tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-73261019184877602032024-02-07T23:11:30.286-05:00Staying MediumA (long-defunct) blog for level-headed Redskins fansDave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.comBlogger382125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-5616540945585704422020-07-13T18:08:00.001-04:002020-07-13T18:09:54.326-04:00this thing still work?<br />
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Is the copy and paste still fucked up<o:p></o:p></div>
Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-69531242445647609482014-03-04T22:31:00.000-05:002014-03-04T22:31:00.682-05:00A moment of appreciation for Adam Carriker and Sav RoccaI've never made any bones about the fact that I tend to pick out favorite players, and if you read my blog over the years of follow me on Twitter you know I tend to enjoy watching the role players and quiet contributors. The Redskins made a routine and unsurprising round of cuts today. I thought I would put in a quick word because two of the names on the list, Adam Carriker and Sav Rocca, happen to be enshrined in the Hall of Not That Remarkable Players that Dave Spends A Lot of Time Talking About Anyway.<br />
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Carriker has been injured for nearly all of the last two years, so it is easy to forget about him. Especially since back when he was contributing he was doing so in non-flashy ways that don't get you onto highlight reels. Also, his efforts were largely rendered moot by the failures of the unit around him. His first year on the team was 2010, and of course that was the same year that Mike Shanahan arrived with a dictate to switch to a 3-4 defense. This was done without regard to the personnel on the roster at the time and led to what can only be called a catastrophic collapse.<br />
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The most visible culprits were nose tackle Ma'ake Kemoeatu and right end Kedric Golston, who proved incapable of even being competitive. I will excerpt from <a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2011/01/redskins-season-review-defensive-line.html">my post-mortem</a> at the end of the 2010 season:<br />
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<span style="background-color: #fff2cc;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;">Play after play, the defensive line would basically swing open like a door, with Ma’ake and Golston being picked up and carried downfield, thus opening up running room and cutting off the linebackers’ pursuit angles.</span></span><span style="background-color: #fff2cc;"><br style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;" /></span><span style="background-color: #fff2cc;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 16px;">The pivot that the door swung around, though, was Adam Carriker – the only member of the defensive line to play effectively for the full season. Unfortunately, Carriker got screwed by that pesky “quintessential team sport” aspect of football. When he stood up his blockers on the line – his job as a 3-4 DE – the fact that his colleagues were getting blown away rendered his efforts moot. Carriker is an exceptionally strong player, and was often able to penetrate into the backfield. Once he got there, though, he often lacked the quickness or athleticism to make a play on the runner or quarterback. Of course it would have been easier if the other linemen had been holding the line and not making it so easy for opponents to escape such penetration. It is not a coincidence that once Anthony Bryant and Vonnie Holliday started getting significant playing time in the final few weeks that Carriker finally started providing some real, measurable production. It helps a lot when the running back can’t just cut away from you and take advantage of the yards and yards of open space opened up where the other two thirds of the defensive line used to be.</span></span></blockquote>
(For the record, Golston went on to improve with more time in the system. Kemoeatu was not given a second chance.)<br />
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Carriker is now nearly 30, too expensive, and coming off two lost years due to injury. Cutting him was an utterly sensible move. But as he leaves its worth pointing out that he put in some solid, under-appreciated work at a difficult time.<br />
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As for Sav Rocca, if you know me at all you know that I get a little too excited about punting (this is presumably because I am extremely boring and need a hobby). That means the long years of totally incapable punting were tough for me. I would sometimes clock the punt hang times for my game breakdowns (hang time is as important as distance, or perhaps more so), and I spent 2010 pulling my hair out as Sam Paulescu, Josh Bidwell, and an injured Hunter Smith consistently struggled to get much past 3.5 seconds.<br />
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So I was <a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2011/07/redskins-upgrade-d-line-o-line-and.html">pretty pleased</a> in the summer of 2011 when the Redskins brought in Sav Rocca, who had had many solid years with Philadelphia. There was also the simple entertainment factor of his weighing 263 pounds and being a <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=civKdIgEC6I">former Aussie rules football player</a> who was <a href="http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-game-highlights/0ap2000000119778/Punter-earns-penalty-for-taking-out-kick-returner">not at all shy about making contact.</a> For one year and one year only, Rocca gave me the joy of watching competent punting by my home team. He then struggled through two difficult years of injuries and being 40. Clearly his body had broken down to the point that he just could not be counted on to execute the kicks, and he became most known for his <a href="http://espn.go.com/blog/washington-redskins/post/_/id/2197/upon-further-review-redskins-week-8">poorly timed shanks</a>. But I still have a soft spot for him for giving me that one season of relief after years in the punting desert.Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-16704370454999809172014-01-09T19:05:00.001-05:002014-01-09T19:05:43.663-05:00Rumors, reporting, Burgundy Blog, and the Jay Gruden hirePermit me to indulge in a little speechifying over the reaction to <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Cblockquote%20class=%22twitter-tweet%22%20lang=%22en%22%3E%3Cp%3EFollower%20%3Ca%20href=%22https://twitter.com/nroby21%22%3E@nroby21%3C/a%3E%20says%20his%20buddy%20coaches%20Gruden's%20son's%20bball%20team%20in%20Cincy%20and%20son%20has%20told%20Coach%20that%20Daddy%20has%20accepted%20the%20%3Ca%20href=%22https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Redskins&src=hash%22%3E#Redskins</a>.</p>%E2%80%94 BurgundyBlog.com (@BurgundyBlog) <a href="https://twitter.com/BurgundyBlog/statuses/421117097708896256">January 9, 2014</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>">Burgundy Blog's role</a> last night in the rumors of Jay Gruden's impending hire.<br />
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It is wrong to say the journalists who started reporting the hire Monday morning were slow, or late to the story, or that BB beat them to it. It is absolutely wrong to suggest that reporters should <a href="https://www.blogger.com/%3Cblockquote%20class=%22twitter-tweet%22%20lang=%22en%22%3E%3Cp%3E%3Ca%20href=%22https://twitter.com/JeffDarlington%22%3E@JeffDarlington%3C/a%3E%20you%20need%20to%20source%20%3Ca%20href=%22https://twitter.com/BurgundyBlog%22%3E@BurgundyBlog%3C/a%3E%20who%20had%20this%20scoop%20last%20night%20on%20his%20timeline%20before%20all%20the%20big%20media%20outlets%3C/p%3E%E2%80%94%20J%20Lord%20(@RealJLord)%20%3Ca%20href=%22https://twitter.com/RealJLord/statuses/421278123519250432%22%3EJanuary%209,%202014%3C/a%3E%3C/blockquote%3E%20%3Cscript%20async%20src=%22//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js%22%20charset=%22utf-8%22%3E%3C/script%3E">credit</a> or source BB for "getting the scoop."<br />
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BB did not engage in reporting, he repeated a rumor he heard from a Twitter follower. An interesting and relatively solid-looking rumor, but a rumor nonetheless. The "source," which should not really be called that, was not a person with direct knowledge of the situation. The fact that it turned out to be true does not make it any less of a rumor.<br />
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Journalists have to engage in the process of journalism, meaning multiple sources, assessing said source's credibility, and so forth. That takes more time than a retweet. Any journalists who "reported" an impending hire based on a tweet from a follower, if it turned out to be wrong, would be mocked by us and disciplined by his employers. His professional reputation would be permanently damaged. If a blogger on Twitter relays something he heard and it's wrong, we shrug it off and move on.<br />
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This is not to suggest that BB was in any way wrong in what he did. The fact that he is not a journalist is precisely why it was okay for him to share what he learned from some teenager who happens to both follow him on Twitter and know the Gruden family. We on Twitter are all just a bunch of people talking, and passing on a rumor your heard on Twitter is not inherently different from telling your friends at the bar. But it's not news.<br />
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It was fairly interesting to watch this process to play out, and a nice illustration of how Twitter and the internet are changing the way we all follow sports (or whatever topic we're interested in). Twitter has blurred the lines between reporter and audience a bit, but it has not erased them. And I think it was a useful reminder of the distinction.Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-4732170742172151402014-01-04T14:44:00.003-05:002014-01-04T15:58:51.452-05:00Kirk Cousins promotes Robert Griffin III to GMA week old and, I thought, fairly innocuous quote from Kirk Cousins suddenly got some more play on Twitter this afternoon, at the national level:<br />
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Dysfunctional. RT <a href="https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter">@AdamSchefter</a> comment from Kirk Cousins: "Im sure Mr. Snyder, Robert & those ppl will have a lot of input as to the hire."<br />
— Evan Silva (@evansilva) <a href="https://twitter.com/evansilva/statuses/419512905512415234">January 4, 2014</a></blockquote>
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This has quite easily played into the narrative of the Redskins as a circus. However, while that narrative is obviously justified, not everything can or should be taken as evidence of it.<br />
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<a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2013/12/snyder-shanahan-and-finally-reaching.html">As I wrote</a> shortly before the end of the season, although I think it is a little more complicated than this and there is certainly blame to go around, I broadly agree with Silva's perspective on the whole Snyder-Shanahan soap opera:<br />
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Ppl blaming HOFer Shanahan for <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Redskins&src=hash">#Redskins</a> dysfunction should read up on Dan Snyder's track record & then look up the definition of insanity.<br />
— Evan Silva (@evansilva) <a href="https://twitter.com/evansilva/statuses/419528818026491907">January 4, 2014</a></blockquote>
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That said, it can become too easy to interpret everything said by or about this team in the most negative possible light. There a few important points worth remembering when considering the meaning of what Cousins said:<br />
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- All NFL franchises have some degree of ownership involvement in major decisions like coaching hires. Dan Snyder's involvement in football operations has been excessive and destructive over his tenure, but that doesn't mean the ideal amount of owner involvement is zero. This is a business with an owner, and the owner cannot divorce himself entirely from decisions that set the course of his franchise for years to come.<br />
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- There is, in fact, some room for input from Robert Griffin III. Again, forget this is a football team and think of any other business undergoing a major restructuring. The preferences of your most important employee - how he is most comfortable working and how he thinks he is most likely to succeed - shouldn't drive the decision but absolutely should be taken into account at some level.<br />
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And most importantly:<br />
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- <i>Since when is the backup quarterback considered an authoritative source on the details of a coaching search?</i><br />
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To wit:<br />
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Somehow, I doubt that Cousins was wired in to the <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Redskins&src=hash">#Redskins</a>’ coaching search procedure an hour after Shanahan was fired. Non-story.<br />
— Rich Tandler (@Rich_TandlerCSN) <a href="https://twitter.com/Rich_TandlerCSN/statuses/419538442658127872">January 4, 2014</a></blockquote>
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Given this franchise's recent history it is very possible Griffin's star status is giving him too much influence, or that Dan Snyder's personal whims are preventing solid football decisions from being made. I am legitimately concerned that one or both of those things may be the case. However we do not know whether<a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2013/12/bruce-allen-redskins-last-best-hope.html"> this team restructuring</a>, featuring an empowered (as he tells us, anyway) Bruce Allen, is addressing those historical problems. And Kirk Cousins' offhand comment tells us nothing about it either way.<br />
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<br />Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-10136789311261901952013-12-31T15:25:00.001-05:002013-12-31T15:26:50.400-05:00Bruce Allen: the Redskins last, best hope (since the previous last, best hope)<div id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1388516881164_2172" style="background-color: white;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I <a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2013/12/snyder-shanahan-and-finally-reaching.html">wrote</a> a few weeks ago when this whole shitstorm broke, what was so depressing about the revelation that Mike Shanahan and Dan Snyder's relationship had soured so badly was the confirmation that the Celebrity Coach model can't work in DC. I'm not a fan of such a model on it's merits, but it seemed like the last option for allowing a football operation to take place without Dan Snyder's interference. With Marty Schottenheimer and Mike Shanahan, the egos were just too big to peacefully coexist with the owner. He and Joe Gibbs seemed to get along, but that was mostly a case of hero worship. Hiring a more obscure coach to see if you could uncover hidden talent is a non-starter because without a strong football structure over him an unknown coach </span><span id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1388516881164_2124" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span id="yui_3_13_0_ym1_1_1388516881164_2139">will be destroyed by the whims of ownership (<a href="http://www.sportsgrindent.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/jimzorn.JPG">Hi Jim!</a>). </span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My preference all along (everyone's preference, really) has been the Strong GM model, but it seemed like that is the one option that Dan Snyder would never accept. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It would prevent him from either basking in Celebrity Coach’s reflected glory or micromanaging (and therefore undermining) an up-and-comer.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That's why </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I watched Bruce Allen’s </span><a href="http://www.redskins.com/media-gallery/videos/Bruce-Allen-Press-Conference/b4705ef9-f652-4ba1-8b9a-9d9c7a04f335" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">press conference</a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> yesterday with great interest. In it he claimed that he was taking on a full GM role. He also said that he would have full control over personnel matters. It is important to remember, of course, that press conferences don’t mean a damn thing.</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But let’s take him at his word for the moment and discuss what that would mean.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We already know that Allen has Snyder's trust. Some will use that deride him as a puppet, but Dan Snyder being comfortable with you is a pretty obvious prerequisite for the job. Not only to avoid getting undermined and then canned, but because a large part of his duties will be placating Snyder and keeping him in the loop enough that he feels involved, but still minimizing interference in the football operations. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If – and I stress</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">if</i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">– Bruce Allen is setting himself up as an effective bulwark between Snyder and the football ops side of things, then it’s possible we are seeing the establishment of a real front office. You know, the kind like a professional football team might have. And bringing in an outside Strong GM-type means rolling the dice when it comes to whether he and Snyder could work together productively. I hate as much as anyone that the franchise's options are always limited by the dysfunctional personality of the owner, but he's not selling or dying anytime soon and that is just the context in which this team has to operate.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some are concerned about Allen's player evaluation chops. However it is important to remember that his job is less breaking down film and more <i>managing</i> (generally!) the process by which his staff generates information and using that information to make sound roster decisions.* </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here’s a quote from the press conference that jumped out at me, while Bruce Allen was discussing personnel guys Scott Campbell and Morocco Brown: “I see some people who have to be given an opportunity to succeed.” If you will forgive me for reading between the lines a bit, the implication here seems to be that Shanahan’s influence over roster decisions kept the player personnel department from working to it’s potential. Perhaps he was overruling their evaluations? And Shanahan was setting the direction, so if these guys were producing good work on the wrong sorts of players they were merely fulfilling their assignments from the boss. Such a scenario would be totally plausible given the well known problems of giving a coach full personnel control. Allen, at least, thinks there is a good personnel department here that can be effective if properly managed. You may disagree, but he knows those guys and you don't.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There's a lot that could go wrong, even if this "real front office" thing is in fact being tried. A Celebrity Coach hire would wreck this whole thing, so if Bill Cowher closes on a house in Northern Virginia this all goes out the window. Also, there was a bit of a perception that since Snyder knew well ahead of time that he wanted Shanahan, Bruce Allen was chosen partly because he was not a dominant personality that would end up in a power struggle with the new superstar coach. I suspect this is an unfair and simplistic portrayal of Allen. But a strong yet controlled personality will be necessary to handle both an overhaul of football ops and taming Snyder. And of course, if suspicions that he's just a Snyder yes-man are true he could just end up enabling the owner rather than reining him in. It's hard for me to get a read on the guy since he has mostly stayed in the background for the past four years while Shanahan got all the public attention.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Speaking of which, I hope that after a new coach comes in Allen maintains more public visibility than he did under Shanahan. I think he would be a good public face for the team. He comes across as professional. Reasonable. A grown-up. This franchise is justifiably seen as a circus, so putting a more professional face on it may take a little bit of the media heat off the new coach and the players.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I admit this is a rather tepid endorsement. Fans of most teams would like a plan they felt better about than simply accepting that this is a front office set up that may be slightly less likely to blow up in our faces. But with the Redskins this is the closest thing to optimism I can manage - I can actually envision a way this might work, even though I have no idea if it will.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">That's why I am finding myself in "wake me up when they sign a coach" mode and have little interest in diving into the pros and cons of every conceivable candidate. The big question is whether the new coach will have the opportunity to succeed or fail on his own merits. I'd rather talk about football than personalities, but unfortunately personal dysfunction is a much bigger problem for this team than Xs and Os or lack of player talent. When a coach get hired I will mostly be interested in what it says about whether or not this front office plan is being seriously implemented.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">*For a good description of a player personnel system working with unity of purpose, and the conflict inherent in getting it to that point, I recommend <i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/War-Room-Belichick-Building-Perfect-ebook/dp/B004W2ZOIK/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1388520282&sr=1-1&keywords=war+room">War Room</a></i> by Michael Holley.</span></div>
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Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-60313192137425688032013-12-09T21:03:00.002-05:002013-12-09T21:03:47.971-05:00Snyder, Shanahan, and finally reaching the point of despair<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; mso-pagination: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";"><o:p>Yesterday was a bad day. And I think I can say without exaggeration that this is the most hopeless I have ever felt as a Redskins fan. Yes, I know that's saying a lot. What I usually do in a situation like this is to try to argue that the media is forcing an over-wrought narrative, or that fans are oversimplifying, or that the problems, while severe, are fixable. But I don't have it in me this time. </o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Based purely on the poor football
performance, I am disappointed but not to the point of despair. If bad football
were the only problem, I would stand by my <a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2013/11/my-response-to-fire-mike-shanahan-crowd.html">post from a week ago</a> in which I
argued that Mike Shanahan had the best chance of fixing things. But this is the
Redskins, so we can’t just talk about football. We have to talk about egos not
getting along.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 13pt;">Somewhat surprisingly I am seeing most
of the internet/newspaper </span></span><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/is-mike-shanahan-or-daniel-snyder-to-blame-washington-doesnt-deserve-either-of-them/2013/12/08/346ccb90-6068-11e3-8beb-3f9a9942850f_story.html" style="font-family: 'Helvetica Neue'; font-size: 13pt;">backlash</a><span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue;"><span style="font-size: 13pt;"> directed at Shanahan. I’m not insisting
that he’s totally innocent; in almost all cases that a personal relationship
turns nasty both parties contribute in some way. And a lot about how he has
handled his last two press conferences has poured fuel on the fire. However I
can point out that Shanahan, whatever criticism he may get for football
decisions, tends to get described by various sources as a man who treats others
with respect and therefore gets it in return. While I know it's a mistake to think you know a man's personality based on how he's </span><span style="font-size: 17px;">portrayed</span><span style="font-size: 13pt;"> in the media, I have never gotten the impression that anyone deems him petty. But I am here to bury Shanahan, not to praise him, as the kids say.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Whether or not Shanahan’s own ego
contributed to the crisis is really beside the point. With the exception of Joe
Gibbs, who happened to be Dan Snyder’s childhood idol, every single one of Snyder’s coaches will have left Washington with a poisoned relationship with
the owner. Snyder is clearly the common variable. To quote noted behavioral
psychologist <a href="http://www.laymansfilm.com/uploads/1/0/4/0/10403798/9179341_orig.jpg">Raylan Givens</a>, <span style="color: #1e1e1e;">“You run into an
asshole in the morning, you ran into an asshole. You run into assholes
all day, <i>you’re</i> the asshole.” </span>You will be hard pressed
to convince me that Shanahan, however he may have mishandled certain things, is
primarily responsible for this situation. He is not the first to have felt
undermined by this owner, and he won’t be the last.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">I have never really gotten into
Snyder-bashing, and frankly have tended to roll my eyes when Redskins fans
announce “this team will never win anything with Dan Snyder in charge.” This is
not because I have liked the way he runs the team – I haven’t – but it has
always struck me as somewhat pointless. I would much rather focus on the things
that <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">can </i>be fixed, and Snyder is the
one guy in the organization that can’t be fired. His ownership is the one
variable that won’t change, so we are better off talking about what is or is
not possible within that context. It is also lazy analysis to pick out a boogie
man and blame him for all the team’s failures.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">But now I am forced to reconsider. My
perception had been that any coach the lacked gravitas – Norv Turner, Jim Zorn
etc – would be actively undermined by Snyder to the point that he wouldn’t even
have a chance to succeed at his job. However celebrity coaches like Joe Gibbs
or, I thought, Mike Shanahan – whom Snyder had not-so-secretly lusted after for
some time – would get sufficient respect that they could actually run football
operations for the most part. I fully understand that the Celebrity Coach model has its flaws,
and being restricted to that was a serious limitation on this franchise’s
options for success. But per the previous paragraph, we were better off just
acknowledging that restriction and talking about how to work within it.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">That’s why all of yesterday’s drama was
so discouraging. Apparently even Mike Shanahan, about as big a football name as
you can get, feels he can’t do his job because of the owner he works for. If
even the Celebrity Coach model can’t protect the franchise from Snyder’s
dysfunction, then what other options are there?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">I want to make sure I am clear here – I
am not in this despondent state because of 3-10, or getting blown out
yesterday, or because of Robert Griffin’s regression. I can love a losing team;
that’s not the problem. In fact in the past I have often found myself resentful
of fans whose support of a team is conditional on success. To me that’s missing
the point. And yet I’m finding myself pushed to the limits here. With a bad football
team there is hope for improvement, and therefore a reason to keep paying
attention. But when the personality of the owner prevents any football plan
from being carried out, it is hard to even have anything to look forward to.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue"; font-size: 13.0pt; mso-bidi-font-family: "Helvetica Neue";">Uncharacteristically, this current
situation has not provoked me to spend any time thinking about who the next
coach should be, or which positions should be drafted or signed to fix this
roster, or what the odds are of Robert Griffin III getting his career back on
track. I find myself <i>not caring</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
have been obsessed with this team since I was old enough to know they exist. I
have never not cared before. It is a disconcerting feeling.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-6057751112201229472013-11-30T15:31:00.001-05:002013-11-30T15:31:37.472-05:00My response to the "fire Mike Shanahan" crowdDespite the extreme team nature of football, I don't think there is anyone who disagrees that the Redskins' long term fortunes will be largely dictated by whether or not Robert Griffin III plays up to his potential. There are three big factors working in Griffin's favor:<br />
<br />
- Further recovery, both physical and mental, from the injury.<br />
<br />
- A full offseason of work (do not underestimate how much a young quarterback can be inhibited by spending his second offseason in the league rehabbing rather than learning his craft).<br />
<br />
- Having a better roster put around him due to the expiration of the league's ludicrous salary cap penalty and, after one more year, a return to having first round draft picks to play with.<br />
<br />
Those are three sound reasons for optimism. The one thing I would not want to do is throw a new variable into the mix, like a coaching overhaul. Don't you think this kid - and he <i>is </i>a kid, despite last year's silly messiah treatment - has enough going through his head already?<br />
<br />
Also, this is not the Steve Spurrier era, where it didn't even resemble a professional organization out there. Nor is it the Jim Zorn situation, where a guy was thrown in over his head and constantly undermined by management. This is an accomplished, respected NFL coach who is currently not getting the results he wants.<br />
<br />
If Shanahan is fired, who is the replacement? Remember that Dan Snyder still owns this team and we have a pretty good track record on the guy. Only a coach of the stature of Joe Gibbs or Shanahan can stave off the owner's office from involving itself in football decisions and generally undercutting the coach at every turn. That of course limits the options. What reason do we have to assume that, I dunno, let's say Bill Cowher, has a better chance of improving this team than Mike Shanahan?<br />
<br />
In my opinion, a disruption of continuity after this season has much better odds of neutralizing this team's bright spots than of sparking a recovery.Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-51671230833629415332013-10-27T20:54:00.001-04:002013-10-27T20:54:44.288-04:00The current state of the Redskins in light of a loss to DenverThe Redskins are now 2-5. This is not good. However it is important to remember how scary the situation looked just a few weeks ago. The Redskins are now consistently competitive.<br />
<br />
I know it's the fourth year of the Shanahan regime, and it can be frustrating to be satisfied with "competitive" this far in. But of course they got to reset their clock after the franchise went all in on Griffin III. It's unfortunate that two full years were squandered as a result of the misguided attempt to build around Donovan McNabb, but that's also water under the bridge at this point. For all intents and purposes we are only in the second year of this program, and given that it's centerpiece is coming off of major knee surgery I can't be too disappointed in the progress to date.<br />
<br />
I don't like continually being optimistic for next year any more than you do, but if you think of 2013 as year two in a rebuild there several reasons for optimism:<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /><br />
- Robert Griffin III is playing like a talented but inexperienced quarterback who missed out on one of his two offseasons. Many Redskins fans mistakenly got the impression that he was already a polished passer last year, despite the fact that he was helped enormously by a new offensive approach the defenses hadn't spent an offseason preparing for, remarkable running ability that fit into the structure of the offense (as opposed to wild scrambling about a la early Vick), and a fair amount of luck - he had lousy mechanics and made some poor decisions last year, but usually got away with them. I am eager to see how Griffin's game matures after a full offseason of work. Any disappointment with Griffin's current play should tell you how foolish it is to anoint one 22 year old a "savior."<br />
<br />
- We already know the Redskins have a running game that can succeed, due to a combination of sound scheme and two young running backs can execute it. That means the passing game has some room to grow.<br />
<br />
- The defense, while still probably the weakness of this team, more than held its own against possibly the best quarterback in the history of the game. Rookies like David Amerson and Bacarri Rambo gave every appearance that their poor early season performance was just rookie growing pains, and there is still talent to develop there.<br />
<br />
- Between the first round picks given up to draft Griffin and the NFL's salary cap penalty for refusing to participate in brazenly illegal collusion, it is not surprising that this roster has holes. But largely due to an ability to find productive talent in the later rounds, the Redskins have managed to develop a more promising core than would be expected given the circumstances. Once access to first round talent and real salary cap room gives Mike Shanahan roster flexibility, I have no reason not to think a good team can be built around the quarterback.<br />
<br />
Think about how our collective state of mind would be different if the Broncos had dominated in the first quarter rather than the fourth, and the Redskins staged a resurgence to turn it into a ball game. The Broncos are quite possibly the best team in the league this year. Good teams shouldn't be satisfied with moral victories. But rebuilding teams can find cause for encouragement in them.<br />
<br />
A team in the second year of a rebuild, whose prodigal talent is slowly recovering from a devastating injury that robbed him of a key opportunity to develop his craft, with little roster flexibility, has shown itself capable of hanging with quality NFL teams despite some obvious and unsurprising weaknesses. Nothing that happened today, or at any point this year, has indicated that the Redskins are not headed in the right direction.Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-66756064321711768482013-10-25T17:47:00.001-04:002013-10-25T17:47:36.934-04:00Nate Jackson on the "genius" of football playersFormer NFL tight end Nate Jackson has a <a href="http://mmqb.si.com/2013/10/25/nate-jackson-life-after-concussions/">very good piece up on MMQB</a> that I highly recommend. It covers not just the effects of concussions but also football's allure and the sense of loss once a career ends.<br />
<br />
I also wanted to call your attention to a parenthetical aside he throws in. It is a bit off topic, but I think it is an important point that we casual observers of sports often overlook:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 25px;">"(And make no mistake, it is the athletic mind of the athlete that connects the dots; brilliant performance artists, the lot of them, mistaken as dummies because they never learned to file a report or calculate a spreadsheet. But try visualizing an explosively violent and incredibly intricate physical task, and then DOING it with your two hands, your body, your limbs, your connections, the synapses, the will and the fire, in real time against the most dominant members of the species. That’s genius too.)"</span></blockquote>
Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-67998756498097110572013-09-27T01:01:00.003-04:002013-09-27T01:15:36.336-04:00The Redskins' defensive breakdowns against DetroitIn this post I am going to point out what I think are a plethora of mental errors by Redskins defensive players. It seems appropriate to point out the following:<br />
<br />
- When players and coaches say "if you aren't in the meeting room you have no idea what the play was," they are right.<br />
<br />
- Without knowledge of the play call, it can be pretty dicey to assign blame to an individual player. Quintessential team sport and all that.<br />
<br />
However, a number of things went on that violated the basic principles of defensive football. So on most of these plays I can say with some confidence that that is not how the play was drawn up. It is certainly true that inferences were being drawn, but in most cases it is pretty clear that <i>someone</i> screwed up.<br />
<br />
Keeping in mind those disclaimers, it certainly appears to me that the problems with this defense run deeper than bad tackling and some inexperienced defensive backs.<br />
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<div class="MsoNormal">
And now for the examples, with play by play descriptions taken from the <a href="http://www.nfl.com/liveupdate/gamecenter/55878/WAS_Gamebook.pdf">NFL Game Book</a> and screenshots from <a href="https://gamerewind.nfl.com/nflgr/secure/schedule">NFL Game Rewind</a>'s Telestrator function:</div>
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<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
FIRST QUARTER</div>
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1-10-WAS 12 (5:20) (Shotgun) J.Bell right guard for 12
yards, TOUCHDOWN. </div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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There was more that went wrong with this play than the notorious broken tackles. Haslett nearly always has the DEs play at three technique, off the guard's outside shoulder, and Kedric Golston starts there and attacks to his right, along with the rest of the linemen. The right tackle blocks down on him for encouragement, and the offensive right side of the formation is left wide open. <i>Someone </i>was responsible for closing off the right flank of the formation, but Kerrigan is lined up over the slot receiver and hesitates before closing, and Fletcher remains deep at first as if he is responsible for the shorter routes from the tight end. Also if Riley hadn't bit so hard on the counter action he may have been available to close off the cutback lane. All I can say with reasonable certainty is that this was not supposed to happen:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg17pzUb_oVBNllQFS0y4vqj7ladGkTgkNyCIduzTcvt6d-lnS3tCYbXRYpR4Yra7jAhcSCjDDyfOCBm_w-TqPr5eQ14nncZmxoSrMyCev2THwgD1872kvuX6EaJZqfvSro3QHRmcsWee_L/s1600/Coach_Clips-2.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg17pzUb_oVBNllQFS0y4vqj7ladGkTgkNyCIduzTcvt6d-lnS3tCYbXRYpR4Yra7jAhcSCjDDyfOCBm_w-TqPr5eQ14nncZmxoSrMyCev2THwgD1872kvuX6EaJZqfvSro3QHRmcsWee_L/s640/Coach_Clips-2.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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3-6-DET 30 (2:22) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass deep middle to
C.Johnson to 50 for 20 yards (B.Meriweather).</div>
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Both Bowen and Fletcher lock onto the RB as he leaks out into a pass route, leading to an unintentional 3 man rush. I assure you one of them was supposed to rush the quarterback.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYvaXOmtGUSCTR7vP8EwGxyB4VQCuEq6gMydeoA84k4ZtJBvNMwrXLZp2LmaZeQyJ6QN_dX49JhNipTFWNz-XX2Ad-UwaBBEnMW44Q9wa5_LRVlxoXREBeZr0i4mqa3q6-mLUifJQEYtQs/s1600/Coach_Clips-3.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYvaXOmtGUSCTR7vP8EwGxyB4VQCuEq6gMydeoA84k4ZtJBvNMwrXLZp2LmaZeQyJ6QN_dX49JhNipTFWNz-XX2Ad-UwaBBEnMW44Q9wa5_LRVlxoXREBeZr0i4mqa3q6-mLUifJQEYtQs/s640/Coach_Clips-3.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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1-10-50 (1:43) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short middle to
R.Broyles to WAS 33 for 17 yards (B.Meriweather).</div>
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With Kerrigan blitzing and Wilson playing very deep over the slot receiver and with outside leverage, it seems very likely that Perry Riley was supposed to take away the slant. Instead he bites hard on play action and Stafford gets to throw an easy pass into a massive void in coverage:</div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhJKX-j4o3jvaywTz7KnDv5VBAEVuu8gMARg1guQ4DUPfK3FnqvbDI6-xsDT-dhJAI_TdlIPiMgYOkoDGPKbp4HT7epfCGqdxFaV7Dau2Yq7ZMyCvJGwAKC5XqErOxjP_fIEvEUzIM-bsf/s1600/Coach_Clips-4.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhJKX-j4o3jvaywTz7KnDv5VBAEVuu8gMARg1guQ4DUPfK3FnqvbDI6-xsDT-dhJAI_TdlIPiMgYOkoDGPKbp4HT7epfCGqdxFaV7Dau2Yq7ZMyCvJGwAKC5XqErOxjP_fIEvEUzIM-bsf/s640/Coach_Clips-4.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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1-10-WAS 33 (:59) M.Stafford pass short middle to N.Burleson
to WAS 18 for 15 yards (B.Meriweather).</div>
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That's right, this is three straight plays. The Lions line up with two WRs stacked tight to the left, and before the snap Hall and Amerson have a lot to say to each other about it. Apparently they never reach agreement, as the stack beats them like a drum:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq5dw_CBg_iS3vUbpuyjU4WLCgiGtUPzmmTdIW7nRKU2X5rAMEhTvaBl0G9E4UB_KM8HDjL1j80cL0B8KmsPQiBo3za2bKLof1ZnVgP7UX2tqtzlyBKYmJFQLSdNB8_PsHSFT29DN9P27L/s1600/Coach_Clips-7.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq5dw_CBg_iS3vUbpuyjU4WLCgiGtUPzmmTdIW7nRKU2X5rAMEhTvaBl0G9E4UB_KM8HDjL1j80cL0B8KmsPQiBo3za2bKLof1ZnVgP7UX2tqtzlyBKYmJFQLSdNB8_PsHSFT29DN9P27L/s400/Coach_Clips-7.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
Both corners initially stick to the receiver who runs the go route, and Amerson eventually tries to got the long way around Hall to close on the post:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIyJj38ilmssWuT-vjWP1ePOn6a1LCR7mVaiH5kVgdwKd4Kc8rQQ4mLY40z4MjHkJP110bSA5Ycz-sjWAoShhiRX1NXj6u7N0_qNuA4RHirX3hqKkupq1uwfSBuqZwIKivIDAU6AAf75Ck/s1600/Coach_Clips-6.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIyJj38ilmssWuT-vjWP1ePOn6a1LCR7mVaiH5kVgdwKd4Kc8rQQ4mLY40z4MjHkJP110bSA5Ycz-sjWAoShhiRX1NXj6u7N0_qNuA4RHirX3hqKkupq1uwfSBuqZwIKivIDAU6AAf75Ck/s640/Coach_Clips-6.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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That's not how it's supposed to work.</div>
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SECOND QUARTER</div>
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3-5-WAS 5 (14:53) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short middle to
J.Fauria for 5 yards, TOUCHDOWN.</div>
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It's a very simple skinny post from the tight end:</div>
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With Orakpo taking away the underneath angle and the other corners to this side of the field manned up on outside receivers, it seems pretty evident that Meriweather should stay over the top. But for some reason he stays inside the post, allowing the TE to get behind both defenders:</div>
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2-9-DET 18 (8:15) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short middle to
T.Riddick to DET 26 for 8 yards (P.Riley).</div>
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This blitz makes absolutely no sense. Kerrigan is not involved because he has to cover the TE. Barry Cofield attacks the A gap to his right, and Kedric Golston rushes to the outside shoulder of the RT. One of these guys was supposed to draw a blocker in the opposite direction to open a lane for Fletcher, instead Fletcher just runs head first into an unmolested right guard. There's no chance that the blitz was designed this way, right?</div>
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2-14-DET 31 (2:00) (Shotgun) M.Stafford pass short middle to
N.Burleson pushed ob at WAS 28 for 41 yards (B.Meriweather).</div>
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Once again two defenders - Cofield and Riley - cover the RB as he goes out for his route:</div>
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Given that both DEs go out of their way to draw the guards to the outside and Cofield fakes a rush before dropping into coverage, I am reasonably confident that Riley was supposed to blitz the A gap:</div>
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FOURTH QUARTER</div>
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1-10-DET 43 (12:13) M.Stafford pass deep middle to
N.Burleson to WAS 10 for 47 yards (L.Fletcher). </div>
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The note I wrote upon my initial view of the All-22 was simply, "BLOWN COVERAGES ALL OVER THE DAMN PLACE." The coverage was such a mess that I gave up trying to figure out where to start, so I will try to boil it down to one screenshot of the results:</div>
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Yep, that's four Redskins milling about in the middle of the field, none of whom seem clear on who should be covering those two wide open Lions receivers. And Josh Wilson (circled in yellow) initially bit very hard on the play action and rushed to be the outside force defender. Once he realized his error he dropped back, but not into the zone that actually needed covering.</div>
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***</div>
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There are a few more examples, but I have work tomorrow and I'm already tired. So screw it, you get the point by now. </div>
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<!--EndFragment--><br />
<!--EndFragment-->Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-2374940523721476792013-09-25T19:47:00.001-04:002013-09-25T19:49:34.369-04:00The Redskins opening snap sack against Detroit<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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I have often been critical of Jim Haslett's blitzes in the past, but the blitz that got the Redskins a sack on the opening snap last Sunday was nicely designed to draw the Lions into a protection adjustment and then exploit it so I wanted to walk through it.<br />
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The Lions come out three wide with an empty backfield (the RB is flexed to the left), and Ryan Kerrigan starts out lined up over the slot receiver. He then creeps in to threaten the right side of the offensive line while Josh Wilson takes over responsibility for the receiver:</div>
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The Lions adjust their protection such that the RT is responsible for Kerrigan, so that the TE can still release into a route. Fletcher crouches low behind Cofield, initially shaded slightly to the Redskins' left side of him. He is hoping the left side of the Lions' line doesn't realize he is still a rush threat. Before the snap you can see him tap Cofield's left hip - it appears that he is telling Cofield to attack the gap to his left to open up Fletcher's blitz lane. It works:</div>
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Note that even if the Lions hadn't gone with the empty backfield the Redskins likely still would have broken down the protection. Perry Riley was responsible for Joique Bell on this play (both on the far left of the picture) and presumably if Bell has stayed in to block Riley's assignment would have been to blitz, so either he or Fletcher would still get a free shot at the quarterback. As it happens he released into a route anyway (after a brief chip on Orakpo) so both he and Riley were removed from the play entirely.<br />
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<!--EndFragment-->Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-88756043728605288822013-09-19T21:31:00.002-04:002013-09-19T21:40:32.058-04:00Jordan Reed's unexpectedly busy dayBy now you have heard the buzz about how rookie Jordan Reed stole the bulk of Fred Davis' playing time against the Packers.<br />
<br />
After the jump I have play breakdowns of every one of the snaps he played (or at least all of them where I could identify him during a quick skim through NFL Game Rewinds "Condensed" feature; I'm sure I missed one or two). But if you're not one to go into all the details here are my takeaways:<br />
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- I did not get to see much run blocking out of him, because falling behind 31-0 just doesn't create a whole lot of run blocking opportunities. Unfortunately that is what I am most curious to see about him, because if he can block competently then he is even better positioned to take Fred Davis' job next year if not earlier.<br />
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- He was expected to be the tight end who mostly motioned and split out wide while Fred Davis lined up at the more traditional TE spot, like a less murdery Aaron Hernandez (allegedly!). But on Sunday he spent much of his time in a three point stance on the line of scrimmage, and I never saw both he and Davis on the field at the same time. The conclusion: he and Davis are not fulfilling different roles, he was absolutely replacing Davis.<br />
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- He seems to be a very aggressive route runner, really selling an outside route before cutting inside and so forth.<br />
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- He was always near the bottom of Griffin's route progressions, so there were a number of occasions he got open but Griffin had already thrown to one of his first reads. So while he showed potential don't go picking him up in your fantasy league just yet, it's not like the Redskins are going out of their way to force the ball to him.<br />
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- Check out his blitz pickup at 11:41 in the third quarter.<br />
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And now on to the play breakdowns:<br />
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<a name='more'></a>The play by play is cut and pasted from the NFL's official <a href="http://www.nfl.com/liveupdate/gamecenter/55858/GB_Gamebook.pdf">Game Book</a>, then my commentary is added under each. Screenshots are from <a href="https://gamerewind.nfl.com/nflgr/secure/schedule">NFL Game Rewind</a>'s All-22 film. If you have access to Rewind or have the game DVR'd feel free to fire it up as I didn't screenshot everything.<br />
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<!--StartFragment-->
<span style="font-family: inherit;">FIRST QUARTER</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">3-4-WAS
40 (6:17) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass incomplete deep middle to J.Morgan
[B.Jones].<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Reed is on the line of scrimmage in a tight trips bunch and
runs a drag route to draw the underneath coverage away from Morgan’s post
route.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;">1-10-WAS 20 (2:27)
(Shotgun) R.Griffin pass short left to P.Garcon to GB 36 for 44 yards
(S.Shields).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;">Lined up as the
in-line TE on the right, runs a short diversionary route on the backside of a
WR screen.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">SECOND
QUARTER<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">3-6-WAS
42 (10:20) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass incomplete right to P.Garcon (N.Perry).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Motions
across the backfield to the right then runs another drag. He finds himself in a
lot of space because all the LBs are blitzing, but for the same reason Griffin
doesn’t have a passing lane in his direction. That doesn’t stop him from waving
his hand for the ball, of course.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2-16-GB
40 (3:46) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass short middle to J.Reed to GB 29 for 11 yards
(B.Jones).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In-line
TE to the left. The ILB manned up on him hesitates at Reed’s stutter to the
outside, thus giving away leverage when it turns into a crossing route:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXGpKGZ1axtu-3hArPuH-fK1nDQGD6_YoTgYMC9h9DgisX8lJmawRKOsnr-iSo9OlKcRhhJ6DfR7Bk1U3oeherYfro3CVuUJXUYasIxNVPNGAR0B2XVT8gxg2ceJBaftAbB0IaAwcCTnfh/s1600/Reed+1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXGpKGZ1axtu-3hArPuH-fK1nDQGD6_YoTgYMC9h9DgisX8lJmawRKOsnr-iSo9OlKcRhhJ6DfR7Bk1U3oeherYfro3CVuUJXUYasIxNVPNGAR0B2XVT8gxg2ceJBaftAbB0IaAwcCTnfh/s400/Reed+1.png" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Between
that extra cushion and some speed he is able to catch the ball three yards over
the LOS and turn it upfield for 8 more:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8DK9LRrR6te55HUgocfCTTlykqVU6WtRiD6b3dZxLHL-JVWVatE2TkYE6qLFxOGoMU35-YRMwrD9BjIYzLIrzPBDornTwMNBC-N70g4AOyaKFiK3xRLPXy9gB-7ijc1BI1ja315Z5Lnom/s1600/Reed+2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8DK9LRrR6te55HUgocfCTTlykqVU6WtRiD6b3dZxLHL-JVWVatE2TkYE6qLFxOGoMU35-YRMwrD9BjIYzLIrzPBDornTwMNBC-N70g4AOyaKFiK3xRLPXy9gB-7ijc1BI1ja315Z5Lnom/s640/Reed+2.png" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">3-5-GB
29 (3:08) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass incomplete short left to P.Garcon.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In-line
TE to the right, he and Santana (left slot) both work the middle of the field
to try to open up a slant to Pierre Garcon.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">THIRD
QUARTER<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">3-2-WAS
45 (13:36) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass incomplete short left to S.Moss
(S.Shields).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In-line
TE to the right. Pretty sure he forgets the play call as it appears as if he
tries to block the ILB before the pass is thrown:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimgcT6UhHUx1ehe6SxHwIKeD3XnNO7pLWPIcv-IXaZjb3PwMuSDMtM2KCL7mwrq1WVpm38toxAxnrtSMU-JPaJ0z0ELwlej6N3m6c9f3Bye-N4sK1tlpI3drs2GVcwHA2hbg6RIIITpeHA/s1600/Reed+3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimgcT6UhHUx1ehe6SxHwIKeD3XnNO7pLWPIcv-IXaZjb3PwMuSDMtM2KCL7mwrq1WVpm38toxAxnrtSMU-JPaJ0z0ELwlej6N3m6c9f3Bye-N4sK1tlpI3drs2GVcwHA2hbg6RIIITpeHA/s640/Reed+3.png" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2-10-WAS
46 (11:41) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass deep middle to P.Garcon to GB 36 for 18
yards (S.Shields).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">He
starts off on the line of scrimmage, then motions to his left, then reverses to
settle in at H-back on the right side. Despite his positioning on the right
side of the formation, he is immediately aware of Claw Matthew’s blitz:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi21b3p4VV3WAihoZcHCDuJago5qtiJDJizEmoVl_MsEIFdjXkf30ipDMCq04af32UhuGQ0Oy_xplBM4WQO1dcgSBsSYbqi3_UOLXF7jAa7ydTcaox5gQrLROGMFZoUixq8fNhehR1Vl-FP/s1600/Reed+5.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi21b3p4VV3WAihoZcHCDuJago5qtiJDJizEmoVl_MsEIFdjXkf30ipDMCq04af32UhuGQ0Oy_xplBM4WQO1dcgSBsSYbqi3_UOLXF7jAa7ydTcaox5gQrLROGMFZoUixq8fNhehR1Vl-FP/s400/Reed+5.png" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /><br />
</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">…
and makes a key block to keep Griffin standing long enough for an 18 yard
completion:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi48j-vqxfTQ2QIe3F7AUqpZOi5PHrDN5FML-6j1HWADm0PwfbFmED0TeMGgwm4PZZaXtGrcPo_oCKEsJpmeH1cUQeqAJCWYPV64tiXBQoQM8elV4c7_So1iwmSvDlGmlS3XsndGFC6Gsv8/s1600/Reed+4.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi48j-vqxfTQ2QIe3F7AUqpZOi5PHrDN5FML-6j1HWADm0PwfbFmED0TeMGgwm4PZZaXtGrcPo_oCKEsJpmeH1cUQeqAJCWYPV64tiXBQoQM8elV4c7_So1iwmSvDlGmlS3XsndGFC6Gsv8/s640/Reed+4.png" width="640" /></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1-10-GB
36 (11:03) A.Morris left end to GB 32 for 4 yards (N.Perry).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In-line
TE to the right for an outside zone to the left. He is quick enough to get
inside the LOLB (Clay Matthews) and slow him sufficiently that he can’t get in
on the play.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">3-6-GB
32 (10:17) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass incomplete short left to P.Garcon.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The
LOS man in a tight trips bunch to the right. He works inside the SS and tries a
curl route, but never really gains any separation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2-3-GB
23 (5:42) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass short left to P.Garcon to GB 10 for 13 yards
(B.Jones) [C.Matthews].<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In-line
TE to the right. This is the same play as at 3:08 in the second quarter in
which he and Santana both work to the middle while Garcon is target on a slant
on the left side.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">(4:18) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass short left to P.Garcon
ran ob at GB 1 for 5 yards.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Washington challenged the runner broke the plane
ruling, and the play was REVERSED.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">(Shotgun) R.Griffin pass short left to P.Garcon for 6
yards, TOUCHDOWN.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In
line TE to the right. Attacks the corner of the end zone and gets some
separation, but Griffin’s first read is to Santana on the opposite side of the
field.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">FOURTH
QUARTER<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">3-11-WAS
31 (15:00) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass deep right to P.Garcon to GB 44 for 25
yards (S.Shields).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Motions
across the backfield to take up a rear position in a trips bunch. Due to a
blitz and a slant route from Santana, Reed finds himself wide open in the flat
but Griffin has a better option open further down field.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1-10-GB
44 (14:16) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass incomplete deep left to P.Garcon.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Motions
to be the inner-most guys in trips left, then attacks the seam to draw a safety
away from Garcon’s go route on the outside.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2-10-GB
44 (14:11) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass
short middle to A.Robinson to GB 31 for 13 yards (D.House). FUMBLES (D.House),
RECOVERED by GB-B.Jones at GB 31. B.Jones to GB 39 for 8 yards (A.Morris).The
Replay Assistant challenged the runner was down by contact ruling, and the play
was REVERSED.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In-line
TE to the right. Runs hard to try to sell a deep route before hooking at 6
yards – so hard in fact that he collides with the (un-fooled) LB and drives him
back a couple yards.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1-10-GB
31 (13:37) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass deep middle to J.Morgan to GB 10 for 21
yards (M.Jennings, S.Shields). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">LOS
man in a tight trips bunch to the right, runs a curl against the ILB.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1-10-GB
10 (12:55) (Shotgun) R.Griffin right guard to GB 14 for -4 yards (M.Daniels).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Flexed
to the left, then motions to be split wide right. The busted play makes it
irrelevant, but it appears he was attacking the end zone with a post route.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2-14-GB
14 (12:17) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass short middle to P.Garcon to GB 9 for 5
yards (D.Jones). GB-D.Jones was injured during the play.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Motions
to flex left and attacks the center of the end zone. The ILB streaks back Tampa
2-style but goes way to deep into the end zone and Reed finds a huge void, but
by that time Griffin’s read progression has already taken him to Garcon:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYTD3cr3F-px7Fps5pdZ50vXBRxAZzbPvFlHwZepSy84NR9fHGrx5kI-A9nzgMcn569QQeuTmrQs13PIIQ5nN95gSBnNEkeATe__kCY_F-KfUotP9GpSkQvBiaVQDuJEWtwFgBnh2d1HDm/s1600/Reed+6.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYTD3cr3F-px7Fps5pdZ50vXBRxAZzbPvFlHwZepSy84NR9fHGrx5kI-A9nzgMcn569QQeuTmrQs13PIIQ5nN95gSBnNEkeATe__kCY_F-KfUotP9GpSkQvBiaVQDuJEWtwFgBnh2d1HDm/s640/Reed+6.png" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">4-3-GB
3 <b>(11:08) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass
short middle to J.Reed for 3 yards, TOUCHDOWN.<o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Motions to be the outside receiver of trips right.
He runs a slant to the goal line and finds himself in traffic:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNK545DDesMOUAP54H_Gki3SWJ4wlBlGq5oOOE7Bq4xs7LY9_85hUumyYAkrsaZMAhrZXhvlniLD7y4EN-Lbj8qFEJBoQxYoTHqZivDF8wNfyxXC6qDYkB68X1IzPyWzZC2f96uzEkF5T1/s1600/Reed+10.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNK545DDesMOUAP54H_Gki3SWJ4wlBlGq5oOOE7Bq4xs7LY9_85hUumyYAkrsaZMAhrZXhvlniLD7y4EN-Lbj8qFEJBoQxYoTHqZivDF8wNfyxXC6qDYkB68X1IzPyWzZC2f96uzEkF5T1/s640/Reed+10.png" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">…but recognizes that Griffin has pulled the ball
back down after his three step drop, widens his route deeper into the end zone
after the defense has forgotten about him, and makes a very nice adjustment to
catch a pass thrown well behind him:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihyphenhyphen-BsmGHCVxOfEBYUm0GXPHq2bJxA0M9rMZmY_S9RoIR9Ko6khP98ZNBG6V36JJqn-hYjMzUKZ2pyML475LE-gLdatyCcw4pgPe2weUi2vphAnYfigA0w-atGQYcFDVk_WLyKUrTaLt2W/s1600/Reed+7.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihyphenhyphen-BsmGHCVxOfEBYUm0GXPHq2bJxA0M9rMZmY_S9RoIR9Ko6khP98ZNBG6V36JJqn-hYjMzUKZ2pyML475LE-gLdatyCcw4pgPe2weUi2vphAnYfigA0w-atGQYcFDVk_WLyKUrTaLt2W/s640/Reed+7.png" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Touchdown for the new guy.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1-10-GB
45 (9:14) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass incomplete short middle to J.Morgan
(S.Shields).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In-line
TE to the right, he runs a corner route and sells the go hard enough that he
does get some leverage one the safety when he cuts outside.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2-10-GB
45 (9:08) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass short left to S.Moss pushed ob at GB 26 for
19 yards (T.Williams). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In-line
to the right. His fake to the outside completely fools the safety and he is
able to get open in the seam:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXoQGGru5DJs5Z_NVgA3Z4D12RAHDdBLvkmPZSzE-JSp21-FZ_5QUQ5NfY7i6PxXaxParvly4U1hck2UB-H4IONQyUpM8YqKqWokJ5jfV48GNSnbcs8ZFXO_ND49k7ZBhMt3rw_gKB-aje/s1600/Reed+8.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXoQGGru5DJs5Z_NVgA3Z4D12RAHDdBLvkmPZSzE-JSp21-FZ_5QUQ5NfY7i6PxXaxParvly4U1hck2UB-H4IONQyUpM8YqKqWokJ5jfV48GNSnbcs8ZFXO_ND49k7ZBhMt3rw_gKB-aje/s640/Reed+8.png" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1-10-GB
26 (8:36) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass short middle to S.Moss to GB 13 for 13 yards
(J.McMillian). <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Motions
to be the inner man of a trips right. Runs a post to find a void in the seam
and, if Griffin’s read progression had been different, would have been open for
a first down.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">1-10-GB
13 (8:03) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass short right to J.Reed to GB 9 for 4 yards
(J.McMillian).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Flexed
right. Runs an out route. The safety recovers from his (by now customary) hard
fake to the inside so he doesn’t have much separation. Also Griffin sails the
ball while throwing off his back foot. Reed make a very nice leaping catch over
the SS:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRi0dHoYjeNkRqhiWLfummHYtxbGz9GRFd1texJuywPoPjlnlXaNSil6rjS4e6ft1T2Vy9meqPbmakSH_yfnH2M9Ml2z4JRi0bJvAbhpZa0jKP5LYW38rf78DozBY07YZNPFs1ZKwKjUL7/s1600/Reed+9.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjRi0dHoYjeNkRqhiWLfummHYtxbGz9GRFd1texJuywPoPjlnlXaNSil6rjS4e6ft1T2Vy9meqPbmakSH_yfnH2M9Ml2z4JRi0bJvAbhpZa0jKP5LYW38rf78DozBY07YZNPFs1ZKwKjUL7/s640/Reed+9.png" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">2-6-GB
9 (7:42) (No Huddle, Shotgun) R.Griffin pass incomplete short right to
A.Robinson.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In-line
TE to the left, runs a quick out.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">3-6-GB 9 (7:40) (Shotgun) R.Griffin pass incomplete
short right to S.Moss.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Washington challenged the incomplete pass ruling, and
the play was REVERSED.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">(Shotgun) R.Griffin pass short right to S.Moss for 9
yards, TOUCHDOWN.<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In-line
TE to the left. Sells the hook hard and the LB bites:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF_dySJEjb0Kw9V7Dsolw5vR5UXhPrJZmPc7mDXPYJoy8VB8CCugr2tyKUWgLtC5cj7ATHwTarGQzXODXIAoYlB-NHe4QFlIvSvHzH0i5StJvqG0SgoYDJuCOr5Y2NwEfqNTyzHuISj7VN/s1600/Reed+12.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF_dySJEjb0Kw9V7Dsolw5vR5UXhPrJZmPc7mDXPYJoy8VB8CCugr2tyKUWgLtC5cj7ATHwTarGQzXODXIAoYlB-NHe4QFlIvSvHzH0i5StJvqG0SgoYDJuCOr5Y2NwEfqNTyzHuISj7VN/s640/Reed+12.png" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">…
allowing him to get open in the end zone:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgX_mYepmrIE8DzEYuZUQCUc4uc2uAyldSNhVWFqdPue7jgPJrY2LqPAtkYH_onn8oQPGbeclObOsAkEdfqrk7vmPXhTfnvvoQG4G62OpTzLqlrJuILFCbySFr2ZlfFcPFZBtFyGNEe5XD/s1600/Reed+13.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgX_mYepmrIE8DzEYuZUQCUc4uc2uAyldSNhVWFqdPue7jgPJrY2LqPAtkYH_onn8oQPGbeclObOsAkEdfqrk7vmPXhTfnvvoQG4G62OpTzLqlrJuILFCbySFr2ZlfFcPFZBtFyGNEe5XD/s640/Reed+13.png" width="640" /></span></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">TWO-POINT
CONVERSION ATTEMPT. R.Griffin pass to J.Reed is incomplete. ATTEMPT FAILS.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Motions
to wide right. He doesn’t sell the outside stem as successfully as he has done
the rest of the game, so the catch is contested and goes off his hands:</span><span style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-small;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEsewwwZP7rKkd8wWooxU18xH6BE44wANsrIaRJzPSAO9ZYZ0Q1yjDquRvJxbb6DHuhkF6jn1ZzpopyjgTca8GlQ4rfMneYOP7m986FNOeatEoxePtf80XmLBSBh4C195Q_dpaMpywjiQO/s1600/Reed+14.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEsewwwZP7rKkd8wWooxU18xH6BE44wANsrIaRJzPSAO9ZYZ0Q1yjDquRvJxbb6DHuhkF6jn1ZzpopyjgTca8GlQ4rfMneYOP7m986FNOeatEoxePtf80XmLBSBh4C195Q_dpaMpywjiQO/s640/Reed+14.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<!--EndFragment--><br />
<br />
<br />Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-23807210748636083192013-09-18T22:32:00.000-04:002013-09-18T22:58:27.094-04:00Just how bad is the Redskins 0-2 start?OK, it's pretty bad. But given that many people are already reaching for the panic button I feel somewhat obligated to live up to my blog title.<br />
<br />
Let's start with the defense, which was expected to be weak. However the beating they have taken in the first two losses has led many to believe we are looking at a total defensive collapse (I believe I saw the words "historically bad" somewhere on Twitter). But it's important to remember the nature of these two losses:<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
- The first loss was to a team that was, <a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2013/09/the-eagles-are-inferior-to-redskins-yet.html">as I wrote,</a> particularly well positioned to take advantage of the Redskins' personnel weaknesses, and also had the perfect opportunity to stage an ambush by rolling out a brand new offense against a weak (in my opinion) defensive coordinator.<br />
<br />
- In the second loss, the Redskins notably and <i>expectedly</i> poor secondary was shredded by one of the best quarterbacks of our era. The Redskins played a rookie corner (David Amerson), a rookie safety (Baccari Rambo), a slow safety (Reed Doughty) and a dumb/self-concussed safety (Brandon Merriwether). They were practically begging Aaron Rodgers to set records.<br />
<br />
Both these results were foreseeable - an opponent's strengths matched up against the Redskins' weakness. The only surprise was the thoroughness which the defense got clobbered. What we don't know is whether the defense will continue to look this poor against weaker opposition, or if their two worst games of the season happened to kick off the year and from here on out they will approach mediocrity (glorious, glorious mediocrity!).<br />
<br />
On offense most of the the hysteria has been about Robert Griffin's health and performance. Here's what's wrong with the argument for benching Griffin in favor of Kirk Cousins:<br />
<br />
- Mike Shanahan had been the conservative voice all offseason when it came to Griffin's health and ability to play. I strongly doubt he would be playing Griffin if he thought he was putting his recovery and health at greater risk.<br />
<br />
- If the issue is more about Griffin rediscovering his fundamentals/shaking off the rust (tomayto/tomahto) in the wake of the injury then putting him on the bench merely delays his return to form. The only solution to this particular problem is to play through it.<br />
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And if that second problem is what's going on... well then there is room for cautious optimism that we will soon start seeing better results.<br />
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The other thing to keep in mind is that the Redskins aren't even in that deep a hole - the Giants are down with them at 0-2, and the Eagles and Dallas are both only at 1-1. A timely win or two and maybe, just maybe, we could be back to talking about how the Redskins are in the driver's seat in the division.<br />
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So until we know whether or not we just saw two ugly losses happen to cluster at the beginning of the season, let's back off the ledge a bit. If the Redskins drop to 0-3 against Detroit this Sunday, then we can talk again.<br />
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(Note: some Xs-and-Os style posts to follow later this week)<br />
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<br />Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-61181515105360599452013-09-12T00:29:00.001-04:002013-09-12T00:29:47.557-04:00So what was up with that crazy-ass three linemen formation from the Eagles?<span style="font-family: 'times new roman', 'new york', times, serif; font-size: 16px;">So you have the two offensive tackles aligned way the hell wide, creating what looks like two trips bunches - but of course one man in each "bunch" is actually not an eligible receiver:</span><br />
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The Redskins defense notes the obvious - the Eagles are set up to run a screen to either side if the defenders remain bunched up in the middle of the field. After some shouting and gesturing by London Fletcher and DeAngelo Hall, Perry Riley and Josh Wilson each quickly move to cut off the screen options to either side so the Redskins won't be stuck with a cornerback trying to take on an offensive tackle:</div>
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Of course option football is designed such that any action taken by the defense opens up something else, so with two defenders taken out of the middle of the field and the safeties deep the Eagles now face only five defenders and and a lot of space. Granted its five on five - three OLs, Michael Vick, and LeSean McCoy - but with those two potential ball carriers and a lot of open field a numerical superiority of blockers isn't really necessary. </div>
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And having Vick as a viable threat to run hamstrings the Redskins even further. Note how Orakpo stays to the outside in order to keep contain on Vick, and this works just fine for the Eagles. Kerrigan is clearly fixated on Vick and barrels right for him, making it an obvious read for Vick to hand it off to McCoy, who now has a massive running lane with his only obstacle being London Fletcher, who has three disadvantages:</div>
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- He is seven yards distant</div>
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- He is hesitant to close and fill the gap in case Vick keeps the ball</div>
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- He is 187 years old while facing LeSean McCoy in the open field</div>
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All things considered Fletcher does a pretty solid job of forcing McCoy to the outside where E.J. Biggers (playing at safety) is able to close and force him to the ground.<br />
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Note that nothing the Eagles did here is particularly complex, and of course that's the genius of it. But by forcing the the defense to make choices about what to defend they are able to execute some very simple concepts - a screen with blocker superiority, a handoff up the middle against a spread out defense, or a QB keeper with the linebackers occupied - for a 10 yard gain that could have been even more.</div>
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It's a pity Chip Kelly got hired by a division rival, in any other circumstances I would really be rooting for him. This stuff is fun.</div>
Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-36245704367429385722013-09-09T10:40:00.000-04:002013-09-09T11:37:23.281-04:00The Eagles are inferior to the Redskins, yet well positioned to pull off an upsetThe Philadelphia Eagles are quite likely to end up with the worst record in the NFC East this year. They also, in my opinion, have a better than even chance of starting 1-0 after beating the Redskins tonight.<br />
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The basis for my <strike>pessimism</strike> caution is the matchup between new Eagles coach Chip Kelly and Redskins defensive coordinator Jim Haslett. All offensive coaches focus on creating situations in which they can array more blockers against fewer defenders and get the ball to one of their (so-called) skill position players with room to run. But there are a few factors that make tonight's situation not quite routine.<br />
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Chip Kelly (based on what I have read, I am not a college football aficionado) is <a href="http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/71149/same-old-chip-what-we-learned-about-the-eagles-offense-in-their-new-coachs-preseason-debut">particularly renowned</a> for his success at this aspect of the job. Whatever novel approach Kelly takes tonight, Jim Haslett will have never seen it before (despite his <a href="http://espn.go.com/blog/nflnation/post/_/id/83835/redskins-d-faces-unique-test">protestation</a>s). Remember how lost the Saints defense looked in Week 1 of 2012 when no one (in the NFL) had seen or game-planned for read option before? It is at least possible that the Redskins will face some little wrinkle that they are simply not prepared for. This ties into my next point...<br />
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In my opinion, Jim Haslett is particularly poor at adjusting when the opposing offense isn't cooperating with his plans. Remember the 2010 Colts game at FedEx when he tried to get cute with only one down linemen and everyone else milling about standing up, and Peyton Manning simply spent the evening audibling inside runs? <a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2010/10/redskins-vs-colts-4th-quarter-game.html">Yeah me too</a>. I also lack faith in Jim Haslett's ability to create a gameplan that successfully maximizes his personnel's strengths and minimizes their weaknesses, especially against an opponent who is sure to unleash some surprises.<br />
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Haslett's general approach when faced with an offensive threat is to blitz early and often, hoping his guys can get to the quarterback before the offensive can execute its plan. But he has a track record of designing blitzes poorly (slow-developing blitzes against quick-passing offenses, etc) and calling them in bad situations (<a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2011/09/blame-jim-haslett-not-deangelo-hall-for.html">don't get me started</a>). The "book" on Michael Vick is that you can force him into bad decisions with constant blitzing, which will make it all the more tempting for Haslett to blitz himself into finding DeSean Jacskon over the middle, with all the linebackers vacated, ready to victimize one of the Redskins safeties.<br />
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Speaking of those safeties, when Jackson or LeSean McCoy find themselves with the ball in their hand and Kelly has successfuly schemed blocking superiority to outnumber the Redskins linebackers, the last line of defense will be one of the biggest weaknesses on the team. At free safety the Redskins will likely be playing a rookie (Bacarri Rambo) with a documented weakness at tackling runners in the open field. Strong safety playing time will likely be split between a guy who has a history of undisciiplined play and will be rusty (Brandon Meriwether) and a guy who is just slow (Reed Doughty).<br />
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The hope of course is that the Redskins offense can simply score more than the defense gives up. There is a good chance of this, but I think we all know we shouldn't have strong opinions on Robert Griffin's post-surgery effectiveness until we see him on a field. There is also a chance, of course, that Chip Kelly will not succeed at putting an effective offense on the field in his very first NFL attempt, or that Michael Vick's chronic inconsistency could render it moot.<br />
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I know predictions like this are completely pointless, but it seems like the sort of thing that should come at the end of this sort of blog post so...<br />
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Eagles 31, Redskins 27Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-21134921603696757922013-08-26T20:29:00.000-04:002013-08-26T20:29:00.265-04:00My favorite non-Redskin players to watchI've tweeted some of these names before, but partly out of boredom and partly because I was reminded by this tweet...<br />
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck">
Frank Gore is so damn good. 49ers offense would really miss him and I love their backups too.<br />
— Cian Fahey (@Cianaf) <a href="https://twitter.com/Cianaf/statuses/372137924650737664">August 26, 2013</a></blockquote>
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... I decided I may as well put together a little list.<br />
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This is not a list of <i>best</i> players. It is merely the ones who for totally subjective and biased reasons I tend to notice and enjoy the most when I catch them on TV. Also I am talking about my enjoyment of them throughout their careers, not necessarily just with their current team.<br />
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It's probably not a coincidence that this tends to skew towards team that end up in prime time a lot:<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Arizona - Larry Fitzgerald<br />
Baltimore - Haloti Ngata, Marshal Yanda, Sam Koch, Vonta Leach<br />
Cincinnati - Geno Atkins<br />
Dallas (grudgingly) - Jason Witten, Sean Lee<br />
Denver - Peyton Manning, Wes Welker, Champ Bailey<br />
Detroit - Matthew Stafford, Ndamokung Suh<br />
Houston - Arian Foster, J.J. Watt, Ed Reed<br />
New England - Rob Gronkowski, Sebastian Vollmer, Vince Wilfork, Brandon Spikes<br />
New Orleans - Drew Brees, Darren Sproles, Jimmy Graham, Jahri Evans<br />
New York Jets - D'Brickashaw Ferguson, Nick Mangold<br />
San Francisco - Frank Gore, Justin Smith, Anquan Boldin<br />
Seattle Seahawks - Russell Wilson<br />
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<br />Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-64976760128203768112013-08-18T14:00:00.000-04:002013-08-18T14:11:35.223-04:00Are tactical innovations in the NFL making football fans' vocabulary obsolete?<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You could say I came of age as a football watcher as a teenager in the 90s, so I consider traditional I-formation offenses to be the norm. That style of offense allowed for a fairly clean and simple understanding of what constituted play action. There's more to it than this, and occasional exceptions, but from our perspective as a fan any time we saw a fake handoff we could call it play action and we got by just fine. As Tanier said in a recent <a href="http://www.sportsonearth.com/article/56723152/">Mandatory Monday</a>, "<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;">We need to learn enough Spanish to get around Barcelona; not every verb needs to be properly conjugated."</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-size: 16px; line-height: 24px;">But recent tactical developments in the NFL such as read option and packaged plays (not the same thing, </span>but there is overlap between them and it is not a coincidence that they are arriving in the NFL simultaneously) may force fans like us to abandon some of our simplistic definitions. A read option play in which the running back doesn't get the ball isn't so much a fake because up until the QB reads the defensive end's first step there was a legitimate chance the running back could end up getting a carry. Regular old fake handoffs, of course, are designed to be fake from the beginning.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And I don't think its just casual TV watchers like me that will have this problem. Consider this <a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stat-analysis/2013/2012-play-action-defense">Football Outsiders post</a> evaluating 2012 NFL defenses against play action. I did some time as a FO game charter a few years back, and I'm pretty sure I was told to chart a play as play action any time I saw a fake handoff. They could have adjusted the definition since then, but if so I see no indication of it in this article. And I did notice that the 2012 game charting data did not record plays as specifically read option. A play designed to have the option of a handoff and a play designed with a fake handoff seem like completely separate tactical concepts, so I'm not sure it's that useful to measure a defense's performance against both lumped together.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The best I can come up with is to watch the quarterback's head. A characteristic of a quarterback who expertly sells a play fake is that he completely turns his back to the defense while faking a traditional handoff. Obviously, that QB is not giving himself any opportunity to read the first steps of a defensive player.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But for obvious reasons, handoffs out of read option come with both the running back and the quarterback facing the line of scrimmage. I will probably assume that when the QB is facing forward it is so he can choose between multiple options. But that feels simplistic to me. Given how much every defense is preparing for read option these days, there is no reason to think that offenses won't start incorporating fake read option into other plays to freeze the defense.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Also take a look at this example of a packaged play from a Chris Brown Grantland post, which you really <a href="http://www.grantland.com/blog/the-triangle/post/_/id/71569/packaged-plays-and-the-newest-form-of-option-football">need to read in it's entirety</a>:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace;">"...<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24px;">the Bills ran a four-in-one play that included a read-option concept for the quarterback to hand off to the runner or keep it himself, throw a bubble screen, </span><i style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font: inherit; line-height: 24px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">and </i><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24px;">have the option of throwing a quick 'pop' pass to the tight end if the linebackers to his side crashed for the run — yet another counter to the plans defenses have been creating all season to handle the read-option."</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">By a few weeks into the 2012 season I would have been comfortable enough with the read option concept to recognize the quarterback making a decision at the mesh point to either keep the ball or hand it off. What would be hard for me here is recognizing all the pass routes here as legitimate options rather than diversionary. There have always been receivers running routes on run plays, screens, and other situations where they have zero chance of having a pass thrown their way. Suppose the QB chooses to run it himself here - I'm not so sure I would recognize that the bubble screen was a real option as opposed to a diversion to pull a defender out of position.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Packaged plays like this also mean that run versus pass is no longer a simple dichotomy. In many cases when a team passes twice as often as it runs in a game it will not necessarily be because the coach called twice as many pass plays, it will be because the defense's reactions dictated a post-snap pass decision to the quarterback more often. It seems like this will seriously complicate many discussions about tactical differences among coaches.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is, of course, pretty exciting to see such dramatic tactical developments in a league I have been watching my whole life. But I think football fans and media will have to go through quite a learning curve as we adjust to a new vocabulary to describe the game.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 24px;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">[Update: Apologies for the weird white highlighting that seems to be appearing wherever I used copy and paste. It doesn't show up in my composition window so I can't find a way to get rid of it. Not the first odd formatting problem I have had with this blog site.]</span></span></div>
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Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-90198955149337597992013-08-08T18:57:00.000-04:002013-08-08T18:57:48.763-04:00Redskins I'm watchingHere's a short list of the Redskins I am most interested in watching now that I'm <a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2013/08/the-blog-is-coming-back.html">back in the blogging game</a> after a year and a half off:<br />
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<b><u>Will Montgomery</u></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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I try not to outright pick on players, but I was probably
Will Montgomery’s most <a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2011/11/redskins-49ers-game-review-will.html">consistent critic</a> last time this blog was active. Many
commentators described him as at least adequate for a backup, a view which I tended
to protest. Of course players improve with experience all the time (and the new
offensive approach does wonders to help out O-linemen) so I wasn’t entirely
shocked when he looked much better last year. I at least noticed that he wasn’t
jumping off the screen as a liability each play, but <a href="http://www.profootballfocus.com/">Pro Football Focus</a> gave
him an outstanding +21.3 grade for the season. I strongly respect PFF’s work
and find their grade’s informative, though they are not necessarily definitive
and I feel free to disagree with them. So now that I am back to doing more
detailed analysis I am looking forward to finding out whether Montgomery is as
good as they seem to think.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><u>London Fletcher</u></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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No one disputes that the age finally started to show on London Fletcher’s performance last year, but my evaluation was darker than most. Of course with the blog inactive I was not re-watching games or doing any serious analysis, so I am open to the possibility I was too harsh on him. Doug Farrar, who wrote the Redskins chapter of the <a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/discussion/football-outsiders/football-outsiders-almanac-2013">Football Outsiders Almanac</a> and is an analyst whose opinion should be respected, acknowledged decline but clearly thinks the good still outweighs the bad:<o:p></o:p></div>
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“… London Fletcher proved once and for all that he has found a way to beat the hell out of the NFL’s age curve… led the Redskins with five interceptions, and his play recognition skills often showed that he was the smartest guy on the field.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck">
<a href="https://twitter.com/StayMediumBlog">@StayMediumBlog</a> Decline in some areas was evident, but he also took great angles in pass coverage & got to places an old guy shouldn't have.<br />
— SI_DougFarrar (@SI_DougFarrar) <a href="https://twitter.com/SI_DougFarrar/statuses/357301277287387137">July 17, 2013</a></blockquote>
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I mostly talked about Fletcher as if he had become an outright liability last year, so I am wondering if my view will become more forgiving now that I am back to more detailed study.</div>
<br />
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<br /></div>
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<b><u>Niles Paul</u></b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If you read my blog before you know I am prone to adopting
pet role players, and Niles Paul was one of them due to his outstanding punt
coverage skills and his willing blocking as a receiver. The transition to tight
end did not go as smoothly as anyone hoped – he did not contribute as a pass catcher
and the blocking that was nice for a receiver did not improve enough to be
adequate for a tight end - so I am
hoping to see evidence that that was just a learning curve and he can grow more
comfortable in the role.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><u>Bacarri Rambo</u></b><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Because the Redskins safety position has been a problem
since Sean Taylor died, but I have been around long enough to know not to get too
excited about a guy who excels in offseason practices. I also know better than
to read too much into preseason performance, but if he looks good on the field
I may not be able to restrain a little optimism.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b><u>Tony Pashos</u></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Redskins nearly signed Pashos a couple years ago before
he ended up with Cleveland and I remember being extremely frustrated when he
got away. I have frankly <a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2011/11/redskins-add-tyler-polumbus.html">never been a fan</a> of Tyler Polumbus’ work, so I will be
watching closely to see if Pashos shows he can be a sufficiently reliable right
tackle option to push Polumbus off the field.<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-77748789363768760402013-08-06T19:21:00.000-04:002013-08-06T19:21:15.753-04:00On the problems of evaluating field goal kickers
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<o:p> If you follow me on Twitter for some reason you may recall my objections to the general fan enthusiasm to cut Graham Gano or Billy Cundiff after every missed field goal or to praise Kai Forbath as a savior after every successful kick. You could be forgiven for thinking I was just being contrarian because I admit that's occasionally my thing. But I actually think the approach to evaluating field goal kickers - not only by fans and media but by NFL coaches as well - is deeply flawed in ways that will take more than 140 characters to discuss.</o:p></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>THE PROBLEM OF
MEASUREMENT<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Let’s get right to the point: you can tell pretty much
nothing about the quality of a field goal kicker from his field goal
percentage. Aaron Schatz of Football Outsiders <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/12/sports/football/12score.html?_r=0">wrote back in 2006</a> that “There
is effectively no correlation between a kicker’s field-goal percentage one
season and his field-goal percentage the next.”<o:p></o:p></div>
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What are some possible reasons for this?<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a name='more'></a><br />
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<u>Maybe there simply is not a measurable difference in the
field goal ability of the 32 best field goal kickers of the world.<o:p></o:p></u></div>
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If you or I tried to kick NFL field goals our success rate
would most likely be zero, so clearly there is a drop-off in ability somewhere.
But if the top, say, 100 kickers alive kick field goals with roughly the same
ability, then of course we would fail to see any meaningful distinction among
them at the NFL level.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<u>Maybe there are differences in skill, but we just can’t
measure them.<o:p></o:p></u></div>
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A full time starter in major league baseball may rack up
600-650 plate appearances in a season, and even with those sample sizes his
batting average is subject to substantial variance based simply on statistical
fluctuation. So when a placekicker attempts, say 35 field goals a year, a
difference of a few percentage points in his success rate probably tells us
absolutely nothing. Even over the course of multiple seasons or a career, there
would be too much random fluctuation to make field goal percentage meaningful.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<u>Maybe it is a Garbage In-Garbage Out situation.<o:p></o:p></u></div>
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<br /></div>
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Perhaps the stat itself is so meaningless that we shouldn’t
be surprised it doesn’t yield useable real world results. Among the obvious
weaknesses of field goal percentage:<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]-->1)<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->A 20 yard field goal counts the same as a 50
yard field goal, despite the fact that the difficulty levels are dramatically
different. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" style="margin-left: .75in; mso-add-space: auto;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="margin-left: .75in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->2)<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->It doesn’t account for blocked kicks, bad snaps,
poor conditions, and other factors beyond the kicker’s control.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: .75in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->3)<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->Perhaps the most pernicious: kickers who lack
the leg strength for long kicks will not be asked to attempt them, so their
success rate can be inflated because they are only trying kicks with a higher
expected success rate in the first place. Likewise strong-legged kickers will
be asked to try more 50+ field goals, and will obviously fail a substantial
proportion of the time.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="margin-left: .75in; mso-add-space: auto; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->4)<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;">
</span><!--[endif]-->A corollary of point 3: a kicker who had a poor
success rate the previous year will likely be used less frequently as the coach
may choose to punt or go for it more often when a field goal would be deemed
difficult. Likewise a kicker who had been notably successful may be asked to
make more difficult kicks, and his success rate would predictably suffer. This could be mistaken for regression to the
mean in the stats when it is actually due to external factors. <i>(Note: I am only
inferring that this effect would occur, but if someone with a stat background
is feeling motivated it would make a pretty cool research piece if you could
figure out a way to study it. Get on it, nerds!)</i><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One way to control for some of these issues would be to
divide up field goal attempts by range. To get some rough baselines for what
sort of field goal success rates we should expect, I’ll steal some numbers from
an old <a href="https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2011/05/15/stat-sheet-misconceptions-field-goal-percentage/">Pro Football Focus article</a>: <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
“In 2010, kickers were perfect on kicks of less than 20
yards, made 95% of kicks between 20 and 30 yards, 88% between 30 and 40 yards,
74% between 40 and 50 yards, and 60% on kicks beyond 50.” <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There’s probably some variance in those numbers from year to
year, but what I’m doing here is just conversational rather than a statistical
study so I will consider them close enough for government work (as the kids
say). We still haven’t helped ourselves
all that much, though. Two big problems:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->If a full year’s worth of field goal attempts
does not render a useful sample size for a kicker, then the single digit
attempts in each range are even more useless.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->There is a “bucket” issue. Isolating field goals
of between 30 and 40 yards (for example) is completely arbitrary and based on
the numbers that happen to end in zero. I would guess there is a bigger
difference in degree of difficulty between 31 and 39 yards than there is
between 39 and 40, but that doesn’t get reflected here. If we go back through
NFL history (or at least back to when the kicking style changed in the
early/mid 80s) we could come up with an expected success rate for all 42 yard
FGs, all 43 yard FGs, and so on (in fact, Advanced NFL Stats <a href="http://www.advancednflstats.com/2008/11/just-for-kicks.html">has done this</a>). But again an individual kicker would never have enough attempts to let
us know whether his performance at various ranges was significantly above or
below average.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I think that by now I have established that you can tell
next to nothing about a kicker’s field goal ability from his overall stats, and
you certainly can’t judge him based on any one particular miss.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>THE IMPACT ON
DECISION MAKING<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
A field goal, by its very nature, is a probabilistic event. Anytime
your kicker lines up for a field goal of between 40 and 50 yards, you can
expect a miss about a quarter of the time.
If your team’s kicker misses and that kick happens to swing the outcome
of a game, the fans, media and to a surprising extent the coaches are apt to
question the kicker’s mental toughness and assign the miss purely to his
alleged inability to perform in high pressure situations. This is absurd given
that the guy had a 25% chance of failure just for walking out onto the field. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i>(Note: I do not doubt that the ability to perform in high
pressure situations, and many other aspects of psychological makeup, have an
impact on sports outcomes. But it is one of thousands of variable going into
the result, and the habit of routinely holding it up as the only variable worth talking about is not
only lazy analysis but also terribly unfair to the players who are being
judged. The mentally toughest athletes
in the world will sometimes fail because the tasks that are asked of them are
designed to be difficult – that’s pretty much the point of sports.)</i><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And yet, here in DC we have seen a pattern play out that
will be familiar in most other NFL towns as well:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->Shaun Suisham is kept around for several years
due to his supposed reliability on field goals. When that reliability is called
in to question by a missed chip shot field goal that leads to a 2009 loss
against New Orleans, he is cut.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->Enter Graham Gano, who despite a strong kickoff
leg is shown the door after the 2011 season due to a mere 73.8% field goal rate
as a Redskin. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->We then are treated to Billy Cundiff who
continues the strong kickoff ability but is cut after going a mere 7 for 12 on
field goals (58%!).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraph" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> * </span><!--[endif]-->Finally we meet Kai Forbath, who saves the day
with a 17 for 18 performance including an impressive 12 for 12 from 40 yards or
deeper.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Consider the following facts and what they might say about the
logic of the above series of personnel moves:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> * </span>Despite that last unfortunate miss against New Orleans, Shaun Suisham’s field goal percentage as a Redskin was 80.2%. The
career success rate of Morten Andersen, considered one of the greatest field
goal kickers of all time, was 79.7%.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" style="mso-list: l1 level1 lfo2; text-indent: -.25in;">
<!--[if !supportLists]-->-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 7pt;"> * </span>According to <a href="https://www.profootballfocus.com/">Pro Football Focus</a>, Graham Gano and
Billy Cundiff ranked first and ninth respectively for average kickoff distance
in the 2012 season. Kai Forbath ranked 36<sup>th</sup>.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Given everything I have written above, there is little
reason to think that Forbath will continue to make field goals at a much
greater rate than his predecessors. He will almost certainly continue to be inferior
on kickoffs, and those invisible yards matter (in fact the primary thesis of
the Schatz article that I cited to begin this post was that kickers’
compensation should be based mostly on kickoff ability because that is the one
skill in which they consistently differ from each other).<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The last thing I want to do is to sell NFL coaching staffs
short, so someone please correct me if I am inaccurately portraying their
handling of kickers. But it sure seems like teams make decisions to cut their
kicker and sign a new one based on the same results-based fallacies that lead
fans and the media to conclude that a kicker is only as reliable as his last
kick. With the exception of something obvious like a botched hold, whenever a
head coach is asked about his kickers’ failures he will usually resort to
something like “you just have to make that kick,” as if that means a damn thing.
I get no indication that NFL kickers are regularly monitored and coached on
their technique, which would actually give an indication of <i>why</i> they missed
field goals and whether that result was bad luck or if the kicker is doing
something that would indicate his struggles are likely to continue.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>THE SOLUTION: HIRE
PAUL WOODSIDE (OR SOMEONE LIKE HIM)<o:p></o:p></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Consider this passage from the excellent book A<a href="http://www.amazon.com/Few-Seconds-Panic-Sportswriter-ebook/dp/B001BAGW3W/ref=sr_1_1?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1375829697&sr=1-1&keywords=few+seconds+of+panic"> Few Secondsof Panic</a>, written by the sports writer Stefan Fatsis as he embedded himself in
a Denver Broncos training camp and tried to convert his soccer skills to field
goal kicking:<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Helvetica Neue, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">“… I learned the basics of kicking. Where to position my
left, plant foot (about a foot to the left of the ball). How to take a
backswing (left knee slightly bent, upper body straight, left arm extended to
the side for balance, right heel reaching back to the right buttock, right foot
pointed and locked like Baryshnikov’s). How to execute a proper downswing (snap
the lower leg, keep the right foot locked and perpendicular to the body when
striking the ball). How to finish the kick (straight at the goalposts).”</span><o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
That’s a lot of technique; it sounds every bit as subtle as
a baseball or golf swing. The tiniest flaw can throw everything off. So this
leads me to what I have always thought is an obvious question: <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Why don’t NFL teams have placekicking coaches?<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In the book Fatsis hires a man named Paul Woodside who
coaches instructional camps for teenage kickers. It is with Woodside – not a
team employee – whom Fatsis consults on his technique and mental approach. If
NFL coaching staffs, even the special teams coaches, are capable of detailed
one-on-one instruction of their kickers, then I am unable to find public
references to it.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Given that one or two missed field goals a year can mean the
difference between a playoff appearance and a fired coaching staff, I am
surprised that proper instruction and evaluation of kickers is not considered more of a
priority. <o:p></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Suppose a team had a guy on staff whose sole job was kicking
coach. The advantages seem obvious. He could evaluate each missed kick for a
true cause and instruct the kicker either on nuances of technique or mental
approach. If no progress is seen the kicking coach can advise the head
coach/front office that a change would actually be useful. If the correction
does work he saves the team from reflexively cutting the guy and signing a
stranger with no actual reason to believe the new guy is a better field goal
kicker. And by avoiding the unnecessary
cuts, teams will not force themselves to settle for subpar kickoff performance
based on a faulty or incomplete understanding of their current kicker’s field
goal ability.<o:p></o:p></div>
<!--EndFragment-->Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-89036389698201854502013-08-05T20:53:00.001-04:002013-08-05T20:53:31.714-04:00The blog is coming backI've got the itch again. After a hiatus of a year and a half I intend to start the blog back up for the 2013 season.<br />
<br />
It may be in a somewhat limited capacity compared to what I did in the past. It is unlikely I will do the full play by play breakdowns of entire games. Most likely I will re-watch the games and then do more limited posts on certain aspects that I want to highlight.<br />
<br />
This is for a few different reasons. The first and most obvious is simple time constraints. Additionally, committing to that format was rather limiting. I would get so hung up on completing all four quarters that it pretty much prevented me from writing other kinds of posts. Less ambitious goals will let me dole out some bite size chunks in a way that can work for readers who don't have the patience to slog all the way through the play by play. I know that if you read my stuff you read every other Redskins blog and site, so by not even trying to be comprehensive it will increase the odds that I can contribute something that you don't see elsewhere.<br />
<br />
For this preseason, you will probably not be seeing the usual stuff like roster predictions. This is because I was exceptionally busy last year and was unable to spend any more time on the Redskins than watching each game once, live. I frankly lack strong opinions on most of the bottom half of the roster. So this August I will be getting back up to speed on this team, at least when it comes to the details.<br />
<br />
(NB: In 2012 the Redskins built around a superstar rookie QB, were at the forefront of a tactical revolution that swept the NFL, and went on a dramatic win streak to turn what seemed like a lost season into a surprise playoff berth. Yep, THAT's the year I took off.)<br />
<br />
Within the next day or two I should be able to publish a piece I've been working on about the problems of measuring field goal ability and how, as I perceive it, NFL teams do not make rational decisions when it comes to signing and cutting kickers.<br />
<br />
After that the first preseason game will be upon us, and we'll just play it by ear from there.<br />
<br />
Cool? Cool.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-78692532175553699082012-04-21T12:18:00.004-04:002012-04-21T12:39:51.238-04:00Niles Paul moves to tight endFor some reason I was initially caught off guard when I heard that <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/football-insider/post/niles-paul-preparing-to-switch-to-tight-end/2012/04/20/gIQAEtEkVT_blog.html?tid=pm_sports_pop">Niles Paul was moving to tight end</a>. But after only a moment's thought I was actually surprised by how obvious it seemed in retrospect, and in fact was sort of bothered that I hadn't thought of it beforehand.<br />
<br />
Here's what he did well last year:<br />
<br />
- Run block.<br />
<br />
- Force fair catches as a gunner on punt coverage. <br />
<br />
Here's what he didn't do:<br />
<br />
- Get open on pass routes, pretty much ever.<br />
<br />
Now if you know me, you know I like the guys who do the (so-called) little things like block and contribute on special teams. But the reality of the modern NFL and all it's specialized packages means that your entire depth chart is going to be forced to play from scrimmage at some point, so no one can get away with doing <i>just</i> the little things. As such, given the <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/football-insider/post/report-redskins-beat-out-browns-on-wrs-pierre-garcon-josh-morgan-too/2012/03/26/gIQAScg1bS_blog.html">additions</a> to the wide receiver corps Niles was going to have a hard time keeping his roster spot. So if you think he's a guy who can help the team, the challenge is to find a role which plays to his strengths and minimizes his weaknesses.<br />
<br />
There remains the question of whether Niles has ever gotten into a three point stance in his life, and if he would be able to hold up as a blocker on the line. But in the modern NFL, including the Redskins offense, multi-TE sets often have a tight end flexed, lined up in the slot, or in backfield motion as an H-back. So there is a lot of flexibility in how to use him.<br />
<br />
And as a tight end he would of course be more often matched up against safeties or linebackers on his pass routes, so just maybe he could contribute as a pass catcher too. But if his impact in the passing game still proves to be minimal, that's less of a problem if he's the second tight end on the field instead of a wide receiver.<br />
<br />
Now this doesn't mean Niles is safe, necessarily. Fred Davis is still around, getting a one year trial to see if he is worthy of a long term contract. And Chris Cooley may not be ready for the glue factory just yet. But there are big questions about both of those guys, especially in a long term sense. So while Niles will in all likelihood be competing against others for the third spot, there's nothing wrong with looking at as many options as possible that could eventually replace Cooley or Davis if needed.<br />
<br />
This move sure seems to give Niles Paul the best chance to a) make the team and b) contribute on the field, so I'm all for it.Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-69977809223689115742012-01-07T13:23:00.002-05:002012-01-07T13:28:29.081-05:00Your assigned Wildcard week readingI love playoff football. So, so much. January is my holy month.<br />
<br />
Here's what I'm reading, and you should to, to prep for this week's games:<br />
<br />
<u>Smart Football</u><br />
<br />
Start with Chris Brown's brief but <a href="http://smartfootball.com/grab-bag/smart-footballs-nfl-playoff-wildcard-review">useful preview post</a>, and I strongly encourage you to click the the links to the older posts that get into the meaty scheme stuff.<br />
<br />
<u>Football Outsiders</u><br />
<br />
Like every year, they use their unique stats to tease out the playoff teams' true strengths and weaknesses. <a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/game-previews/2012/nfc-wild-card-preview">NFC Preview</a>, <a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/game-previews/2012/afc-wild-card-preview">AFC Preview</a>.<br />
<br />
<u>Pro Football Focus</u><br />
<br />
These guys, of course, study individual player performances as closely as anyone. They identify three key matchups for each game that ESPN (excluding NFL Matchup of course) would probably never notice while fixating on which teams' veteran leaders want it more. <a href="https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2012/01/06/three-to-focus-on-bengals-texans-wild-card-round/">Texans-Bengals</a>, <a href="https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2012/01/06/three-to-focus-on-lions-saints-wild-card-round/">Saints-Lions</a>, <a href="https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2012/01/06/three-to-focus-on-falcons-giants-wild-card-round/">Giants-Falcons</a>, <a href="https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2012/01/06/three-to-focus-on-steelers-broncos-wild-card-round/">Broncos-Steelers</a>.<br />
<br />
<u>The Players' Page</u><br />
<br />
Old friend Matt Bowen over at NFP gives us his usual brief but focused and substantive work, first with a <a href="http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/NFL-Wild-Card-weekend-Five-things-to-watch.html">"Five Things to Watch"</a> post covering all the games, then with a <a href="http://www.nationalfootballpost.com/The-deep-ball-is-coming-on-Wild-Card-weekend.html">diagram-y bit</a> about how the Lions will attack Gregg Williams' defense when he goes into Cover-2.<br />
<br />
Happy football everyone.<br />
<br />
Update: Apparently <a href="https://twitter.com/#%21/SC_DougFarrar/status/155709610282598400">circumstances</a> didn't permit Shutdown Corner's Doug Farrar to do his usual podcast with Matchup's Greg Cosell this week, but when they return for the second round it will be a mandatory listen. It was great during the regular season, so I'm eager to see what they can do with only a few games to focus on.<br />
<br />Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-77859861384629352112011-11-11T21:01:00.001-05:002011-11-11T23:39:10.020-05:00Calling it quitsFor now, at least. I could see myself getting the itch again after a hiatus, or doing an occasional post when there's something specific on my mind, but I think I need a break from the weekly analysis. It's hard enough to keep up with in the first place, and midway through my third season I'm honestly a little burned out on it. And the last thing I want to do is to disappoint you guys when I can't keep up with any sort of writing schedule.<br />
<br />
I started this before training camp in 2009 thinking that I would probably experiment with it for a month or two, no one but my immediate circle of friends and family would read it, and then I would lose interest and move on. But then it sort of took on a life of its own. The fact that this thing actually got noticed, and that so many of you actually made it a point to read it regularly, is immensely gratifying. And of course it's been an enormous amount of fun.<br />
<br />
I'll still be around. I'll certainly still be checking in on <a href="https://twitter.com/#%21/StayMediumBlog">Twitter</a>, as it has turned out a great way to keep engaged in the ongoing Redskins conversation. Like a sports bar but cheaper.<br />
<br />
So... thanks for reading my ridiculous little football blog, folks.<br />
<br />
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<br />Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-68167256745850910892011-11-10T17:10:00.001-05:002011-11-10T18:11:02.673-05:00The Redskins underwhelming defensive lineThe defensive line was a <a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2011/01/redskins-season-review-defensive-line.html">disaster</a> in 2010 and improving it was a pretty clear offseason priority. The Redskins did not disappoint, signing two free agents (Stephen Bowen and Bary Cofield) and throwing in a second round pick (Jarvis Jenkins, who looked outstanding in preseason before tearing an ACL).<br />
<br />
The line <i>is </i>better than last year, but unfortunately that's not saying much. I <a href="http://stayingmedium.blogspot.com/2011/08/how-good-can-redskins-defense-be.html">had some doubts</a> about how the free agent additions would fit into this defense, and so far they are unfortunately looking rather accurate.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
Let's start with the run defense.<br />
<br />
Stephen Bowen just hasn't held up well. He is the lineman most likely to be sealed of simply blown off the line. His job under Wade Philips was to shoot through a single gap and disrupt plays in the backfield, and it's easy to see that where is skill lies although he hasn't been too successful at that either. There have been a few times that he appeared to blow through the line to make a play, but in most of those case upon closer examination it is clear that a missed assignment by the opposing offensive line left him unblocked.<br />
<br />
Barry Cofield has looked all along like what he is - a pretty good 4-3 tackle forced into the 3-4 nose tackle position. Since he obviously has more pure athleticism than you would expect for the position, he sometimes makes plays you wouldn't expect a nose tackle to make, such as chasing down a play from the backside.. But he in no way dominates the line and is prone to getting controlled by his blockers.<br />
<br />
Adam Carriker, the stalwart from last year's otherwise disastrous line, appears to me to have taken a step back. He's not a liability, but he's not holding up against his blocks as well and gets pushed out of his gap assignment just as often as the other guys.<br />
<br />
Things aren't much better against the pass. <br />
<br />
The pass rush is once again almost entirely reliant on the outside linebackers or blitzers. I'm not too concerned about defensive linemen getting sacks, but they do need to disrupt the pocket sufficiently that if Ryan Kerrigan or Brian Orakpo don't get there the quarterback still feels some discomfort. But even the nickel front, in which the defensive linemen are aligned much like 4-3 DTs (with the OLBs as ends), penetration is rare. Carriker never was the guy to offer any pass rush, and Bowen and Cofield mostly just get hung up on their blockers.<br /> <br />
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The one bright spot on the defensive line would be the considerable improvement from Kedric Golston, who has played much stronger than last year and has generally done a good job of overpowering his blocker and shedding to make a play. He's been getting good numbers of snaps this year in relief of both Bowen and Carriker. I'm not sure that at this point he's still the third best player among them and I'm interested to see if his work load increases.<br />
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The uneven line performance also means that the recent addition of former first round bust Kentwan Balmer might - just <i>might </i>- be interesting. Of course he could be gone by Monday, and most of these mid-season bottom-roster moves never end up having much significance. The Redskins released the former back Darrion Scott, presumably be lacked much upside. This means they are not just looking for a warm body to fill a roster spot, as Scott seemed perfectly capable of filling in in an emergency. The coaches know they need some playmaking ability up front, and are taking a gamble on a talented underachiever.Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7326101918487760203.post-41019729701237764372011-11-09T21:49:00.001-05:002011-11-09T21:51:21.810-05:00Redskins-49ers game review: Will Montgomery's tough dayAfter Kory Lichtensteiger went down for the year, Will Montgomery struggled so badly after sliding to left guard that he was moved right back to center. Unfortunately, his first day back in his old job was a rough one and he stood out on the screen as the most prominent weakness on the offensive line.<br />
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<u>First quarter </u><br />
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1-10-WAS 36 (14:20) R.Helu left tackle to WAS 38 for 2 yards (I.Sopoaga, P.Haralson).<br />
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The DT keeps Montgomery from making solid contact and easily sheds him to fill the hole.</div>
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2-8-WAS 38 (13:43) R.Helu right guard to WAS 40 for 2 yards (D.Whitner; J.Smith).<br />
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Maurice Hurt at LG pulls and Montgomery does not compensate by picking up the RDT, who penetrates and redirects Helu in the backfield.</div>
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<a name='more'></a>1-10-WAS 22 (3:05) R.Helu left tackle to WAS 25 for 3 yards (N.Bowman, P.Haralson).<br />
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Montgomery allows the DT to penetrate deep into the backfield; forutnately the guy is overly aggressive and runs himself out of the lane, allowing Helu to make it across the line of scrimmage.</div>
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<u>Second quarter</u><br />
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1-10-WAS 47 (10:47) R.Torain right end to WAS 49 for 2 yards (P.Willis).<br />
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Montgomery is pushed back while carrying the DT down the line, squeezing Torain's hole as he tries to cut back.</div>
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<u>Third quarter</u><br />
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2-13-WAS 17 (10:30) R.Helu left end pushed ob at WAS 18 for 1 yard (P.Haralson). <br />
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Trent Williams and Mongomery can't get handles on the DTs and fail to slow them down the line on the stretch; this leaves Torain without inside cutback lanes so he has to try to make it around the edge but fails.</div>
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1-10-WAS 19 (4:17) J.Beck scrambles right end pushed ob at WAS 23 for 4 yards (R.Jean Francois).<br />
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Helu motions to WR to create an empty backfield, so there is no margin for error. Beck has no chance to even complete his drop before Montgomery is pushed straight back into his face and he is flushed from the pocket.</div>
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2-10-WAS 35 (2:55) J.Beck pass short middle to R.Torain to WAS 42 for 7 yards (N.Bowman).<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Screen pass. Chester gets a pretty good block to seal out the playside OLB, but Montgomery misses a cut block on the Mike, who ends up making the tackle when there were a lot more yards to be gained.</span><br />
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1-10-SF 41 (1:42) R.Torain right end to SF 45 for -4 yards (N.Bowman).<br />
<i>PENALTY on WAS-T.Austin, Illegal Crackback, 15 yards, enforced at SF 41 - No Play.</i><br />
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This play starts with the standard zone tandem blocking with Williams and Chester on the LDE and Montgomery and Hurt on the LDT. The very aggressive Mike backer shoots the right A gap and neither Chester nor Monty shed their initial block to pick him up.</div>
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<u>Fourth quarter</u><br />
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2-4-SF 37 (5:24) (No Huddle, Shotgun) J.Beck pass incomplete short middle to A.Armstrong.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Again the DT gets under Montgomery's pads and drives him back into Beck's face, so he can't step into his throw. Beck probably should have had the pocket presence to sidestep the pressure, but it did get on him quick.</span><br />
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1-10-SF 34 (3:00) (Shotgun) J.Beck pass short left to R.Helu to SF 31 for 3 yards (D.Goldson).<br />
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Williams and Locklear each allow pressure on the edges and Beck can't step up properly because - you guessed it - a DT drives Montgomery into the middle of the pocket again. </div>
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3-1-SF 10 (1:34) (No Huddle, Shotgun) J.Beck pass short left to R.Helu to SF 9 for 1 yard (D.Whitner, D.Goldson). <br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Another screen. Hurt can't get to the outside quite quick enough and a safety forces Helu to try to cut inside, where is is confronted by a rapidly closing corner, and the play is polished off by a LB who is running free because Montgomery missed on a downfield cut block on him. </span>Dave Ohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17448210239997319388noreply@blogger.com6