Should Gibbs Flip The Script: Passing Team Now?

[QUOTE=hail_2_da_skins;380539]Which Clinton Portis have you been watching? Clinton Portis is one of the worst pass catching running backs in the league. He cannot catch and run at the same time. In order to catch a ball, he has to stop and turn around and face the quarterback. He drops more passes when he tries to catch the ball over his shoulder. The next time the Skins play, pay close attention to Portis when he catches balls out of the backfield. He always have to square his shoulders to the passer and then run after the catch. I love Portis to death, but his technique on swing passes is horrible.

I sure will (thought I had!!)

If the defense were playing better you could consider going pass heavy. But, with the defense giving up huge plays, I think it's wise to be a little methodical and use more time. You can really aggrevate your defensive woes by giving the other team too many posessions. A game can become a track meet really fast and the way our secondary looked yesterday, I don't think we want a track meet.

You say you don't want a track meet but when you go into play a team like Dallas I think you have to expect to have to put up 28+ points. I really do think we should pass more because that seemed to work yesterday.

Coach Gibbs is that you??

Success in today's NFL is predicated on scoring points in bundles and making the other team outscore you. The mentality of not wanting to throw the ball because you're afraid of turnovers is the biggest reason our offense was stuck in the '80s for the past 4 years..

The notion of 'balance' and 'running and defense wins' are antiquated. Look at the top teams NE (#2 in passing offense), Dallas (#3), GB(#1), Indy (#6) and they are in the top 6 of passing offense and are outpacing their running games by 164, 152, 222 & 128 yards per game.. They are all also in the top 15 in rushing yards per game (none exceeding 132 YPG) but that's not balance, that's passing early, getting up on your opponent by 3-4 TD and running the ball to maintain possession and keep them off the field.

But aren't you arguing for the Martz philosophy? All due respect to the Redskins WRs, but we don't have Roy Williams, Calvin Johnson, Mike Furrey, and Shaun McDonald lining up for us. Or even Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison and Dallas Clark. Or even Randy Moss, Wes Welker, Donte Stallworth, and Ben Watson.

I'm all for the hurry up, spreading the field, and striking quickly in the passing game. We look good, and it is a clear strength of our offense.

Notice that by no means am I suggesting that we always run. I think we should run draws and such out of spread formations to keep the defense off balance. We should feature screen passes which keep aggressive defensive lines in check, and can be used as an extension of the running game. And we should continue to use the hurry up. I definitely don't think we should crowd into the line of scrimmage with a jumbo package and run up the middle all the time, like we've been doing. We should switch the scheme up and modernize it.

But to say that because Campbell threw successfully yesterday after having 50 attempts, that we should approach the game trying to pass 4 out of five times, that's how you give your defense short fields with which to work. It's how you tire your defense out.

In the end, you play to your strength. We've got Clinton Portis, Chris Cooley, solid WRs, and a developing QB. To me, that personnel screams balance.

It's just funny how this time last week, everyone was screaming to put the load on Clinton Portis and ride the workhorse. Now that Campbell had a big day, necessitated by passing to catch up, everyone wants to see us pass all the time.

How about this, we put together a complete offensive performance where we're both running and passing effectively?

Coach Gibbs is that you??

Success in today's NFL is predicated on scoring points in bundles and making the other team outscore you. The mentality of not wanting to throw the ball because you're afraid of turnovers is the biggest reason our offense was stuck in the '80s for the past 4 years..

The notion of 'balance' and 'running and defense wins' are antiquated. Look at the top teams NE (#2 in passing offense), Dallas (#3), GB(#1), Indy (#6) and they are in the top 6 of passing offense and are outpacing their running games by 164, 152, 222 & 128 yards per game.. They are all also in the top 15 in rushing yards per game (none exceeding 132 YPG) but that's not balance, that's passing early, getting up on your opponent by 3-4 TD and running the ball to maintain possession and keep them off the field.

Running the ball has been "antiquated" on several non-consecutive occasions since I've been watching the NFL. Gibbs was of course a key architect of Air Coryell which was the first time I remember hearing these things. That offense emerged following a rules change in much the way the current passing teams are aided by an extreme interpretation of the rules. It never lasts though. Defenses adjust and teams go back to running the ball. Or a team emerges that just runs the ball really well and everyone jumps on that caravan for a few seasons.

In addition, there seems to be a pervasive notion that somehow the fans and the media and the bloggers know more about and have a better understanding of the NFL and football generally than Coach Joe Gibbs. You may believe this to be true, but it has absolutely no basis whatsoever in any objective reality. I wish I could just laugh at it, but I can't, because I find it so disrespectful and conceited. The worst assistant coach on the worst team in the league knows more about football than most of us put together.

But aren't you arguing for the Martz philosophy? All due respect to the Redskins WRs, but we don't have Roy Williams, Calvin Johnson, Mike Furrey, and Shaun McDonald lining up for us. Or even Reggie Wayne, Marvin Harrison and Dallas Clark. Or even Randy Moss, Wes Welker, Donte Stallworth, and Ben Watson.

I'm all for the hurry up, spreading the field, and striking quickly in the passing game. We look good, and it is a clear strength of our offense.

Notice that by no means am I suggesting that we always run. I think we should run draws and such out of spread formations to keep the defense off balance. We should feature screen passes which keep aggressive defensive lines in check, and can be used as an extension of the running game. And we should continue to use the hurry up. I definitely don't think we should crowd into the line of scrimmage with a jumbo package and run up the middle all the time, like we've been doing. We should switch the scheme up and modernize it.

But to say that because Campbell threw successfully yesterday after having 50 attempts, that we should approach the game trying to pass 4 out of five times, that's how you give your defense short fields with which to work. It's how you tire your defense out.

In the end, you play to your strength. We've got Clinton Portis, Chris Cooley, solid WRs, and a developing QB. To me, that personnel screams balance.
Since you mentioned the Martz philosophy (relentlessly attack), yeah pretty much.. He got fired for his game management skills & personality, not because his offense stopped working.. I think a Martz type offense works better for this team than what we've been running.. A fast back, small quick WR with deep speed to separate, a pass catching TE to exploit the seams doesn't support a power running team, which is what we've tried to be for some reason.

I agree with your assessment of our strengths on offense but the crutch of a 'developing QB' is off base I think. Yes, he's developing but he can't fully develop unless you let him. He's a third year QB, not a fresh faced rookie.. He's into his second 'season' as a starter, there's no reason to hold back anything from the game plan for him. He has shown that he is a playmaker, when given the chance. I posted earlier, I think his rust/inaccuracy on the deep ball is because he hadn't had a chance to throw it in games much until the past 2 weeks. If you have a high performance car in the garage you don't take the minivan on a Sunday drive.

I'm not advocating a 80-20 pass-run ratio but I think 65-35 or so would yield us much better results in the W-L columns than what we've done for 80% of the games this year.

Running the ball has been "antiquated" on several non-consecutive occasions since I've been watching the NFL. Gibbs was of course a key architect of Air Coryell which was the first time I remember hearing these things. That offense emerged following a rules change in much the way the current passing teams are aided by an extreme interpretation of the rules. It never lasts though. Defenses adjust and teams go back to running the ball. Or a team emerges that just runs the ball really well and everyone jumps on that caravan for a few seasons.

In addition, there seems to be a pervasive notion that somehow the fans and the media and the bloggers know more about and have a better understanding of the NFL and football generally than Coach Joe Gibbs. You may believe this to be true, but it has absolutely no basis whatsoever in any objective reality. I wish I could just laugh at it, but I can't, because I find it so disrespectful and conceited. The worst assistant coach on the worst team in the league knows more about football than most of us put together.
And when it does, then adjust back to that but stubbornly sticking to a philosophy, trends and results be damned is kinda silly don't ya think?

I've got tons of respect for Coach Joe, grew up rooting for Gibbs 1.0.. I don't think I 'know more' than anyone in the NFL but knowing more doesn't always equate to making the right decisions. Are you saying that just because we don't know more than the worst assistant on the worst team then we have no right to second guess?

And when it does, then adjust back to that but stubbornly sticking to a philosophy, trends and results be damned is kinda silly don't ya think?

I've got tons of respect for Coach Joe, grew up rooting for Gibbs 1.0.. I don't think I 'know more' than anyone in the NFL but knowing more doesn't always equate to making the right decisions. Are you saying that just because we don't know more than the worst assistant on the worst team then we have no right to second guess?


If people are going to take a condescending tone towards Gibbs, I'm going to challenge them. That's all.

Coach Gibbs is that you??

Success in today's NFL is predicated on scoring points in bundles and making the other team outscore you. The mentality of not wanting to throw the ball because you're afraid of turnovers is the biggest reason our offense was stuck in the '80s for the past 4 years..

The notion of 'balance' and 'running and defense wins' are antiquated. Look at the top teams NE (#2 in passing offense), Dallas (#3), GB(#1), Indy (#6) and they are in the top 6 of passing offense and are outpacing their running games by 164, 152, 222 & 128 yards per game.. They are all also in the top 15 in rushing yards per game (none exceeding 132 YPG) but that's not balance, that's passing early, getting up on your opponent by 3-4 TD and running the ball to maintain possession and keep them off the field.

When we pass early, and take say a 17 point lead at halftime and then start running to maintian possession, it's called "lack of a killer instinct."

It's very rare that you can fully succeed without being able to run and stop the run effectively. Ask Elway (Terrell Davis) or Manning (Addai/Rhodes).

People can mock balance all they want, but ultimately it's the best formula for the personnel we have.