With one trick play, Redskins Coach Jim Zorn shows defiance

[Neophyte]

Gotta admit, it's a little embarrassing that so many mainstream types have absolutely no concept that the play actually had a design other than Smith's panic heave.

I think, again, that option 1 was Yoder right ... and option 2 may have been Gano on the left sideline, who was well behind the wall of other Redskins and was maybe supposed to catch Smith's pass and either run or, if it was a lateral, throw the damn thing again.

Yeah, calling the trick play after the TO again was a circus move, and Zorn's in over his head and yada yada yada, but what the **** has happened to supposedly game-wise people writing about football actually observing and thinking for themselves?

Bashing is in vogue, brother. No more, no less to it. Why bother to actually analyze something that failed when you can just rag on a guy for the failure and be considered successful at your job?

 

[EatSleepRedskin]

Om, gotta agree.

I think the play would have worked (or might have worked).

There are a lot of people out in the media calling the play "stupid."

It wasn't a stupid play.

But it was very foolish to run the play even though the Giants had called a timeout to prepare for the play.

 

[InsaneBoost]

My question is, is this really Zorn?

I thought he was just basically a standing man on the sideline. I guess I've gotten confused with all the, Smith calls this, but Lewis says this and Zorn says this thing. I thought Zorn was just there to send the play to the QB and nothing else.

Wouldn't this have been more of Smiths fault (ST coach).

 

[LoyalSkinsFan]

Up until last night, a part of me (albeit a small part of me) was holding off judgement on Zorn as a head coach in this league. When they called the trick play before halftime (negating ANY sense of momentum, by the way), I was struck (once and for all) by just how over his head he is. Coughlin almost seemed INSULTED by the play call as he signaled for a timeout. As if he were saying, "You're trying WHAT!?" Then, to compound the insult....they did it AGAIN! Other than an embarrassment, I'm not sure what that play was designed to be.

On a side note, I am sick and tired of hearing excuse after excuse for Campbell. "He has had seven coaches in seven years", "He's run seven systems in seven years", "He's always under pressure", "Poor, poor Jason". Once again, Collins came in and, under the same amount of pressure, drove us directly down the field, making accurate reads and accurate passes. Jason needs to GO. Perfect example of his ineptness......later in the game, he's under pressure, scrambles from the pocket, throws to a wide open Randel El running parallel to him seven yards downfield....and hits him in the ankles with the ball. Incomplete. Total retard. Seriously.....even I can do THAT. And, I haven't had even ONE coach in the last seven years.

Sigh.

All I can hope is that Bruce Allen was taking some COPIOUS notes.


HTTR

 

[InsaneBoost]

Loyal, wasn't Collins in on that drive that drove us down field resulting in the fake? Shouldn't he have gotten us in for the TD?

The line is trash, not using it for Jason, but for any QB we put behind that line. Till it's fixed, no QB is going to do well with us.

 

[EatSleepRedskin]

I gotta believe Zorn told Smith "Who cares if they called a timeout, we're still going for it on fourth down, and we're still running that gadget play."

 

[Lanky Livingston]

Meaning? Sorry, can't quite get a read on what you're saying.

Meaning, there are a lot of plays every week that mediots bash, because they didn't work. They say "that was the dumbest call ever," and things along those lines - but every single one of those plays works if executed properly is my point. They are bashing the play's ineffectiveness, I think its outside the point to say where it was designed to go (which I have heard them say). And this play in particular was incredibly ridiculous...don't you agree?

 

[Om]

Meaning, there are a lot of plays every week that mediots bash, because they didn't work. They say "that was the dumbest call ever," and things along those lines - but every single one of those plays works if executed properly is my point. They are bashing the play's ineffectiveness, I think its outside the point to say where it was designed to go (which I have heard them say). And this play in particular was incredibly ridiculous...don't you agree?

I'm not sure, hermano.

Maybe I'm being obtuse, but what I'm reading is the italicized part says one thing ("the media are pandering idiots"--which I do agree with), and the bolded part says another (that the play design itself was too stupid to call in this or any other Universe).

Help a brudda out?

 

[Lanky Livingston]

I'm not sure, hermano.

Maybe I'm being obtuse, but what I'm reading is the italicized part says one thing ("the media are pandering idiots"--which I do agree with), and the bolded part says another (that the play design itself was too stupid to call in this or any other Universe).

Help a brudda out?

Are those mutually exclusive? The media is mostly pandering idiots, they have this type of creative analysis of every failed play. This play just happened to be tailor-made for their analysis, because it was especially ridiculous. Just my take on it...its a play that high school teams run.

 

[EatSleepRedskin]

I do think this trick play, because it looked so amateurish and rushed, is easy to pick on.

 

[Neophyte]

According to Matt Mosely on ESPN radio the Redskins set Pro Football back 30 or 40 years with this play last night. Apparently they have Pop Warner rolling over in his grave.

Dallas media is having a ball with this. They are all over Washington today because of the coming game.

 

[Aston Gambino]

I'm not sure, hermano.

Maybe I'm being obtuse, but what I'm reading is the italicized part says one thing ("the media are pandering idiots"--which I do agree with), and the bolded part says another (that the play design itself was too stupid to call in this or any other Universe).

Help a brudda out?

For me, this play was less about good call/bad call, or football strategy in general, then it was about Zorn putting his final stamp on an awful game.

Now, all that aside, I don't think the original call was all that stupid. It forced them to call a timeout, which is a minor victory in itself, but imagine if they had no timeouts?

My head-scratcher was the repeat call, and the choice to throw a jump ball to 6 defenders. Again, I think this was just Zorn enjoying one his last play calls.

 

[EatSleepRedskin]

Now, all that aside, I don't think the original call was all that stupid. It forced them to call a timeout, which is a minor victory in itself, but imagine if they had no timeouts?

My head-scratcher was the repeat call, and the choice to throw a jump ball to 6 defenders.

Yep.

Original call wasn't stupid at all. To try again after the timeout ... well ...

And if the Giants hadn't covered up Yoder, it might have even looked good.

But they did, and it didn't.

 

[Lanky Livingston]

I do think this trick play, because it looked so amateurish and rushed, is easy to pick on.

Maybe also because its straight out of a high-school playbook? Teams don't run things like this in the NFL because they only work with lesser talent on the field.

 

[Chris]

I've read a lot of comments about the drive that Collins led. Most of the drive was one play: the long throw to Moss. On that throw Collins had more time than Campbell did on any pass all night.

The onus is still on Campbell, but to hold up that one drive as evidence of Campbell's lack of ability is too simplistic.

 

[LoyalSkinsFan]

The last time we pulled a trick play like this we had 10 men on the field, called a TO, ran the same play from the same formation and scored a TD in SPITE of ourselves. This time, it didn't work out that well. Had it worked, we might be pouring forth Zorn's praises for having the guts to run the play again. But it didn't work. And, the play itself, as ESR points out above, looked like a high school play......which I mentioned to my wife at the time. I was, for the first time ever, a bit embarrassed to be a Redskin fan.

As for who QB'd the drive which let to that play (InsaneBoost)? Honestly, I don't recall. If it was Collins, I'd point to the fact that he got them into scoring position in the first place....something Campbell hadn't done to that point.

 

[servumtuum]

I pretty much believe that had that trick play worked after the time out, today the media pundits would've been calling Coughlin an idiot for letting the Skins get away with it.

And they would have been right.

 

[The Burgundy Ghost]

It was an ugly looking play and my issue with the play is how Smith had no blockers.

No way was he going to get a good shot to throw the ball with three Giants in his face.

But the real problem is with Zorn or Danny Smith (I'm assuming Zorn here) running the play a 2nd time after the Giants called time out.

Once they did that, you have two options:
1. Kick the FG
2. Bring out the O and go for it.

It just makes no sense to run the trick play again once the Giants saw our hand.
Zorn said something like (paraphrase) "we decided to run it again because we believed that they weren't sure of the formation or play" but then he says they played good defense to stop it.

Yeah, b/c they weren't surprised you were running a fake.

I like Zorn as a person. But man, I'm not even sure Norv is his goofy, undisciplined days as the Redskins HC would have done something like that.
Not even the back to back timeouts by Gibbs compares to this.

And it's not just Zorn was flustered by this blowout of the Giants. This was the second time this year that he made this decision after showing his hand.
That's just bad coaching at any level.

 

[Sarge]

I like Zorn as a person. But man, I'm not even sure Norv is his goofy, undisciplined days as the Redskins HC would have done something like that.
Not even the back to back timeouts by Gibbs compares to this.

.

He made the Ol' Ball Coach look competant

 

[Bulldog]

Zorn is most comparable to Spurrier

Both were former NFL quarterbacks.

Both came in with schemes they were confident were going to work with the personnel on the club.

Both had quick starts that faded rapidly.

And both had the types of personalities that quickly eroded the respect of the players and the loyalty of the fans and left them in no man's land.