Gosh, how I hate the bye week. I miss my football! The Bills are back and are taking on the Redskins from Toronto (UGH). Doing what we normally do here at the BW.com, we reached out to Redskins writer, Anthony Brown from Hog Heaven, to joins us. Not just in a written Q&A, but in a podcast! Yes, Anthony and I go inside the rosters for the Bills and Redskins. We also talk about both of our lightning rod owners.
I actually break up the podcast into two parts: The first part is about the Bills/Redskins rosters. The 2nd part is about the keys to the game and Snyder vs Wilson. Yes, we talked for too long. I should also mention that my audio was on the wrong setting, yet again. My apologies and I assure you, it will not happen again. Luckily, Anthony sounds fine. The Q&A is below the podcasts and you can check out my responses to Anthony’s questions by going to his site.
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[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4lkor2vBW0&w=315&h=135]
If you want to download the podcast as a MP3, just goto this site and copy the podcast link from Youtube.
1) How are Redskins fans viewing the Mike Shanahan era in Washington? From the outside, it seems like he’s kind of underperformed.
You must understand that “Shanahan” is a plural term. Fans like the discipline that Mike Shanahan brings and we like that he ended the Dan Snyder/Vinny Cerrato/Joe Gibbs star system that divided the team. Faith that Shanahan will drive the Redskins to titles is shaken by his quarterback decisions. Fans view son Kyle Shanahan, the offensive coordinator, with suspicion for his play calling and for the rumor that he will be Washington’s next head coach if Big Mike succeeds. The Redskins offense is no more potent in scoring under Kyle than it was under his three predecessors.
2) How would you assess the job Shanahan has done with the QBs for the Skins this year? First it was Rex, now it is John Beck. Not sure if that is progress?
No, no. First it was kick hard-working, improve-a-little-each-year journeyman Jason Campbell for over-the-hill Donovan McNabb, for “he is what we thought he was” Rex Grossman for the 30-year-old virgin John Beck, now finishing the rookie season he started in 2007. That’s three quarterbacks since 2010. Campbell to Beck is nothing to hang your reputation on, as Shanahan said he is doing. At best, I would grade Shanahan as “I,” Incomplete. At, worst, as a “F.” When your team goes through such turmoil, the story should end with someone like Ryan Fitzpatrick. That is the better narrative. Im’ envious.
3) Not to keep picking on Shanahan, but the Skins offense looks like a complete mess. Right now, the Skins are ranked 24th in rushing, which is kind of surprising when you consider how well Shanhan has done with running backs dating back to his days in Denver. Why hasn’t his zone blocking picked up?
I think you are seeing stats from situational football. The Redskins fell behind early in its last two games (Eagles and Panthers). Washington lost both the left tackle and the left guard in the first half of the Eagles game, which affected the ground game. Ineffective running behind a jerry-rigged O-line might have been why Kyle Shanahan called a mere 14 running plays for that game. Tim Hightower was running well against the Panthers (88 yards, 17 attempts) until his season-ending injury. Washington was so far behind Carolina that they only called two more rushing plays after Hightower left the game.
The starting offensive line played zone blocking well enough through the first four games. G. Kory Lichtensteiger, who followed Shanahan from Denver, is lost for the season. He knew the zone blocking scheme best, so he will be missed most. The line has the depth to overcome one loss, thanks to Shanahan. Last year, such a loss crippled the team. This season, it would take two such losses to hurt as much.
4) If you were the Bills defensive coordinator, how would you shut down the Skins offense?
The 2011 Redskins must win by playing 20th-Century football: Run the ball; Stop the run. Defeat the running game and make the ‘Skins beat you with the pass. John Beck may be harder to stop than Rex Grossman, the human turnover machine. Beck is mobile. He has more rushing touchdowns (2) in two games than any Redskins rusher has in six. as a passer, Beck does not offer more than Grossman does. Without Santana Moss, the ‘Skins receiving corps is on par with Beck. By the way, Bills DC George Edwards held the same position with Washington in 2003.
5) Switching to the defense, I gotta say, you guys have had better luck than we have from going from a 4-3 defense to a 3-4. Currently, you guys are tied for 1st in sacks with 21 and ranked 12th in total defense. Why has the defense been better this year than last?
The Redskins made an astute Draft move by trading down to pick OLB Ryan Kerrigan (Purdue) and allowing Jacksonville to pick QB Blaine Gabbert (Missouri). Kerrigan balances OLB Brian Orakpo in the defensive front seven and he has picked up the scheme a half-season faster than anyone expected. They, along with free-agent pick-ups Barry Cofield and Stephen Bowen upgraded the entire front seven for pass pressure. We think the world of London Fletcher here. Shanahan’s defensive upgrades surrounded London with better talent.
As for the 3-4, it is the best alignment to counter 21st-Century, pass-first football. Converting to it always, always, takes a season to jell. And that’s when you have a real offseason to work it in. Washington paid that transition cost last season.
6) If you were the Bills offensive coordinator, how would you attack the Redskins defense? To give you some background, the Bills like to spread the field and have 3-4 wide sets. They even like to run Jackson out of that formation.
I would cut video clips of LeSean McCoy and Cam Newton gashing the middle of the Redskins’ defense for big gains for Fred Jackson to take home to study, then write a game play to test Washington’s run defense early and often. Shanahan and DC Jim Haslett better be paying a lot of attention to that area this week. If S Oshiomogho (was “OJ”) Atogwe missed the game, Washington’s secondary should offer match-up advantages in a 5-receiver set.
7) I can already envision Hall being locked up against Stevie Johnson. Stevie loves to run 9-12 yard comeback routes or slants. How do you think Hall will respond to that?
Hall is the Rex Grossman of the defense. He will give you some very nice moments. He will take some very bad angles that leaves him exposed. He can cost games and he can win them. There is never a happy medium with Hall. As long as the Redskins give him safety help over the top, Hall can jump routes to attempt interceptions and be the designated play-maker the team wants him to be.
8) How do you guys feel about Dan Snyder?
Your real question is how much do Redskins fans dislike Dan Snyder? A lot. Rather than get into that, allow me to say that effective owners run organizations that foster excellence in execution from the front office to stadium attendants. They make the correct picks for the coaching staff. They have, trust and listen to good player personnel directors. They write contracts that mirror a players’ value to the scheme rather than player name-recognition. They know enough about pro football to challenge the ideas the front office brings forward and they know that holding people accountable means more than firing them.
I think that Mike Shanahan is Snyder’s best hire in five tries. Yet, I so distrust Snyder’s sense of football that I do not want him involved in calling Shanahan to account. Nor do I want Shanahan gone no matter how the season turns out. No Redskins coach other than Joe Gibbs lasted more than two years with Snyder. This is Shanahan’s second year. I do not trust Snyder to pick another coach.
The bottom line is that Dan Snyder has been and may still be the biggest detriment to my team.
9) Who wins?
Buffalo. I do not expect the Redskins to stop Fred Jackson and I do not expect them to outscore the Bills offense. It’s just so odd to see the Redskins as the trap game for the Toronto Bills. Sigh!
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