The Burgundy Bruisers: A Redskins Tale

[trekfan]

Ch. 9

“I want them to remember me.” Legarrette Blount was fully dressed and had a look of seriousness on his face that Neil had never seen before. Admittedly, he hadn’t seen much of anyone on this team before — he was the new guy after all — but Blount was usually pretty relaxed, pretty loose before games. But not this game.



Their opponent? His former team, the Eagles. He had served one year with them, a tour of duty he referred to as “my Philly Cheesesteak break” and that was about all. The parallels between the two teams were there for everyone to see, but Blount wasn’t worried about parallels — he was looking to prove to the Eagles that they shouldn’t have let him walk.



Neil put on his eyeblack, the same way he had since the first day he started playing football, and pointed at Blount. “You stay hungry and you’ll get fed. Promise.”



Blount cracked a smile. “You better damn well feed me, rookie, otherwise I’ll eat you.”



****



“Oh *hit!” Takuma launched out of his chair. Anderle had taken off towards the sideline, trying to get out of bounds as the clock ticked down, trying to position the team to score again before the half. It was 14-10 with 44 seconds to go … but that score was about to be a thing of the past.



The crowd groaned and winced, almost in unison, as Anderle was rocked like a tackle dummy by Brandon Graham and the ball popped free. Out it went, right into the hands of Fletcher Cox.



The big man, with a convoy of his teammates around him, rumbled down the field 61 yards for a TD and celebrated with a massive spike in the endzone. In a moment, it was 17-14 and the good feelings at FedEx field had all but evaporated.



Takuma’s father shook his head. “Rookie mistake,” he offered, unperturbed by the series of events.



Takuma felt like he had been punched. He sank back down into his chair and leaned his head back against the headrest. Halftime came and went, and so did the third quarter — and everything was coming up all Eagles. In the beginning of the fourth, Philly lead 26-21, but the lead felt bigger than that.



The Redskins offense had sputtered and died — no yards were coming up, Blount looked gassed, and Anderle looked like a rookie. Their perfect record of 3-0 was about to be a memory it seemed.



Takuma intensely watched the game on the field, on the TV screen, and even had his tablet out looking over the plays run by the offense in the third quarter. The Eagles had adjusted and they hadn’t — at least not yet. What was Goodwin’s game? The coach had access to the same information that Takuma did, so why was the man waiting?



“Still got plenty of game to go,” his father said with a pat on Takuma’s shoulder. “Don’t get lost in the trees, son.”



Before Takuma could open his mouth for a response, the crowd let out a roar. The Redskins defense, holding its own but not bringing many big plays, finally got to Wentz — whose day wasn’t spectacular, but it was good enough — and the man who swallowed him whole was none of than Ryan Kerrigan.







Kerrigan was having a renaissance year back as a defense end and his pressure on passing plays was tremendous. Takuma gave a fist pump of appreciation and grinned for the first time in hours.



****



The time was ticking away and the rookie quarterback looked like a veteran beyond his ears. Short pass here, mid-yard completion, and with each pass attempt the rookie’s eyes were always downfield. Kesha, sitting in the press box, watched as the clock ticked on and on and on. This drive had started four minutes ago and the Redskins were in the redzone, looking to get the lead for the first time in two quarters.



“Come on, come on,” she whispered.



Anderle snapped the ball, looked once to the right, and then unleashed a bullet pass right over the middle. It was so fast that no one on the defense had time to react before it sailed passed them, right into the hands of Jamison Crowder.



And Crowder took it in for the score.







The crowd, holding its collective breath, let out a loud cheer as the Redskins took the lead — 27-26 — and then that cheer turned into a roar as Goodwin didn’t even entertain the thought of an extra point. The offense stayed out on the field and it was time to go for two.



“Well, *hit,” her colleague, Rich Greer, said with a smirk. “I might be buying you dinner after this.”



“That was the bet,” Kesha said without even looking at him. Her eyes remained on the field. The Redskins lined up and hiked the ball within two seconds of the playclock beginning to tick — the pass was another bullet, this time to a leaking Jordan Reed in the flat, and Washington was up 29-26.



****



“Feed me!” Blount yelled, clapping his hands in the huddle. The game was tied now, 29-29, as the Eagles had driven down the field and hit a 38 yard FG to tie the game. They’d left nearly four minutes on the clock, and that was plenty of time to drive down the field — and they had. But now, with under a minute to go, one timeout, and the Eagles absolutely unable to stop the clock, the ball — and the game — was strictly in the offense’s hands.



My hands, Neil thought darkly. How many time had the ball been in his hands with the game on the line? Not too many, if he was honest. At Florida, it wasn’t a situation they found themselves in that often — usually if they were losing, they were losing by an amount that excluded the last-second drive.



But that was Florida and this was a last second drive.



Doubts ran through his mind as he looked at his teammates in the huddle with him. He had to make the call — he was the quarterback, the general on the field.



“Get ready,” he told Blount and called the play. They were just at the 50 yard line — they could afford a run or even two. They didn’t need to force anything. At the very least, overtime was a possibility and though that idea seemed *hitty to him, at least it meant the game wouldn’t be lost. They lined up and Neil looked out at the defense — the Eagles were expecting pass. It was a conservative look for them, but one that meant Blount had a lane if he hit the hole hard and fast.



The clock was under a minute now. Neil hiked the ball.



He turned around and gave it right to Blount, who hit the hole with such force that poor Fletcher Cox was bowled right over. One tackle was broken, then two, and then Blount was into the second level. The crowd roared to life as Blount rumbled his way right up the middle of the field, legs constantly churning, Eagles defenders latching onto him and trying to drag him down.



They eventually did — around the 18 yard line.



Blount had chugged his way deep into the Eagles redzone and had taken almost ten seconds off the clock by himself. There were only 33 seconds of game time left and Neil looked over to the sideline. Coach Goodwin was signaling to slow it down, suck clock, and take a timeout.



That’s what they did. With two seconds left, Goodwin took a timeout and the Redskins offense went off the field as the crowd — all standing — cheered them loudly. Neil found Blount, gave him a happy punch to the shoulder pad, and watched the man smile wide for the first time all day. “Told you to feed me,” the veteran said.



Will Lutz and the special teams nailed the field goal and that was the end of it — 32-29 was the final score.



***

[trekfan]

Redskins beat back Manning-less Giants
By Kesha Yates

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey — The Washington Redskins are now 5-0 after surviving a first-half scare from the Davis Webb-led Giants. Webb, starting in place of the injured Eli Manning (out with a shoulder tear, 4-5 weeks) threw for an impressive 269 yards and two TDs, most of his damage coming in the first half.

The Redskins defense had a difficult time containing the younger and much more mobile Webb in the first-half, resulting in a 28-21 lead at halftime for Washington. Scoring was in the air as neither defense seemed to have answers for the opposing QBs — but in the second-half, things got real in a hurry for Webb, who was sacked three times in the third quarter - two of those sacks coming from veteran Ryan Kerrigan.



“They pushed us around in the first half, but I wanted to push them back,” Kerrigan said after. “The secondary blanketed the receivers in the second-half and made my life easy.”

Webb struggled in the second-half and, without their offense to keep the game close, the Giants defense was forced to gamble. Those gambles repeatedly failed as Neil Anderle went through his progressions and found his open men — particularly running back Chris Thompson, who was a lethal outlet from the backfield.



The Redskins offense fed Legarrette Blount often in the second-half and Blount finished with another impressive day, gaining 156 yards and scoring two touchdowns. Blount leads the NFL in rushing yards so far this season and the Redskins appear perfectly happy to keep feeding the wrecking-ball of a running back.

“Legarrette is exactly what we want and is doing exactly what we brought him here for,” head coach Harold Goodwin said after the game. “It’s not like he hasn’t done this before — he’s got the ability and he’s got the green light. When our team is balanced, we’re tough to beat.”

The balance the Redskins emphasize was on full display Sunday as the rookie QB Neil Anderle threw for 221 yards, two TDs, and went 17 of 23 on the day.

“It was a good game,” said Anderle. “We played to our strengths, rallied, and keep pushing. Everyone pitched in today, no doubt.”

[trekfan]

Ch. 10

Sashi Brown and Harold Goodwin each sat in front of him, both men in agreement with one another. The only one not convinced was Takuma — and it wasn’t for lack of trying.

“You want to trade Jamison Crowder,” Takuma stated again. “He’s our best receiver.”

“Our most accomplished wide receiver, perhaps,” Brown corrected him. “But in terms of production, Crowder isn’t leading the team — that’s Jordan Reed, who’s a favorite target of Anderle.”

Takuma frowned. He had noticed this as well and certainly wasn’t against it. “And that makes Crowder expendable.”

“It does,” Goodwin stated bluntly. “He’s a good kid, but the offense has developed a rhythm without him. He’s not a big, physical type — not like Reed — and he doesn’t seem to have any real chemistry with Anderle. Anderle likes to toss the ball all over the yard and Crowder isn’t his go-to guy … as it stands right now, the man’s a decoy.”

Takuma sighed. “I can imagine that doesn’t sit well with Crowder.”

Goodwin nodded. “He’s a professional, he hasn’t made any waves, but his enthusiasm is definitely down. He could be a good number one for someone but it doesn’t look like it’s Anderle or us.”

Brown swiped his tablet and handed it over to Takuma. “I have a trade offer on the table from the Bears. They want to surround their young quarterback with capable wide receivers and, frankly, they haven’t. They’re willing to part with a second round pick to secure Crowder for the long-term as long as we take back Kevin White, whom they don’t want any longer.”

Takuma stared at the tablet and then looked back at the two men before him. “We’re 5-0; this doesn’t seem the wisest course of action.”

Brown looked to Goodwin, who cleared his throat. “The odds of our achieving a perfect record are downright low. Trading Crowder now, to a team that wants him, will pay him, and use him won’t be seen as throwing him under the bus. These guys are pros — this is a business. The rookies might be a bit thrown off, but this a truth they need to learn. We’re doing Crowder a solid here.”

Takuma looked to Brown, who offered a singular nod. “It’s a fair trade.”

It’s a business, Takuma repeated silently. He knew that, but making a trade mid-season made him uneasy … what if this derailed the entire year? What if this trade wrecked the chemistry of the team?

Coward — this is exactly the type of thinking that any old-school NFL owner would have. Think bigger picture. He straightened his back and nodded. “Very well, do the deal. I’ll call Jamison and let him know.”

****

He entered the locker room to find Crowder already there, cleaning out his things. Neil felt a pang of anxiety — and a bit of guilt — as he looked at the receiver, his now-former teammate.

Crowder saw him out of the corner of his eye and smirked. “Why the long face, rookie?”

“You’re traded.”

Crowder nodded casually. “Yeah, so I am.” He flashed a smile. “*hit, don’t go feeling sorry for me. The trade is approved and my agent already got me an extension with the Bears. I’m not hurting.”

Neil sat down on a nearby chair and rubbed his head. “You don’t seem mad.”

“Mad?” Crowder took a moment, then shook his head. “Nah, it ain’t a big deal. This is the kind of *hit that happens in the NFL. I was told by a couple of vets, my first season here, that this *hit happens. It’s just a thing — natural, you know?”

Neil stared at him. The man seemed totally at peace with it, despite the fact that he had been just sent away. “Well … I guess I came to say … sorry.”

“Sorry?” Crowder laughed. “You ain’t got nothing to say sorry for. You didn’t trade me. You didn’t get me traded. I’m going somewhere that wants me and that wants to use me more than I get used here … that’s cool. Chicago is a great town, cold, but a great town.” Crowder finished putting things into his box and walked over. “You keep on doing your thing. I’ll see you out there.”

And with that, Jamison Crowder walked out of the locker room — and away from the team.

Was it that simple, really? Was it that easy for these guys to just pack up and move on? Neil stared at the empty locker that once held Crowder’s things and found himself anxious. If the Redskins could trade a guy like Jamison, how easy would it be for them to trade him?

How many years could he go without getting shipped off?

Relax, he told himself and stood from the chair. His thoughts were a bundle of stress and he needed some air. He grabbed a football from an equipment locker and headed out to the practice field.

A couple of drills would calm him down.

At the very least, it’d let him do something other than worry about a future that may or may not come to pass. He was the franchise quarterback of the Washington Redskins, at least for now. He had to act like it. They were 5-0 and they were heading to Dallas in a few days.

He’d take out his stress on the Cowboys.

[trekfan]

Redskins survive turnovers against Cowboys
By Kesha Yates

DALLAS, Texas — The Washington Redskins have moved to 6-0 despite a plague of fumbles that gave Dallas 14 free points in the second quarter. The game was a defensive bout in the first quarter as both defenses gave up little. The Cowboys only managed three points heading into the second before the Redskins’ offense came to life.

The source of that life was Legarrette Blount, who continued his rambling ways as he rushed for a first-half high of 90 yards, scoring a touchdown and chewing clock. Blount’s running had the desired effect on the Dallas defense, forcing the Cowboys to stack the box and play man-to-man coverage — which let Jordan Reed get free for a touchdown reception late in the second quarter.

Everything seemed to be going the Redskin’s way, up 17-3 with less than 2:24 to go in the half. The Redskins defense got yet another sack on Dak Prescott (who was held to just 180 yards passing) as Ryan Kerrigan terrorized the third-year quarterback.



But the good feelings would vanish when rookie receiver and designated returner, Greg Jolly, fumbled the ensuing punt from Dallas with under 1:10 to go, resulting in a scoop and score by the Cowboys.

Now up only 17-10, the Cowboys kicked the ball off again and this time Chris Thompson fumbled the ball, resulting in another Cowboys’ score.

By halftime, the Redskins were tied 17 all thanks to two costly special teams errors. In the second, the Redskins defense continued to stonewall Ezekiel Elliot (who finished with only 46 on 18 attempts) and continued to get pressure on Prescott — it would be newly designated number one wide receiver Josh Doctson (after the trade of Jamison Crowder) who would come up with the only score of the third quarter from Nick Anderle. backfield.

For the second straight week in a row, the fourth quarter would be a battle of wills against two squads that harbored little love for one another. The Cowboys came roaring back behind their home crowd, scoring 14 unanswered points to make the 31-24 with slightly over five minutes left in the game.

The Redskins offense would not be denied however — a quick drive from Nick Anderle, who repeatedly found Jordan Reed (he would finish with 113 yards on the day) would get the Redskins into position to let Blount run in for the score. After a tying PAT, the game was all knotted up at 31.

The Cowboys would proceed to get the ball and do little with it, spending only 1:12 seconds off the clock — that would allow the Redskins to get the ball back, drive it down the field with a mix of run and pass, and kick the final score of the game as time expired, a 30-yard field goal by Will Lutz for the win.

Final score — 34-31.

After the game, Redskins HC Harold Goodwin was proud of his team’s hard win.

“We came into a hostile environment, battled through mistakes, and came out on top. I’m very proud of our play, our resiliency, and our composure; we could have fallen apart out there, but we pulled together.”

[djp73]

this is good, following

[trekfan]

Quote: Originally Posted by djp73

this is good, following

Thank you sir! More updates coming tonight. Steadily working my way through the season ... it's gonna get tense in a few games.

[trekfan]

Redskins blast Texans in historic win
By Kesha Yates

HOUSTON, Texas — The Washington Redskins have moved to 7-0 thanks to a stellar outing by rookie quarterback Neil Anderle, who threw for 240 yards and 4 touchdowns on 19 of 27 passing. Anderle came out and was aggressive with the ball — after an initially stagnant first quarter, the Redskins offense caught fire in the second and never looked back.

Anderle’s explosive day was due, in no small part, to the return of fellow rookie Trevante Beckett — Becket had missed the last five weeks with an injury but returned to the field today, and didn’t disappoint; the Tennessee product had 102 yards on 14 carries, splitting time with Legarrette Blount (whom had 87 yards and 2 TDs on 16 carries).

The defense was just as dominant as the offense, however — sacks came early and often for the Redskins defenders, who were led by Jonathan Allen, who tallied an early sack on DeShaun Watson that seemed to rattle the second-year player.



Allen would set the tone on defense. Josh Norman, Ryan Kerrigan, and Matthew Ioannidis would each tally a sack before the day was up, sending Watson to the ground on stunts and blitzes.

Down 24-3 at halftime, the Texans offense would stall coming out of the break and Anderle would continue to pick apart the Houston defense through the air, finding Jordan Reed often on the first drive of the second half. Reed would finish with 97 yards and 11 receptions in a performance that brought his yards total to 601 for the year.

The Redskins defense even got in on the scoring, as linebacker Preston Smith — who recently inked a five-year extension with the Redskins — came up with an INT that he returned for a touchdown, a score that all but finished the Texans in the third quarter.



In the final frame, Houston got a touchdown on the board to avoid complete embarrassment, but the late score was not well-received by the Redskins and the offense came out and ran the ball down the Texans throat — resulting in a late touchdown as time expired by Blount and then a very questionable two-point conversation call that failed.

After the game, Redskins HC Harold Goodwin addressed the reasons for why he called for the two-point conversion.

“We had the game wrapped up, but that doesn’t mean play stops — we have to get better and the best way to get better is through live reps. We ran the conversion to practice our formation and, clearly, we need more practice because we didn’t get it, now did we?”

Texans coach Bill O’Brien wasn’t hearing any of that explanation, though.

“It was a high-school move,” O’Brien said. “He wanted to run up the score, so he went for two. It wasn’t about any kind of practice, he just wanted to make a point.”

[trekfan]

Redskins lead NFL with perfect record
By Kesha Yates

LANDOVER, Maryland — The Washington Redskins are the only perfect team remaining this season, sitting pretty at 7-0 after having last week off for the bye.

Washington is relatively injury free, minus Kendall Fuller, who remains out after suffering a dislocated elbow towards the end of the Week 6 matchup against the Cowboys. Fuller petitioned the medical staff to clear him, but was ultimately told that he would remain in rehab.

“It’s frustrating from my standpoint,” Fuller said after the news was made public. “I understand why, but I want another shot at Dallas. I owe them a little something.”

Fuller’s absence will require Quinton Dunbar, wide receiver turned defensive back, to step in as the number two starter opposite Josh Norman. Considering how Dunbar blanketed the Texans receivers in Week 7, the Redskins coaching staff is confident the defense won’t suffer too badly due to Fuller’s injury.

Washington is leads the league at 7-0, but the rest of the NFC East is stuck in the doldrums:



Injuries have dealt serious blows to both the Giants and Eagles; New York lost Eli Manning for a period of five weeks, resulting in Davis Webb starting (and losing) four out of five of those games. Philly suffered early injuries to its defense, losing Brandon Graham after Week3 with a shoulder tear that he’s still recovering from.

Dallas, however, has remained injury free but drama is the Cowboys downfall this season. Questions about head coach Jason Garrett continue to swirl, as well as another down year from Dez Bryant, who has only managed 576 yards this season and continues to fade as favorite target of Dak Prescott.

Other notable injuries in the NFL include:
OL Riley Reiff, MIN — 2 weeks till return
TE Dion Simms, CHI — 6 weeks till return
RE Carl Lawson, CIN — 3 weeks till return
QB Kirk Cousins, DEN — 4 weeks till return
LT Eric Fisher, KC — 2 weeks till return
ROLB Kiki Alonso, MIA — 6 weeks till return
CB Xavier Howard, MIA — 5 weeks till return
RB Tevin Coleman, ATL — 2 weeks till return
WR Golden Tate, DET — 5 weeks till return
RE Mike Daniels, GB — 4 weeks till return
TE Greg Olsen, CAR — 4 weeks till return
RB Dion Lewis, NE — 2 weeks till return


The league standings paint an interesting picture for playoff spots, draft position, and potential disasters in the making.




In the AFC, the Patriots, Tom Brady, and Josh McDaniels continue to chug along — surprisingly, the Jaguars and the Chargers are right there with them and the top seed in the conference could go to any of those three teams. After the Chargers, things get messy as three of the AFC North teams are tightly contesting for that division title, and then whichever ones get eliminated will be in the thick of a tight wildcard race.

Down at the bottom of the conference you find the Browns, not unusual (though certainly disappointing with how, even with their preferred rookie QB, they still lose) but then you have two surprise teams: the Raiders and the Dolphins. For the Raiders, this season has been an unmitigated disaster. The return of John Gruden was supposed to bring back the glory of Raiders old, but instead has had a deleterious effect on the team — Gruden’s playcalling and management of the squad shows his rust and the Raiders offense continues to be an issue. Miami, similarly, is suffering, and the questions surrounding Ryan Tannehill are many — he’s having the worst season of his career and looks to be a shell of himself since suffering multiple injuries in 2017.





In the NFC, the Redskins sit atop the conference with a bit of breathing room, though the Cardinals are right behind them, led by a surprising 38-year old Carson Palmer — on his way to a stellar campaign, throwing 13 TDs to only 1 INT. Arizona is riding David Johnson (767 rushing yards on the year) and spreading the ball around.

Behind Arizona lie the Falcons, still hanging tough despite the injury to Coleman, and the Seahawks, who have finally found a running back that can help in rookie Demetris Baker (570 rushing yards on the year). Behind Seattle lies a cluster of teams that have been middling all year — the Saints, Bucs, Bears, and 49ers, each trying to nab a playoff spot.

At the bottom of the conference lie the disappointing Panthers, Giants, Rams (who have taken a major step back in year two), and Cowboys. It’s unlikely any of these teams get into the playoffs and they’re all playing to get to 8-8, at least make their seasons respectable.