(photo by Brian Murphy)

As if things weren’t bad enough with the Washington Redskins suffering through a December losing streak that ensured there would be no playoffs for the home team, things were even more depressing for Homer McFanboy because our favorite player was missing in action.

Redskins rookie safety Chris “The Predator” Horton missed most of the Baltimore game and all of the Cincinnati game due to a shoulder injury, meaning that even after the humbling losses, there was no voice of reason to make sense of it all. Luckily, Horton was back for the final home game of the 2008 season.

Chris, it’s no coincidence that we got you back in the lineup and the team got back on track and won, right?

(Laughs). “Right,” Horton said, still laughing. “Obviously it has nothing to do with me. I think we just came out as a team – on offense, defense and special teams – and we just got after it. As you saw, that game went down to the last couple of seconds, so it’s a good thing we came to work.”

That’s an Eagles team that has been unstoppable since Donovan McNabb got benched. They’ve been scoring 30 points a game and rolling over everyone. So let’s not try to downplay what you and this defense did against one of the hottest teams in the NFL.

“I think we played a pretty good game out there on defense,” he said. “But still, I’m still having little mental mistakes, but I figure the more and more I play, I’ll continue to become a better football player.”

While you were sidelined, the national media said this team had no heart, had quit on their coach and this game was just a formality because you guys were going to roll over for the Eagles. What the hell happened?

(Laughs). “I mean, whoever said that, they’re not in this locker room,” Horton said. “Obviously they don’t know what kind of guys we’ve got around here. I think every guy around here works at his highest level and every time he steps out on the field he’s going to give it his all.”

Even though you guys have been eliminated from the playoffs, is it nice to come out and do your best to keep your divisional opponents out of the post season?

“It’s nice to just come out here and win football games,” he said. “We’ve been in a little slump and it’s just nice to come out here and feel the joy of getting a ‘W’ again.”

Since the last time we chatted, you’ve gone out and posted your Xbox 360 screen name on your website. What’s up with that?

“Yeah, I’m inviting the fans to come and play some video games with me,” Horton said. “It’s good to let the fans connect with you. Obviously I can’t go sit at their house or give out my phone number, but I do play video games and I do still enjoy playing my Xbox. I figured for the fans who do play Xbox, if I’m on there, you can join the game with me.”

What games do you play?

“Right now, I’m playing Call of Duty: World at War,” he said.

Devin Thomas told us you’re no good at Madden. What say you?

“I’m alright at Madden, man,” he said. “I played against one of the fans and he beat me so bad, I didn’t want to play him again. He asked me to play him again and I’m like ‘Nah, I’m playing Halo now.’ Dude discouraged me from playing Madden.”

So there you go, The Predator is getting in the holiday spirit by playing video games with the fans – just as long as you don’t beat him too bad.

(photo by Brian Murphy)

Even though we were busy getting interviews in the Washington Redskins’ locker room following the game, we want to start out by addressing something that happened on the other side of the stadium after the game. During his post-game press conference, Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb was asked for his thoughts following the 10-3 loss.

“This is frustrating to come out here and play a team we knew we could beat,” McNabb said. “We made mistakes and mis-opportunities, its tough for us to swallow at this particular point.”

Some folks may remember that McNabb made similar comments about the “better team losing” when the Redskins beat the Eagles in Philadelphia earlier this year. Here’s our point – if your team is so much better than the ‘Skins, then why do you keep losing to them? How can you stand in front of the media and go on and on about how your team is superior when you fail to deliver? Last time we checked, your offense, led by you, has scored a grand total of one offensive touchdown this season against the Redskins. Eight quarters. One offensive touchdown.

So next time you’re asked to speak on the Redskins-Eagles rivalry, go ahead and remember which team has won three out of the last four matchups, big guy. And also feel free to keep in mind your team has now gone seven straight quarters without an offensive touchdown against that oh-so-beatable Redskins team you apparently need to re-evaluate your opinion of. Just don’t think about it while you’re on the field … it might make you throw up in the huddle. Again.

(photo by Brian Murphy)

1. “Bouncin’ Back” by Mystikal

This game was a funny one. The national media had all but said the Washington Redskins as a team had quit on coach Jim Zorn a month ago. If you believed everything you read, then this team had no heart, the coach was running out the final two games before he gets canned and seemingly the entire roster needs to be turned over. Maybe this wasn’t exactly the case.

With the roster the healthiest it’s been possibly all season long, the Redskins looked like a different team – especially on defense. Forget about no names like Cedric Benson and Ryan Fitzpatrick marching up and down the field on them. That’s ancient history. Instead, what the FedEx Field faithful were treated to in the regular season finale was an inspired defensive effort that damn near shut out one of the hottest teams in the NFL. Remember, this is an Eagles team that had been averaging 30 points per game during their winning streak.

It turns out that with guys like middle linebacker London Fletcher, defensive end Andre Carter, safety Chris “The Predator” Horton, linebacker Marcus Washington, defensive tackle Cornelius Griffin and cornerback Shawn Springs back to full speed this is a pretty dominating defense. Go figure.

2. “Guerrilla Radio” by Rage Against the Machine

Redskins defensive end Jason Taylor went on the Junkies morning radio show last week and called himself out, essentially saying he’s not played up to the contract his employer is currently paying him. No doubt, it’s a bold strategy, but apparently it’s a smart one.

Because Taylor came out Sunday and easily played the best game of his Redskins career – picking up two sacks and causing the fumble that directly resulted into the only touchdown scored all game long. If this is what we can expect when Taylor goes on the radio, let’s get him a weekly segment on Redskins Radio. Doesn’t the team own a radio station? Seriously, this needs to happen – if for no other reason than this version of Jason Taylor actually resembled the former defensive player of the year.

3. “The Lonesome Kicker” by Adam Sandler

Redskins punter Ryan Plackemieier played the best game we’ve seen a punter play in a long, long time. The Redskins have gotten so little from their punters for so long that it’s truly jarring when one of them actually brings something to the table. Remember, this season started with Derrick Frost and some rookie punter “battling” for punting duties on the Washington Redskins, only to have both cashing unemployment checks before Thanksgiving.

So watching Plackemeier pin the Eagles with a barrage of spectacular punts was a thing of beauty. If you want to know why the Redskins were in a position to win with only 10 points on the board consider this – the Eagles average starting field position in the fourth quarter was their own 10 yard line. If that’s not worthy of a game ball, then nothing is.

It almost goes without saying, if you want to win in the NFL, you need to win two of the three phases of the game. Sunday, the ‘Skins dominated on defense and the special teams, for the first time in recent memory, was a factor in a positive way. That’s why ‘Skins fans aren’t sitting around lamenting over another anemic offensive showing.

4. “Justify My Thug” by Jay-Z

We posed a fairly simple question to anyone we came across in the FedEx Field press box Sunday.

“Who was the last rookie head coach to get fired after winning eight games,” we asked.
No one had a clue. Why? Because it just doesn’t happen. So to all of those people who are convinced that owner Daniel Snyder will somehow find a way to screw things up and fire Jim Zorn, let history be your guide. It’s hard to win games in the NFL. As a rookie, it’s even harder. So please try to remember that finishing with anything better than a losing record is an accomplishment and Zorn a break. If he’s not back here next season, then it’s nothing short of a traveshamockery.

5. “Thirty-Three” by Smashing Pumpkins

The Redskins family lost the greatest player to ever don the burgundy and gold when Hall of Famer Sammy Baugh passed away this week at the age of 94. Baugh might not have been the first NFL player to break out the forward pass, but he still revolutionized the game, much in the same way that greats like Michael Jordan or Wayne Gretzky did in their respective sports. In the NFL’s inaugural Hall of Fame class only two players were voted in unanimously. Needless to say, Slingin’ Sammy was one of them. His number 33 is also the only jersey number officially retired by the Redskins. Rest in peace, brother. You will be missed.

(photo by Luis M. Alvarez)

As previously mentioned, all eyes were on rookie goalie Simeon Varlamov heading into the Washington Capitals-St. Louis Blues matchup Thursday night.

Add in the NHL’s most exciting player, Alex Ovechkin, and the league’s most enigmatic player, Alexander Semin, and it’s clear that the Caps are a team that Mother Russia could love.

While everyone in the Verizon Center focused on those three highly-touted players, Capitals right wing Viktor Kozlov did his best to remind folks he’s got some game too.

“He’s the unsung Russian,” Coach Bruce Boudreau said. “He just goes out and does his business. When he’s on top of his game, you don’t see him hitting a lot, but he’s strong as an ox. He gets things done.”

[Editor’s note: We don’t want to hurt anything patting ourselves on the back, but the “unsung Russian” quote from Boudreau came in response to our only question in the post-game press conference. So the Associated Press, the Washington Post, Comcast SportsNet and everyone else can feel free to thank us later.]

Kozlov opened the scoring, netting a goal that could only be classified as a savvy-veteran move when he used the defenseman as a screen and fired the puck past an unsuspecting goalie with less than four minutes to play in the first period. It should be noted that the Capitals came into the contest with a league best 15-3 record when scoring the first goal, so getting up early on the Western Conference’s worst team was vital.

“If you look at the stats across the NHL, the team that scores first ends up winning,” said defenseman Tom Poti. “It takes the other team out of their game and forces them to change some things. We’ve been fortunate to get the first goal in the last few games we’ve played.”

Blues right wing David Backes tied the game at 1-1 just over nine minutes into the second period on a well-timed deflection. The Blues goal, coupled with a lackluster Washington powerplay, took the wind out of the Caps’ proverbial sails for a bit. Thankfully, Viktor was there to once again save the day.

Kozlov’s second goal of the night was a “Johnny-on-the-spot” play. Boyd Gordon drove the net, but couldn’t get anything on the shot because of a defender draped on his back. St. Louis Blues goalie Ben Bishop got a pad on the puck and it laid on the doorstep until Kozlov snuck in and slammed the puck home for his seventh goal of the season and his first two-goal game of the season.

“The second one was a pretty good play by Boyd Gordon,” Kozlov said. “He basically did everything and I just came in at the right time.”

Clearly this served as a wakeup call because the Caps scored again just 40 seconds later. Capitals right wing Eric Fehr did hockey’s version of a no-look pass to left wing Tomas Fleischmann who was lurking in the high slot. Fleischmann wasted no time firing the puck in the top right corner for a backbreaking goal and a 3-1 lead.

Just 13 seconds into the third period Ovechkin scored a powerplay goal that sent the Phone Booth into hysteria, but once again Kozlov was the man getting it done. Just as it the Blues were about to clear the puck out of the zone, Kozlov appeared from nowhere to keep it in the offensive zone and quickly found Ovie.

The assist gave Kozlov his second three-point night of the season, his first since Nov. 26 against Atlanta and all but assured the Caps kept Varlamov (who finished the game with 29 saves) undefeated.

“St. Louis didn’t give up and it was a hard time until the end,” Kozlov said. “It’s a good thing Simeon Varlamov played good, saved us a few times and we got the two points.”

There was a scary moment with 11 minutes remaining when Backes took a swipe at Semin and then followed it up with a cheapshot crosscheck to Semin’s lower back that floored the talented Russian. If folks want to know why this town loves Ovechkin, then look no further than what happened next. Ovechkin immediately flew straight to Backes ready to throw down to defend his fallen teammate.

“Every time I see him he’s either hitting somebody or he’s getting a chance to score,” Boudreau said of Ovechkin. “Tonight he’s protecting his teammates. What else can you ask the guy to do?”

One final note from last night’s game: He might not show up in the stat sheet every night, but every team in the league should have a guy like Capitals forward Brooks Laich. Not only did he earn a start – pairing up with Semin and center Michael Nylander – but he showed why he’s way more important than any stat sheet would ever indicate while killing center Nicklas Backstrom’s hooking penalty in the first period. Even though Laich lost his stick, he still stuck with the play, caused the Blues player to make a turnover and ultimately ended up finding a way to clear the puck out of the zone. Did we mention he didn’t have a stick?

That kind of hard work and determination from the top guy on the roster on down is exactly why the Capitals are enjoying a five-game winning streak and are playing some of the best hockey in the NHL.

(photo by Luis M. Alvarez)

The story of the night for the Washington Capitals heading into the game against the St. Louis Blues Thursday was clearly the home debut of goalie Simeon Varlamov. The 20-year-old won his NHL debut by a score of 2-1 in Montreal last week, so this was D.C.’s first glimpse of the highly-touted rookie.

(For the record, the other story coming into this game was Alex Ovechkin bobblehead night because seriously, who doesn’t love bobbleheads? Okay, where were we?)

Speaking of netminders, Varlamov was matched up against Blues 22-year-old goalie Ben Bishop, who was playing in just his fifth game of the season. With both rookie goaltenders so early into the professional careers, both sported plain, white hockey masks – which is an NHL first since 1973 (in a stat we completely made up).

After seeing the young Russian first hand, we can say this – Varlamov is very quick and very athletic. When he makes a kick save, the first-rounder is talented enough to launch the puck perfectly to a teammate breaking out at the blueline. It’s something Caps fans haven’t seen in a long, long time and actually gives the home team and chance to turn a routine defensive play into a fast break the other direction.

The Capitals defeated the Blues 4-2 thanks in large part to steady play of Varlamov throughout the game. With his team’s powerplay embarrassing itself and many Caps players getting outhustled, there was about a 10-minute stretch during the second period when Varlamov was the only player in a Capitals uniform who didn’t look like he was going through the motions. Had Varlamov not played at such a consistently high level throughout the night, there’s little reason to think the Caps would have picked up their fifth-straight win and improved their home record to 13-1-1 for the year.

“He played well,” said veteran defenseman Tom Poti of Varlamov. “I thought he was really good at challenging the shooters and coming out of the crease. He played sharp tonight and had a great game.”

Doesn’t he seem to have a lot of confidence for such a young kid?

“Yeah, definitely,” Poti said. “He knows his job is to stop the puck and that’s it, and he’s been doing that. My hat’s off to him. He played very good tonight.”

The highlight of the night came with less than six minutes remaining, when Varlamov absolutely stoned Blues left wing Keith Tkachuk, who was on the breakaway.

“I knew (Tkachuk) was going to deke,” Varlamov said through an interpreter. “He’s an older player and I knew when he made the first move I shouldn’t go down so fast.”

With the Blues having closed the score to 4-2 and last week’s near third-period collapse against the New York Islanders still fresh on the team’s mind, that play was huge.

“I thought he played really well,” said coach Bruce Boudreau. “The big one on Tkachuk’s breakaway – it was 4-2 at the time – took the wind out of their sails a little bit. He’s pretty good and I think he’s got a bright future in front of him.”

Through his first two professional games, Varlamov has stopped 61 of 64 shots for an impressive 1.50 goals against average and a .953 save percentage. If there’s something that can rattle him, opposing teams haven’t found it yet.

Goalie Brent Johnson has been stellar this year, but is eligible for free agency after the season and the Caps other goalie, Jose Theodore, hasn’t exactly recaptured lightning in a bottle since he came to town this past offseason. If these first two games are any indication of the type of NHL player Varlamov is going to be, then the team just might have found their long-term solution for the biggest question mark on the roster. Trust us when we say that by all accounts, Varlamov is the real deal.

(file photo)

Things are hectic at Homer McFanboy headquarters today, but we wanted to ensure that we helped our readers find a way to make it through their work day (without, you know, actually working). As you know by now, Washington Redskins legendary quarterback Sammy Baugh passed away last night at the age of 94.

The Washington Post has a classy obituary recounting the Baugh-era Redskins. Tom Boswell writes that the Redskins are the biggest ticket in town because of Sammy Baugh. The Redskins Blog has some old-school videos up, as well as a statement from owner Daniel Snyder.Rich Tandler has a piece on what was likely Baugh’s best game – in which he threw four touchdowns and also had four interceptions.

Some folks have also discovered a well-written history lesson done back in 2005 by John Jeffries, a good friend of this blog. Also, Baugh’s career statistics can be found here. And just like Jason “Hollywood Fabulous” Fabini, Baugh has his very own IMDB page.

We encourage people to swing by the Pro Football Hall of Fame site to see Sammy’s official page, where you can also read his HOF enshrinement speech. Sadly, Baugh was the last surviving member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s inaugural class of 1963.

Just know that out of the five football championship D.C. has been lucky enough to win, Baugh was responsible for two of them.

Raise your hand if you think London Fletcher should have made the Pro Bowl.

Here’s hoping Washington Redskins middle linebacker London Fletcher wasn’t wearing any valuables yesterday, because he got robbed.

Of course, if we know Fletcher as well as we think we do, there’s no way he was wearing anything flashy. That’s simply not his style, which is probably why the 11-year veteran has never received a Pro Bowl nod.

While it’s true that the NFL’s version of an all-star game is completely irrelevant, it still would have been nice to see Fletcher finally get the recognition he deserves. Since the first moment he arrived in D.C., Fletcher has been the heart and soul of this defense (which, by the way, is routinely ranked in the top 10 in the league).

Even though he’s been dealing with a foot injury for some time now, there’s zero chance of Fletcher actually missing a game … or even a play. Don’t take our word for it, listen to Fletcher’s boss.

“If you listen to my wife, she said I’d have to be in the hospital, strapped down to the bed,” Fletcher said. “Not just in the hospital, but actually strapped to the bed.”

In the violent world of the NFL, where everybody is banged up to some extent during the season, Fletcher is always there. In fact, Fletcher has played in 133 consecutive games and you better believe he takes that streak seriously.

”If I feel I can go out and help the team win, then I’m gonna do my all to be out there and play,” Fletcher said.

Not to take anything away from the four Redskins players – running back Clinton Portis, fullback Mike Sellers, tight end Chris Cooley and tackle Chris Samuels – who were voted to the Pro Bowl, but if only one person from the burgundy and gold was sent to Hawaii, it should be Fletcher.

He’s currently got 118 tackles, which is fifth best in the NFL. But more importantly, he’s the one player on the entire Redskins roster they can’t afford to play without. Even during this recent losing streak, when more than a few people are wondering which Redskins players have given up on the season, Fletcher refuses to mail it in. While still dealing with a lingering foot issue, he’s managed to rack up 32 tackles in the last three games. If that doesn’t show the true type of player he is, then nothing will.

And besides, one of the guys who got the nod ahead of Fletcher, San Francisco linebacker Patrick Willis is listed as an outside linebacker on NFL.com. How is he getting voted to one of the inside/middle linebacker slots over London? And do we need to mention that four players from the anemic Redskins offense made the Pro Bowl, but not one player from the team’s perennial top-10 defense was chosen?

We don’t want to make personal attacks on Willis or anyone else that made the Pro Bowl roster. The purpose of this post is simply to say that if ever there was someone who truly deserved to be honored for his talented and dedication, it’s London. He’s much too classy to make a big deal out of the snub, which is why we felt compelled to speak on his behalf. Frankly, this entire ordeal is making us sick to our stomach.

(photo by Brian Murphy)

Update: David Elfin of The Washington Times has some awesome quotes from London Fletcher in response to being snubbed by his peers. Here’s an sample:

“I don’t know if it was because I wasn’t a first-round draft pick, I don’t do some kind of dance when I make a 10-yard tackle, I don’t go out and get arrested. I believe in playing the game the way it’s supposed to be played,” Fletcher told Elfin.

Click here for the rest.