Don't you think we are overreacting just a bit??

I agree with the Goat, for some reason, we are not utilizing the talent on the offensive side of the ball. I don't think people really want to see Jason fired or all those other silly things, we just want some effort shown. I have a faith in the Redskins roster. I don't like the excuse of Jason having to learn different systems and he needs an adjustment period. that's not true. he will always have rushers in his face and 5 passing options on the field.

Tell that to Matt Hasselbeck who struggled in picking up the WCO in Seattle.

It's not an excuse, it's a simple fact of life in the NFL that switching systems is not always the easiest thing to do, and requires some time and patience. It's one of the reasons why playing QB is probably the toughest thing to do in all of sports.

Well, I guess it kind of depends on what your definition of "overreaction" is.

If I said that based on what I saw in the preseason, and what I saw the other night, that we will not make the playoffs this season, is that an overreaction? I don't think so at all.

Now, am I saying ridiculous things like trading for Jason Taylor was a bad idea, and Jason Campbell is all wrong for the WCO? Hell no. But I definitely don't think we'll make the playoffs.

You said yourself the offense clearly needs time, alluding to the length of time Hasselbeck took to get up to speed in Seattle as precedent. And if you're willing to wait half a season for the offense to come around, aren't you really saying that you don't expect us to win very much during the first half of the year?

I mean, our defense is solid, but it's not spectacular. It's basically the same group from last year with the same schemes, which placed 9th in the NFL. That's above average, but not good enough to win games for us while our offense finds its way, a la Trent Dilfer and the 2000 Ravens.

Now's about the time during this post when people start saying, "well yeah but it's still possible, there are 15 games left." Of course it's possible, that's not the question. Is it PROBABLE? That's the question.

If our expectations are that the offense will struggle as JC learns it, then we can't possibly expect the 'Skins to beat Dallas in Dallas and Philly in Philly, can we? It's possible, but not probable.

I'll give you this, an overreaction would be to say that it's impossible for the 'Skins to make the playoffs. But it would be right on point to say they probably won't - anything else is irrational exuberance buoyed by the emotional hopes of a football-starved fan in early September.

great post

Tell that to Matt Hasselbeck who struggled in picking up the WCO in Seattle.

It's not an excuse, it's a simple fact of life in the NFL that switching systems is not always the easiest thing to do, and requires some time and patience. It's one of the reasons why playing QB is probably the toughest thing to do in all of sports.

Hasselbeck was actually benched for Trent Dilfer halfway through his first season in Seattle, which was I believe his 4th in the league. He turned out ok.

Thank you GMScud. It took two years for Hasselbeck to become a top QB. JC just needs time. And for those who said Zorn lays the blame on the players is not true. He said right off the bat that he wishs he had plays back, and that the clock managment was bad. Hes new to this too people. Football is a little bit harder down on the field then it is in your PS3 people. Gibbs went 0-5 in his first 5 games in 1981, to later finish 8-8......then next year.....hummmm....

so i also get the impression that this jumping on the team thing keeps coming earlier and earlier in the year, and its unwarranted. honestly, i blame snyder and his shenanigans. fans don't trust that the organization is doing things well or even fairly. various times over the last 8-9 years some of us (defintely me) have felt duped over the latest 'improvements'. and so every year we criticize earlier because dammit, we're not going to get overly optimistic and feel fooled again. even vinny has gotten (a bit) too much criticism because of this. but he probably doesn't deserve as much as he's getting and ndefinitely zorn or jc don't deserve it. let's chill out and give'em a chance...

Disagree - plain and simple. I think we agree the guys looked like shit Thurs. I think we agree the transition to the WCO is pretty rough and too slow. We def agree the FO is not up to par w/ elite teams in the NFL. But I can't agree w/ you on our players. Offensively, we're sitting on one of the elite RBs in football, a proven elite TE and another TE that was elite through college, one of the very best fullbacks in football, a QB who has shown flashes of huge potential, WRs that do not fit the WCO but have been major deep threats, and a line that should at least get the job done. To the point I don't think we are utilizing the talent we have on the field at any given time and that is what has been truly frustrating over the last few years and again on Thurs.

Just look within the division. I don't see anyone on our offense that can take over the game like Burress or TO can. Cooley is a nice player. No doubt. But I'd probably take Witten over Cooley. Portis is a top ten back. No question. But he's not as good as Westbrook. He's not the duel threat like Westbrook is. And Davis may be good in the future but right now he's just an unproven rookie. And where it matters most, at the Qb position, JC is the worst QB within the division. He can't carry us yet, he's only shown flashes. But what we gave up to get him I expect him to be able to carry us at times. Right now his head is probably spining and he's thinking instead of reacting.

Thank you GMScud. It took two years for Hasselbeck to become a top QB. JC just needs time. And for those who said Zorn lays the blame on the players is not true. He said right off the bat that he wishs he had plays back, and that the clock managment was bad. Hes new to this too people. Football is a little bit harder down on the field then it is in your PS3 people. Gibbs went 0-5 in his first 5 games in 1981, to later finish 8-8......then next year.....hummmm....

Sorry but there is no excuse for running Portis into the pile with 6 minutes to go and not running hurry up when we're down two scores. That was almost a fireable offense right there. No urgency what so ever. We might not win against NO cause I think they're better than we are. But at least I want us to be prepared.

Was the defense really the problem though?

They tightened up in the 2nd half (42 yard rushing allowed vs. 74 in the first half) and kept us in the game and only allowed 1 TD. If we had any hint of an offense that was a very winnable game.

Yes the D needs some improvement, but I'm not sure why you are so focused on them vs. the offense, which needs a vast improvement.

I am old school, defense wins championships was the name I tried to make as my TWP name. I respect teams that have great defenses and I really appreaciate seeing a good defense play. I played LB and safety in school and I know what to look for and can tell by a few drives if any team has a sound defense or not. We do not. Our team will hang in there and make a game of it on a given week, but we will also get blow out a game or two this year. We are not a a caliber of team that will keep every game close on our defense alone. We have to click on all cylinders to win games this year or be playing a weak team . That makes it difficult and frustrating. Especially since we had a good defense not to long ago.

I do believe we are all overreacting, every one of us. I mean we have been frustrated the last four years, and with Zorn being hired I think that we all believed there would be a 180 from coach Joe. The thing is that learning a new offense is hard to do especially when it's a big difference from what the team has been doing. I'm not making excuses because these guys are professionals (blocking is blocking, tackling is tackling, going past the first down marker on third down...etc) they should be able to do the fundamentals,
but playing in a new offense in a hostile environment will hinder the things that we want to do. One thing I am throughly disappointed in is Zorn's clock management. A guy who played quarterback in the NFL should know when to use his 2 and 4 minute offensive calls. On a positive Portis will be a beast when he gets his legs under him and Blache adjusted our D in the second half.
By week 4 or 5 this team should really begin clicking

Matty:

Indeed some folks have over-reacted to a rather poor opening game by the Skins. I might suggest that many of those over-reacting folks are the same ones who were projecting the Skins as the NFC East Champs with a really good shot at the Super Bowl this year. That was - and is - an unrealistic expectation. So, when they played the way they did, those folks panic.

The team's play will have to improve as the season goes along; it's just not possible for them to continue to make those kinds of mistakes (on the field and on the sidelines) week after week.

But in the cold light of day, the Redksins of 2008 have precisely the same weaknesses than they had in 2007.


1. The same 3 wide recievers are out there most of the time and they are a mediocre bunch. They have been for the last three seasons and there is no reason to expect them to "blossom" at this stage of their careers.

2. Jason Campbell still stares down his recievers far too often.

3. Defensive line cannot stop the run effectively.


You would like to think that at least one of these weaknesses would be significantly better in 08 than it was in 07. No indication yet. Time will tell. Patience is called for...