Tag: Washington Redskins (Page 9 of 44)

      Kudos to the Redskins for suspending Albert Haynesworth

      December 7, 2010 /
      GLENDALE, AZ - SEPTEMBER 02: Defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth of the Washington Redskins stands on the sidelines during preseason NFL game against the Arizona Cardinals at the University of Phoenix Stadium on September 2, 2010 in Glendale, Arizona. The Cardinals defeated the Redskins 20-10. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

      When it comes to the ongoing battle between Albert Haynesworth and the Redskins (especially head coach Mike Shanahan), I often feel as though the team should just cut its losses and move on. After all, Haynesworth doesn’t want to play for Shanahan, he doesn’t want to play in a 3-4 and obviously he’ll continue to be a distraction until he gets out of D.C.

      But after giving it more thought, I actually like how the Redskins are handling the situation. Haynesworth reportedly showed up hungover to Friday’s practice and he also missed a team meeting. He apparently told GM Bruce Allen on Monday that he’s no longer speaking to Shanahan, who issued a statement saying that Haynesworth “refused to play in our base defense or on first-down or second-down nickel situations” and “refused to follow the instructions of our coaches both during weekly practices and during actual games.”

      So the Redskins suspended him the final four games of the season without pay. Haynesworth will no doubt appeal the suspension and he may win after the NFLPA makes a case that the Redskins have no basis to stop paying him. But no matter how this situation ends (his tenure in Washington is almost surely over), kudus to the Skins for not giving in to what Haynesworth ultimately wants (i.e. to be released).

      Shanahan has a massive ego and he is partly to blame for the way things turned out. Could he have handled the situation better and maybe turned a negative into a positive? Yes, but that ship has sailed now. It’s time for the Skins to put up a collective front.

      They’ve already paid Haynesworth $36.5 million for two seasons and he’s done very little to earn that money. So why reward him by cutting him and giving him the opportunity to play elsewhere? If the Redskins aren’t getting what they want (i.e. a productive defensive tackle who doesn’t moonlight as a pain in the ass), why should he get what he wants?

      Chances are this situation won’t go down smoothly but I applaud the Redskins for digging in their heels and not releasing him. Granted, it may be a stubborn move and let’s not overlook the fact that this is all Daniel Snyder’s fault for paying this guy millions of dollars upfront when Haynesworth had a history of being a malcontent. But at this point, I like what the Skins are doing.

      External Sports, NFL

      If Vick stays healthy, sky’s the limit for Eagles

      November 16, 2010 /
      Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Michael Vick throws against the Washington Redskins in the first half of their NFL football game in Landover, Maryland November 15, 2010. REUTERS/Jason Reed (UNITED STATES - Tags: SPORT FOOTBALL)

      Washington’s defense isn’t exactly the cream of the crop but that doesn’t change the fact that Michael Vick was simply amazing in the Eagles’ 59-28 victory on Monday Night Football.

      Vick completed 20-of-28 passes for 333 yards with four touchdowns and also added 80 rushing yards on eight carries with two more scores. He threw an 88-yard bomb to DeSean Jackson on the opening play of the game and then proceeded to lead the Eagles to a 35-0 lead early in the second quarter. While the Redskins scored a couple of times to show their fans that they were still breathing, Philly was in complete control.

      The law of averages will eventually catch up to Vick. It has to. No quarterback can sustain the performance that he’s turning in right now, but he can certainly continue to help the Eagles stockpile wins. When you look at the top six teams in the NFL, some are going to have Vick in the No. 1 slot given what he did on Monday night (coupled with how bad the Giants looked against the Cowboys on Sunday).

      But he has to stay healthy. He’s already missed several games this season because of a rib injury and he’s not going to change the way he plays. If he sees a lane, he’s going to take off and run – as he should. He has improved dramatically as a passer since his days in Atlanta, but he’s still going to pull the ball down and run 5-10 times a game and that opens him up to injury.

      That said, he’s been phenomenal and if he can stay consistent then the Eagles are legitimate Super Bowl contenders. They have a huge game this Sunday against the Giants and an entire second half, but their victory in D.C. Monday night proved that this is a team to be reckoned with.

      External Sports, NFL

      Redskins shockingly give Donovan McNabb a $78 million extension

      November 15, 2010 /
      PHILADELPHIA - OCTOBER 03: Donovan McNabb of the Washington Redskins celebrates after throwing a first quater touchdown pass against the Philadelphia Eagles on October 3, 2010 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

      Leave it to the Redskins to make a decision that not only sends shockwaves through the NFL, but also leaves everyone questioning whether or not owner Daniel Snyder has a fully functioning brain.

      The Redskins agreed to terms with quarterback Donovan McNabb on a five-year, $78 million contract extension though 2015. This is the same McNabb that was benched for Rex Grossman two weeks ago in Detroit because Mike Shanahan believed he wasn’t physically fit enough to run the two-minute offense. This is the same McNabb that has thrown more interceptions than touchdowns this year, has posted his lowest completion percentage since 2006 and who reportedly has been extremely slow to pick up Shanahan’s offense.

      Oh, and he’s also set to become 34 at the end of the month.

      Maybe the Redskins know something we don’t. Maybe McNabb drank from the fountain of youth recently and he’s about to lead the Redskins on a miracle second half run that nets them a playoff berth and a Super Bowl victory. Maybe people will look back at Washington’s decision and deem it the greatest personnel move in the history of football.

      Or maybe, and this seems more likely, McNabb will post very average numbers over the next couple of years and he’ll never see the end of this contract. Maybe Snyder (or Bruce Allen, or whoever is making the final decisions in D.C. now) once again overpaid a player and when the new CBA deal is signed, his team will permanently have a place reserved in cap hell.

      I’m a McNabb fan but he hasn’t earned this raise. He’s not working with much, but how can the Redskins build a decent core around him if they’re paying him $78 million over the next five years?

      And why now? Why not wait to see if McNabb starts to play better before you sign him to an enormous extension? He wasn’t good enough to beat out Rex Grossman for the opportunity to run your two-minute offense but he’s worth $78 million? I don’t get it.

      Again, this could all work well for the Redskins but I severely doubt it. And if McNabb is worth $78 million, what will Michael Vick or Peyton Manning command next March?

      External Sports, NFL

      Writer plays race card when it comes to Donovan McNabb’s benching

      November 15, 2010 /
      Washington Redskins quarterback Donovan McNabb outruns the St. Louis Rams defense for a 26-yard gain in the second half at the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis on September 26, 2010. UPI/BIll Greenblatt Photo via Newscom

      Author John Feinstein says race is factoring into how Mike Shanahan is handling Donovan McNabb in Washington.

      After he benched McNabb for Rex Grossman at the conclusion of the Redskins’ game in Detroit two weeks ago, Shanahan said that McNabb wasn’t physically fit enough to run the two-minute offense because of a hamstring injury. Later it was reported that the Redskins have had to cut the playbook in half because McNabb is having a hard time picking everything up.

      That prompted Feinstein to play the race card when he appeared on a local Comcast Sports talk show in Washington recently.

      From FOX Philadelphia:

      “The situation with Shanahan and McNabb has gotten completely out of control. Shanahan simply won’t say ‘I made a mistake. I got mad at Donovan, I put Rex Grossman in the game and it was a mistake.’ Instead, the first spin is that he doesn’t know the terminology of the two-minute offense, i.e. he’s stupid. The next day, it’s, well, his cardiovascular, he’s out of shape, i.e. he’s fat. Now, he’s leaking to Chris Mortensen — who is culpable in this, too, because I guarantee he didn’t call Donovan McNabb for a response — that we had to cut the playbook in half because of McNabb.”

      “I think there’s racial coding going on here, and it’s my belief that that kind of behavior is worth firing a coach for. Dan Snyder’s not gonna do it, but I think it’s out of control.”

      I’ve got one, big, fat trump card for Feinstein and his name is JaMarcus Russell.

      While the Redskins didn’t sign the mammoth bust, Shanahan did bring Russell in for a workout two days after the Lions game. If Shanahan doesn’t want to work with black quarterbacks, then why bring in Russell? If Shanahan feels as though he has to cut his playbook in half for black quarterbacks, then again…why bring in Russell? It doesn’t make sense.

      I think what happened here is that Shanahan got caught overthinking. Grossman had been running the two-minute drill in practice because McNabb had been nursing a hamstring injury, so Shanahan thought he could sneak one past the goalie by bringing in Grossman. Plus, it’s not like McNabb had been sharp up until that point, so Shanahan took a gamble.

      Obviously that gamble didn’t pay off, but to accuse the man of racial coding is a bit extreme. This appears to be a classic example of the media looking too much into a situation instead of keeping the matter on the surface. McNabb wasn’t benched because he’s black. He was benched because Shanahan thought he was smarter than everyone and it backfired.

      External Sports, NFL

      The time is now for Donovan McNabb to prove doubters wrong

      November 10, 2010 /
      LANDOVER, MD - OCTOBER 10: Quarterback Donovan McNabb of the Washington Redskins greets fans before playing against the Green Bay Packers at FedExField on October 10, 2010 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

      I’ve always liked Donovan McNabb and have always felt that he’s gotten a bad rap for, in my estimation, absolutely nothing.

      But let’s go already.

      During a weekly appearance on ESPN 980, the Redskins’ quarterback said the idea that he doesn’t know the offensive playbook or has difficulty calling plays is ridiculous.

      “That is hilarious to me. That is really funny to me,” McNabb said during the interview. “For everyone who may not have heard this, it’s probably a shock.”

      Then prove it.

      Look, I thought Mike Shanahan’s decision to bench McNabb for Rex Grossman at the end of the Lions game was horrendous. You don’t bench Donovan McNabb for Rex Grossman. Hell, you don’t bench Jon Kitna for Rex Grossman. He’s Rex Grossman, how good did Shanahan think the guy was when he decided to put the game on his shoulders in Detroit a couple of weeks ago? What a brutal decision.

      That said, it’s not like McNabb has set the NFL ablaze with his play this year. I realize he’s only in year one of a new system, but in eight games he’s thrown for 1,971 yards with seven touchdowns and eight interceptions with a 76.0 QB Rating. If that’s not the definition of “meh” then I don’t know what is.

      He says he knows the offense. Then prove it. He says this idea that he can’t handle Shanahan’s playbook is hilarious. Then prove it. Shut everyone up once and for all by taking over a game, Donvoan. Put everything on your shoulders and will the Redskins to victory. Let’s see it.

      Don’t get it twisted – I’m not calling out McNabb. I want him to succeed so that he can prove all of his doubters wrong. I want him to have the last laugh because he’s a good player and he still doesn’t get the credit he deserves. I want him to lambaste the Eagles on Monday night not because I don’t like Philly or that I’m biased, but because I’m a Donovan McNabb fan. I want him to win.

      But crap or get off the pot already. I realize the Redskins’ offensive line has been putrid at times this year and he has nothing to work with in terms of skill players, but I don’t care. The great ones know how to win with less.

      I’m not saying he needs to win a Super Bowl and he’s not going to with the talent that the Redskins currently have. But how about giving everyone the ol’ one-figured salute for once by going out and winning a game in the midst of all this doubt? He doesn’t have to prove anything to anyone, but for once, be great, Donovan. Leave no doubt.

      External Sports, NFL

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