First off, sorry about not blogging last week. I had so much business stuff to take care of and had no time. Now I’m back this week and I have a few things that I would like to talk about. Over the last week, a lot has happened and now it’s time to catch up on a few things.
I know everyone would like to forget the Lion’s game. I know I would but the loss is on our schedule and will be there for the whole year. People always say you must move on and that is true in a sense but losing to the Lions will be sitting there for us to look at the whole year. There is no need to sit around and cry about it. We have so much football ahead of us that as long as we win, nobody will remember what happened in Week 3. Just to make everyone feel a whole lot better, the Giants lost their first two games pretty bad a couple years ago and with all the talk about firing their coach we all know how that turned out. It pushed them to work harder and correct the little mistakes and they made it to the Super Bowl and won it. I’m praying that this is the same situation and this is our year.
Everybody talked about the Lions being 0-19 the week we played them but in reality they were just 0-2. See, every season is a new season with different players and better attitudes toward accomplishing something. I’m pretty sure that the Lion’s team wanted their first accomplishment to be their first victory no matter who it came against. I feel that after hearing all the talk about us being their first victory and all, it tends to drain you if you listen to it. For that whole week, I didn’t turn my TV to one sports station, my radio stayed off and I didn’t read a single newspaper. It’s all about being smart. After a 9-7 win against St. Louis, what would you expect from people outside of your locker room. I guess my grandmother and mom always told me that if you don’t go looking for trouble then you will not find it. I didn’t want to hear all of the nonsense because I have played the game long enough to know that you keep score to see who will win the game. It will not be won or lost in the media through what you see, read or hear but rather on the field of play where each team is deserving but only one will have their number on the scoreboard higher. I also know that the best teams don’t always win on Sundays but the team that plays better will and I give Detroit its credit in that they played better last Sunday.
“Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.” I could not have quoted it any better. The character of our team has always been strong. I believed that the character of a man or a team will determine where the final destination will be. After losing to the Lions, our leadership and our character had to take front and center. We did not spend a whole week wondering what could have been but getting ready for what could be. With 13 games left on the schedule, we knew that the season was not over and with a lot of football left, we can still be a good team. There were times before when people said that we could not do it and on two occasions we won all of our games toward the end of the season to make the playoffs. There has never been any quit in any player or coach on our team and there will be nobody quitting now. We know we have good talent and a good team but like I have always said, you cannot roll your helmet on the field and say WE WIN. It doesn’t work that way so we must work to get better and let our character lead the way. Our character will not let us give up. It tells us to keep working and keep fighting ‘til the end. As Aristotle said: “We are what we repeatedly do.” Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. We must strive to be excellent. One play at a time, one game at a time. Don’t look back and always look ahead for what tomorrow brings.
“Booooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.” Man I have heard this a lot in the last few games but fans I do understand. We have some of the best fans in the world who are passionate and care about their Washington Redskins. I often talk to some of you and I know your struggle of wanting a team that can take you all the way to the big game. It’s been a long time and I’m praying that we can get it done. It won’t be easy and it never has been but with a lot of hard work and determination, it can be done. You are a big part of our success and when you come to the games to be loud as possible, it makes our jobs a lot easier. There are a lot of die hard fans out there that no matter what happens, I know you will be there to have our backs. Well hopefully we can also have your backs by giving you something to cheer about. Believe me, nobody goes into a game to lose it and all of our effort is aimed toward giving you a victory. We owe it to ourselves and all of our supporters that have been there through thick and thin. H.T.T.R.
Character definitely stood out in the Tampa game. The first half didn’t go as smooth as we would have liked but through determination and will power, we pulled it out. What I liked about us in this game was the fact that after Tampa scored the touchdown early in the first quarter, there was no panic and everyone on the sidelines was saying we are ok. By staying together you can get a lot done and even though we went into halftime down, we still knew that the second half was ours to win. There was no arguing in the locker room at halftime and guys were getting the info they needed to come out and get things turned around. The Tampa game was a big win for us but it also showed that we still can be a lot better. After losing to the Lions, we needed to get back on track with a win. We have played Tampa so much in the last few years that the game feels like a rivalry. Lol
Next on the schedule is the Carolina Panthers. We all know how good they were a year ago so we must come prepared and ready to go. Things have not gone well for them early in this new season but believe me, they are going to bring everything to beat us. They are coming off a bye week and will be fresher than ever. In order to match the freshness, there will be a lot of cold tubs and whirlpool using this week. We as a team must start faster than we have in previous games. Whenever on the road, the key is to match the opposing team’s intensity early while handling the crowd noise. Carolina has great players there so staying focused and getting rest will help us out a lot. It will be loud in their stadium unless we get a bunch of Redskin fans up in there to make it a little easier. See you in Carolina. Go Skins.
Did anyone see the college games this weekend and all the penalties thrown for celebrations? Well I am upset because there was a flag thrown against my Georgia Bulldogs which I think cost us a victory. I think it is perfectly fine to celebrate with your teammates and that’s exactly what A.J. Green was doing when he caught the go ahead touchdown against LSU. All of our life we were taught to go out and play hard and have fun doing it but I feel that the flags for celebrating have become a bit ridiculous. These are calls that change how games are won or lost. These are young people having fun and there’s got to be some kind of line drawn to say “the celebration that I am seeing is overboard.” Just a bit unhappy because when you celebrate with your team or teammates, it should never be called. I thought that was just what A.J. Green was doing. Keep your head up and keep celebrating with your team. I promise you it was a mistake and will not be called again. Not only did it happen to my bulldogs but I saw this in a lot of games and think it’s just sad to take the fun of the game away from such young men.
“Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could. Some blunders and absurdities no doubt crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; begin it well and serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense.” — Ralph Waldo Emerson
Hail to the Redskins
Edit: This blog was archived in May of 2016 from our original articles database.It was originally posted by Phillip Daniels