REDSKINS: "We are who we thought we are"

Yep, as the great Dennis Green once said (sort of)...WE ARE WHAT WE THOUGHT WE ARE.


The Washington Redskins are:

1. Run by horrible ownership, a man that once cheered for a team and has single handily run it into the grown. Jimmy Hoffa's corpse ain't as deep in the end zone as the 2009 Washington Redskins.

2. Draft picks, trades, free agents, coaches, practice squad....Vinny Cerrato...does anything else need to be said here?

3. Strongest fan base in the NFL eroding before the teams eyes. Dan Snyder could give free tickets to Six Flags (more fun) or greasy hamburgers to every season ticket holder and promise not to sue them, but it isn't going to stop the avalanche of crap football that is flying down Capitol Hill today.

You see, this is a DEBACLE in the making. It all started in 1999 when Snyder bought the Redskins from the great estate of Jack Kent Cooke. Little (no pun intended) did Snyder know that his $800MM would grow into the billions, but while doing so he would slowly destroy his investment while the public and NFL vets screamed and shouted louder every season. The other owners secretly laughed at this little rich man as he showed the rest of the league how to make money from die hard fans, or sheep, as he calls them. If you got in his way then he'd sue you or ban you, or buy your radio station. Nothing stops this guy.

Keep going. When the shit hits the fan all you have to do is bring back a legendary coach for $5.5MM a year to quiet the storm for a few years...then back to your Norv/Marty/Terry/Spurrier ways. Let the bug eyed Cerrato draft a punter or two, waive his pom-poms over a 5th, 6th, or 7th round pick making the team (aren't they supposed to if you DRAFTED them?).

Poor Zorn, the guy is nice, but he is just another Spurrier. Stuck with Vinny and Dan chomping on their cigars with Sonny, watching the next great offensive offense to hit Washington. FedEx Field is dead. Redskins Park is a mausoleum. Readkins Nation is heartbroken. The Detroit Lions are 1-19.

Jim Zorn Pulls Pants Down; Bonds With Redskins Players

I knew the Redskins got a nutty coach on February 10th 2008. The infamous Maroon & Black press conference was just the beginning of the quirky head coach from Seattle. Sally Jenkins was one of DC's first to write about Zorn's likability...and she was right. The man is an open book that says what he thinks, and does so in his own unique way. That's exactly what went down recently, according to Matt Mosley of ESPN. According the the article, Zorn got his point across, and continued the bond he has formed with his players. As the Redskins were getting ready to travel to Ohio for the Hall of Fame game Zorn had a meeting about the dress code:

In what must've been a surreal moment for the players, Zorn began naming off certain brands (True Religion, Republic, 7's for All Mankind) and noted that he understood that people would be wearing $250 T-shirts.

Then he turned around, pulled down his pants and tightened his belt.

"But I don't want you to wear saggy jeans," he said to roaring laughter.

Campbell characterized it as a breakthrough moment for the new staff.

Steve Largent & Jim Zorn (looking kinda brokebackish)

I couldn't imagine former Redskin coaches Joe Gibbs, Steve Spurrier, or Marty Schottenheimer pulling that one. Jim Zorn gets his point across, but in his own way. And in a town full of politicians with full time speech writers telling you what they think the people want to hear, we have Jim Zorn, who only says what he wants to say. This could be well received by the DC people for the foreseeable future...all Jim Zorn has to do now is WIN.

Jim Zorn Signature (via his right brain artist stuff)

Here are some interesting facts about Jim Zorn:

• Given name: James Arthur Zorn (Art Monk's given name: James Arthur Monk)
  
• The meaning of Zorn in the modern German language means wrath but its meaning in old Germanic is more to "tear apart" or destroy.
  
• The town of Zorn, Texas is 233 miles from some crappy city called Dallas, Texas
  
• Jim Zorn led the NFL in pass attempts in 1976 (over Tarkenton and Staubach)
  
• Jim Zorn led the NFL in interceptions in 1976 (over Stabler and Namath)
  
• Jim zorn led the NFL in yards per completion in 1977 (over Bradshaw)
  
• Jim Zorn led the NFL in sacks in 1978 (over Theismann, Jaworski, Manning)

Quotes on Jim Zorn:
Steve Largent: "There's no question, Jim comes at things from a different perspective, he thinks about things differently than a normal person does."

Matt Hasselbeck: "He's just honest. He's a very bad liar. He'll tell you what he thinks, and he'll tell you the truth."

Mike Holmgren to Dan Snyder: "You absolutely did the right thing. Now help him as an owner. Help him. Do everything you can to help him because you've got a good man."

Quotes by Jim Zorn:
"I always want to be good at everything" - July 16, 2008

"I won't be here until 2 o'clock in the morning" - July 21, 2008

"We're just going to jump right in" - July 21, 2008

"Bigger, faster stronger - that's what this league is" - July 30, 2008

"It's going to be really fun, but there are going to be some errors" - August 2, 2008

"You sort of have that image in your mind of how a head coach is supposed to behave" - August 7, 2008


HAIL.

Redskins Training Camp - Friday (Day 6)

The parking lot was completely filled by 8:45...by far the biggest turn out so far. I can imagine what tomorrow's Fan Appreciation Day will be like...been there, done that. Great to go to it if you're a kid....but I feel bad for the parents and others that become a herd screaming for autographs in 90+ degree heat. I personally leave FAD for the younger ones that are up and coming Skins fans.

Redskins Training Camp Fans - View from the 50

Practice was very similar to the previous ones...the players start off in their usual position drills. D-Line in the left far field, LB's and DB's in the middle of the far field, O-Line on the right far field, RB's on the left of the front field, and the QB's and Receivers on the right of the front field.

Just like yesterday, a lot of the players did drills that focused on technique, and where to go (blocking, routes, etc.). Again, a lot of passing...running backs, tight ends, and obviously the wide receivers were catching a lot of passes. Campbell is continuing to look good. Here's some things I noticed from Fridays practice:

• Justin Tryon (#20) looks really good, the guy is smallish but covers well and is quick. Definitely making this squad. He makes the younger receivers look bad, and hangs with the vets when he covers them.

• Anthony Mix (#19) is inconsistent. I was pulling for him due to his past with Jason Campbell, but a lot of passes thrown to him have ended up on the ground. But every now and then he pulls in a great catch. I think he's better in redzone and goal-line drills due to his height, but so is Malcolm Kelly (#12).

• Jason Taylor (#55) was lining up on the right a lot today, with Andre Carter (#99) on the left. They collapse the pocket very quickly and Campbell and Collins seem hurried when those two are bull rushing. I think Greg Blache will be alternating them to throw off offenses. I also saw Taylor leading a little more today, he had a bunch of defensive players bunched up and was telling them what to do.

• Ladell Betts (#46)got dinged up on a running play. The Skins are doing full contact 11 0n 11 drills and the crunching hits are echoing on the field. Betts went up the middle and cut left only to end up at the bottom of a pile of burgundy jerseys. He was slow getting up, and was hesitant about walking for a moment, then the trainers helped him off the field...he remained on the sideline.

• Derek Devine (#2) has looked pretty decent in his QB3 competition with Colt Brennan. It has been said that Jim Zorn brought Devine to the Redskins from Seattle, and Colt Brennan was Vinny Cerrato's pick...will be interesting to see who wins.
  

• Chris Cooley (#47) and Fred Davis (#86) catch everything. A lot of stuff in thrown to them in the middle, so it looks like Zorn purposely wants them matched up against linebackers...which they should have an advantage.

• Demetric Evans (#92) continues to have a good camp. He lined up on the left, and batted a Todd Collins pass to the ground. Great depth guy that can sub for Carter or Taylor. He's got a baby face but the dude is big.
  

• Stephon Heyer (#74) was lining up at LT as Samuels backup and was holding his own. Dude is big.

• Fred Smoot (#27), Shawn Springs (#24), and Carlos Rogers (#22) have all been practicing and look good. Along with Justin Tryon (#20), we could have a solid CB stable heading into the season. Knock on wood.

Random pictures from Washington Redskins Training Camp (Day 6)

Redskins Training Camp - Thursday (Day 5)

I swung by training camp on the way to work. So far, I've gone Sunday, Tues, and Thurs. The largest crowd was today by far. I guess not many wanted to come out in Sunday's heat, or Tuesday's storm.

As usual the defense was on the far field, the O-line was out there too in their usual corner with Buges, the offense was on the front stage for the fans to Ooh and Ahh over, and the kickers....ahh, screw the kickers...they were somewhere I am sure.

The first part of practice is all drills. Mostly about formations and where to go for any particular play and working on technique. For a first time head coach it seems Zorn has this really organized...surprisingly organized.

Defense
So, the defense, the veterans really get it easy...I saw Jason Taylor and Andre Carter taking it easier than the others...still working, just not as much. A couple drills involved chasing each other around a big hoop and then hitting a bunch of dummies while running and dive tackling the last one. Demetric Evans was getting a lot of work, and he seems to have a lot more swagger than years past. Overall, the D-Line seems to have good camaraderie and the size and speed of Carter/Taylor makes you envision Tony Romo's head crammed up his a** for a safety come September 28th.

Redskins Defense

O-Line
The O-Line looked like they were getting mostly technique work...slow motion footwork and hand placement drills conducted by Buges. Like the D-Line, the vets didn't work as much and I noticed Jon Jansen, Casey Rabach, and Randy Thomas taking a knee in the shade of the trees. Probably thinking about Jansen's RV.

Jansen, Rabach, Thomas loungin'

Offense
The offense skill positions were another story. Zorn & Co. worked the hell out of them...they were moving from one drill to another with constant rotations of players. Jason Campbell looked rusty on Sunday, but improved Tuesday, and by today he was slinging the ball accurately with zip. Cooley continues to have a good camp as usual, and Santana Moss and Antwaan Randle El have looked better than last years camp. The thing that stands out the most are the Rookies...Devin Thomas, Malcolm Kelly, and Fred Davis all have very good hands. They're also very fast....or quick is a better way to describe it, and they use smart moves to get open in space. There is a ton of passing going on in this training camp....more than Gibbs 2.0 and even more than Spurrier's camps. And get this...the running game has opened up too...I have seen a lot of runs for decent gains this camp...courtesy of Clinton Portis, Ladell Betts, Mike Sellers, and Rock Cartwright. And...they all have been catching passes out of the backfield too!

11 on 11 drills

Good luck defending this offense...it's looking really good only 5 days into camp.

Hit of the Day: London Fletcher knocked the shit out of Ladell Betts...but Betts held onto the ball.

Catch of the Day: As I mentioned, there were a lot of them...some nice corner end zone catches by Devin Thomas, Randel El, Moss...all looking good. Sellers has been catching a lot too...and Fred Davis has continues to impress.

Pass of the Day: Jason Campbell on 11-11 drills threaded the ball to Chris Cooley in traffic and in stride...Cooley cut the second he caught the ball and ran up the middle of the field for what would have been a long gain if it were a game

Jim Zorn's Z-Shades

I plan on getting to Friday's practice a little earlier to get a better spot and more details.