Skins Get Much Needed Win

   This past Sunday, the Skins got another victory, putting them at 3-5 for the season. This time it came in the form of a win at home over the now 4-4 San Diego Chargers. It was another exciting, down to the last minute game, which ended up being decided in overtime. The final score of the game was 24-30. 

   The game started with the Redskins getting a couple of early defensive stops. The Chargers, on their second second punt of the game, pinned Washington on their own 1-yard line. Despite having the worst possible field position, RGIII led the Redskins on a long drive deep into Charger territory, taking up the majority of the first quarter. This drive, despite its impressive length, ended up pointless, as the Chargers were able to block Forbath's field goal attempt.

   The second quarter was the first quarter to see any points go up on the board. It began with the Redskins being pinned on their own 1-yard line once again by the Charger's punting team. On the first play of the drive, Griffin's pass was tipped, and landed in opposing lineman Sean Lissemore's hands. Lissemore was already standing in the end zone when he intercepted the ball. The next score came after Rivers threw an interception. The shorter drive, which was aided by a facemask penalty, ended in a 5 yard scoring run by Morris. The Chargers were able to score one more time in the first half, with a pass to Royal to score with under a minute left.

   The second half opened up with a Redskins defensive stop. On the resulting drive, the Skins went 74 yards for a TD. This drive was marked by a 38 yard reception by Pierre Garçon, who ended up with more than 170 yards. The scoring play came on a 1-yard run by Young. The Chargers were unable to respond to the TD, making it the only score of the third quarter.

   To start the fourth, the Redskins had the ball deep in Charger territory. They were able to quickly get Young into the end zone for his second score of the game. Next, Rivers threw an interception to Amerson, and the Redskins capitalized with a goal, putting them up 24-14. The Chargers responded to these scores with a Rivers to Allen completion for a 16-yard TD. The Chargers then forced the Redskins to punt, and had the ball with more than two minutes, three timeouts, and only a three point deficit. They drove down the field, and on a critical 4th and 2 situation, converted on a 22 yard pass to Allen. Quickly after, Woodhead caught the ball in the backfield, ran, and dove for the end zone. It was ruled a touchdown on the field, but after review, he was ruled down inside the 1-yard line. The Redskins made an impressive goal line stand and held the Chargers to a 4th down field goal, which tied the game. 

Overtime ended pretty quickly. The Redskins got the ball to start, and on a drive including a 17-yard catch by Garçon which was aided by a personal foul for hitting Garçon, Young scored his 3rd TD of the game

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Redskins Continue Upward Trend

    The Redskins, over the past two weeks have continued their upward trend. They did go 1-1, but one of those games was against the Broncos. Defensively, we could have done better, but offensively, we managed to put up 66 points over two weeks. This is especially impressive because the skins were finally able to put up points in the first half, something they have really struggled with in the first few weeks of the season.

    The game against the bears was a down to the last minute nail-biter. Roy Helu, with only 45 seconds remaining, ran in for his third touchdown of the day. This score gave a 4 point lead to the Redskins, who were able to prevent the Bears from scoring in the last few moments of the game. This game was one of the highest scoring this season, with 86 combined points. While this doesn't reflect very well on defense, it shows that the skins have come a long way on offense.

    The following week, in their game against the Broncos, the Redskins did not look quite as good. They started the game well, holding the Broncos to seven points in the first half, which they were able to match just before halftime. After a very short time into the third, the redskins looked like they could be only the second team to defeat the Broncos. They got great field position off of a Peyton Manning fumble, which Morris capitalized on in a 1-yard TD run. Next, Deangelo Hall returned an interception for a touchdown. Going into the second half, the Redskins were almost immediately up 21-7.

   That's when Peyton Manning began to play like Peyton Manning. In the third quarter he managed to get his team down into the end zone, making it a one-score game. In the fourth quarter, the Broncos scored 31 points, the Redskins scored zero. The Broncos scored on three Manning passes, a Prater field goal, and a 75-yard Rodgers-Cromartie interception return.

   Worst of all for Redskins fans, Robert Griffin III was hurt late in the game on Sunday. The good news is that Griffin suffered only a minor knee injury, and could have returned, but was held out because of the score. Griffin, on that play, threw his second pick of the day. Cousins, who replaced him, also threw two picks.

Redskins Looking Competent

   This weekend, the Redskins were finally able to put together a respectable game. In fact, they looked more like the team that everyone was hoping they would be to start the season. The Redskins were able to outscored the Raiders 24-14 this weekend in Oakland.

   Initially, the game seemed like it was going to turn out the same way as all the other games when they went down 14-0 in the first quarter. The Raiders, for the first score of the game recovered a blocked punt for a TD in the end zone. The Raiders then went on to score a TD on an 81 yard drive led by Matt Flynn. By the end of the first quarter the game did not look good for the Redskins.

   The next score in the game came when the Redskins drove down the field and kicked a 25 yard field goal. Next Matt Flynn threw an interception to Amerson, which was returned 45 yards for the touchdown. By the end of the half, it was 10-14 and the Redskins looked dominant. 

   In the next quarter, the only scoring play was a 5 yard pass from RG3 to Garçon. The last score of the game, which came in the fourth was the 14 yard run by Roy Helu, who came in when Morris left with bruised ribs. The Redskins ended up winning 24-14, not allowing a score outside of the first quarter. 

   The Redskins most impressive performance came on the defensive side of the ball. The Redskins had constant pressure on Matt Flynm, who they managed to sack seven times. The defense also had an interception, a fumble recovery, and a touchdown. Finally, the Redskins' defense only allowed one score by the Raiders, which came early on in the game. The Redskins defense created opportunities for their offense, and made the Redskins look like a respectable team for the first time this year.

Future Schedule

   The Redskins lost to the Green Bay Packers this weekend. They, like in the Eagles game, we're generally outplayed and especially outscored early in the game. By the end of the first half the score was 24-0 packers, and at the end of the third quarter, 38-7. The Redskins, once again, only played respectfully in the fourth quarter, in which they outscored the Packers 13-0.
   Next week, the Redskins are at Fedex Field to play the 1-1 Lions.While this will be a slightly easier matchup than the Packers, it will still be a tough game. The Lions so far this season have beaten the Vikings in week 1, but lost to the Cardinals in week 2. The Lions are definitely a beatable team, and if the Redskins can put together a coherent game, they present a good opportunity for the Redskins to get their first win of the year.
   If we can't beat Detroit, we will have a shot in the following two weeks, when we play the Raiders, then the Cowboys. Winning this week would be key, as it will allow us to jump to 3-2 with a win in the next few easier games. If the Redskins could do that, there is a great chance they will be able to get their season back on track.
   This past weekend, the Skins didn't prove they could do much. Despite a solid rushing performance by Morris, and 300 plus passing yards for RGIII, they just couldn't reach the end zone. Defensively, the Redskins were unable to stop Rodgers and his Green Bay offense. Rodgers finished the game with 480 passing yards, and Starks had 132 yards on the ground. It was, according to the Packers, the first time a team had a 400 yard passer and a 125 yard rusher in the same game.
   There is comfort in the game from last weekend in that the Rodgers is capable of putting up excellent numbers against most defenses in the league. Also, towards the end of the game, it was nice to see that the Redskins do know how to get to the other side of the field, even if they don't do it that often.
   The key to getting our season back on track is capitalizing on the next three games, and gaining momentum for some of the tougher games to come.

 

Redskins off to a Rusty Start



Monday night seemed to have started off great for the Skins, with an early defensive touchdown off a missed backward screen pass by Vick. The problem for the skins came when the needed to score again. The weren't able to get back into the end zone until the next half, and after a painful couple of quarters. The redskins were simply out played by Vick and Chip Kelly, with their fast paced option offense.
RGIII looked out of practice, missing some easy throws, scared to run, and throwing 2 preventable interceptions, both of which the eagles were able to quickly capitalize on. When asked about being rusty in an interview with the Washington Post he said "I think it's an excuse, I'm responsible for the way I play." The redskins were able to pull it together some in the second half, where they looked a bit more like the NFC east leaders from last year.
In he second half, RGIII countered out his two interceptions with two touchdowns, leading the redskins to outscore the eagles 20-7 in the half. The Skins also out gained the Eagles as their offense seemed to be slowing down, with Vick limping toward the end.  In the end, the Redskins lost 27-33, in a game that was probably closer than it should have been based on the way they played in the first half.
The good news for Redskins fans is that we weren't the only team out there who looked rusty, the defending Super Bowl champs gave up 7 touchdowns to the broncos, and the Giants turned the ball over 6 times against a team who had 16 takeaways all of last season. While the bad performance by the Redskins may have started off the week poorly, I doubt it means much regarding the rest of the season.

Welcome

Hello, welcome to my blog.
   Starting with this post, I'll be blogging about the Washington Redskins through the 2013-2014 football season. I'll be tracking breaking news, their schedule, scores, stats, roster, anything that I think is important and relevant to the Redskins.
   To start, I'll talk about our opening game with our hated rival the Eagles. There is some speculation out there that Vick will be making a comeback this year under former Oregon coach Chip Kelly. But, with RG3 confirmed to be starting in the season opener, there doesn't seem to be much hope for the returning 4-12 Eagles. The Redskins have the advantage not only in quarterback, but in continuity as well. The entirety of the Redskins main cast is returning for the first time this year, while the Eagles have had major staff and player changes.
   Next, my prediction for the 2013 season. The Redskins went 10-6 last year, and though I believe they have improved since last year, as well as having the advantage of continuity that they haven't had in a number of years, I believe that they will repeat their 10-6 season from last year, possibly improving by one game to 11-5. I don't think they could do much better considering their schedule, there are a number of games that seem fairly easy, but the Skins don't always play their best against bad teams. Also they have a few tough games against teams like the Packers and the Broncos., I think they will make it 2 weeks in the playoffs, but I can'tsay they will make it any further.
   Finally my personal prediction for RG3. I believe that he may not run as much as last year, but hat he will avoid injury altogether. After what happened last year, Shanahan will not allow RG3 to be in too many dangerous situations. I expect an increase in passing stats and a slight decrease in rushing stats for RG3, with an overall improvement.