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Wow.
Minutes after a Redskins home opener win, and all should be right with the Universe. Glory, celebration, and good cheer should fill the air.
But there's a stench hovering over this Burgundy and Gold land - the stench of something rotten, just barely out of view. Like a dead mouse, trapped in a wall - you can't see it or touch it, but you can smell....that smell...
These Redskins aren't very good. Not yet anyway. Maybe not ever. Is it Jason Campbell's fault? I think the more we see, the more we realize - probably not. Campbell, at worst, has made the most of his limited opportunities. His 2009 offense couldn't get on the field in game 1 against the Giants. They fared better today against the Rams, and Campbell was just fine. Far from a perfect performance, Campbell did plenty of good things, most notably keeping a number of plays alive with his feet, shifting in the pocket to buy a precious extra second or two, and most importantly hanging in there under pressure to make a throw. I've decided, although JC will never be a perennial Pro Bowler, we can win with him. Unfortunately, we have another problem.
Coach Jim Zorn is coaching scared. Rex Ryan he is not. In fairness, Zorn inherited Jason Campbell. However, as the saying goes, you gotta dance with the date you brung, and there is no question that as Jason Campbell goes in 2009, so go the Redskins, and ultimately Jim Zorn's head coaching career. Zorn does not trust Campbell. It is clear and it is indisputable. Running up the gut repeatedly in the red zone, running trick plays in a panicked attempt to score says one emphatic thing. I do not believe in my QB.
Thats really a shame.
Because, if Campbell cannot be trusted, the Redskins 2009 season is over before it's begun.
The complaints and second-guessing after our weak showing in a game 1 loss to the Giants have risen to a low rumble. Soon, they will be a roar. Both local media and fans are turning on this coach and team. Never have I heard such criticism, anger, and harsh words directed at a team following a home win. The city of DC and hordes of lifelong Redskins fans are close to saying 'I've had it'. They're tired of their pocket-padding owner, they're tired of the crap stadium experience, and most of all, they're tired of a team and coaching staff that plays scared, sloppy, and underachieving football.
I hope Zorn gets it, and gets it soon. He has two choices - make a QB change if he cannot trust Campbell to run this offense, or set his misgivings aside, and give Campbell the opportunity to succeed or fail on his own merits. Drifting somewhere between the two got us dominated by an NFC rival, and nearly beaten by one of the worst NFC teams out there (one that had to travel halfway across the country to nearly best us). Without a sea change in Zorn's mindset, despite one of the softest schedules in the NFL this season, the Redskins will be lucky to get to .500.
We'll see if Zorn and his coaching staff can somehow slap some duct tape and super glue on these wheels and get us back on the track to Redskins football again.
Color me hopefully skeptical.
