Rams, a ticking time bomb?
By: John Keim
Examiner Staff Writer
October 10, 2008
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| London Fletcher and the Redskins have had trouble getting to the quarterback this season, but the defense has contained its first five opponents enough to help Washington to a 4-1 start. The Rams, who average an NFC-worst 10.8 points per game, are next. (John Froschauer/AP) |
ASHBURN —
Despite paltry offense, Skins keep guard up in preparation for St. Louis
Their motivation comes in large doses of warnings from their coach, fretting over an opponent that scores one touchdown a game. His defense has slowed top-10 offenses every week. Now Greg Blache is worried about a bottom-three attack.
Two years ago, he had a point. St. Louis remained a potent offense. Last year? Not so much. This year? Even less. The Rams score just 10.8 points per game.
But that won’t stop Blache.
“This team is like a ticking time bomb,” Blache said. “They’re gonna explode at some point and I hope it’s not this weekend. ... This is one of the hardest games, no question about that.”
His Gibbsian point: All the gains made in the past month could unravel, albeit slightly, with a lackluster showing Sunday.
The Redskins’ defense ranks 13th overall, a somewhat misleading stat given the offenses they’ve faced. Each of their first five opponents is ranked in the top 10; each of their next three is 28th or lower, starting with the Rams (30th).
“We haven’t had a chance to really appreciate what we’ve been able to do,” linebacker London Fletcher said. “Coach Blache won’t allow us to get complacent. We know we have a lot of things to do.”
One of those “things” involves sacks. The Redskins have sacked the quarterback six times this season, putting them on pace for 19, which would tie the 2006 team for their fewest sacks since the 1970 AFL-NFL merger. They’ve gone 79 pass attempts without a sack.
The offenses they’ve faced are partly to blame. They’ve played veteran quarterbacks who don’t get sacked much (a combined 35 times). St. Louis (0-4) has allowed 13 sacks.
It also hasn’t helped that Jason Taylor has missed the past two games with a calf injury, though he might return Sunday. He only had one sack and three hurries in his first three games. They haven’t had a sack without him.
“No matter who’s in there we have to have that rush,” said end Andre Carter, who has a sack and a team-best five pressures.
They’ve tried to mix up their looks, once lining up Carter at tackle. They’ve stunted him all the way through left tackle. They’ve used rush end Chris Wilson inside on occasion as well.
Also, the Redskins try to con quarterbacks by typically rushing four men and disguising coverages, thanks to a versatile secondary, and rarely blitzing.
“We have to get to the quarterback,” end Demetric Evans said. “We want to help guys by creating more pressure and tipping balls, getting sacks, getting batted balls for interceptions.”
Said Blache, “You’d like to have more sacks, but I don’t worry about numbers. You always want more pressure, but you never get enough. I’ve never had a coach that had enough.”
