Joe Gibbs is concerned.
Sounds like your parents found your stash back in high school. When the Washington Redskins coach says he’s concerned, it’s like having “the talk” with dad. It’s not good.
The Redskins have stunk in two preseason games. And while veteran Gibbs watchers know the preseason means nothing — they were 0-2 last year before making the playoffs for the first time since 1999 — it’s not pretty when starters show little.
Aside from two exciting catches from receiver Antwaan Randle El, the starting offense struggled in the 27-14 loss to the New York Jets on Saturday. Special teams permitted an 87-yard touchdown on a kickoff return after nearly permitting another earlier.
And the defense — oh, the rock that the Redskins are built upon — allowed a whopping 216 yards rushing with the Jets scoring on a 61-yard reverse. And don’t even mention the 23-play drive that nearly took the entire third quarter. It was the ultimate Riggo Drill.
And speaking of Riggo, the Hall of Famer fell into the awful trap of winging a game broadcast like his radio show that was shamelessly hyped at least a half dozen times. John Riggins kept saying “I think” like some third grader learning his times tables while making too many errors. It almost made one yearn for George Michael. Sorry Riggo, but you gotta study the notes or risk looking sloppy. You don’t see Sonny Jurgensen and Sam Huff unsure of their research.
It was a sorry night from the field to broadcast booth. Short of a food poisoning outbreak at the concession stands or an 87-car pileup leaving the game, not much went right.
But here’s the problem — you don’t know what to believe. Clearly, the Redskins restricted the offense with no one in motion. Three weeks from now, the receivers and backs will be running around so much before the snap that bees will study their motion patterns. Clinton Portis will be healthy enough to play instead of sending fullback Mike Sellers straight into the line on three consecutive snaps. He doesn’t get that many carries over a season.
Defensive players that were largely abused by the Jets will be mostly reserves come September. Defensive guru Gregg Williams will turn Saturday’s debacle into two weeks of torture around Redskin Park. Players will do anything to get him off their backs.
Things will get better. The next two weeks are still an experiment. It would be nice to see the team play well, but it’s really irrelevant. If this was a first-year coach trying toimplement a new system, it would be troubling, but we know that Gibbs wins games in December, not August.
Washington heads to New England this Saturday trying to fine tune the passing game. Maybe quarterback Jason Campbell can clearly move ahead of Todd Collins for the backup job. Campbell is promising, though his interception against the Jets reminds us he is greener than potato salad at a church picnic. Collins actually reversed his awful debut, though against third-stringers.
Special teams coverage needs work. So does the defensive line with two injured players.
But this is all busy work in the waning days of summer. Come Labor Day when Washingtonians go back to work, so will the Redskins.
Rick Snider has covered local sports for 28 years. Contact him at [email protected].
