Tag: Washington Redskins (Page 44 of 44)

Redskins turn in brutal first half

I don’t know what’s worse, my prediction that the Redskins would keep their game tonight with the Giants close, or Washington’s first half performance.

At the half, the Giants lead the Skins 16-7 and the only reason the game is that close is because Washington got a big kickoff return right before half and Jason Campbell was able to find Santana Moss for a touchdown on a drag route.

You figured it would take Campbell and the offense time before they learned Jim Zorn’s West Coast Offense, but they didn’t even complete their first pass tonight until 28 minutes and 50 seconds into the game. That’s ridiculous.

Eli Manning has picked up right where he left off in last year’s postseason while Plaxico Burress is abusing Washington’s secondary. The G-Men’s running game also looks outstanding and the defense has shown no ill-effects of losing both Michael Strahan and Osi Umenyiora, although a lot of that has to do with how bad the Skins’ offense looked outside of the final two minutes of the half.

Hopefully the second half will be tighter and fans will get a better opening game to the season. Either way, football is back on my television and that feels damn good.

Redskins at Giants Game Preview, Prediction

The 2008 NFL Season kicks off Thursday night as the Washington Redskins travel to New York to take on the defending Super Bowl champion Giants.

Game Time: 7:00pm ET on NBC
Spread: Giants –4.5

Eli ManningGame Preview:
The Giants that host the Redskins tonight will look quite different from the team that beat the Patriots in the Super Bowl this January. Gone are defensive end Michael Strahan (retired), tight end Jeremy Shockey (trade/Saints) and safety Gibril Wilson (free agent/Raiders). The team also suffered a huge blow when it lost defensive end Osi Umenyiora to a season ending knee injury during preseason. But the offense remains largely intact led by quarterback Eli Manning and a power running game featuring Brandon Jacobs. Even though he complained about his contract much of the offseason, Plaxico Burress also returns to give Manning a deep threat in the passing game.

The Redskins meanwhile, are in a transition phase as head coach Jim Zorn takes over for Joe Gibbs. Zorn will usher in the West Coast Offense and while quarterback Jason Campbell is expected to struggle while learning the nuances of the new system, word out of Washington is that his development has been good up to this point. Campbell will be joined by running back Clinton Portis in the backfield, as well as receiver Santana Moss and tight end Chris Cooley in the passing game. The defense received a much-needed boost in the pass rush department when the team traded for former Dolphins’ defensive end Jason Taylor.

Jason CampbellOutlook:
Assuming Taylor can play (he’s listed as questionable), the Redskins will need him and the rest of the front seven to get pressure on Manning. If the Skins can disrupt Manning and the rest of the Giants’ offense, they should be in good shape. The Giants love to use play action fakes to suck opposing safeties to the line and then go over top to Burress and his fellow receivers. As for the Skins offensively, expect Zorn to keep things simple by running Portis and working the short to intermediate passing game so Campbell doesn’t have to win the game on his own. It’ll be interesting to see how effective the Giants’ defense can be without Strahan and Umenyiora on the line. Justin Tuck is an emerging star so he should still be able to get pressure on Campbell, but Mathias Kiwanuka has to make the transition from linebacker back to defensive end and it might take time before he can be disruptive.

Prediction: Giants 17, Redskins 13. Something tells me this will be a low scoring game seeing as how it’s the opener and it’s a division rivalry.

Be sure to check back during the game for discussion and analysis.

Couch Potato Alert: 9/1

Things are looking up sports fans! With the return of college football, and the NFL kicking off this week, there won’t be a shortage of games to watch on TV this week.

Plaxico– The NFL season kicks off this Thursday when the Washington Redskins travel to the Meadowlands to take on defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants. The game will be televised on NBC at 7:00 PM Eastern. Be sure to tune in!

– The fourth round of the U.S. Open will be shown on CBS on Labor Day from 11:00 AM Eastern, to 6:00 PM Eastern. That’s a whole lot of tennis!

– Speaking of Labor Day, ESPN will be airing a couple college football games on the holiday. Tune in at 4:00 PM Eastern as Fresno State @ Rutgers, and then again at 8:00 PM Eastern to see Tennessee travels to UCLA. Be sure to check ESPNU and other sports networks to see if any games are airing.

– The Tampa Bay Rays will try to stay ahead in the AL East when they get a visit from the New York Yankees on Wednesday. The game can be seen on ESPN at 7:00 PM Eastern.

– “Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Dallas Cowboys” will air it’s finale this Wednesday night at 10:00 PM Eastern on HBO. Expect an inside look at how the coaches decide who’s good enough to make the roster, and who’s not. Also: In my last Couch Potato Alert, I said there were six episodes. I stand corrected, this will be the fifth and final one.

– The ole’ ball coach, Steve Spurrier, will lead his Gamecocks against Vanderbilt this Thursday at 8:30 PM Eastern. The game can be seen on ESPN.

Jason Taylor, Osi Umenyiora suffer knee injuries

Jason Taylor of the Washington Redskins limped off the field Saturday night in a preseason game against the Panthers and then had to be carted to the locker room with an apparent right knee sprain.

Also, the Giants’ Osi Umenyiora was carted off the field in New York’s game against the Jets because of a left knee injury.

Jason Taylor – Right Knee Sprain
That’s all the Skins are saying for now. It certainly looked bad and the Pro Bowler was writhing in pain on the field and on the sidelines. We shall see if we get an update later. He was being evaluated on the sidelines and was carted off to the medical room a moment ago.

Umenyiora was getting an X-ray and the extent of the injury was not immediately known.

The 26-year-old, six-year veteran could not put any weight on his leg. He was helped off the field with his arms wrapped around the shoulders of two trainers.

Bad night for defensive ends.

Football is back! Colt Brennan looks sharp in Redskins’ win over Colts

Peyton Manning didn’t even play, Joseph Addai carried the ball just one time and in the end, the game meant absolutely nothing to the 2008 NFL Standings. But damn it, football was on my TV last night and it brought a smile to my face.

The Washington Redskins topped the Indianapolis Colts 30-16 in the Hall of Fame Game Sunday night. Redskins’ starter Jason Campbell was efficient, completing all five of his pass attempts for 61 yards and a touchdown. Rookie running back Marcus Mason also added 98 yards on 18 carries.

But the most impressive player of the night had to be former Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan, who completed 9 of 10 passes for 123 yards and two touchdowns. Sure, he did all of that against guys that won’t even be in the league come this time next month, but it was nevertheless impressive for a guy that saw his draft stock plummet in April.

Brennan has been criticized for his lack of durability, throwing motion and the fact that he played in Hawaii’s pass-happy system and therefore wouldn’t be able to pick up an NFL offense. But at least for one night Brennan was outstanding and maybe he’ll be a player teams will regret taking in the earlier rounds because they were worried about everything else besides if he could play the game or not.

Or Brennan played well in a meaningless game and in the end it won’t translate to anything. Either way, I’m sure as hell glad football is back in our lives for another season.

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