By Ryan O'Halloran
At the halfway point of the season, we do a quick reset of the teams in the NFC East.
The Redskins (3-5): Re-building.
Why is that such a bad word? The team Mike Shanahan inherited nearly two years ago was in shambles. Too many old guys. Too many old guys who couldn’t play. Too many old guys who were making too much money.
As Shanahan related on Monday, he knew right away this wasn’t a quick-fix process (even though he gave that very impression by trading for Donovan McNabb).
The final eight games are about seeing who can help the Redskins in 2012 and the biggest regret should be not drafting a quarterback in the late rounds the last two years.
The Redskins are a four-point underdog Sunday at Miami and it will be surprising if they’re favored in Vegas again this year.
Next: The Cowboys Re-grouping
Regarding drafting a QB in the late rounds, in Shanny's 14 season in Denver he did this exactly three times. In '02 Mike took a flier on two QBs in the 7th round. In '00, as well, he spent a 7th rounder on a QB. None of these three even amounted to a 2nd stringer. So I'd say a late round QB pick wouldn't have helped us, as opposed to late rounders Maurice Hurt and Chris Neild.
As opposed to these late round "Hail Mary" draft picks, Shanny has achieved great results when he has drafted a QB in the early rounds, though he has only done it twice. The only time her ever drafted a QB in the first round it was Cutler in '06. He never drafted a QB in the 2nd round and he only drafted a QB in the 3rd, 4th, 5th or 6th rounds once. That was Brian Griese in the '98 draft's third round.
(Note: Mike signed Jake Plummer as a free agent in '03.)
How did these guys do? Shanny's offense ranked 2nd in the league in yardage with Cutler at QB. Shanny's offense was 2nd in the league in yardage and 7th in points in '02 with Brian Griese, and in '00 was 2nd in the league in BOTH scoring and yards with Griese.
(Note: Three seasons in a row Shanny's offense ranked in the top ten in BOTH scoring and points with Plummer.)
(Note: Shanny inherited Elway. I won't get into all those stats. But in '94, the season before Shanny's arrival, Elway was sacked 46 times. In '95 Shanny came to town, and Elway was sacked less than half that many times. Elway went from throwing 16 TDs the prior season to tossing 26 TDs in Mike's first year. I won't get into the back to back Superbowl victories, a rare feat. Before Denver Shanahan was offensive coordinator for a team that scored the third highest point total in Super Bowl history. That was the 'Niners in '93. They had the NFL's #1 offense that season, his second as OC. The previousl season, Mike's first as their OC, the 'Niners also had the NFL's #1 offense.)
Shanahan has had a dramatic effect on running backs as well. Shanny's 1,000+ yard backs include Terrell Davis, Mike Anderson, Olandis Gary, Clinton Portis, Reuben Droughns and Tatum Bell. - Just thought I'd throw that in for good measure since guys like Riggo are kicking Shanny around.
Posted by: Billy Crawford | Tuesday, November 08, 2011 at 01:50 PM