So why does everybody think that everyteam in the NFC east improved more than us?

[HailGreen28]

We are deservedly the fourth placed team in the NFCE, we only made marginal improvements to our dismal offense, and we still have more questions than answers.

Do you feel we deserve to be praised for that?

Realistically, we are going to be fourth in the east again.

I knida agree with you, with the caveat that as good as our division is, where you expect someone to unexpectedly break out from the pack and finish first, I also expect someone to finish with a losing record this year.

We're not that bad off, except O-Line and maybe QB. If our offense gets stuffed again, we could be in the basement, but I'm hoping the wheels fall off another team this year. All 3 NFCE rivals can't be good next year, can they?

[TheLongshot]

We still have a lot of questions on offense. More so than any other team in the division.

But who cares?

Frankly, I'm a little puzzled by the crazy love for the Eagles. The Skins beat them twice last year without any kind of offense.

They also lost the best d-coordinator in the league.

And Philly and super high expectations? Oh yeah, that should end well.

I think this says a lot about what i think about how teams did in the offseason. Fact is, no one knows jack until people actually see players on the field. Everything before that is just paper.

[gatito]

I knida agree with you, with the caveat that as good as our division is, where you expect someone to unexpectedly break out from the pack and finish first, I also expect someone to finish with a losing record this year.

We're not that bad off, except O-Line and maybe QB. If our offense gets stuffed again, we could be in the basement, but I'm hoping the wheels fall off another team this year. All 3 NFCE rivals can't be good next year, can they?

I think unless the 2nd year WRs leap forward this year we have the worst WR core in the East.

[ucfSKINS]

O-line O-line O-line O-line.

RG and RT with no major replacements or upgrades = ????

[Spartacus87]

O-line O-line O-line O-line.

RG and RT with no major replacements or upgrades = ????

People keep saying this, but there was nobody to really get.

The Panthers made the first major strike on the RT front by re-signing Gross.

We weren't in position to draft a potential starting RT outside of Oher, but he might be a project this year and maybe no better than Heyer (this season anyway).

Nothing really on the guard front either, when supposedly Rinehart is stepping up a lot compared to last year.

I agree the o-line is a concern, but there wasn't a lot that could have been done about it this past off-season without maybe making some big trades, and then people would be whining about how we didn't address our pass rush and we lost future draft picks.

[paloffs]

Because the redskins don't get positive hype or media reports.

And when we do (with good reason), we trip over ourselves. Facts are facts.

[TRUBLUFAN]

Judging by some of the responses here, I don't have to question myself as to why this is! Half of the people who post here are caught up in the same Anti-Skins politics that keeps the spotlight on the Cowgirls....

The Redskins did the best job of improving over the off-season, PERIOD!!!

The Giants lost Burress

The Cowgirls loss T.O.

The Eagles' Defense lost its Heart + Soul (aka Brian Dawkins)

We added Doc, Mike Williams, Rak, Haynesworth Do the math....

HAIL

[bulldog]

The Redskins have the biggest potential upside in 2009 within the division.

But that is based largely on the fact there are so many unknowns.

Campbell could elevate himself.

The OL could solidify behind Heyer and Dockery and the return of Samuels healthy.

Devin Thomas could step up and become a playmaker down the field.

Those are all things that the media by and large is NOT considering as possibilities, at least not ones that should be countenanced by anyone seriously :laugh:

But THAT is precisely why the Redskins could be dangerous.

Let's face it, the Giants are not going to sneak up on anybody.

The Eagles made it to the title game last year in the NFC.

Dallas is the most over-exposed team in the league.

Of the four the Redskins are the ones with the chance to go under the radar screen and have a solid season, gaining a lot of surprised looks along the way.

[SirClintonPortis]

Maybe because the extremely talented receivers that were drafted last year failed to show up last year and improvement to the WR corps is primarily dependent on them.

Maybe because dudes like Jeremy Bridges and Derrick Dockery don't ring a bell in most people's minds.

[No Excuses]

Personally, I think the division got a bit weeker especially with Spagnolo and Johnson leaving the Giants and Eagles. However much of a problem TO was, he was still a playmaker and serious threat on the field. I think our defense is dominant enough to handle any of the NFC East offenses.

[Califan007 The Constipated]

The only team I have seen get positive reviews across the board has been the Eagles.

Dallas has come in for a lot of questioning this offseason.

Clayton questioned their OL.

A lot of others have questioned the deal to bring Roy Williams to Dallas and count upon him as a #1 WR.

Troy Aikman criticized Romo sits to pee's leadership and work ethic.

I think with NY the media justbelieves they are a better team and that Washington didn't close the gap since January.

What he said :yes:

[McD5]

media bias, black helicopters, grassy knoll....

You know the routine.

[Buck812]

Course, people think the only improvement you can make is bringing in new people. People used to make fun of that by calling it "winning the offseason". So, for one year we didn't "win the offseason", yet people are nervous.

Just like any team, the proof that the offseason moves were worth a damn will come when the pads get put on and we start getting better ideas on how the players play together.

I'll be concerned about the OL when it becomes time to do so. So far, we've seen nothing either way.

Well you can always postpone being concerned about it thats for sure. I do have high expectations for this year but I think the OL is our most volnerable position. The main reason we needed to "bring people in" is because, if nothing else of age and the front runner for our starting RT is the same one that was beat out last year by a player who's since been cut.

Bringing Dock back was great but this unit has a lot of question marks going into training camp. Will Randy Thomas and Cris Samuels be the same after injuries? Will Stephon Heyer ever be a starting quality tackle? Will Chad Rinehart ever be active?

Now I say that we needed to bring players in but I also understand we had limited resources to do so and this wasnt a great year for for free agent OLinemen. It is what it is but Im still concerned about this starting group being fragile, the starting RT and the lack of depth behind them.

[mi6]

Our most glaring problem was our QB. And we did not improve it.

That's it. That's the reason. No further discussion needed. That is why everyone still doubts us. QB.

Echo your sentiments ...

The Skins need to fill some significant holes, and they filled a few of them. But, not all.

Some of the holes they did not fill are along the O-Lines. the unit is just not solid. The other glaring problem the Skins had was putting points on the board. And, that falls on the QB. We did not upgrade there.

Also, our special team play was below average ... and, we did not fix that either.

The Eagles, Giants, and Cowboys have a more potent offense than ours. They have put up more points per game then us. With the the gaps they addressed, they have pushed themselves into being that much more better.

Mind you ... I don't like those teams/I am not a fan of theirs. But, its tough to argue that the Giants didn't get a tad more better than us with all of the acquisitions they made.

[LoudMouth12thMan]

Because they did?

They did if you don't realize the definition of "needs" and understand the concept of filling those needs. No other team in this division addressed their needs better than the Redskins IMO (as a football fan alone).

Skins have needed DT and DE help for eons? They acquired a top 2 or 3 best in the league DT and IMO, they drafted the best D lineman in the draft---which btw I'm on record as saying we'd never get Brian Orakpo in the draft.

I realize that Blache is fiddling with him at the SLB spot, but that's probably because Blache has a lot of interchangeable parts on defense this year...not going to get into that, but I'll just say that there are guys all over the D line and LB spots who can play with their hand in the dirt or standing up. Plus, many of the D linemen can play all the techniques so the acquisition of two versatile D linemen via the draft and in FA respectively was genius on Blache's part (and dare I say the FO's part)...and a bit lucky too.

The addition of D. Hall long term and Dockery could prove to be more of a big deal than most believe. That's the issue with some fans and pundits; I don't think people realize how talented the Redskins roster is this year as opposed to the last few years. Time will tell, but I'd be willing to bet that they will be a dominant team in '09.

Eagles

The Eagles lost their best defensive player aside from Asante Samuel, and they lost their mastermind coordinator. Therefore, any O line depth or skill position pick-up they made for their squad is negated by the fact that I believe their defense will struggle mightily.

Need I go into the offseason improvements for the Cowboys and Giants? There were no real improvements.

Proof?

Giants

Plaxico is gone. Without Plax, I'm not sure that Eli can trust that a big, tall receiver will be there to get the ball since the only "big bodied" receiver they have is a rookie, save their TE Boss of course. Because Eli is not the most accurate qb in the league, he will continue to struggle to be as effective as he once was with Plax in the picture. Last year's drop off was evident once Plax was suspended. The Giants have no real explosive threat on offense and much like the Redskins will have to rely on a power running game and hope that their defense can help them win most of their games.

Sure Canty was a good pick-up but the loss of Spags' is going to be an adjustment for the Giants as well. They're D line has never been an issue, but I'm not sold on their defense as a whole without Spags' there to keep a tight leash on the scheme. In my mind, Strahan and the D line, scheme, and coaching is what made that defensive unit thrive during '07-'08 the year they won the SB. Two of those ingredients are gone.

Cowboys

Lost T.O., still have Romo sits to pee starting, and Wade Phillips somehow still has a job. Need I say more?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I don't have burgundy and gold homer glasses or whatever the hell you guys call those fans, but many of you are delusional about the competition in this division. At some point, one or two of these teams are going to have to rebuild. I believe that this year could be the beginning of that for a couple of teams in the NFC East.

My hope is that the Redskins have been through their rebuilding phase, for the most part, and I believe that they can make a real run at a Super Bowl in the next two years. I've been hoping for this "run" for quite some time, but not until this off-season have I felt like all the pieces of the puzzle are there. I don't think Jason Campbell and the receivers make up the biggest pieces of the puzzle either. It will be the defense and special teams play determining whether this team makes a run. I'm hoping that Teams and the O line will improve the most. That would pay dividends in winning two or three more ball games this year.

[[[ghost]]]

Our most glaring problem was our QB. And we did not improve it.

That's it. That's the reason. No further discussion needed. That is why everyone still doubts us. QB.

Our OL was a bigger problem.

And that was only barely addressed.

[Kindred]

and again, what does it matter what everybody else thinks?

[Spartacus87]

The Eagles, Giants, and Cowboys have a more potent offense than ours. They have put up more points per game then us. With the the gaps they addressed, they have pushed themselves into being that much more better.

What did the Cowboys do that was so great?

They actually just got rid of T.O. and that was it. Headcase or not, he was still a 1,000-1,200 yard guy for them with a decent amount of TDs. And they're replacing him with....Roy Williams? Who sucks? Miles Austin? Sam Hurd?

The Giants have major questions concerning their receivers as well without Plaxico. They were pretty bad without Burress last season, going 1-4 without him. Their young guys have potential to surprise this year, but so do Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly.

[bubba9497]

the key word is "think"

sports media writers.... don't

[bubba9497]

and again, what does it matter what everybody else thinks?

it doesn't, but camp is still 2 days away

need to kill time

[tr1]

How have the pukes improved?

Through subtraction?

[walker77]

Offensive line.........PERIOD!!!!!

[AAARedskin]

At the end of the day....it's all good. Hey, let the Skins fly under the radar and then surprise the heck out of all the nay-sayers!

[SkinzHog]

that is probably because our biggest weakness was offense and we are exactly the same, except older.

[MartinC]

that is probably because our biggest weakness was offense and we are exactly the same, except older.

We got younger at left guard and right tackle (whoever wins that position). Remains to be seen if we got better.

A lot of bets for the offense this season revolve around one of Thomas or Kelly stepping up and winning a starting job at receiver moving ARE to the slot and EVERYONE being better in the second year in the system.

If Samuels and Thomas can stay healthy we can be solid on the line and I think we will be productive enough to win given the defense plays to repuation and potential. If Samuels or Thomas - but especially Samuels - gets hurt or are not fully healthy from last years injuries it could be a long year.