Those Plays

Not one of those plays

The Redskins could not get into the end zone from the one yard line in week three against the Giants on three attempts, a short pass to Mike Sellers and two Ladell Betts runs. Does anyone else remember the Cowboys home game last season?

To open that game the Redskins drove right down the field to the Cowboys five and then tried seven times, three downs plus four more after a Dallas penalty, seven plays, six of them runs, four of them from the two yard line or shorter and nothing. The Redskins went for it on fourth down with the score nothing nothing from the Cowboys one yard line and got nothing.

Why do I bring that up? That different circumstance, at the beginning of a game when knocking your head against a wall and leaving three points on the field ultimately didn't hurt you (but only because Sean Taylor picked up Troy Vincent's field goal block and was facemasked by the Cowboys' Kyle Kosier) in the context of this one, when the game was on the line and you needed a touchdown and nothing else would work?

Because I see the same flaws in playcalling. As a playcaller you have to have those plays. The ones in your back pocket, those five to ten plays that you call when you absolutely need something to happen, whether it's 4th and 9 at midfield or third and goal from the one, those plays that are just different enough that you can't scout them but familiar enough that the team can run them. They're the plays that always work because that's how you coach them.

You can't run those plays every game, or even once a game when you don't need it. And you never need it before the third quarter. Those plays are fourth quarter only plays.

Andy Reid has those plays. Bill Walsh had those plays.

It's not enough to line up in the Joe Gibbs manner, telegraph inside run, then run inside and get stuffed and say, well we just didn't execute. You have to whip out one of those plays and make it happen.



Ladell Betts not one of those plays: Greg Fiume / Getty Images from here.