Smoot Lays the Smack Down (Cowboys at Redskins)

Agreed 110%. Especially with all of our other problems to consider, and we're sitting here picking apart one of our better players.

I may have missed some "bashing" of Rak, but that's certainly not my intent. Like SirClintonPortis I'm pointing out that he's not winning his 1 on 1 matchups much of the time. Even Shanahan alluded to the pass rush being partly to blame for the 3rd & 15 when Hall took the blame.

He's definitely a cornerstone of this D, and I would go farther to say that re-signing him in the next couple years should be budgeted for now. I would not want to see him walk, but at the same time his game needs some evolution & he's capable of improving.

Maybe this is just a case of standards & expectations. As one of our best players & a no. 1 pick, we're expecting him to be great. Ditto for Landry.

I may have missed some "bashing" of Rak, but that's certainly not my intent. Like SirClintonPortis I'm pointing out that he's not winning his 1 on 1 matchups much of the time. Even Shanahan alluded to the pass rush being partly to blame for the 3rd & 15 when Hall took the blame.

He's definitely a cornerstone of this D, and I would go farther to say that re-signing him in the next couple years should be budgeted for now. I would not want to see him walk, but at the same time his game needs some evolution & he's capable of improving.

Maybe this is just a case of standards & expectations. As one of our best players & a no. 1 pick, we're expecting him to be great. Ditto for Landry.

He's certainly not above criticism, it just strikes me as a little odd how much time we've spent talking about him lately considering how many more glaring problems we have. I'd argue he has been a great player for us, just not great enough for some I guess.

I think the biggest loser yeterday was DeAngelo Hall.

He was the defender on Bryant's TD catch in the first quarter. He was beaten so badly that Atogwe was actually the closest defender.

He could not run down Jason Witten on that 60-yard TD play.

He was stone-cold punked by DeMarco Murray on a running play that the Skins needed to stuff to stall a Cowboys' drive. Murray hit him and carried him about 5 yards until help arrived.

He gave up the catch to Bryant that set up the field goal that ended the game.

Even if he had played perfectly for the rest of the game - - and he did not - - he was the defender who made a difference on the plays that decided the game. Problem is that he made a difference in the wrong direction.

Oh well, he can take solace in the fact that he has that $25M guarantee for his contract...
I just watched the highlights of the game and noticed that Hall was covering Robinson on that 7 yard TD pass in the 3rd quarter that tied the game at 17 each.

So he got torched by Witten, Bryant and Robinson in one game.

Esstenially, 21 of the 27 points the Cowboys scored were against Hall in coverage. Thats all 3 of Romo's TD's.

I just watched the highlights of the game and noticed that Hall was covering Robinson on that 7 yard TD pass in the 3rd quarter that tied the game at 17 each.

So he got torched by Witten, Bryant and Robinson in one game.

Esstenially, 21 of the 27 points the Cowboys scored were against Hall in coverage. Thats all 3 of Romo's TD's.

He wasn't covering Whitten or Robinson on those TDs, he came after them off of his man once the ball was in the air.

He wasn't covering Whitten or Robinson on those TDs, he came after them off of his man once the ball was in the air.


I swear Deangelo Hall is the most criticized redskin ever, he's our best CB by far on the team thats not saying much but who else are we going to throw at the number 1 spot???? Think people

Those guys I listed would be rated 90 out of 100. Orakpo would be lower, say 75 or 80 out of 100. You call this bashing? What am I supposed to do? Say he's better than Ware? That's bullshit.

Rak is just entering his 3rd season, Ware is something like a 7 or 8 year vet.

Ware - Rak
58 tkls, 8 sacks - 50 tkls, 11 sacks
73 tkls, 11.5 sacks - 56 tkls, 8.5 sacks

If all-pro, HOF players like Allen and Ware are 90s, Id say Rak is a solid 83-85 perennial probowler.

So what that Rak is a straight up one dimensional pass rusher like t suggs or d ware and not an all around backer like matthews or urlacher.

different peices to complete the puzzle. Rak, flethcher and kerrigan all fit and fill different needs. I do wish Haslett would move rak and kerrigan around some.

Given the choice between a 3rd year Rak or 7 year Ware going forward, Id take the younger Rak who has some of his best seasons right around the corner.

Better D personnel and more time in the system = Rak putting up bigger and bigger numbers. its just a matter of time b/c he has the physical tools and right mind state to be one of the best pass rushers in the league for the rest of the decade.

I just watched the highlights of the game and noticed that Hall was covering Robinson on that 7 yard TD pass in the 3rd quarter that tied the game at 17 each.

So he got torched by Witten, Bryant and Robinson in one game.

Esstenially, 21 of the 27 points the Cowboys scored were against Hall in coverage. Thats all 3 of Romo's TD's.

Hall was only covering Bryant. I don't know about the Witten TD, but in the Robinson TD, Wilson was the one covering him not Hall. If you see the play, you will notice Wilson running behind Robinson trying to catch up to him. Romo did a good job of putting the ball in a spot where Robinson could catch it before Hall or Wilson got there (yeah I just threw up in my mouth a little).

The way I see it, both of our starting CBs gave up a TD each, and the entire secondary f'ed up with the Witten TD. In the end, the team is going to need to figure out how to make the secondary work or see what changes in players AND scheme need to happen to make this unit successful next season.

The Whitten TD was on Riley, but I don't expect Riley to cover Whitten for that long.

The Bryant TD was on Hall and Otagwe. Otagwe was having a bagel and was waaayyyy late on his deep third protection

Would witten have scored that TD if landry was on the field?

Yes or No.

Would witten have scored that TD if landry was on the field?

Yes or No.

I doubt it would have made a difference because it was a total breakdown in coverage. Maybe Landry could have stopped him, since he's bigger than our CBs...but Witten caught that ball in stride and just took off.