Here’s a reminder of my analysis entering the game, my questions before the game and what I thought would happen. Now let’s see what actually happened:
The question: We’ll start with the same as last week: Will Albert Haynesworth play?
The answer: No, he did not. Pretty simple. And, you know what, I’m not sure that they missed him one bit. He just does not fit this defense. Anthony Bryant replaced him as the backup nose and was fine; nothing special, but he was OK. Vonnie Holliday stayed in the one-man line package and while he gets little pressure, he does set others up by the way he slants. From what I’ve heard, the deactivation was related to the ankle injury and was not another move in this chess match between he and Mike Shanahan.
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The question: Is Arian Foster for real?
The answer: I thought he was for real and after watching him I haven’t changed my mind. He didn’t post great numbers; 69 yards on 19 carries, but part of that was Houston having to throw more in the fourth quarter to rally. But Foster excelled at cutting back and usually got more yards than what was available. Man, it’s nice to see a back do that. Been a while. On a run in the second quarter, Foster showed what he could do. He ran right and got up almost on the heels of his offensive linemen; he forced LB Rocky McIntosh to overcommit and then he cut back for 10 yards. Yep, for real.
The question: Can they stop the run with seven guys?
The answer: I thought they’d have to, but they often committed eight. However, there were a handful of times that they did something I felt they should: station LaRon Landry around 7 yards off the ball at the snap; allowing him to use his speed to either come up or get back in coverage. It was effective in limiting the run. But the Redskins couldn’t stop the pass. McIntosh had 14 tackles, but I don’t remember a whole lot being near the line of scrimmage. Same with London Fletcher. It’s great to get a lot of tackles, but unless they’re within three yards of the line, it’s an issue for the defense.
The question: What’s your fear?
The answer: I didn’t think Washington was a good run-stopping defense and I thought that would be a bigger issue. The Redskins did hold Houston to Foster and Steve Slaton to a combined 83 yards on 22 carries. That’s not bad at all. But, for the Texans’ sake, they ran well enough to keep Washington honest and to often force another defender to stop the run. The passing game opened. But I was expecting a few longer runs and they did not happen. Credit LaRon Landry.
The question: How about stopping Andre Johnson?
The answer: Um, they didn’t. The zones did not work and that’s what Washington played a lot of the game. The problem with a guy like Johnson is, if you don’t get to Matt Schaub all the time, then he will find him. Johnson caught 12 passes for 158 yards and a touchdown. On the 34-yarder, it appeared corner Phillip Buchanon needed to get much deeper so it was a true double team. But he left him for Reed Doughty to handle alone and that was a no-win situation. Listen, even if Kareem Moore had been in the game on that play it would have been made. Johnson would not have lost a jump ball against any Redskins DB. The Texans did a good job moving him around, sometimes sending him in motion one way and then having him run a crossing route back the other way.
The question: How good is Matt Schaub?
The answer: I thought he was good, which no one would disagree with. But what surprised me was how calm he was in the pocket. He was sacked five times and hit numerous others, but he never flinched. He’s not going to beat a team with his feet, but in some ways he moves the way Brad Johnson used to, where he’s able to elude the rush enough to keep a lot of plays alive. With a receiver like Andre Johnson, that’s important. But Schaub is very patient and lets plays develop. I was impressed with that.
The question: What about the other Texan passing weapons?
The answer: I thought they were solid, especially the sure-handed Kevin Walter. But, again, that’s no revelation. Still, he hurt them with 11 catches for 144 yards. Guys like him are made to beat zones, unless the QB gets hit all the time and isn’t patient. Wasn’t the case. Jacoby Jones dropped a few passes but still managed six catches for 53 yards. Tight end Owen Daniels had two catches, so he wasn’t an issue. Really, it was Johnson and Walter; they were targeted on 28 passes. I thought they had to be wary of the deep ball, but the longest passes were 34 and 35 yards (aside from a 50-yard screen). I wasn’t confident in Reed Doughty’s ability to handle this attack; thought he’d be a step slow. Not sure that was the case, but, really, it was as much about picking apart a zone.
The question: What will Houston do defensively?
The answer: Thought they’d use a decent number of eight-man fronts to stop the run and they certainly did a number of times. But the Texans stopped the run often with penetration along the line. Also, the Redskins cutback runs just aren’t that scary now. Either some blocker gets blown up or Clinton Portis doesn’t hit it with much explosiveness and fails to make guys miss. Anyway, the Texans left their young corners in man coverage and, uh, that’s a mistake. Donovan McNabb should have passed for more than 500 yards based on how many guys were open. And they were wide open.
The question: Will Mario Williams disrupt the Redskins?
The answer: Williams flip-flopped sides, going against Jammal Brown early. Williams was more about using strength and he still somehow managed three sacks and three hurries. So he was a factor. For a while he was quiet; but he had a good second half and he beat Trent Williams for a sack on the play in which the rookie hurt his knee.
The question: Will the running game get untracked?
The answer: The Redskins thought it might because they were facing a 4-3, which is supposedly easier to run against in the zone blocking cutback scheme. Yes, it is, if you can block and create any sort of push. The Redskins really don’t do that enough. The line pass protects very well, but the run blocking can often take longer to get in sync. But it’s not just one thing; blocks are missed by linemen and the backs lack much burst. Even Portis; he just doesn’t make a lot of guys miss anymore. Opposing ends have done well preventing runs from getting wide and are getting enough penetration to stop cutbacks. Sometimes Fred Davis blocks well, keeping his head up. Other times his head is down, the block is missed and the play is ruined. A lot of issues here.
The question: Who will win?
The answer: I picked the Texans, 21-17. We all know what happened, with Houston rallying from a 17-point deficit to win 30-27 in overtime. I thought the Texans’ offense was playing at a higher level than Washington’s defense. That was the difference.
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