washington redskins

Post Columnist Blames RGIII’s Injury, Redskins Loss On ‘Bad Karma’

By Lee Hernly in NFL, sports, washington dc, washington redskins No Comments Tags: , , , ,

I can’t believe I am saying this but, I agree with Courtland Milloy at the Washington Post. It is time to change the Redskins name and logo.

So, Washington football fans, how’s that offensive team name and demeaning sports mascot working out? Whooping and hollering as RGIII goes on a “Redskins” warpath only to leave a trail of tears when his wounded knee gets buried at FedEx Field.

In this obscene home team sports fantasy, the gifted Robert Griffin III was reduced to a “noble savage.” Let the “Redskin” play hurt. He can take it. Hail to the young brave-hearted quarterback as he limps into battle on that injured knee. Three cheers as he fights on his one good leg for Old D.C.

And when he’s felled during Sunday’s playoff game against the Seattle Seahawks, bringing the postseason to an ugly and immensely unsatisfying end — torn ligaments no doubt shortening his own career as well — Washington gasps in horror.

Bad karma, I tell you, that team name.

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Eagles vs. Redskins – Final Thoughts

By Lee Hernly in NFL, sports, washington redskins 3 Comments Tags: , , , ,

Two guys, WR Pierre Garcon & Safety Brandon Merriweather, were back in action Sunday for the Redskins. Boy, has the Redskins missed these guys. The Redskins were playing a ‘must win’ game against the lowly Philadelphia Eagfles, losers of five straight.

The Redskins started quick versus the Eagles getting an early interception off a tipped ball on the Eagles first drive which the Redskins quickly turned into six points. It was very evident in the first half just how much of a difference Brandon Merriweather makes on our defense. The man was flying all over the field.

A little later on the Eagles next drive, Brandon Merriweather intercepted Quarterback Nick Folks. With Merriweather finally able to play, the Redskins were swarming all over the field with a renewed vigor I haven’t seen in several games. The Redskins couldn’t do much on offense in the first quarter as the Eagles has the ball for around 12:00 of the quarter.

First quarter ended 7-0 Redskins.

In the second quarter, the Eagles drove down and got a field goal. The Redskins were victimized by a couple of long screens on the drive and had trouble with the Eagles screen plays most of the game. The Redskins marched quickly down field scoring on a 49 yard bomb from RGIII to Aldrick Robinson. The Eagles couldn’t do much for the rest of the second quarter. Toward the end of the quarter, the Eagles had the ball deep in their own end when Eagles RB LeSean McCoy fumbled. The Redskins couldn’t do much with the opportunity and had to settle for a short field goal from K Kai Forbath (who hasn’t missed yet BTW).

At the end of the half, it was 17-3 Redskins.

NOTE(S): The Redskins haven’t look crisp at all in their offense in the first half most especially, coming out of the huddle. The Redskins will get the ball to start the second half but, will they be able to put the game away?

The Redskins offense had a lot of trouble starting the second half and had to punt from their deep in the own territory. On the Eagles next series, Brandon Merriweather got hurt helping to drop Eagles RB LeSean McCoy for a loss. Let’s hope that Merriweather doesn’t miss too much more time as he really is a difference maker of defense. The Eagles got another long field goal as the Redskins D stiffened a little later in the drive. The play by the Redskins D has been much better than of late. A case of Brandon Merriweather returning or are the Eagles just that bad?

On the Redskins next series, Redskins QB Robert Griffin III, on a 3rd and 15 provided much more elusiveness by gaining 23 after being flushed out of the pocket. A little while later, RGIII connected with WR Santana Moss on a 61 yard bomb made possible by a great play on the ball by Moss.

Third quarter in the books – Redskins 24 Eagles 6.

After some back and forth and some questionable play calling from Kyle Shanahan (4th and 1 pitch), the Redskins found themselves deep in the Eagles territory where RGIII connected with TE Logan Paulsen on a beautifully thrown 17 yard TD pass. Paulsen then fought his way into the end zone for the score.

Final score – Redskins 31 Eagles 6.

The Redskins looked quite out of sync on offense virtually the entire day. They also didn’t have much open down field save the throws to Robinson, Moss, Paulsen, and a nice catch by Josh Morgan over the middle. As I mentioned to my brother during the fourth quarter, much of the game was the RGIII & Alfred Morris show. The other Redskins on offense are going to need to play better if we want to beat the Giants & Cowboys.

Last but not least, STOP the penalties. How many false starts did we have on offense??

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Redskins vs. Bengals – Final Thoughts

By Lee Hernly in news, NFL, sports 1 Comment Tags: ,

1st Quarter

I don’t think I have EVER seen a wide receiver throw a pass as far as Bengals’ receiver Mohamed Sanu did on the first play from scrimmage which resulted in a 73 yard score on the game’s opening play. After a terrific punt by Sav Rocca which nailed the Bengals inside the 1 yard line, Rob Jackson intercepted an Andy Dalton pass in the endzone and the Redskins were right back in the game. The Redskins offense had a lot of problems getting going in the first quarter. The Redskins passing game is in a word non-existent.

14-7 Bengals.

2nd Quarter

The Redskins continued to have problems on offense. The offensive line had terrible problems protecting RG3. It was so bad at one point the Redskins rookie QB was smacked hard on an attempted pitch to Alfred ‘Bam’ (okay I said it…) Morris that the ball was popped loose as well and the Bengals recovered at the Redskins 12 yard line. RG3 stayed on the turf for an extended time which caused the fans in the stadium to hush. The Bengals were able to move up and down the field through the air with hardly a response from the Redskins D. The offense FINALLY showed up in the last 2 minutes of the quarter and got a short field goal from Billy Cundiff. The Redskins are still having an awful time trying to throw the ball. Six total passing yards in the first half by the Redskins. Some of this came from the offensive lines woes brought to a head by an injury to LT Trent Williams.

24-10 Bengals

3rd Quarter

The Redskins offense opened the 2nd half by marching 80 yards downfield capped off by a 7 yard Alfred Morris TD. The defense FINALLY showed up on the very next Bengals drive, forcing them into a three and out. The Redskins marched downfield once again in a long drive to score again. On the next possession, with momentum clearly in the Redskins favor, the D forced a Benjarvis Green-Ellis fumble which they couldn’t capitalize on.

24-24

4th Quarter

The 4th quarter belonged again to the Bengals with one score coming on a long pass play again. They scored a second TD in the quarter on another Andy Dalton TD pass. The Redskins offense had trouble all quarter and RG3 continued taking some BIG hits. Bengals were up 38-24 before RG3 led the Redskins on a long quick drive to cut the lead to 38-31 with about 3:30 to play. The Redskins were able to get the ball back with about a minute something to play deep in their own end. RG3 led the offense down the field and got to about the 20 before RG3 was sacked back at the Bengals 34. On the next play, with :07 left, there was an false start by Fred Davis which should have ended the game with a :10 second runoff however, there was some confusion, some folks ran on to the field and the Redskins bench had some severe words with the officials during the confusion. This resulted in an unsportsmanlike penalty on the Redskins which gave them a 3rd down and forever to go. RG3 gave it one final heave but the pass was batted down.

38-31 Bengals.

Final Thoughts

The Redskins need to look more fluid on offense. They get a couple of nice runs then they tend to abandon it. They did run some nice option plays in the 3rd quarter which helped get the offense going in the second half. This loss falls on the defensive side of the ball once again. Bengals QB Andy Dalton took a lot of quick three step drops to get the ball out quick and  our corners D’Angelo Hall & Josh Wilson had a lot of trouble covering the Bengals outside receivers today. The Bengals receivers were covering short, medium, and long passes. The defense once again failed to step up today and the offense needs to game plan better.

It’s time for the Redskins D to ‘man up.’

 

Redskins v. Rams 4th Quarter & Final Thoughts

By Lee Hernly in NFL, sports, washington redskins No Comments Tags: , ,

As I noted, the Rams were near the end zone to open the quarter and scored in the 4th making it 29-28. They then punched it over for a two point conversion making it 31-28.

The score stayed the same as the teams traded possessions throughout the quarter. During this time there was a nice play by RGIII and the Redskins offense, similar to the one they scored on in the 2nd quarter with Leonard Hankerson, and Aldrick Robinson dropped the ball.

The Redskins had a chance to go ahead starting on their own 21 yard line with a little less than 5 minutes to play but, they couldn’t get a drive going and had to punt the ball (Thankfully, it wasn’t blocked again). On the ensuing drive, the Rams were excellent at playing keep away until London FLetcher was nearly split in two by a Rams OL after a play. The non call must have PO’d the Redskins captain because on the very next play, the Redskins captain stripped Rams RB Daryl Richardson and the Redskins took over on their own 38 yard line with a little more than 2 minutes remaining.

QB Robert Griffin III led the club downfield and had completed a nice pass to WR Josh Morgan who had gotten close to the first down marker at the 29 yard line of the Rams. After the play, Morgan was shoved by Rams CB Cortland Finnegan and he lost his cool and heaved the football at Finnegan. This of course was a 15 yard penalty on the Redskins and gave them a 4th and 16. They lined up for a 62 yard field goal and I’m not a genius football guy but, as Rick Snider of the Washington Examiner noted:


The kick was wide and short and the Rams held on for their first home opening win in 5 years. 31-28 Rams.

Final Thoughts

  • I thought the Redskins didn’t do a very good job disguising their coverages. They obviously didn’t do anything the Rams weren’t ready for. This is on Jim Haslett and the defensive coaches. They were out coached by Jeff Fisher and Brian Schottenheimer the Rams OC.
  • There was little pressure on Sam Bradford as John Keim mentioned on Twitter. If you can’t get to the QB and pressure him, even John Beck is going to have time to pick apart a D. Too often, the secondary was sitting ducks.
  • Second half play calling. It may have had something to do with the inspired play by the Rams D but, I thought the play calling in the 2nd half could have been better. Alfred Morris had a strong day so why not use him more? Where is Evan Royster? When Roy Helu came in, I thought to myself here comes a screen. I bet the Rams did too and they stuffed Helu. Point is, the Redskins need to mix it up better on offense. When you have a chance to put a team away, put them away!
  • RG3 needs to learn to play smarter when he’s running. I love his speed and elusiveness but, he’s taking too many hits. There were a few runs in which I cringed as he was hit hard and tackled. This builds up over the season.

Overall, there’s a lot to like about this 2012 Redskins team. I’m still saying 7-9, maybe 8-8.

Tweet of the Game

Redskins v Rams – Halftime Recap

By Lee Hernly in NFL, sports, washington redskins 1 Comment Tags: , , , , ,

The ugly first quarter was a little better in the second. Can someone cover the Rams Danny Amendola please?

The Redskins secondary is having a tough day. In order to cover up for their deficiencies, the Redskins are playing a lot of zone. Because of this, Sam Bradford is having a field day picking apart the Redskins zone.

The Rams had a long drive in which they took the ball down to the 1 yard line. Steven Jackson got the biscuit across the goal line but the refs, who’ve struggled today, flat out missed the call. Can the upstairs ref call down to the field on a play like that? Due to the frustration, Steven Jackson spiked the ball and wasn’t heard from again in the quarter.

On the next possession, the Redskin faked a hand off, then faked an end around before launching a 68 yard bomb to Leonard Hankerson. The Rams then took over and marched down the field to get a touchdown to Amendola. On the next series, Cortland Finnegan intercepted Robert Griffin III for the first interception of his career. The Rams marched down the field before settling for a 42 yard field goal with 2 seconds left.

The Redskins are going to need to a better job of disguising their coverages on defense to stop the Rams. The Rams have been able to control the clock because of their ability to pick apart the Redskins zone. On offense, we need to run the ball more. Danny Amendola has 12 catches – will he break the NFL record today?

21-16 Redskins at the half.

Hail to the Redskins!

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Redskins vs. Rams – Keys To The Game

By Lee Hernly in NFL, sports, washington redskins No Comments Tags: , , ,

Redskins primary logo 1965-1969

Last week, in game 1 against the vaunted New Orleans Saints passing attack, the main key to the game was patience on both sides of the ball. Save for one breakdown on special teams, I thought the Redskins played well in all facets of the game.

This week against the St. Louis Rams, a team that has given Mike Shanahan and the Redskins trouble over the last few years, the main key will be game management.

When the Redskins have the ball…

  1. Run the ball. While the Redskins ran the ball a lot against the Saints in order to eat the clock, the Redskins will need to be more successful between the tackles against the Rams. Far too often between RT Tyler Polumbus & LT Trent Williams, the backs could gain little yardage. The line must do better in this area this week against the Rams.
  2. Game management. Use the run to open up the pass. Some of the longest plays the Redskins had last week came off the play action. Robert Griffin III will need to continue to be smart with the football against this defense. I’m sure RGIII will get a lot of different looks today.
  3. Stay out of 3rd & long situations. Like we did against the New Orleans Saints, we must win 1st down and stay out of the 3rd & long situations.

When the Redskins are on defense…

  1. Disguise the blitz better. A lot of times watching the Redskins, you can just tell where the blitz is coming from. If I can see it on TV, imagine what the opposing QB sees. We need to get pressure on Sam Bradford.
  2. Tackle well. Steven Jackson going to break some tackles so it’s imperative to tackle well.
  3. Limit the penalties. The Redskins took far too many penalties on defense last week against the Saints.
  4. Change up Ryan Kerrigan & Brian Orakpo more. I love it when I see them line up on opposite sides. Keep the Rams offense guessing until the last possible moment.

Most importantly, HTTR!

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Redskins vs Saints – Final Thoughts

By Lee Hernly in NFL, sports, washington redskins No Comments Tags: , , ,

Every ‘expert’ from ESPN to CBS Sports picked the Redskins to go 2-14 or 3-13 this season. In week one, I don’t think I saw one person pick the Redskins to go into the Saints house and beat them. I have told everyone of my friends that I think the Redskins will go 7-9 or 8-8 this season.

The Redskins proved me right in week one.

Taking on a Saints team in flux in week one (They have an interim interim Head Coach), Robert Griffin III threw for 320 yards and the Redskins put 40 points on the board in the Saints house. With some questionable play calling down the stretch, the Redskins held on to beat the Saints. Most importantly, they got the Saints to commit three turnovers and committed  only one themselves (blocked punt).

40-32 Redskins.

Some final thoughts…

  • The Saints committed way too many penalties. I would not have called the pass interference on Harper in the end zone but, that still left them with 11 other penalties, some of which were back breaking. Like the 12 men on the field penalty which kept the Redskins drive alive. For what it’s worth David Scott’s crew missed a lot of holding calls on the Saints. Just sayin…
  • For not having played much together all preseason, the Redskins offensive line played marvelously. They protected Griffin real well although he did take some BIG hits during the game. One area the O-line can improve is zone blocking. They couldn’t get their man on the ground which would allow the lineman to get to the second blocker.
  • Billy Cundiff was awesome. Last year, I found myself on my knees for a PAT or a FG with Gano as our kicker. Looks like that won’t happen this year. Cundiff neutralized Darren Sproles on kickoffs save for one time when Sproles brought it out to around the 40 from 9 yards deep. Will Cundiff be the Billy Cundiff of 2010? Let’s hope so.
  • The most questionable part of the Redskins was the secondary. I thought they played well with a couple of INTs and a couple of near miss INTs against the incomparable Drew Brees and the vaunted Saints passing attack. Madieu Williams played pretty well save for a blatantly illegal hit on Jimmy Graham and a couple of pass interference penalties.

It doesn’t get any easier as we go into the Rams house in week 2 to face Sam Bradford, Steven Jackson and new coach Jeff Fisher. But overall, it was a really good opening game for my beloved Redskins.

HTTR!

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