REDSKINS HISTORIAN Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 This is a question I agonize over constantly, and I’m sure many of you do, too: How good would the Redskins’ defense be today with all-world safety Sean Taylor manning the backfield? It’s so maddening just to think about what could have been, and how the Redskins and their fans got such a raw deal due to the tragic loss of a wonderful talent and future Hall of Famer. Last year in its first full season without Taylor after his death in Nov. 2007, the Redskins’ D finished No. 4 in the NFL. That’s nothing to pout about. But the defense produced a dearth of turnovers and sacks, failing to consistently give the offense a short field, and had problems getting opponents off the field at critical times. But now with the additions of $100 million tackle Albert Haynesworth and rookie linebacker/end Brian Orakpo, plus all of the talent we have coming back, including headhunting safety LaRon Landry, our defense has the potential to be “scary good,” as NBC Sunday Night Football analyst Chris Collinsworth put it. Throw in Taylor, and how dominant would this defense really be? I posed that question to four Redskins who played with Taylor – defensive end Phillip Daniels, cornerback Fred Smoot, linebacker London Fletcher and Landry – as well as Brig Owens, a Redskins safety from 1966 to 1977 and the second-leading interception man in team history (36). Here’s what they had to say: Phillip Daniels Fred Smoot London Fletcher LaRon Landry Brig Owens Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
“Misdirection” Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 Wait, what did they have to say? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCsportsfan53 Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 can't get the audio to work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
REDSKINS HISTORIAN Posted September 9, 2009 Author Share Posted September 9, 2009 Sorry. I made a mistake with the audio. It's working now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skins4SB Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 I liked the clips, but you kind of shunned Horton. lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Timmy Smith Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 It pains me to think of how unstoppable we'd look, if we still had Sean Taylor, but I guess I take some comfort in the fact that our current D is almost like an homage to ST: tough, hard-hitting, and ferocious. Those adjectives don't really do ST's game justice, but that was how he played. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
“Misdirection” Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 I liked the clips, but you kind of shunned Horton. lol. Eh, Horton never played with Sean. Thanks for the audio, OP. Good stuff, pretty moving hearing them talk about it. Daniels was especially passionate about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rdskn4Lyf21 Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 I'm tearing up listening to these....thanks a ton for this :applause: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCsportsfan53 Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 Definitely brought back some memories hearing those guys talk about him and it's certainly a thought that's crossed my mind. Thanks for sharing this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGoodBits Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 I think about this whenever I think about how good our defense is right now... I was actually going to start a thread on this at some point this season, right after our D put up a dominating performance. Fletcher came closest to echoing my sentiments when he said that they feel "cheated." The team was cheated and the fans were cheated. He should still be out there today. Sean Taylor- gone but never forgotten. RIP #21 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skins4SB Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 Eh, Horton never played with Sean. Thanks for the audio, OP. Good stuff, pretty moving hearing them talk about it. Daniels was especially passionate about it. I know, but he is speculating what if Sean was on this year's defense, which includes Horton. Sean never played with Rak or Haynesworth either. He could have at least mentioned Horton come off the bench or something along those lines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StepyagameuP Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 Damn, it hurts just seeing his name in a title... But we must KEEP THE MEMORY ALIVE! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gillherb Posted September 9, 2009 Share Posted September 9, 2009 incredible to hear that Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RedskinFeathers Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 Wow...just wow. Slacky and I legit just had a convo last night about how nasty our D would be with him....Heaven really does have on hell of a safety now. RIP 21, we miss ya. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TMat184 Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 We will all be saying "what if?" for the next decade or so... Always will be a tremendous loss and I can't put into words how much I miss watching him play. R.I.P. #21 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeaconBlue Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 I know, but he is speculating what if Sean was on this year's defense, which includes Horton. Sean never played with Rak or Haynesworth either. He could have at least mentioned Horton come off the bench or something along those lines. Yeah folks always seem to forget about that. Losing Sean was horrible but that said I think someone kinda smiled down on this team in it's time of need. I mean we were lucky to have already gotten Landry who is a player thats about as close to getting another Sean as anyone can reasonable expect to get and while he's no ST either we had a player like Horton come out of NOWHERE. Even with the tragic circumstances I think we were pretty lucky. I think we all wish we could have Sean back but I think Landry/Horton isnt that bad a consolation. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
InsaneBoost Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 I really hate when these questions are asked. I think we all know how good this team would be with him, he was like the Cooley of defense. No matter what time, what team, what score, he was always playing his heart out and hitting people as hard as he could. I understand why they ask these questions, but at the same time Horton must feel like crap, he plays his heart out as well, he's just not as good on rage and hard hits, YET. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
REDSKINS HISTORIAN Posted September 10, 2009 Author Share Posted September 10, 2009 I liked the clips, but you kind of shunned Horton. lol. You're right. I could have thrown Horton into the mix in terms of current talent. I wouldn't be surprised to see him rise so high this season to become a Pro Bowl selection or alternate. We're very lucky he came along shortly after Taylor's death. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bushwack Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 I really hate when these questions are asked. I think we all know how good this team would be with him, he was like the Cooley of defense. No matter what time, what team, what score, he was always playing his heart out and hitting people as hard as he could.I understand why they ask these questions, but at the same time Horton must feel like crap, he plays his heart out as well, he's just not as good on rage and hard hits, YET. I see what you're trying to say about Cooley playing his ass off; however, Cooley doesn't strike fear into the defense like Taylor struck fear into the hearts of receivers who were about go to deep or try to go across the middle. Everything I've read from receivers is that they had to know where Sean was at all times because he could take their heads off if they weren't paying attention. I don't know if Horton feels like crap, he knows what the Skins had in Sean, and I wouldn't be surprised if he ever thinks about what could have been if Sean was still on the team, and Horton was the 3rd safety. I think Landry is the one that has to carry the bulk of the burden on him because he's the one who is trying to "replace" Sean, but even LaRon can't live up to what Sean did on the field. Which is no shot at LaRon, but just how damn scary Sean was on the field. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arsenic Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 I think about this too too often. RIP, Sean.. You're with us. They better put his name on one of those rings we're about to get. God damnit... I dont know if I'm sad or angry... rip sean.. rip, dude.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
praise_gibbs Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DButz65 Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 Of course having 21 back there would be scary and great (for us) at the same time. He was a Meast! Next time give Daniels a rest before you interview him.. he was sucking wind big time.. LOL was this right after practice? And good job with the rest, you might want to not say, "uh huh" so much though, doesnt sound professional, but if you arent going for that, forget i mentioned it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TK Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 See Mike, I told you the other week when we talked about these clips that we weren't the only ones to have ever wonder 'What if'. Thanks for sharing these clips with everyone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NewCliche21 Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 Thank you so much for sharing these. Regardless of what some say, Taylor was the greatest talent that some of us have ever seen on this team or even ever will. Gregg Williams put it best: "You were the best I ever coached; you will be missed." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dondrae474 Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 Thanks for sharing. I will always wear my Taylor jersey proud on big game days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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