All posts in football

(photo by Andy Zunich)

1. “Safe And Sound” by Capital Cities

Say it with me – the final score of a preseason game is meaningless. Ten minutes after the game ends, no one cares.*

*Seriously, can you even name the four teams the Redskins played during the 2012 preseason without cheating and looking it up? More likely than not, the answer is no.

Washington Redskins coaches, as well as the rest of the NFL, simply want to have the opportunity to evaluate the players competing for roster spots – especially when it comes to the bottom third of the roster.

Most importantly, everyone just wants to avoid any major injuries. Get a chance to see your players lineup and compete against someone wearing different color jerseys and get them out safe and sound, and that’s a successful evening. And if you’re able to walk away victorious – as the Redskins did against the Tennessee Titans in their 22-21 preseason opener – that’s just icing on the cake.

2. “Born To Rise” by Redlight King

When the Redskins opted to utilize a fourth-round pick in the 2012 NFL Draft to select Michigan State quarterback Kirk Cousins, the move was heavily criticized by both fans and media members alike.

Apparently, even though the franchise had just gone through an entire season with Rex Grossman and John Beck “playing quarterback,” conventional wisdom was that the 102nd overall pick in the ’12 draft should have been used to bolster another position on the roster – especially since the team had already landed franchise savior Robert Griffin III 100 picks earlier.

Of course, Cousins already began to prove his worth last season when he stepped in for an injured Griffin against the Baltimore Ravens late in the season and then again when he got his first career start versus the Cleveland Browns.

Fast forward to now and Cousins is scheduled to play with the first-team offense throughout the entire preseason as the coaching staff practices caution while RGIII returns from the devastating knee injury that abruptly ended his rookie campaign.

Even though he attempted less than 50 passes last year, it’s crystal clear that those limited reps have been enough to bolster Cousins’ confidence. Now when he walks onto the field, he does so with the poise and maturity of a proven NFL starter. He might still have plenty to learn, but he’s already ahead of any reasonable expectations for a 24-year-old with one start under his belt.

In related news, Cousins completed six of seven passes for 52 yards and a touchdown in limited action with the starters against the Titans.

So, in the end, maybe people shouldn’t have rushed to judgment and been so hyper critical when the powers that be in Ashburn went out of their way to establish depth at football’s most vital position.

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(photo by Geoff Burke)

It goes without saying that when the league takes away a large chunk of your salary cap space and you trade away multiple first-round picks to land a franchise quarterback, it requires you to get a little creative to round out the rest of the roster.

That’s the approach the Washington Redskins have had to take this offseason — with $18 million less to work with than other franchises and no first rounder this year or next thanks to the Robert Griffin III trade last year.

Which explains why there were no splashy acquisitions or no marquee free agent signings to tout at Redskins Park as head coach Mike Shanahan and friends prepare for the 2013 season. Instead, if the Redskins are going to defend their NFC East title, they’re going to have to do it largely with the same roster they had last season.

One of the new faces in town who is hoping to make a strong impression during training camp is tackle Xavier Nixon, an undrafted free agent who played his college ball with the Florida Gators.

“I grew up in Fayetteville, North Carolina,” Nixon said. “Both of my parents are in the military. I didn’t do a lot of bouncing around as a kid though. I went to the University of Florida and I was a four-year starter.”

For those ‘Skins fans who don’t know much about you, how would you describe your game?

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(photo by Brian Murphy)

By now, fans of the Washington Redskins are intimately familiar with the newest additions to the roster – the players the team selected in the 2013 NFL Draft.

As a quick refresher, here are the seven college players the burgundy and gold brain trust opted to select during this year’s draft:

• Cornerback David Amerson (2nd round, 51st overall)
• Tight end Jordan Reed (3rd round, 85th overall)
• Safety Phillip Thomas (4th round, 119th overall)
• Running back Chris Thompson (5th round, 154th overall)
• Linebacker Brandon Jenkins (5th round, 162nd overall)
• Safety Bacarri Rambo (6th round, 191st overall)
• Running back Jawan Jamison (7th round, 228th overall)

This year’s draft class clearly didn’t have the same level of name recognition of others in recent history, but that’s to be expected when a team trades away its first-round pick and is simply looking to add depth to a roster returning 21 of 22 starters from a year ago.

My personal opinion is that the Redskins targeted high-risk, high-reward players in specific areas of need – believing the coaching staff can apparently bring out the best in talented, but flawed players while helping these seven players overcome some of the deficiencies that could have possibly scared off other teams.

Take, for example, Washington’s top pick – defensive back David Amerson, out of North Carolina State. Depending on your perspective, the ‘Skins landed one of the top ball-hawking defensive backs in the country … or a burnt piece of toast who lacks discipline and tries too hard to make the highlight reel.

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(photo by Brian Murphy)

With all due respect to the Baltimore Ravens, there is only one possible candidate for the most valuable player of Super Bowl XLVII and it ain’t Joe Flacco.*

*And before you attempt to place a vote for yourself, Ray Lewis, no, it’s not you either.

Nope, the only logical candidate for Super Bowl XLVII MVP is Washington Redskins rookie quarterback Kirk Cousins.

That might sound absurd, considering Cousins wasn’t technically a member of either of the teams actually playing in New Orleans Sunday night, but he had as much to do with determining the outcome as anyone from the San Francisco 49ers or the Ravens.

How you ask? It’s simple — had Cousins and the Redskins not mounted their thrilling come-from-behind 31-28 victory in overtime over Baltimore, Dec. 9, the Ravens wouldn’t have captured their second Lombardi Trophy in franchise history.

Still not tracking? Allow me to elaborate.

While the Redskins are generally known for a meddlesome owner, helping to decide presidential elections and/or throwing large sums of money to ill-advised free agents, they’re most recent gimmick is determining the outcome of the Super Bowl.

Not by playing in it. No, that would be too easy.

Instead they prefer to determine the NFL’s biggest winner by defeating them during the regular season.

Case in point: the Ravens are now the third-straight team who lose to the Redskins during the regular season and then went on to win the Super Bowl.

Two seasons ago, the Green Bay Packers fell to Washington 16-13 in overtime during a Week 5 match-up. Four months later, they defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Super Bowl.

Last season, the New York Giants dropped both regular season games to “Sexy” Rex Grossman and friends before dispatching the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl.

Basically, if you’re the head coach of a team scheduled to play the Redskins during the 2013 season, your best bet to immortalize yourself in history and bringing home a Lombardi Trophy is to ensure your squad loses to Washington during the regular season.

So let the tanking begin!

(photo by Brian Murphy)

(photo by Brian Murphy)

As if there was ever any doubt.

The NFL’s worst-kept secret is officially out of the bag and Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III is officially the 2012 AP offensive rookie of the year.

Considering the last time RGIII’s name was in the headlines it was to announce he had successfully undergone surgery on his right knee after damaging it in Washington’s home playoff loss to the Seattle Seahawks, it was a welcome feel-good story for the league’s most electrifying young talent.

“Well, it’s a truly a blessing to be up here and be able to stand, first and foremost,” Griffin said after accepting his award during the NFL Honors awards show Saturday night. “I had a tough injury there at the end of the season. I thank our coaches, thank our players. I want to give a hand clap for Alfred Morris, who’s also up for this award. All the competition for this award was extremely good … It seems like the league’s in good hands with the young quarterbacks.”

In his rookie season, the former Heisman Trophy winner completed 258 of 393 passes for 3,200 yards with 20 touchdowns and only five interceptions while leading the worst-to-first Redskins to a 10-6 record and their first NFC East title since ’99. The second-overall pick also rushed for 815 yards (an NFL record for rookie quarterbacks) with seven touchdowns.

Here’s the best part of the story — for all of the talk in some corners of the football-loving world about how Colts quarterback Andrew Luck and/or Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson were possibly more deserving of the award, Griffin won in a landslide. Seriously, it wasn’t even close.

Griffin received 29 votes from the AP’s 50-member panel, while Luck garnered 11 votes and Wilson got 10. To put it another way, RGIII earned more votes than Luck and Wilson combined.

Finally, Griffin — who said he’s been off crutches for two weeks now — firmly believes he’ll be ready to take the field with the Redskins when the season opener rolls around this fall.

“It’s feeling good,” he said. “I went through the toughest part already, so it’s now it’s just about being smart, not pushing it too much. That’s what the doctors are there for, to keep me from doing too much.”