Randy Moss and Plaxico Burress
Both would be outstanding players for a Redskins looking to upgrade its receiving corps. A potentially horrific situation for the rest of the league has either or those two signing with Philadelphia and lining up opposite Terrell Owens. However, the chances of that happening are slim to none based on the other players under Philly's salary cap. Both will be looking for huge signing bonuses.
From the personnel fit, though, neither Moss nor Burress is the kind of core Redskins player Gibbs preaches. Gibbs likes the hard worker, bust your butt kind of guy like a James Thrash or a Hines Ward. Laveranues Coles is definitely in that mold but he was severely limited this year by his injury. Moss and Burress are me-first players. On the flip side, Snyder has proven himself to make splash after splash in the free market arena. Clinton Portis isn't exactly the most selfless guy himself but is one that Gibbs stands behind. So there is certainly a chance (albeit remote) that either of them could end up with the Skins.
Very few rookie receivers have made huge impacts - Moss being the exception - so I am not keen on the Redskins drafting Mike Williams (who could have character issues) or Braylon Edwards (who doesn't stand out any more than his Michigan predecessor David Terrell). Rod Gardner has only proven himself as an inconsistent threat. One can see that Michael Westbrook had more talent than Gardner, it's too bad that Westbrook didn't dedicate himself in the off-season with a Jerry Rice-like work ethic to get better each day. Westbrook certainly had the potential but had two strikes against him - 1) injury bug, and 2) reliance on talent over hard work.
Tuesday, January 25, 2005
Monday, January 10, 2005
NFL In the end, Moss' antics likely to draw fine from NFL - CBS SportsLine.com
Moss was widely criticized for a mimicked mooning of the crowd during this weekend's wild card game. The announcer in particular called it "disgusting" and "classless." I had the same reaction as Tony Dungy; I found it pretty amusing. The action makes complete sense when you consider the history of the Packers fans mooning the visiting team bus as they leave, as mentioned in the article.
Given the announcer's violent reaction, you would have thought that Moss really bared his bottom to the viewing public. Lighten up folks.
Moss was widely criticized for a mimicked mooning of the crowd during this weekend's wild card game. The announcer in particular called it "disgusting" and "classless." I had the same reaction as Tony Dungy; I found it pretty amusing. The action makes complete sense when you consider the history of the Packers fans mooning the visiting team bus as they leave, as mentioned in the article.
Given the announcer's violent reaction, you would have thought that Moss really bared his bottom to the viewing public. Lighten up folks.
Thursday, January 06, 2005
Fantasy Football Recap:
Laveranues Coles - est. 1400 yds, 9-10 TDs; only 950 yds and 1 TD due to the new offense and his lingering toe injury
Rod Gardner - est. 900 yds, 6 TDs; Gardner will also have a bigger year but not huge (a late round pick); only 650 yds and 5 TDs; very disappointing season will probably result in Gardner departing the team in one form or another
James Thrash - est. 400 yds, 1-2 TDs (do not draft); 200 yds, no TDs; Gibbs regrets not making more use of Thrash but given the passing game maladies
Darnerian McCants - est. 200 yds, 3 TDs; McCants' red zone TDs will likely give way to Portis rushing them in (do not draft); extremely surprising that McCants was inactive so often this season
Clinton Portis - est. 1700 yds rushing/receiving, 15 TDs (a mid-1st rd pick); 1550 yds rushing/receiving, 3 TDs; although the total yardage was surprisingly close, the TD total was obviously far below expected; when you look at the body of work, Portis got the ball a lot throughout the year - the only times he had less than 20 touches were the first Philly game (18 touches for 33 yds), Pittsburgh (6 runs for 17 yds) and Dallas (10 carries for 32 yds). Continuing to tailor the run game to Portis with more stretch plays should pay dividends next season. Factor in the return of Jon Jansen and this could increase to 2000 yds rushing/receiving.
Mark Brunell - est. 2400 yds passing, 16 TDs/7 INTs; I see Brunell missing about 1/3 of the games due to injury (draft as 3rd QB); 1200 yds passing, 7 TDs/6 INTs; Brunell proved remarkably resilient and ineffective for playing the first half of the season; inconceivably passed for <100>Patrick Ramsey - est. 1100 yds passing, 6 TDs, 4 INTs subbing for Brunell; 1665 yds passing, 10 TDs, 11 INTs; Ramsey got more playing time than I anticipated but threw picks at the worst times; still not a viable fantasy option with only ~1 TD per game; in our league, his scores for his starts would have been 3 (PHI), 8 (PIT), 23 (NYG), 6 (PHI), 13 (SF), 7 (DAL), 15 (MIN).
Chris Cooley - est 200 yds, 2 TDs; not worth drafting"; 314 yds, 6 TDs; Cooley was the only player who exceeded expecations; Ramsey really looked to him in the second half and Cooley caught at least 3 balls in the last 6 games; however, even at his best, Cooley will never be in the same group as a Gonzalez, Gates, Crumpler or Witten
Laveranues Coles - est. 1400 yds, 9-10 TDs; only 950 yds and 1 TD due to the new offense and his lingering toe injury
Rod Gardner - est. 900 yds, 6 TDs; Gardner will also have a bigger year but not huge (a late round pick); only 650 yds and 5 TDs; very disappointing season will probably result in Gardner departing the team in one form or another
James Thrash - est. 400 yds, 1-2 TDs (do not draft); 200 yds, no TDs; Gibbs regrets not making more use of Thrash but given the passing game maladies
Darnerian McCants - est. 200 yds, 3 TDs; McCants' red zone TDs will likely give way to Portis rushing them in (do not draft); extremely surprising that McCants was inactive so often this season
Clinton Portis - est. 1700 yds rushing/receiving, 15 TDs (a mid-1st rd pick); 1550 yds rushing/receiving, 3 TDs; although the total yardage was surprisingly close, the TD total was obviously far below expected; when you look at the body of work, Portis got the ball a lot throughout the year - the only times he had less than 20 touches were the first Philly game (18 touches for 33 yds), Pittsburgh (6 runs for 17 yds) and Dallas (10 carries for 32 yds). Continuing to tailor the run game to Portis with more stretch plays should pay dividends next season. Factor in the return of Jon Jansen and this could increase to 2000 yds rushing/receiving.
Mark Brunell - est. 2400 yds passing, 16 TDs/7 INTs; I see Brunell missing about 1/3 of the games due to injury (draft as 3rd QB); 1200 yds passing, 7 TDs/6 INTs; Brunell proved remarkably resilient and ineffective for playing the first half of the season; inconceivably passed for <100>Patrick Ramsey - est. 1100 yds passing, 6 TDs, 4 INTs subbing for Brunell; 1665 yds passing, 10 TDs, 11 INTs; Ramsey got more playing time than I anticipated but threw picks at the worst times; still not a viable fantasy option with only ~1 TD per game; in our league, his scores for his starts would have been 3 (PHI), 8 (PIT), 23 (NYG), 6 (PHI), 13 (SF), 7 (DAL), 15 (MIN).
Chris Cooley - est 200 yds, 2 TDs; not worth drafting"; 314 yds, 6 TDs; Cooley was the only player who exceeded expecations; Ramsey really looked to him in the second half and Cooley caught at least 3 balls in the last 6 games; however, even at his best, Cooley will never be in the same group as a Gonzalez, Gates, Crumpler or Witten
Ramsey made big strides at QB in '04 - Redskins Extra - The Washington Times: Sports - January 05, 2005
Calling Ramsey's progress "big" strides is pushing it. He made progress but then again, so did Eli Manning in his final four games. The fact that this progress comes while Ramsey is in his third year whereas Eli is in his first doesn't favor the veteran. On the other hand, it's better than going backwards.
The article certainly ends on a positive note about Gibbs' second second season with each new quarterback.
The Skins will have to upgrade their receiving corps to hope for the same type of success. Braylon Edwards doesn't have blazing speed that distinguishes him from Rod Gardner or former Wolverine David Terrell. In fact, he's much in the same mold as Gardner with his inconsistency. The Skins are better off with a burner at wideout and this is the time when Skins fans everywhere may be wishing that they had drafted Santana Moss instead of Gardner.
Calling Ramsey's progress "big" strides is pushing it. He made progress but then again, so did Eli Manning in his final four games. The fact that this progress comes while Ramsey is in his third year whereas Eli is in his first doesn't favor the veteran. On the other hand, it's better than going backwards.
The article certainly ends on a positive note about Gibbs' second second season with each new quarterback.
The Skins will have to upgrade their receiving corps to hope for the same type of success. Braylon Edwards doesn't have blazing speed that distinguishes him from Rod Gardner or former Wolverine David Terrell. In fact, he's much in the same mold as Gardner with his inconsistency. The Skins are better off with a burner at wideout and this is the time when Skins fans everywhere may be wishing that they had drafted Santana Moss instead of Gardner.
Sunday, January 02, 2005
I didn't post at all during the season after the Skins' opening-day win. The team went on a 4-game losing skid and it was far too depressing to write. Even then, most of the games were close and winnable in the fourth quarter.
A few breaks here and there and the Skins could be 9-7. The inexplicable motion penalty during the Packers game comes to mind. The multiple turnovers in Giants territory in their first matchup also comes to mind. Bootleg after bootleg by Jeff Garcia on third downs resulting in killer first downs along with Coles' fumble on the Skins' last drive was enough to sabotage the Skins in the Cleveland game. The horrible Deion interception of Brunell in the Ravens game. The Ramsey interception at the end of the Eagles MNF game when they were well in field goal range. The debilitating TD pass given up with 30 seconds left against Dallas.
Now comes the time to look to the offseason. Rumored to be parting ways with the Redskins are Chris Samuels, Rod Gardner, and Smoot. Gardner would not be much of a loss. The Redskins need much more production and consistency than they are getting from their former first round pick. The Redskins would do well to draft a top receiver like Mike Williams of USC or Braylon Edwards from Michigan. Taylor Jacobs can improve and Thrash can contribute more. Samuels has not been particularly open to restructuring his contract for salary cap relief. It wouldn't be a surprise to see him leaving the team given his cap number. That would leave a gaping hole on the left side and the Skins will need to groom one of their two young rookie linemen (Wilson, Molinaro) as a replacement. Smoot's loss would not be debilitating either from a personnel standpoint. He's great for team morale but has been victimized plenty of times. The Cowboys, in particular, enjoy attacking him, often successfully.
The Skins' priority in free agency lies with a pass-rushing defensive end. The Skins absolutely have to be able to pressure with just the front four to become a dangerous defense. Otherwise, they are just a stout defense. The secondary and linebacking corps should be set. The offensive line may reshuffle, depending on what happens with Chris Samuels, but is probably okay. Chris Cooley really came on during the second half of the season and will become an increasingly bigger threat. He caught 3 or more balls in the last 6 games and also scored 3 touchdowns. Royal also made the most of his touches, scoring 4 TDs in the last 5 games.
Also on the positive end, Gregg Williams will be back. Jansen will be back. Bowen will be back. Arrington will return. The Redskins should be able to re-sign Pierce. If not, they've sufficiently developed Lemar Marshall. Taylor should be even better. This Redskins team has a good foundation for next year. They've instilled discipline with Gibbs, although their penalty yards might indicate otherwise. They'll be in their second year in the same system and Ramsey should be better by leaps and bounds. Gibb's offensive staff will have had an entire year to adjust to the shorter time clock as well as all the other changes they encountered after a decade-plus out of the league.
The offseason is always a time for hope and high expectations. In today's era of parity and worst to first, why not the Redskins?
A few breaks here and there and the Skins could be 9-7. The inexplicable motion penalty during the Packers game comes to mind. The multiple turnovers in Giants territory in their first matchup also comes to mind. Bootleg after bootleg by Jeff Garcia on third downs resulting in killer first downs along with Coles' fumble on the Skins' last drive was enough to sabotage the Skins in the Cleveland game. The horrible Deion interception of Brunell in the Ravens game. The Ramsey interception at the end of the Eagles MNF game when they were well in field goal range. The debilitating TD pass given up with 30 seconds left against Dallas.
Now comes the time to look to the offseason. Rumored to be parting ways with the Redskins are Chris Samuels, Rod Gardner, and Smoot. Gardner would not be much of a loss. The Redskins need much more production and consistency than they are getting from their former first round pick. The Redskins would do well to draft a top receiver like Mike Williams of USC or Braylon Edwards from Michigan. Taylor Jacobs can improve and Thrash can contribute more. Samuels has not been particularly open to restructuring his contract for salary cap relief. It wouldn't be a surprise to see him leaving the team given his cap number. That would leave a gaping hole on the left side and the Skins will need to groom one of their two young rookie linemen (Wilson, Molinaro) as a replacement. Smoot's loss would not be debilitating either from a personnel standpoint. He's great for team morale but has been victimized plenty of times. The Cowboys, in particular, enjoy attacking him, often successfully.
The Skins' priority in free agency lies with a pass-rushing defensive end. The Skins absolutely have to be able to pressure with just the front four to become a dangerous defense. Otherwise, they are just a stout defense. The secondary and linebacking corps should be set. The offensive line may reshuffle, depending on what happens with Chris Samuels, but is probably okay. Chris Cooley really came on during the second half of the season and will become an increasingly bigger threat. He caught 3 or more balls in the last 6 games and also scored 3 touchdowns. Royal also made the most of his touches, scoring 4 TDs in the last 5 games.
Also on the positive end, Gregg Williams will be back. Jansen will be back. Bowen will be back. Arrington will return. The Redskins should be able to re-sign Pierce. If not, they've sufficiently developed Lemar Marshall. Taylor should be even better. This Redskins team has a good foundation for next year. They've instilled discipline with Gibbs, although their penalty yards might indicate otherwise. They'll be in their second year in the same system and Ramsey should be better by leaps and bounds. Gibb's offensive staff will have had an entire year to adjust to the shorter time clock as well as all the other changes they encountered after a decade-plus out of the league.
The offseason is always a time for hope and high expectations. In today's era of parity and worst to first, why not the Redskins?
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