What's Considered Success for Next Season?

Anything above 500 would be considered success coming from a team that has so many areas of concern on defense, and a young developing QB. Of course I always want to think playoffs, but right now I'll be content with enough progress to render a "winning season".

Anything above 500 would be considered success coming from a team that has so many areas of concern on defense, and a young developing QB. Of course I always want to think playoffs, but right now I'll be content with enough progress to render a "winning season".

Considering we had a losing season, I think anything above .500 probably should be reasonable.

But just as sure as were sitting behind our keyboards, something will take place during the offseason to get us all hyped up.

9-7 is success...how bout we try consistently getting over 500 before we get into the playoffs business. As far as I am concerned this team has shown no reason whatsoever to even be considered a part of the NFL the last decade. It is trash and it makes me sick.

Anything less than the playoffs is always a disaster.

Yeah, but that's not unfair, because this is a team that mortgages its future every year in order to win right away. Rebuilding is one thing, but we haven't had a rebuilding season since Snyder bought the team.

I've been pondering that question in light of the fact that we're out of the playoffs and many of us on Warpath have begun to discuss the off season and the 2007 campaign.

But what would be considered a successful 2007 season for a team coming off a losing record? Would 8-8 be considered a success? How about if we went 9-7, yet still missed the playoffs?

I'm torn between what I would like the Redskins to do and what I should realistically expect them to do.

Assuming modest upgrades here and there, and Jason Campbell progressing, how do we actually guauge whether this team turned it around.

Please feel free to weigh in, and Mods please feel free to start a poll.

12MI think this all depends on how they approach the offseason. We have the cap potential to put all of our eggs in the 2007 basket, get some CB and LB help, draft an impact player on the D-Line, and cut guys like Arch and maybe even LLoyd after June 1, or before June 1 using the new rule to treat it like a post June 1 cut, and restructure deals which would put us over our 2008 cap limit with only about 25 players counting towards it. If we did that, we would need at least a division championship and probably a deep playoff run for it to be considered a success.

But we might approach it (hey, anything is possible) with an eye to the future, and be relatively dormant in free agency, trading down to get more picks, NOT dealing our 2008 picks away, making all necessary cuts PRIOR to June 1 and not restructuring many, if any contracts, allowing us to cut the guys who have overstayed their welcome at the point they do. We could go out and get Nate Clements still, but not do anything ridicious in free agency. If we took this route, I would just be looking for some improvement. Be in the playoff race the last two weeks of the season. That would be acceptable.

Though I fully expect us to take the first route, I think it could be successful for us. But when the window of oppertunity is one year, too much can happen to deter a SB run even if we had the best team. Not great foward planning.

Reach the playoffs, or Gibbs will step down

Exactly.

With the talent we have on this team, thats gotta be a minimum. We have the talent to win in this league, and against the teams we play. I only really saw us outmatched once and that was against Indianapolis and the first game against Dallas/Philly; other than that there isnt a game I can look at and say we shouldnt have won.I agree with you that only a few times this season we were significantly outplayed, although I would add the first New York game to that list.

In spite of everything that has happened to us, injuries, playcalling, subpar performance, midseason QB change, inability to force turnovers, there is still no real reason why this team doesn't have 7 wins. Looking at the six close losses; Minnesota, Tennessee, @ Tampa Bay, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and @ St. Louis, and even throwing in close wins like Dallas and Jacksonville...our record was 2-6 in those games. In a fair world, should we not be 4-4 in those games? If you just look at those 8 games, we weren't outplayed at all (on the average) by our opponents in those 8 games. So how else can you explain us only winning 25% of those close games other than it not being our year?

The very simple answer is this: We got better than expected efforts from most of our opponents this year. We had a lot of games with teams coming off their bye or teams with their backs against the wall. Tennessee was 0-5. They are 8-2 since playing us. Philly had lost 3 in a row going into the Week 11 matchup with us. Atlanta and Tampa Bay were both on losing streaks.

It gives me hope for next year because even if we play no better than this year (something that shouldn't be too hard), if things even out and we go 6-2 in close games next year, that puts us in great shape to go 10-6 with no improvement. And I fully expect us to improve.

I too am torn between what I would like to see and what I suspect I will see.

On the one hand, 2007 will be Year 4 of Gibbs II. Given carte blanche by Snyder to redesign the team, he has assembled a coaching staff unmatched in both name recognition and years of experience. The roster is populated primarily by players he and his coaches hand-picked. Both are supplemented by payrolls that are either at or near the top of the league.
Everything Gibbs has been asked for he has received, with Snyder quietly sliding into the background.

Considering all that, anything short of an 11-5/12-4 season and a division title should be inexcusable.

In reality, this team will be starting a still-green quarterback, seeking (still) a consistent #2 wideout, and attempting to rebuild a shattered defense with what we can only assume will be at least in a large part the same cast of characters who brought you this year's debacle.

Looking at it from that angle, I think 8-8 is a reasonable mark, maybe 9-7 with a few breaks.

Personally I feel that the Redskins need a counterweight to Gibbs in the form of a GM who has some degree of autonomy (i.e., who can at least appeal to Snyder in the case of a dispute in much the same way Beathard appealed to The Squire back in the good ol' days).

I would consider any playoff appearance a success after this season. I am going to go into next season with very low expectations. This season has got to be one of if not THE most disappointing ever.

I expect a division title. If the Ravens, Saints, and possibly Eagles can all go from worst to first this year there's no reason the Redskins can't either.

As for what I consider success, 10 wins and a playoff win