Redskins @ Detroit 2nd quarter game review

You can find the first quarter review here.

SECOND QUARTER

4-5-WAS 25 (15:00) (Punt formation) H.Smith punts 54 yards to DET 21, Center-N.Sundberg. S.Logan to DET 27 for 6 yards (L.Alexander). PENALTY on DET-T.McBride, Offensive Holding, 10 yards, enforced at DET 21.

Finally a punt with decent hangtime – 4.6 seconds.

Detroit Lions at 14:46

1-10-DET 11 (14:46) M.Stafford pass incomplete short left to J.Best.

Dropped screen pass.

2-10-DET 11 (14:41) (Shotgun) PENALTY on DET-S.Peterman, False Start, 5 yards, enforced at DET 11 - No Play.


2-15-DET 6 (14:41) M.Stafford pass short right to C.Johnson ran ob at DET 18 for 12 yards.

Hall is playing way off the flanker. There’s no one underneath to guard against the out. Landry creeps up to the line and starts to show blitz, but then tries to drop back at the last second but is way too late.

3-3-DET 18 (14:19) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass incomplete short left to N.Burleson (P.Buchanon).

Stafford stares down the receiver on the short route. Buchanon reads it, passes of his WR, and closes to knock the ball loose.

4-3-DET 18 (14:14) N.Harris punts 46 yards to WAS 36, Center-D.Muhlbach. B.Banks to WAS 32 for -4 yards (M.Morris).

For the first time that I have noticed, Banks runs backwards. It doesn’t go well. The Lions coverage team was coming hard up the middle and Roydell Williams and Byron Westbrook had failed to slow down the gunner to Banks’ left so he couldn’t make a break for the sideline.

Washington Redskins at 14:04


1-10-WAS 32 (14:04) D.McNabb pass incomplete deep left to S.Moss.

Thrown low and behind Moss on the sideline.

2-10-WAS 32 (13:57) R.Torain right tackle to WAS 35 for 3 yards (J.Peterson, C.Brown).

Santana motions left to right but the Lions are in man so that draws another DB to the playside. Santana can only block one of the two DBs now out there so the corner is denied to Torain, forcing him to take it up the middle. The DT who stops him is free because both Rabach and Lichtensteiger, who initially doubled him, tried to shed off to pick up LBs.

3-7-WAS 35 (13:14) (Shotgun) D.McNabb pass incomplete deep right to A.Armstrong.

Keiland has a nice pickup on the Mike backer who blitzes up the middle, but Jammal Brown allows pressure around the edge so McNabb is forced to step up and then escape the pocket to his right.

4-7-WAS 35 (13:04) H.Smith punts 55 yards to DET 10, Center-N.Sundberg. S.Logan ran ob at WAS 19 for 71 yards (H.Smith).

Yet another line drive – when the Lions returner fields this there isn’t even a Redskins coverage guy on camera. There were two uncalled blocks to the back on this, but neither of the recipients of those blocks would have had an angle to catch the returner and there are uncalled blocks to the back on just about every long return you will ever see.

Detroit Lions at 12:47


1-10-WAS 19 (12:47) (Shotgun) J.Best left tackle to WAS 13 for 6 yards (P.Daniels).

Tight alignment of the DLs, along with the fact that Orakpo (at ROLB) is off the line and in coverage over the slot WR, means that Daniels at RDE is easily sealed to the inside by the LT and TE.

2-4-WAS 13 (12:09) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass incomplete short left to B.Johnson.


Timeout #1 by WAS at 12:05.


3-4-WAS 13 (12:05) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short left to C.Johnson for 13 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

Johnson makes an easy catch on an in. Hall is there to wrap him up but he gets little help because Rocky and Landry both take bad angles and Johnson spins to the outside and away from them, then is just too strong and drags Hall into the end zone.

J.Hanson extra point is GOOD, Center-D.Muhlbach, Holder-N.Harris.


WAS 0 DET 7, 3 plays, 19 yards, 0:49 drive, 3:02 elapsed


J.Hanson kicks 63 yards from DET 30 to WAS 7. B.Banks to DET 47 for 46 yards (C.Houston, J.Hanson). PENALTY on DET-L.Johnson, Offside on Free Kick, 5 yards, enforced at DET 47.


Washington Redskins at 11:58, (1st play from scrimmage 11:51)


1-10-DET 42 (11:51) D.McNabb scrambles up the middle to DET 6 for 36 yards (J.Peterson).

The line handles the four man rush alright, with the exception of Hicks who is beaten around his outside shoulder by Suh. He is bailed out by Torain who comes up to make a solid block. An LB had been keeping an eye on Torain in case he released into a pass route, but once he saw him commit to the block he came on a late rush. He would have been in perfect position to contain McNabb in the pocket, but instead of filling the gaping hole to McNabb’s right he tries to come up the middle and just gets tangled up with Rabach’s ongoing fight against a DT.

1-6-DET 6 (11:20) (Shotgun) R.Torain right tackle to DET 6 for no gain (J.Wade).

Lichtensteiger tries to get inside the DT to pin him to the the offensive left, but he is overwhelmed and carried down the line of scrimmage to fill the hole on the right. Meanwhile Suh drives Rabach into the backfield. This has the somewhat amusing effect of cutting off his own guy’s backside pursuit from RDE, as well as cutting off Cooley’s attempt to cut off that very same backside pursuit.

2-6-DET 6 (10:44) (Shotgun) D.McNabb pass short right to R.Torain for 6 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

An easy screen. McNabb sells it well so the pass rush is coming hard and the coverage is clustered around the line of scrimmage, so the blockers have plenty of space in which to set up in front of Torain. Hicks cuts a LB while Rabach finishes him off, and Lichtensteiger takes out a DB to let Torain into the end zone untouched.

G.Gano extra point is GOOD, Center-N.Sundberg, Holder-H.Smith.


WAS 7 DET 7, 3 plays, 42 yards, 1:19 drive, 4:21 elapsed


G.Gano kicks 70 yards from WAS 30 to DET 0. S.Logan to DET 23 for 23 yards (R.Williams, M.Sellers). WAS-C.Horton was injured during the play. He is Out.


Detroit Lions at 10:39, (1st play from scrimmage 10:33)


1-10-DET 23 (10:33) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short right to N.Burleson to DET 23 for no gain (P.Daniels, L.Alexander). WAS-P. Daniels was injured during the play. His return is Probable.

Lorenzo Alexander runs through the block of the pulling RT to stuff the slot receiver on the quick pass.

2-10-DET 23 (10:04) M.Stafford pass short right to C.Johnson to DET 42 for 19 yards (L.Landry, L.Fletcher). PENALTY on DET-B.Pettigrew, Offensive Holding, 10 yards, enforced at DET 23 - No Play.


2-20-DET 13 (9:27) (Shotgun) J.Best right tackle to DET 16 for 3 yards (L.Fletcher).

A draw play, and Fletcher reads it immediately. Of note: Haynesworth lines up standing outside the LT, and shows solid hustle running behind the line and fighting through traffic to pursue the play from behind, although Fletcher gets to the guy first.

3-17-DET 16 (8:49) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short left to J.Best to DET 27 for 11 yards (D.Hall).


4-6-DET 27 (8:07) N.Harris punts 49 yards to WAS 24, Center-D.Muhlbach, fair catch by B.Banks.


Washington Redskins at 8:00


1-10-WAS 24 (8:00) D.McNabb sacked at WAS 16 for -8 yards (N.Suh).

There’s not much to break down here. N’Damokung Suh is better at playing DT than Artis Hicks is at playing RG. It’s a straight one on one battle and it’s not even close. Suh gets past Hicks so fast that McNabb never even has a chance to escape.

2-18-WAS 16 (7:25) (Shotgun) R.Torain left tackle to WAS 21 for 5 yards (C.Williams).

So this is curious. Three of the Lions linemen line up (holy crap read that last bit out loud a time or two) to the right of Rabach’s right shoulder. Vanden Bosch is at LDE and has a very wide split a good yard or two outside of Trent Williams. Whether this is happenstance or a check at the line, the Redskins run into that gaping hole left by the line – the LBs are back in pass coverage and cannot compensate.

3-13-WAS 21 (6:44) (Shotgun) D.McNabb sacked at WAS 12 for -9 yards (N.Suh).

Jim Haslett apparently briefly switches teams, as the Lions line up Detroit lines up with only two down lineman. One guy with his hand in the dirt rushes to the outside, gets around Heyer, and forces McNabb to step up. The other DL lines up in the offensive left A gap and attacks Rabach. He, along with Vanden Bosch who lined up standing two yards off the line in the middle of the field, fully occupy Rabach and Hicks. Suh is standing and about a yard off Trent Williams. Trent gets caught planting his feet and is unable to adjust when Suh speeds past his left shoulder. He beats him to the inside despite being blatantly held from behind, and also runs through a chip from Keiland to end up right in the spot McNabb is trying to step up to.

4-22-WAS 12 (6:14) H.Smith punts 39 yards to DET 49, Center-N.Sundberg, out of bounds.

4 seconds even

Detroit Lions at 6:06


1-10-DET 49 (6:06) K.Smith right tackle to WAS 38 for 13 yards (K.Moore).

Golston is neutralized by a double team and the LG does a great job shedding off his initial block on the line and squaring up Fletcher downfield to open up a big gain.

1-10-WAS 38 (5:30) K.Smith up the middle to WAS 41 for -3 yards (L.Landry).

Landry is coming on a blitz off the edge and is in the backfield so fast he is on the RB just after the handoff is completed.

2-13-WAS 41 (4:50) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass incomplete short left to C.Johnson (D.Hall).

Ok this is what happens when your defense is cute for the sake of cute. We’ve got Golston and Rocky with their hands down over the C and RG. Haynesworth is standing about 3 ½ yards off the RT. Rocky drops into pass coverage (that’ll blow their minds!) as Haynesworth tries to run across the formation and join Carter, Landry, and Rogers on an overload blitz from the opposite side of the field. Instead, Rocky just runs into Haynesworth. Bet it looked cool on the chalkboard though. Stafford is making a quick release anyway so such a slow-developing blitz had no chance to begin with, but fortunately Hall makes an excellent read of Stafford’s eyes and abandons his receiver to jump the route and knock it away.

3-13-WAS 41 (4:47) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass incomplete deep left to C.Johnson.


4-13-WAS 41 (4:41) N.Harris punts 30 yards to WAS 11, Center-D.Muhlbach, fair catch by B.Banks.


Washington Redskins at 4:32


1-10-WAS 11 (4:32) R.Torain left tackle to WAS 15 for 4 yards (A.Palmer, T.McBride).


2-6-WAS 15 (4:00) R.Torain up the middle to WAS 11 for -4 yards (T.McBride).

So I assume someone was supposed to block the LDE who came completely unblocked off the edge to stuff the draw. Instead Cooley was busy sealing his guy to the inside and Sellers ran past him to go looking for LBs.

3-10-WAS 11 (3:18) (Shotgun) D.McNabb pass deep middle to A.Armstrong to DET 39 for 50 yards (C.Brown).

Vanden Bosch is standing in the middle of the field again, but the Redskins have seen it enough times by now. When the DL over Lichtensteiger rushes to the inside he is passed off to Rabach and Hicks and Lichtensteiger picks up Vanden Bosch just fine, and Heyer does a stellar job against the RDE so McNabb has tons of time to wait for Armstrong to get open on the post.

1-10-DET 39 (2:35) D.McNabb pass short right to S.Moss pushed ob at DET 27 for 12 yards (L.Delmas).


1-10-DET 27 (2:07) R.Torain left end to DET 30 for -3 yards (Sa.Hill, C.Brown).

OK this same thing has happened several times now. As is routine in zone blocking Trent Williams and Chris Cooley first double team the RDE. At some point one of them is supposed to shed off that block and pick off a LB at the second level, while the other continues the original block. Instead the both release, and the RDE is let into the backfield to force Torain to bounce it outside, unsuccessfully. This is starting to irritate me.

Two-Minute Warning


2-13-DET 30 (2:00) D.McNabb scrambles right end to DET 20 for 10 yards (A.Palmer).

The screen fails colossally as Torain is taken to the ground before he can fight his way out of the backfield to take the pass. Fortunately the screen set up means Lichtensteiger is out there to throw a key block and allow McNabb the running room.

3-3-DET 20 (1:13) D.McNabb pass incomplete short left to J.Galloway (A.Smith) [A.Fluellen].

The pocket collapses immediately in the face of a blitz, and either Galloway forgets he’s the hot read, or he’s really not and McNabb just throws to him anyway. He doesn’t even turn his head, and a DB jumps the route for what should be a sure touchdown but drops it.

4-3-DET 20 (1:08) G.Gano 38 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-N.Sundberg, Holder-H.Smith.


WAS 10 DET 7, 8 plays, 69 yards, 3:28 drive, 13:56 elapsed


G.Gano kicks 77 yards from WAS 30 to DET -7. S.Logan, Touchback.


Detroit Lions at 1:04


1-10-DET 20 (1:04) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short left to J.Best to DET 29 for 9 yards (R.McIntosh).

Haynesworth lines up standing and outside the LT. Orakpo is three yards off the line over the LG. Haynesworth attacks the LT and puts on a swim move to get past him, however getting beat so quickly actually frees up the LT to pick up Orakpo who is trying to cross behind Haynesworth’s back to rush from the outside. Meanwhile the LG is completely unoccupied due to the absence of real linemen, so he easily picks up Haynesworth.

2-1-DET 29 (:43) (No Huddle, Shotgun) M.Stafford pass incomplete short left to J.Best.


Timeout #2 by WAS at 00:38.


3-1-DET 29 (:37) M.Stafford pass incomplete deep left to C.Johnson (L.Landry).

Redskins generate pressure out of a four man front (ahem). Stafford steps up and escapes the pocket to the left. If he just keeps the ball he has an easy first down, but at the last second he sees that Calvin Johnson has broken off his route due to the scramble and has a couple steps on Landry. He tries to loft it to him, but Landry makes a great recovery after stumbling and barely manages to get back into the play and break up the pass.

4-1-DET 29 (:28) N.Harris punts 44 yards to WAS 27, Center-D.Muhlbach. B.Banks to DET 49 for 24 yards (C.Brown).


Washington Redskins at 0:16


1-10-DET 49 (:16) (Shotgun) D.McNabb pass short left to S.Moss to DET 41 for 8 yards (A.Smith, J.Wade).


Timeout #3 by WAS at 00:11.


2-2-DET 41 (:11) (Shotgun) D.McNabb pass short left to R.Torain ran ob at DET 28 for 13 yards (D.Levy).

Torain is wide open in the flat – all the coverage is deep to guard against a big play. He has no blockers but he manages to make a man miss to get into field goal range.

1-10-DET 28 (:04) G.Gano 46 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-N.Sundberg, Holder-H.Smith.