NFL: A Game of Inches, Two Plays Make a Difference

Last week provided another sideshow to the Redskins’ play on the field. The big deal this time was that the team was fined $20,000 for using the PA system to incite the crowd during the Tampa Bay game in early October. The washed-up DJ they have cheering into the microphone can no longer scream "It’s third down, Redskins fans, get up and cheer!" I went to the game at FedEx Field Monday night and apparently it’s fine to scream "It’s thiiiiiiird down!"

I don’t see much of a difference, but regardless, Redskins fans are good enough that they don’t need a cheerleader. It was an event, a happening. Army parachutists jumped in before kickoff. Adam Sandler was on the sidelines.

Excitement was in the air. It was the loudest stadium I’ve been in since I visited Arrowhead in Kansas City last year and the loudest I’ve heard a Redskins game since the old days of RFK. Maybe it was the echoes of the fireworks or the hip-hop music blaring during every break in the action.

The noise level in the stadium may have been deafening, but it did nothing to improve the Redskins’ recent dismal record on MNF. After they lost 27-21 to the Titans, the only din was on the sports talk radio as disgruntled fans called in to voice their displeasure.

The game started out well, as the Redskins’ offense marched 84 yards downfield and put the ball in the end zone. Those were the first points scored against the Titans on a game-opening possession this year.

It was all downhill from there. The offense stalled throughout the rest of the first half except for one burst midway through the second quarter. Stephen Davis gained 20 yards on four straight carries, but Norv Turner elected to then call three straight passes. Two sacks and an incompletion later, the team was forced to punt. Bad snap. The punter picked up the ball and tried to run, but he couldn’t gain 27 yards. The Titans had the ball deep in Redskins territory and got a field goal.

Just before that, the special teams’ woes resurfaced as Derrick Mason returned a punt for a touchdown. That was one of two deathblows the Redskins put on themselves. The worst came at the end of the first half, when Samari Rolle picked off Brad Johnson and returned the ball 81 yards for a touchdown, weaving across the field to score with 00:00 on the clock. If the Redskins had stopped either of those plays, they would have had a lead to protect and the Titans would have had to open up their offense. I’d be writing about the Redskins’ six-game winning streak instead of trying to figure out what is wrong with them. I came away very impressed by the Titans. With that predictable offense--all 83,000 people in the stadium knew Eddie George was getting the ball—the Redskins still could not stop them. George got the ball on nine consecutive plays at one point. The Titans only completed three passes to wide receivers!

A negative to come out of the game is that the Redskins are now in second place in the division. Positives are that they play the minor-league Cardinals Sunday and that they came within two plays of beating last season’s Super Bowl runner-up. If the Redskins can just fix a few problems, maybe they’ll be in the Super Bowl.

D.C. Notes: DC101, the local rock radio station, knocked the Capitals out of their slump last night. For the return of suspended forward Richard Zednik, they gave bottle-blonde hairdos and black number 44 jerseys to hundreds of fans in honor of their peroxide-blonde hero. They filled up an entire section of the MCI Center with "Zedheads," who cheered the Caps and jeered the unsuspecting Red Wings fans--loud, obnoxious people who usually make up half the crowd when these two teams play. Zednik responded with his first career hat trick and the Caps dominated the Wings, 6-2.

A Peek at this Week’s Redskins Game: Arizona is horrible in all phases of the game. The Redskins are mad. Redskins 34, Cardinals 3.