It was good for the Redskins and for Redskins fans, to get back on the winning side of the ledger this week. Facing a struggling team, and coming off an extra week off, the Redskins were expected to do exactly what they did on Sunday – dismantle the Philadelphia Eagles. Here are some quick thoughts about the game —
1) Robert Griffin III – How do I not start with a quarterback that had only one incompletion? One. As in the number that comes right before two. Sure it wasn’t a very large sample size with only 15 attempts, but 14 out of 15 is pretty darn good. It’s damn good when 4 of the 14 completions were touchdowns! (Darrel Young 6 yards; Aldrick Robinson 49 yards; Santana Moss 61 yards; Logan Paulsen 17 yards).
Griffin also had 84 yards rushing – eight more than RB Alfred Morris (76 yards). He had a couple of ‘Wow’ moments scrambling – two of which converted third down attempts. It’s just becoming hard to find new or even worthy superlatives to describe what he’s doing. He may have been a little quiet in the Redskins last two games, but Superman Socks was back in full force on Sunday against Philadelphia.
2) Darrel Young – Had one of his best games as a pro on Sunday. Not only did he haul in a 6 yard touchdown pass (his second of the season), but he also had a formidable day blocking as well. Any time you hear the broadcast team point out your fullback multiple times when he DOESN’T have the ball – he’s doing a heck of a good job. Young also now has two touchdown receptions on 5 catches for the season.
3) Brandon Meriweather – Returning to the lineup proved to be what? A spark? A catalyst? Meriweather wasted little time making a mark in his ‘debut’ – he intercepted Nick Foles on the Eagles’ second drive. He was flying around the secondary like a man possessed. Well for a half anyway. He got hurt and did not return. Meriweather said after the game that his knee was fine (it’s his other knee – not the one that sidelined him for the first 9 weeks); but it remains to be seen if a doctor will agree with that assessment. It’s a shame because the Redskins defense was noticeably better with him in the lineup.
4) Redskins Defense – As indicated above, the Redskins defense looked like a different unit on Sunday. Any time your defense gets you three takeaways and sacks the opposing quarterback four times, you’re going to have a chance to win. It’s the first time in 3286 years that the Redskins have actually managed to beat a rookie quarterback. They did so largely based on the fact that they only allowed the Eagles defense 257 yards on 71 plays. Six points is pretty stingy too.
5) Penalties – Well it can’t ALL be positive! The Redskins had 13 penalties for 80 yards. Some of them costly and some of them just costly. (See what I did there?) It brings me to what may first seem like a strange analogy. I remember a story about Canadian race car driver Paul Tracy,who was talking to his crew chief one day who said to Paul, “What if I could tell you a legal way to take 100 pounds off of our car without breaking any rules?”
Paul: “That would be fantastic, what is it?”
Crew Chief: “Lose some damn weight, you fat &*@#.”
Still not getting it?
Well hey Mike Shanahan… what if I told you I had a way to take an entire full-length-of-the- field-drive off of each week’s opposition scoresheet?
You’d love it?
Well I do.
Stop taking so many darn penalties. Giving up 80 yards in penalties to the Eagles was almost a third of what their offense managed. Think about it for a second will you Mike?
Paul Tracy trimmed the fat – so can you.
Hail.