ESPN: NFC East Questions

[MattFancy]

http://espn.go.com/blog/nfceast/post/_/id/15723/nfc-east-training-camp-preview-2

Washington Redskins: Can Donovan McNabb take these pedestrian receivers to the next level?

AP Photo/Nick WassAfter 11 seasons in Philadelphia, Donovan McNabb now calls Washington home.

The good sign is that McNabb elevated some mediocre receivers in Philadelphia over the years. I think Devin Thomas is on the verge of being a consistent threat and McNabb will give him every opportunity to become a playmaker. With no appreciable depth along the offensive line, the Redskins will need some luck. Jason Campbell played behind arguably the worst offensive line in the league last season.

It would only take an injury or two to basically have that same line again. McNabb needs to be on the same page with his offensive line coming out of camp. Even with all of the Albert Haynesworth drama, McNabb will be the most compelling storyline.

Hottest Seats

Redskins: Haynesworth. He'll be the focal point of the first few days of training camp. I'm not holding my breath that things are going to work out between Haynesworth and coach Mike Shanahan. If the defensive tackle pouts openly about his role in the 3-4 defense, Shanahan will be tempted to send him home. Should be fun to watch.

Wild Best Predictions

Redskins: Clinton Portis will go to the Pro Bowl after rushing for 1,280 yards and 12 TDs.

[Conn]

That is a pretty wild prediction, about Portis, at least to see from ESPN.

Also, even during his best years with us, he was never a TD machine. Has he ever rushed for 12 TD's for the Skins? I just don't see it happening now, not with LJ and a real passing attack taking away his goal-line opportunities to score.

[TD_washingtonredskins]

He had 11 rushing TDs in his best two years here (2005 and 2007) so I don't think it's ridiculous that he could have 12 TDs if things go great this season (which they'd obviously have to for this prediction to come true).

[Conn]

He had 11 rushing TDs in his best two years here (2005 and 2007) so I don't think it's ridiculous that he could have 12 TDs if things go great this season (which they'd obviously have to for this prediction to come true).

Ah, thank you, I couldn't remember. For some reason I couldn't remember him ever scoring more than 8 in a season here. But I would still say that he's never been a TD machine, even if 12 is a reasonable number, if as you say, things go great this season. Lets hope they do!

[Maximus71]

Name me more than 3 teams out there that will be able to compete if their LT or RT went down to injuries!! Name one more than 2 teams that will be able to compete with a back up QB... 2nd string WR and so on. They all write the same *^%@ over and over.

[Redskins Anonymous]

Mosley is about as neutral as Fox News or Al Jazeera so I usually tune out his Dallas propaganda. But he did a decent job on this one. I think McNabb will make our WR's better this year. How many times were you at a game and saw Thomas streaking down the sideline wide open only to watch Jason throw into double coverage or to his check down guy? You know what the difference between Devin Thomas and DeSean Jackson other than one being drafted higher than the other in the same draft? Donovan McNabb

I also think our line will be better than last year, but it will still be another couple of years before that line has the type of depth, talent, and youth needed to compete for a Super Bowl. But it doesn't mean we can't make life hell for Mosley's Cowboys in the meantime.

[Conn]

Mosley is about as neutral as Fox News or Al Jazeera so I usually tune out his Dallas propaganda. But he did a decent job on this one. I think McNabb will make our WR's better this year. How many times were you at a game and saw Thomas streaking down the sideline wide open only to watch Jason throw into double coverage or to his check down guy? You know what the difference between Devin Thomas and DeSean Jackson other than one being drafted higher than the other in the same draft? Donovan McNabb

I also think our line will be better than last year, but it will still be another couple of years before that line has the type of depth, talent, and youth needed to compete for a Super Bowl. But it doesn't mean we can't make life hell for Mosley's Cowboys in the meantime.

I agree with you.

Another difference that I think we'll see between DT and D-Jack, is that DT is more prototypical in terms of a potential #1 WR. I don't see a huge difference in their hands, and I think in the right offense with McNabb throwing him the ball, people will actually notice DT's elite speed.

Its his toughness and ability after the catch that will separate him, I think. He can catch balls all over the field and make a big play happen, whereas outside of the odd reverse, Desean is really only good at one thing: the deep catch and run. And yes, he's great at it. But I think that if everything works out for him, DT will prove to be the better receiver.

Also, I agree with your last paragraph.....oh, and **** the Cowboys! :dallasuck

[RedskinsNation]

Donovan has done more with worse WR's than we have. Go back and look at that '03 WR core...it was a joke. I know DMAC isnt 25 anymore but if the question people are bringing up is focusing on the WR's rather than the QB then im not worried.

[armada58]

At some point somebody is going to have to explain the idea that Santana Moss & Chris Cooley are "pedestrian". I, for one, am getting little tired of the media dog-pack mentality when it comes to our WR's. We have the best TE Tandem in the NFL (That's right........... THE BEST IN THE NFL) and Santana Moss has PROVEN himself as a top notch WR in the NFL. Just because our #2 WR spot hasn't been a threat, that makes our ENTIRE WR Coprs "pedestrian"????? I say B.S.!!! I can't wait for our passing game to light up a few scoreboards this year.

[Conn]

At some point somebody is going to have to explain the idea that Santana Moss & Chris Cooley are "pedestrian". I, for one, am getting little tired of the media dog-pack mentality when it comes to our WR's. We have the best TE Tandem in the NFL (That's right........... THE BEST IN THE NFL) and Santana Moss has PROVEN himself as a top notch WR in the NFL. Just because our #2 WR spot hasn't been a threat, that makes our ENTIRE WR Coprs "pedestrian"????? I say B.S.!!! I can't wait for our passing game to light up a few scoreboards this year.

I agree with a lot of what you said, and the sentiment, but really, come on.

Moss hasn't scared people since 2005, and the rest of our receiving corps being crap is why--he's almost one-dimensional, like Desean Jackson, and teams can take him out of games. So that's why without a second threat, our WR corps is "pedestrian". I think he could have a huge resurgence this year, and I hope that he does, but Moss isn't an elite #1 WR on his own, have no doubts about that.

[skinswin=happy]

can someone with insider post the stupid article just put up about miles ausitn being the best reciever in the league, i would like to read and then rip on the retard that wrote it

[MattFancy]

can someone with insider post the stupid article just put up about miles ausitn being the best reciever in the league, i would like to read and then rip on the retard that wrote it

I just read it, its gotta be a joke lol. No way in hell Miles Austin is the best WR in the NFL. He's not even top 5, IMO. He's had one good year and now he's the greatest PLEASE lol

[Hitman21ST]

can someone with insider post the stupid article just put up about miles ausitn being the best reciever in the league, i would like to read and then rip on the retard that wrote it

Most of you One of the methods that former college football coach Bear Bryant used to settle positional battles early in his coaching career was the "challenge system." This allowed any player to call for a one-on-one battle with a starter. The two would go head-to-head in a variety of areas (blocking, tackling, receiving, etc.) to see who was the best at executing the key responsibilities of the position. The winner would claim the prize as starter.

If such a system existed in the world of statistical analysis, there would be many potential challengers to Houston Texans wide receiver Andre Johnson for the title of best wide receiver in the NFL. Larry Fitzgerald, Randy Moss and Reggie Wayne all would serve as worthy foes for Johnson, but surprisingly enough, none of them would rank as the No. 1 contender.

The real competition for Johnson as the NFL's premier wideout comes from within the state in which he plays pro football. Many might not consider Miles Austin to be an elite wideout yet, but he actually had a better set of metrics than any of the three other aforementioned contenders this past season.

So did he do enough last season to beat the perceived champion for the belt?

Andre Johnson

#80 WR

Houston Texans

2009 STATS

Rec

101 Yds

1569 TD

9 Avg

15.5 Long

72 YAC

532 To find out, let's do it like Bryant's players and run a 10-stage challenge. We'll compare both Austin's and Johnson's yards per attempt (YPA) metrics in 10 main receiving categories. At the end, whoever has the most victories will win the honor of best wide receiver in the NFL.

A full chart follows the breakdown by category.

Short passes (thrown downfield 10 yards or fewer)

Austin's 9.4 YPA topped Johnson's 6.0 mark by more than a 50 percent margin. That is enough to give him a win, but it is also worth noting that Austin didn't just beat Johnson in this metric but also led the entire league in this category.

Challenge status: Austin 1, Johnson 0

Medium passes (11-19 yards downfield)

OK, so Austin wins on dinks and dunks, but can he beat Johnson on the deep out, deep in and comeback routes that make up the bulk of the medium-depth patterns? Not exactly, but he didn't lose to him, either. Austin and Johnson both gained 12.1 YPA on medium routes last season.

Challenge status: Austin 1, Johnson 0, 1 tie

Deep passes (20-29 yards downfield)

For most receivers, the deeper the pass, the more likely it is they would lose to Johnson, but Austin won this category as well. His 20.3 mark ranked ninth in the league and nearly doubled Johnson's 10.9 YPA.

Challenge status: Austin 2, Johnson 0, 1 tie

Bomb-length passes (30 or more yards downfield)

Go patterns are the kings of this route depth, and this is where Johnson starts to make his stand. His 26.1 YPA ranked seventh in the league overall and second among wideouts with 10 or more bomb attempts. It also nearly doubled Austin's 13.8 YPA mark.

Challenge status: Austin 2, Johnson 1, 1 tie

Vertical (all medium, deep and bomb passes)

Johnson's lead in the bomb-pass category helped vault him over Austin in this all-encompassing category, but not by much. Johnson posted a 14.5 YPA mark, ranking 10th in the league, while Austin checked in with a 13.7 YPA total (which ranked 15th).

Challenge status: Austin 2, Johnson 2, 1 tie

Overall YPA (all route depths)

Johnson's bomb-pass prowess helped him close enough ground to win the vertical category, but it wasn't enough to overcome Austin here. Austin's 11.2 overall YPA mark ranked fourth and was more than a yard ahead of Johnson's 9.9 YPA total.

Challenge status: Austin 3, Johnson 2, 1 tie

Miles Austin

#19 WR

Dallas Cowboys

2009 STATS

Rec

81 Yds

1320 TD

11 Avg

16.3 Long

60 YAC

588 In the portion of this challenge based on depth of the pass route, Austin is the winner -- but distance alone is not the only indicator of how good a receiver is. Another way to measure receiving excellence is to see how well each wideout did when facing varying levels of competition.

I went through the breakdown charts I did for every game from the 2009 season and pulled out the plays on which a receiver faced a cornerback. I then assigned color-coded grades to the cornerbacks based on their 2009 YPA totals (which can be found in the KC Joyner Metricmania section in the 2010 ESPN The Magazine fantasy football preview).

Against cornerbacks who yield YPAs of 7 yards or fewer on average (red-rated CBs)

Austin was hardly fazed by elite competition, as he posted 12.0 YPA against them. Johnson's 8.0 YPA in this category ranked 18th in the league but didn't keep up with Austin's total.

Challenge status: Austin 4, Johnson 2, 1 tie

Against CBs who yield 7-9 YPA on average (yellow-rated CBs)

Austin put up 9.8 YPA here versus Johnson's 6.9. Another win for Austin.

Challenge status: Austin 5, Johnson 2, 1 tie

Against CBs who yield 9 or more YPA on average (green-rated CBs)

Johnson was very good at dominating overmatched cornerbacks, something shown by his 14.6 YPA. He wasn't as good as Austin and his 17.7 YPA, however.

Challenge status: Austin 6, Johnson 2, 1 tie

Against CBs in general

With wins in all three color-coded cornerback categories, it is obvious Austin won this part of the challenge as well (13.4 YPA versus Johnson's 9.9 mark), but just as was the case on short passes, it is worth noting that Austin ranked No. 1 in the league in this metric.

It also means he won the competition by a score of 7-2-1.

[Conn]

can someone with insider post the stupid article just put up about miles ausitn being the best reciever in the league, i would like to read and then rip on the retard that wrote it

Agreed. Actually, keep your eye out, I'm sure it'll show up in the ATN forum.

[Hitman21ST]

Mosley is about as neutral as Fox News or Al Jazeera so I usually tune out his Dallas propaganda. But he did a decent job on this one. I think McNabb will make our WR's better this year. How many times were you at a game and saw Thomas streaking down the sideline wide open only to watch Jason throw into double coverage or to his check down guy? You know what the difference between Devin Thomas and DeSean Jackson other than one being drafted higher than the other in the same draft? Donovan McNabb

I also think our line will be better than last year, but it will still be another couple of years before that line has the type of depth, talent, and youth needed to compete for a Super Bowl. But it doesn't mean we can't make life hell for Mosley's Cowboys in the meantime.

Also by Mosley:

Young stars such as DeSean Jackson and Brent Celek couldn't wait for the Kolb era to begin, so now we'll find out what that looks like. He's an accurate quarterback who has an excellent grasp of the offense after watching Donovan McNabb for three seasons. He'll make some mistakes, but he'll be helped by perhaps the best receiving corps in the NFL.

The Eagles have the best receiving corps in the NFL??? What is this guy smoking?

[MattFancy]

Agreed. Actually, keep your eye out, I'm sure it'll show up in the ATN forum.

I actually posted in ATN a few minutes ago

[Conn]

Wow.....that insider post.....wow.

[Conn]

The Eagles have the best receiving corps in the NFL??? What is this guy smoking?

They looked like a contender for that title, at least, with McNabb throwing the ball. I don't know how people can still say that. Look at the doubts people have in Arizona, even with one of the top WR in the league, nad a QB who got to sit for 4-5 years.

[Hitman21ST]

They looked like a contender for that title, at least, with McNabb throwing the ball. I don't know how people can still say that. Look at the doubts people have in Arizona, even with one of the top WR in the league, nad a QB who got to sit for 4-5 years.

Colts, Patriots, Saints, Vikings, all have better corps' than the Eagles, and that's just off the top of my head...

[Conn]

Colts, Patriots, Saints, Vikings, all have better corps' than the Eagles, and that's just off the top of my head...

Notice that you just named the teams with truly elite QB's leading them.

But that's the key with all of these.

Would Wayne, Garcon, Gonzalez, and Collie look so hot without Manning? No.

Would Moss, Welker, Edelman, etc. look so hot without Brady? No.

Would Rice, Berrian, and Harvin look so hot with Jackson/Rosenfel instead of Favre? No.

Just like Desean Jackson, Maclin, and Baskett, etc. won't look as good without McNabb.

And this article doesn't take that into consideration, when its obviously the most important factor.

[Redskins Anonymous]

Also by Mosley:

The Eagles have the best receiving corps in the NFL??? What is this guy smoking?

I ask the same question every time DeSean Jackson talks crap about Donovan McNabb and how he couldn't wait for him to be gone. It's like he has taken for granted who threw him all those balls. You can have great receivers and a crappy QB and still suck. Buffalo last year had TO and still sucked. Why? Because their QB situation sucked.

The bottom line is that the Eagles WR's are very talented and very good. But to think their offense won't drop off is wishful thinking. I'm sure Kevin Kolb is going to be great; as great as Feeley was in Miami. I think Philly made a mistake and their WR's will change their tune when Kolb keeps throwing balls five yards behind them. They'll be begging Donovan to come back after this year. If we don't resign him soon that could happen.

[Conn]

I ask the same question every time DeSean Jackson talks crap about Donovan McNabb and how he couldn't wait for him to be gone. It's like he has taken for granted who threw him all those balls. You can have great receivers and a crappy QB and still suck. Buffalo last year had TO and still sucked. Why? Because their QB situation sucked.

The bottom line is that the Eagles WR's are very talented and very good. But to think their offense won't drop off is wishful thinking. I'm sure Kevin Kolb is going to be great; as great as Feeley was in Miami. I think Philly made a mistake and their WR's will change their tune when Kolb keeps throwing balls five yards behind them. They'll be begging Donovan to come back after this year. If we don't resign him soon that could happen.

A. It also could have been because T.O. isn't that great anymore.

B. Kolb is more accurate than McNabb EXCEPT for the deep ball, so there will probably actually be less of those "off" balls thrown to them. Its when Desean is open 45 yards down the field 3 times a game and no one's there with the deep accuracy or strength to hit him.....that's when the **** will fly :evilg:

[skinswin=happy]

I look at it as do i want Johnson as my number 1 or Austin, the answer is Johnson all day everyday. These results are scewed. It all just broken down as yards per attempt in each category. So in reality u have johnson gettin more balls his way esp when schaub is under pressure that end up being poorly throw balls out of desperation which would lower every category. If u look at the cowboys, Romo sits to pee is throwin to witten when he is in a jam, or dumpin the ball off, the texans stretch the field they dont do dumps that often. Austin also has a better supporting cast so the defense can not zero in on him like they can Johnson, and Johnson still puts up crazy numbers. No one has to game plan for or double teams austin, at least not last year, which was his first good year. Also take away the one insane game he had against a horrible secondary of the chiefs and Austins whole season seems almost mediocre......dude is a bum,

L Fitz

A johnson

C johnson (rookie qb no other recievers)

Vincent jackson

Reggie Wayne

Dallas Clark not even really a wr

Brandon marshall

G jennings

All these guys I would take any day over austin, this guys is like zorns first 8 games, started off nice but now there is film on him, he's screwed

[skinswin=happy]

without the kc game he only had 1080 yds as a number one, good but not even close to elite, he still woulda had 9 tds without the 2 at kc which i have to say is still pretty good tho

but other than kc he scored on

Tampa

Atl

Sea

Phi

Oak

NYG

SD

NO

Not stellar secondaries by any means, SD is aight and so are the giants and philly but still, he performs against weak teams

[Redskins Anonymous]

A. It also could have been because T.O. isn't that great anymore.

B. Kolb is more accurate than McNabb EXCEPT for the deep ball, so there will probably actually be less of those "off" balls thrown to them. Its when Desean is open 45 yards down the field 3 times a game and no one's there with the deep accuracy or strength to hit him.....that's when the **** will fly :evilg:

I have heard that, but I still think after defenses figure him out (he's only played twice) he will start to rush some of those throws (see Campbell, Jason) and start missing guys.

McNabb actually does tend to miss some of those short throws, but part of it is that they throw like 90% (exageration) of the time. I was surprised to learn that Donovan is one of if not the least intercepted QB in NFL history. I was like, "Man, that can't be, I remember him choking and throwing picks." But because he has so many other passes his INT percentage is lower.

My aforementioned point being that I think overall the Eagles offense will not be as potent as it has been. I think Jackson's numbers will take a hit. I also think they will give up more sacks this year. Given that they pass so much, I think they shot themself in the foot by bringing in a guy who is more of a dink and donk, hand the ball off, vanilla kind of QB. They have lost their ultimate weapon that as a Redskins fan I have yearned for since 1991 - the deep threat QB. You take the deep threat out of their offense and you are left with the fun and gun. Little short passes with safeties ready to pummel you because they have no fear of the deap bomb like they used to. Don't get me wrong, I am sure Feeley, I'm sorry I mean Kolb can hit DeSean, but I don't see it happening as much as it did with McNabb.