Campbell Brings Youthful Enthusiasm

In 2004, Mark Brunell began the season as the Redskins’ starting quarterback, but nine games into the season, Patrick Ramsey replaced him. Nine games into the 2006 season, Brunell will be riding the pine once again, this time in favor of second year man Jason Campbell.

Brunell is not the only reason for the Skins problems, and benching him in favor of Campbell will not solve those problems and may not even make the Skins a better team this season. However, this should provide the team with a much-needed spark.

Campbell said that when Head Coach Joe Gibbs told him that he would be the number one QB, he felt like he had just won the lottery. The Skins will be able to benefit from his youthful enthusiasm. The whole team has been buzzing with excitement about Jason Campbell taking over the starting spot.

Campbell has a lot of talent. He is young, tough, and not injury prone. Mobility is a big part of his playing style, and that should help out in pass protection. At 6’4” 228 pounds, Campbell has a big, powerful, and athletic frame. He has a very accurate and strong arm. The former Auburn QB has been very successful in High School and College.

It’s good that they have made the switch now so Campbell can use the rest of this season to gain experience. He should be concerned only with learning how to play QB in the NFL and not even contemplate the finer points of playing in the NFL until the off-season. Consistent winning won’t come this season, but thanks to this decision, Campbell will be a much more polished NFL quarterback next season.

We can’t expect Jason Campbell to be the Redskins’ savior right now. If he stinks it up this weekend, lets not bash him too much and remember that he is playing in the NFL for the very first time in his life. We should not be too optimistic or too pessimistic about this weekend. Campbell is a complete unknown and it is going to take a while to learn enough about him to determine his NFL talent.

The Redskins’ roster has gone through many more changes this week than just at the QB spot. As we all know, RB Clinton Portis has been placed on IR, ending his season. His roster spot will be taken by newly resigned TE Brian Kozlowski, who played for the Redskins last season. “Koz,” as he is known as, will replace TE Christian Fauria who was also put on IR this week (I didn’t know that the inability to block was an injury). Rookie WR Mike Espy, who was signed from the practice squad and had a great preseason, will take Fauria’s spot on the roster. Lastly, WR Santana Moss is listed on the injury report as doubtful for Sunday’s game at Tampa Bay and will be a game time decision.

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Back to RFK?

On the ride home from work yesterday, I heard on the radio, a story regarding "talk" about the Redskins possibly moving back to D.C. and building a new stadium in place of the old RFK stadium. Below is the excerpt of the story.

WASHINGTON -- There's been some talk around town of a plan to bring the Redskins back to RFK Stadium, and D.C. Mayor-elect Adrian Fenty said he'd like to see Washington's football team playing again in the city instead of the suburbs.On Wednesday, News4 first reported that both current D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams and Council Finance Chairman Jack Evans have talked to team owners about building a new, domed stadium on the site of RFK.On Thursday, Fenty agreed the idea was worth pursuing. Officials have said the plans are not specific, but the vision is of a new stadium with a dome. "People love the Redskins. I think people would love to have the Redskins back in the District. The accessibility of the RFK site versus FedEx Field is unquestioned," said D.C. Councilmember Jack Evans. Evans said officials have talked informally to Redskins owner Dan Snyder and associates about building a new stadium on the RFK site when the Nationals move to a new stadium in 2008.Officials also said that with a year-round dome, a new football stadium would be eligible for the Super Bowl event that Snyder dreams of.

Personally, I think it's an interesting idea. It would be a really good thing for D.C. if they'd land the Super Bowl someday in the future. Just imagine the REVENUE the city would get! We all know how revenue-hungry governments are.

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The Season is Over for Portis & Redskins

Big news out of Redskins Park! Starting running back Clinton Portis has been placed on injured reserve, ending his 2006 season. Portis was originally expected to miss 3 to 4 weeks with a broken right hand, but team officials have decided to put him on IR so he can have the shoulder surgery that he would have under gone after this season was over.

This is the correct thing for the team to do because, for the Redskins, the season is over. At 3-6, it would have taken a miracle for them to make the playoffs. Portis has not been himself since injuring his shoulder while tackling a defensive back after an interception in the first preseason game of the year.

Having the surgery now means that Portis will have much more time to recover and may even be ready for off season workouts and conditioning. Therefore, the effects on his 2007 season will be minimized, if not eliminated.

Portis played in 8 of 9 games this season, and started 7 of those games. He will finish the season with 127 carries for 523 yards, a 4.1 yards-per-carry average, and seven touchdowns. He also caught 17 passes for 170 yards. His previous career low for rushing yards over an entire season was more than 1,300 yards in 2004, his first year in Washington. This will be the first time in his career that he will be out of action for an extended period, and his first time on IR.

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QB Campbell to Start; RB Portis Sidelined

The Washington Redskins will look different come this weekend because of two key roster moves. Both were made due to necessity, but were necessary for different reasons. One change is for the long term, but the other is, hopefully, for as short as possible.

The Redskins 2nd pick in the 1st round of the 2005 NFL Draft will finally get on the field in this weekend’s game at Tampa Bay. Quarterback Jason Campbell, 24 years old, will make his first NFL appearance and start. The coaches have been preparing the former Auburn standout since the bye week, three weeks ago. He has had increased practice time and has helped with play calling in practices. Joe Gibbs has called Campbell a “hard worker.” The head coach has also said that Campbell has a “good feel” for the playbook and that it will be tailored to what they think he does best.

Was Mark Brunell’s average play, at best, the only reason why the Skins have been so second-rate? Hell no, but ya gotta start somewhere, right? The Skins’ defense is non-existent, and the team is one of the most heavily penalized teams in the league. There are plenty more problems with this team then just the QB, so keep that in mind this weekend.

Another one of those problems is the absence of running back Clinton Portis, who broke his hand in Sunday’s game. He will be out for 3 to 4 weeks at best! Remember the first two games of the season? Portis played in the first game but was still hurting, then he sat out the second game. In those two games, the Redskins offense was even worse then it is now.

Second string RB Ladell Betts will now be the starter. He has been doing a real good job this season as the back up to Portis. Betts will now have to carry the full load of the running game. Hopefully, he will get some help from the other two Redskins running backs. T.J. Duckett has seen hardly any action in this, his first – and probably last – season as a Redskin. Rock Cartwright is also available to run the ball. Rock has carried the ball even less this season, but has had a pro-bowl caliber year in returning kick offs.

In my next post, I will explore how these changes to the Redskins’ roster will impact the Skins in this season and beyond! So, check back soon!

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A Preview: Redskins vs. Eagles

Hello Redskins fans! After the thrilling 22-19 victory last week over Dallas, I'm really excited about tomorrow's 1:00pm kickoff at the Eagles. The Skins have a two game winning streak against the Eagles, and hold the series edge 75-63-5 (since 1934). Washington was propelled into the playoffs last year after a 5 year drought, defeating Philly 20-17.

Now, let's take a look at the tale of the tape of how the Redskins and Eagles match up. The Redskins are ranked 15th in the NFL, averaging 322.6 yards per game in total offense. Philly's defense is comparably ranked 14th in the league, averaging 316.1 yards given up per game in total offense. The Skins' defense, ranked 30th in the NFL, will have a tall order trying to stop the Eagles' number one ranked offense (in total yardage).

The Redskins are coming off of their best game of the year, and it's not just because the game was thrilling. Washington played better then they have all year. However, they still were far from great. The defense looked really good at times, but far from the dominant force that they were last year. The offense looked better then they have all year, but still could have been a lot better. They actually threw the ball down field, but not as often or well as they should. Clinton Portis ran the ball on the outside for 38 yards, untouched, for a touchdown. But they didn’t run to the outside as many times as they should have. They just kept running up the middle and getting squished after a one or two yard gains. The Skins never did give up, but they didn’t have that killer mentality that you need in order to win in the NFL.

They still aren’t rushing Clinton Portis enough! He wasn’t effective except for that 38yard TD run. The most ridiculous thing for the Redskins happened early in the game. The Skins tried 8 consecutive times to score a touchdown from inside the 4 yard line and failed every time. They ran the ball 6 times. Clinton Portis rushed 5 times, Ladell Betts rushed once, and T.J.Duckett rushed ZERO times. Isn’t Duckett's great career goal line production a main reason why the Skins traded a 3 rd round draft pick for him?

Another positive for the Skins is that they only committed four penalties, which is a lot better then they have been. Before last weekend's game, the Skins were among the most penalized team in the league and led the league in 15 yard personal foul penalties.

All in all, it's safe to say that the Skins did improve their play. However, you can't escape the fact that a ton of unbelievable luck had a significant role in the improbable win. I hope they realize their mistakes and things they could do better this weekend.

Big hat tip to Eric, with his input and thoughtful insight in this post.

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Sunday's Skins Game to be Replayed Tonight

The incredible Cowboys vs Redskins rivalry game that was played on Sunday will be replayed tonight (Wednesday) at 8pm EST on the NFL Network. All football fans should check it out no matter what team they root for. If you miss the replay tonight, they will replay the replay of the game several times throughout the week.

Nothing more!

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"Come on Washington Gibbs Me a Win!"

The inspiration for the title of this post came near the end of the fourth quarter. The camera panned through the crowd, and stopped on a fan holding up a sign with that title. This game totally lived up to the standards of this historical rivalry. It all came down the wire. It was truly a great game for ANY football fan.

You could call the first half of the game unconventional. On the opening possession, the Skins marched right down the field to the Cowboys 1 yard-line. They tried punching it in by running up the middle for three plays, and were unsuccessful. They made the right call being at home to go for it early in the game. They ran it up the middle again, and got stuffed. Turnover on Downs. The Cowboys' first offensive play from their own 1 yard-line was a run, and Jones was tackled in the end zone for a safety. With the free kick, the Skins managed to get a field goal to make it 5-0. 5-0 is certainly a score you don't see everyday. At this point in the game it makes you feel a little uneasy after the Skins had two great opportunities and they couldn't translate them into touchdowns. The Cowboys marched right down the field and scored a touchdown on their next possession. In my book, Parcells made a very questionable decision to go for two points this early in the football game, and of course they didn't make it. The Redskins and the Cowboys ended the first half tied at 12 apiece. The Redskins certainly tried to run the ball throughout the game, but their attack wasn't all that great. The biggest run play they had was in the first half, with Clinton Portis' 38 yard touchdown run. The Skins had to play catch up when the Cowboys scored a touchdown on their first drive of the second half. The Skins got their equalizer on a beautiful catch from Chris Cooley in the end zone to tie it at 19. At this point in the game, there was a real feeling of promise that the Skins had a great chance to pull this one out. With about a minute left in the game, the Skins got as far as they could to give Novak a chance to win it with a 49 yard field goal attempt. He missed it wide right...your heart jumps in your throat knowing that they gave the Cowboys great field position to drive for a game winning field goal attempt. The Cowboys get their chance with six seconds left, and Troy Vincent comes up HUGE with the block! Sean Taylor had a very nice return of the blocked field goal, and gets a 15 yard face mask penalty tacked on with no time left on the clock. Mr. Nick Novak gets his second chance with a 47 yard field goal attempt, and sneaks it through the upright! Here's some other things worth noting about the game. Terrell Owens had a CRITICAL drop of a pass behind the Skins' secondary that would've been a back-breaker putting the Skins down by 14. The Cowboys had 11 penalties for 153 yards, and the Skins only had 5 for 41 yards. The Redskins were 5 for 13 on 3rd Down conversions. On the Skins' opening possession, they had the ball for over eight minutes but, they ended up losing the time of possession battle to the Cowboys 31:28 to 28:32. The Skins next opponent is against the Eagles at Philly next weekend.

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