secret pact where all the officials decide to say, let's see if we can make the Cowboys win the super bowl! What I do think is they, like the entirety of America, watch and pay attention to football pundits who say that the Pats line is the greatest thing since sliced bread or that Dallas is the best team, so therefore they look in places they think will draw the flags.

[firehawk157]

Except that it's highly unlikely that Ware, or Ellis, will actually cover Cooley. They'll chip him (As Dallas has been doing with the TE's in their first three games) and then it's a corner, usually Henry, who covers them. They're able to do that this year because of all the depth they have at corner.

So if we go three wide, you are going to counter with your dime? That leaves (in a base 3 lineman set) 2 LBs (presumably Ware and Ellis/Spencer). I have to imagine that's a huge advantage for the run, and the Eagles knew it and Westbrook demolished you. I would like 3 TDs from Portis and with Washington not letting up the same level of big plays as the Eagles are prone to doing (that's the risk you run when you run a Jim Johnson defense), we would have a good shot at this.

And, beyond that, if it's something the Redskins jump into while Dallas is in their base 3-4 (Assuming they were in hurry up or something where Dallas couldn't sub) then it would be Zach Thomas who would cover the TE anyway (As he's done some in the opening 3 games) and he's a much better coverage linebacker than those two.

He's definitely not good enough to cover Cooley consistently. A blown assignment is a blown assignment.

[Moe]

Interesting info from Football Outsiders on the game this week-

"Last year, the Cowboys' defense was 20th on first and third downs but second on second downs. This year, Dallas is 12th on first down and eighth on third down, but 28th on second down. That could bode well for the Redskins, whose offense is second best in the league on second downs through three weeks.

The 2007 Redskins defense was the best in the league during the first half of games but 25th during the second half. That has totally flipped around in 2008, as the team is 22nd in first-half defensive DVOA but ninth best in the second half."

[redskin_rich]

Interesting info from Football Outsiders on the game this week-

"Last year, the Cowboys' defense was 20th on first and third downs but second on second downs. This year, Dallas is 12th on first down and eighth on third down, but 28th on second down. That could bode well for the Redskins, whose offense is second best in the league on second downs through three weeks.

The 2007 Redskins defense was the best in the league during the first half of games but 25th during the second half. That has totally flipped around in 2008, as the team is 22nd in first-half defensive DVOA but ninth best in the second half."

Random stats that don't mean a thing, with only 3 games played.

[firehawk157]

That's a pretty wierd stat though.

[guess88]

Random stats that don't mean a thing, with only 3 games played.

The one thing that is noticeable on offense however, is that we're not caught in 3rd and long all the time now. We had a lot of those last year, and it makes the offense completely one dimensional, which obviously makes it that much harder to convert a 3rd down. Hopefully the trend keeps up.

[Moe]

Random stats that don't mean a thing, with only 3 games played.

I appreciate you taking time away from telling children that Santa Claus isn't real, but did this post add much here?

The stats aren't random, they are based on hard numbers from the games played. Obviously that doesn't mean that it'll apply to the game this week but it doesn't invalidate them for what they are. We're all looking for trends on things ranging from Campbell's progress to what color uniforms this team might wear for home games. Irrational? Baseless? A waste of time? Probably, but it struck me as something others might want to see. Take from it what you will but (a Mod no less) pissing out dismissive one liners seems out of place.

[redskin_rich]

I appreciate you taking time away from telling children that Santa Claus isn't real, but did this post add much here?

The stats aren't random, they are based on hard numbers from the games played. Obviously that doesn't mean that it'll apply to the game this week but it doesn't invalidate them for what they are. We're all looking for trends on things ranging from Campbell's progress to what color uniforms this team might wear for home games. Irrational? Baseless? A waste of time? Probably, but it struck me as something others might want to see. Take from it what you will but (a Mod no less) pissing out dismissive one liners seems out of place.

I wasn't trying to be dismissive, I just think you need to wait until about 6 games or so are played before you can start to see a real pattern.

That and I hate stats. :)

I'll be sure to write an entire paragraph, next time I dispute what someone believes is a trend. OK?

[Hrabanmaur]

I hope we blitz Marcus Washington like mad with Jason Taylor out. At least the defense will have to account for him. Otherwise, we will rely on him to ineptly chase down running backs (while getting outpaced by Fletcher coming from further away) or attempt to cover a zoned area (which he can't actually do anymore because he's showing little agility or speed). I'm worried about our defense against the Cowboys offensive juggernaut.

[BraveHeartFan]

So if we go three wide, you are going to counter with your dime? That leaves (in a base 3 lineman set) 2 LBs (presumably Ware and Ellis/Spencer). I have to imagine that's a huge advantage for the run, and the Eagles knew it and Westbrook demolished you. I would like 3 TDs from Portis and with Washington not letting up the same level of big plays as the Eagles are prone to doing (that's the risk you run when you run a Jim Johnson defense), we would have a good shot at this.



He's definitely not good enough to cover Cooley consistently. A blown assignment is a blown assignment.

Could be. I don't know for sure. I just know that they've been sliding Henry inside during the first three games to cover the play making TE instead of allowing Roy or Watkins to get matched up one on one with them, or Ellis for that matter.

While it leaves a team more vulnerable to the run it hasn't produced anything significant in the running game yet this year for Cleveland, Philly, and the Pack.

Lewis: 13 carries, 62 yards, 4.8 average, 0 TDs, long of 24 (Not bad but essentially means we allowed him to make one real run us. The rest of the day a meger 12 carries, for 38 yards which is 3.1 per)

Westbrook: 18 carries, 58 yards, 3.2 average, 2 TDs (Both on 1 yard plunges), long of 14

Grant: 13 carries, 54 yards, 4.2 average, 0 TDs, fumble, long of 9


Hardly anything in there is demolishing, of any kind, on the ground. The Eagles put up a bunch of first half points, got to give them major props, but they scored exactly 7 in the second half to our 17.

Plus, and I could easily be wrong I'll have to wait till Sunday to find out, but I don't think your secondary is nearly as good as theirs so I do think that Dallas will be able to hit the big plays on it.

[guess88]

I hope we blitz Marcus Washington like mad with Jason Taylor out. At least the defense will have to account for him. Otherwise, we will rely on him to ineptly chase down running backs (while getting outpaced by Fletcher coming from further away) or attempt to cover a zoned area (which he can't actually do anymore because he's showing little agility or speed). I'm worried about our defense against the Cowboys offensive juggernaut.

If it helps at all... last night in Madden, my Skins won a decisive battle, with Romo throwing 4 picsks.. Landry returning one for a TD. Then again, Doughty had half of the picks so.. yeah. Their weakest offensive link is Romo and his error prone ways... we keep him boggled and out of rythem we win the game.

[guess88]

Could be. I don't know for sure. I just know that they've been sliding Henry inside during the first three games to cover the play making TE instead of allowing Roy or Watkins to get matched up one on one with them, or Ellis for that matter.

While it leaves a team more vulnerable to the run it hasn't produced anything significant in the running game yet this year for Cleveland, Philly, and the Pack.

Lewis: 13 carries, 62 yards, 4.8 average, 0 TDs, long of 24 (Not bad but essentially means we allowed him to make one real run us. The rest of the day a meger 12 carries, for 38 yards which is 3.1 per)

Westbrook: 18 carries, 58 yards, 3.2 average, 2 TDs (Both on 1 yard plunges), long of 14

Grant: 13 carries, 54 yards, 4.2 average, 0 TDs, fumble, long of 9


Hardly anything in there is demolishing, of any kind, on the ground. The Eagles put up a bunch of first half points, got to give them major props, but they scored exactly 7 in the second half to our 17.

Plus, and I could easily be wrong I'll have to wait till Sunday to find out, but I don't think your secondary is nearly as good as theirs so I do think that Dallas will be able to hit the big plays on it.

Actually, averaging 4.2 and 4.8 ypc aren't very bad numbers. However, the low totals tell me that the team fell behind early, and had to rely on the passing game. If we can run with those numbers, and have long steady drives across the field, we'll be in good shape. It's crucial not to go 3 and out, cause T.O.P. will be pretty critical for a win.

[BraveHeartFan]

Actually, averaging 4.2 and 4.8 ypc aren't very bad numbers. However, the low totals tell me that the team fell behind early, and had to rely on the passing game. If we can run with those numbers, and have long steady drives across the field, we'll be in good shape. It's crucial not to go 3 and out, cause T.O.P. will be pretty critical for a win.


Agreed, they're not bad numbers, by any means. They're just numbers. But Westbrook and Grant were not products of falling behind early and having to play catch up. Quite the opposite, in fact.

The Eagles lead at the half. They just weren't as effective running the ball as those numbers might indicate.

The Packers were never WAY behind in the ball game until late into the 4th quarter when Dallas went up by 18. For the longest time it was no worse than 10-6 or 13-6. They just, again, weren't as effective at running the ball as those numbers indicate.

That's not to say that Washington won't be. They might very well run for 150 on Dallas, for all I know. Just have to wait and see but I do have to like my chances.

[guess88]

Agreed, they're not bad numbers, by any means. They're just numbers. But Westbrook and Grant were not products of falling behind early and having to play catch up. Quite the opposite, in fact.

The Eagles lead at the half. They just weren't as effective running the ball as those numbers might indicate.

The Packers were never WAY behind in the ball game until late into the 4th quarter when Dallas went up by 18. For the longest time it was no worse than 10-6 or 13-6. They just, again, weren't as effective at running the ball as those numbers indicate.

That's not to say that Washington won't be. They might very well run for 150 on Dallas, for all I know. Just have to wait and see but I do have to like my chances.

Oh hell.. if we run for 150 we win the game.. we're not Minny. :) I watched all those games actually... Westbrook hasn't been having great rushing totals throughout the season, but he makes up for it with his receiving yards. The eagles are a good quick score team, but they don't have the type of running game to win the battle of the clock. Maybe in the past, but McNabb doesn't have the legs he used to, and they don't have any semblance of a power runner. They are a passing 1st team after all.

Actually... almost every game I've seen this season has been pretty pass heavy. Wonder if that's the new trend for this year. Grant did OK, but wasn't he hobbled or got hurt somewhere in that game? Regardless, Aaron Rodgers was facing pressure all night, and seemed much less like the 2nd coming of Favre like the media would have us believe.

[BraveHeartFan]

Oh hell.. if we run for 150 we win the game.. we're not Minny. :) I watched all those games actually... Westbrook hasn't been having great rushing totals throughout the season, but he makes up for it with his receiving yards. The eagles are a good quick score team, but they don't have the type of running game to win the battle of the clock. Maybe in the past, but McNabb doesn't have the legs he used to, and they don't have any semblance of a power runner. They are a passing 1st team after all.

Actually... almost every game I've seen this season has been pretty pass heavy. Wonder if that's the new trend for this year. Grant did OK, but wasn't he hobbled or got hurt somewhere in that game? Regardless, Aaron Rodgers was facing pressure all night, and seemed much less like the 2nd coming of Favre like the media would have us believe.

Agreed. If we let you guys run wild like that you'll win for sure. That will allow you to control the clock and wear everyone down.

I am starting to wonder as well if its not just natural progression that everyone seems to want to throw the ball more and more. Except Pittsburgh who still likes to run more than pass as much as possible but who could blame them with a line that terrible.

[guess88]

Agreed. If we let you guys run wild like that you'll win for sure. That will allow you to control the clock and wear everyone down.

I am starting to wonder as well if its not just natural progression that everyone seems to want to throw the ball more and more. Except Pittsburgh who still likes to run more than pass as much as possible but who could blame them with a line that terrible.

Actually, it's the 2 Pitt games i watched this season thad had me wondering it. I know they're usually run first, but they seemed to be passing it a lot, even after Ben hurt his shoulder.