Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

Admittedly we'd like to see better execution and more than 16 points but if you look at the game plan and play calling, that was exactly why Saunders was brought in.. What did we see yesterday?
-Downfield passing: Campbell had to throw 6 balls more than 20 yds down the field trying for the big play.. If Lloyd turns his head sooner that's a 50 yd TD, if Randle-El makes that jumping catch in the end zone that's another 40+ yd TD.. Saunders is calling plays and Campbell is making attempts we didn't see 6 weeks ago..
-Power running game: We tend to think of Saunders game plans as all gimmicks and tricks but remember he was calling the plays that made Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson elite backs in the NFL. He trys to get too fancy at times (yesterday's 3rd down call) and it hurts us but big yards in the running game are a staple of his offense..

This is what he's getting the big bucks for.. We've put up 381, 415 and 354 yards the past 3 weeks against 3 teams either in or vying for the playoffs. Yards will lead to points with better execution. Next season with Campbell, Portis, Betts, Moss, Cooley, Randle-El and Lloyd we should be the explosive offense we had hoped to see this year.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

Agreed, though I like the way there is still a nice Gibbs feel in the run game (counter tre's thrown in with the zone blocking, etc.)

Got to get the red zone play book up and running, though. 354 yards needs to equal more than 16 points! BUt I take it that may be a place where Campbell just doesn't know that part of the playbook yet, and they haven't really adjusted to his strengths. My guess is next season, that part will be fixed.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

Im still not impressed, but we're improving our execution. I dont even know if Saunders is calling different plays of if we just not have a QB that will look down the field.

Two games in a row we dominated the other team statistically, one of those games we lost, the other we could have lost on the last play. We can keep driving down the field and attempting field goals.

Our play calling in the redzone has been horrible in my opinion.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

We're racking up the yardage which is a good sign, now the points need to follow. I think a lot of that is due to Campbell's inexperience and it really limits what we try to do in the redzone as a result.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[quote=Paintrain;261430]Admittedly we'd like to see better execution and more than 16 points but if you look at the game plan and play calling, that was exactly why Saunders was brought in.. What did we see yesterday?
-Downfield passing: Campbell had to throw 6 balls more than 20 yds down the field trying for the big play.. If Lloyd turns his head sooner that's a 50 yd TD, if Randle-El makes that jumping catch in the end zone that's another 40+ yd TD.. Saunders is calling plays and Campbell is making attempts we didn't see 6 weeks ago..
-Power running game: We tend to think of Saunders game plans as all gimmicks and tricks but remember he was calling the plays that made Priest Holmes and Larry Johnson elite backs in the NFL. He trys to get too fancy at times (yesterday's 3rd down call) and it hurts us but big yards in the running game are a staple of his offense..

This is what he's getting the big bucks for.. We've put up 381, 415 and 354 yards the past 3 weeks against 3 teams either in or vying for the playoffs. Yards will lead to points with better execution. Next season with Campbell, Portis, Betts, Moss, Cooley, Randle-El and Lloyd we should be the explosive offense we had hoped to see this year.[/quote]

Agree, although i think about 5 weeks ago Gibbs and Saunders met in the middle of their offenses (or maybe the running game is just working better now).

The lloyd ball was a bad throw and not catchable imo. He completely burned his man and was looking over his right shoulder. The ball was thrown real short and over his left shoulder. Uncatchable imo. Baldinger of course said it was a perfect throw. A perfect throw would have hit him on stride (or close) over his right shoulder, inside not outside.

I'm really impressed w/ this oline and as soon as we start punching it in from the red zone. Who knows???

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

ARE didn't time his jump very well on that one in the endzone, if he jumped a second later he would have caught that TD.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

Agreed--he jumped too early. But it was sweet to see Campbell airing it out. That TD pass to Moss was a thing of BEAUTY.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

I agree w/most of what's on this thread, especially w/Paintrain's overall assessment. this O has gone from clueless to almost being entirely in sync, which is now due to JC's on the job training.
The next step is finishing drives w/scores. It's easier for a young qb to hit a long pass for a td than it is to complete an 80 yd. 15 play drive. These last 2 weeks I think we'll see them put it together in the red zone & score more. Points in the red zone are tough, no one should be surprised that we're having trouble scoring td's, given that JC has only started 5 games.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

Even that pass to Moss near the end of the game. Not the best decision since Moss was doubled when the ball got there, but, even with the safety and corner on top of him, the ball hit him in the hands. Beautifully thrown ball.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

This offense shows signs of being high powered. I like the combination of power and misdirection running with a downfield passing attack. There is definitely room for improvement but I do see positive signs that the improvement is happening. The redzone execution is a problem. It seems as though the team gets in the redzone and forgets how they marched down the field. The illegal procedure penalties are killing the team. Got to stop it. I would like to see Campbell accuracy to improve. At times he makes beautiful throws, like that touchdown pass to Moss. At other times, his passes are too short or sails over the receiver. I want to see more consistency.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

I cannot believe I am saying "I can't wait til' next season" but........what the hell!
I am always puzzled in a situation like this, as it is not unique, like, where has this been all season?? O-line, shut down D, etc???

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

You're my boy Carlos!

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[quote=Mattyk72;261437]We're racking up the yardage which is a good sign, now the points need to follow. I think a lot of that is due to Campbell's inexperience and it really limits what we try to do in the redzone as a result.[/quote]

It seems like especially yesterday, that we tend to get more conservative when in the red zone. Do you think Joe plays more of a role once in the red zone? You are right i think they were trying to limit JC's mistakes yesterday and called mostly runs. I'm sure it was part of the game plan although they threw deep often in the middle of the field, so go figure.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[quote=hail_2_da_skins;261462]This offense shows signs of being high powered. I like the combination of power and misdirection running with a downfield passing attack. There is definitely room for improvement but I do see positive signs that the improvement is happening. The redzone execution is a problem. It seems as though the team gets in the redzone and forgets how they marched down the field. The illegal procedure penalties are killing the team. Got to stop it. I would like to see Campbell accuracy to improve. At times he makes beautiful throws, like that touchdown pass to Moss. At other times, his passes are too short or sails over the receiver. I want to see more consistency.[/quote]
With Brunell, teams never had to defend more than 20 yards downfield since he might only test a secondary deep once on a good day. Campbell must have thrown 5 or 6 deep balls, forcing NO's safeties to stay honest, which in turn opened up the running attack. We need to continue to play smashmouth while taking deep shots - Give Saunders his due, this was an excellent gameplan

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[QUOTE=redsk1;261439]Agree, although i think about 5 weeks ago Gibbs and Saunders met in the middle of their offenses (or maybe the running game is just working better now).

The lloyd ball was a bad throw and not catchable imo. He completely burned his man and was looking over his right shoulder. The ball was thrown real short and over his left shoulder. Uncatchable imo. Baldinger of course said it was a perfect throw. A perfect throw would have hit him on stride (or close) over his right shoulder, inside not outside.

I'm really impressed w/ this oline and as soon as we start punching it in from the red zone. Who knows???[/QUOTE]

I thought it was a good throw, but a better sign of things to come. Lloyd was so intent on getting deep that he kind of dropped his head and just ran, and he couldn't locate the ball. If Lloyd saw the ball sooner he could have adjusted and made the catch, probably the prettiest incomplete pass of the day.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[quote=memphisskin;261558]I thought it was a good throw, but a better sign of things to come. Lloyd was so intent on getting deep that he kind of dropped his head and just ran, and he couldn't locate the ball. If Lloyd saw the ball sooner he could have adjusted and made the catch, probably the prettiest incomplete pass of the day.[/quote]

It's hard to tell what the route was. If he was supposed to come back inside, then it was a bad pass. If he was supposed to look to the sideline, then it was almost perfect. Either way, Lloyd might have been able to adjust to it if he had looked back sooner.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[quote=redsk1;261496]It seems like especially yesterday, that we tend to get more conservative when in the red zone. Do you think Joe plays more of a role once in the red zone? You are right i think they were trying to limit JC's mistakes yesterday and called mostly runs. I'm sure it was part of the game plan although they threw deep often in the middle of the field, so go figure.[/quote]

[COLOR=black][FONT='Times New Roman']B. Mitchell said on the post game show that once the skins pass the opposing teams 35yd line that Gibbs gets involved in the play calling. This is probably why the skins keep stalling, once they get into the 35yd line there are constant delay of game calls, false starts, and the continuity that the offense had driving down the field completely goes to crap. If he is going to let Saunders run the offense, then he should let him run it. Oh yeah and can we please stop running that sweep play, Betts is running up the gut for 8,9,12 yds per carry then we do that stupid sweep and lose a yard or two![/FONT][/COLOR]

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

I'm not sure I believe B Mitch about that--Gibbs hasn't said he does that. My guess is that they've scaled back their playcalls in the redzone--it is a different part of the playbook, and it's not surprising that JC doesn't have it all yet. Also, Gibbs may have said--look, don't turn it over down there--get what points you can. BUt I doubt he starts calling plays when they get to a certain point on the field--that would be super disruptive, and would mess up Saunders.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[QUOTE=Stacks42;261567][COLOR=black]Oh yeah and can we please stop running that sweep play, Betts is running up the gut for 8,9,12 yds per carry then we do that stupid sweep and lose a yard or two![/FONT][/COLOR][/QUOTE]

I've been saying this for weeks! I will never understand that call.

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[QUOTE=ArtMonkDrillz;261572]I've been saying this for weeks! I will never understand that call.[/QUOTE]

The sweep isn't always designed for it to be a huge gainer. If you are getting 8,9,12 yds up the middle then you have to run outside to keep defenses honest and not pinch the DL and rush the OLB in the tackle/guard gap.. If you catch them in a inside stunt that's a long td run most of the time..

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First time poster but long time reader of warpath message boards. I would like to know how many people think JC can be a top 5 quarterback a few years down the road. I am hopeful, but there is still a lot of progress that needs to be made.

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[QUOTE=SkinsandWolverines;261591]First time poster but long time reader of warpath message boards. I would like to know how many people think JC can be a top 5 quarterback a few years down the road. I am hopeful, but there is still a lot of progress that needs to be made.[/QUOTE]

It's way too soon to tell but I can say that he's got the tools to be an above average QB in the league and is better at this point than any young QB for the Redskins since Theismann.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[quote=SkinsandWolverines;261591]First time poster but long time reader of warpath message boards. I would like to know how many people think JC can be a top 5 quarterback a few years down the road. I am hopeful, but there is still a lot of progress that needs to be made.[/quote]

Welcome active member! Be prepared to spend a lot of time away from actual work and family.

I think he has potential to be a consistent top 10 with some top 5 performances here and there. I think he will draw comparison's to his idol Doug Williams and a little bit of Randall Cunningham before too long.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[quote=Paintrain;261573]The sweep isn't always designed for it to be a huge gainer. If you are getting 8,9,12 yds up the middle then you have to run outside to keep defenses honest and not pinch the DL and rush the OLB in the tackle/guard gap.. If you catch them in a inside stunt that's a long td run most of the time..[/quote]
good post. the mix of run and pass was almost perfect yesterday, and Campbell benefited by not being touched hardly at all

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[quote=SkinsandWolverines;261591]First time poster but long time reader of warpath message boards. I would like to know how many people think JC can be a top 5 quarterback a few years down the road. I am hopeful, but there is still a lot of progress that needs to be made.[/quote]

He has everything it takes to be a top 5 qb. He just needs a FULL OFFSEASON with the SAME OC so he can grow and get chemistry w/ the wr's. Look at how he and Cooley are starting to get a feel for one another already. Now he needs to get that with Moss cause those two are still out of sink a bit. Sure he has to work on his footwork and perhaps tweak his arm angle a bit. What young qb doesn't need work? He has been in 5-6 different offenses in the last 6 years?? JC will be MUCH BETTER next year if they keep everything around him the same. Look at how much Alex Smith has improved.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[quote=SkinsandWolverines;261591]First time poster but long time reader of warpath message boards. I would like to know how many people think JC can be a top 5 quarterback a few years down the road. I am hopeful, but there is still a lot of progress that needs to be made.[/quote]

I think its too early to tell if he does. He makes some plays but misses alot too. Don't get me wrong i think he's playing well, but he's missed alot of "easy" throws too. He's sailed some and skipped some. He's made some nice throws too. Hard to tell. There is potential there which is what us skins fans want to see. IMO right now i see top 10 potential.

As far as the best young qb we've seen? From what i remember w/out searching data, Ramsey did pretty well out of the gate and was annointed as the Qb of the future by many. That didn't exactly pan out. So, let's see how this works out.

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Please don't get me strated on Saunders. Last year the skins was one of the top teams scoring TDs in the redzone. Now every good drive ends in a FG. 400 yards a game without points is worthless. Next year he play calling needs to improve in the redzone or Gibbs needs to drop an axe on his neck.(fire him)

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[quote=DGreen28;261609]Please don't get me strated on Saunders. Last year the skins was one of the top teams scoring TDs in the redzone. Now every good drive ends in a FG. 400 yards a game without points is worthless. Next year he play calling needs to improve in the redzone or Gibbs needs to drop an axe on his neck.(fire him)[/quote]

Does anyone remember the last half of last year? We couldn't even get a first downs neverless a TD. That's why Saunders is here. Do you ever think that the plays that are being called are not being executed?

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[QUOTE=skinsfan69;261618]Does anyone remember the last half of last year? We couldn't even get a first downs neverless a TD. That's why Saunders is here. Do you ever think that the plays that are being called are not being executed?[/QUOTE]

I'm pretty sure the Redskins finish something like 13-13 (touchdowns) in the red zone late last year

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[quote=skinsfan69;261618]Does anyone remember the last half of last year? We couldn't even get a first downs neverless a TD. That's why Saunders is here. Do you ever think that the plays that are being called are not being executed?[/quote]
Just check last years stats compared to this year. Stats don't lie

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We had that one drive that had the Defense completely offbalance. It had Saunders written all over it, high tempo and we kept the defense guessing..then of course it stalled and we had to settle for a FG after Payton made a challege. Btw, i thought that was a great move by their coach, it was obvious they werent going to win the challenge, but it def stopped our momentum. If he hadn't of challenged i'm certain we would've scored.

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[quote=DGreen28;261633]Just check last years stats compared to this year. Stats don't lie[/quote]

Then what do u suggest? Have Gibbs go back to calling the plays?

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[quote=DGreen28;261633]Just check last years stats compared to this year. Stats don't lie[/quote]


Like all of the stats that Brunell racked up against a prevent?

Stats are whatever you want them to be.

Re: Yesterday's Gameplan is why Saunders is here
 

[quote=DGreen28;261609]Please don't get me strated on Saunders. Last year the skins was one of the top teams scoring TDs in the redzone. Now every good drive ends in a FG. 400 yards a game without points is worthless. Next year he play calling needs to improve in the redzone or Gibbs needs to drop an axe on his neck.(fire him)[/quote]
Apparently you just forgot the stats from the last three games, where our offense was terrible and very predictable. That is why Saunders was brought in, give him a freaking season and our O will be better.

I am so sick of this people who bitch about change, and then want it. I agree that the redzone gameplan isnt amazing, but I am elated that he takes shots down the field. This is something that Gibbs v2.0 has not done.


And Gibbs DOES NOT call the plays, dont listen to BMitch he has no idea what he is talking about. Gibbs and many players(like Cooley) have said that Saunders calls the plays. They have said this numerous times. However, I am sure Gibbs had a nice little talk with him, asking him to run more his style. Otherwise, it is all Saunders.

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Yea and we are missing a huge redzone threat with portis who always falls for +2 yards

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Whatever happened to Cooley and Sellers in short yardage situations?? I guess people are picking up.

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Yeah Saunders must be so horrible...

All that shit in KC was a fluke. Lets axe his neck (fire him) and then Joe Gibbs can go back to what he himself felt he couldn't do.

Stop drinking the kool-aid sucka... Saunders is one of the best OC in the league. I've never felt so confident about the upcoming season as I do right now. We've got everything we've needed, the defense looks to be turning a corner, and all the little "kinks" are out.

Campbell has an entire off-season to develop timing with his receivers, tweak his release, and study blitz reads. This kid is going to be a top 10 QB next season, and with Betts/Portis behind the "Dirtbags", it should be a fun 2007 to watch. Saunders is perfect for the job.

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[quote=RobH4413;261753]Yeah Saunders must be so horrible...

All that shit in KC was a fluke. Lets axe his neck (fire him) and then Joe Gibbs can go back to what he himself felt he couldn't do.

Stop drinking the kool-aid sucka... Saunders is one of the best OC in the league. I've never felt so confident about the upcoming season as I do right now. We've got everything we've needed, the defense looks to be turning a corner, and all the little "kinks" are out.

Campbell has an entire off-season to develop timing with his receivers, tweak his release, and study blitz reads. This kid is going to be a top 10 QB next season, and with Betts/Portis behind the "Dirtbags", it should be a fun 2007 to watch. Saunders is perfect for the job.[/quote]

I concur, one of my biggest fears was that we would struggle to pick up a complicated offense. I actually predicted the first game to a be a loss because of that. I had also predicted we would go 10-6 lol, but that was under the assumption that our D would be playing well.

If our D played decent and consistent, we would probably be in the wildcard hunt. But we would also have Brunell under center.

Although I support Saunders, I do realize he isnt some kinda god. He makes mistakes too. He needs to really work on redzone plays, and giving Campbell more protection(which he did last game). We also need to work on execution, because we have been in the position to finish off teams the last couple weeks, but we let them hang around.

That being said, I am very excited about our offense next year with Saunders and Campbell. Hopefully our D fixes whatever the hell their problem is.

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Btw, how is it going Rob? Having a good break?

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[quote=hooskins;261757]Btw, how is it going Rob? Having a good break?[/quote]
Yeah, I've been working alot. I basically smell of chilli and smoke 24/7. It's a pretty laid back job tho- (hard times cafe in frederick; server). They've got 2 big wall projection tv's, so even if I'm working on a game-day, I can pretty much catch the whole game.

I hear you got your wisdom teeth removed. I feel you, that totally sucks. I got a root canal last winter break, and besides the vicodin that I was prescribed, it was no fun.

Hope you feel better, It helps just sitting around eating craft mac and cheese and watching entire seasons of "futurama" or "family guy" on dvd.

I'm dipping out for the night... I have to open tomorrow. Take it easy homie...