Redskins Career

[kcarr]

Regular season week 1, New York Giants:

Preview:
This is a huge game for us being the season opener and a chance to get my career started right as well as being a division game against the defending superbowl champs. Also, seeing as the owner expects us to make the playoffs (kinda made me go into a jim mora impression) this year we need to win our division and we can't do that if we can't beat the other teams in our division.

Key injuries - We are missing Jon Jansen on offense although Stephon Heyer is a capable backup. Jason Taylor and Marcus Tubbs are missing on defense. Tubbs is being replaced by RJ Smiley which is a very small dropoff but not having Taylor will hurt. Omens is a solid backup but this will be the first time he is actually playing defensive end and the move from 3rd string linebacker where he was at the start of the preseason to starting DE where he is now is quite a lead.

They are missing C shaun o'hara and backup LT Leante Jordan. Without o'hara Moore and Smiley should have an easier time controlling the middle. Jordan will not be missed.

Keys to the game:
Washington - The biggest key for us will be getting pressure without Jason Taylor. Bake and Omens are talented but unproven and will need to overperform for us to stop eli.

New York - Getting their running game going. They are missing O'hara on the line and we have a strong middle to our d-line. This will be a power on power battle and the winner could have a signifigant advantage.

Result Giants win 42-14

The game started off poorly with a buckingham fumble setting up a manning to jacobs score on a little swing pass. We stayed in the game for a little while with a deep pass to santana moss but after that Eli became unstoppable and we became unable to move the ball at all.

Eli Torched us 23-30 for 238 yards and 5 TDs with no interceptions. Jacobs ran 20 times for 105 yards and a TD and bradshaw added 42 on 11 carries. For us Campbell went 14-33 for 158 yards, 2 tds though 1 was at the end in garbage time against their backups and 1 interception which really turned the tide in the game. We had no running game gaining 28 yards on 12 carries split between portis, buckingham, betts, campbell, robinson, and randle-el. Most of the time we had to throw the ball though due to them being way ahead.

Defensively omens had a sack and a couple tackles for loss. Rogers did intercept a pass off of andre woodson and fletcher-baker had a forced fumble and recovery before he got hurt and missed the rest of the game.

[kcarr]

Regular season week 2, New Orleans Saints:

During the week:
Eli manning was named NFC offensive player of the week after shredding our defense.

Marc Freeborg was released. Josh Morgan was signed in his place. On paper this move may not make sense as freeborg is the better reciever and has the upside to be as good of a wideout as a guy like devin thomas who is getting decent playing time now. Morgan on the other hand will probably never be more than a 5th wide reciever but his passing skills and speed make him an ideal wildcat player.

Preview:
This is another tough matchup for the only NFC east team to lose week 1. The saints are a tough passing team but defensively can be scored on.

Injuries - We are healthy. The Saints are missing backup RB Pierre Thomas and linebacker Scott Shanle. Shanle is the only one that really matters as he a starter in a very weak linebacker corp. On the plus side for them there won't be any dropoff.

Keys to the game:
Washington - We need to find a way to slow down brees and his passing attack. After making Eli Manning the player of the week last week brees is likely going to team us apart.

New Orleans - They need to look to slow down our running game. While we did not run well last week we do have the talent to do so and unless sedrick ellis can have a huge game we should be able to run all over them.

Redskins win 36-29

This was a tight back and forth game with highs and lows for each team. Campbell was efficient but not spectacular throwing 11-16 for 131 yards and a TD with no turnovers. The key to our win was the rushing attack where although no one player had more than 70 yards as a team we totaled 176 and 3 TDs.

Our top defender had to be Fletcher-Baker. Not only did he have 13 tackles including 3 for loss and a sack but nearly every time the saints were in the redzone he made big plays to turn touchdowns into field goals. He must have had 7 or 8 redzone tackles including a couple for loss. He also had a redzone pass deflection and hit bush on a potential touchdown pass knocking the ball free. Jason taylor added a sack and landry had an interception.

The Saints most suprising performer was skyler green who returned a kick for a TD and also caught 5 passes for 60 yards. Brees played well as expected but was forced to pass a lot going 30-52 for 334 yards, 2TDs and an int. There defense also had 5 sacks and really slowed down our offense in the second half and after we ran for over 120 yards in the 1st half they held us to around 50 in the second.
The game starts off as expected with new orleans driving the field for a TD but michael lewis answers with a kick return touchdown. The saints add on a FG but on our first actual offensive drive Josh Morgan takes the team lead for both rushing yards and rushing touchdowns carrying the ball 2 times out of the wildcat for 17 yards and a touchdown giving us our first lead of the season and only 6 quarters in. After adding on a Campbell to Moss TD and a buckingham TD run we were up 28-17 at the half.

The second half we couldn't get anything going on offense but the Saints had to settle for field goals until they finally got in on a jump ball which colston caught over springs which gave them a 29-28 lead. Fletcher-Baker stopped bush on the 2 point conversion holding the score there and with 2 minutes left campbell was able to set us up with for a game winning FG although most of the work was done by josh morgan breaking a 26 yard run to the outside. While running the clock to keep the ball away from the Saints Portis broke free and scored a TD. He followed it up with a 2pt conversion run.

Brees drove the field and even had 3 shots at the endzone from 27 yards out. The 1st one Colston even had in his hands until Springs hit him and knocked it free. They weren't able to get any of them completed and we won the game.

[kcarr]

Week 3, Arizona Cardinals:
During the week:
Jason Taylor's injury in the previous game turned out to be a seperated shoulder and he will likely miss 5-6 weeks. Andre Carter was cut and Jevon Kearse was signed in his place to give us a pass rushing threat to replace Taylor's production. In Kearse's first practice though he tears his ACL and PCL and will miss the rest of the season. He is then placed on IR and Eric Baker, a rookie with great athleticism but a very raw player is signed in his place.

Preview:
Key injuries - Kearse, if he can really be considered one of our players is on injured reserve. Taylor is the one who will really be missed. Arizona is missing LT Mike Gandy along with his backup which could open things up for Omens and his new backup Erik Baker. Also they are missing OLB Betrand Berry which will effect their pass rush and a backup NT which could hurt there run defense late in drives.

Keys to the game
Washington - We have got to exploit there defense with our rushing attack. We are coming off of a great performance opened up by our wildcat plays and need to continue that to limit their offensive chances.

Arizona - Larry Fitzgerald should be set to have a great game. Marques Colston was able to beat up on springs for 8 catches, over 100 yards and a touchdown. Fitz is a similar receiver but is better than colston.

Washington wins 33-31

This was another nail biter ending on a 53 yard shaun suisham FG. This was really more of an escape for us than an actual victory as we were thoroughly outplayed the entire game other than a few big plays. Campbell was weak all game going 10-21 for 132 yards and no TDs or INTs. Portis was shut down early rushing 6 times for 0 yards before coming out with a leg injury. Jamal Buckingham's stat sheet looked good with 12 carries for 73 yards and a TD but he also fumbled twice and 53 of his yards came on one of the big plays I was talking about, a 3rd quarter 4th and 1 conversion which he broke free on to give us our first lead of the game. Josh Morgan was the only offensive weapon who really exceled in the game rushing 8 times for 121 yards and a 68 yard TD and adding in an 8 yard catch and a 5 yard pass. He also had an incomplete pass on a double pass that hit malcolm kelly right in the hands behind all the coverage and could have been a long TD. He did fumble once but other than that was very good. Moss also scored off of a kick return and had another return with solid yardage out to midfield and Lewis had a big punt return to set up the winning FG.

Defensively we missed Taylor and the pressure he brings. Bake did have a sack and 3 hurries and McIntosh also had a sack forcing a safety early in the game but even though taylor doesn't get a lot of sacks it seems when he is in he is always close. Landry had an interception and 10 tackles as well.

Warner had a solid game going 22-28 for 212 and 2 tds and a pick but what really hurt us and allowed arizona to control so much of the game was our concentration on stopping the pass. Edge ran 27 times on us for 137 yards and a pair of TDs.

Their defense also got to campbell 5 times, the second time in 3 games that a defense has posted those numbers. He is on pace to be sacked 64 times this year and no QB can hold up under that kind of pressure. We need to look for ways to improve our pass blocking and the oline will definitely be a major area of concentration in practice this week.

All in all even though we won this game pretty ugly it is a win and with my owner wanting us to get into the playoffs we need every win we can get. It will probably take atleast 10 and maybe 11 wins so we are still 8 or 9 ugly wins away.

[kcarr]

Week 4, Dallas Cowboys:

During the week:
Mike sellers had been hurt in the previous game. It turned out to be a PCL tear and he will miss the rest of the season. Mike Tolbert was signed to replace him. Also, during practice Jon Janson was injured and will miss the next 2 months.

Leigh Torrence was released and replaced with Dejuan Tribble. Tribble looks to be a solid dime corner who will move up into the nickel spot next year. He can play man, zone, and press coverage all rather well but does not have the durability to play every down or the mental aptitude to learn the full playbook leaving him in a nickel role at best

Preview:
The upcoming game against Dallas is very important for both teams. Dallas has started off weak at 1-2 and needs a win to get their season back on track while if Washington hopes to keep up with the 2 3-0 teams atop this division they need every win they can get.

Key injuries - Along with adding Sellers to the IR we are missing Jansen and Taylor and now Marcus Tubbs is out with an undisclosed injury. They are without Felix Jones, Greg Ellis, and Roosevelt Colvon. None of those 3 start for them so they shouldn't be too badly hurt.

Keys to the game
Washington -
1. For us the key is to atleast have some semblance of a passing game so that we can open up for the run. With the Cowboys secondary though that could be a difficult task.

2. Also we need to be able to protect Campbell. The sacks are stacking up and facing a great pass rusher in demarcus ware won't help. Luckily that side hasn't killed us this far with chris samuel playing LT.

3. We have to stop witten. We have a decent coverage LB in Marcus Washington but he will have his hands full against a top TE.

Dallas -
1. The key for them will be TO. Once again Shaun Springs is facing a top WR. He did better agaisnt fitz than against colston but TO could be a big time target.

2. Establish the run. The washington defense has undersized players at DE. 2 of them are former rush lbs who moved up or hybrid players who can play both spots(would be 3 if not for injuries). While these guys are good against the pass they may not be so strong against the run

3. Contain the wildcat. Josh Morgan has been huge these last 2 weeks and could have been even bigger last week if Kelly would have caught a wide open pass that would have went for an over 60 yard TD. Michael Lewis also has some decent runs out of the wildcat. They really need to be gameplanning to shut down Josh's little set of plays.

Dallas wins 45-24

I am pretty sure virtual wade phillips read my keys to success as he followed them perfectly. We wanted to atleast have some passing game. They held us to 2 passing touchdowns, one of which was in garbage minutes after the game was decided and had 2 pick 6s, one off of campbell and one off of morgan. We wanted to protect campbell, they got to him 3 times and ware would have had 3 in a row if one hadn't gotten him called for a facemask. They also hurries him 12 other times. We wanted to contain witten, well we weren't so bad there holding him to 1 8 yard catch.

There keys were to get TO involved, 6 catches for 81 yards and a TD. They needed to establish a rushing game, 22 carries for 126 yards and 2 TDs totaled there. They wanted to shut down the wildcat, morgan was held to -6 yards on 4 carries and threw 2 times, once for a pick 6 and one for a 7 yard completion. His only decent run got called back on a clipping penalty against Mike Tolbert.

Overall this was a terrible game. Everything went wrong and the team just fell apart.

[kcarr]

Week 5, Philadelphia Eagles:

During the week:
Shaun Springs ended up breaking his wrist. He will miss the next 7-9 weeks. He will be replaced in the starting lineup by fred smoot which moves dejuan tribble up to the nickle spot.

Preview:
Philly is leading the division right now at 4-0 so going onto their turf I expect a tough game. Their defense is solid across the board and Donovan just came back from an injury to start last game and led them to a win. One fun fact here, they have won 2 games with each of their quarterback so far this year.

Key injuries - Tubbs is back but now springs is out along with jansen and taylor. Taylor is still the key injury as he is sorely missed in the pass rush. Springs will also be missed. For philly they are completely healthy.

Keys to the game
Washington -
1. Establish the run. In the games where we have ran well, we won. When we haven't we lost. It is as simple as that, we need to run the ball well.

2. Also we need to be able to protect Campbell. The sacks are stacking up. Samuel is also coming off of his worst game so far this year. Luckily philly's front 4 isn't as strong as some we have faced but they do often get pressure and their corners will give them time to get home.

3. We cannot let westbrook beat us. He is so dangerous both running and catching and he must be contained.

Philadelphia -
1. Big plays are a huge part of their gameplan. They will look for a couple explosive plays by deshean jackson and brian westbrook to open up the game

2. Force mistakes. Campbell has had some efficient games and some where the pressure has gotten to him and forced mistakes. One big pick could really turn the tide.

3. Contain the wildcat. Josh Morgan is coming off of his worst game with us but has been a key part of both of our wins.

Washington wins 37-31

This was a huge win for us and really puts us in a much better position in terms of this season's success or failure. We started off poorly allowing Westbrook to run all over us and he ended up with 98 yards on 15 carries and ran for a couple TDs in the 1st quarter. A interception returned for a TD by asante samuel early in the second quarter put Philly up 21-0. We came back though and michael lewis scored on a 12 yard run out of the wildcat. On our next series Clinton portis pounded the ball in from 7 yards out and then near the end of the half suisham had a 38 yard field goal to cut the lead to 4. He missed wide left though and we went into the half down 7, 21-14.

The first drive of the second half philly scored on a long pass to desean jackson and remained and then added a FG on the next drive pushing their lead to 31-14. Jamal Buckingham broke out a nice run though and brought us back to within 10. With the ball and a 10 point lead in the middle of the 4th on our side of midfield I expected philly to try to run the clock but they stayed aggressive and it did not pay off. A big punt return by Lewis set up a 51 yard FG which Suisham knocked through. Another 3 and out by philly and we had a chance. 3 times on the drive Jason Campbell tried to scramble only to throw off the protection and give up a sack but on 3 straight 3rd and longs we went to the wildcat and succeeded. Morgan ran 1 for a 1st, Lewis to a reverse for a 1st, and Morgan hit Cooly for a 1st down pass. Morgan ended up caping the drive with a 12 yard TD with 1:38 left. Both teams then stalled out and we went to overtime.

Philly won the toss and had a good kick return out to the 33. After a quick pass to curtis moved them to the 45 I was feeling hopeless but london fletcher-baker came up huge picking off a pass intended for westbrook and scoring our 1st defensive TD of the year.

Now at 3-2 with a 1-2 division record we aren't exactly looking tough but we have gotten the 3 road division games out of the way and we are 2-0 at home with a couple home games and a trip to detroit coming up. We could forseeably win the next 2 or 3 games and be in a pretty good spot.

[kcarr]

Week 6, St Louis rams:

During the week:
During the game Marcus Washington sprained his ankle and will likely miss the upcoming game against St Louis. Also, Chris Horton broke his wrist and is expected to miss 3 to 4 weeks. During practice Marcus Tubbs also had a high ankle sprain and will miss 2 to 3 weeks.

To replace washington for this game alfred pincher was released to make room for Robert James who looks to be the best coverage LB available.

Another big event this week was the latest installment from adam shefter on the college season. This means it is time for us to make an early assessment of our needs and look at what may be able to be done to stop them.

In my opinion our biggest need is at wide reciever. We have a lot of decent players here but could really use a game breaking type player who could be a true number 1 and force teams to roll coverages over to him.

Next, we need to find a replacement to Shaun Springs as our #1 corner. Top recievers have constantly beaten us this year and both springs and smoot are old and springs is currently injured.

At linebacker McIntosh doesn't fit the system and Washington is old. Fletcher and his heir apparent Vince Hall are still good in the middle but we need a good outside linebacker.

On the offensive line we are solid outside but need an elite road grating guard to fill out the line. Depth is also needed as the good players we have are old.

We need a defensive pass rusher(I would take either a tackle or a end) to replace Jason Taylor's production. Bake looks good but needs help although Tommy Omens had 2 sacks last game and could be the guy.

We could also use a scatback type runner. Buckingham is good inside but we need a playmaker as a change of pace guy.

Also during the week Angelo Craig and Shaun Suisham were signed to 1 year extensions. Dejaun Tribble was signed to a 6 year deal worth just over 6 million dollars. This is a huge contract for an unproven player who has lifetime nickle corner written all over him but this will give us a player in that nickle spot who can cover and who atleast knows that much of the playbook very well who can be a solid player for us through that stretch.

Preview:
St Louis is a talented team with Stephen Jackson, marc Bulger, and Torry Holt on offense and Chris Long, Adam Carriker, and OJ Otagwe on D but they are vastly underperforming so far at 0-4. This is a start to a couple games at home and could put us in a good position to end the season with a winning record.

Key injuries - Springs, Jansen, and Taylor are all still out. Added to that list Chris Horton, Marcus Washington, and Marcus Tubbs are all hurt along with Cornielius griffen who is out with an undisclosed injury. Tubbs and Griffen being out really hurts our Dline rotation, especially with Taylor out as well. Washington being out forces us to look to Robert James to start in his first NFL action ever. Horton being out give Brandon Merriweather his chance to start. Randy McMichael is the only key injury for them. Joe Klophenstien will replace him and this will allow us to blitz more as the TE shouldn't hurt us in the passing game. The are also missing backup DE Chase Ortiz

Keys to the game
Washington -
1. Stop the run with our front 4. If we can make them 1 dimensional it will allow the DBs and LBs to concentrate on their receivers.

2. Also we need to be able to protect Campbell. The sacks are stacking up. Another 5 sack performance brings our 5 game total to 20 still on pace for 64 on the season. Last game it was Campbell's fault as on all 5 sacks he tried to take off causing a break in protection. St Louis has a very good Dline and we need to contain them.

3. We have to get big plays from Lewis and Morgan. Those 2 have been a huge part of all our wins and need to produce to keep us in games

St Louis -
1. They need to establish the run. With our dline rotation banged up even if the run isn't there at first they can easily wear us down and it will be there late.

2. Get to the QB. If they can push us into long down and distance situations they can force Campbell to try to make plays. Pressure there can lead to mistakes which have killed us up to this point.

3. Contain the wildcat. Josh Morgan pretty much single handedly carried the offense against philly and they need to keep him from doing the same here.

St Louis wins 33-31.

I can't believe this is the same Rams squad that started off 0-4. Their passing game was extremely efficient going 16-18 for 228 yards and jackson pounded us on the ground for 192 yards on 29 carries and added in 3 TDs. Jason Campbell had a decent game, 17-22 for 249 yards but threw a costly int. Portis ran 8 times for 52 yards and morgan on 4 carries had 54 yards and 3 tds but throughout the entire game other than a couple penalties the Rams had no plays that went for negative yards and scored on their first 5 possesions scoring 3 TDs and 2 FGs.

This is a huge setback for us as we are not a squad that will be happy going .500 this year. My owner is expecting playoff and although I think that is crazy with our talent level I have to try to deliver.

[kcarr]

Week 8, Clevelad Browns:

During the week:
Luckily we made it through without further injuries. Tony Bake and Brandon Merriweather were each signed to 3 year deals adding 2 years to their current contracts. RJ Smiley and Eric Baker each signed a 1 year extension as well. Bake is our top pass rusher so far this year so retaining him is huge at just over a million dollars for the length of the contract he is a steal. Merriweather is decent in our DB rotation and smiley and baker are both a big part of the DLine rotation, Smiley as a run stuffer and Baker as a pass rusher.

Key injuries - Griffin and Washington are both back but Taylor and Tubbs are still missing from the Dline rotation and springs, our best corner, is out as well. On the line Jansen is missing but heyer has been good enough that jansen hasnt really been missed.

They are missing 3 starting LBs, Andra Davis, and in the middle and willie mcginist, their top pass rusher. Eric Wright, their top corner is also out.

Keys to the game
Washington -
1. Establish the run. With their middle linebackers both out we have to run there.

2. Throw the ball downfield. With a banged up secondary we have to take advantage.

3. We have to shut down the Anderson to Edwards connection. With Springs out we have to find a way to stop there big recieving threat.

Cleveland -
1. Overcoming their injuries. They have a lot of defensive injuries and really have to have the backups step up in their place.

2. Don't make mistakes. Derek Anderson is a strong armed QB with some good weapons but he struggles with accuracy.

3. Contain the wildcat. Morgan is our top scorer so far and he needs to be contained.

Washington wins 38-14

Our defense played great. Derek Anderson couldn't get anything going throwing 12-25 for 117 yards and a TD and an INT. Betts, Portis, and Buckingham each ran for a TD and Campbell threw 20-27 for 253 yard, 2TDs and an INT.

The game was basically over in the 1st qaurter when buckingham scored to go up 21-0. This was a huge win for us as we were finally able to win a game in convincing fashion.

[burnum]

Hey, you're off to a great start (both, your style of writing and your Redskins season). Glad to see someone else is using my house rules...
Keep it up!