Rich Tandler's Real Redskins

Is a blowout in the air?

When the Washington Redskins embarked on this stretch of three "easy" games, the one that was supposed to carry them to 7-1 at midseason, I wasn't buying it. My thinking was that in the three games there would be a loss, a close win, and a blowout win.

We got the loss against the Rams and the close win against the Browns. Is there a Motown blowout in the offing as the Redskins visit the Lions?

A simple look at the statistics would lead one to believe that a blowout win for the Skins is a distinct possibility. The Redskins are a top-ten defense and the Lions are bottom feeders on offense. Washington is third in the league in rushing offense, averaging 158 yards a game while Detroit is 31^st in rush defense, allowing over 167 yards per game. And teams aren't running against the Lions because they can't throw—they are 31^st in pass defense and dead last in total defense.

There is one number comparison to look at, however, that may well determine whether or not the Redskins can put this one away early. The Lions have been awful starters. In six games, they have been outscored 54-0 in the first quarter. Most of that came from their first game, when they trailed Atlanta 21-0 at the end of one and their last game, when the Texans went up 14-0. Still, every team they have played has scored in the first quarter and the Lions have yet to dent the scoreboard in the opening stanza.

The Redskins, however, aren't exactly blazing out of the gates either. They have been doubled up in the first quarter, scoring 17 points and giving up 34. Other than the one-play drive after Steven Jackson of the Rams fumbled at the three, the Redskins haven't posted a first-quarter point since the opening drive of the Arizona game on September 22.

Against the Rams and the Browns, the Redskins played right into the hands of the underdogs. They let the other, inferior team hang around and eventually each game came down to a long field goal attempt. One was true, one was wide right and the Redskins split the two games.

To their credit, the Lions have not quit after falling behind early. They answered the Falcons' 21-point blitz with 14 unanswered in the second period. After falling behind Green Bay 21-0 they rallied to take a one-point lead in the fourth quarter before collapsing in a barrage of Packer pick-sixes.

So the trap is set. If the Redskins can't get an early cushion the Lions have the ability to get their act together and put on a serious scoring run. The Redskins could find themselves looking up at the wrong end of a six-point game with the Ford Field crowd screaming for the home team's first win.

Jim Zorn will need to go out aggressively and try to put up a quick score or two in order to take the momentum. Maybe this is the game for Devin Thomas, returning to his home state, to score his first NFL touchdown. Maybe this is the game for Jason Campbell let loose against the defense that he torched for 248 yards and two touchdowns at FedEx Field last year. Maybe Clinton Portis will pick up a buck-ten on about 18 carries thanks to the effectiveness of Campbell and watch Shaun Alexander finish out the game.

Maybe all those things will happen and it still will be a close game, anyway. The Redskins own the fourth quarter and they'll have to again to hold off a game Lions team.

Redskins 27, Lions 21

Browns won ’t sneak up on Redskins

There is no question that the Washington Redskins will be ready when the Cleveland Browns come to town on Sunday. After being ambushed by the St. Louis Rams in what was supposed to be a cakewalk to a 7-1 record at midseason, the Redskins will be sure that the Browns do not sneak up on them.

The question is, will it matter?

The Browns broke out of a season-long funk on Monday as they spanked the defending champion New York Giants 35-14. At the core of their woes going into that game was quarterback Derek Anderson, who was erratic at best and almost was benched on a few occasions. It now seems that Brady Quinn will stay anchored to the bench for a while longer Anderson went 18 for 29 for 310 yards and two touchdowns against the Giants.

His favorite target was 6-3 receiver Braylon Edwards. Not coincidentally, Edwards also was struggling this year prior to Monday night. He torched the Giants for 154 yards and a touchdown on just five catches.

The Cleveland defense played well, getting three interceptions off of Eli Manning, who decided that it would be a good idea to start throwing off of his back foot. Eric Wright returned the third pick 94 yards for the clinching touchdown.

In order for the Redskins to beat the Browns, they will need more than just being in the proper mental state. They'll need to put pressure on Anderson, something the Giants failed to do. They'll need to do that while keeping a blanket on Edwards. They'll need to keep Jason Campbell's streak of interception-free play this season intact.

The Redskins can go a long ways towards achieving those goals by exploiting one of the few sore spots for the Browns on Monday. The Giants rushed for 181 yards, averaging 7.2 yards a carry. There were no long runs to puff up the average; their longest gain was 18 yards.

This wasn't a fluke poor performance by the Cleveland run defense. They are 25^th in the league in that category, giving up an average of 134 yards per game.

Running the ball, of course, is right up the Redskins' alley. Clinton Portis leads the NFL with 643 rushing yards and as a team the Skins are third in the NFL, averaging 152 yards per game on the ground.

Still, the Redskins may have to throw a bit more than they might want to. Shaun Alexander isn't used to running behind this offensive line, which does a good job of creating daylight but the running back needs to know how to read the blocks and find the hole. Alexander's touches probably will be in the passing game.

Defensively, the Redskins will have to get some degree of pressure on Anderson. The Giants didn't sack him once. That means covering Edwards one on one with Shawn Springs in order to bring Chris Horton on the blitz.

Blitzing also can be an effective tool against the run. Jamal Lewis is one of those power backs who needs to build up a head of steam to be effective. If first contact comes in the backfield from a blitzing safety it becomes much easier to bring him down.

Bottom line, it's not rocket science here. Pound the rock, rattle the opposing QB, win the turnover battle and do the hip-hip-hooray thing in the locker room afterwards.

It says here that Portis goes for a buck-fifty but the defense will have a hard time getting at Anderson. There's no reason to think that they will get consistent pressure since they haven't done it all year. The Redskins will have to score three touchdowns in order to take this one and they will.

Redskins 27, Browns 21

Skins will need a fast start on Sunday

There is one line of thinking that says that the Washington Redskins will have to run the ball well in order to beat the New Orleans Saints at FedEx Field on Sunday. The game plan needs to be Portis right, Portis left and Betts up the middle. The objective is to keep the pressure off of Jason Campbell, let him pick his spots, and to shorten the game to keep the ball out of the hands of Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and company.

Another line of thinking is that the Redskins need to come out of the tunnel passing and to keep it up throughout the game. The game plan needs to be deep to Moss, intermediate to Cooley, and short to whoever breaks open. The objective here is to take advantage of the weak link on the Saints, their pass defense and keep the pressure to produce on Brees, Bush, and company.

The line of thinking here is that whatever the Redskins do they need to start doing it quickly.

The Redskins offense can't start off slowly again this week. A sack on the game's opening series would quickly get the team into a "here we go again" frame of mind. A couple of three and outs out of the gate will bring out a strong undertone of boo-birds. A slow, hesitant pace, even in the early going, will rekindle thoughts of the "what, me hurry?" offense the team displayed in the fourth quarter in the Meadowlands.

This doesn't meant that Campbell needs to launch a deep one to Moss on the first play or that Portis needs to break off a long one in the early going. It does mean that Jim Zorn's scripted first 15 plays need to work. They need to be imaginative calls that are well executed by the players. Those 15 plays must take place over about a drive and a half, not the first two quarters of play. One of them should result in a touchdown or, at a minimum, set up a field goal.

None of this will do any good, of course, if the Saints go up 10-0 by scoring on their first two possessions. If Brees throws for 300+ yards, something he's done 14 times as a Saint, it's unlikely that the Redskins will be able to keep up.

But Brees will get his and for the Redskins to keep the Saints from denting to scoreboard too often they will have to take advantage of opportunities. If a ball is rolling free on the turf they have to dive on it. If they have Brees in their grasp they need to bring him down. It goes without saying after last week that when a defender has two hands on a pass he needs to catch it.

Will the Redskins get off to a quick start and make the defensive plays necessary to win? It says here that while the defense might make its share of plays, the offense—and that's everyone from the quarterback to the receivers to the backs to the lie—isn't yet ready to operate in an efficient manner in the WCO.

Saints 17, Redskins 10