DCsportsfan53 Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 Click link for rest of story. http://insider.espn.go.com/nfl/insider/columns/story?columnist=horton_gary&id=3029100 7. Washington RedskinsThis is an underrated team and after years of underachieving, the Redskins are finally playing Joe Gibbs football -- a hard-nosed running game combined with an aggressive defense featuring a blitz heavy package. Gibbs changed the philosophy of this team in the offseason. He wanted to get back to his old Redskins formula, which is give the ball to the RBs, Ladell Betts and Clinton Portis, wear down defenses and take shots in the passing game when the matchups are there. This means Gibbs doesn't have to ask QB Jason Campbell to carry the offense. The Redskins have the ability to control the flow of the game and keep them out of offensive shootouts, but they must overcome injuries on the right side of their OL and Campbell must play with consistency. They may not be pretty, but they are real. Status: Contender. Just goes to show how overrated the media hate concept is. We're 2-0 against very questionable teams. However, people see that we play tough, we play physical and have a real QB. The bandwagon's going to take some SERIOUS extra weight after this weekend. We've got a real team, guys. I know I'm ready for the ride. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bat~man Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 hrmm not sure about blitz heavy tho Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinSince87 Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 well our def coord is known for blitz heavy seems a lil light so far this year, we might turn it up on Eli though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gca61087 Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 hrmm not sure about blitz heavy tho definatley not. we have really softened up on the blitz, but hey, one touchdown and 25 points allowed through 2 games, stay with whats working. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henry Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 They may not be pretty, but they are real. That's my favorite part. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Henry Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 hrmm not sure about blitz heavy tho I think it will depend on who we're playing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darrell1106 Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 well our def coord is known for blitz heavy seems a lil light so far this year, we might turn it up on Eli though i was thinking the same thing...the whole 'leaving the DBs on an island' concept will be tested this sunday afternoon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Califan007 The Constipated Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 CJust goes to show how overrated the media hate concept is. For every Horton you find, you'll find 5 articles that go in the exact opposite way. I don't think the "media hate" thing is based solely on one or two articles dismissing the Redskins as overrated...it's an accumulation of articles, on-air sound bites, horridly flawed "logical" analysis, ridiculously misstated facts, and a generally dismissive tone about the team that hangs around too long when we're winning, and gets exaggerated way too much when we're losing. The players seem to see this as well (see Portis' comments)...so I'm not sold that the perceived "media hate" is just an overreaction by fans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bat~man Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 I agree with you guys , stay with what is working for us , and it depends on who we play , but Eli isn't exactly bad against the blitz so we have to be careful , usually our blitz's either work or get picked up and give up big yards but as long as we do it at the right times we should be ok ^ ^ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 My main worry right now is our offensive line depth currently. Obviously we had great offensive line depth entering the season and what Bugel did to achieve that worked. But, we're NOW really thin. Three-fifths of the line is different from a year ago now. Interestingly, only one of the three is a true loss in ability and performance right now. Fabini is no Randy Thomas. Kendall is actually better for what we do than Dockery. Wade is actually probably an upgrade form Jansen at this point on the field, though we lose a leader off it. So while teams will likely exploit some of our newness and beat up on Fabini a bit, we should be able to get by with what we have. If we drop anyone else, though, I think we'll have a struggle. In 2000, people forget how successful free agency and the offseason was. We targeted to improve the No. 30 defense and did. We started 6-2 against the hardest part of our schedule. What killed us? Injuries on the offensive line, in large part, led to an internal group of guys who started to get game planned for and exploited, killing us. That and guys who had great years the year prior turned out to have had career years. Very sad. Anyway, this team will really start to struggle if the line drops much further. It's my current biggest worry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SearchHorizon Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 I don't know ... 49ers and Packers seem like pretenders to me ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ouvan59 Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 Just goes to show how overrated the media hate concept is. We're 2-0 against very questionable teams. However, people see that we play tough, we play physical and have a real QB. The bandwagon's going to take some SERIOUS extra weight after this weekend. We've got a real team, guys. I know I'm ready for the ride. Not really, Horton wasn't ripping us before the season so his view hasn't changed that much. Although I do agree that the media in general doesn't hate us. They are just lazy and tend to love certain teams of which we aren't one. Win enough games and we will get respect. There are the exceptions however (Lenny the Hut, Prisco, King, Dr. zzzzzzzzzzz, Banks, WP). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbnva Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 This is the game to REALLY become Blitz heavy without sacrificing our coverage of the WRs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oldskool Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 hrmm not sure about blitz heavy tho We are playing a standard cover 1 defense which allows the team to blitz when it wants and how it wants. Compared to most teams not named the Eagles, we aren't "blitz heavy" nor do we blitz like its 2005 again, but the defense does blitz allot and by design to apply pressure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellis Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 I know everyone is worried about the OL. Here's a positive to the injuries on the OL... it's not Campbells blind side. If something goes wrong, at least he'll see it coming. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinsManNJ Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 well our def coord is known for blitz heavy seems a lil light so far this year, we might turn it up on Eli though I dont see us turning up the blitzes till later in the season when its getting close to the playoffs. This way teams only see our minimal blitz packages and our standard defense. It will become very confusing to opposition later on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCsportsfan53 Posted September 21, 2007 Author Share Posted September 21, 2007 For every Horton you find, you'll find 5 articles that go in the exact opposite way. I don't think the "media hate" thing is based solely on one or two articles dismissing the Redskins as overrated...it's an accumulation of articles, on-air sound bites, horridly flawed "logical" analysis, ridiculously misstated facts, and a generally dismissive tone about the team that hangs around too long when we're winning, and gets exaggerated way too much when we're losing.The players seem to see this as well (see Portis' comments)...so I'm not sold that the perceived "media hate" is just an overreaction by fans. Not really, Horton wasn't ripping us before the season so his view hasn't changed that much. Although I do agree that the media in general doesn't hate us. They are just lazy and tend to love certain teams of which we aren't one. Win enough games and we will get respect. There are the exceptions however (Lenny the Hut, Prisco, King, Dr. zzzzzzzzzzz, Banks, WP). Let me extrapolate my point a little further. In 05 for example, we had a similar strong start but no one was on the bandwagon, and, as it turns out, probably rightfully so as that team overachieved, didn't have a real QB and the problems that were masked in 05 came back to bite us in 06. Of course, being Skins fans, all we could see is that we were winning. Many in the media (correctly, IMO) pointed out that were still a pretty average team, especially since we did not have a very good QB. The difference I see this year is, people like Prisco, King, Pastabelly, Banks, ect, people who've been negative but DO know some things about football, have been quick to point out they were wrong about what they expected from us. They do this because they see us overcoming injuries, playing with excellent pyhsicality and, most of all, they see that Jason Campbell is undeniably the real deal. Check out the power rankings and comments from those specific guys you mentioned this week. Dr Zzzzz has us at 7 saying he's really impressed, Pastabelly just put out an article praising our decision to keep Rocky and resist trading for Briggs ( :thud: ), Banks had good things to say about us. All those guys, the guys who normally take every opportunity to poke fun at us, are suddenly impressed with the team's direction and grit.....and with Campbell, of course. In short, yes, idiots like Stephen A Smith, the Around the Horn guys, ect......they still hate because they don't know football and they don't actually watch the games. The NFL writers who solely stick to the NFL and aren't part of these peripheral sports talks shows as their main gig, the guys who watch the games, almost all of them have given us praise and said basically we look like a real Joe Gibbs team again, possibly for the first time since his return. What I'm saying is, their opinions in the past, while often overly laced with vitriol, were generally close to correct and these same chronic "haters" have been quick to reverse course and proclaim us on the right path. They didn't do that in 05 and I believe the difference is the team, not the writers. Basically, they're giving us props now because they see a better team with infinitely more potential. They didn't before because they saw the opposite. It has nothing to do with grudges, love, hate, emotion and all that other stuff. That's the territory of us the fans. My main worry right now is our offensive line depth currently. Obviously we had great offensive line depth entering the season and what Bugel did to achieve that worked. But, we're NOW really thin. Three-fifths of the line is different from a year ago now. Interestingly, only one of the three is a true loss in ability and performance right now. Fabini is no Randy Thomas. Kendall is actually better for what we do than Dockery. Wade is actually probably an upgrade form Jansen at this point on the field, though we lose a leader off it.So while teams will likely exploit some of our newness and beat up on Fabini a bit, we should be able to get by with what we have. If we drop anyone else, though, I think we'll have a struggle. In 2000, people forget how successful free agency and the offseason was. We targeted to improve the No. 30 defense and did. We started 6-2 against the hardest part of our schedule. What killed us? Injuries on the offensive line, in large part, led to an internal group of guys who started to get game planned for and exploited, killing us. That and guys who had great years the year prior turned out to have had career years. Very sad. Anyway, this team will really start to struggle if the line drops much further. It's my current biggest worry. You're damn straight that's the biggest concern. I know one thing's definitely for sure.....we ain't no right handed running team anymore. Our running consistency is going to be found on the left side of the line. Honestly, I'm ok with where we stand so long as there aren't any more injuries. I hate to say it but so far it seems like Kendall is a significant upgrade from Dockery. And as you pointed out, Jansen's value since the achilles injury has lay less in his game and more in his leadership. It's scary though because there's just only so much depth you can have. Another long term injury to the OL has a greater chance of derailing the whole thing than any other single injury outside of Campbell at this point. One thing I did want to touch on as long as we're discussing the Offensive Line. I am absolutely blown away by how good Samuels is becoming. He's always had the talent but there's typically been some inconsistencies and just a little bit left to be desired in terms of run blocking. Not so to this point in 07. He's put up two PERFECT games so far, allowing zero pass rush and absolutely dominating in the run game. As I'm sure you've noticed, both of Clinton Portis' long TD runs this year have come to the left side off a beautifully mauling seal off of the DE by Samuels to spring him. I think Samuels has finally turned the corner from REALLY good to great, and if he keeps playing the way he has, for the first time, we'll be able to make a more than legitimate argument for him being THE premier LT in the league. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TSO Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 ^^ Samuels has played straight up ridiculous football so far. I'm loving it. I said it when it happened and I'll say it agian. Losing Thomas is a HUGE blow. I just hope he'll be back come December. He's massively underrated. Seriously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Day Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 I agree with you guys , stay with what is working for us , and it depends on who we play , but Eli isn't exactly bad against the blitz so we have to be careful , usually our blitz's either work or get picked up and give up big yards but as long as we do it at the right times we should be ok ^ ^ So far not this year, that 10 yard cushion every busts on Carlos Rodgers for has everything to with that. Even if the QB gets the ball out it isn't for big yards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrfriedm Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 hrmm not sure about blitz heavy tho I was thinking the same thing. We actually haven't blitzed much at all this season. However, I do think that GW is holding a lot to his chest, for later in the season, to catch teams off guard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKINS FAN #56 Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 We still got a long way to go to prove we're the real deal. Yes, we're real..but people still have a doubt about us Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skinsn24 Posted September 21, 2007 Share Posted September 21, 2007 My main worry right now is our offensive line depth currently. Obviously we had great offensive line depth entering the season and what Bugel did to achieve that worked. But, we're NOW really thin. Three-fifths of the line is different from a year ago now. Interestingly, only one of the three is a true loss in ability and performance right now. Fabini is no Randy Thomas. Kendall is actually better for what we do than Dockery. Wade is actually probably an upgrade form Jansen at this point on the field, though we lose a leader off it.So while teams will likely exploit some of our newness and beat up on Fabini a bit, we should be able to get by with what we have. If we drop anyone else, though, I think we'll have a struggle. In 2000, people forget how successful free agency and the offseason was. We targeted to improve the No. 30 defense and did. We started 6-2 against the hardest part of our schedule. What killed us? Injuries on the offensive line, in large part, led to an internal group of guys who started to get game planned for and exploited, killing us. That and guys who had great years the year prior turned out to have had career years. Very sad. Anyway, this team will really start to struggle if the line drops much further. It's my current biggest worry. I agree Art, the offensive line is now down to almost nothing. The left side is still as solid as ever but losing Randy is HUGE loss. He does things that almost no other guards in the league can do. He is a great pass and run blocker with speed and power. If i am a defense i start overloading our right side, sending blitzes at Fabini and forcing him to make difficult reads. It could lead to bad news for Jason C. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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