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USAT: Just like the good ole days for these Redskins

JimmiJo

By JimmiJo
in 2005 Archives Forum

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JimmiJo

JimmiJo

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http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/redskins/2005-11-09-resurgence_x.htm

Just like the good ole days for these Redskins

By Chris Colston, USA TODAY Sports Weekly

LANDOVER, Md. — Minutes after Washington sealed its 17-10 win over Philadelphia here Sunday night, quarterback Mark Brunell jogged along the concrete hall beneath FedEx Field with a football cradled in the crook of his left arm, a grass stain across his right shoulder and a huge grin across his face. Backup quarterback Patrick Ramsey, Brunell's best friend on this team, turned and gave him a hard-slap high five. The two whooped in joy and headed for the locker room.

And to think there was once a quarterback controversy in the nation's capital.

That seems like a long time ago, and even the latest Big Story — Why Isn't LaVar Playing? — seems to have dissipated. Star linebacker LaVar Arrington is back in the starting lineup, making big plays, getting swarmed in the locker room by reporters. And those aren't the only two stories of redemption here. Offensive tackle Jon Jansen, out all last season with a ruptured Achilles' tendon, is back on the field, giving Brunell protection.

Receiver Santana Moss, never a star in New York, ranks second in the NFL in receiving yardage. And then there is coach Joe Gibbs, back after an 11-season hiatus in NASCAR. Even though he has a bust in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, he's in a bit of a comeback mode himself after going 6-10 last year.

This is a collection of people accustomed to bouncing back from adversity, so shaking off a potentially confidence-shaking 36-0 blowout loss at NFC East division-rival New York a week earlier almost seems de rigueur.

But shaking it off is one thing. Beating the Eagles, even without malcontent Terrell Owens, is something else. Philadelphia had beaten Washington seven consecutive times. The Redskins had to have this game. Coming back from the Meadowlands Massacre, facing the defending division champions. At night. At home, before the second-biggest crowd in FedEx Field history. With a national ESPN audience.

"It's going to tell a lot about our team, how we react this week," wide receiver David Patten said before the game. "I don't know if we're going to win this week or not. But it's how we react. Are we going to be positive and supportive? Or are we going to start bickering? Tough times always tell the true nature of a man."

One thing that heartened Gibbs most was his players' gumption. "If you had asked me Monday, there were six guys I would have said wouldn't have played (tonight)," he says. "There were things like (defensive lineman) Phillip Daniels running on the treadmill at 1:30 in the afternoon (Saturday) to get ready for this game ... I think it was a tribute to their character and to our team."

That's the difference in these Redskins. Two years ago — maybe even last year — those dinged guys probably wouldn't have sucked it up. But Gibbs is systematically molding his type of players.

"We have a lot of positive guys," Patten says. "That's the thing coach Gibbs focuses on — character guys. When things go bad, it has a tendency to bring the worst out in people. So when you have people who are downright good-natured, it doesn't matter where there's sunshine or a storm."

That's part of why someone like Patten is in Washington.

"Without a doubt," he says. "Coach Gibbs has expressed that to me time and time again. He wants his type of people here. He feels like if he has enough good guys, good things are going to happen to us."

More than a few people snickered when Gibbs traded for Brunell in 2004 and signed him to a seven-year, $43 million deal. The Jaguars had no use for the former All-Pro, opting instead for Byron Leftwich.

In Washington, Brunell, 35, won the starting job in training camp. But hamstring and calf injuries hindered his mobility and he could get nothing on his throws. In his final five games as a starter he had a passer rating of 48.6, a number of staggering woefulness, and it set off a wave of murmuring among Redskins faithful. What did Gibbs see in this guy?

"After last year," Brunell says, "not a lot of quarterbacks would have been given this shot."

This year, Gibbs named Ramsey the starter, but he left the season opener against Chicago in the second quarter with a neck injury. Brunell came in and completed eight of 14 passes for 70 yards — solid enough to pull out a 9-7 win. The following week at Dallas he was again unspectacular — until the last four minutes. Then he completed two long touchdown passes to Moss, pulling out a 14-13 win. Since then his play has quashed any perceived quarterback controversy.

"Patrick is a huge help to me during the game," Brunell says of his road roommate. "He helps me get ready during the week ... He's a good football player and an even better person."

Brunell is the field leader Gibbs was looking for in his quarterback, and he keeps the team loose with irrepressible humor. Even when the Redskins were getting pounded at New York, he didn't freak out or start screaming in the huddle.

"It would have taken a miracle for us to win that game in the fourth quarter," Patten says. "But he comes in, loose, 'All right guys, come on, let's get down the field.' Just crazy. It has a way of calming everybody down."

Says Moss, "The dude is hilarious."

"That's not true," Brunell said two weeks ago in a deadpan voice. "Not true at all. You're not thinking about cracking jokes when you're just trying to complete a pass. Now, we have a good time. We try to keep it light. This is a game. There is absolutely nothing better (than playing in the NFL). I have the best job in the world. I get to go out with 10 other guys to compete and test ourselves against another defense. We have fun doing it. I make sure we have fun doing it."

Last week Brunell passed rookie linebacker Robert McCune outside the Redskins locker room. McCune wore a sleeveless T-shirt exposing biceps the size of grapefruits.

"Are my arms as big as yours?" Brunell asked him.

McCune said nothing and shook his head.

"But they're close, aren't they?" Brunell said.

The next day, Brunell passed wide receiver David Patten en route to a meeting. Patten had just emerged from the shower wearing nothing but a towel around his waist.

"Patten, if I looked like you," Brunell said, "I'd walk around with my shirt off all the time."

Having a player like Moss would give any quarterback good humor. With 49 receptions for 856 yards (second only to Carolina's Steve Smith) and five touchdowns, Moss has already equaled or surpassed the numbers his posted last year with the Jets (45-838-5).

"This whole 'Brunell-Moss' thing is 80% Moss and 20% (me)," Brunell says. "He's that good. I've been around a few good ones and he's up there. There is nothing he can't do. I think the only thing Santana doesn't have is (height). He's not 6'4 or 6'5. He has everything else. He can catch and run. He's smart and competitive."

When the Redskins traded Laveranues Coles to the Jets for Moss, people thought New York got the better of the deal. Coles is having a solid year in New York, but his receiving yardage (449) is nowhere near Moss' tally, and Gibbs also has a happier camper. "Laveranues didn't want to be here," says right offensive guard Randy Thomas, who played with Moss in New York. "This guy is enjoying his stay here. It looks like he's going to be here awhile. When you're uncomfortable with the team situation, you're not going to do well."

Rampant jubilation marked FedEx Field Sunday night, but perhaps nobody was happier than Arrington. After playing negligibly through the first five games, he got his first start Sunday and was named defensive team captain.

Arrington, a three-time Pro Bowl player, missed most of last season with a knee injury, and controversy swirled about him this year when he languished on the bench. He was healthy; why wasn't he playing? Were the coaches trying to teach him a lesson? Was there a personal vendetta?

But fans failed to understand that Gregg Williams employs a complex defensive system, and Arrington, consciously or not, was not practicing with his usual reckless abandon. Things began to turn in a 52-17 win over San Francisco where he had seven tackles, and he played nearly 50 snaps against the Giants with five tackles.

Arrington could see things starting to come together. "It's been tough," he says. "It's been a test on me: Where my heart is, where my head is. We're all human. But honestly, I really believe for every humble beginning there's a huge triumph at the end."

He possessed a serenity that comes when you know the worst of an ordeal is almost over, and it manifested itself in a playful joust with the media last week. "What's up with all these mics at my mouth?" he said as reporters engulfed him before his locker. "I can't breathe. I'm claustrophobic! I'm going to pass out! Call a doctor!"

When a reporter asked him what was wrong, he said, "It's called microphonitis!"

A reporter asked Arrington if he thought he would start against Philadelphia. "Start? I don't know," he said. "If they call my number, I'll be ready."

And as the session broke, he said over his shoulder, "Do I have an attitude? I want you to know I have an attitude. I have a chip on my shoulder. I want to win, man. I don't want to lose."

Sunday Arrington was credited with six tackles, including two for losses. He still has a lot to work on, he says, "but it's a starting point. I felt happy to play through the whole game and not get winded."

So now the season is, at least temporarily, saved. "I had this game pegged, if we had lost, our backs were going to be against the wall the rest of the way," Gibbs says.

He likes his 5-3 record at the midway point and the fact that two of the Redskins' final three divisional games are at home, a place Arrington says houses "the loudest fans in the league."

Before the season, the staff emphasized the importance of winning the divisional games. Since 2001, the Redskins had an 8-20 mark against NFC East opponents. By contrast, Philadelphia was 22-5.

What's more, the victory also spotlighted Gibbs' plan. Because while Andy Reid's Eagles continue to reel from having Owens in their midst, the Redskins have no such narcissists.

"We wouldn't stand for it," Brunell says of Owens' me-first outbursts. "It wouldn't be allowed. We wouldn't want any part of that. We're fortunate to have guys with the same mindset. At our skill positions, they're not upset when they don't get the ball thrown to them. Tonight was a perfect example. Nobody had any huge stats. We won that game as a team."

Even though he's out with a knee injury, five-year veteran defensive tackle Brandon Noble feels the shifting winds.

"We have some big-time players here, but they aren't guys who use their own name in the third person. That's what this staff wants," he says. "When Coach Gibbs has gotten those kinds of guys in the past, he's been successful, and we're starting to show that now. This is one of the best locker rooms I've ever been in. If we can keep it together over the next few years, we hope things will get back to the way they were when coach Gibbs was here the first time."

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The Sisko

The Sisko

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"We have some big-time players here, but they aren't guys who use their own name in the third person. That's what this staff wants," he says. "When Coach Gibbs has gotten those kinds of guys in the past, he's been successful, and we're starting to show that now. This is one of the best locker rooms I've ever been in. If we can keep it together over the next few years, we hope things will get back to the way they were when coach Gibbs was here the first time."

I abso-fricking-lutely love it!!! In fact, I feel a new addition to ye olde sigline coming on. :logo:

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skins4eva

skins4eva

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That was a really great article--why haven't we read something like that from SI or ESPN???? Well, fellow fans, SI and ESPN revolve around negative media coverage. That's their calling card. USA Today on the other hand, generally puts a positive spin on things. Simply put, that was a great article that highlighted why this team is clicking so well right now. May it continue!!!

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Pedro

Pedro

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I have a tear in my eye. Beautiful just beautiful.

It is Joe Gibbs Redskins. I am in a strange place right now. This season is going great but I want to see how we are next year so bad, but this season is far from over but next year could be so special but this year could go all the way but, but, and everyone on ES is happy now and all the players are too and we all just need to hug and talk about how badly the Midgets are gonna get whupped in the return and the best ways to torture Cowpuke fans without leaving marks for possible criminal proceedings to use....

Seriously though, it all starts at the top. Dan hired the man. Enjoy the ride and hope he gets the next 'man' when the time comes.

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Woofer

Woofer

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I have a tear in my eye. Beautiful just beautiful.

It is Joe Gibbs Redskins. I am in a strange place right now. This season is going great but I want to see how we are next year so bad, but this season is far from over but next year could be so special but this year could go all the way but, but, and everyone on ES is happy now and all the players are too and we all just need to hug and talk about how badly the Midgets are gonna get whupped in the return and the best ways to torture Cowpuke fans without leaving marks for possible criminal proceedings to use....

Seriously though, it all starts at the top. Dan hired the man. Enjoy the ride and hope he gets the next 'man' when the time comes.

Two words for you, man...

S L O W .. D O W N

Take a deep breath. Find your happy place.

:laugh:

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SamSneed36

SamSneed36

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Great article. Im really thinking we have a good shot at the division. We can beat the bucs, we can beat Oakland. Chargers may be tough but we can beat the Cards later on and we will abosultly win atleast one of the last 3 divisional games with two at home. Gonna be a great second half to the season

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