Redskins @ Detroit 3rd quarter game review

1st quarter review
2nd quarter review

THIRD QUARTER

G.Gano kicks 69 yards from WAS 30 to DET 1. S.Logan to DET 29 for 28 yards (G.Gano).

We just saw a perfect tackle from a placekicker. As if I wasn’t already in the tank for Graham Gano.

Detroit Lions at 15:00, (1st play from scrimmage 14:53)

1-10-DET 29 (14:53) (Shotgun) J.Best left tackle to DET 30 for 1 yard (R.McIntosh).

Golston controls the LT and and Rocky manages to run under the block of the pulling guard.

2-9-DET 30 (14:16) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass incomplete short middle to B.Pettigrew (L.Fletcher).

Four man front; Holliday and Haynesworth as the DTs. Haynesworth draws three blockers as Holliday stunts behind him, but he takes a very wide route and like many of Jim Haslett’s calls it takes far too long to develop and never gets close to the quarterback. Excellent coverage by Fletcher on the TE’s shallow cross.

3-9-DET 30 (14:11) (Shotgun) M.Stafford sacked at DET 20 for -10 yards (A.Haynesworth).

Haynesworth lines up over the LG but after giving him a quick jab loops to the outside around Orakpo’s inside rush. Stafford catches on too late and Haynesworth catches him with a dive from behind.

4-19-DET 20 (13:40) N.Harris punts 48 yards to WAS 32, Center-D.Muhlbach. B.Banks MUFFS catch, and recovers at WAS 29. B.Banks to WAS 25 for -4 yards (J.Wendling).

I keep telling you… as good as Brandon Banks is (and he really is) one of these weeks the luck is going to run out and his shaky ball security is going to bite us in the ass. It’s coming.

Washington Redskins at 13:29


1-10-WAS 25 (13:29) D.McNabb sacked at WAS 20 for -5 yards. FUMBLES, and recovers at WAS 20. D.McNabb to WAS 20 for no gain (K.Vanden Bosch).

This is just a fumbled handoff. The color guy says it was meant to be a play fake, and I think he’s right since on the replay Keiland appears to set to block immediately after the ball bounces off his hip.

2-15-WAS 20 (13:00) D.McNabb pass short left to S.Moss to WAS 29 for 9 yards (A.Smith).


3-6-WAS 29 (12:19) (Shotgun) D.McNabb pass incomplete short left to C.Cooley [J.Wade].

The Lions blitz seven guys, including two LBs and a DB. Keiland makes an excellent block on the MLB coming up the middle and flips him end over end. However Vanden Bosch manages to drive Trent Williams back and no one is left to account for the DB, so McNabb is still pressure and sails the dumpoff pass to Cooley.

4-6-WAS 29 (12:14) H.Smith punts 23 yards to DET 48, Center-N.Sundberg, out of bounds.


Detroit Lions at 12:08


1-10-DET 48 (12:08) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short right to J.Best to DET 49 for 1 yard (D.Hall).

Swing pass to the RB, but Hall squares him up and makes yet another good open field tackle.

2-9-DET 49 (11:47) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short left to N.Burleson to WAS 45 for 6 yards (L.Landry; R.McIntosh).


3-3-WAS 45 (11:08) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short right to C.Johnson to WAS 36 for 9 yards (R.McIntosh, D.Hall).

Haynesworth and Holliday simply take each other out of the play with a rather clumsily executed stunt and neither gets within 4 yards of Stafford, who easily completes a quick hook to Calvin Johnson. Explain this to me. Its 3rd and 3, so a quick pass gets you a first down. Therefore a pass rush that takes a long time to develop is useless. And having your CBs play soft coverage is even more useless.

1-10-WAS 36 (10:31) J.Best left tackle to WAS 16 for 20 yards (K.Moore, D.Hall).

Three man front, shifted heavily to the offensive right, to the extent that Golston, at RDE, is line up over the LG. The next defender to that side is Orakpo who is over the slot receiver. So it shouldn’t be a shock that the TE doesn’t have that hard a time kicking out Orakpo, and the LT has a pretty easy time sealing Golston to the inside. Sure Fletcher reads the gap, but a pulling guard makes quick work of him.

1-10-WAS 16 (9:49) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short right to N.Burleson to WAS 9 for 7 yards (L.Alexander; C.Rogers).


2-3-WAS 9 (9:19) (No Huddle) J.Best up the middle to WAS 7 for 2 yards (L.Alexander).


3-1-WAS 7 (8:50) (No Huddle) J.Best left end to WAS 7 for no gain (L.Landry).

The center attempts to cut Haynesworth, but Haynesworth steps over him and is straight into the backfield and gets a hand on the RB coming off the hand off but his legs just slip out of Albert’s hands as he cuts to the outside. Landry is lined up deep in the end zone but starts moving at the handoff and closes like a missile to make a solid tackle.

4-1-WAS 7 (8:10) (Field Goal formation) PENALTY on WAS-P.Daniels, Defensive Offside, 4 yards, enforced at WAS 7 – No Play.

Hmmm…… so five Redskins defenders jump offside at the same time without in any way being drawn off by a Lion… right…..

1-3-WAS 3 (7:53) (Shotgun) K.Smith up the middle to WAS 2 for 1 yard (A.Haynesworth).

The LG tries to pull to the right and Haynesworth just tosses that poor center aside like a rag doll and grabs the RB as he tries to follow the LG through the hole.

2-2-WAS 2 (7:14) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short middle to B.Pettigrew for 2 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

Landry blitzes and Stafford throws right past his head and to the spot Landry had originally lined up, and TE Pettigrew is able to use his large body to box out Rocky. Two yards from the goal line and you’re intentionally pulling guys out of the shallow zones…?

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


WAS 13 DET 14, 9 plays, 52 yards, 1 penalty, 4:58 drive, 7:50 elapsed


J.Hanson kicks 65 yards from DET 30 to WAS 5. B.Banks for 95 yards, TOUCHDOWN NULLIFIED by Penalty. PENALTY on WAS-R.Doughty, Illegal Block Above the Waist, 8 yards, enforced at WAS 16.

This is a borderline call. One coverage guy had burst through and had a straight shot at Banks, and Doughty was in hot pursuit down the field trying to take him out of his lane. He gives him a bit of a nudge from behind, just enough to angle him outside a bit and it may be what allows Banks to start his run clean. In more cheerful news, Sellers, Chris Wilson, and Darrel Young all make nice blocks to spring Banks on his gorgeous but unfortunately purely hypothetical touchdown return.

Washington Redskins at 7:10, (1st play from scrimmage 6:57)


1-10-WAS 8 (6:57) D.McNabb pass short left to S.Moss to WAS 7 for -1 yards (K.Vanden Bosch, C.Houston).


2-11-WAS 7 (6:18) D.McNabb pass incomplete short left to M.Sellers [C.Brown].

A safety comes right up the middle. Keiland sees him but his angle is cut off by McNabb’s drop back and he is too slow working around him to throw a block. McNabb takes a hit and misses the dumpoff to Sellers.

3-11-WAS 7 (6:14) (Shotgun) D.McNabb pass short right to C.Cooley to WAS 18 for 11 yards (D.Levy, J.Wade). PENALTY on DET-J.Wade, Face Mask (15 Yards), 15 yards, enforced at WAS 18.

LDE beats Brown to the inside while the RDE threatens Williams on the outside. McNabb narrowly escapes a diving tackle attempt by the LDE and escapes the pocket and considers running before finding Cooley.

1-10-WAS 33 (5:52) K.Williams right end to WAS 41 for 8 yards (A.Palmer).

Brown lets the RDE go so he can get to the second level, and Sellers picks him up while Cooley and Brown each put very nice blocks on LBs as Keiland bounces it outside.

2-2-WAS 41 (5:09) D.McNabb pass short left to C.Cooley pushed ob at DET 40 for 19 yards (L.Delmas).


1-10-DET 40 (4:48) K.Williams right end to DET 42 for -2 yards (C.Williams). PENALTY on WAS-C.Rabach, Offensive Holding, 10 yards, enforced at DET 40 - No Play.

In a scene we have witnessed before, the second level blocks are there but the LOS can’t hold up (how come you never hear about a first level block? Anyway that’s what fails here). Davis, Hicks, and Lichtensteiger each take out LBs, unfortunately Brown and Rabach can’t keep their DLs from penetrating and Keiland is stuffed.

1-20-50 (4:28) D.McNabb pass short left to A.Armstrong to DET 43 for 7 yards (A.Smith).


2-13-DET 43 (3:52) D.McNabb pass incomplete short right to C.Cooley.

Brown and Cooley each block the LDE, while Hicks is left alone against a DT and is initially beat but recovers to give him enough of a shove that he is forced downfield and McNabb is able to step up in traffic, but he puts the ball in the ground about three inches in front of Cooley’s hands.

Timeout #1 by WAS at 03:43.


3-13-DET 43 (3:43) (Shotgun) D.McNabb pass incomplete deep right to S.Moss (J.Wade).

Vanden Bosch lining up off the line is no longer fooling anyone, so the Redskins OLs adjust well and McNabb has plenty of time. We can’t see Moss’ route, but it looks like a corner route but an oddly short one to the sideline. He had the CB beat if he’d gone deeper, but instead the defender is able to make a leap to tip the ball.

4-13-DET 43 (3:36) H.Smith punts 34 yards to DET 9, Center-N.Sundberg, fair catch by S.Logan.

4.15 seconds

Detroit Lions at 3:29


1-10-DET 9 (3:29) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short left to N.Burleson to DET 11 for 2 yards (L.Landry).

If you telegraph a quick hitch this badly it doesn’t matter that Landry is 11 yards off the line – he is going to close and deck your receiver as soon as he gets the pass.

2-8-DET 11 (2:52) J.Best left end pushed ob at DET 20 for 9 yards (L.Landry).

Orakpo is controlled a bit too easily by the TE (that seems to have happened a lot in this game) and the RG and RT are able to square up Fletcher and Rocky while the slot receiver puts a good block on Rogers.

1-10-DET 20 (2:24) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short middle to C.Johnson to DET 35 for 15 yards (K.Moore).


1-10-DET 35 (1:49) J.Best right end to DET 35 for no gain (M.Kemoeatu).

The Detroit line attempts to slide to the right but Carriker forces back the RG, narrowing the cutback lane and driving the RB right into Maake, who has fought his way past the center.

2-10-DET 35 (1:13) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass incomplete short right to B.Pettigrew (L.Landry).


3-10-DET 35 (1:09) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short middle to N.Burleson to WAS 40 for 25 yards (P.Buchanon). FUMBLES (P.Buchanon), RECOVERED by WAS-L.Fletcher at WAS 27. L.Fletcher to WAS 24 for -3 yards (K.Smith).

The slot receiver is able to turn upfield after the catch due to a devastating block on Rocky by the RB, and Kareem Moore puts on his usual flailing tackle attempt, but Buchanon somehow catches him from behind and very consciously punches the ball out.

Washington Redskins at 0:57


1-10-WAS 24 (:57) K.Williams right end pushed ob at WAS 30 for 6 yards (A.Palmer). DET-C.Brown was injured during the play. His return is Doubtful.

Again it happens – both Heyer and Cooley skip past the LDE to set up second level blocks, so penetration is assured. Fortunately Sellers is able to slow the guy down enough that Keiland can bounce to the outside.

2-4-WAS 30 (:37) K.Williams left end to WAS 30 for no gain (C.Avril, K.Vanden Bosch).

A DT blows right through the double team of Rabach and Lichtensteiger and forces Keiland to cut back into the teeth of the defense.