The official Warpath scapegoat watch 2006

[MTK]

Mark Brunell: Since coming to the Redskins in 2004, Brunell has been a lightening rod of criticism and controversy amongst the Redskins faithful. Brunell suffered through a miserable 2004 season, easily his worst as a pro. Despite bouncing back with a strong 2005 season in which he helped orchestrate a playoff season, he was still unable to shake the doubt from the minds of many Redskins fans and "experts" in the media.

In 2006 he faces a nearly impossible mission. Super Bowl or bust. Whatever failures the team may encounter in 2006, look for Brunell to be the first player the majority of the fingers are pointed towards. Frequently in football, the QB receives too much credit when things are going well and too much blame when things are going bad. It seems in Brunell's case, the scales tip towards the blame side much more often than they do to the credit side regardless of the situation.



Derrick Frost: Wow, look at this classic shot of two Redskins scapegoats captured in one picture! Frost has been a very inconsistent performer for the Redskins in his short time in Washington, and a lot of the criticism has been well justified. Still, Frost receives my scapegoat mention after the opening game against the Vikings. After a poor first punt, he went on to have a solid evening with a net of 37.0 yards. Yet he was quickly pointed out during the postgame discussions as having had a bad game and he was one of the reasons for the loss. Obviously some fans don't like to do their homework before they post or they would have known that Frost grossed 43 yards per punt on 5 attempts, and helped pin the Vikings deep in their own territory when he dropped a punt inside the 5 yard line. 1 bad punt out of 5, and Frost was quickly singled out as a bad performer. Tsk, tsk Redskins fans. Welcome to the scapegoat club Derrick Frost!



John Hall: Hall has been under fire the past couple of seasons in Washington. He has battled leg injuries that have caused him to miss 14 games over the past two seasons. The injuries appear to have taken their toll on his leg strength, and many are wondering if he has what it takes anymore to be a quality NFL kicker. The opening Monday night game did nothing to quell those worries as his 48 yard miss at the end of the game sailed wide and his scapegoat status reached Mark Brunell proportions in the postgame discussions. Despite hitting 3 out of 4 on the night, the miss cancelled out the makes and Hall's head has been on a stake all week. Hometown hero Nick Novak is sitting home and is only a phone call away. But one has to wonder, if he's sitting home right now, how much better can be he than Hall right now? Yes I know, silly question to ask. The other option is always better. Be on alert John Hall, you could overtake Mark Brunell as public enemy #1 very soon!

Honorable mentions: Al Saunders (one game and we didn't score 40?! Bust!), Andre Carter (one game and you didn't record 5 sacks? Bust!), Adam Archuletta (one game and no picks or big hits? Bust!), Brandon Lloyd (one game and you didn't catch anything! Bust!), Chris Cooley (Where are you?).