First place Redskins

Gruden has one road win in his tenure...sample is big enough to say this is a reasonable concern.

If the question is whether we can stay in first place, it's kind of stupid to lump last year into it, isn't it? Different QB situation, different GM, it makes no sense.

Last year we weren't good enough to beat anybody and has really no bearing on our likelihood to stay in first place for the rest of this season.

We've got 3 road games remaining but they're not against strong teams like our games to date have been.

https://cdn1.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/UtWVhHygy6BSSnx5rBS-3dHzVmE=/0x0:1000x667/2400x1600/cdn0.vox-cdn.com/assets/435686/356929.jpg

WE WANT DALLAS!!

If the question is whether we can stay in first place, it's kind of stupid to lump last year into it, isn't it? Different QB situation, different GM, it makes no sense.

Last year we weren't good enough to beat anybody and has really no bearing on our likelihood to stay in first place for the rest of this season.

We've got 3 road games remaining but they're not against strong teams like our games to date have been.

I don't know if it makes no sense...I think its very noticeable fact of a team which has struggled and a coaching staff which quite frankly has been under whelming. Its about message, motivation, game plan with the coaching staff and.... with Cousins its all about keeping confidence being a leader.

check the bell curve too with the Pats and Panthers record, 2 best teams in the league no question with only 1 loss...kinda skewing the W-L record.

Cousins only road win starting a game was Cleveland in 2012...

Let me spin this: We been one of the best home teams this year...and protecting home is more important than on the road.

Lets see how we finish..its about improving at this point

I don't know if it makes no sense...I think its very noticeable fact of a team which has struggled and a coaching staff which quite frankly has been under whelming. Its about message, motivation, game plan with the coaching staff and.... with Cousins its all about keeping confidence being a leader.

check the bell curve too with the Pats and Panthers record, 2 best teams in the league no question with only 1 loss...kinda skewing the W-L record.

Cousins only road win starting a game was Cleveland in 2012...

Let me spin this: We been one of the best home teams this year...and protecting home is more important than on the road.

Lets see how we finish..its about improving at this point

OK so basically you're not saying much on topic. As usual.

This thread is not a referendum on Gruden's performance as head coach which you are wont to do, it's about first place. If you're going to talk about our ability to finish in first like we are right now, you have to look at our chances in the five games coming up, which includes the three on the road.

What I'm saying is simple. We've got a bad road record because our opponents have been New England, Carolina, New York Jets and Giants (we never play well in the Meadowlands), and Atlanta. The only one with a losing record is the Giants, and barely. Our upcoming road opponents are garbage in comparison.

The opponent is the much more meaningful factor than the location.

With a headline/story like this: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/eli-manning-s-horrendous-game-makes-nfc-east-even-murkier-215012460.html

You'd think we had just upset a 7-3 NYG football team. The Giants were a 5-5 team, have looked just as mediocre as every other team in this division at times this season, yet the reaction to them losing on the road to the 'Skins seems to be disbelief against a lot of these sports writers.

We're a better team than last year. At this point it's all we can ask for.

In order to finish first we have to win on the road. As Schneed and I pointed out, that may not be the issue around our losses, as much as quality of our away opponents. But let me throw this out, mainly for Chico and others who put it on the coaching - At the beginning of the year we had several team based issues that Gruden was at fault for. Penalties, lack of motivation after the half, poor scheme, unable to win on the road, and prime time games.
I think that we've seen multiple games now where the Skins played all 4 quarters, and were able to come out motivated to win.
We certainly have reduced our penalties considerably from the first few games, and if we can get JReed to not grab jerseys it would really be a non-issue.
Scheme always will be in the eye of the beholder, but our offense does appear to be capable of consistently putting up points, and our redzone play is better imo.

so that really leaves the road issue and prime time games. I think we have seen the Skins chip away at these issues one piece at a time, and the last 5 games will offer chances to move past even more.

And IF we win the division, our first game likely will be against the Seahawks. Just one more hurdle for the Skins to get past.

Soon, I may start drinking the kool-aid again.

OK so basically you're not saying much on topic. As usual.

This thread is not a referendum on Gruden's performance as head coach which you are wont to do, it's about first place. If you're going to talk about our ability to finish in first like we are right now, you have to look at our chances in the five games coming up, which includes the three on the road.

What I'm saying is simple. We've got a bad road record because our opponents have been New England, Carolina, New York Jets and Giants (we never play well in the Meadowlands), and Atlanta. The only one with a losing record is the Giants, and barely. Our upcoming road opponents are garbage in comparison.

The opponent is the much more meaningful factor than the location.

Our performance on the road has been dreadful regardless of opponent. 4 of these were fucking blowouts...out coached and unprepared. In the Atlanta game we were mostly steaming pile on offense for 3 quarters.

Look gruden and cousins Have Not performed well on the road...this isn't speculation but historical fact. this is a hurdle the team needs to get over by winning...gruden and team needs to show me they can.

I am of the opinion that we win the division with 8 wins, which means we have to win 3 of our last 5.

Dallas twice
Eagles
Bears
Bills

I see 5 "winnable" games right there, although I don't think we are the kind of team that is going to go out and pull off a table run kind of end to the season.

With the caliber of opponents left on our schedule I don't really think 4-1 is unreasonable to hope for. I wouldn't say "expect" but I do think the team is good enough to win each of these games looking at them individually and all these teams could be mentally checked out by the time we play them as well.

In order to finish first we have to win on the road. As Schneed and I pointed out, that may not be the issue around our losses, as much as quality of our away opponents. But let me throw this out, mainly for Chico and others who put it on the coaching - At the beginning of the year we had several team based issues that Gruden was at fault for. Penalties, lack of motivation after the half, poor scheme, unable to win on the road, and prime time games.
I think that we've seen multiple games now where the Skins played all 4 quarters, and were able to come out motivated to win.
We certainly have reduced our penalties considerably from the first few games, and if we can get JReed to not grab jerseys it would really be a non-issue.
Scheme always will be in the eye of the beholder, but our offense does appear to be capable of consistently putting up points, and our redzone play is better imo.

so that really leaves the road issue and prime time games. I think we have seen the Skins chip away at these issues one piece at a time, and the last 5 games will offer chances to move past even more.

And IF we win the division, our first game likely will be against the Seahawks. Just one more hurdle for the Skins to get past.

Soon, I may start drinking the kool-aid again.

We still have those issues, just the Giants played worst and unispired. I think Gruden call more complex and deeper route plays last year. We move the ball better on the road last year than this year. We still got players getting stupid uniform fines, giving up 4th down completion, commenting basic stupid penalties, and not putting up more points. You ask me we better b/c we playing worse teams than last year