We can see the improvements and think we can feel confident this team is on the way up.
Funny, I had the exact opposite reaction.
Playing the Colts provided a dramatic contrast between a very good team and our team which isn’t really very good. Sure the final score was close and we had a chance to tie it at the end, but the difference between us and the Colts was stark.
While Manning was able to pass from large pockets with good passing lanes and was seldom under pressure, McNabb constantly had to play Houdini just to get a pass off. Can you imagine how ugly it would have been if Jason Campbell or Patrick Ramsey had been under center?
It seems like the Colt receivers were open by 5 yards all night (until their last three passes when suddenly the Redskin secondary figured out how to cover.) Meanwhile, McNabb had to thread the needle on every play. Can someone please explain to me why Phillip Buchanon gets beaten like a stepchild all night and suddenly turns into Champ Bailey at the end of the game?
What’s with this “we don’t need any stinking defensive linemen” on third and two? Does Haslett really believe that we are going to stop anyone while our front seven are standing up milling around. They have been doing this all year and it doesn’t work. We have however developed the ability to give up long runs which I guess has the advantage of not having to watch the opposition play pitch and catch all the way down the field. At least this way, we get to have some variety.
4th and 10 with the game on the line. Does anyone really think this is a good time to throw deep into double coverage?
Why is it that the Redskin safeties always arrive well after the completion and the Colt safeties are right there on our guys along with their corners? Are our receivers not that good or are our safeties that bad or is it both?
All the talk about using our two tight ends was just that, talk. When Cooley went down we could see that there was nothing wrong with Fred Davis (except that McNabb doesn’t want to pass to him.) Hey the Colts have a rookie middle linebacker. Think we can use our two tight ends to exploit the middle and force the Colts to help out with a safety so that Armstrong/Moss/Galloway get single coverage? Of course not.
Let’s face it, except for problems in the Colts kicking game and the Colts having a bad case of fumbleitis, this would have been a blow out.