Quote:
Originally Posted by sportscurmudgeon
Can we put the "new coach/new system" to bed for a while, please? If you want to cling to it like a security blanket, go ahead; but here are a few facts that might get in your way.
The Detroit Lions - - yes the ones that are 0-10 and have stunk out the league for the last 8 years - - also have a:
1. New offensive system (Mike Martz is gone this year)
2. Have used 4 (FOUR) different quarterbacks this year (no continuity)
3. Have only one WR worth anything.
4. Have no RB who could beat out Portis or Betts absent injuries. (maybe not even Rock?)
5. A tight end that only fantasy football geeks would be able to identify AND
6. An offensive line whose only offensive characteristic is its body odor.
THOSE Detroit Lions have scored more TDs this year than the Washington Redskins. Go look it up.
By Week Eleven, good players on good teams have figured out what the scheme is and how the plays need to be run and blocked. Now it's a matter of execution.
The Redskins returned EVERY starter from last year's team to the squad and last year's team went to the playoffs. If you want to attribute mistakes and hiccoughs in the exhibition games to a "new coach/new system", that's fine. You can probably justify that for a few regular season games too - - maybe even the first four...
But by now, that excuse has worn thin. A team coming off a playoff season and with playoff aspirations this year should have more TDs for the season than the dog-breath Detroit Lions. Period!
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Part of the reason for this touchdown discrepancy is that the Lions are MARKEDLY better than us in one phase of the game of football: special teams. Thanks to their defense totally sucking, they play their special teams units a lot, and that gets them in much better position to score touchdowns than our offense would be under the exact same circumstances.
So in saying what you are saying, you do have to acknowledge that when you isolate the other two sides of football from the game, our offense is significantly better than theirs. Obviously.
Still, the comparison of offensive firepower is a good one, and puts our woes into perspective...so long as we can keep it in context. We can run and pass way better than the Lions can. Thusly our offense is significantly better. However, if the point is that we need to score more touchdowns to make the playoffs, you'll have no argument from me.