Playoff Push

[hooskins]

That's true, I just wouldn't want to be in that position and I feel Gibbs' style is more suitable for a run.

[53Fan]

I applaud your optimism and bringing reality to the situation Paintrain. We have as good a chance as anyone to make the playoffs. It's not a sure thing but there's no reason for panic. Did anyone really think we'd be in the hunt at this point? I like our chances as much as anyone elses.

[djnemo65]

First of all, anyone who has watched football for more than two weeks should know that it is nonsense to look at the remaining schedule and say, we'll win this one, they'll lose that one, so and so should go 2-3, etc. It never EVER works out that way. We'll likely lose a game we should win, win a game no one counted on, and everyone else will do the same. December is a time of insanity in the NFL

What Paintrain's analysis shows us is that we have as good a chance as anybody else. It'll be fun watching these games down the stretch with the playoffs seemingly on the line every week.

[Defensewins]

I want us to make the playoffs more than anyone, but if we continue to play like we did yesterday, we will get elimanated in the first round. We barely beat a 2-8 team. We need to put this into perspective. We are not playing very well right now.

[GTripp0012]

Originally Posted by Defensewins

I want us to make the playoffs more than anyone, but if we continue to play like we did yesterday, we will get elimanated in the first round. We barely beat a 2-8 team. We need to put this into perspective. We are not playing very well right now.

Yeah, but the physical domination on the road, plus the disciplined attack we used was something that was lacking when we were inn Detroit. It's not easy to go and blow out an opponent on the road, no matter how bad they've been playing to date.

Now, if we didn't physically beat them up, I'd be way more worried because we should be/are more talented on the lines than they are.

[Defensewins]

Originally Posted by GTripp0012

Yeah, but the physical domination on the road, plus the disciplined attack we used was something that was lacking when we were inn Detroit. It's not easy to go and blow out an opponent on the road, no matter how bad they've been playing to date.

Now, if we didn't physically beat them up, I'd be way more worried because we should be/are more talented on the lines than they are.

We barely beat a 2-8 team.
But my real point is.... it seems Pittsburgh, Dallas and Giants have shown the rest of the NFL our weakness on defense, namely our DE's are really weak against the run. Seattle who is not a good running team averaged 7 yards a carry. Luckily Seattle is stupid and only ran the ball 20 times.
But the numbers are not good, M. Morris only 14 carries for 103 yards and J. Jones 2 carries for 21 yards. Our DE's need to tighten up their chin straps because the remaining teams are going to try and exploit them.

[GMScud]

Originally Posted by Defensewins

We barely beat a 2-8 team.
But my real point is.... it seems Pittsburgh, Dallas and Giants have shown the rest of the NFL our weakness on defense, namely our DE's are really weak against the run. Seattle who is not a good running team averaged 7 yards a carry. Luckily Seattle is stupid and only ran the ball 20 times.
But the numbers are not good, M. Morris only 14 carries for 103 yards and J. Jones 2 carries for 21 yards. Our DE's need to tighten up their chin straps because the remaining teams are going to try and exploit them.

While I won't disagree that our DE's are weak against the run, Seattle's running stats are a bit inflated. 44 yards came on 1 carry where there was a flagrant hold that wasn't called. Although even without that 44 yard gainer, they still averaged over 4.5/carry against us. We can be beaten to the outside.

If the Giants are smart (which they are), they'll pound Jacobs up the middle a bit, and work Ahamd Bradshaw off the tackles. We're gonna have to play our best game of the season on both sides of the ball to win this Sunday.

[Paintrain]

Originally Posted by Defensewins

We barely beat a 2-8 team.
But my real point is.... it seems Pittsburgh, Dallas and Giants have shown the rest of the NFL our weakness on defense, namely our DE's are really weak against the run. Seattle who is not a good running team averaged 7 yards a carry. Luckily Seattle is stupid and only ran the ball 20 times.
But the numbers are not good, M. Morris only 14 carries for 103 yards and J. Jones 2 carries for 21 yards. Our DE's need to tighten up their chin straps because the remaining teams are going to try and exploit them.

We. Won. The. Game.

Geez, some of you guys are unbelievable. Too many soccer mom generation kids/Madden geniuses who never realized that teams sometimes don't always win and even if they do, they don't always look pretty doing it!

Do you guys get that even if we get killed by the Giants and Ravens-
IF we win 3 of our next 5 we've won 10 games, more than just about anyone realistically expected and will likely mean a playoff birth?
IF we win 2 of our next 5 games Jim Zorn will have won more games as a Redskins rookie head coach than anyone other than George Allen in 1971?
IF we win 1 of our next 5 games we would have reached .500 for back to back seasons for the first time since '00-'01 and just the second time since '92

Maybe playoffs isn't the P word we should focus on. Let's get some perspective!

[GTripp0012]

Originally Posted by Paintrain

We. Won. The. Game.

I'm not sure this is all that relevant. Only up by three, we could have easily lost that game (especially the way the defense had been playing) in overtime without the offense ever getting another snap in. Which is scary. Because they were the Seahawks.

I'll defend Betts' propensity to suck in the clutch once a year as a crazy fluke, but with the way our offense had been dominating the second half, there's really no reason a team like the Seahawks should have needed to committ two turnovers in order to lose the game. But our special teams is awful, and our defense can't stop the run.

Those things must change. Well, the special teams at least have sucked all year, but the defense can't play poor gap discipline like they have been the last two weeks. They're not talented enough to play undisciplined like they have been. This team has two strengths: rush offense, and pass defense. That combination really allows for a lot of close scores with bad teams, because both teams find success on the ground, and no one puts it in the air. Very little margin for error, this allows.

If we had lost the game, PT, I don't think the arguments would be any different. Mine, at least, wouldn't be.

[rypper11]

Originally Posted by Paintrain

We. Won. The. Game.

Geez, some of you guys are unbelievable. Too many soccer mom generation kids/Madden geniuses who never realized that teams sometimes don't always win and even if they do, they don't always look pretty doing it!

Do you guys get that even if we get killed by the Giants and Ravens-
IF we win 3 of our next 5 we've won 10 games, more than just about anyone realistically expected and will likely mean a playoff birth?
IF we win 2 of our next 5 games Jim Zorn will have won more games as a Redskins rookie head coach than anyone other than George Allen in 1971?
IF we win 1 of our next 5 games we would have reached .500 for back to back seasons for the first time since '00-'01 and just the second time since '92

Maybe playoffs isn't the P word we should focus on. Let's get some perspective!

Amen!
Only one team will win the SB this year leaving 31 other teams disapointed.

[GTripp0012]

Originally Posted by Defensewins

We barely beat a 2-8 team.
But my real point is.... it seems Pittsburgh, Dallas and Giants have shown the rest of the NFL our weakness on defense, namely our DE's are really weak against the run. Seattle who is not a good running team averaged 7 yards a carry. Luckily Seattle is stupid and only ran the ball 20 times.
But the numbers are not good, M. Morris only 14 carries for 103 yards and J. Jones 2 carries for 21 yards. Our DE's need to tighten up their chin straps because the remaining teams are going to try and exploit them.

Evans and Carter are actually the two guys in the front seven that should NOT be blamed for this defensive collapse. Golston has been non existent on the interior (and he was the single biggest key to our success before). Taylor absolutely sucks vs the run. Fletcher has really struggled these last two games. McIntosh hasn't really improved, and still overruns plays. Horton has been great, but Landry's run support has been crap. Rogers is rarely a factor, but his tackling has been less than impressive this year, which is surprising for the guy.

But yeah, there's your problems, and it has little to do with the ends.

[Ruhskins]

So once again we're dancing to the same "oh shit we have to make a playoff run" music that we have for the past two times that we did make the playoffs. And this is where games like vs. the Rams and Cowboys at home (winable games) come and bite us in the @ss. If we had won those two games, we'd be right behind the Giants and sitting well at 8-2, way ahead of all these other teams (except TB). Instead, we need to play for our lives for the next 5 games, barely holding on to the 6th seed.

Once again, I will gladly take my foot out of my mouth if the team proves me wrong, but nothing in the past three weeks tells me that this is a team that wants to go to the playoffs. And sadly, if we do, we'll be in the same situation as we've been before when we were bounced in the first or second round. Next week's game against the Giants we'll be the last true test of whether this team really has it in them to run the table and make the playoffs.

[MTK]

Originally Posted by Ruhskins

So once again we're dancing to the same "oh shit we have to make a playoff run" music that we have for the past two times that we did make the playoffs.

This year is much different than 2005 or 2007. We're not in must win mode at this point as we were in those years. 3-2 in these last 5 games would likely get us in.

And other than the Giants and Titans, there are plenty of teams facing a playoff push right now. I don't see what the big deal is.

[Spence]

Originally Posted by Mattyk72

This year is much different than 2005 or 2007. We're not in must win mode at this point as we were in those years. 3-2 in these last 5 games would likely get us in.

And other than the Giants and Titans, there are plenty of teams facing a playoff push right now. I don't see what the big deal is.

The Skins are in a much better position to make the playoffs this year than they were in 2005 or 2007. Heck, in 2005 the Skins were 5-6 after 11 games. The complicating factor for Washington is that the conference is better. The NFC South is very good and could send 3 teams to the playoffs, just like the NFC East. I can't remember the last time I had to root against the Falcons.

[MTK]

Originally Posted by Spence

The Skins are in a much better position to make the playoffs this year than they were in 2005 or 2007. Heck, in 2005 the Skins were 5-6 after 11 games. The complicating factor for Washington is that the conference is better. The NFC South is very good and could send 3 teams to the playoffs, just like the NFC East. I can't remember the last time I had to root against the Falcons.

This is where the conference records come into play. Here's how the conference standings stack up right now among the teams the Skins will potentially be competing for a wild card spot for.

Bucs 7-2
Skins 6-3
Panthers 5-3
Falcons 5-3
Dallas 5-4
Bears 5-4
Packers 4-4
Vikings 4-5