redskins-buccaneers playlist
(photo by Brian Murphy)
1. “Big Girls Don’t Cry” by Fergie^
There’s never a dull moment when the Washington Redskins take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Off the top of my head, I can recall three memorable match-ups between these two franchises: the return of Hall of Fame head coach Joe Gibbs,* the Mike Alstott elbow game and the playoff win where safety Sean Taylor returned a fumble for a touchdown and then was later ejected for spitting in the face of running back Michael Pittman.
*You might recall running back Clinton Portis taking his first carry as a member of the Redskins 64 yards for a thrilling touchdown. That was this same game against Tampa.
That’s without even mentioning the previous playoff match-up between these two teams way back in 2000 that ended in heartbreaking fashion for the burgundy and gold. So yeah, even a meaningless preseason game takes on a bigger feeling when the ‘Skins and Bucs square off.
And you know what?
This game lived up to the heightened expectations as the Redskins backups rallied to defeat Tampa’s reserves 29-24, thanks to a 41-yard bomb from quarterback Kellen Clemens to receiver Donte Stallworth with just over a minute remaining to play in the game.
2. “Ain’t No Other Man” by Christina Aguilera^
For the second-consecutive season, head coach Mike Shanahan wisely opted to rest the bulk of his starters in the preseason finale.
While I’ve been critical of other decisions made by Shanahan (like dragging Donovan McNabb’s name through the mud just to prove a point or dragging his feet in naming a starting quarterback this season), I’ve got nothing against being overly cautious with your starters in the preseason.
After losing rookie defensive lineman Jarvis Jenkins for the year due to an injury against the Baltimore Ravens, Shanahan could have forfeited the final two preseason games as far as I was concerned. That’s how much promise Jenkins appeared to have and how much I hate seeing players lost for the year in meaningless exhibition games.
So while players such as running back Tim Hightower and receiver Santana Moss were given the night off, the Shanahan clan wanted to give quarterback John Beck one final opportunity to claim his place among the starters.
To ensure Beck made it out in one piece, Shanahan even kept his starting offensive line in the lineup as well. All Beck needed to do was pad his preseason stats against a bunch of guys only days away from bagging groceries in Tampa and the job was his.
There’s just one problem with the plan – Beck failed to deliver. The “chosen one” looked downright mediocre against the Buccaneers backups, completing 10 of 21 passes for 108 yards with an interception and a QB rating of 43.4.
Normally, it’s tough for a guy to stand out on a night he doesn’t even take the field. But thanks to the lackluster effort by Beck, Rex Grossman left FedEx Field smelling like roses Thursday night.