Redskins v. Eagles – Fourth Quarter Thoughts

I mentioned this last week, and … you know what? I’m going to actually go so far as to quote myself verbatim: “The spark of Santana Moss punt returns is seriously dampened when they’re all accompanied by penalties….” Today? It’s an illegal block by Kareem Moore negating a 31 yard return.

Redskins v. Eagles – Third Quarter Thoughts

It is remarkable how fired up and fresh the defense looks as they come out of the tunnel for the second half. Partially, it’s having a few guys back — Chris Horton and Marcus Washington both ran out onto the field at speed, which was great to see — but I’m sure it’s also partially [...]

Redskins v. Eagles – Second Quarter Thoughts

Well, it initially looked like I’d be starting this quarter out talking about how the Skins had built up some momentum, how Clinton Portis was starting to find a little running room, and other good things like that. Then the screen to Santana Moss got stuffed on third and 4, and Coach Zorn made the [...]

Redskins v. Eagles – First Quarter Thoughts

When I arrived at the stadium today, it was mild. Balmy, even. I brought my jacket, because the weather report was bad, but it was too warm to even consider wearing it. That was four or five hours ago, and things have changed since. Down on the field, the air is cold and the wind [...]

Redskins v. Eagles – Sammy Baugh Sticker

The Redskins are wearing burgundy jerseys and white pants. Santana Moss, Clinton Portis, and Shawn Springs as usual, are wearing shoes with yellow trim. Devin Thomas is wearing yellow compression sleeves. And everyone is wearing a black 33 sticker on their helmets in memory of Sammy Baugh.

Redskins v. Eagles – Inactives

Well, after a week in which I noted that Ryan Boschetti was one of the most fired-up guys in practice, he’s inactive today. But I bet he’ll be very, very fired up on the sidelines. Other than that, Malcolm Kelly is down and Fred Davis is active, and Kedric Golston has apparently not fully recovered [...]

Sunday, December 21: A Gameday Ritual

Not a lot to love today. The team’s been down, the playoff hopes are dim (but not extinguished, at least not as I type this just before the 1:00 kickoffs), and the weather is supposed to turn wickedly cold and windy. Frankly, it’s a pretty grim point in the season. So here’s one small gameday [...]

Redskins @ Bengals – Third Quarter Thoughts

Cincinnati’s civic pride was firmly on display at halftime, as the inevitable press box snack of chili dogs is also accompanied by spaghetti, cheese, and onions, offering the opportunity to create the classic Cincinnati three-way. It was a welcome addition, too, because the hot dogs looked particularly strange today. Here’s what I want to know [...]

Redskins @ Bengals – Second Quarter Thoughts

Here’s a sentence I didn’t expect to write today: at least the defense held the Bengals to a field goal to keep the deficit to 17. There’s some confusion in the press box about if Chris Cooley‘s first quarter catch-and-fumble, which went for 19 yards, qualifies as a Redskins first down. This is a vital [...]

Redskins @ Bengals – First Quarter Thoughts

This is the emptiest stadium I have ever seen for an NFL regular season game, narrowly edging out the Detroit experience. And, like in Detroit, a huge chunk of the fans who are here are Redskins fans, enough of them that the game is actually somewhat confusing to listen to. Chris Cooley makes a crucial [...]