Poll: Are We A Playoff Team With Captain Kirk At The Helm?

[2STaylor1]

seeing that we match up well with the NFCE, its very possible.

[mike42]

No. Not as this defense is currently put togehter.

If it was in September/October, I would agree with you.

Defense has made a 180 in the same season. Can't help but be pleased with our defense. Especially watching last week's game against Seattle, it was a huge victory for our Defense to stop Seattle's explosive offense.

[clskinsfan]

Yes, but it won't be because we're 5 in the NFL in scoring. We'll have a better defense, and still be a run first, playaction kinda team.

Reports are Griffin will be back in time for season start, so lets just knock on wood and hope for the best.

That is not the reports. The reports are he will be back in 2013. No one has said for the start of the season.

[C26 Run]

Captain Kirk is a very good qb but I think there are other factors at play here. If we can upgrade our defense and keep everyone relatively healthy on offense, we have a great chance. Our offense would look more closer to Houston than Baylor and that'll be the difference. Robert needed this offseason to get more acclimated to our Houston style offense. Unfortunately that isn't going to happen.

:helmet:

[pjfootballer]

My dread would be the Skins trading off Cousins, and he becomes legit. At the very least the Skin's need to give Cousins a shot at starting while RG3 is recovering just to make sure we are not trading a possible Brady, or Rogers. That would be awful![

That is truly hilarious. :ols: RG3 is our Brady/Rodgers, not Kirk

I don't know, but I hope the team is willing to give it a try to start the season instead of RGIII being rushed back. I personally hope that he comes in and creates a quarterback controversy...I love RGIII, but I want options...

Best case scenario is that Cousins starts the first 8 games, proves that he is a franchise QB in the making. Then RGIII plays the last 8 and shows that he is still the same athletically and has progressed in his ability to read the defense. Sure there is going to be alot of debating on talk radio if that happens, but it gives the Skins the best possibility of succeeding in the future...

That is the worst case scenerio. When in the history of this team have QB controversies been a good thing. I want to know who my guy is from the start. And I want it to be Griffin.

[P()rter]

That is truly hilarious. :ols: RG3 is our Brady/Rodgers, not Kirk

Beginning of the year I may have thought so, but after everything happening I do not.

[jivelikenice]

No need to knock Kirk to compliment RG3. Out of the qbs drafted this past year, outside of RG3, Luck, and Wilson, who would you clearly take over Kirk? In a re-draft, he would definitely go somewhere in the 2nd half of the 1st round IMO. I think he can be very effective as long as we continue to build the team.

[P()rter]

No need to knock Kirk to compliment RG3. Out of the qbs drafted this past year, outside of RG3, Luck, and Wilson, who would you clearly take over Kirk? In a re-draft, he would definitely go somewhere in the 2nd half of the 1st round IMO. I think he can be very effective as long as we continue to build the team.

Agree. A QB that Can play is always better than one that cannot.

[Ned Flanders]

Not what we gave up for him.....

I bet we could get more, even with him broken. Peyton Manning anyone?

[Springfield]

Considering that we made the playoffs by the skin of our teeth this season, I'd be inclined to say no we are not.

Also, consider that our schedule next season will likely be pretty brutal. I'd love to be wrong though.

[skinfan2k]

Umm no. With Kirk Cousins, this team is at best 5-11. RG3 open everything for Amtrak. Thats why MS probably thought bringing in Cousins against the Seahawks. They were primarily playing Cover 1 the entire game and thought RG3 could make plays and win the game. If Hank makes that catch, RG3 never gets injured

[Monkfan63]

If it was in September/October, I would agree with you.

Defense has made a 180 in the same season. Can't help but be pleased with our defense. Especially watching last week's game against Seattle, it was a huge victory for our Defense to stop Seattle's explosive offense.

The defense made great strides throughout the season. But I dont think they are a championship defense. Get younger and get better, I say.

[MrJL]

The defense made great strides throughout the season. But I dont think they are a championship defense. Get younger and get better, I say.

London Fletcher is the only old guy on the D.

[Taylor 36]

Most people didn't think we were going to be a playoff team this year with RG3. So, anything is possible.

[Monkfan63]

London Fletcher is the only old guy on the D.

Hall is getting up there in age and I am tired of his antics.

[Burgold]

There's no reason to really think we couldn't be if we learned the lessons of this year.

Ball security.

Run the ball.

Misdirection kills.

Pressure on defense should be used intelligently

overly passive zones get you killed

safties aren't always pastry (some of you will get this)

More, Hankerson and Robinson will no longer be rookies on the field (this was their first year back)

Kerrigan will be much more effective with Orakpo on the other side

Morris will be even more effective with Helu and Royster to spell him and Helu should make a really deadly third down back

Crawford showed good potential both as a db and a returner

and the team now has confidence in itself which really does matter

Finally, Crawford is more than a caretaker. We don't know what exactly he is,but he is better than many of the starters we've trotted out over the last decade and a half.

[darrelgreenie]

Imo the leading cause for this team making the playoffs was the offense. Our offense was top 4 in scoring and top 5 in yards. Griffin was the engine that drove our offensive production.

Subtract him from the offense and the production goes down. If the production goes down we lose more games. If we lose more games we don't make playoffs.

Unless the team bats 100% during the offseason and upgrades several positions I don't think Cousins can guide them to the playoffs next year.

[MrJL]

Hall is getting up there in age and I am tired of his antics.

he's only 29

[TD_washingtonredskins]

That is the worst case scenerio. When in the history of this team have QB controversies been a good thing. I want to know who my guy is from the start. And I want it to be Griffin.

A similar situation took place in the late-1980s. Schroeder and Williams were both good QBs and shared reps in a Super Bowl year. A couple years later we traded Schroeder for a franchise LT. That might have been the only time it worked out for us.

But I agree, I hope that Cousins does well whenever he needs to pinch hit for Griffin. But I hope there is never a shred of doubt as to who is our leader and franchise QB.

[pjfootballer]

A similar situation took place in the late-1980s. Schroeder and Williams were both good QBs and shared reps in a Super Bowl year. A couple years later we traded Schroeder for a franchise LT. That might have been the only time it worked out for us.

But I agree, I hope that Cousins does well whenever he needs to pinch hit for Griffin. But I hope there is never a shred of doubt as to who is our leader and franchise QB.

I think in that season, Schroeder got hurt, then Williams, then Schroeder was ineffective and then Williams had a root canal. It was back and forth all season because one or the other was ineffective and Joe just started riding the hot hand. He had a hunch when the playoffs began on Williams. Great hunch.

[Henry]

I think it's possible. Griffin definitely energized this team and (especially early on) willed it to win a few games. But by the end of the season we were seeing a lot of rookies and second year guys contributing to wins, and the team was carrying Griffin rather than the other way around. That's the sign of a team that's building a solid foundation.

If we continue to draft like we've been drafting over the past two years this team around the QB will improve, and I think we may just be good enough to win 9 or so games with a non-phenomenal QB under center. And that may be good enough for a wild card.

[pjfootballer]

Finally, Crawford is more than a caretaker. We don't know what exactly he is,but he is better than many of the starters we've trotted out over the last decade and a half.

I'm excited to see what Chase Minnifield will do. He was a first round talent if not for the injury.

[P()rter]

Umm no. With Kirk Cousins, this team is at best 5-11. RG3 open everything for Amtrak. Thats why MS probably thought bringing in Cousins against the Seahawks. They were primarily playing Cover 1 the entire game and thought RG3 could make plays and win the game. If Hank makes that catch, RG3 never gets injured

5-11 LOL.... MS didn't put Cousins in because RG3 would have thrown a hissy fit, and we had enough bad press. His ****iness at the end of the game showed it. I have been all about RG3, but the presser afterward gave me an entirely different perspective. RG3 did nothing after the 1st quarter, and the D had to play the entire second half.

[Alaskins]

Like it or not, part of the reason that Morris was so effective this year was that teams had to respect RG3s ability to run. Kirk looked great in the Browns game, but I'm not sure if other teams would figure out how to counter his bootleg roll outs etc.

Not sure at this point...

[TD_washingtonredskins]

I think in that season, Schroeder got hurt, then Williams, then Schroeder was ineffective and then Williams had a root canal. It was back and forth all season because one or the other was ineffective and Joe just started riding the hot hand. He had a hunch when the playoffs began on Williams. Great hunch.

I think you're right...neither guy could hold the job in the regular season (for various reasons). I'm just saying that we had two guys who could play at the position and we ultimately were able to flip one to bolster another position. If Cousins does get significant playing there are two positive outcomes:

1) He looks OK, but not great, and we might have a long-term backup on our hands

2) He looks very good and drives up his value

There are certainly bad outcomes too, but either of the above would ultimately benefit the franchise at some point.

---------- Post added January-11th-2013 at 10:04 AM ----------

Like it or not, part of the reason that Morris was so effective this year was that teams had to respect RG3s ability to run. Kirk looked great in the Browns game, but I'm not sure if other teams would figure out how to counter his bootleg roll outs etc.

Not sure at this point...

Of course Griffin contributed to some of the success that Morris had. No one should dispute that. But we had less effective RBs combine for about the same number of rushing yards last year with Grossman and Beck under center, so I don't believe there's a real reason to believe our RB production will fall off too much.

You might have a point that we won't be able to live off bootlegs being wide open, but I think Cousins can execute the Shanahan offense just fine and we will still be effective on offense.