Redskins vs. Giants, 2nd quarter review

Something about the holidays - at both Thanksgiving and Christmas the game reviews got thoroughly fouled up by computer issues. Sorry for the delay. As you may have noticed its mid-afternoon Sunday and we have another game in a few hours, so I certainly won't be able to get up the second half today.

2nd Quarter

New York Giants continued.

1-4-WAS 4 (15:00) A.Bradshaw left guard to WAS 4 for no gain (R.McIntosh).

Not sure what the C was thinking on this play. He puts an initial hit on Haynesworth to help out the LG, and then goes to the second level but instead of picking up a LB - Fletcher is right in front of him - he works way outside to pick up Landry, who is nowhere near the play. The lead FB is forced to block Fletcher, so there is no one left to account for Rocky who comes in clean to stuff the play. Very odd.
After the motion there were six blockers on the LOS on the left sideline with Fred Davis behind them. The Giants kept some LBs in the middle of the field to guard against a run, so there was a seven on five blocking situation. Davis immediately turned to take the screen, if that's what you would call this, but Hunter panicked under the rush and tried to throw deep even though there were no routes there. If Hunter had immediately turned and rifled it to Davis he would have had a wall of blockers in fron of him and we would have had very good odds of a first down or even a touchdown. Like the succesful touchdown pass to Sellers of a fake punt against Denver, this play was not predicated on the defense not realizing that it was a fake, so calling it again after a timeout wasn't entirely unreasonable. Nonetheless, it was a bold call and one perfectly suited for a coach who knows he's a goner and may as well go down swinging. I'm sure Zorn's thought process was "What the worst they can do, fire me? Screw it." I don't have a problem with the call.

2-4-WAS 4 (14:25) A.Bradshaw left tackle for 4 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

The TE seals Carter (at RDE) to the inside. Rocky and Doughty read the play and race to the corner, but are each leveled by strong blocks from the FB and a pulling LG.

L.Tynes extra point is GOOD, Center-Z.DeOssie, Holder-J.Feagles.

NYG 14 WAS 0, 11 plays, 63 yards, 5:00 drive, 0:39 elapsed

L.Tynes kicks 72 yards from NYG 30 to WAS -2. R.Cartwright to WAS 17 for 19 yards (C.Blackburn).

Washington Redskins at 14:21, (1st play from scrimmage 14:17)

1-10-WAS 17 (14:17) J.Campbell pass short left to D.Thomas to WAS 27 for 10 yards (K.Dockery).
PENALTY on WAS, Illegal Shift, 5 yards, enforced at WAS 17 - No Play.

Double slants on the left - Santana's route from the slot draws a DB and opens up the throwing lane to Devin Thomas. Unfortunately Santana into position illegally... I think the problem here is that Santana began in the slot up on the line with Thomas at flanker a yard off. Santana motions behind the formation and then back again to smoke out man coverage. But when he returns to the slot he remains a yard off the line of scrimmage, so we have zero eligible receivers on the left side on the LOS and the formation is now illegal. I'm not sure how a seasoned veteran makes a mistake like that, especially when he's the only man in motion. The ref's explanation - "two men moving and not resetting" - makes no sense because there was no second man.

1-15-WAS 12 (13:51) Q.Ganther right tackle to WAS 17 for 5 yards (M.Kiwanuka).

Dockery and Rabach make solid drive blocks on LBs to secure a healthy gain.

2-10-WAS 17 (13:14) J.Campbell pass incomplete deep left to D.Thomas (K.Dockery).

This is the same double slant combo from two plays ago, but without the motion preceding it. But the DB covering Santana in the slot reads the play from the beginning and jumps inside of Thomas' route, deflecting the pass and very nearly picking it off.

3-10-WAS 17 (13:09) (Shotgun) J.Campbell pass short middle to S.Moss to WAS 18 for 1 yard (T.Thomas).

I think this was a pathetic attempt at a screen. Williams and Rabach are behind the pass rush as Santana catches the ball on the LOS, but despite being in good position to block for him they turn around and try to pick up a stunting DT who is already past them and, due to the screen, no longer relevant to the play. A LB and DB are able to close in on Moss unblocked, and a second DB slips past Devin Thomas' weak attempt at a downfield block to leave him with nowhere to go. This is just sloppy, amateurish football.

4-9-WAS 18 (12:58) H.Smith punts 44 yards to NYG 38, Center-E.Albright. D.Hixon to WAS 47 for 15 yards (R.Doughty).

New York Giants at 12:45

1-10-WAS 47 (12:45) H.Nicks right end pushed ob at WAS 48 for -1 yards (P.Daniels). End around

Philip Daniels is left unblocked at LDE and is not sufficiently sucked in by the fake handoff, so he is there to stuff the end around.

2-11-WAS 48 (12:11) (Shotgun) E.Manning pass short middle to A.Bradshaw to WAS 40 for 8 yards (L.Alexander).

The Giants leave Haynesworth one on one against the LG, and although he beats the guard he is directed away from the play. The RG then gives Lorenzo Alexander, the other DT, a push to the inside to open up the gap in which Bradshaw takes the pass. The C and LG are then in position to lead him downfield.

3-3-WAS 40 (11:28) (Shotgun) E.Manning pass short middle to M.Manningham to WAS 34 for 6 yards (D.Hall).

OK, the refs clearly just weren't calling holding that night. Lorenzo Alexander, at DT, splits a RG-C double team with a spin move and is bearing down on Manning, so both linemen just wrap their arms around his neck and buy Manning enough time to complete the first down.

1-10-WAS 34 (10:50) B.Jacobs right tackle to WAS 24 for 10 yards (C.Wilson).

The LG pulls to the offensive right and buries Philip Daniels to set the corner, then the lead FB puts a solid back on Rocky to preserve the rushing lane. Chris Wilson lines up at SLB on the non-play side and does an impressive bit of pursuit across the back of the play.

1-10-WAS 24 (10:09) (Shotgun) E.Manning pass short middle to S.Smith to WAS 13 for 11 yards (R.Doughty).

1-10-WAS 13 (9:27) E.Manning pass incomplete short left to K.Boss.

Chris Wilson, who like Orakpo has improved steadily through the year in the LB portion of his job, smothers the TE in man coverage.

2-10-WAS 13 (9:19) B.Jacobs left end to WAS 10 for 3 yards (A.Haynesworth, R.McIntosh).

Orakpo at SLB absorbs the block of the pulling LG and forces the RB back inside enough that Haynesworth, who bounced off of traffic jam in the middle of the field, can pursue to the hole and take him down.

3-7-WAS 10 (8:36) (Shotgun) E.Manning sacked at WAS 20 for -10 yards (A.Haynesworth).

Haynesworth takes a hard step up the middle, which puts the LG back on his heels. He is then free to stunt around Orakpo at RDE, who has beaten the LT to the inside and created a free path for Hayneworth around the edge. A small gem of a play in an otherwise dismal game.

4-17-WAS 20 (8:10) L.Tynes 38 yard field goal is GOOD, Center-Z.DeOssie, Holder-J.Feagles.

NYG 17 WAS 0, 9 plays, 27 yards, 4:40 drive, 6:55 elapsed

L.Tynes kicks 62 yards from NYG 30 to WAS 8. D.Thomas to WAS 19 for 11 yards (C.Brown).

Washington Redskins at 8:05, (1st play from scrimmage 8:00)

1-10-WAS 19 (8:00) Q.Ganther right end to WAS 20 for 1 yard (K.Dockery).

Santana is in the slot on the play side and completely blows his block on the nickel back, thus collapsing the play.
2-9-WAS 20 (7:25) J.Campbell sacked at WAS 14 for -6 yards (J.Goff).

A LB blitzes up the middle, and Ganther is in perfect position to account for him but throws one of the worst blocks I've ever seen and just misses the guy. The scheme properly accounted for the Giants pass rush and Ganther was unable to execute a decidedly non-challenging assignment, so the play failed. Completely inexcusable for a professional football player.

3-15-WAS 14 (6:57) (Shotgun) J.Campbell pass incomplete deep right to D.Thomas [J.Tuck].

Tuck beats Stephon Heyer to the outside and forces the bad throw.

4-15-WAS 14 (6:52) H.Smith punts 42 yards to NYG 44, Center-E.Albright, downed by WAS-R.Cartwright.

New York Giants at 6:41

1-10-NYG 44 (6:41) E.Manning pass short middle to S.Smith to NYG 49 for 5 yards (L.Fletcher).

Haynesworth penetrates up the middle but is unable to get pressure due to the quick pass.

2-5-NYG 49 (6:02) B.Jacobs left end pushed ob at NYG 49 for no gain (L.Landry).

Orakpo pushes the TE back off the LOS to force the play towards the sideline, then Landry hits the lead FB head on and fights through him to run the play out of bounds.

3-5-NYG 49 (5:33) (Shotgun) E.Manning pass deep middle to H.Nicks to WAS 6 for 45 yards (F.Smoot, L.Landry).

Redskins stunt the linemen and blitz two LBs, but the Giants seamlessly adjust to pick up everyone. The blitz left little coverage in the middle of the field, so Manning easily finds his WR in front of the DBs' deep zones.

1-6-WAS 6 (4:41) (Shotgun) E.Manning pass short left to S.Smith for 6 yards, TOUCHDOWN.

Carter beats the LT and is in Manning's face, forcing him to throw off his back foot while falling backwards. However, this just puts more loft on the ball, and since it is going to the slot receiver who has beaten Tryon to the outside on a corner route, it actually helps the play and the ball drops right into the WR's hands.

L.Tynes extra point is GOOD, Center-Z.DeOssie, Holder-J.Feagles.

NYG 24 WAS 0, 4 plays, 56 yards, 2:05 drive, 10:24 elapsed

L.Tynes kicks 63 yards from NYG 30 to WAS 7. D.Thomas to WAS 27 for 20 yards (D.Hixon).

Washington Redskins at 4:36, (1st play from scrimmage 4:30)

1-10-WAS 27 (4:30) Q.Ganther right end to WAS 25 for -2 yards (T.Thomas).

Redskins are unable to move the Giants off the LOS. Ganther is forced to cut to the backside but has no blockers and is swarmed.

2-12-WAS 25 (3:51) J.Campbell pass incomplete deep middle to S.Moss.

The nickel back blitzes and Ganther at least sees it coming this time. He throws himself at the guy and misses the block but trips him up enough that Campbell has a couple extra steps in which to throw the ball away.

3-12-WAS 25 (3:44) J.Campbell scrambles up the middle to WAS 41 for 16 yards (O.Umenyiora).

Campbell initially has a bit of a pocket, but a stunting DT threatens to beat new RT William Robinson so Campbell escapes up the middle and displays his very good running skills to find his way to the first down.

1-10-WAS 41 (3:04) Q.Ganther left guard to WAS 43 for 2 yards (M.Kiwanuka, M.Johnson).

William Robinson gets beat to allow a defender to pursue across the play and stuff it, although Ganther didn't really have a hole on the left anyway.

2-8-WAS 43 (2:23) J.Campbell pass incomplete short right.
PENALTY on WAS-J.Campbell, Intentional Grounding, 12 yards, enforced at WAS 43.
Penalty on WAS-C.Rabach, Ineligible Downfield Pass, declined.

3-20-WAS 31 (2:15) (Shotgun) J.Campbell pass short right to A.Randle El to WAS 40 for 9 yards (T.Thomas) [M.Kiwanuka].

Kiwanuka stunts to the outside from DT and barrells into William Robinson, who is simply sent reeling back in a Heyer-ish manner. Kiwanuka then has a clear path to the inside to plant Campbell in the ground again.

4-11-WAS 40 (2:03) H.Smith punts 43 yards to NYG 17, Center-E.Albright, fair catch by D.Hixon.

Two-Minute Warning

New York Giants at 1:55

1-10-NYG 17 (1:55) (Shotgun) E.Manning pass incomplete short left to M.Manningham (C.Rogers).

2-10-NYG 17 (1:49) (Shotgun) A.Bradshaw right end to NYG 23 for 6 yards (R.McIntosh, A.Carter).

Giants trap the Redskins pass rush in the outside, then run a draw to the outside. Landry streaks in from off camera to almost stuff the play at the LOS, but tries to make a flying leap and just soars into the backfield instead of bringing in a RB. Landry would have been most valuable here occupying the WR's block and allowing Rocky to pursure to the edge, instead Landry ended up just cutting of Rocky's pursuit angle.

3-4-NYG 23 (1:16) (Shotgun) E.Manning pass incomplete short middle to A.Bradshaw.

Giants almost exploit the Redskins pass rush with a screen, but Haynesworth gets inside penetration despite the fact that the Giants try to direct him to the outside, and forces an errant sidearm pass.

4-4-NYG 23 (1:10) J.Feagles punts 43 yards to WAS 34, Center-Z.DeOssie. S.Moss ran ob at WAS 35 for 1 yard.

Washington Redskins at 1:02

1-10-WAS 35 (1:02) J.Campbell sacked at WAS 33 for -2 yards (O.Umenyiora). WAS-J.Campbell was injured during the play. His return is Questionable.

Levi never stands a chance against the RDE, and Campbell is taken down hard from behind while trying to escape. In comes Todd Collins.

Timeout #1 by WAS at 00:45. Time out charged due to injury.

2-12-WAS 33 (:45) (Shotgun) PENALTY on WAS-C.Rabach, False Start, 5 yards, enforced at WAS 33 - No Play.

2-17-WAS 28 (:45) (Shotgun) T.Collins pass deep right to S.Moss to NYG 26 for 46 yards (K.Dockery) [O.Umenyiora].

Perfectly placed throw, but it almost pops out of Santana's hands.

Timeout #2 by WAS at 00:36.

1-10-NYG 26 (:36) (Shotgun) T.Collins pass incomplete short right to A.Randle El [J.Goff].

Rock motions out of the backfield, so there is absolutley no one to pick up the LB and DB who both blitz up the middle.

2-10-NYG 26 (:31) (Shotgun) T.Collins pass incomplete deep middle to F.Davis (M.Johnson).

Davis gets half a step on the LB on the skinny post and Collins throws another deadly accurate ball right into his hands, but he's not able to establish control before he runs into traffic and the ball comes loose.

3-10-NYG 26 (:26) (Shotgun) PENALTY on WAS-T.Collins, Delay of Game, 5 yards, enforced at NYG 26 - No Play.

3-15-NYG 31 (:26) T.Collins pass short right to A.Randle El to NYG 20 for 11 yards (K.Dockery) [O.Umenyiora].

Levi is destroyed again, and Collins gets the ball out just before getting clobbered.

Timeout #3 by WAS at 00:02.

Timeout #2 by NYG at 00:02.

4-4-NYG 20 (:02) (Field Goal formation) H.Smith pass short left INTERCEPTED by B.Johnson at NYG 6. B.Johnson to WAS 45 for 49 yards (K.Golston). Offense started in field goal formation, then shifted into a swinging gate formation.