Smoot Lays the Smack Down (Redskins vs. Giants)

Can't say I'm really surprised that the team folded last night. Did I see it coming? No. But in hindsight I think the signs were there for a potential collapse.

Vinny stepping down, Allen coming in, Shanahan in the rearview, rumblings of coaches on the staff interviewing for the HC job and the resulting dissention amongst the ranks of the staff, it's not a surprise we got smoked.

Finally, let's tip our hats to the Giants who came in and played like a team with a purpose. We were overmatched in every phase of the game.

Jason Campbell I know the protection was pretty putrid today. But the numbers don't lie...he threw two horrible interceptions that were his fault. Plus, how is it that Collins comes in and fires off two deep passes? I'll tell you why, because he wasn't afraid to take on 3rd string DBs, even in tight coverage. I think JC will and should be re-signed but quit playing scared. Make some throws.


Yeah, he looked scared tonight, but he actually hasn't played that way in the last several weeks. I don't know if it was the Giants, or primetime, or the fact that the rest of the team mailed it in, but he definitely didn't have it last night... And because of that, gave all the haters an excuse to come out of the woodwork.

With a complete lack of protection I really can't blame JC for being off. Dude was getting killed and kept coming back for more.

Not much else to say, right?

I turned the game off early in the 3rd quarter. Not sure I've ever done that before.

Quitter!


:benched:

I was just following the example set by the team.

I actually hung in and saw the whole game as I couldn't believe that there wouldn't be at least a drive in which we showed a little fight. I give credit to Fred Davis who really hustled for extra yards (and got 1st downs -- most of the few we made -- and a TD as a result), to Haynesworth for trying to protect a teammate, and to Fletcherfor constant hustle. No one really came to play, and it was really disheartening. Zorn looked completely lost and befuddled. JC looked like he'd just survived Bastogne (did you see how glassy-eyed he was at the end of the game?. Our O-line functioned like matadors last night, and it was painful to watch.

This may be the worst overall effort I have seen by our team since I became a fan in 1973.

All of the above. I don't know what to think about Jason coming back in. On one hand, no one can possibly say he's not a leader now. On the other, he definitely hurt his stock around the league in doing so. Or at least, I think he did.

Actually, I'm going to go ahead and say that he's not a leader.

I said it during the MNF thread, but I see a lot of parallels between his attitude and Chris Leak's attitude at UF before Urban Meyer showed up. Chris Leak was a quiet guy who chose to lead by example. He never complained, never got in anybody's face, and was content to play as hard as he could and do everything he could to help the team win.

For Urban Meyer (and the Gators' winning percentage), this wasn't enough.

Meyer immediately came in and challenged Leak's passion and willingness to be a vocal leader. As a leader, it's not enough to go out, play your hardest, and hope for the best. You have to go out, play your hardest, and make sure everybody around you plays their best, too. It took about a season for Chris Leak to come around, but when he did, we won a National Championship.

I don't expect Jason Campbell to get fired up for the two remaining games (no sense in confronting your teammates when the season is over and the main priority is, in all honesty, keeping everybody healthy).

So I say keep Jason Campbell. There's absolutely no reason why he can't become the complete-package leader this team desperately needs. We have a lot of "skill" issues that need to be addressed in the offseason, but keep in mind this team exposed and almost beat the Saints. It's the NFL, and everybody on this roster is in the top 1% of football players in this country.

So who is the leader? On offense, on defense, on special teams. Nobody.

There is NO player leadership on this team, and I don't see much coming from the coaching staff. This team, no matter if they are acquiring free agents or drafting players, has historically ignored the leadership/psychological aspect of this game. They insert players that are intended to address specific issues instead of inserting players who make the other 10 guys on the field play better. So as the other 10 players fail, we scream at Vinny Cerrato and Daniel Snyder, or we yell at a wide receiver spinning the ball during a 2-minute drill. This is bad veteran leadership and bad coaching.

The coaching will be addressed, but what about the players? Sometimes somebody needs to grab these guys by the facemask, and it can't always be a coach. Again, I just want everybody to make it to the end of the season unhurt. It would be a shame for somebody to get seriously hurt in a complete waste and a debacle of a season.

And Jason Campbell doesn't have to jump around and yell and grab people by the facemask. He DOES have to immediately be talking to them after they fail to chip a blitzer, or they run a go pattern when they should have run a crossing pattern. Campbell is a capable quarterback and a great human being, but he is not (yet) a leader. Not even close.

I felt if we had showed up BA might keep some of the staff, but screw them, and to bring a lathargic act of football to National TV is pathetic. Allen has a helluave lot of work to bring this team back to being respectable.

Actually, I'm going to go ahead and say that he's not a leader.

I said it during the MNF thread, but I see a lot of parallels between his attitude and Chris Leak's attitude at UF before Urban Meyer showed up. Chris Leak was a quiet guy who chose to lead by example. He never complained, never got in anybody's face, and was content to play as hard as he could and do everything he could to help the team win.

For Urban Meyer (and the Gators' winning percentage), this wasn't enough.

Meyer immediately came in and challenged Leak's passion and willingness to be a vocal leader. As a leader, it's not enough to go out, play your hardest, and hope for the best. You have to go out, play your hardest, and make sure everybody around you plays their best, too. It took about a season for Chris Leak to come around, but when he did, we won a National Championship.

I don't expect Jason Campbell to get fired up for the two remaining games (no sense in confronting your teammates when the season is over and the main priority is, in all honesty, keeping everybody healthy).

So I say keep Jason Campbell. There's absolutely no reason why he can't become the complete-package leader this team desperately needs. We have a lot of "skill" issues that need to be addressed in the offseason, but keep in mind this team exposed and almost beat the Saints. It's the NFL, and everybody on this roster is in the top 1% of football players in this country.

So who is the leader? On offense, on defense, on special teams. Nobody.

There is NO player leadership on this team, and I don't see much coming from the coaching staff. This team, no matter if they are acquiring free agents or drafting players, has historically ignored the leadership/psychological aspect of this game. They insert players that are intended to address specific issues instead of inserting players who make the other 10 guys on the field play better. So as the other 10 players fail, we scream at Vinny Cerrato and Daniel Snyder, or we yell at a wide receiver spinning the ball during a 2-minute drill. This is bad veteran leadership and bad coaching.

The coaching will be addressed, but what about the players? Sometimes somebody needs to grab these guys by the facemask, and it can't always be a coach. Again, I just want everybody to make it to the end of the season unhurt. It would be a shame for somebody to get seriously hurt in a complete waste and a debacle of a season.

And Jason Campbell doesn't have to jump around and yell and grab people by the facemask. He DOES have to immediately be talking to them after they fail to chip a blitzer, or they run a go pattern when they should have run a crossing pattern. Campbell is a capable quarterback and a great human being, but he is not (yet) a leader. Not even close.

Kinda hard being the leader when the ownership clearly doesn't want you there.

It is better this way. THis way we do not get a false sense of improved play and the SKins can be assured a higher draft pick.
The one thing that cemented it for me and proves the players on this team except for maybe Haynesworth have losers mentality: when losing by three or more TD's, Santana Moss made a first down completion and spun the ball and started celebrating. Santana Moss YOU ARE AN IDIOT! You do not celebrate when losing that bad. Besides not having the talent, these players do not know what it means to be a winner.