The Play-Calling In the Last Three Minutes

[S.T.21 will eat you alive]

I have serious problem with play calling but I understand why. JC has throwing picks at critical point of the game past 3 games. Do you think Gibbs didn't think about that when he called the plays? Seriously, if you were JG and trying to escape with a win under the worst redzone offense of the league and a young QB with int problem at the critical time of the game, would you still want to throw?

[chipwhich]

Again, it's not a matter of whether or no Portis will make the first on third-and-eight as it is taking time off the clock and putting the Bills up against the wall, forcing them to use their time-outs. Would you have rather us attempt a pass, watching it fall incomplete and stopping the clock, giving the Bills more time? Or worse yet, seeing Campbell get hit, fumble or throw an interception? While you could question why the offense didn't put four wide receivers out there to spread the defense, then run a draw play, the special teams and defense let us down in that situations.

Oh and i forgot the can't miss kicker.

Stwasm, they were owning our defense, had a hot kicker, and gave them the ball with over a minute ahead by 2.

It was a horrible decision, I told my dad before the third portis run that we would lose because Gibbs shows he has no faith in our offense. Our defense was on it's heals at that point in the game.

Gutless gutless call.

[skinfan4ever]

I have serious problem with play calling but I understand why. JC has throwing picks at critical point of the game past 3 games. Do you think Gibbs didn't think about that when he called the plays? Seriously, if you were JG and trying to escape with a win under the worst redzone offense of the league and a young QB with int problem at the critical time of the game, would you still want to throw?

Exactly, the blame lies on Greg Williams and his awful prevent defense. If the bills needed a TD I could understand but they only needed a FG and he decided to give Edwards all day to make that throw.The Skins secondary never looks for the ball and seems to have a hard time just keeping up with the WRs.Once again, Thats where Sean Taylor made such a difference.

[No_Pressure]

But Portis goes down so quickly and seems to have lost some balance. Did you notice it took 2 or 3 Redskins to bring down 3rd string Jackson.You got to be able to break a tackle once in a while.

Its true the arm tackles always seem to take him down, either that or he stumbles on nothing and falls over...or gets chased down from behind by an unblocked lineman. Still, the blocking was god awful. Even Portis when he's being tackled by a strong breeze usually can manage 4 YPC if the line is playing well, which would be enough to win.

[Ghost of]

A run play is fine. If its not out of a formation that everybody knows how to defense. That's what was wrong with it.

That play almost never works. If they don't run another jumbo for the rest of the season, it would be a smart move.

I issued my protests in the chat most vociferously on this point.

It worked on the Portis TD but I don't get how you move down the field with a spread or pro formation and then when you are on the SEVEN YARD LINE (earlier this year) and on the FOUR yard line you go into jumbo or other non-standard formations, putting (other than Cooley) your WORST route-runners/receivers/athletes on the field. And to do it repeatedly.

I remember KC and while they would run two TE sets with Gonzo and Dunn, I don't remember them lining up like that so far from the goalline on every damn possession.

'Twould be nice if Gibbs told Saunders NO MORE JUMBO or one WR in totally NON-pass play pre-snap motion unless you're on the 2 yard line and in!!

That by itself, had it been instituted from jump, would have won us at least one, maybe even 3 games (maybe more?? we suck in the red zone)

[chipwhich]

Again, you want to keep the clock moving in that situation. If JC drops back to pass and throws an interception that's returned for a touchdown, you'd be calling for his head. There are situations where just running the ball can be successful even if it doesn't show up like that on paper. Those last three minutes demonstrated one of those situations.

How did that work out?

Again. A kicker who is one of the hottest in the NFL right now.

A Redskins defense on it's heals.

And giving them the ball with one minute plus left.

Throw the damn ball on third and long.

[chipwhich]

'Twould be nice if Gibbs told Saunders NO MORE JUMBO or one WR in totally NON-pass play pre-snap motion unless you're on the 2 yard line and in!!

'Twould be nice if Saunders told Gibbs, your influence on my playcalling will be no more.

[Ghost of]

Again, you want to keep the clock moving in that situation. If JC drops back to pass and throws an interception that's returned for a touchdown, you'd be calling for his head.

First off, I'd like it if people stopped making assumptions about what people would or would not do in another situation. Gibbs got some criticism for going for it against Tampa but nothing like the criticism when he's shown reluctance to take any risks.

This fear of risks actually causes Gibbs to take what are statistically greater risks or given the moment, unsound decisions. How many times since GIbbs has been back, no matter the QB or the RB or the blocking, has Gibbs shown no faith in the offense and tried to let his defense win the game? Considering our record and specifically our record with halftime leads, wouldn't it make MORE sense and be LESS risky to go for a SURE win rather than hold out hope that a unit that has repeatedly failed you (if only out of mental fatigue for being the only thing keeping the team afloat for years) in the closing minutes of a game will rise to the occasion??

Sorry, I UNDERSTOOD running three times but considering Parrish leads the NFL IN RETURN AVG ON PUNTS, one would think that relying on your punt coverage unit was also a BAD, BAD risk.

So here we have the choice:

1) Try to legitimately gain a first down. Fail and still be able to punt the ball away but with more time for Buffalo. Succeed and the game is over and Buffalo's ON FIRE kicker is not given a shot to win.

2) Allow one minute to still remain, show your offense as you did in the first game of the season that you are ruled by fear and don't learn from the same thing happening to the team over and over in four years. Then kick to the leading punt return man (avg) in the entire league, who could very well run it all the way back or run it back far enough to make that time you ran off unimportant. If you somehow stop the return from giving great field position, you then rely on a defense which has repeatedly failed in this very same situation.

Now, if this were an isolated incident, one would say, "yeah it didn't pan out but sometimes you coach by how the game is going." But it's EVERY DAMN GAME. FOR FOUR YEARS damn near. Sure, we had a nice little run in 2005 but even that season was marred by some of the same thinking. Hell, when it was clear to everyone in the world Brunell was not healthy, he went with him anyway, all the way through the worst playoff performance ever. Then you think--OK, he sees Brunell isnt well---he starts him again!!! We could have been in the NFC Title game or even better (and given Mark time to rest up.)

How long did it take in 2004 and 2006 to try out the young QBs? How many times did he rely on the defense and playing it safe on offense only to lose?

Wouldn't you try something different for a change? I mean, one would think after what happened so many times before Gibbs would say:

You know what, ___ it! We're going to WIN this game for Sean not hold our breaths and wait and see if Lindell does a Rackers Part II.

And really, that's the only reason we didn't lose the Arizona game!!

Most of us could easily be a consultant on this team and simply look at these specific situations and give the coach advice--(basically stop doing what he's BEEN doing.) Not on terminology or what have you but these 'moments' that come down to the head coach more than the creativity or wonderful stubbornness of a coordinator. AN executive decision, if you will, and while there are/would be times where you'd say, "I wonder if we should have gone conservative there," you'd also have a different team with a different mentality, one that may have assured the Skins a better record by now.

Which is Gibbs job.

[Kelvin Bryant]

I've seen numerous complaints about why the Redskins only ran the ball with less than three minutes left in the fourth, instead of throwing more.

I had absolutely NO problem with that offensive series...

Worked great, didn't it?

The other approach is to *actually try to win the game* by making the first down that would enable the Redskins to run out the clock? Would that have worked? Nobody knows - it's never been tried.

[hillbillydeluxe44]

the last thing I SCREAMED at my television before the Bills long pass play was "PLEASE BLITZ THIS ROOKIE QUARTERBACK!!!!!!!!"

that obviously didn't happen....AGAIN....and we just dropped back into "coverage", if you want to call it that

[stwasm]

How did that work out?

Again. A kicker who is one of the hottest in the NFL right now.

A Redskins defense on it's heals.

And giving them the ball with one minute plus left.

Throw the damn ball on third and long.

Why? So we can give them that much more time to score? No. Hot kicker or not, you managing the game, the clock and field position. If you're so down on the offense right now, get mad at them for not spreading the field and running a draw play. Otherwise, the offense did want it was supposed to do in that situation.

If you're in the first, second of third quarters, yes you throw the darned ball on third and long. Late, in the game, when you're forcing the opposition to burn its timeouts and you want to keep the clock running, keep that ball on the ground.

Worked great, didn't it?

The other approach is to *actually try to win the game* by making the first down that would enable the Redskins to run out the clock? Would that have worked? Nobody knows - it's never been tried.

I suppose it was the offense's fault that Derrick Frost punted a low, line-drive to said hot returner? I also suppose it was the offense's fault that the defense gave up a 30-yard play down the middle of the field to get the Bills in field-goal range? It also was the offense's fault that the head coach called back-to-back timeouts, taking an unsportsmanlike penalty.

If JC had tried to throw there, got hit and fumbled or threw an interception, you'd be calling for his benching.

[chipwhich]

Why? So we can give them that much more time to score? No. Hot kicker or not, you managing the game, the clock and field position. If you're so down on the offense right now, get mad at them for not spreading the field and running a draw play. Otherwise, the offense did want it was supposed to do in that situation.

How much time do you need to get in field goal range? He knew the Bills would get the ball with over a minute left.

I think your view is jaded because we can't run a two minute offense.

Fact is, most teams in the league run a competent 2 minute offense.

Our defense was playing poorly in the second half.

We did nothing all day but allow their qb to sit in the pocket as long as he wanted and pick apart our defense.

They are one of the WORST defenses in the league.

I might even agree with you IF the did something other than the SAME portis run three times straight. At least try something different.

It's sad when the team Gibbs coached up is so bad he can't even trust his lineman and qb to not make a critical mistake with a game on the line. Moreso with the season on the line, and nothing really to lose.

We have to agree to disagree i guess.

[Art McDonough]

One more first down-game over. Thanks OL.

[stwasm]

How much time do you need to get in field goal range? He knew the Bills would get the ball with over a minute left.

I think your view is jaded because we can't run a two minute offense.

Fact is, most teams in the league run a competent 2 minute offense.

Our defense was playing poorly in the second half.

We did nothing all day but allow their qb to sit in the pocket as long as he wanted and pick apart our defense.

They are one of the WORST defenses in the league.

I might even agree with you IF the did something other than the SAME portis run three times straight. At least try something different.

It's sad when the team Gibbs coached up is so bad he can't even trust his lineman and qb to not make a critical mistake with a game on the line. Moreso with the season on the line, and nothing really to lose.

We have to agree to disagree i guess.

Chip, keep in mind we were near midfield. A decent punt pins them inside their 10. They'd have to travel roughly 50-55 yards with less than a minute on the clock and no timeouts. That scenario favors the defense and the success rate for an offense is that situation isn't that high.

Granted, our two-minute drill hasn't been stellar this season. I get that and I believe it. But, again, at that point, it's managing the game and making it difficult for the opposition to be successful.

[pjfootballer]

The Bills had 8 or 9 at the line on 2nd and 3rd down. They knew what was coming. You need to show better formations. How about a tight formation where the TE runs a straight seam route, JC fakes the handoff and hits Cooley behind the 9 man front on 2nd down?

[natem985]

If you're goin to run anyway the ball why not do it out of 3/4 WR sets? At least TRY to throw them off

[gjshipp]

i'm very critical of the play calling. i am not an apologist for all the stupid things this staff does. but if you wanted to throw in that situation, you're stupid.

well said...

[rollneid21]

isnt everyone tired of the skins calling offensive plays not to lose. They have no killer instinct in the second half. Its horrible to watch. Why run the ball when CP can't get even 2 yards a rush?

[raperry2]

I couldn't disagree with you more. We played to run out the clock and kick it to them. That's a bad thing.

[rollneid21]

tell me how you are going to run the ball to kill the clock when you can't get 2 yards a rush. with a first down we win the game! you're a joke if you think that was smart football

[rollneid21]

This game is about first downs, playing not to lose is what you do in high school. 1 FIRS DOWN AND WE WIN. END OF STORY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[herb mul-key]

play action to cooley when they are expecting us to run..why don't we do that ever?

[Oldfan]

Clinton Portis on first down vs. Buffalo: 1, 0, 0, 2, 1, 3, 1, 5, 1, 4, 4, 2, 1, 1

Overall, 25 carries for 50 yards.

Do we blame it on Portis, the O line, the play calling or a combination of all three?

[Major Harris]

Clinton Portis on first down vs. Buffalo: 1, 0, 0, 2, 1, 3, 1, 5, 1, 4, 4, 2, 1, 1

Overall, 25 carries for 50 yards.

Do we blame it on Portis, the O line or the play calling?

the o-line. it was pathetic.

[2006Skins]

Whether you agree with the playcalling or not, your defense should be able to stop a rookie qb from going 50 yards downfield with less than a minute remaining and no timeouts.