Rich Tandler's Real Redskins

Mora? No!

Adam Schefter of NFL Network is reporting that Jim Mora the younger (he has a different middle name than his father of, "Playoffs?! Playoffs??!!" fame so he is not Mora Jr.) has withdrawn his name from consideration for the head coaching job with the Redskins.

There was talk, including some from Schefter himself, that Mora was a serious candidate for the job. The Washington Post's "Tracker" has Mora as the second-leading candidate behind Gregg Williams with his prospects rated from very warm to hot.

This is as of about 4:30 on Friday afternoon as Schefter's report just hit the wires, so obviously this will change.

Mora's withdrawal could mean that Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren is going to call it a career and Mora wants to ascend into that job. In any case, it does seem rather odd for him to pull out before even being offered the job.

There is speculation that the interview process is over, at least in terms of initial conversations, and that the selection of the Skins' next coach will be announced sometime early next week. That's informed speculation, but it's speculation nonetheless. Dan Snyder has kept a very tight lid on this search. In a city that thrives on leaks, this process is still surrounded in mystery. I wouldn't be surprised if the CIA and NSA got in touch with Snyder after this is over to see how he did it.

Mora?

I am hearing that Adam Schefter of the NFL Network has said during a radio appearance that he is hearing that Gregg Williams will not be the next head coach of the Washington Redskins. Instead, Schefter's sources indicate that the job could be offered to Jim Mora Jr., perhaps as early as today.

Schefter is usually pretty solid, although I don't know how well connected he is to the Redskins, and that, obviously, is key here. The Skins are being very secretive in their approach to the coaching search and if they are indeed in the verge of hiring Mora, that knowledge is held by very few people. It isn't a matter of an agent having knowledge or other candidates having been informed prior to a public announcement or anything like that.

Mora did bring instant success to the Falcons, reaching the NFC title game in 2004, his first year in Atlanta, winning a playoff game at Lambeau Field along the way. He is known for having tough training camps; here is an entry from my blog in 11/28/06 just before the Redskins lost to the Falcons at FedEx Field.

The Redskins had one of the easiest training camps of any NFL team this summer. Joe Gibbs scheduled very few two a days, minimal sessions in full pads and they had a day off less than a week after camp started.

On the other end of the scale was the camp conducted by Atlanta's Jim Mora Jr. Most days there were two practices with at least one of them in full pads. Union rules prohibited him from scheduling three a days and having the players wear full pads in meetings and at lunch, but if he could have he probably would have. It took so long for the players to get a day off that they felt like they were being paroled when they finally got one.

Early in the season it sure did look like Mora had it right and that Gibbs needed to go to school on the younger coach. At the end of October the Falcons were 5-2 and looking like they were on their way to the playoffs.

But then the leaves started to fall and so did the Falcons. They are 0 for November, losing four straight this month.. Has the brutal regimen in August contributed to their collapse in the fall?

Of course, we can only guess. But one eye-popping stat suggests that they may well be running out of gas. In the second half of the four games of their current skid they have been outscored by a staggering aggregate of 67-20.

When the first of January rolls around it's likely that the Redskins and Falcons will wind up in the same spot, around .500 and on the outside of the playoffs looking in. The Redskins can blame part of their woes on their light camp workload not having them ready to go when the season started. They will be fresh in December but they will be playing golf in January. Atlanta may well have flamed out and peaked too early. Perhaps both organizations need to consider some degree of moderation in how tough or how easy they are on their players during the summer so that they might still be playing well into the winter.

Is Williams the One?

Contrary to the early "conventional wisdom", some of which was expressed here, it appear that Gregg Williams is not just the front runner for the job, he's the slam-dunk favorite.

According to multiple reports, Williams had his sit-down with Dan Snyder and Vinny Cerrato on Saturday and that the session was a mere formality. There will be other interviews—at least one minority candidate has to get an audience—but all indications are Williams will get the gig.

It's not really surprising or anything, but the lack of any sign of encouragement at Gibbs' retirement presser and any leaks to the press that Williams could rest easy in the next couple of days had me puzzled. Perhaps Snyder and company just wanted to make sure that their process was above reproach and they couldn't be accuse of hauling in a token minority just to satisfy the rules.

Of course, nothing is done until it's done. But it seems like this is as done as it can be without being done, if you know what I mean.

If that's the case, that will be far from the end of the coaching news coming out of Ashburn. Will Al Saunders stay on to run the offense? Will any of Gibbs' fellow "Space Cowboys", Bugel, Breaux, and Simmons, stay on? Will Williams want to trim the number of assistant coaches, preferring a smaller, tighter group to a Who, if anyone, will be the defensive coordinator?

There is almost no chance that the answer to the last question will be Jim Schwartz. There has been some speculation that the extensive interview that Snyder had with him earlier this week was for Williams' current job after GW was promoted. The problem is that in order for Schwartz to be able to make such a move without compensation he would have to get a real promotion, not just a fluffed-up title and a bigger paycheck. He currently is the defensive coordinator under a defensively-minded head coach in Jeff Fisher. He would be the same thing under Williams. The Redskins might be able to pull it off if Saunders was the one moving up to head coach, but not with Williams in charge.

Will the Schwartz be With Them?

On NBCSports.com, Tom Curren reports that Tennessee defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz is "the frontrunner" to land the job as coach of the Washington Redskins.

According to a "league source", he "blew them away" in today's interview.

I'll admit to not knowing a whole lot about Schwartz, so I immediately embarked on some exhaustive research using advanced technology—in other words, a Google search—to see what I could find out about him.

He's 41 and he's been the Titans' DC since Gregg Williams left to coach the Bills in 2001. He graduated from Georgetown with a degree in economics and spent time in the Browns' personnel department as a scout before getting into coaching.

Schwartz' defense had been among the top 10 in the league on a consistent basis. I came across Peter King's assessment of the job he did in designing a defense to slow down the Colts in a 2006 meeting. It looks like the man knows how to game plan an opponent

Jim Schwartz, defensive coordinator, Tennessee. Schwartz, like all the Titans coaches, has been under fire for the awful first month of the Tennessee season. But he was on his game Sunday, the ninth time he's coordinated a Tennessee defense against Peyton Manning. For the first six series of the game, covering 37 minutes, the Colts were kept scoreless by a combination of Schwartz-orchestrated defenses that featured excellent disguises by safeties Lamont Thompson and Chris Hope.

The safeties played a cover-two look most often, staying about 12 yards from the line of scrimmage and not moving till the ball was snapped, preventing Manning from getting a good pre-snap read. The result: Indy got nothing until midway into the third quarter. "I told 'em at halftime not to celebrate because we hadn't won anything yet,'' Schwartz said by phone afterward. "We made a lot of plays today, but it wasn't quite enough.''

Assuming that the report is accurate, it appears that Dan Snyder is at least entertaining the notion of trying to replace Joe Gibbs with a 2008 version of the 1981 Gibbs. And, if you want to take the historic analogies a step further, Williams is now in the role of Richie Petitbon, the loyal defensive lieutenant thought to be the heir apparent. Petitbon, of course, got the gig and crashed and burned after one season.

Right now, my gut feeling is that while it's far from certain that Schwartz will be the man, it's becoming more and more apparent that Williams will not be. It seems that Snyder has studied his stint in Buffalo and for that and other reasons—GW's often-abrasive personality among them—he has decided to go in another direction.

As many have pointed out, Schwartz may well be the front runner by default. As far as we know, this is the first formal interview that the Redskins have conducted.

Gibbs II Greatest Hits

Gibbs II, we hardly knew ye. It seems like just yesterday that the limo pulled up to Redskins Park and, amid ecstatic fans and admiring media, Joe Gibbs got out and the Redskins have been saved. It seemed like it was just a matter of time—and not very much of it—before the collection of three Lombardi Trophies on display in front of the smiling coach and beaming owner would have at least one addition, if not more.

Today, of course, after his retirement, we know that those trophies are earned, not bestowed, not even on living legends. The Redskins didn't earn a chance even to play for the right to go to the game where they award the hardware. They won just one playoff game in two trips to the postseason. The one win was a quite forgettable affair in Tampa Bay, one with such a horrid offensive output on the part of the Redskins that it doesn't even make the "greatest hits" list below.

That doesn't mean that the return of Joe Gibbs didn't bring its share of high points along with considerable heartache. Here's my countdown of the best games of Gibbs II.

6. September 12, 2004—Redskins 16, Bucs 10: In Gibbs' first game back, Clinton Portis got things off to a great start with a 64-yard touchdown run on his first carry as a Redskin. Tampa Bay rallied to tie the game at 10 late in the third quarter and it took a pair of John Hall field goals for the Redskins to get Gibbs his first win in 12 years.

5. December 30, 2007—Redskins 27, Cowboys 6: The Redskins go from tragedy to triumph as they cap a four-game winning streak in the wake of the murder of Sean Taylor to claim a spot in the playoffs.

4. December 24, 2005—Redskins 35, Giants 20: The Giants had thumped the Redskins 36-0 in the Meadowlands earlier in the year and the Skins not only got revenge, they got to the doorstep of the playoffs. Santana Moss pulled in three touchdown passes, including a couple of the jaw-dropping variety, to pace the Washington attack.

3. November 5, 2006—Redskins 22, Cowboys 19: Yeah, this list is going to be Cowboy-heavy. The Redskins tied the game at 19 early in the fourth quarter on a touchdown pass from Mark Brunell to Chris Cooley and had a shot to win it late, but Nick Novak missed a 49-yard field goal late. After Troy Vincent blocked Mike Vanderjagt's 35-yard potential winner, Sean Taylor picked up the ball, scrambled around, drew a facemask penalty, and returned the ball into Dallas territory as time expired. The penalty created one untimed down and Novak nailed his second chance from 47 yards.

2. January 6, 2006—Redskins 31, Eagles 20: The Redskins recorded a scrappy win in Philly to claim their first playoff spot since 1999. The Redskins trailed in the fourth quarter until Lamar Marshall made an interception to set up a 22-yard Portis touchdown scamper. Taylor returned a fumble 39 yards and flipped into the end zone to seal it for the Redskins.

1. September 19, 2005—Redskins 14, Cowboys 13: Many Redskins fans turned off their TV's and went to bed on this Monday night well before a field goal put Dallas up 13-0 with less than six minutes left to play. Lighting struck twice for the Redskins, though, as Moss caught a pair of TD bombs from Brunell to put the Redskins ahead. Taylor separated Patrick Crayton from a pass on a key play on Dallas' next drive and the Skins held on for the improbable win.

Surprising, Not Shocking

An hour or so before the Chicago game, four days after Joe Gibbs had made what he called his worst coaching mistake, the double time out gaffe in the game against Buffalo, and three days after Sean Taylor's funeral, I was sitting around in the press box with a few of the team's beat writers, guys who are out at Redskins Park every day. The subject of Gibbs' future with the team came up and the consensus of their collective reading of the tea leaves was that Gibbs could walk away at the end of the year. It seemed that the murder of Sean Taylor had Gibbs taking a look at his priorities in life. He had made a comment that nobody ever looked back on his life and wished that he's spent more time at work. The regrets always centered on other things, like time with the family.

None of these writers thought it was likely that Gibbs would pack it in. One pegged it at about 50-50 and another said that a second retirement was possible but not probable.

Later that night the Redskins beat the Bears to start off a four-game winning streak that landed them in the playoffs. To a man, the players credited Gibbs for the turnaround. There seemed to be no question that he would be back in 2008 to try to take the team to the next level.

That was, of course, until Monday afternoon's press conference when Gibbs was noncommittal when asked about next year. Even then, most observers didn't think much of it. Probably just wanted to sit down with Dan Snyder and dot the i's and cross the t's on a contract extension, they said. Then this morning came the word of Gibbs' retirement.

I'm not going to tell you that I wasn't surprised when I heard the news. However, after thinking back to that Thursday night bull session at FedEx Field it made sense.

If you are indeed questioning your priorities in life, regretting how little time you spend with your family, facing your own mortality and if you come to the conclusion that you need to make some major changes, the results of four football games isn't necessarily going to change your mind.

No question about it, that streak and making the playoffs meant a lot to Gibbs. But he talked recently about his priorities being his faith, his family, and his profession, in that order. It seems that he stayed true to these priorities in making his decision to retire.

I also wonder how much the back to back timeout blunder had to do with this decision. Although the team recovered from it, a goof like that sticks with you. Perhaps Gibbs had a conversation with himself and asked if he was absolutely certain that he would not make a similar mistake in the future. When the answer from his inner self came back that he was confident but not 100% sure, it was time to go.

The Girl Mopping the Floors

Cinderella stories are great. Tales of an individual or, in the case of the 2007 Washington Redskins, a team overcoming adversity and long odds are uplifting and inspiring. The Skins' run to the playoffs is one that will resound forever in team lore.

That's all well and good, but there's one problem here. In the NFL, you don't want to be the girl at home mopping the floors while the evil stepsisters are off at the ball. You want to be the stepsisters in the story, the ones who are taking what they want. Or, better yet, you want to be the handsome prince in the palace, in a position of power and dictating what others are to do.

Instead, the Redskins have had to rely on their Fairy Godmother in two of the last three years in order to make their way into the NFL playoffs. The '05 and '07 seasons were remarkably similar in how they flowed. Both featured a hot start and a midseason swoon that featured some heartbreaking losses (Tampa Bay and San Diego two years ago, Philly and Dallas this year). In both cases, Joe Gibbs and company were able to turn pumpkins into coaches and rats into horses and were able to make it to the ball.

If Cinderella was around today, we might have a social worker examining the life choices that had her performing such menial tasks to eke out a bare existence. Evidently, she had some things going for her. Once she was cleaned up she was quite a looker and she had the charm to captivate a prince. So why was she mopping the floors to begin with? What paths taken or not taken led her to making a living with a mop and bucket?

The Redskins have a lot going for them. The business end of the team is a cash generating machine. That gives the team resources to spend on coaches, scouting, facilities, and signing bonuses. They have a good core of talent and, as we saw this year, some decent depth. The biggest stadium in the NFL should give them a huge home field advantage and would if the team would consistently give the 90,000+ who fill he place something to cheer about.

Despite all of this, for the past four years—actually for most of the last 16 years—the Redskins have found themselves in late November with the mop in their hands, wishing wistfully that they could be mingling with royalty. Two of the past three years they have made it to the palace only to find themselves ejected and sent back to working the mop well before midnight.

Like the social worker who might look at Cinderella's life choices, what the Redskins need to do to be in charge of the palace is study the choices they have made that have left them with a losing record in late November every year. What led them to think that committing large chunks of cap money to Adam Archuleta and Brandon Lloyd was a good idea? Were the issues that led to blowing numerous halftime leads more related to play calling or to execution? When the issues are identified, how do they go about fixing them? Can the offense be truly effective with all of its receivers standing under six feet or do they need a big body in the mix? What needs to be done to ensure better choices regarding in-game management such as using timeouts? Has the choice not to employ a general manager served the team well? And, even if the answer to that last question is "yes", considering that Gibbs likely has a maximum of three years left as coach, will the present structure be effective going into the future?

If the Redskins are to live up to the expectations that followed the hiring of Joe Gibbs, expectations that are reasonable for a team with the Skins' resources and tradition, they can't continue to be Cinderella. They need to make the choices that will lead to someone else trying on the slipper while they hold the keys to the palace and watch from on high.

Was the Season a Success?

Every season, there are 31 NFL teams—all but the one that hoists the Lombardi Trophy—that have to look back and try to figure out if their seasons were a success.

For some, such as the Saints and Bears, the answer is obviously no. Those two teams were in the NFC Championship Game last year and at a minimum expected to get close to playing in that game again. The Browns, on the other hand, won 10 games and although they missed out on a playoff spot on the basis of tiebreakers they clearly exceeded expectations.

How about the Redskins? How successful was their 2007 nine-win, one and done playoff season? It depends on which view you want to take:

From the start of the season—Yes, a playoff appearance would have been considered a major step forward. The team was coming off of a 5-11 season and they weren't competitive in many of their losses. The various "experts" in the media didn't think that they would do much better. I'd estimate that the average projection was five or six wins. The local media, who know the team better, had them pegged slightly higher, at seven or eight wins. The Redskins were starting the season with a defense that one of the worst in the league in 2006 and a quarterback in his first full year as a starter.

From after the 5-3 start—At that point, even though the Cowboys were rolling along so it appeared that a division title was a long shot, it appeared that the Skins were in the process of putting together a good season. Two of their three losses had come to top teams in Green Bay and New England and even the loss to the Giants didn't look to bad as they had gotten on a roll. The defense had turned things around and Sean Taylor was leading the NFL in interceptions. It appeared that a playoff run was distinct possibility for this team.

At 4:30 PM on December 2—At about this moment Joe Gibbs was taking responsibility for his team's loss to Buffalo. Whether or not the back to back timeouts cost the Redskins the game seemed to be irrelevant. The team's best player had just been murdered. In the next four days the Redskins faced going to his funeral and then another game in four days. Certainly the slim playoff hopes would be gone in five days. Everyone in the organization would have taken a one and done at that point.

After beating Minnesota to take control of their playoff destiny—At that point, the Cowboys looked vulnerable, the Redskins had overcome the odds, and a trip to Arizona, while still a longshot, certainly was a tantalizing possibility. Certainly, the Redskins would be playing past the first week of January.

You can go further back. A sixth seed and first-round loss in year four of Gibbs II isn't what we expected after Gibbs was hired or after the 2005 season unless it had something to do with a Super Bowl hangover.

I think that the best spot to judge it on is from the perspective of the start of the season. If you'd have said that the right side of the O-line would be gone by halftime of the second game, that two defensive starters would be gone for the season with injuries and that a third, the team's best player, would be shot dead, that the team would blow a number of second-half leads and that the Redskins would be counting on Todd Collins in a string of can't-lose situations, most would have said that a winning record and a playoff spot would be the best that they could hope for.

Redskins Seahawks Live Game Blog

They couldn't find anyone better than an ex-Mariner (Phillies pitcher Jamie Moyer) to raise the 12^th man flag? What, was Jim Zorn busy?

13:31—An uninspiring three and out to start things by the Redskins.

12:11—Seattle completes a couple of passes to move into Redskins territory. Bobby Engram, snags one for 18. He was their leading receiver with 94 catches for over 1,000 yards. He's one of those receivers with no discernable physical talent who just knows how to get open.

11:30—A big-time overthrow by Hasselbeck after Springs falls down kills the drive. On the previous play, they got pressure on him and nobody was open. After those first two passes, the D tightened up and the Redskins will have the ball at their own four.

11:20—From the four, time to use the power advantage.

9:42—Collins had all kinds of time on a third-down play and got the completion to Randle El for the first down out to the 20.

7:50—No advantage on the line for the Redskins on a third and one as Portis is stuffed. So far, the line of scrimmage has been a draw on both sides of the ball.

5:36—The Redskins need to tackle better than they did on a third-down carry by Morris. They had him a yard short of the first down, but let him get away. Good tackling has carried the Redskins through this streak and they will need to keep it up.

4:07—Smootie on the fumble recovery and a good return. It will be overturned on replay, though, and the Seahawks will have the ball at about the Redskins 15. In fact, it was a terrible call as Alexander had both knees down well before the ball came out.

Weaver 17 run (Brown kick)
Seahawks 7, Redskins 0

The Skins got sucked in—or, rather, sucked out—on a draw and the fullback Weaver made a nice run for the score. Seattle is doing a good job of mixing in pass-action runs.

2:07—Moss with a flat-out drop that would have converted third and 15.

1:55—Burleson isn't much of a receiver, but he's doing a good job with punt returns. He just saved about 15-20 yards by fielding a bouncing punt.

1:15—The Skins finally stop a draw with M. Washington sniffing it out and dropping Morris for a loss of three. Third and 13.

0:34—I don't quite understand that one as Hasselbeck went on a swing pass to the fullback, who had no chance of making the first down.

0:10—Another long field for the Redskins. They need to get a rushing game going.

0:10—A false start on the Seattle defense as Tapp commits a neutral zone infraction. Gotta like that.

0:00—Portis scoots five yards for the first down as the quarter ends.

End of first quarter
Seahawks 7, Redskins 0

14:53—Collins doesn't have the feel for pressure and the Skins pay as he gets blindsided and loses a fumble. It appears that Collins' arm had not yet started forward when the ball came out.

14:53—Now the referees call it an incomplete pass after talking it over. Another looks shows that it's very close. Skins keep the ball instead of Seattle having it around the 10.

13:59—OK, Antwaan, you made a catch for a big first down, but let's not act like you scored the winning TD or anything. Act like you've done it before.

12:00—The quick screen to Cooley goes for a loss. They're quick on defense and stuff like that isn't going to work.

11:25—Moss was wide open, but a hit on Collins as he throws makes it short. A big opportunity lost there.

11:17—A screen to Portis goes nowhere. The Redskins need to attack straight ahead and downfield. Still, after taking over at the two and nearly losing the ball deep in their own territory, that was a productive drive for the Redskins.

10:10—Now, that's the Marshmallow Man Alexander we've been used to seeing this year—a little hop behind the line and a fall down for a gain of one.

9:02—Another misfire on third down for Hasselbeck has Seattle trying a FG.

FG Brown 50
Seahawks 10, Redskins 0

The Redskins have not had to play from behind at all during the four-game streak. In NY and Minnesota they worked into the lead and were able to hang on. We'll see if they have the comeback dimension in them.

6:57—Another punt after Portis picks up a first down on the initial play. This game could get away from them early.

6:46—Collins has 15 passing attempts already. I was hoping he wouldn't need to throw more than 20-25 times during the whole game.

6:40—Hackett hacks Springs to prevent an interception. At least they refs flagged him and it's first and 19.

5:18—Almost a game-changer as Wilson gets a sack and strip. A Redskin had the ball momentarily, but it squirted out. Still, Seattle punts from deep and the Skins get the ball at the Seahawk 43. Time to make a move, straight ahead and downfield.

4:48—A three and out with a sack at the end squanders the good field position. When Collins has time, his receivers either aren't open or are dropping the ball. If someone is open, he's getting rushed.

3:08—A Seattle three and out after two Marshmallow Man runs and a pressure incompletion. Skins ball at their 35.

2:00—Some quick action plays—a draw and a couple of quick passes—out of a no-huddle have the Redskins on the move at the Seattle 43, right where they started that last three and out.

1:29—Fourth and one at the 43. I think they have to go for it.

1:23—Sellers did not get it, at least it doesn't look like it on the first glance.

1:21—Not even close, three plays on second and one gain about six inches. Now the defense has to step up again.

1:21—Review for a bad spot. Sellers was on the pile and still moving forward when he was called down.

1:21—The call stands. Not enough visual evidence.

0:54—The defense does its job again, with a three and out. I'm not sure how hard the Skins will go at this from their own nine with 47 seconds left. Seattle has two timeouts, so the Skins can run out the clock if they so choose.

0:07—Seattle took a timeout. The Redskins ran the play too quickly, they should have let it run out. Now Seattle can force apunt.

0:00—The Redskins get a cheap fourth-down conversion as Betts runs for a first as they try to kill the clock.

End of second quarter
Seahawks 10, Redskins 0

The Washington defense has adjusted and Seattle hasn't done much of anything in its last several series. Now the offense needs to adjust and wear down that D. It's not looking very good right now, but the Skins are far out of it.

Seattle gets the ball. A turnover would get things rolling. Yeah, you can call me Captain Obvious.

12:46—The Redskins #37, Doughty, is getting the better of Seattle's #37, Alexander.

12:05—Leigh Torrence just had a pick knocked out of his hands by Engram. Still, another chance for the Washington offense as the Seahawks will punt. Let's see how the Redskins have adjusted to give Collins a little more time to throw.

9:45—Wow, Collins is slow. It looked like he had room to run for close to a first down, but he slid after a gain of two.

9:09—At some point, the Redskins defense is going to give way if the offense can't do anything. It's real simple—the Seattle D-line is dominating the game. They're not spending enough time on the field to get worn down. A takeaway by the Redskins is moving from the "it would help" category to the "gotta get one".

8:42—Hasselbeck is getting rid of the ball quickly, negating the Skins' blitzes. Collins can't seem to do the same thing.

6:30—It looks like the refs are letting them play on the line, meaning that Seattle is getting away with holding on almost every play. They might as well keep doing it until it gets flagged.

5:00—Smootie with a game-saving tackle on an attempted Hasselbeck scramble. The Hawks get a FG, but a TD there would have been fatal.

FG Brown 33
Seahawks 13, Redskins 0

The Redskins' hopes of advancing to Dallas are hanging by a bare thread.

4:23—A penalty on K. Campbell negates a Cartwright return to near midfield. It doesn't seem to matter for the Redskins today, though. Long field, short field, they just can't sustain anything. That's what happens when your O-line is getting dominated.

3:52—A great one-hand snag by Cooley for his first positive gain gets things going.

2:19—Another nice play by Cooley as he makes a catch despite having a linebacker draped over his shoulders. Now's the time to get back into it.

0:57—Another fourth and one for the Redskins. Initial signs are that Gibbs will elect to go for it again at the 28. If he does, they need to throw the ball. They just haven't been powering them off the line and there's no reason to think that they'll start doing so now.

0:38—The call is a pass, incomplete, but a flag goes down and the Redskins keep the ball at the 11. Heck of a call, a pass to Sellers down the sideline.

0:00—Almost picked off as Collins tried to loft it to Randle El. Third and six at the seven at the start of the fourth quarter.

End of third quarter
Seahawks 13, Redskins 0

Randle El 7 pass from Collins (Suisham kick)
Seahawks 13, Redskins 7

A great job of buying time by Collins, finding ARE for the score. It's a one-score game, up to the defense to give a revived offense another shot.

13:57—The needed turnover has arrived. A huge pick by Landry gets the Skins the ball back.

12:38—Wow, did this one turn around in a hurry.

Moss 30 pass from Collins (Suisham kick)
Redskins 14, Seahawks 13

Wow, did that turn around in a hurry. Two touchdowns in less than two and a half minutes has what was a grim situation looking pretty sweet.

12:36—Wow, again on the miscue by the Seahawks on the kickoff. Mix gets a room-service bounce and it's Redskins' ball at about the 14. Time to put this one away.

11:44—After Cooley dropped a nice pass that would have set up first and goal at the two, the Skins face third and eight at the 12.

11:37—A miss from 30 by Suisham ruins the chance. Wow, again, can't have that. A big choke by Suisham, no question.

10:49—Seattle takes advantage is its second life, two passes and into Redskins territory.

10:00—A draw by Alexander has them very close to field goal range.

9:42—Landry with another pick to give the Redskins the ball back.

9:31—The first false start for the Redskins. A bad time for it, first and 14 at the five.

8:55—Third and long for the Redskins. Cooley time.

8:11—It goes through Moss' hands, it would have been a tough catch but he could have made it. Frost will punt and Seattle has it at the Washington 42. With the wind at their backs, Seattle is a first down away from FG range.

7:50—Big third down coming up here. If Seattle makes it, they'll score.

7:11—I'm going to have to eat my words about Burleson. He's made a few excellent catches.

Hackett 20 pass from Hasselbeck (Hasselbeck pass to Pollard)
Seahawks 21, Redskins 14

Obviously, a huge letdown after the missed field goal. Truth be told, I'm going to put some of the blame on Cooley as well for not hanging on to the pass on first down. Still, you have to make that kick and now the Skins need a TD to tie.

5:56—A big return by Cartwright with a flag at some point. It's on Sellers. It will be at the 46 of Washington.

5:40—What the heck was that?

Trufant 78 interception return (Brown kick)
Seahawks 28, Redskins 14

It looked like Moss went the wrong way on the pattern and then he slowed up. That gave Trufant the opening he needed to take it to the house and take Seattle to the second round of the playoffs. A bad time for Collins' first INT in a decade.

4:30—A bad time for the first sack of the half. The Skins were on the move and then Collins gets nailed for a loss of eight.

3:40—Not so fast. If the Skins can score quickly from first down at the 33 they have a small shot.

2:46—Fourth down and the season on the line.

2:41—Too high for Moss—it went through his hands but his feet would not have come down inbounds—and the offseason starts.

1:10—Todd Yoder in the game in the slot? Not exactly a deep threat.

Babineaux 57 interception return (Brown kick)
Seahawks 35, Redskins 14

It probably doesn't need to be noted that the Redskins lost by 21 points.

Cowboys —After Further Review

Not much time to go into too much tonight. I'm getting ready to go on the second, Southern leg of my three games in five days football odyssey, hitting the road for Jacksonville at 3 AM. Instead of the usual review of the game blog, just a few points:

• Nobody should pinch Todd Collins—He's living a dream right now. It's as though he's spent all of these years imagining what it would be like to step in and post a QB rating of over 100 while leading his team to four straight wins to get into the playoffs and it was exactly like he had imagined it. He's making sure that he keeps going steady because he doesn't want to wake up.
  
• You'll never see a better pass—Collins' fourth-quarter strike to Moss to clinch the game was absolutely perfect. Moss didn't have to think about breaking stride or adjusting. For that matter, Santana barely had to move his hands. You can't throw that pass any better.
  
• Words don't do Gibbs justice—The clichés about the job that Joe Gibbs has done keep pouring out. I can't really blame the beat writers and columnists going on about the steady determination, the unshakable faith, the willingness to deflect credit and absorb blame, and the leadership by example that the Hall of Fame coach has displayed over the past four weeks. His coaching performance defies description. If you've check out this space with any regularity you probably know that I have a ton of faith in Gibbs and even I truly wondered if he could pull this off after seeing him so down and shaken after the Buffalo game.
  
• Portis turned down a chance to do a Randy Moss—Mike Wise of the Post asked Clinton Portis if he felt that his performance over the past several weeks has vindicated him after many were saying that he was washed up earlier this season. On Saturday, when Randy Moss was asked about setting the touchdown receptions record, he took the opportunity to lash out at his critics, saying that breaking the record itself wasn't special but that "shutting you guys up (the media) was what really made it special." Portis, on the other hand, declined a chance to take any shots. He said that people are going to write what they're going to write and that his true vindication would come when he's wearing a Super Bowl ring.
  
• It would be a shame if the Redskins had to part ways with Shawn Springs—The guy is playing lights out at cornerback and he's been solid all year. He has a cap number of $7.5 million next year and $5 million of that is salary. He'll be 33 in March and that's an awful lot of cash for a corner that old. It will be up to him if he wants to redo his deal and stay or get cut and go elsewhere.
  
• I expect the Redskins to beat Seattle—This is a better Redskin team than the one that went to Seattle for the playoffs two years ago, particularly at the quarterback position, and the Seahawks aren't playing as well as they were then. The Redskins had several early chances to score in that game and put the pressure on big time, but they let the Seahawks and the crowd hang around and eventually the 'Hawks won. That clearly was a case of the better team winning; the better team will win on Saturday, too.