NFL: Redskins’ Wheels Fall off in Dallas

The Redskins have already cost one coach his job this year. The whole season was on the line with a new coach, but they lost to the pathetic Dallas Cowboys Sunday, 32-13, in the most dismal, heartless performance I can remember.

Believe me, there are plenty of games to pick from. They lost a Thanksgiving day game in the late ‘70s to a Clint Longley-led Dallas team, squandering a double-digit lead with less than two minutes to play. They gave up a 21-point lead in the fourth quarter of last season’s opener. They were creamed 41-14 by Dallas on Monday Night Football in 1985. At least they were somewhat competitive in all of those games.

Lest you think all of their horrendous games happened against Dallas, think again. There was the body bag game at Philadelphia in 1990; a 3-0 loss to the Jets in 1993; and Gus Frerotte’s head-banging display and Michael Westbrook’s helmet-throwing temper tantrum in a 1997 game that ended in a 7-7 tie (in a great quarterbacking clinic, Jeff Hostetler was picked off three times in overtime). And who can forget the time they gave up 522 yards passing to Boomer Esiason four or five years ago? There have been many bad performances, but Sunday’s was the worst.

They lost to a team headed nowhere, a 4-9 team with an awful quarterback--and then Troy Aikman got knocked out and third-stringer Anthony Wright came in! The Cowboys threw only five passes after that. The Redskins knew Emmitt Smith was going to run the ball on every down and they couldn’t stop him. For some variety, Dallas ran three reverses, and two of them went for TDs! Did I mention Dallas’s best offensive lineman was knocked out of the game early?

On a day the players said would go a long way toward turning their season around, they gave up a season-high 242 rushing yards and amassed a season-low 270 yards on offense. The special teams played worse than ever. Stephen Davis gained only 57 yards against the league’s worst run defense. There was no fire, no emotion.

The offensive line, devastated by injuries, waved the Cowboys past on every play. Offensive tackle Chris Samuels, a rookie playing at an all-pro level all season, had his worst game as a pro. Dallas, with a league-low 19 sacks on the season, pummeled Jeff George all day. Ebenezer Ekuban, Alonzo Spellman and Greg Ellis terrorized him, and aside from Jay Leeuwenburg, nobody stood up for him. Ekuban once grabbed George by the jersey after the whistle and dragged him across the turf. Astoundingly, there was no penalty and no fight. (Perhaps this says something about how little the players think of George. Remember last year’s playoff game against Detroit? Robert Porcher tried beating up on Brad Johnson? There was close to a riot and Tre Johnson ended up getting suspended for a game.)

The Redskins were scared of those bums, and it was a sad sight. Besides Emmitt Smith, guard Larry Allen and linebacker Dexter Coakley, there is not a player among Dallas’s 22 that any GM in the league would want, but this ragtag crew destroyed the Redskins and laughed about it.

The players should be embarrassed, but I don’t see that from them. They just keep pumping out a bunch of cliches about how they can turn it around.

They will now be associated with the free-spending Orioles and New York Rangers in other sports, teams that tried to buy a title and had it blow up in their faces. It’s obvious that these players are playing for their paychecks and not much else. They don’t care about anything except getting paid. Injuries happen, but they are not excuses for losing. Look at the New Orleans Saints. They lost their two best players and they’re willing their way into the playoffs.

A few injuries and a few tough losses, and the Redskin players have given up on the season. They’re going to cost interim coach Terry Robiskie and a lot more people their jobs before the smoke clears.

A "Peak" at This Week’s Game: I’ve lost all confidence in the team. The Redskins are playing out the season. The Steelers are playing their last game at Three Rivers Stadium and welcoming back the great players in their history.

Advantage: Pittsburgh. Steelers 13, Redskins 10.