With two games left, have Skins given up?
ASHBURN – The score indicated one thing; the players say their preparation indicated another.
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With two games left in the Jim Zorn era, the Redskins have trotted out the clichéd motivations: future jobs; pride; character. There’s also the matter of erasing the stench from Monday’s 33-point loss to the New York Giants. A win over Dallas in prime time Sunday night would help reverse some of that bitterness. This is also their last chance to win a game in the NFC East; they’ve won at least one game in the division each year since 1994.
But the Redskins have a myriad of issues to combat, not the least of which is the pending change in the coaching staff. And battling these questions has led some to wonder how much fight the Redskins have left.
“Did some guys quit?” Redskins quarterback Jason Campbell said. “You know, I always try to be positive and (think the best) about people, but I don’t know.”
“If you’re going to quit, why show up today?” Redskins receiver Santana Moss said.
It was different than in, say, 2003 in the last stretch under Steve Spurrier. Then, as former Redskins safety Matt Bowen revealed in the National Football Post, the players had quit practicing with intensity and preparing. The result? A 27-0 loss to Dallas.
So, with two games left, Spurrier made a promise: beat Chicago and they could have the entire next week off before the finale.
“That was something weird, to have someone say that,” said Redskins running back Rock Cartwright, then in his second season.
They lost by a field goal.
But Cartwright said this season is different, even though the situations compare. They knew Spurrier would be gone; they know Zorn is gone, too. Some players, one source said, began talking about Zorn’s eventual dismissal after last season.
“I don’t see it here,” Cartwright said. “I still see guys practicing hard and playing hard. If I do see it, I will say something. I’ll let guys know that they have guys depending on them. … When guys take off plays, people notice that more than the good things you do.”
Finishing strong is a goal for the players.
“That would be a reason,” Zorn said. “All along our players have been resilient. They’ve put forth that kind of effort. They know the coaches haven’t given up.”
But that doesn’t temper the frustration.
“This has been a pure headache,” fullback Mike Sellers said. “All the talent in the world. What was worse is the year Norv [Turner] got fired [2000]. That was pure hell. A new owner who wanted things done now and it trickled down to the coaches and players. At least this year we’re trying to fight even though the game [Monday] didn’t seem like it.”
No, it didn’t. The Redskins haven’t shown a lot of fight in prime time games; they’re 0-6 the past two seasons combined in those games.
“Dallas is probably hoping they get the same Redskins team,” linebacker London Fletcher said. “[But] they know we’re a lot better team. Guys will respond from last week.”
