tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57901802009-04-19T23:33:51.427-07:00What to make of the Washington Redskins - thoughts from a loyal fanJarvisnoreply@blogger.comBlogger165125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-24960194495512634582009-04-19T16:36:00.001-07:002009-04-19T16:36:26.676-07:00

Dan Snyder is both a great owner and an infuriating owner. He's a great owner in the sanme way that Jack Kent Cooke would open up his pocketbook to acquire any star player necessary. It's too bad that these days championships are won by building through the draft with solid scouting and talent evaluation.Unfortunately, to that point, Snyder is an infuriating owner because he gets involved in

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-21915546540259871942009-02-28T17:11:00.000-08:002009-02-28T17:47:31.168-08:00

DeAngelo Hall - It was a must to re-sign this top-notch corner. Hall will likely play at a Pro Bowl level next season. The only question mark was that it seemed the offer was much higher than it needed to be. The Skins probably would have been able to keep him by matching any equivalent offer on the open market.Derrick Dockery - Good move to go younger on the O-line with by bringing Dock back as

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-20275166099896418132009-02-28T17:02:00.000-08:002009-02-28T17:10:00.129-08:00

Just as wonderful as a 6-2 start was, so too was the pain of the 2-6 finish. As mentioned in a post about a year ago about moods affecting reading and blogging. I'd resolved to be more consistent but obviously couldn't do so. I wasn't surprised in the least by the weak second half of the season.In the first half, Zorn's offense was new and he was a risktaker. Everyone was healthy. By the second

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-73457871679223365802008-11-07T15:19:00.001-08:002008-11-07T23:51:00.215-08:00

Signing DeAngelo Hall is a great move. Shawn Springs and Fred Smoot have been hurt all season. He adds superior depth in a troublesome spot. I had been disappointed that the Redskins hadn't drafted Aqib Talib in the first round but Hall is a considerable upgrade. Best of all, he comes at low risk and minimal cost. Chances are that he will play well, the Skins will part ways (unfortunately) with

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-29040435722531275702008-11-07T15:11:00.001-08:002008-11-07T15:19:00.381-08:00

Obama wins! Tough sacrifice for diehard Redskins fans but one that almost anybody would be willing to make.All comedy aside, though, the Skins were in for a rough night when they could only scrounge 6 points in the first quarter. Dick LeBeau showed exactly how to handle Jim Zorn's offense. As the Washington Post noted, quarterback Jason Campbell was the one who paid the price, suffering seven

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-34732783432109881282008-11-07T15:05:00.001-08:002008-11-07T23:53:15.291-08:00

Again Washington played down to their level of competition. This game proved that the Skins were not an elite team. Even though they dominated, their errors and inability to close the game kept the game in doubt. An elite team would have destroyed the Lions with its no-name quarterback. It's nice to have the luxury of Santana Moss as a secret weapon on punt returns. It's also unfortunate that the

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-1246230188266583962008-11-07T14:59:00.000-08:002008-11-07T23:53:50.910-08:00

The Skins played down to their level of competition, the feisty but error-prone Cleveland Browns. They even recognized it. The team really needs to spread the running burden around. Cartwright and Alexander accounted for six runs but should have accounted for 10 carries. Portis has been outstanding but it will catch up with him in the second half of the season. Let's hope that Betts is ready to

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-47635541792377613382008-10-13T22:04:00.001-07:002008-11-07T23:55:05.763-08:00

Of course. Classic trap game and the Skins fall right into the trap. Everything pointed to the Rams pulling off the upset. The 0-4 Rams were in a desperate funk, most importantly, had two weeks to prepare, had re-installed Marc Bulger as starting QB, and were determined to make a strong first impression with Haslett at the helm. In addition, the potential has been there all along - they just

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-73776387142069256822008-10-07T22:51:00.000-07:002008-10-07T23:36:22.389-07:00

Not panicking. Not abandoning the game plan. Jim Zorn has done a remarkable job with this veteran football team in keeping everyone even-keeled. Staying the course. Whatever you want to call it. The Redskins spotted the Eagles a great first drive and DeSean Jackson's punt return to be down by two touchdowns. By sticking to the plan, the team then scored 23 unanswered points before Akers' last

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-74268508486647761332008-09-28T19:59:00.000-07:002008-10-07T23:35:39.246-07:00

I didn't have high expectations for Washington this week. I just dearly hoped that they would not be absolutely blown out of the water by the high-powered Cowboys.Instead, what happened was that the Jim Zorn-led Skins kept pace with Dallas for the first half. Then, in the second half, Jason Campbell, Clinton Portis, and mates consistently drove into Dallas territory to come away with three field

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-55614134376175133812008-09-21T13:12:00.001-07:002008-09-21T23:39:07.057-07:00

True grit. The Skins hung tough and pulled out the win against a rising Cards team. Two wins against some decent teams. Can they continue the momentum?Aside from Campbell's development, what I've been most impressed with the last couple weeks are Zorn's gutsy play-calls to close out the game. Against the Saints, he went for it on fourth-and-two and the slant to Moss gave the Skins the necessary

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-22661175604018066042008-09-16T00:10:00.000-07:002008-09-16T00:32:35.528-07:00

After the clunker in Week One against the Giants, I was sure that the Redskins were doomed to a woeful season of ineptitude, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Instead, the offense came up with plenty of huge plays on Sunday.The Saints are a high-powered team with a standout quarterback in Brees and the most versatile player on the field in Reggie Bush. Shockey's no slouch, either.

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-52456961594065542662008-09-05T17:40:00.001-07:002008-09-05T17:40:11.807-07:00

The team looked awful. On defense, Eli stood in the pocket, withstood the pressure, and picked the team apart alongside his partner-in-crime Plaxico Burress. Brandon Jacobs bowled over the defense figuratively and then literally with Laron Landry. On offense, the Skins couldn't execute. Jason Campbell has severe deficiencies. It was obvious that he wasn't progressing in his reads to the second

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-1255546686434708162008-08-27T19:32:00.001-07:002008-11-07T23:55:52.786-08:00

The loss of Osi Umenyiora, coupled with the un-un-retirement of Michael Strahan leaves the Giants with a mediocre D-line at best. (In retrospect, the Skins were lucky to get Jason Taylor when they did.) In addition, several members of the Giants LB corps and secondary are gone as well. Eli is a year more experienced. The running game was jelling in the playoffs. Ahmad Bradshaw will be better.

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-82445118859446342272008-07-24T19:01:00.001-07:002008-09-16T00:40:11.998-07:00

I have to admit that I was ambivalent about the signing of Jason Taylor given that he's on the downside of his career. And the Skins gave up a second round pick (and sixth, but I consider those a dime a dozen) to get him.However, now that it's been a few days, it's definitely a needed upgrade. Remarkably, the D-line gets younger with Taylor in the lineup. Even though he's 34, Philip Daniels is 35

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-80739935013738281332008-06-10T18:29:00.001-07:002008-06-10T18:29:10.566-07:00

Eagles - Fantastic addition with Asante Samuel. The Skins can only hope to minimize that addition by trusting their big young receivers to go up and get the ball. However, Campbell can only do that on the periphery. One tipped pass between the hashes and Samuel will take it back the other way for 6.Chris Clemons, the former Skin, adds good depth as a situational pass rusher. His speed is a big

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-59753950240997971972008-05-12T17:42:00.001-07:002008-05-12T17:42:40.505-07:00

The two most pressing needs appear to be 1) LB (with Rocky McIntosh's injury) and 2) CB (due to Carlos Rogers' injury). Warrick Holdman appears available and would provide veteran, if slow, reinforcement. Is Junior Seau also available?I'm not sure what happened with David Macklin last year and why he didn't really play. Wasn't he a starting corner at some point? How can he not even get on the

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-56052114019712281792008-04-27T16:31:00.000-07:002008-04-27T18:09:32.259-07:00

I won't pretend to have heard of any of the players drafted by the Redskins on day two other than Hawaii QB Colt Brennan.Judging from the descriptions on nfl.com, though, it appears that the 2008 Redskins draft graded quite well. On day two, they got a couple of defensive backs from big-time programs (Tryon from ASU and Horton from UCLA) and a defensive back from a small program but with good "

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-86882592344084175882008-04-26T20:30:00.000-07:002008-04-27T18:08:39.039-07:00

1. Devin Thomas, WR. I am SO glad that the Redskins traded out of their spot at #21. I was really hoping that they would draft Aqib Talib but unfortunately, he was picked one spot (#20) earlier by the Buccaneers. It's also too bad that the Skins couldn't draft DE Phillip Merling when they got around to picking at #34.However, I'm not happy with the pick of a receiver. The Redskins just don't have

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-22952382523595701282008-04-23T20:00:00.000-07:002008-04-26T20:30:37.960-07:00

Kudos to Vinny Cerrato for attempting to trade for Chad Johnson. He is definitely worth two hit-or-miss first round picks. He should have another 3-4 good years left. It's too bad that it didn't work out.On a related note, though, it seems a bit ridiculous that NFL players are decrying the contracts they signed just a couple years ago, saying that they've "outplayed" their contracts. What's the

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-81600270343563247972008-04-16T21:07:00.001-07:002008-04-26T20:30:37.961-07:00

Don't do it! Don't draft Malcolm Kelly in the 1st round. If CB Aqib Talib is available, draft him to replace Shawn Springs. When I see Malcolm Kelly, I can only think of one thing - Rod Gardner.

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-19461522151340094592008-04-07T18:16:00.001-07:002008-04-26T20:30:37.962-07:00

I don't understand the move to sign Mathis when the Skins already have recently re-signed Rock Cartwright and also have Ladell Betts back to return kickoffs. They have Randle El to return punts. And they have James Thrash as a proven backup for both return spots. It would have made sense if the team had lost Cartwright to free agency but since they didn't, the Mathis signing is a head scratcher.

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-14433072449576560982008-04-05T16:07:00.000-07:002008-04-26T20:29:26.327-07:00

February 2, 2008 was an amazing day for Washington Redskins football fans as two recent legends of the game were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. For Darrell Green, it was hard to see him not being a first ballot HOF'er. For Art Monk, it was a long time coming.Darrell Green played at a high level for an inconceivable 20 years. He played in three Super Bowls and won two (XXII and XXVI)

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-41320999585940050192008-03-17T18:08:00.001-07:002008-04-26T20:29:44.188-07:00

One Washington Post article I read when Jim Zorn was first hired questioned Dan Snyder's qualification at judging Jim Zorn. Specifically, he said to Joe Gibbs, "This guy (Zorn) would make a terrific head coach."The questioning of his assessment ability is spot-on. Snyder has no idea what makes a "terrific head coach." His best coaching hire was one that was already voted into the Hall of Fame

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5790180.post-39659203629661620692008-03-15T19:28:00.000-07:002008-04-26T20:30:37.962-07:00

The release of DJack by the 49ers gives the Redskins a good option in case Hackett doesn't sign. In fact, the team should have him visit Redskins Park immediately as he is a proven commodity with three 1,000 yard seasons under his belt. While he is likely on the downside of his career, he doesn't turn 30 until the end of the year so he's a veteran who knows the offense and could be reinvigorated

Jarvisnoreply@blogger.com0