Philadelphia Eagles

Philly is playing the Buccaneers tonight. They will be trying to save the NFC East from a winless weekend. The worst case scenario for Washington is Philadelphia losing producing a nastiness inspirational to the Eagles.

On the other hand, stacking back to back losses on the Birds would put us in first place. You want to be in first at the end so right now you're just collecting acorns.

Some are characterizing the Buffalo game as a learning experience. I learned we can run the ball on the Bills and the Washington line is better than average at run blocking. The Bills ran the ball last year. Fifteen of their 16 games they were over 100 yards. They won 13 games doing that. They had 168 against us.

In 2007, EB was Running Backs Coach for the Minnesota Vikings who were the Number One rushing squad in the NFL. They had Adrian Peterson and Chester Taylor. AP ran for over 1300. Taylor for over 800. That team had an historic day running the ball on Novenber 4th. Just shy of 400 yards rushing.

I find it impossible to believe EB has forgotten how to run the ball. I hope his muscle memory serves him well. Running the football is how Washington wins this year. It is how the passing game opens up. It is how sacks go down. Combined with a good screen game, nothing creates more grass for the pass than the run.

Running the football is how you beat the Eagles. I'm sure EB remembers winning the Super Bowl on the same concept. EB will be tempted by the Patriots and Vikings having success in the passing game against Philadelphia. They both lost. When we beat the Eagles last year, we ran on them.

Tampa Bay may be the first to run on them. If not, we should be.

Against the Bills, Sam Howell looked like a guy who thinks he has no help. Against the Broncos he seemed to play team offense. Against the Bills he looked like he felt he had to do it all himself. He had "vision" issues.

You can help with the run. You can also help by scheduling the off-schedule. Schedule one guy in the end zone on all scrambles. Get Sam looking downfield. In scramble drills, all the receivers come back to the QB but the one, the "bolt", who heads to the house. Look for the bolt count down to the comebacks.

I'm sure Sam will have a monster (a positive monster) game before the year is out. They have to pass block better. But they have to establish the run to create grass. Sam has to renounce the "I must do it all myself" sin. But he can't have another game like Buffalo. I know he is resilient. But the body's autonomic nervous system is beyond your control. It knows trouble when it sees it. It will start to erode your football psyche. Whether you think it is happening or not.

So Sam must sit if he repeats the Bills Game at Philly.

The critique of Stoicism in philosophy is that it looks like being in denial at times. But the Stoics also preach understanding what is in your power and what is not in your power. Understand there are things you can't do. You can't take the name of the Lord your God in vain. Some things get you struck by lightning.

Let go let God.

Last Year's Browns Game

I'm sure Drew Petzing, Arizona Cardinals Offensive Coordinator, remembers last year's Browns versus Commanders game. Here's a short trip down memory lane for you.

This should give you an idea what plays you might see called this upcoming weekend. I call this line of thinking "conceptuals". Coaching conceptions running in the background of a football game like computer programs. The Unconscious Mind of Football. The subliminal mental reps that occur in the underlying chess game that coaches play in football. 

From a conceptuals stand point, Arizona can beat Washington. The critique of conceptuals analysis would be "Yeah, but the Cardinals don't have the Browns roster." They have no Nick Chubb. No Deshaun Watson. No Amari Cooper.

And the Commanders have no Carson Wentz.

The Cardinals do have Drew Terrell. Ex-Commanders receiving coach. They have Jonathan Gannon whose Eagles Defense contained the Commander running game in another Carson Wentz incident in the which the running game had to be there.

The Cardinals don't have the Eagles Defense.

I don't see the Cardinals matching up well against the Commander Offense. I don't think Eric Bieniemy is going to give up on the running game if it strikes gold. The passing game should also do well against the Cardinals. But I do think the Cardinals can, CAN, move the ball on the Washington Defense. 

I don't like the Media, both National and D.C., viewing the Cardinals as Trash Incarnate. If the past four years are any indication, the Washington Defense is going to start slow and take a while to get the carburetor clean. 

If there is to be a shock, it will be in the form of the Cardinals Offense running the ball and maximizing RPOs which will put points on the board. 

If the Commanders share the obnoxious disrespect the Media has for the Arizona Cardinals, they will find a way to lose. 

The Commanders Offense is the Most Likely to Succeed in the game and they are going to need that success mindset to compensate for what I'm expecting to be a shameful, disrespectful defensive effort. 

This is I'm afraid going to be reminiscent of the Old Denver Broncos under Dan Reeves where Elway/Howell has to conduct a Drive to win the ball game.

Hopefully not. But the tea leaves look awful.

Fix the Field

Making massive changes to coaching and personnel would be a huge mistake for any new owner coming to Washington.

Fixing the field at FedEx ought to be priority one. In case it isn't obvious, let's review why.

Robert Griffin III's career was essentially ended by FedEx Field. Alex Smith's career was essentially ended by FedEx Field. Ryan Fitzgerald's career was ended at FedEx Field. Nick Gates' career was almost ended at FedEx Field.

Of those four catastrophes, three required major surgical interventions.

Maybe this is why Mrs. Jackson's baby boy should think twice about Washington.

If the new owner wants to make an immediate major impact, fixing the field is the way to do it.