Game 15: Redskins (7-7) vs. Eagles (8-5-1)

vs.

Out of the box: two teams mathematically still in the hunt as the Eagles travel to Washington to play a 4pm ET game, desperation can make a team weak or strong.

=====

The story so far: the Redskins were all but eliminated from the playoff hunt after last week's very disappointing loss to the then 1-11-1 Bengals. Go back to when you were a kid and remember that last time your parents looked at you with that stern sadness and told you how... disappointed we are with you. Was it when you got caught skipping school? Or maybe you had a party when your folks were away and they found out. Remember how sad you were that you got caught? Yeah that is how I feel about the Redskins right now, we caught them sucking and after everything we thought they had learned we thought they could do so much better.

And that is the funny part, even after that miserable loss, which I had the misfortune to witness in person, the Redskins are still in the playoff picture, see the aside below for more detail.

So anyway the season is coming to a rapid end and the team is starting to go through all those gyrations teams go through at the end of a season. Murmurs of quote executive decisions unquote and non coaching team personnel stewarding players and coaches through press conferences and availabilities, strange choices about starters, speculation about the coach, it is all in the life of the Redskins at the end of the season.

For his part, head coach Jim Zorn is doing his best not to be defined by the apocalyptic media coverage, I think he has recognized that he hit the wall at midseason, has recognized his own limits and also knows he can get better, just probably not now, he will attack his first full offseason and come back next season as a better manager. No coach, despite what the haters and dickheads think, you are not the worst coach in the world, it is a sign of intelligence that coach Zorn can be down on himself and still enjoy what his is doing. I think speculation about coach Zorn being fired is silly and this week Vinny Cerrato appeared to concur.

On the player side, Fred Smoot and Carlos Rogers sat out most of the Bengals game, Fred had no explanation and Carlos had some mysterious stomach illness that I did not really read about last week. Shawn Springs and DeAngelo Hall started and went the distance and will today (op. cit.), I think this is the most obvious example of the team trying players out for next year. Shawn is under contract for next season, but with a cap number of 8.5 million dollars. DeAngelo will be a free agent, having signed before week ten against the Cowboys, he would like to stay in Washington but could command a large contract based on his performance with the Redskins. I think the team is putting them out as the starting pair to evaluate which they would rather keep, Shawn becomes affordable to cut this offseason but only if there is an upgrade elsewhere at cornerback. Carlos is a player and has improved steadily in four years, Fred is what he is, a solid number three corner but weak number two.

The other player of interest that is suddenly sitting is weakside linebacker Rocky McIntosh, all of a sudden after the Bengals game the talk was about knee problems and his body wearing down (op. cit.), I would probably agree that Rocky has been less productive in recent weeks than at the beginning of the season, but I am not sure I agree that he has disappeared. With HB Blades and training camp signee Alfred Fincher on the roster, I think the team is trying to see what they have for the future, if Rocky is injury prone the team could make a move, Marcus Washington is sadly on his way out and the team needs to know what it has.

Yes this means I am wondering if the Redskins put the best players possible on the field last week.

Tis the season for wondering about the future, 34 year old two season Redskin right guard Pete Kendall is a free agent after the season (op. cit.) and Jason Taylor wonders if he may not be worth his eight million dollars due next season. Little help from the peanut gallery, he is not.

And all the crap about Jason Campbell needing to be benched is just wrong. He is our guy and let us get him a big contract.

Hey, whatever happened with those rookie pass catchers?

=====

Curly R aside: RIP Sammy Baugh, the greatest Redskin ever.

Curly R aside continues: here is your week sixteen Redskins playoff scenario: first of all the Cowboys losing last night was good. They and the other teams, the Buccaneers, Falcons and Eagles need to lose out and the Redskins need to win their last two games. This would make a four way tie at 9-7 and somehow the Redskins win a tiebreaker and get in. I promise readers that if the Redskins win today, I will break down the week seventeen playoff scenario. Not to be defeatist or anything but let us look at the bright side, the Redskins have fallen apart in the second half of this season and are still in the postseason hunt in the next to last week.

=====

Oppo research: after being benched in the second half of a loss to the Ravens a month ago Donovan McNabb has come back strong and the Eagles have put together a three game win streak. In 2006 Philadelphia put together a five game run to at the end with the fabulous Jeff Garcia, to make the playofs. In 2007 the Eagles won their final three but missed the playoffs. It happens every season just when Eagles fans are done with their team, they reel off a stretch of wins to make everyone forget what chumps Donovan and Andy Reid are.

Brian Westbrook, he has a way of torturing the Redskins. Could happen again today.

=====

Trainer's table: the Redskins are banged up but getting a lot of players back this week. Today is the last Redskins home game and there are players out there today that will not be here next season. Anyone that can walk will try and be in this game (ibid.) and I hope that includes Clinton Portis who this week added back to his list of body parts that hurt (op. cit.).

=====

Gameplan: with the propensity of the Redskins to give up points early then let teams close out games from ahead with long drives, Washington's defense is struggling tactically despite being a statistical leader. If the Eagles can continue that streak, the Redskins offense will be under what is likely too much pressure to win the game. Washington's offense is the 29th ranked scoring offense in the league, only Oakland, St. Louis and Cincinnati score less per game than Washington. A little more Chris Cooley in the red zone is what the doctor ordered.

=====

My take in 60 words or less: win teh gaem!!!1!

=====

Washington Post / AP preview, Gameday (PDF), the Zorn Zone, keys to the game, what it means for each team. Redskins roster, injury report, projected starters. Eagles roster, injury report. Broadcast coverage, how embarrasing that Atlanta-Minnesota rates a larger audience than this game. SkinsCast weather, it is going to be cold and shitty but the forecast has steadily improved through the week.

Enjoy yourselves kids, I will be at the game today, my fifth and final Redskins game of the season, with neighbors and lifetime Eagles fan, season ticket holder and Curly R reader/lurker Wilbert Montgomery, this will be our 19th of the past 20 Redskins-Eagles games in both cities, a streak going back to 1999. This will be my 17th straight contest between these two teams.


This is a gameday open thread.



NFL helmet logos from here.