ES Coverage

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 SEATTLE - Welcome everyone to your Week 9 of the Regular Season coverage on Extremeskins, it's TSO here up in the Century Link Press Box along with the top guy himself, @TK - who will be providing us wondrous pics of the action from the sidelines. We're both geared up and ready to provide you the best damn Skins' coverage on the planet! 

     "Next man up!" 

     "Injuries are just an excuse!"

     "Good coaches overcome injuries!" 

     Sounds contagiously valiant, doesn't it? The go to phrases for fan machismo, if you will. But I'm here to say screw that, yeah right, and whatever.

     When your unquestionably elite starting LT is hurt, and the backup who can fill in for him admirably is as well, you've got a problem. When the guy who's started next to him for years now is also hurt, the guy with which ample amounts of chemistry has been built through experience, that just adds to it exponentially. But wait, there's more! The Center is out, too! Oh, the stud RG you drafted 4th overall a couple years ago? Yup, he's hurting. And the guy next to him? Two ankles.

   Yeah. It'd be enough to damage any positional unit's ability to succeed when its two best players are hurt. But when all the above is happening AND you even got those backups filling in getting hurt during the game on top of it... it's friggin ridiculous, suffice to say.    

   When your stud rookie Dlineman - who you just picked in the first round to bolster what was an absolute terrible unit the previous season - is out with a Lisfranc, and then the guy who has emerged next to him as another stud while both turning the unit around so much so that it elevated the entire defense (as is the prerogative of a good Dline) also gets hurt with a broken hand, well, that's a problem. Again, the two best players on the unit HURT. 

   When you lose your elite starting CB for a few games, and then also have your next best one starting on his opposite side getting hurt enough to miss at least one game (notice the trend here?), while the rookie Safety who has emerged can't stay on the field an entire game, and the vet Safety you just signed is also struggling with injuries, and one of the backups to those Safeties ends up on IR, and some of the backups to the aforementioned DBs are getting hurt during games, and... well, you get a run on sentence. 

  When arguably your best pass catcher on the team, who happens to play at TE, is hurting all season (granted, to no one's surprise), but then your third TE also gets hurt, while your top two outside WRs are struggling, and you're relying on your slot WR who ALSO just got hurt and isn't going to play now... welp, yay for that.

  Season ending injuries. Nagging injuries that are significant enough for guys to miss games and/or playing time during games. Injuries guys can play on but are hampering their ability to perform at their best. Freak injuries. Injuries one can play on but might lead to significant future damage. It's all there. All the time. At every. Single. Unit. 

  It isn't just an excuse to justify poor performances anymore, by the coaches or players. It's turned into THE story of the season, and absolutely justifiably so. Those who are unwilling to point to that while being lenient to all those involved in terms of criticism simply lack a shred of empathy in my mind. Frighteningly so.    

  What's so frustrating about it is that this was the roster, going into the season, that was unquestionably the best one we've had in decades. This was the year we could've witnessed a significant leap, and did for a few glorious weeks. A scrappy win against a Rams team with a solid roster from top to bottom. A dominant win against a Raiders team that was as dominant themselves as any team in the league at that point, in prime time. Taking it to the Chiefs, who were arguably the best team in the league at that point, up to the last minute - also in prime time but at their place. Only to have one injury after another occur (we lost both Allen and Norman that game, with a litany of others to immediately follow as disgustingly described above) and destroy the momentum being built right before our very eyes. The bye week after did next to nothing to save us. 

  So this game against a Seahawks team, looking like a contender (per the norm) and at their place where they rarely lose, is in the books already, right? All is lost, no point in suiting up, go home with our tails between our legs and save ourselves some embarrassment. 

  But that's the beauty of it, isn't it? When human arrogance dares to call something contingent as necessary, it gets humbled real fast and often. When that same arrogance blinds one to the realism of hope, and they fool themselves into believing that being realistic excludes being hopeful, well... hope prevails much more often than they're willing to give it credit for, to put it nicely.  

  So that's what I'm holding on to right now. And desperately so, because all indications point to a beating here. There's so much going against the team and for the Seahawks, even with them having some key injuries like Earl Thomas, as well. It's just not remotely as bad overall for them. 

   But I'm hoping a team filled with guys who want to prove themselves - in what they surely know is likely an extremely small window of opportunity for them to do so - play their hearts out and shock the world. A team that has played hard for a good group of coaches more often than not. A team going through the struggle together and for each other. Those are the type that often surprise and, God willing, we get quite the pleasant, season-defining, one here today.  

  Stay tuned for more coverage throughout the day from @TK and I, and Hail To The Redskins!       

1st Half Notes: 

- Kelley and Perine out returning kicks. 

- Brian Quick out there consistently. 

- Doctson and Grant starting two WRs in base formation with Sprinkle and Davis as two TEs. 

- DHall starting at Safety. 

- Perine doesn't open up enough for handoff, paying too much attention to the blocking. Fumbles after a great pass from Kirk to Davis. 

- Lanier in on third down nickel defense. Provides a nice rush and hit on Wilson. 

- Arthur Jones playing mostly at LDE. 

- Defense keeping us in it big time. Dline started strong getting consistent pressure on Wilson, then Seahawks started running more with success. Hood playing better than last week early on, but regressed a bit in the 2nd quarter. Surprised to even see Hood rushing the passer well. Lanier has shown up in a big way. Pass rush after pass rush. Really impressive stuff. Holds and false starts on the Seahawks Line also a product of the front's play. 

- I have no idea how this offense is going to move the ball. No Oline to either run block well or pass block well. Kirk is freaking out. TEs can't run block as usual. RBs automatically have to make moves in the backfield.a Receivers not getting open against this secondary. It's just, ugh. That drive in the 2nd quarter featured some quicker throws to Davis and nice running. Seems like that's the only way at this point. 

- Seahawks are a 2nd half team. We've got to come out firing, as crazy as that sounds right now. Love the defensive performance, and the offense seemed to have found something there in the 2nd quarter, notwithstanding the final drive. Hopefully they can maintain. 

2nd Half Notes: 

- Lanier continues his solid play with another good pass rush on the first drive and hasn't stopped since. Just relentless. He's caused a bunch of bad throws from Wilson single-handedly. It's been super impressive. 

- Seahawks clearly going back to what they were successful with in the first half, rushing the ball. Our pass rush has been unstoppable though. 

- As usual, just nothing you can do about Wilson scrambling and finding receivers outside of the play. Otherwise, constant pressure on him has forced errant throws. 

- Started bootlegging Cousins more. Some limited success there. 

- Cousins definitely had some bad throws this game, but he is also facing consistent pressure and going against one of the best secondaries in the game. Guys are just not getting open down the field. One clear poor throw to Davis on a wheel route in the third quarter.

- Kendall Fuller displayed his closing speed a few times. One was a TD saving pass break up. 

- Another bad snap from Roullier in the shotgun formation, this time high. Last week he had one low. 

- They didn't score, but that 2 point conversion with Norman and Swearinger playing catch was fun to watch. So close, yet so far away. 

- We had too many first downs that were losing yards, be it due to sacks, bad snaps, or TFLs. Can't recover against this defense like that. Was worried the Seahawks would take away the quick game that worked on that one drive in the first half and we wouldn't have an answer. We don't. People can claim injuries aren't an excuse, but they make you one dimensional as a play caller. It's not easy to be dynamic when your options are limited personnel-wise, and you've got guys who aren't in tune with every aspect of the offense on the field. 

- It's okay to allow your defense to win you a game. It's actually allowed, last time I heard. Especially when you're in an environment like Seattle, against a team that plays consistently great defense, with an Oline ravaged by injuries. It's. OH. KAY. That won't stop many from making this some kind of treatise on Kirk or Jay, I know. Nothing will. But it needs to be said.  

- Defense played valiantly. Can't complain about them, even with the final drive from the Seahawks. Seahawks only scored twice on the day, with an offense that had only one drive for a TD, and tough field position throughout. The pressure they applied on Wilson was amazing, suffice to say. 

- Overall, I know this'll be an opportunity for people to pile on Jay and Kirk. But I'm not going to and I don't think anyone should. Kirk didn't play well. Yes. As is the case with so many QBs going up against this defense in their place. But that last drive was glorious. Two absolute strikes to Quick and Doctson with the Seahawks playing super aggressive. So many use phrases like "he's not a gamer" and "he's not clutch", yet, that's EXACTLY what he proved he is there.  

- Huge opportunity for Dunbar to finish the game with an INT on Seahawks final drive. McClain does it for him with a huge sack on Wilson. Game over. HOPE IS ALIVE, THANK GOD!!!! 

This is called the "I'm late as hell" write-up.

My name is JimmiJo and I will be joined by someone to bring you this most critical NFC East matchup between the Washington Redskins and Dallas Cowboys.

My thoughts? Just because they are due a win doesn't mean Washington get one. Look at the injuries and what the Cowboys are capable of and you have to come to the conclusion that a win today is going to have be earned. And then some.

Then too the weather favors the team with the better running game.

Time to jam to the stadium. See you before kickoff.

Inactives:

CB Bashaud Breeland

TE Jeremy Sprinkle 

G Brandon Scherff

T Trent Williams

T Ty Nsekhe

C Spencer Long

WR Brian Quick

1st Quarter

Finally got to the stadium. 10-7 as I type. So far typical Redskins v Cowboys; turnovers, big plays, and lot's of fun.

Talk soom

JimmiJo (first draft)\

“You’re blowing it kid!”

I remember Angelou Dundee yelling this at Sugar Ray Leonard in the corner during a championship fight. I felt like doing the same thing to head coach Jay Gruden tonight.

I asked him about adjustments; how and when they are done.

From my perch in the press box it seems like teams seem to make adjustments that the Redskins don’t seem to react well to. As a result, Washington jumps out to leads that, over the course of the game gets chipped away, then overcome, then vanquished.

He brought me down to earth by reminded us that because of injuries he is working with players who, in some cases, literally arrived in the last few days. The litany of injuries this past month are staggering. It is a struggle to think of a time when a team suffered so many injuries and flourished.

Still, this is the NFL and the teams that best accommodate injuries are the teams playing in February. And I can’t help but feeling the season is getting away from this team.

This is a far cry from how I was feeling just a few 2-3 weeks ago.

Then Washington was vying for a share of the lead in the division. Now, they sit in a firm third place and a trip to Seattle next week.

And more and more injuries.

My other observation is Kirk Cousins struggles to perform with pressure. I get that he has been dealing with a line held together with masking tape. But the difference between him and a guy like Carson Wentz last week was stark.

And for the first time since he became the starter, I am starting to believe it may be time to move on. It would be great to have pristine conditions where he can light it up – but that is rarely going t happen.

More in a bit…

Trapped

Hello my friends. JimmiJo here. I am joined by my partner; Spaceman Spiff. Together we will bring you the sights and sounds of today's match between the Washington Redskins and San Francisco 49ers. 

This game has all the markings of the classic 'trap' game. The Washington Redskins are hosted an 0-5 San Francisco 49ers; a squad desperate for a win.

The Redskins don't fare well is such games, if history if any game. No, not actual history; but history according to Pappas. I remember witnessing an 0-5 Titans leave with a win. I recall Washington allowing Detroit, who were hosting 18-straight losses, to get well.

Bingo!

But we must consider this Redskins' team is a different deal. These guys are playing with an attitude.

Having Josh Norman out hurts. But it looks like Trent Williams is active and we will see if he starts (betcha he does).

Stand by...

Inactives

The Redskins declared the following players as inactive:

o   No. 20 RB Rob Kelley

o   No. 22 S Deshazor Everett

o   No. 24 CB Josh Norman

o   No. 40 LB Josh Harvey-Clemons

o   No. 72 DL Anthony Lanier II

o   No. 79 T Ty Nsekhe

o   No. 87 TE Jeremy Sprinkle

No. 25 Chris Thompson is expected to start in place of Kelley at running back.

No. 35 Montae Nicholson is expected to start in place of Everett at safety.

No. 47 Quinton Dunbar is expected to start in place of Norman at cornerback.

The 49ers declared the following players as inactive:

o   No. 10 WR Kendrick Bourne

o   No. 20 CB Leon Hall

o   No. 27 DB Dexter McCoil

o   No. 44 FB Kyle Juszczyk

o   No. 56 LB Reuben Foster

o   No. 62 OL Erik Magnuson

o   No. 97 LB Dekoda Watson

Keys to the Game

Punch them in the mouth early. Use the run to set up play-action. Disruptive pressure on defense. Win the turnover battle.

Here's to a good game with no injuries. 

Follow along in-game on Twitter @Skinscast. 

Half

Redskins are doing well, dominating all statistical categories. But the let down at the end of the game resulted in at least a 4-point giveaway. FOr the second straight game, individual players on the defense are finding ways to extend drive.

Kirk Cousins finished the half 15-for-21 for 201-yards, 2 touchdowns and an interception and a 130.55 rating.

For San Francisco, disarray is the word of the day. Brian Hoyer has been benched for C.J. Beathard, grandson to Bobby Beathard. Beathard just found a way to get 7 on the board.

The 49ers get the ball to start the half. 

JimmiJo

They just had to make it interesting.

After a fairly domination first 28-minutes of the game, things changed for the Washington Redskins. Washington was holding a comfortable 17-0 lead when the San Francisco 49ers sent rookie quarterback C.J. Beathard in the game.

All he did was march the team down for a touchdown at the end of the half.

He then led a field goal drive to start the second half, and then a touchdown following Vernon Davis’ fumble.

That tied the game tied at 17. Redskins fans were dismayed, but hardly surprised.

Washington woke up in the fourth quarter; adding a field goal to go up three, and then another six on a Kirk Cousins read-option scamper.

It was a bad omen when kicker Dustin Hopkins missed the extra point.

Cousins finished the day 25-of-37 for 330-yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception with a quarterback rating of 102.3.

Concern turned to nightmare when Beathard hit a wide open (and former Redskins receiver) Aldrick Robinson for a touchdown. Robinson was the beneficiary of a blown coverage that left him running free to the end zone, pulling San Francisco within 2.

The niners would get another chance with under 2-minutes to play. Lacking timeouts, they made a run for it; advancing the ball to midfield before a penalties and dropped balls started to catch up to them.

On the final meaningful play of the game, Kendall Fuller reached up and grabbed the interception to put away the game.

Head Coach Jay Gruden said after the game something to the effect that it is a good sign when a team is not too happy when they get a win. That guys would find stuff not to like about the game.

One writer told me he thought this meant the team is maturing.  I thought it meant that knew the 49ers stink and it should never have been so close.

There was plenty not to like about this game. Surrendering a 17-point lead. Stupid personal fouls to give up first downs. Horrendous officiating.

And once again, injuries.

Bashaud Breelend is going to an MRI tomorrow to discover the extent of his knee problems.

Gruden said Breeland will have an MRI Monday. Defensive Lineman Jonathan Allen suffered a foot-sprain. Montae Nicholson has a shoulder injury. Stefan McClure a knee sprain and Fabian Moreau hamstring tightness.

But a win is a win and Washington will take it as they get ready to travel to Philadelphia for a rematch with the Eagles.

Washington amassed 419 total yards of offense this game. They had 325-net yards passing and 94-yards rushing, with 6-different rushers used. Chris Thompson led all backs with 33 yards.

Thompson finished the day as the leading receiver for the Redskins, totaling 105 yards on 4-receptions. He led a field of 9 different receivers.

Washington’s defense finished the day with 3 sacks and 1 interception.

Next week Washington faces division-leading Philadelphia Eagles at their place. This is a rematch of the Week 1 loss suffered at FedEx Field. They play Monday night.

We will see you for the next home game.

So, with about half of a former roster coming back home this week, it feels like maybe Bruce shoulda penciled in the 49ers as Homecoming/Alumni Week. Though that whole “Homecoming” theme never really went our way, typically ending in a Redskins loss. Freshly minted first time Head Coach Kyle Shanahan brings his surprisingly 0-5 49er team to FedEx Field this Sunday. Now, there’s just no way this week I have the time to review all 5 of their games, so I’m picking two games at random. First up is their Week 2 game at the Seahawks, followed by their week 4 loss to the Cardinals. The 9ers lost both of these games by 3 points each. And both of these games were on the road, just like tomorrow’s will be for them. Here we go…

AT SEATTLE

First thing that stands out is the 9er Defense is kinda like wet cardboard. They allow the Seahawks to start the opening drive at their own 25 & march it all the way down to the 9ers 7 yard line before finally holding Seattle to a Field Goal. Seattle even converted a 4th & 1 at the 9ers 41 yard line during this drive. With a no gain run at the 7 yard line followed by two incomplete passes, it was more the Seahawks stalling theirselves out then it was the Defense finally making a stop.

The Offense’s opening drive, Kyle surprisingly calls a run to the right to start with. It’s on 2nd Down that he calls his shot deep that goes incomplete. On 3rd & 1 they run it & get half of it. Unable to get a yard the 9ers are forced to punt. Had the deep ball been more accurate, they’d still be on the field. 

Second drive, second play & the Defense gets a sack for a loss of 1. Defense holds them to a 3 & out. 

On SF’s 2nd Offensive drive, it gets a bit cray cray. Here’s the Official description of what happened:

(5:39) (Shotgun) B.Hoyer pass short middle intended for C.Hyde INTERCEPTED by B.Wagner at SF 43. B.Wagner to SF 36 for 7 yards (M.Goodwin). FUMBLES (M.Goodwin), recovered by SEA-R.Sherman at SF 36. R.Sherman to SF 36 for no gain (C.Hyde).

Like I said, cray cray. To make it even more screwy, Russel Wilson is sacked for a loss of 8 on the Seahawks 1st Down the very next play. The Defense is trying to make a lot of substitutions this drive, Seattle responds by picking up the pace on Offense. On 3rd & 9 Seattle drops a sure TD in the end zone & are force to kick another field goal. They’re not getting TD so far but the Defense isn’t really stopping them either.

One play into the 2nd Quarter & SF takes their first timeout. 3rd & 3 & they don’t convert. This Offense can’t get anything going. Seattle takes over after the punt, on their own 3 yard line. Seattle picks up 4 yards on two plays on the ground. Wilson to Lockett gets them a 3rd Down conversion. The 49ers Defense should have gotten off the field there but couldn’t. 

At this point, SF has had 8 plays for 17 yards & their T.O.P. is a measly 3:57 while on the flip side, Seattle has had 34 plays for 127 yards with a T.O.P.of 15.11.

Offensively, Seattle got a few more plays off before the Defense finally made a stop. 

9ers next drive opens with a 14 yard pass to Kittle. Kittle’s a good sized rookie & one to keep an eye on how Kyle uses him. Hoyer throws a mistimed pass out of bounds & gets called for Intentional Grounding. Garçon’s first catch this game is for 6 yards. 9ers once again end up punting. Then the Seahawks end up running 4 plays & punt. The 9ers Defense had started out as turnstiles but have now started to tighten up a little bit. Especially in the run game.

Let’s see if the 9ers can get anything going this drive….Hoyer pitches to Hyde on a run around to the left for a gain of 6. 2nd & 4 at their own 17. And there it is. Hyde, on the ground breaks loose for a gain of 61 yards. And guess who the only 49er is downfield blocking for him, our guy Garçon. Oh & it’s started raining in this game too. Seattle’s Defense holds the 9ers to 3 & out & SF settles for a field goal. 6-3 Seattle at the Two Minute Warning.

Seattle goes 3 & out & San Fran finishes the first half off by hitting another field goal to tie it up at 6-6. At least it was a quick half. So far with only 2 quarters in, this is the worst Kyle Shanahan offense I’ve seen since John Beck tried to run it. Hoyer isn’t a starter. He’s been inaccurate enough to maybe be a 3rd string QB. Maybe. I wonder if Kyle tried to coax Grossman out of retirement before going with Hoyer. Hyde, an every down back with good size, is probably the best weapon they have on Offense. And Garçon has only had one target so far.

The 9ers open the Second Half with seven plays, a timeout & a punt. (Res next offensive drive starts at their own 6 yard line. Hyde gets 1 yard uno the middle then Hoyer is sacked for what appeared to be a Safety but the officials spot the ball inside the 1. Hoyer then passes for a gain of 10 & are forced to punt from the 11. A bad punt put Seattle at nearly mid field. They manage to waste it & go 3 & out. 

San Fran with the fair catch at their own 13. Hoyer to Garçon for 11 yards. Then it’s Hyde off the LG for 4 yards followed by Hyde getting 5 yards off of the RT but there’s a 10 yard penalty for Offensive Holding & they lose 10 yards. Hoyer’s next pass is again, incomplete. On 3rd & 16, Breida gets 10 yards up the middle & San Fran once again punts while I try to stay awake watching this disaster. 

Seattle takes over with a run & two incomplete passes just so they can punt it back to the 49ers. Hoyer hits Goodwin for a gain of 12 as the 3rd Quarter ends. Hoyer starts the 4th Quarter with a 8 yard pass to Hyde that gets them to the 50. Hyde gets another 6 on the ground, Hoyer incomplete to Hyde. Next it’s Breida again for gains of 11 & 13, & 4.The 9ers take a timeout & follow it up with incomplete passes to Goodwin & Garçon.   Gould hits a 34 yard field goal & the 9ers take a 9-6 lead. 

Seattle answers with a 10 plays for 82 yards in 4:30 for touchdown but miss the extra point. Seahawks take the lead back at 12-9. After the kickoff there’s 7:01 left on the clock in the 4th. San Fran goes 3 & out. With 4:47 left, Seattle does enough to get to the Two Minute Warning, then they continue to eat the clock by taking 3 kneel downs to end it. 

Like I said at the Half, worst looking Kyle Shanahan Offense I’ve seen since John Beck. Even old, broken down McNabb ran it better then this. And yeah I know SF is in a rebuild, but Kyle has enough of his guys that have been in this system long enough, a quality QB would get it going like it should. Hoyer was 15 of 27 for 99 yards passing.His longest pass was 14 yards, he had 1 INT, a completion percentage of 55.6% & a QB Rating of 48.2. Hyde had 15 attempts for 124 yards on the ground & caught 3 of 6 passes for 19 yards. Both Goodwin & Garçon had 3 catches for 26 yards each. 

Let’s see if they improved any two weeks later against the Cardinals….

AT ARIZONA

To start off, the Cards are missing 3 of thier starting O Line so SF should, on paper, get a lot of pressure on Palmer this game. Oh & RB David Johnson is out this game for the Cards as well. 

The Cards take the opening drive from their 25 to the SF 4 where on 3rd & 4 Palmer gets picked off at the Goal line for a touchback. San Fran takes over at the 20 with 8:16 left in the First Quarter. Hyde gets 2 on the ground followed by two incomplete passes from Hoyer to Garçon & Taylor. # & out & they punt. So the Cards with the mentality of “anything you can do, we can do better” are also held to a 3 & out & a punt. From their 24 Hoyer hits Goodwin for a gain of 18. Hyde gets 11 on the ground. Two positive plays in a row, could they be gaining momentum? Yeah, no. Brieda looses 3 yards & Hoyer passes incomplete. Then again…Hoyer connects with Taylor for 12 then gets 3 up the middle. Followed by incomplete passes to Paulsen & Goodwin. Hoyer to Taylor for 4 yards & the 9ers hit a 49 yard field goal. 3-0 49ers.

The Cards answered with a 9 play 63 yard field goal. They had a touchdown but it was reversed.  Tied game at 3-3. Cardinals passing game is looking REALLY good so far. 

San Fran starts the next drive at their 15. They pick up 6 yards on two runs, ALDRICK ROBINSON SIGHTING- Hoyer complete to Aldrick for 16 yards. SF goes No Huddle. Breida stopped on the ground for a loss of 2. Hoyer goes deep left to Aldrick for a gain of 24. Hoyer complete to Taylor for 11. Last 3 plays were No Huddle. Hoyer to Garçon for a gain of 6 & they burn a timeout. Hoyer in Shotgun & he gets sacked, loss of 11. (Res are forced to kick a 39 yard field goal, it’s good. SF takes the lead at 6-3.

Arizona starts at their own 25, get to the SF 39 before stalling out & having to punt it away. SF’s Defense has started getting to Palmer. If they weren’t sacking him, they were knocking the snot outta him. (The 49ers get 3 plays off- a run, an incomplete pass, & then Hoyer throws a pick & it’s Two Minute Warning time. Three plays later the Cards tie it up with a 43 yard field goal. 6-6 

Next drive, Hoyer completes to Kittle for 14 yards then has 3 incomplete passes & they punt it away. The Cards stall out with a 3 & out to end the 1st Half.

The 49ers start the 3rd Quarter with a great drive. Hoyer to Garçon for 16, ?Hoyer to Kittle for 21 yards, Hyde for 14 on the ground, Hoyer to Juszczyk for 5, Breida for 8. Hoyer to Breida an 11 yard touchdown that gets nullified due to Offensive Pass Interference. Hoyer gets sacked on the next play for a loss of 10. Hoyer complete to Hyde for 2, then incomplete to Taylor. Gould hits the 47 yard field goal  & SF takes a 9-6 lead. 

Nine plays later the Cards answer with a 50 yard field goal. Tied game at 9.

SF starts at their 25. Hyde gets nothing up the middle. Hoyer complete to Aldrick for 12. QB SWITCH - HOYER OUT, BEATHARD IN- Hyde goes up the middle for a gain of 15. Hoyer back in & passes incomplete to Kittle. Breida gets 6 on the ground, Hoyer to Taylor for 12, SF called for Offensive Holding, Hoyer incomplete to Aldrick, Hoyer complete to Hyde for 7 then incomplete to Garçon. 4th Down. 48 yard field goal is good 12-9 SF leads. 

The 9ers next drive starts at their 20. Hoyer incomplete to Aldrick. Brieda stopped for a loss of 1 up the middle. Hoyer incomplete pass to Brieda & they punt it away.  The Cards go 50 yards in 11 plays & kick a 32 yard field goal to tie it up at 12. Clearly these teams do not believe in touchdowns. 

There’s 7:06 left on the clock & to quickly sum it up, neither team really does much of anything. This game stays tied at 12-12 & goes into OT. 

SF starts OT on Offense & get a field goal to go up 15-12. Carson Palmer aint having that. Eight plays later he throws a touchdown pass complete to Larry Fitzgerald for the 18-15 win.

Maaaaaaaaan…..The 49ers are not a good team, but I’d bet they could still beat the Giants. 

Skins start the 4th with a Doctson sighting & Perine playing hot potato with a snap all the way out of bounds. Failed drive means a 51 yard punt. The Offense really needed to sustain a time eating drive to give the Defense a rest. They’re  getting worn down & gassed. Which is the perfect thing one for Reid to turn up the Hunt targets. Hunt gets feed twice , then they direct snap to Kelce. Next up Smith gets another sack. KC ends up kicking the field goal for the lead. 20-17 Chiefs.

Kirk hit Pryor to get them to the 40. Chris Thompson picks up 2. Davis gets blown up on an attempted catch. Kirk on a busted play runs it around to the right & gets the 1st down. Kirk on another busted play takes off up the middle, slows off his head first fall down slide attempt. Still gets the 1st down though. 

Two Minute Waring

Kirk again keeps it runs to the sideline for 8, Thompson gets nothing. 3rd &2 Cousins hits Docton in the endzone & he ****ing drops it. Gyeah. Hopkins hits the field goal for the tie.

47 seconds on the clock. Smith hit Wilson for 37. ****. Smith complete to Conley. Chiefs almost within field goal range. 8 seconds.... 47 yard field goal attempt ... its good. 4 seconds on the clock, Chiefs lead 23-20. Skins take a touchback. And have the absolute WORST hook n ladder attempt as it ends with KC picking it off & scoring a Touchdown. Christ on a cracker that was Swinging Gate bad. 

Your final is 29-20 Chiefs. 

The third quarter opens in a bad way. Josh Norman is out with a rib injury, Rob Kelly is out with an ankle injury. Redskins D is a different creature without Norman. Chiefs have them on their heels the whole drive.  They tighten up by stopping Hunt at the 1 yard line to force a 3rd down them Preston Smith gets called for a penalty. Gyeah. Next play Chiefs take the lead as Alex Smith gets in the endzone. 4-10 Chiefs. Gruden is now saying Norman will be out a few weeks. At least next week is a Bye week. 

Cousins opens this this drive with a 69 yard catch n run to VD . Holy **** that was purty. Skins at the 4. Kirk to Ryan Grant. TOUCHDOWN ****es. 3 plays, 75 yards in 1:38. Where was this at the end of the half? Skins retake the lead 17-14

Swearinger sets the tone to open the Chiefs drive by sacking Alex Smith for a loss of 5. Smith to Kelce as Preston Smith is called for off sides. Redskins Defense still hasn’t found an answer for Kelce all game. They’ve done well stopping Hunt from hitting a major gash, but the TE...man they need a solution for him. From the WTF files, Chiefs are about to kick a field goal, Redskins jump offsides & give them the 1st down. At the 30. Defense ends up somehow holding them to a field goal. It’s tied at 17.

End of the 3rd Quarter 

The second quarter opens with Smith running for his life & picking up 11 on the ground. Their drive ends on an Ioannidis sack of Smith. 

Cousins hit VD for a gain of 20 & everyone holds their breathe as Trent Williams is down. Perine runs for 5 & Hands to the face penalty called on KC tacks 5 more onto it. This drive ends on a stall out & the Skins are forced to punt. Chiefs take over at their 14. Trent is questionable with a knee injury. Knowing Trent he’ll just rub some dirt on it & go back out there and stomp some more ass. 

Hunts gashes a gain of 12 to start this drive. Smith to Kelce , breaks a tackle & picks up a 1st Down. Kelce across the middle & he gets blown da **** up Josh Norman. Chiefs start picking up more yards per play on this drive but the D is still knocking the snot outta em. Chiefs burn a timeout on 3rd & 5 with about six & a half left on the clock. After a gain of 1 Chiefs punt it away. Skins take it over at their own 13. Cousins incomplete to Paul, Skins call timeout & Trent is back in the game. I bet he rubbed some dirt on it. Skins stall out with a 3 & out. 

With 5:01 left in the half Chiefs ball at their own 27 after muffing it at the 28 before they recovered it. Chiefs were about to stall out again until 3rd & I when the D gets called for offsides. Chiefs convert the 3yards they needed & cross the 50.  Defense with a single safety back, Smith hits Conley for 21. Chiefs inside the 20 at the Two Minute Warning. Smith to Kelce to end the shut out. Kicks good, 10-7 Skins. 

Skins working their 2 Minute drill. Jordan Reed at one point refused to go down, had a defense draped on his back & carried him out of bounds. Skins stall..AGAIN.  1:08 to go Chiefs start at their 16. Oh & Norman is out with an injury. Smith, dropped the snap, recovered it, took off to his right, down the sideline until Swearinger takes him Suplex City. Gain of 32. Cheifs finish the drive with a missed 45 yard field goal attempt. With y seconds on the clock, Cousins takes a knee. 10-7 Redskins at the Half. Cheifs will start the second half.

Chiefs won the toss & deferred so the Skins start out on offense. On their opening drive they’re on the verge of a three & out when Rob Kelly converts with a 12 yard gain. Arrowhead went dead quiet. Skins capped this quick drive of 6 plays for 75 yards & a Pryor touchdown. With a Doctson sighting. All in just 3:08. BOOM. Game on mofuggahs. 

On the Defense ‘s first play Preston Smith damn near kills Alex Smith with a loss of 8. Two more plays & they’ve forced the Chiefs into a three & out. 

Redskins start their second drive working both Fat Rob & Chris Thompson on the stretch on the left. Skins fancied a 4th & 1 where Cousins keeps it & picked up 5 yards. GREAT play by Gruden. Skins faced a 3rd & 7 when Cousins completes a pass to Reed over the middle who had his knee down before KC could cause a fumble. We all know it was down because John Keim picked up the press box phone & called down to tell them so. Keim’s the man. On 3rd & goal Cousins on an ugly keeper tried to score but...we’ll never mind. It was hideous. Just know they kicked the field goal & went up 10-0 on the Chiefs. In. There. House. 14 plays for 50 yards in 7:39. 

The Defense smothers Hunt for no gain thanks to Smith & Kerrigan. KC false starts & they’re in 3rd down. Smith launches his own 44 yard completion to Kelce down the middle. Defense didn’t allow any YAC on that one at least. 

End of the first quarter

During pre game warmups there was some trash talking from both teams as they went at each other on the far side of the 50. It didn’t last long before it was broken up.

The Chiefs are currently huddled up at their 10 while the Redskins are back to running drills inside their 20.

Hello again friends, and welcome to ExtremeSkins' Week 4 coverage as the Washington Redskins travel to take on the last undefeated team in football, the Kansas City Chiefs. I am your good luck charm, murf, and I am joined by TK.

As you no doubt are aware, the 2017 Redskins are undefeated (2-0) in games I cover and winless (0-1) when I am not in attendance. While that should be comforting to 'Skins fans, this week's matchup will put my winning streak to the test because the Redskins have never emerged victorious in Kansas City (they're 0-4 lifetime when playing at Arrowhead Stadium).

While Washington's defense turned in an amazingly impressive performance in last week's resounding win over Oakland, limiting the Raiders to just 128 yards of total offense, they'll face a much stiffer test this week against a Chiefs squad that has little trouble moving the chains or putting points on the board.

Chiefs running back Kareem Hunt, fresh off of his AFC offensive player of the month for September, might just be the best back in football these days. With Cardinals running back David Johnson currently injured, Kansas City's rookie has risen to the top of the NFL pecking order while guiding his team to a 3-0 start with monster numbers across the board -- 47 rushes for 401 yards and four touchdowns to go with 137 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns.

If, miraculously, the Redskins are able to limit Hunt's production, the Chiefs will likely turn to tight end Travis Kelce. That's because no team has allowed more yardage to opposing tight ends during the 2017 season than the Redskins. Oh, and let's not forget speedy receiver Tyreek Hill, who also poses a huge threat for the burgundy and gold.

On Sunday Night Football, the Redskins were able to consistently get pressure in Oakland's backfield without having to send extra defenders. If the front four can get to vanilla quarterback Alex Smith, that'll once again go a long way towards helping the back seven limit explosive plays.

That's why I'll be focusing plenty of attention on rookie defensive lineman Jonathan Allen (logged his first NFL sack Week 3) and second-year tackle Matt Ioannidis (who had five pressures and a half sack versus the Raiders). If those two youngsters can help linebackers Ryan Kerrigan and Preston Smith disrupt Kansas City's offense, then the Redskins just might have a chance to win back-to-back primetime games.

On the other side of the ball, the Redskins have to be hoping for a little diversity in their offense. That's because receiver Terrelle Pryor has been on the field for 80 percent of the offense's snaps so far this season and is tied with running back/future Hall of Famer Chris Thompson for the team lead in targets, with 19. Sadly, for as much as head coach Jay Gruden and quarterback Kirk Cousins seems intent on building the passing attack around Pryor, he has yet to produce a single breakout moment so far this season.

With tight end Jordan Reed (shoulder), as well as running backs Rob Kelley (ribs) and Samaje Perine (hand) all recovering from injuries, this week would be a perfect time for Pryor to step up and put this offense on his back. To do so, however, he needs to do a better job of catching the balls thrown his way. Between last season in Cleveland and his first three weeks in Washington, Pryor has caught, on average, 55 percent of the passes thrown his way. Simply put -- that's not good enough for someone as big and fast as Pryor.

Thompson cannot continue to post Tecmo Bowl caliber numbers on a weekly basis, so getting guys like Pryor to make the most out of his opportunities is vital. The Chiefs' secondary isn't anything special -- especially after losing safety Eric Berry to injury. If Pryor can't be more productive than his 38 yards per game average, then it might be a tough day for Cousins and the rest of the Redskins passing game.

Redskins have broke out the old faithful’s for tonight. They’re going with the white jersey/burgundy pants combo.

It’s still a bit early here in the Mid West, only the kicking team is out warming up right now.

One more time before the Bye.  

Last week, I went through & watched both the previous Raider games before they came to town to get made to look like a high school JV team. This week I had thought about doing all 3 Chiefs games before heading off to KC, however due to time constraints I’ll be skipping their Week 1 upset of the Patriots and Week 3 against the Chargers. So, on the docket we’ve got their Week 2 matchup which had the same storyline as the Redskins’ Week 2 game. Skins had Gruden vs McCoy & this one has Reid vs his former Assistant Coach in Doug Pederson. Reid was 8-3 against former assistant coaches going into this game. Here we go….

First thing that comes across is this Arrowhead crowd is effing LOUD already & they haven’t even kicked off yet. Eagles kick it off into the end zone where Thomas brings it out. Jeez he hits a hole & looks like he might take it all the way, then gets tripped up. Thirty yard return gets flagged for Offensive Holding so they’ll start at their own 21.

In their opening drive, KC gets 4 yards on the ground up the middle with Hunt, converts that 2nd Down with a pass to their TE Kelce for 12 yards, then goes with a 3 TE set & a short pass to the right sideline to Conley for 7 yards. Alex Smith takes his deep shot downfield to the right to Kelce for a gain of 44 yards- about half of that was YAC. 

This was their fourth play & was set up nicely by the last three out routes. It reminds me of when Reid was in Philly coaching against a revolving door of Redskins coaches. He’d usually have a shot deep in his opening drive that the other team wasn’t ready for & he was usually successful. Reid tends to script his first 15 offensive plays, running different plays out of the same formations. Occasionally he’ll throw in something you haven’t seen on tape or haven’t seen in a long time. And if you don’t or can’t adjust to it, he’ll keep on going to it. That’s how they upset the Patriots in Week 1.

Anyways, back to their opening drive. They follow up the 44 yard game with an incomplete pass, a 6 yard run by Hill off the LG, & another incomplete short pass to the right. Cue the FG kick for 3. Eight plays for 73 yards. Every play this drive was out of the Shotgun. 

Chiefs take the next drive after an Eagles Field Goal & a touchback at their 25. It’s a seven play drive, which gets us to the end of Reid’s 15 scripted plays, all from the Shotgun. The drive starts, like the opening drive, with a run. However this time it’s to the left side for 1 yard. The opening run was up the middle. It’s back to Kelce to the right for 3, a pass to Hill to the left for 14, short pass to the right to Hunt (Hunt made four guys miss, he had to be gang tackled to get him down) for 16, then an incomplete pass to Hill deep down the left side into the end zone . Smith overthrew him by a hair. Hunt off the Right Tackle picks up 2 on the ground, Smith with another incomplete pass this one intended for Kelce, & the Chiefs punt it away for 39 yards into the end zone for the touchback. So, that’s Reid’s 15 scripted plays. In each drive he started with a run, took a shot deep downfield, ran everything out of the Shotgun, and didn’t pull any trick plays out of his bag of tricks. That’s their offense for the First Quarter that resulted in a 3-3 tie.

Chiefs start their third offensive drive, now in the second quarter, with an incomplete pass over the middle to Harris but Philly is called for Offsides so they pick up 5 yards the easy way. Hunt runs to the right on a stretch play for a loss of 1. Pass to Hill for 4 yards. He gets blown up by Douglas immediately. On 3rd & 2 the Chiefs switch it up & run Wilson up the middle for a gain of 4. KC used a lot of misdirection on that play to try to spring him through the hole so he could burst it downfield. They even hd a WR come back around to fake an end a round. The more you go back & watch it, the more impressive that play gets.  Next snap, KC takes a loss of 5 on a False Start. Still in the shotgun, Alex Smith scrambles up the middle until he gets pushed out at the KC 45 for 8 yards. Doesn’t matter as there’s offsetting penalties so they’re still at their own 37 with a 1st & 15. Smith picks up 4 yards on the right side &. Alex Smith gets sacked on the next snap for a loss of 5 yards. Two steps forward, two steps back. Smith keeps it again, this time he picks up 4. 2nd & 11 & for the first time all. Game Smith is under center & not back in the Shotgun. 2WR/2TE set Smith back to pass looking for a screen to the running back as the pocket collapses like a cheap tailgating tent in the wind. Sack costs them 5 yards so at 3rd & 16 Smith is back in the Shotgun, he dumps it off on Wilson at the right. Eagles D was guarding the 1st Down marker. They rushed 3 & dropped everyone else back to the marker line. Chiefs have to punt. Still 3-3.

Chiefs are now on their fourth drive with 2:25 left in the first half.  Smith is back in the gun & hands it off to Hunt who picks up 2 up the middle. And it’s the 2 Minute Warning. Smith unloads over the middle for Kelce. Smith barely avoided another sack there. It’s a 3 yard gain & KC burns a timeout. It’s 3rd & 5 with 1:26 to go until Half Time. Smith back in the shotgun, can’t find an open receiver as the pocket collapses again & he eats a sack. Loss of 3 yards & KC is forced to punt it away again. But first the Eagles take a time out. Chiefs punt it away & on the return, Sproles makes a few guys miss then the ball get popped out of his hands & the Chiefs recover the fumble. Sproles was nailed by the long snapper who had a textbook tackle, put his shoulder on the ball to cause it to pop out of Sproles’ hands. GREAT Special Teams play. Chiefs ball at the Philly 24 with 1:06 on the clock. Smith back in the shotgun takes yet another sack this one for a loss of 6. 31 seconds left, Smith passes complete to Kelce for a 9 yard gain. KC takes their second time out. 3rd & 7 with 26 seconds left.Smith rolls left & is run down at the sideline. He throws this one away. Barely. Eagles had him dead to rights. Chiefs are held to another Field Goal. It’s 6-3 with 17 seconds left in the half. Eagles missed a 30 yard field goal to end the half.

So far in the First Half, it’s been more of a Defensive game as the score indicates. The Eagles have held Hill in check, which has stopped some of KC’s explosiveness. A deep shot to Kelce on the opening drive & the turnover on Special Teams have been their two best plays. Let’s get to the Second Half offensive drives….

Philly runs 6 plays to open the 2nd half before having to punt so the Chiefs take over at the 13 after a fair catch by Hill. From the Shotgun it’s a 12 yard pass to Wilson, 18 yards to Hill, 11 yards to Hunt, then Hunt up the middle for 1, a pass 1 yard pass to hunt, and then Smith takes another sack. This one is for a loss of 5. Chiefs to punt. Again. Hunt has been held to 6 yards on 9 attempts. 

Next drive starts after the Eagles get it in the End Zone for the game’s first touchdown. Smith, on a keeper, picks up 12 yards. Though he needs to learn how to slide instead of going down head first. It’s Smith to Conley for a gain of seven, then Hunt losses a yard on the left side. Smith connects with his favorite target again & Kelce gains 12 yards. 1st & 10 at the 47. Chiefs are now 3-9 on 3rd downs. Still in the shotgun, Hunt takes the handoff & EXPLODES though Philadelphia like a hot knife through cream cheese. 53 yard touchdown run. Hunt finally got to show off his speed. It’s 13-10 Chiefs. 

Chiefs take the field back after Philly answered with a Field Goal making it tied at 13 & into the 4th Quarter. Chiefs Special Teams take a 71 yard kickoff  and return it for 40 yards.  The Eagles Defense steps up & holds them to a three & out this drive. Chiefs only gained 6 yards on one play. So what’s good for the goose is good for the gander, right? Because as the Eagles street moving down the field, the Chiefs get a turnover by picking off Wentz. KC takes back over at the Philly 31. Smith to Hill for 7 yards, then another Smith scramble to the left where he’s pushed out of bounds at the 20. Gain of 5. Smith connects with Kelce for another 5 yards. 2nd & 5, Smith feeds Kelce again, this time it’s for 15 yards & a touchdown. 20-13 Chiefs. The touchdown pass was another play where they had an obscene amount of motion/misdirection. It was similar to a play they ran in Week 1 against the Patriots.

Now with the momentum, the Chiefs Defense holds Wentz & the Eagles to a three & out. After the 8 yard punt return, KC takes over at the 44. Smith starts this drive with another keeper but it’s a loss of 1. Putting the pedal down, Smith goes deep to Conley down the right sideline for a gain of 35. Chiefs are already in Field Goal range & it’s 1st & 10 at the Philly 21 as KC takes a time out. 4:36 on the clock.  KC comes out of the timeout with Smith under center, hands off to Hunt who runs to the right for 4 yards. Back in the Shotgun, Hunt takes it up the middle for 3 more yards, then picks 12 yards on a run to the left side. Ball at the 2 yard line. Hunt up the middle for the score. Kick’s good & it’s 27-13 KC. 

Philly takes a little over two minutes to go 75 yards in 13 plays for their final touchdown. Philly recovers their own insides kick, KC burns their last two time outs & Wentz’s final pass is incomplete as the clock runs out.

Even though the Chiefs are undefeated, they’re still beatable. I think had Philly not had the turnover on Special Teams they could have had the win here. The keys here are similar as to what the Redskins Defense did to Oakland last week. Get constant pressure on Smith, contain Hunt- do not let him rip off a big 50+ yard gain, and flow to Kelce when he gets the ball. Also don’t let KC’s motion/misdirection turn into a learning lesson for a young secondary.

If you’ve enjoyed these weekly reviews of the upcoming enemy of the week, drop a comment below. If you’re not a fan of them, say so below as well. Doing these are ~ahem~ extremely time consuming so if enough of you dig it, I’ll try to keep doing them. And if not, I’ll free up at least two days time during the week. 

VICTORY!!!

Redskins 27 - 10 Raiders

JimmiJo

Greetings good people. JimmiJo here and I am joined by the partner of my youth, TheMurf. We have joined forces to bring to you the sights & sounds of this evening's primetime matchup between the Washington Redskins and Oakland Raiders.

The Raiders are a good squad. The crowd walking in told me as much - a more than healthy portion of silver and black accompanied me up the hill to FedEx Field.

I was encouraged by the Redskins' performance last week against the Rams. But this Oakland team is a different kettle of fish altogether. 

If Oakland grabs an early lead on Washington (typical of nationally televised night games the Redskins play in), they could be sunk early.

The Raiders enter this match ranked 5th-overall in offense; 3rd in scoring, 4th in rushing but only 14th in passing. 

The Redskins on the other hand are 7th in rush-defense but 26th in passing. Based on these. I am wondering if the Raiders might just be a good matchup?

Oakland is 8th in pass-defense and 18th in run-defense.

Beyond these, Washington's offense is not what we were seeing last season. There has been a significant dropoff since the departure of DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon.

Kirk Cousins has yet to find his rhythm and the great rushing last week may have been an aberation.

My thoughts? Be nervous.

Murf

Hello friends, for the first time during the 2017 season I am reunited with my brother from another moth, JimmiJo, and it feels so good. As always, he will be holding things down in the press box while I patrol the sidelines.

Although I covered last week's win in Los Angeles, it's crazy how much has happened on and off the field in the last seven days. As the team headed back to the East Coast, the biggest topic was the sheer number of injuries to several core players -- including tight end Jordan Reed, inside linebacker Mason Foster, running back Rob Kelley and a slew of others.

Before coach Jay Gruden could even provide an update on his army of walking wounded, the story became the "will he or won't he return" saga of safety Sua Cravens, which ended with the team shutting him down and the second-year player handing out a hundred or so free jerseys to Redskins fans.

Just when things got quiet in our nation's capital, the president of the United States decided to weigh in on football players who choose to peacefully protest, which, in an amazing turn of events, has made every single performance of the national anthem at an NFL stadium must-see TV. So far today, players across the league have locked arms, taken a knee or simply refused to take the field until the conclusion of the anthem. 

It's safe to assume that the action of the Redskins and Raiders during tonight's national anthem, in the stadium closest to our nation's capital, will be of interest to many across the country. Once we get through that, hopefully everyone can settle down for another enjoyable encounter.

After laying an egg against Philadelphia Week 1, the Redskins looked much better running up and down the field versus the Rams. Even if Kelley can't play this evening, I would hope that Gruden and company continue to emphasize the ground game. And if Reed can't go, it's at least nice to know a capable veteran like Vernon Davis is more than ready to step in and step up.

On defense, the Redskins have the unenviable task of trying to contain one of the league's best offenses. Quarterback Derek Carr, running back Marshall Lynch and receivers Amari Cooper and Michael Crabtree are about as good as it gets, and could easily put up 40 points tonight if Washington comes out flat, like they've been known to do on primetime games over the last decade.

In order to have any chance at a victory, the Redskins are going to need a strong outing from quarterback Kirk Cousins. As much as it might be a copout to spotlight the man behind center, this team simply cannot defeat Oakland if Cousins turns in another forgettable performance. As he goes, so too will the rest of the offense.

On defense, I'll be watching Bashaud Breeland. Regardless of whether he lines up against Cooper or Crabtree, he's going to have his toughest matchup of the season. If Breeland shines, then the burgundy and gold faithful just might go to sleep celebrating a D.C. rarity -- a primetime win.

- murf

Inactives

The Redskins declared the following players as inactive:

o   No. 20 RB Rob Kelley

o   No. 38 CB Joshua Holsey

o   No. 54 LB Mason Foster

o   No. 68 G Tyler Catalina

o   No. 69 T T.J. Clemmings

o   No. 72 DL Anthony Lanier II

o   No. 86 TE Jordan Reed

No. 32 Samaje Perine is expected to start in place of Kelley at running back.

No. 51 Will Compton is expected to start in place of Foster at linebacker.

No. 85 Vernon Davis is expected to start in place of Reed at tight end.

The Raiders declared the following players as inactive:

o   No. 18 QB Connor Cook

o   No. 23 CB Dexter McDonald

o   No. 41 S Erik Harris

o   No. 69 T Jylan Ware

o   No. 71 T David Sharpe

o   No. 75 DT Darius Latham

o   No. 95 DL Jihad Ward

Kickoff

Here's to a good game with no injuries. PLEASE surprise me #Redskins.

Follow along live on Twitter @Skinscast. Murf can be found @HomerMcFanboy 

Half

Twelve seasons covering this team and I still don't know jack.

Washington came up with something to say. I loved every minute until the fiasco at the end of the half. Why do I think that's coming back to haunt them? Perhaps they can march down and score to start the 2nd-half and make me feel better. But so far, total domination:

Total net yard - #Redskins 223 - 47 #Raiders

First downs - Redskins 11 - 2 Raiders

Time of Possession - Redskins 20:20 - 9:40 Raiders

See ya soon...

JimmiJo

So that’s not something you see everyday. The Washington Redskins demolished the Oakland Raiders at FedEx Field in front of an announced crowd of 77,123, a quarter of whom probably showed up in black and silver.

They left black and blue.

Washington put as complete a beating on Oakland as you are apt to see. Take away a couple of gift-turnovers in the red zone and the Redskins are pitching a shutout.

The game was never as close as the score. Case-in-point – Oakland went 0-for-11 in third down conversions.

I don’t think I’ve seen that before.

A skim of the stats tell you how lopsided the affair was: Oakland / Washington

The Redskins defense were the stars of the night, snuffing out every chance of life from the Raiders. Oakland’s big guns shot blanks, with players like Marshawn Lynch, Michael Crabtree, and Derrick Carr looking ordinary at best.

Lynch tallied only 18-yards on 6-carries. Crabtree a paltry 1-reception for 7-yards, and Derrick Carr logging but 19-completes on 32-attempts for 118-yards, with 1 touchdown and 2 interceptions, with a passer rating of 52.9.

Washington’s offense on the other hand, featured some key-performers and include guys that opposing defenses are going to have to gameplan for.

One such is Chris Thompson. All the dude does in rack-up all -purpose yards and score touchdowns. Tonight he logged 150-yards thru the air with 6-catches (to lead all receivers) while scoring a touchdown.

Vernon Davis shows there is not much drop-off from Jordan Reed, as he brought in 5-receptions for 58-yards and a touchdown.

Jamison Crowder was the only wideout to crack the top three, logging 52-yards on 6-catches.

But game ball on offense has to belong to Kirk Cousins. Cousins threw 25-for-30 for 365-yards, 3 touchdowns and no interceptions to finish with a passer-rating of 150.7. I asked Cousins if this is offense starting to “click” and he answered to say he doesn’t think in terms of overall big picture but rather about the individual plays and what opportunities were presented to him.

Fair enough. But the bomb to Josh Doctson said plenty about this emerging offense.

Cousins aired the ball out to give Doctson a chance at a jump ball. That’s exactly what happened, with Doctson going high to literally take the ball out of the defender’s arms and waltzed into the end zone.

Washington rang-up 472-yards on a team who pregame, people were considering a possible Super Bowl prospect. After tonight, the good people of Oakland are probably sending letters to the mayor of Las Vegas, asking if the Raiders can come early.

I was curious last week to see if the performance in Los Angeles was a fluke.

I believe the answer I am searching for is; “Hell no!”

Next week presents a real opportunity for Washington. Go to Kansas City and beat that team and people will talk about the Redskins as a real contender for post season action.

Game Book - 2017 Season Week 3 Redskins vs Raiders

2017 Week 3 Raiders at Redskins - Post Game Audio

Aight. Last week was kinda fun reviewing the Rams tape, so I figured let’s do both Raiders games for this week. Yes, both.  For now, here’s the Raiders at Titans game from Week 1.

First up is Week 1 with the Raiders at the Titans. First thing is it’s weird to hear Romo calling this game because he’s always been an NFC guy yet here he is calling an AFC game. Secondly, the Titans start this game with a failed on-sides kick. It was ballsy, but dumb. 

Now to what I’ve been wanting to see, this vaunted Raiders Offense as never watched them last year. So let’s rearview what the Raiders are doing on Offense, drive by drive. Here we go…

Raiders 1st & 10 at the 50 with 14:58 on the clock. Two WR set with Lynch in the backfield. Pass blocking is perfect, Carr with a quick release throws short of the 1st Down marker (a staple of the Redskins O for years) complete to Cooper for 6 yards as he’s wrapped up & on the ground before he can complete a spin around move to go for the YAK. 2nd & 4. Raiders to the line, Lynch in the backfield, 4 WR set- Trips left overload with the fourth(Rookie) on the right.  Handoff to Lynch. No rust on BeastMode. Gains 14 simply by plowing though & bowling guys over. It takes 3-4 defenders to bring him down. 1st & 10 at the 30. Raiders to the line 3 WR set with an empty backfield & BeastMode out wide to the right. Lynch does nothing. Absolutely nothing. He stands there facing Carr, watches the snap, doesn’t move. Maybe that 14 yard run gassed his ass? Anyways, Carr connects with Cook who spins around & does a forward roll before even being touched by a defender for a gain of 22. Cook was wide open. 1st & Goal for the Raiders who have been playing the Titans aren’t even on the field. Raiders to the line, going 5 wide. Carr to Cooper on the underneath route. Cooper, drags about half of the Titans defense with him, muscles his way across the plane for the touchdown. Raiders send out there new kicker, he nails it & it’s 7-0 Raiders.

Oakland’s Defense on this series is nothing to get excited about as they allowed the Titans to march down the field for a touchdown that was ran in by Mariota. Oh & Rookie WR Corey Davis owned CB David Amerson on a sweet sideline pass.

The Titans kick it off for a touchback. Raiders ball at the 25. BeastMode in the backfield, 4 WR set, Trips Left. Carr handoffs to Lynch for a run to the left with 3 extra blockers already there for him coming out of that Trips formation. Gain of 3 as the WRs can’t block for ****. Raiders again going 5 wide with an empty backfield. Sideline pass to Cooper gets broken up. I believe this is Oakland’s first incompletion. 3rd & 7 Raiders go 4 WRs with Lynch in the backfield. Sideline pass to Cook for a gain of 12 & the 1st down. It took four defenders to bring Cook down. He’s a big boy who clearly ate his Wheaties before this game. Raiders go with the End Around to Patterson to change things up a bit. Personally I’ve never been a big fan of the End Around as it rarely gets you any yardage due to the time it takes to get the runner headed back the other way & just wastes a Down more often then not. 2nd & 5 and the Raiders go back to 5 WRs. Again. With Lynch in the backfield. Carr changes the play at the lineCrabtree gets called for Offensive Pass Interference. Oakland gets backed up to a 2nd & 15. So far the only thing that stops this Offense is, this Offense. Raiders back to their 5 WRs but with an empty backfield this snap. Carr passes it to no one as Cooper ran the wrong route. Stop me if you’ve heard this one before, but the Raiders are going 5 Wide with an empty backfield. Carr with a sideline lob to Crabtree who makes the catch but there’s a flag out. PI call on the Defense so the Raiders get the easy 1st Down. Trips left this time with the 4th WR at the bottom of the screen. Betting here it’s either the underneath or the sideline pass down the right…..Oh I AM surprised, it’s actually Lynch up the middle for 3. 2nd & 7 with 4 wide & Lynch in the backfield this time. There’s the underneath to Crabtree who gets to the 12. Flag on the play back at the 40 & after zebra conference it’s no foul. Evidently the SJ thought a WR was a T & had thrown the flag for not enough players on the field. Or something. Still, this is a Week 1 game & Del Rio is on the sideline laughing in the ref’s face as they explain it to him. Raider ball at the 12. Raiders again back to Trips left with Cooper as the fourth WR on the right & Lynch in the backfield. Lynch runs to the left for five yards. Those extra WRs seemed to block a lil bit better this time. 2nd & 5 at the 7. Raiders go 3 WRs spread on the right with the 4th on the left & again Lynch in the backfield. Swing pass to Lynch for a gain of 2 on the left side. Oh look! It’s an Orakpo sighting. 3rd & 3 at the 5. Titans show a FS blitz, Lynch up the middle but gets pushed back short of the first down. 4th & 1. Raiders are going to go for it. Timeout Oakland…Raiders going for it. Handoff to Lynch who is hit at the ankles in the backfield & should have been stopped except he plants & slightly pivot to the right away from the clogged middle, avoids the guy coming through the middle & heads towards his new hole where there’s nothing but daylight between him & end zone. However a defender comes in out of the backfield & wraps him up short of the goal line but he gets the 1st Down. 1st & Goal Raiders. Again, trips bunched left, Cooper on the right, Lynch in the backfield. Quick slant to Cooper is bobbled & dropped. 2nd & Goal. Three WRs spread out this time on the left, Copper still spread out solo on the right. Lynch still in the backfield. Pass again to Cooper is broken up & incomplete. 3rd Down. Carr in the Shotgun passes to Cooper who drops it in the back center of the end zone. Quarter ends & Oakland opens the 2nd quarter with a 3 point field goal. Great drive that chewed up the clock & yardage. They just couldn’t punch it in when they needed to. Sounds familiar to anyone that’’s been watching Redskins football here lately. Only difference is the Raiders were feeding Cooper who couldn’t eat while the Redskins just throw fades to short WRs. 

I may have gotten spoiled in watching McVay’s creativity last week when I reviewed the Rams tape against the Colts. And with the last game I watched being the Thursday Night Shootout between the Rams & the 49ers, this Raiders offense is boring af. I’m go take a power nap cause it’s actually making me sleepy. Hopefully;;y when I get back I can stay awake long enough to get through this Week 1 game tape. No idea how I’ll get through the Riders/Jets game from last week. Maybe a box of coffee from Dunkin will do the trick….

Oakland starts their third drive with Lynch on the bench. Not to be confused with all of those “Remember Elf on a shelf get ready for_______” memes that have been making their way across social media this past week. Raiders line up in what ’s been their base formation this game - Trips bunched left, fourth WR at the top on the screen. It’s a handoff to Washington up the clogged middle for 1. Hot route for 3 yards to Cooper & he picks up the YAC for the first down at the 28. The give is to Washington again up the middle for a gain of 4. No idea why BeastMode is currently BenchMode. 2nd & 6 at the 31. Raiders going 5 wide now with Washington split out wide at the bottom of the screen. Carr quick pass to Cook for the first down. Four WR set with Washington still in the backfield & Carr hands off to Washington who goes up the middle again for 2. Raiders go 5 wide with an 18 yard pass to Crabtree. Crabtree makes the catch in the air, stretched out perpendicular like he’s flying & only missing a cape. 1st & 10 at the 43 & Oakland is back to 4 WRs with Richard in the backfield now. Richard takes the handoff up the middle for a short gain. 2nd & 9 four WRs & Richard  in the backfield again. Play action fake to Richard & Carr is immediately swarmed & sacked for a loss of 5. 3rd & 13. 4 WRs again & again the Titans sack Carr. 4th & 20. Cue the punt team. Punt takes a bounce & Oakland’s ST down it at the 2. Nice ST play. 

On the last drive the Raider Defense pitched a three & out. This drive, not so much. The Titans started at their own 2 yard line & marched it down into the Red Zone where the Defense finally tightened up & held them to a Field Goal. It’s tied at 10 with 43 seconds left in the first half. 

Raiders take the touchback at the 25 yard line. Carr to Crabtree on a 5 yard under route. Crabtree with the YAK & gets out of bounds to stop the clock. Raiders go 4 WR set again with two on each side of the line, empty backfield with 36 seconds on the clock. Titans blitz & almost get Carr for a HUGE loss but his quick release allows him to avoid the sack & connect with Crabtree down the sideline again but 2 yards short of the 1st down & he steps out to stop the clock.  29 seconds on the clock, 2nd & 2. Carr dumps it off to Washington over the middle who has some speed & gets a gain of 13. Raiders call Timeout with 20 tics left on the toc. Titans blitz, Carr lobs it over to Cook at the sideline but doesn’t get out. Raiders call Timeout with 2 seconds left, 2nd & 5 & looking at at 50+ FG attempt. 52 yard FG is good straight down the middle. Raiders up by 3 at the half. 13-10 Oakland.

Raiders to kickoff to start the second half. Titans take the touchback at the 25. Titans end up punting & the Raiders get called for a block in the back.1st & 10 at the 9, 5 WR set. Carr incomplete to Cooper. 2nd down. BeastMode is back in & up the middle for 7. #rd & 3. Carr to Crabtree & it’s knocked out of his hands. Raiders punt it the 26 & hit the returner out of bounds but get away with that penalty while the Titans take a 10 yard penalty for a block in the back. That’s the second ref screw up so far in this game. The Defense steps up again & forces another three & out. Raiders Fair Catch at the 37.

Raiders line up in their base offense again with Lynch in the backfield. Seems like with his time out of football the Raiders are easing him back in & working him back into being an every down back. So it’s possible that the Redskins Defense won’t be dealing with him the entire game come Sunday night. Lynch off the Left Tackle for a gain of 2. 2nd Down & 8. Crabtree nobles a completion for no gain. 3rd & 8. Quick pass over the middle to Cooper who comes from across the field while the Titans are rushing 5 defenders,, GREAT play by Carr to avoid the pressure & still make the lobbed pass. 1st & 10. Carr fakes the Reverse & dumps it off to Lynch for the first down. It takes 5-6 defenders to bring his ass down. Geez. Gain of 16 on that play. Carr incomplete to Lynch who was lined up as a WR & completely uncovered. Lynch didn’t take off with the snap, he stood their for a second or two first then took off which threw the timing based pass off. This was similar to the play in the first half where they lined Lynch up as a WR & all he did was stand there looking back at Carr. 2nd & 10. Lynch back on the bench & Richard is back in. Richard up the middle for a short gain. 3rd & 9. Carr complete to Cooper with a GREAT throw that’s negated by a flag on the Center for Hands To The Face. 3rd & 19 at the Titans 43. Raiders go 5 wide, empty backfield. Carr gets flushed out of the pocket, takes off & makes it out of bounds. Raiders forced to punt. Titans get flagged for running into the kicker for a 5 yard penalty. 4th & 10 which put Oakland into FG position at 52 yards out into the wind . Sonofa….It’s good right down the middle. Raiders up 16-10

Personal timeout here as I feel compelled to transcribe this audio gem from Nantz & Romo during the Titans drive.

Jim: “Mariota’s never been intercepted in the RedZone in his career the first two years.”

Romo: “You’re right and it’s probably about to happen here since you just said that.” 

Jim: “Well I’m not trying to foreshadow anybody.”

Damnit Romo, you’re making me like you in the booth.  

Raiders Defense held em to a field goal & it’s 16-13 Oakland as they bobble the fair catch in the end zone. & the Titans are called for Offsides for a 5 yard penalty. Raider ball 1st & 10 at the 30. Raiders in the Spread again, Carr passes short over the middle to Cook who splits two defenders & gets the YAK for a First Down. Lynch is back in & rushes for a first down. Lynch again on his tenth carry for 4 yards. 2nd & 6. Carr passes left to cooper incomplete. Carr over the middle to Washington for six yards & a First Down. Carr goes up top to Crabtree with a SUCCESSFUL FADE ( Hey now I know what that looks like )to Crabtree who catches it backwards for a First Down. Carr throws a laser to Roberts into the back of the End Zone to Roberts for the touchdown. Impressive throw through THREE defenders. Damn. Kick’s good & it’s Raiders 23-13 

Titans take the kickoff just inside the goal line & run it out. He shakes off one hit at the 15 & bounces right, goes through a hole between 3 defenders, hits the 20, turns straight upfield, at the 30 he freaking hi hurdles a dude in traffic which allows a defender to wrap his ankles up in mid air & bring him down at about the 35. Holy hell that was CRAZY. Turns out he was the PAC 12 long jump champion at USC. TWICE. Titans can’t do much of anything & get forced to punt. Punts goes out of the end zone & the Raiders start at their own 20. Carr hands off to Washington to the right side for a small gain of one. Four WR set, Washington still in the backfield, Carr dumps it over the pass rush to Washington for 4 yards. 3rd & 5. Carr across the middle to Cooper for a gain of 23. 1st & 10 with Lynch in the backfield now. Handoff to Lynch for 1 yard. He gets swarmed. 2nd & 9. Lynch to the right a 3 yard gain. 3rd & 6. Nickel blitz gets to Carr who unloads it out of bounds to avoid the impending sack. Raiders punt it into the end zone. Titans get held to a field goal. 23-16 Raiders / 4:49 left on the clock.

Raiders take the kickoff at the 1 & return it to the 41. 1st & 10. Lynch in the backfield. Lynch up the middle, drags the pile with him for a gain of 4. Lynch again to the left side. 3rd & 3 as the clock continues to run towards the two minute warning. 3rd & 3. Richard in, Lynch out. Toss to Richard to the right for the First Down. Richard again on the ground to the left & he’s a hair short of the first down. 2nd & 1. Lynch back in & picks up the First Down. Titans call their second time out. 2:52 on the clock. Lynch up the middle for 2. 2nd & 8. Lynch up the middle, steamrolls Casey. Impressive. 3rd & 2 with two minutes to go. Lynch to the right side & get pushed back. Hard. 4th & 4. Raiders attempt the 43 yard field goal. Down the middle for the third time today. Raiders up 26-16 with 1:09 on the clock. This one is over.

So, what I’ve picked up on Raiders are going to run the Spread & pretty much go 4/5 WRs all game. They’re still going to run as well. However they’re running back by committee right now as they work on easing Lynch back into football. Lynch will get yards, but they’re going to be in small increments unless a defense completely blows an assignment that allows him to spring through them. Its the smaller & faster combo of Washington & Richard that can gash your Defense to shreds. It’s kinda like having two Chris Thompsons. Their Defense never really seemed to show anything special under Ken Norton Jr’s coaching. Their passing game isn’t that exciting or imaginative. What it is however is effective. Carr has a very, very quick release. And their WRs are big, fast, and strong. Though that strength looked to be more upper body. Without actually pulling the stats, I’d say they’re almost a balanced Offense but with a slight lean to the passing game. I’d guess 60/40, again with looking it up. So far after only watching their first game, I think they’re beatable. To do so you’re going to need to have a successful run game that converts yards & eats up clock. Kinda like Goff last week, the best way to stop an efficient QB is to keep him off the field. 

With that, I’m going to take a break for a few then start on the Raiders Jets game tape. 

RAIDERS vs JETS

Alright, time for the Week 2 game against the Jets. Hopefully with this being Oakland’s home opener there’s a little more excitement offensively. That game against the Titans was boring like Pre Season vanilla. 

First thing I notice is Oakland has an entire sideline upper deck tapped off. Second thing is it’s still baseball season in Oakland so a does that mean a pick six gets called an intercepted home run?  

Here we go…

Raiders win the toss & will receive. Patterson brings it out of the end zone to the 16. Jets are starting two rookie safeties. Expecting the deep ball this game. Raiders come out in a two WR set with Lynch in the backfield. Lynch off the left tackle for a loss of 1 as he’s swarmed immediately.  Raiders catch a flag for Unnecessary Roughness. Tight End Smith ran a linebacker around the pile in a circle after the play was dead. Raiders are backed up to the 7. 2nd & 18. Carr out of the shotgun complete over the middle to Walford for 7 yards. 3rd & 11. Carr again out of the shotgun, Patterson up the middle for 6. That one dumb penalty has already killed this drive & the Raiders are forced to punt. Raiders force theirselves into a three & out opening drive with that penalty. Then they pick up a 5 yard penalty on the punt. We’re 2:12 into the first quarter & they’re being undisciplined in their play so far. On the flip side the Defense forces a three & out on the Jets.

Raiders start this drive in two TE set with Lynch in the backfield. Handoff is to Lynch for 4 yards off the right tackle. 2nd & 6 Carr hands off to Lynch. Lynch flips it back to him, Carr hits Crabtree in stride deep down the left sideline until he’s forced out at the 49. Gain of 26. This is already more exciting the last week’s game. Carr pitches to Patterson to the right for a pick up 8. 2nd & 2 Carr hits the slant to Cooper for the first down. Carr in the shotgun again. Lynch lined up at WR like last week but moved to the inside on the left side. Last week he on the outside. Doesn’t matter though as it’s incomplete. So they go back to what he’s really, really good at & send Lynch up off the left guard for a gain of 4. 3rd & 6. Carr in the shotgun again, Jets jump early, flagged for 5 yards. 3rd & 1. Lynch on the ground & picks up 13 off the left guard. Jets had him in a pile but tried to arm tackle him high. Yeah. That ish don’t work. 1st & 10 at the Jets 17. Carr takes a deep shot but it’s incomplete. Carr incomplete to Roberts in the corner end zone. Carr hits Cook on the right for 6 yards. Carr hits Washington to inside the 5. 1st & goal. Lynch is back in. Carr makes an adjustment at the line. It’s a FADE ROUTE TO CRABTREE FOR THE TD. Sorry bout the all caps there its just I’m excited to have now finally seen two successful fade routes in the RedZone. 7-0 Raiders. Jets drive ends on a 3rd & 9 sack.

Raiders take back over at the 15 after the punt. Richard runs off the right tackle, Raiders get called for clipping, Ruled No Play.  Richard off the left end for no gain. 1st & 17 Carr in the shotgun again with 5 WRs. Raiders try to run it to the left side. 3rd & 7. Carr to Cooper for 14. 1st & 10 & the Jets call a timeout. Carr with a quick screen to Cooper a loss of one. And that ends the 1st Quarter. 2nd & 11 to start the 2nd Quarter, Carr in the shotgun, dumps it over the middle to Richard who shows the Jets his jets. Richard picks up 39 yards on this one. I said it before, Richard & Washington are like having two Chris Thompsons on your team. 1st & 10 at the Jets 30. Lynch in the backfield, Carr under center this time. Hand off to Lynch who gets nothing up the middle. Back to Carr in the shotgun, 4 WRs & Lynch in the backfield this time. Usually when in shotgun they’ve been lining Lynch up as the fifth WR. It’s possible they took him out of the WR lineup here because he never had his timing right when Carr would throw to him. Anyways, handoff to Lynch for 4 off the left tackle. 3rd & 6. Carr in the shotgun, 5 WRs….Carr down the sideline complete to Crabtree at the 5. TE Cook draws a double team which puts Crabtree in single coverage down the sideline. Crabtree splits two defenders at the goal line & he’s in. Again. This time on an under thrown fade route

14-0 Raiders.

Seven plays & the Defense allows the Jets in the end zone & on the board. 14-7 Raiders. By the way, the Jets scored on a 34 yard Fade Route. Go figure. Patterson takes the kickoff out of the end zone to the 30. Oakland called for their third Unnecessary Roughness penalty during the return. Their second was during the Jets last drive. 1st & 10 at the Raiders 15. Carr out of the shotgun complete to Crabtree for 21 yards. 1st & 10 at the 36. Raiders go no huddle for the next two plays, both out of the shotgun. Lynch up the middle picks up 8 then an incomplete pass to the TE Cook. Raiders burn a timeout. Another incomplete short pass over the middle to Cook. Raiders are forced to punt. During the Jets drive, the Oakland defense picks up a Taunting penalty but holds the Jets to a field goal. 14-10 Raiders with 3:11 left in this half. Raiders take the touchback on the kickoff. 1st & 10 at the 25. Lynch picks up 2 yards off the left tackle but more importantly he gets the clock running. Carr is incomplete to Cooper but connects with Cook on the next snap. Cook gets pushed out at the 31 to stop the clock. The Jets had already burned two time outs. Doesn’t really matter though as it’s the two minute warning. 4th & 4 has the Raiders punting it 55 yards to the Jets who muff the catch & Oakland recovers it. At. The. Four. 1st & 10 raiders at the 4. Raiders try Lynch to the right for nothing. 2nd & goal. Lynch finally gets yardage in this game as he picks up two. Lynch up the middle for another gain of two & the touchdown. Lynch had ben shut down on the ground until these last two plays. He’s got 4 yards & a touchdown right before the half. 21-10 Raiders. Raiders punt, Jets takes a knee & that’s Halftime.

Back from the Half, the Jets go 12 plays for 45 yards, chew up nearly 8 minutes of the third quarter & only come away with a field goal. It’s not that the Raiders Defense is THAT good, the Jets just aren’t very good at this whole football thing. I mean McCown, a 39 year old journeyman QB had a 22 yard run on them this drive. 

1st & 10 at the Raiders 16. Carr under center hands off to Washington & he picks up 6. Washington again this time to the left side for 10 yards. Raiders run it a third time this time Washington goes nowhere. 2nd & 10 at the 32. Raiders continue to feed it to Washington for the fourth time in a row, this time it’s through the air for 1 yard. Flag out on the Jets this time for Unnecessary Roughness which moves the Raiders down the field by another 15 yards. 1st & 10 at their own 48. Carr with a swing pass to the right sideline complete to Crabtree who gets pushed out at the Jets 48. Gain of 4 yards on this one. Carr over the middle to Cook for 5. Then Carr hands it off to Patterson on a draw play for a 43 yard touchdown. Jeez that kid has some, ahem, jets. The Raiders just went 84 yards in 7 plays in 3 minutes 39 seconds. 28-13 Raiders. 

The 3rd Quarter ends with McCown getting sacked & the 4th opens with the Jets punting it. Carr passes to the left to Cooper for 6 who then picks up another 10 in YAC. Next play Lynch finally catches a pass from Carr for 4 yards. Lynch off the right guard for a gain of 7. Next play Carr pitches right to Richard who makes one cut & ****ing explodes down the field & into the end zone. Holy **** that was impressive.  4 plays, 79 yards all in 2 minutes & it’s 35-13 Raiders

Raiders kick off for 65 yards & the touchback. Jets in the shotgun when McCown gets sacked for a loss of 8 yards, Fumbles & the Raiders recover it at the Jets 18. 1st & 10 Raiders. Carr goes for the kill shot in the corner end zone to Cooper. Carr’s pass is caught out of bounds & ruled incomplete, Jets are called for Defensive Pass Interference, ball at the 1. 1st & goal. Carr out of the shotgun rolls right & fires it to Crabtree in the right corner of the end zone at the pylon for his third touchdown of the day. Kick is good & it’s 43-13 Raiders. They’re rolling.

Jets go 75 yards in 10 plays for a touchdown to try to somewhat stay in it. It’s now 42-20 Raiders. Still trying to stay in this one, Jets go with an on sides kick that’s recovered by Washington for Oakland. Are you geographically confused now?   After 37 yards in 12 plays the Raiders are held to a field goal of their own. 45-20 Raiders with less then 30 seconds on the clock. Jets kick off, Raiders take the touchback then take a knee to end this mauling.

So, after watching 8 quarters of Raider offense, I’m not picking up on them showing one thing to set up another like McCoy did when watching the first Rams game. They’ve ran two plays that stood out. The handoff to the running back who flipped it back to Carr for a pass attempt & the draw with Patterson. I’m only noting the Patterson draw because he’s their primary return guy & they’re already rotating three other, different running backs. 

They run a lot of quick, short passes & expect the receivers to pick up the yards after the catch. His longest completion in Week 2 was only 39 yards. Yet he completed 23 of 28 passes. You have to be wary of Carr as he’s got a super quick release, but on top of that, he’s learned how to move defenders off of where he’s actually going with eyes. Torrian Gray is gonna have to really coach up the DBs to not fall for that. 

As far as their WRs, they spread it around. And around. And around. They’re loaded with weapons in Crabtree, Cooper, Cook at TE & the two Chris Thompson clones in Richard & Washington. 

The Raider’s run game, also nothing special, they just get enough to move the chains. Both teams they’ve played have seemed to made sure they swarmed Lynch anytime he got a carry to stop him from ripping off any major chunks of yardage. In Week 1 they were limiting Lynch to ease him back into football. In Week 2 Lynch had 12 attempts for 45 yards & a TD with an average of 3.8 while Washington & Richardson each had 6 attempts. 

I think the Redskins can beat ‘em, but to do so they can’t make any mistakes. Until Pryor starts catching everything thrown at him & Doctson gets involved to where Cousins looks for him, the Raiders have the clear edge at WR. I’d give the Raiders an edge with the running game as well except the Redskins seemed to found theirs last week against the Rams. At Tight End, if Jordan Reed is out tonight, it’s a wash between V. Davis & the Raider’s J. Cook.

And I fully expect Gruden to call at least two failed fade routes in the RedZone.  

Feel free to leave your questions &/or comments below.