Re: What's Wrong with the Redskins?
This team is suffering from a LOT of problems.
The Front Office
The front office has done a very good job of acquiring talent in the defensive secondary and at the skill positions on offense. Unfortunately, the front office has not acquired young talent along the lines. The defensive line can't get pressure on opposing QBs (Carter and Taylor have combined for just 5 sacks this season). The offensive line can't stop 6 and 5 man blitzes or even 4 man rushes.
What's more, the lines lack depth and are old. True, we have guys like Rob Jackson and Chad Rinehart on the roster, but Rinehart has yet to dress for a single game this season (not great news for a 3rd round pick) and Rob Jackson has to do anything noteworthy. To my knowledge, we don't have a single young backup along the offensive or defensive line who will likely be a starter in a year or two. In short, if everything starts up front, we're in trouble.
The Coaching Staff
Zorn looks like a promising rookie head coach, but I have three reservations about him. First, our offense has gone from dynamic to predictable and stagnant over the past few weeks. We run, run, throw a 5 yard curl, run, run, throw a 5 yard screen pass and so on. I understand that the running game is our bread and butter and the West Coast offense emphasizes the short and intermediate passing game, but this offense needs to be revamped. We are failing to force opposing defenses to defend the entire field. Until we re-establish our ability to hurt teams deep, our offense is going to struggle.
My second problem with the offensive playcalling is that it does not appear to make adjustments based on the time left on the clock or the scoreboard. I don't get the feeling that our offense senses any urgency when we're down by a few scores in the 4th quarter. I thought as much after our week 1 loss to the Giants and I feel the same way today.
Finally, the players bear a lot of responsibility for missed tackles, blown blocking assignments, etc., but so does the coaching staff. The players' "football fundamentals" look suspect. Receivers (i.e., the guys who catch footballs) are dropping balls they shouldn't drop. Defensive players (i.e., the guys who tackle other guys) are failing to wrap up and bring guys to the ground. Say what you want about Gibbs' offensive playcalling, but, his players' football fundamentals were solid. I can't say the same for our current team's football fundamentals.
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