In the one preseason game that’s supposed to “matter,” Game Three, in which starters receive the most playing time, the Redskins got manhandled, abused, and embarrassed by their Mid-Atlantic rivals, the Carolina Panthers.
No game-saving heroics from Colt Brennan on this one; just an ugly, lackluster, anemic performance from the offense and a porous showing by a defense that appears to be swiftly falling from grace from their Gregg Williams heyday.
I was a little worried during the 2008 Draft when Redskins management made their focus offensive skill players as opposed to finding standout offensive or defensive linemen in the draft’s opening rounds. Are we seeing a glimpse of this folly now during the preseason, or was this game an aberration, a case of over-confidence, exhaustion, or poor game-planning?
Whatever the case, the Redskins will need to get their act together in short order to avoid getting embarrassed in front of a national television audience against the Superbowl Champion New York Giants on September 4th. The G-men are looking pretty sharp right now, especially little Eli, despite the loss of Osi Umenyiora for the season.
We shall see, but the prospects for a bright season for the Washington Redskins suddenly grew dim in Carolina this past weekeend.
For about a week I had marked Sunday night on my calendar as the unofficial kick-off of the 2008 football season. With two of my childhood heroes inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Redskins receiver Art Monk and defensive back Darrell Green, the Washington Redskins were slated to play the Indianapolis Colts in the Hall of Fame game the following day and I was pumped to get a glimpse of my Skins. (Now that I live in New England, my opportunities to watch my ‘Skins on TV are few and far between).
My only problem was that although I had marked yesterday, August 3rd, in my calendar as “Football Night in the Monkey Household,” and even “warned” my wife that I would be watching football Sunday night, I forgot one little thing: August 3rd is also my wedding anniversary. Oops. Oddly enough, my wife also forgot it was our anniversary, until we were both reminded about 15 minutes before kickoff with a phone call from my mom to congratulate us. Verdict: no watchee HOF Game for the Monkey and me.
But thanks to the magic of the internet I was able to wake up this morning and check out some highlights. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the Redskins were able to pour on some offense and that rookie Head Coach Jim Zorn got great performances out of two of his quarterbacks.
I know it’s just preseason, but when you’re an NFL “enthusiast” (read: addict) like myself, and you get the opportunity to check out your favorite team, even in preseason mode, it’s an exciting thing. I actually kind of dig preseason because you get the opportunity to evaluate other players besides the starters. In this case, I was eager to have a look at Redskins rookie Colt Brennan, the highly prolific University of Hawaii standout and 6th round 2008 pick of the ‘Skins.
Always a fan of underdogs, I was casually interested in the University of Hawaii’s run last year, when they went undefeated in the regular season (only to be trounced by Georgia in the Sugar Bowl). Brennan’s draft status plummeted as a result of his horrible performance in that game, which made him available to the Skins in the 6th round at bargain basement prices.
So far it looks like Jim Zorn and the Redskins made a great pick. And it is already clear that hiring Zorn, the former Seahawks QB and QB Coach responsible for the development of Pro Bowler Matt Hasselbeck, has already made a profound improvement on the overall quarterbacking of the Redskins. Brennan was nearly perfect in preseason action last night, going 9 for 10 and 123 yards, with a 157 passer rating.
Oh yeah, Jason Campell played well (i.e. perfect) with the starters. He had a touchdown toss to Antwaan Randle-El within the first two minutes of the game.
Todd Collins was 5 for 6.
I don’t think there will be any quarterback controversy, but it’s nice to know the Redskins seem pretty solid at the QB position with Campbell developing nicely, Todd Collins proving last year that he can come in and deliver solid performances (3-1 as starter to finish last season), and now Brennan bringing another dimension to the offense, vying against Collins for the backup role. Could it be that for the first time in years the Redskins will field a potent offense? Only time will tell but so far so good.
Jason Campbell’s HOF Game highlights are right here.
