Game reactions. Atlanta.

Serv, I know we do the same thing, but it still irritates me when I see other fans do it. :)

Eff the Falcons fans. Seriously, that was unbelievably lucky for them to recover that fumble in the endzone. Matt looked rattled because we were knocking him around all game. And I give Joe Freaking Barry a shitton of credit for devising a gameplan to neutralize Julio Jones. Don't give me that shit about Jones being hurt or whatever. STFU with that crap. Barry took away their number one weapon.

Unfortunately, we don't have enough talent YET to take away the opposing teams top TWO weapons. That will come in time. Freeman killed us, and I give him and Kyle a ton of credit. Kyle figured it out in the second half - he still got goofy once or twice trying to outsmart himself, but by and large he took what we were giving him - lots and lots of Freeman.
 
Freeman has killed everyone the Falcons have faced this year. So we've got plenty of company there.


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We're going to be the "trap game" for every team this season... They will miss field goals/xp points and play down to our level, and we may steal a few games. However, we're not really good enough to go out and beat good teams because we're just better than them. We have mostly good components, and the defense is about 75% there. The offense needs a new coach and a new QB. This last game was just another example, but unfortunately it shows we still lose when teams don't bring their best...
 
Breeland is a bad ass. Very glad we have him on this team. The game is never too big for him, nor is the receiver.
Crowder was our best weapon. Bill Polian was so high on this guy coming out of college, he could hardly contain himself.

I'm curious to hear some break downs of the Oline this week. I also loved how the defense played. We were dealing with major issues in our secondary.
 
Well the Skins made it interesting again that's for sure. I like the fact that this group of players plays very hard and does not give up. That is very satisfying from a fan's point of view.

Here are my takeaways for this game:

1. Breeland, even with his inconsistencies, is the best corner on the team and should replace DHall even if Hall is healthy.

2. Oline continues to provide the QB nice pass protection, but losing the LG has had a negative effect on the running game.

3. Gruden seems to be settling into being an nfl head coach, but he still needs to do much better with his game management for the whole game. The Skins have got to be the worst 3rd quarter team in the nfl, which tells me that while Gruden and his staff are good game planners, they don't make in game adjustments well. I don't know what the hell Gruden is doing at halftime, but he needs to do much better there.

4. Unfortunately, Cousins really lost this game for the Skins. You can point out the game losing pic 6 of course, which was a terrbile throw, but where he really lost the game was when he missed open receivers in the middle part of the game several times in a row. The Redskins were in a position to put that game away, and Cousins missed some critical throws, leading to quick 3 and outs and a tired redskins defense. I still think Cousins is the best option right now, but he has to be much more consistent or this will be his last season with us.
 
We never adjusted to covering Tamie better...even when Hank and Julio were out of the game.

we covered the best player (Freeman) with the slowest linebacker we have in Compton time and time again.

Cousins replaced his rainbow passing (for the most part) with better zip but less accuracy. He had some amazing passes that were on a rail. I even complimented them. But that deep ball to Ross was a big rainbow that Ross had to slow up for just to get to it.
 
I cannot believe I am typing this, but I think we might be too hard on Gruden. I've been thinking about this 3rd Q thing a lot, and I've noticed a pattern. We come out after halftime and the opponents have made their adjustments and they look much better against us for a couple of series. Then, we adjust to their adjustments and settle things down. I do not think it is reasonable to expect a coach to adjust instantaneously to the other team's adjustments, a couple of series is reasonable in my mind. And that seems to be what Gruden is doing.

We're not going to score on every drive, we're just not. I think Gruden is doing a much better job this year with the gameplan and with managing the team.

My biggest gripe with him is that I think he is under-utilizing Alfred. Morris needs a lot of touches to batter the D and get into a rhythm, and Gruden seems enthralled with Jones and Thompson, both of whom are well suited as a change of pace back, but neither seems ready, imo, to be the primary back. I think our running game would get back on track with Alfred getting 23-27 touches, Jones getting 10-13 touches and Thompson getting +/-5 touches.
 
MikeSr619 said:
We never adjusted to covering Tamie better...even when Hank and Julio were out of the game.
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Yes we did. Tamme killed us in the first Q, a little into the second, and then I heard nothing from him until late in the game.

MikeSr619 said:
we covered the best player (Freeman) with the slowest linebacker we have in Compton time and time again.
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I just think we don't have the horses yet. Let McL do his thing and in a few years we'll be able to handle first and second threats. We eliminated Julio from the game almost completely. We just don't have the talent yet to do that to two top threats, imo.

MikeSr619 said:
Cousins replaced his rainbow passing (for the most part) with better zip but less accuracy. He had some amazing passes that were on a rail. I even complimented them. But that deep ball to Ross was a big rainbow that Ross had to slow up for just to get to it.
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Cousins was off for a lot of the game yesterday. I was encouraged that he got it together when it mattered most, but as GSF said we could have put that game away completely if he had been on target earlier. Kirk is up and down in games and he needs to be more consistent for us to compete. Every game is a learning opportunity for him, so hopefully over the course of this year he can put it together. If not, the consistency is something that can't be overlooked.
 
"until late in the game" when he had a clutch 15 yard reception. The guy had 94 yards on us even with Hank and Julio hurting. I get people think we are short in the secondary and that's cool...but a no name shouldn't be able to do that to a team that is looking to be considered legitimate.
 
I too am tired of "moral victories" but honestly, this one felt different to me. We had Atlanta on the ropes and worried. We seriously slowed up one of the most high octane offenses in the league this year (color me impressed, Mr Barry) and our offense did alright when it's bread and butter running game wasn't working.

No, I didn't like the way Kirk disappeared in the middle of the 3rd or the INT in overtime (which I think is an incomplete pass at worst if Grant doesn't fall) but I have to say I was impressed. To me, this is what many have looked for from him...2 solid games in a row. He handled the 20 second drill in almost Manning like fashion. Honestly, I can't and won't complain.
 
I'm bitter and I can fully admit to it. I am probably more bitter because of how we lost...its such a heartbreaker to lose on a fluke play like that.
 
MikeSr619 said:
"until late in the game" when he had a clutch 15 yard reception. The guy had 94 yards on us even with Hank and Julio hurting. I get people think we are short in the secondary and that's cool...but a no name shouldn't be able to do that to a team that is looking to be considered legitimate.
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We went max deep coverage for most of the game to make sure they couldn't beat us with a couple of deep balls the way other teams have. That left the middle more open than usual. It doesn't matter if it's a no name or a big name, you sacrifice coverage to help out your corners and you are going to be susceptible to plays by the TE. We couldn't cover their starters with our starting DBs so I viewed it as a calculated risk. For the most part, it worked perfectly. It was Freeman that beat us yesterday, not the WRs or TE imho.


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Neophyte said:
I too am tired of "moral victories" but honestly, this one felt different to me. We had Atlanta on the ropes and worried. We seriously slowed up one of the most high octane offenses in the league this year (color me impressed, Mr Barry) and our offense did alright when it's bread and butter running game wasn't working.
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I don't know.

I didn't want to say this ahead of the game because I didn't want to be overly optimistic, but that High Octane offense hasn't played a decent defense yet this year. They barely beat a crappy Eagles team by 2 points at home. They barely beat a mediocre, self-destructive Giants team by 4 points. They beat the Cowboys without Romo and Bryant, and they whipped a lousy Texans team.

Yay we gave them a game. So did a bunch of other crappy teams.

I have to admit I didn't think it would be as close as it was. I thought we'd lose by 10 points and be out of it by the fourth quarter. So yes, it's nice that we played it closer than that.

But not really all that nice. A loss is a loss. This one really does sting because we could have won it. We need to start winning these types of games eventually. That's what good teams do.

The next few weeks will be very interesting. I see it going one of two ways:

The Redskins FINALLY get over this hump and start winning these close ones and win 8 or so games (or more if you like), or

The Redskins do what they usually do after looking not completely awful during the first quarter of the season: They collapse and put together a nice string of awful losses and finish 4-12 or so.

I will not make a prediction. I'm just hoping we go with option one for a change.
 
GSF said:
Well the Skins made it interesting again that's for sure. I like the fact that this group of players plays very hard and does not give up. That is very satisfying from a fan's point of view.

Here are my takeaways for this game:

1. Breeland, even with his inconsistencies, is the best corner on the team and should replace DHall even if Hall is healthy.

2. Oline continues to provide the QB nice pass protection, but losing the LG has had a negative effect on the running game.

3. Gruden seems to be settling into being an nfl head coach, but he still needs to do much better with his game management for the whole game. The Skins have got to be the worst 3rd quarter team in the nfl, which tells me that while Gruden and his staff are good game planners, they don't make in game adjustments well. I don't know what the hell Gruden is doing at halftime, but he needs to do much better there.

4. Unfortunately, Cousins really lost this game for the Skins. You can point out the game losing pic 6 of course, which was a terrbile throw, but where he really lost the game was when he missed open receivers in the middle part of the game several times in a row. The Redskins were in a position to put that game away, and Cousins missed some critical throws, leading to quick 3 and outs and a tired redskins defense. I still think Cousins is the best option right now, but he has to be much more consistent or this will be his last season with us.
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Kirk is no Rodgers, no one is expecting as much. Nevertheless, you left out Garcon's complete failure to catch the ball. 4 drops and an Int he caused? Kirk is playing above his expectations, he and the team are over achieving. The coaches are getting way more out of these players than last year. Certainly your prerogative to blame is all on Kirk, but every incompletion and int is not on the QB. and you know it.

If you want to know how well Kirk played, he outplayed Matt Ryan head to head. Take that for what its worth.
 
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Henry said:
I don't know.

I didn't want to say this ahead of the game because I didn't want to be overly optimistic, but that High Octane offense hasn't played a decent defense yet this year. They barely beat a crappy Eagles team by 2 points at home. They barely beat a mediocre, self-destructive Giants team by 4 points. They beat the Cowboys without Romo and Bryant, and they whipped a lousy Texans team.

Yay we gave them a game. So did a bunch of other crappy teams.

I have to admit I didn't think it would be as close as it was. I thought we'd lose by 10 points and be out of it by the fourth quarter. So yes, it's nice that we played it closer than that.

But not really all that nice. A loss is a loss. This one really does sting because we could have won it. We need to start winning these types of games eventually. That's what good teams do.

The next few weeks will be very interesting. I see it going one of two ways:

The Redskins FINALLY get over this hump and start winning these close ones and win 8 or so games (or more if you like), or

The Redskins do what they usually do after looking not completely awful during the first quarter of the season: They collapse and put together a nice string of awful losses and finish 4-12 or so.

I will not make a prediction. I'm just hoping we go with option one for a change.
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Yeah. I will add that a few years ago you put together a post that I still think about when I get too high on my Skins; specifically it had to do with the 2nd quarter of the season, and how, with a few notable exceptions, we pretty much stink in Oct and Nov. Even 2012, Oct and Nov were mostly garbage. That post has always stuck with me, and to me, I won't feel we've turned the proverbial corner until we can consistently be good after the first few games of the season.

Having said that, this team has more fight than I remember having in a while. We are making dumb mistakes right now, which is fine so far as we learn from them. If we're still making those mistakes in a year or two, then we're going to need replacement players at those positions. I am generally encouraged about the team, primarily because while Kirk has been making some really nice throws, he isn't being asked to define the team. You know where we are being defined, imo? The lines.

That ****ing rocks.

We need more depth (obviously - losing Lavaou shouldn't have shut our run game down like it evidently did) along both lines, but we're making serious progress. If McL continues to pay excessive attention to both lines, I couldn't be happier. We're forging an identity that will allow us to be competitive for a while.
 
As I've said before, my biggest issue with Gruden this year is that he gets cute with the run game. I'd genuinely like to see AlMo given 20+ carries over the course of a game to see how he performs. He has almost always struck me as needing a lot of carries to get a feel for the game, and I personally think his performance would improve.

And if he still sucked it up, then I would be willing to give Thompson a shot at the bulk of the carries. Jones I think needs a little more game time to get a feel for the speed of the game, and needs to work on his ball control.
 
Every ball a receiver doesn't catch isn't entirely his fault either. Cousins was inaccurate often in the first half. Garcon looked like a contortionist at times trying to get to balls that were behind him or over him.
 
Reed may have been able to grab those high passes but def. too high for Garcon
Kirk was off (well off) early on but settled down some later.
 
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