Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

I think more responsibility should be placed on Mike Shanahan for losing the playoff game, confidence of some fans and most importantly jeopardizing the long term health of one of his players. Seriously, i don't trust the guy and Shanahans ego has always been before everything else. There was a situation in Denver with Jake Plummer and Shanahan lied about Plummers injury. In the super bowl with Denver, Terrell Davis had a chronic migraine issue on the sidelines that could have left him blind, yet Shanahan knowingly put him back in the game as a "decoy" and even afterwards bragged about it. That was the last game Davis ever played.

Don't think for one second that Mike Shanahan didn't know the seriousness of RG3's knee and his condition during that game. Shanahan may try to defelct blame saying the Dr told him that everything was okay etc., but i'm not buying it. Mike Shanahan handled this situation very wrecklessly and irresponsibly. He foolishly took a silly chance and gambled but ended up losing everything. All of us saw how badly Robert was hurt and many were screaming early third quarter to take him out. Shanahan should have known better and definitely should have gotten him out of there perhaps 2nd quarter. No team Dr needed to inform Mike Shanahan or the fans how bad RG3 really was after he reinjured himself early in the game. Even if Griffin came to him as a warrior and said "coach, i'm not coming out, let me finish this game", Mike being 40 years wiser than RG3 and looking at him as a "son", should have said no, enough is enough, there will be more playoff oppurtunities in the future i won't risk you career and long term health. What is even more disturbing, after visibly seeing RG3 limping and hobbling around the field, they continued to call plays that further exposed him to more injury. If that was his son Kyle out there behind center with the same injury, i doubt if Mike would leave him out there all game as he limped around like a maimed animal exposed to one of the best defenses in the NFL until his knee final collapses.

Even if RG3 insisted on playing and would have been disappointed, you are an "all time" superbowl wining coach with years of experience and should have known how to handle this situation. If my kid has a high fever sick with the flu and still wants to go outside to play trying to convince me he feels okay, would i give in?

Sometimes, things are not always about winning and losing. I'm sure Mike would have earned the respect from the fans (win or lose) had he sat RG3 out when he should have and stood up to his decision by stating that he will never knowingly jeopardize a players health for a football game no matter how important it is.

What I witnessed on Sunday was disgusting and is much bigger than a playoff loss. It makes me question not only Shanahan's coaching ability, but something far greater.....His humanity and sincere care for his players while trying to win at all costs. I'm not sure if i would want to win like that or have a coach with that type of mindset. I highly doubt if Adrian Peterson was not fully healed and he was limping around the field, the Vikings would continue to play him knowing he also had ligament damage just last year.

Mike probably didn't have faith that Cousins could win the game or he was afraid of the backlash from the fans, media and perhaps management for taking RG3 out. In either decision he made, someone was going to be unhappy. How about choosing the decision that prevents your star QB that you invested so much into from tearing up his already fragile knee even further?

Useful Tips Shanahan Could Have Used:

-When you see your star QB limping like a wounded dog who has torn his ACL in 2009 and had further ligament damage just a few weeks ago, goes on a strectch of 7-11 and 20 yards, pull him out of the game no matter what RG3 or team doctors may say.

-You wouldn't even be in the playoffs if your backup rookie QB Kirk Cousins would not have beat Philly and Cleavland. His record is 2-0 for the games he's played in. Put him in.

-You have the 2nd leading in the rusher in the NFL rush for 11 carries and 60 yards in the first half. Run him more than 16 carries all game.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

I'm sure Mike had faith in Cousins- he and the rest of the coaching staff offered constant votes of confidence in him after the Baltimore game and before and after the Cleveland game.

I also don't think there would have been any backlash from the fans if he took RG3 out of the game. That's what most fans were screaming for in the first place. At least all the Skins fans that I know were anyway. We were playing with house money. Win or lose that playoff game, this season was a huge success. Young team, franchise QB/RB, and improving D despite a rash of injury, and a NFC East title earlier than anyone foresaw. I wanted to leave Sunday with a healthy RG3 much more than I did a win vs. Seattle.

I'm disappointed that Shanahan did not remove Robert from the game. The injury prevented him from being effective in any way after the first quarter. For that reason alone he should have been sitting. The long-term risk to his knee is just icing on the cake.

Let's not forget that Shanahan was a top-3 candidate for coach of the year this season. I'm behind him and I'm sure the team is as well. They've certainly bought in.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

The biggest reason for the season turnaround and march into the playoffs was Mike Shanahan. Should he pulled him, yes, but im not gonna fault him based on what RG3 said. It wasnt malicious.

KC is 2-1, atlanta was a loss.


^welcome back Scud.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=Chico23231;986443]The biggest reason for the season turnaround and march into the playoffs was Mike Shanahan. Should he pulled him, yes, but im not gonna fault him based on what RG3 said. It wasnt malicious.

KC is 2-1, atlanta was a loss.[/quote]

Wouldn't he be 1-0 Since Atlanta and Baltimore weren't starts?

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=GMScud;986444]Wouldn't he be 1-0 Since Atlanta and Baltimore weren't starts?[/quote]

yeah, i just based 2-1 on what OP originally said, games Curt(firstdown style) Cousins played in.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=Chico23231;986443]The biggest reason for the season turnaround and march into the playoffs was Mike Shanahan. Should he pulled him, yes, but im not gonna fault him based on what RG3 said. It wasnt malicious.

KC is 2-1, atlanta was a loss.


[B]^welcome back Scud[/B].[/quote]

Thank you sir. Good to be back.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

wow, milellie, will you ever post a positive thread?

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

How many times do we have to hear this until we realize that maybe, JUST MAYBE, some of this blame should be on Robert himself? He knows his body better than anybody else, and God love him for being a warrior and willing to fight on one leg, but the coach does not have all the freakin' time in the world to go and chase down the doctor or his assistant coaches and inquire about every single injury. He's got coaching to do, he's got a game he was trying to win. There are a lot of would've, could've, should'ves floating around, but ya know, things happen. Move on. Wish Griffin the best, thank God for a great turnaround of a season. Things are bright for this team.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

I would have taken him out too but now that we've had some time to reflect I think the criticism Shanahan is taking is a little unwarranted.

We don't know all the facts as far as what was going on down on the sidelines or what info he had, or didn't have.

RG3 isn't the first guy in sports history to play hurt. Plenty of guys have been lauded for their courage for playing hurt or sick. And I expect if he somehow pulled that game out he'd be a hero for it. Since we lost it's easier to label it as a bad decision.

It's funny all week anytime I've heard an ex-player talk about it, most have supported the decision to keep him in the game, while those in the media that aren't ex-players are saying it was a bad move.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

Nope nope....I'm on the crucify Shanahan team.
We mortgaged our future in a huge way and bought the shiniest most expensive toy we could find and then we used it to pound nails with.
Effin stoopid!

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

Why isn't anybody blaming the medical staff as well here? (besides me apparently) They ultimately have the say so on whether or not a player plays. The fact that Shanahan said the doctors didn't examine him after that roll out play is disturbing.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

How do you lose faith in someone you didn't have faith in to begin with (no, I'm not letting you forget your "let's be realistic the Redskins are going to lose every game they need to down the stretch" post)

I don't think Shanahan did anything with the intent of jeopardizing his franchise QB's career. Stupid to say he doesn't care about people. Very stupid.

That said, I think the mistake he made was not benching a QB who was ineffective and struggling if even just for a drive or two. I can't totally understand the difficulty in doing that though

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

i'm not blaming anyone. yeah, hindsight is 20/20...

it's professional football

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=NC_Skins;986453]Why isn't anybody blaming the medical staff as well here? (besides me apparently) They ultimately have the say so on whether or not a player plays. The fact that Shanahan said the doctors didn't examine him after that roll out play is disturbing.[/quote]

There's plenty of blame to go around. Coaches, doctors, RG3 himself.

People want this to be black & white and it's clearly not.

And frankly the witch hunt/blame game doesn't solve anything.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=NC_Skins;986453]Why isn't anybody blaming the medical staff as well here? (besides me apparently) They ultimately have the say so on whether or not a player plays. The fact that Shanahan said the doctors didn't examine him after that roll out play is disturbing.[/quote]

Believe I said in another thread that Dr. Andrews' only reason for being on the payroll is to look after the health/safety of the players so he has to be more aggressive

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

Been too bummed and pissed about football since the game to post here. Can't escape it though as my office is full of football fans, and all I've heard since yesterday morning is how asinine and irresponsible Shanahan and the Redskins are. Lots of folks in my neck of the woods are all too familiar with Mike's (similar) history in Denver with Plummer and Davis, among other things. As I've probably said before, nearly all the Broncos fans I know despise Shanahan now, and I think his overall handling of RG (not just the injury, but the entire scheme as Herm Edwards mentioned) is another example of why this guy can't be trusted. You have a player who already suffered a terrible knee injury in college and is clearly not built to withstand contact against pro defenses, yet build the entire offense around him keeping/running the ball more than any rookie QB in history?

Earlier in the season I said if we want RG for a longterm franchise QB, Snyder will have to "save" him from the Shanahans. My hope is RG doesn't take another snap under this regime.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=Mattyk;986456]There's plenty of blame to go around. Coaches, doctors, RG3 himself.

People want this to be black & white and it's clearly not.

And frankly the witch hunt/blame game doesn't solve anything.[/quote]might as well add will montgomery's name to the blame game

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

can't we close (or merge) this one? how many threads does this part of the conversation need?

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=Mattyk;986456]There's plenty of blame to go around. Coaches, doctors, RG3 himself.

People want this to be black & white and it's clearly not.

And frankly the witch hunt/blame game doesn't solve anything.[/quote]

Amen! I don't know what is accomplished by the need to crucify anybody. It doesn't heal Griffin's knee any faster. Things could be much worse.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

Great, a thread started by Milellie with a response from The Goat. This is my hell

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=SmootSmack;986464]Great, a thread started by Milellie with a response from The Goat. This is my hell[/quote]

...and an article from Sally Jenkins. Sounds like the hell trifecta.

PS - Guess which side she takes... :rolleyes:

[url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/redskins/redskins-invested-in-robert-griffin-iii-then-everyone-put-his-future-in-jeopardy/2013/01/08/66bf6df8-59b3-11e2-9fa9-5fbdc9530eb9_story.html]Redskins invested in Robert Griffin III, then everyone put his future in jeopardy - The Washington Post[/url]

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

I blame Seattle. bastards of the NFL.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=Mattyk;986450]It's funny all week anytime I've heard an ex-player talk about it, most have supported the decision to keep him in the game, while those in the media that aren't ex-players are saying it was a bad move.[/quote]

You mean the same type of ex-player who sues the NFL because they didn't protect them from themselves? Those ex-players? Listen, I understand the player mentality. You have to be drug off the field kicking and screaming. It's in their nature, and it's the competitive drive within them. However, I do find it very ironic that they have no issues with allowing a player to play injured, yet want to sue the same people (most likely knew lasting results of concussions) that allowed them to play injured.

A players stance in this really doesn't hold much weight when you look at it objectively.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=CrazyCanuck;986467]...and an article from Sally Jenkins. Sounds like the hell trifecta.

[B]PS - Guess which side she takes...[/B] :rolleyes:

[url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/redskins/redskins-invested-in-robert-griffin-iii-then-everyone-put-his-future-in-jeopardy/2013/01/08/66bf6df8-59b3-11e2-9fa9-5fbdc9530eb9_story.html]Redskins invested in Robert Griffin III, then everyone put his future in jeopardy - The Washington Post[/url][/quote]

Oh you know she not gonna pass this opportunity bye :laughing2

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

I'll just say I believe Shanny had the final call and didn't make it. But I'm moving on past the hostile blaming.

I'm now in the "please God whatever is wrong with his knee, please let it be fixed to where we can have our franchise qb back playing at 100%" boat. Thats whether its the 1st game next season, after he comes off the PUP list, hell I can even wait till 2014 if that guarantees him to be 100%. I have faith in Cousins and in Shanny/Allen to keep building up our roster. Thank you Shanny for picking 2 qbs in this draft!!!

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=Mattyk;986456]There's plenty of blame to go around. Coaches, doctors, RG3 himself.

People want this to be black & white and it's clearly not.

And frankly the witch hunt/blame game doesn't solve anything.[/quote]


I agree totally. I think all the parties are to blame. Just because we are assigning who's more responsible for the failure doesn't mean we want them crucified. I don't want Shanahan fired. I don't want Dr. Andrews fired. I do however want them to do their jobs, and there was a huge failure at somebody doing their job here. I'm more inclined to say the medical staff since they have the final say so.



[quote=SmootSmack;986457]Believe I said in another thread that Dr. Andrews' only reason for being on the payroll is to look after the health/safety of the players so he has to be more aggressive[/quote]

True. I was kind of surprised you thought Shanny was covering for the medical staff, and I'm still shocked how they let much of this go the way they do. (RGIII circling sideline without checking him out/not checking him out after re-injuring knee in 1st quarter)

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

Are all football forums filled with a bunch of drama queens like this?

Week 1 - Shanahan better get the job done this year.
Week 3 - Looks like Shanahan has turned the team around.
Week 5 - Shanahan is losing this team!
Week 7 - Shanahan has lost this team!
Week 9 - Fire Shanahan!
Week 11 - Maybe Shanahan is smarter than we thought!
Week 13 - Shanahan is saving his job!
Week 17 - Shanahan is a genius! What a bright future he's brought to us!
The next week - I've lost faith in Shanahan! I'm selling my RGIII jersey that has only hung in my closet all year!

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=SmootSmack;986464]Great, a thread started by Milellie with a response from The Goat. This is my hell[/quote]

You've got the power!

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=Monkeydad;986480]Are all football forums filled with a bunch of drama queens like this?

Week 1 - Shanahan better get the job done this year.
Week 3 - Looks like Shanahan has turned the team around.
Week 5 - Shanahan is losing this team!
Week 7 - Shanahan has lost this team!
Week 9 - Fire Shanahan!
Week 11 - Maybe Shanahan is smarter than we thought!
Week 13 - Shanahan is saving his job!
Week 17 - Shanahan is a genius! What a bright future he's brought to us!
The next week - I've lost faith in Shanahan! I'm selling my RGIII jersey that has only hung in my closet all year![/quote]


Life of the average NFL fan.


Funny, but some Seattle fans were calling the game over after being down 14-0. I had to check out their forums to see how they react (or overreact) to adversity. Same as some of our fans....lol

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

Why the blame game? A football player was hurt playing football. This has happened before. Players have played with worse injury than the one RGIII had after Ravens game.
Shanahan had RGIII take an MRI test, had him cheeked by doctors and rested him for a game after that injury. As a matter fact I remember RGIII saying he was ready to go for the Cleveland game and it was SHANAHAN that made the choice to rest him. This subject has gone beyond over analyzed.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=Defensewins;986484]Why the blame game? A football player was hurt playing football. This has happened before. Players have played with worse injury than the one RGIII had after Ravens game.
Shanahan had RGIII take an MRI test, had him cheeked by doctors and rested him for a game after that injury. As a matter fact I remember RGIII saying he was ready to go for the Cleveland game and it was SHANAHAN that made the choice to rest him. This subject has gone beyond over analyzed.[/quote]


Not sure, but most people don't have issues with Mike starting RGIII this game or the previous ones as well. I think the issue is when he didn't take him out after he reinjured the knee in the first quarter.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=NC_Skins;986471]You mean the same type of ex-player who sues the NFL because they didn't protect them from themselves? Those ex-players? Listen, I understand the player mentality. You have to be drug off the field kicking and screaming. It's in their nature, and it's the competitive drive within them. However, I do find it very ironic that they have no issues with allowing a player to play injured, yet want to sue the same people (most likely knew lasting results of concussions) that allowed them to play injured.

A players stance in this really doesn't hold much weight when you look at it objectively.[/quote]

I'm not keeping track but I don't think you can say all ex-players are suing the league. So you can't just discount all of their opinions. The point I'm getting at is this... it points to the fact there are clearly two sides to this debate and both sides have merit in their opinions.

People blasted the Nats for holding Strasburg out, now we're killing the Redskins for leaving RG3 in. Again, I think both sides have a point and there's no easy answer.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=CRedskinsRule;986448]wow, milellie, will you ever post a positive thread?[/quote]

What in the world are you talking about?

[URL="http://www.thewarpath.net/playbook/48614-wow-this-place-is-active.html"]http://www.thewarpath.net/playbook/48614-wow-this-place-is-active.html[/URL]


[URL="http://www.thewarpath.net/playbook/48133-this-place-is-refreshing.html"]http://www.thewarpath.net/playbook/48133-this-place-is-refreshing.html[/URL]

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=CRedskinsRule;986461]can't we close (or merge) this one? how many threads does this part of the conversation need?[/quote]

You post this, yet you post nothing constructive to the conversation?

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

I don't post a lot here (or anywhere, really) but lurk frequently. I've been reading a lot of criticism of Shanahan and RGIII in the media (I made the mistake of looking at the comments on an ESPN article - uggh) and it reminded me of something Teddy Roosevelt said.

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat." - Teddy Roosevelt

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=The Goat;986458]Been too bummed and pissed about football since the game to post here. Can't escape it though as my office is full of football fans, and all I've heard since yesterday morning is how asinine and irresponsible Shanahan and the Redskins are. Lots of folks in my neck of the woods are all too familiar with Mike's (similar) history in Denver with Plummer and Davis, among other things. As I've probably said before, nearly all the Broncos fans I know despise Shanahan now, and I think his overall handling of RG (not just the injury, but the entire scheme as Herm Edwards mentioned) is another example of why this guy can't be trusted. You have a player who already suffered a terrible knee injury in college and is clearly not built to withstand contact against pro defenses, yet build the entire offense around him keeping/running the ball more than any rookie QB in history?

Earlier in the season I said if we want RG for a longterm franchise QB, Snyder will have to "save" him from the Shanahans. My hope is RG doesn't take another snap under this regime.[/quote]

So take away what he does best to keep him from getting injured makes no sense.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

To me, the discussion surrounding what Shanahan should and should not have done with RGIII during the game is really divided into two seperate categories:

1) Should RGIII have been removed from the game at some point to protect his health?
2) Should he have been removed from the game at some point due to his poor performance?

Regarding #1) The more information that comes out about the injury RGIII suffered vs. Baltimore, and how he's performed since, I think the Redskins completely mismanaged the situation. He shouldnt have been cleared to play until his knee was strong enough to play without the brace. You can argue that if he can play with the brace, you play him with the brace, but Sunday proved the error of that logic. By all appearances, RGIII suffered the knee injury because the brace slipped out of place. If its possible a brace can slip out of place during normal gameplay, then it doesnt offer sufficent protection. If he can't play without the brace, he shouldnt play at all.

Regarding #2), I have changed my opinion on this. During the game, i was screaming for Robert to be benched for ineffectivenes. And i felt rightly so. He couldnt run, he couldnt plant his foot, so he couldnt throw accurately... he was essentially useless. Kirk Cousins showed how effective he could be - starting Cousins seemed to give us the best chance to win.

After a few days of thinking about it, i've completely changed my mind on this argument. RGIII is not just a starting quarterback. He's our FRANCHISE quarterback. Just like Tom Brady, Just like Aaron Rodgers, Just like Peyton Manning. You dont bench a franchise quarterback because he's ineffective. It doesnt matter if its a regular season game, a playoff game, or the superbowl. You just dont do it. If you do, you undermine the leader of your team and the face of your franchise... not just to the fans, but more importantly, to his teammates. RGIII got this team to the playoffs - you dont bench him for performance. He's not Alex Smith. He's not Mark Sanchez. Bench those guys - they are "just guys." RGIII is our Tom Brady. All of you who think he should have been benched for performance, including BHA of 2 days ago, are dead wrong.

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=milellie111;986489]What in the world are you talking about?

[URL="http://www.thewarpath.net/playbook/48614-wow-this-place-is-active.html"]http://www.thewarpath.net/playbook/48614-wow-this-place-is-active.html[/URL]


[URL="http://www.thewarpath.net/playbook/48133-this-place-is-refreshing.html"]http://www.thewarpath.net/playbook/48133-this-place-is-refreshing.html[/URL][/quote]

Bring some of that actively refreshing to the football side of things!


[YT]SJUhlRoBL8M[/YT]

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=firstdown;986493]So take away what he does best to keep him from getting injured makes no sense.[/quote]



It's easier to blame the Shanahans for RGIII's failure to slide or run out of bounds. After all, they were responsible for his fumbles and INTs. Somebody take that madden controller from Kyle!!!

Re: Lost Some Faith In Shanahan
 

[quote=BigHairedAristocrat;986497]To me, the discussion surrounding what Shanahan should and should not have done with RGIII during the game is really divided into two seperate categories:

1) Should RGIII have been removed from the game at some point to protect his health?
2) Should he have been removed from the game at some point due to his poor performance?

Regarding #1) The more information that comes out about the injury RGIII suffered vs. Baltimore, and how he's performed since, I think the Redskins completely mismanaged the situation. He shouldnt have been cleared to play until his knee was strong enough to play without the brace. You can argue that if he can play with the brace, you play him with the brace, but Sunday proved the error of that logic. By all appearances, RGIII suffered the knee injury because the brace slipped out of place. If its possible a brace can slip out of place during normal gameplay, then it doesnt offer sufficent protection. If he can't play without the brace, he shouldnt play at all.

Regarding #2), I have changed my opinion on this. During the game, i was screaming for Robert to be benched for ineffectivenes. And i felt rightly so. He couldnt run, he couldnt plant his foot, so he couldnt throw accurately... he was essentially useless. Kirk Cousins showed how effective he could be - starting Cousins seemed to give us the best chance to win.

[B]After a few days of thinking about it, i've completely changed my mind on this argument. RGIII is not just a starting quarterback. He's our FRANCHISE quarterback. Just like Tom Brady, Just like Aaron Rodgers, Just like Peyton Manning. You dont bench a franchise quarterback because he's ineffective. It doesnt matter if its a regular season game, a playoff game, or the superbowl. You just dont do it.[/B] If you do, you undermine the leader of your team and the face of your franchise... not just to the fans, but more importantly, to his teammates. RGIII got this team to the playoffs - you dont bench him for performance. He's not Alex Smith. He's not Mark Sanchez. Bench those guys - they are "just guys." RGIII is our Tom Brady. All of you who think he should have been benched for performance, including BHA of 2 days ago, are dead wrong.[/quote]

Yes, but he was ineffective because he knee was hanging by a thread. Everyone saw it. Benching him keeps him out of harms way AND gives us the best chance to win. It's not like he was 100% healthy and just having an off day. If that was the case, of course you don't take him out.