Tony McGee's Thoughts on the Philly Game

[SmootSmack]

Former NFL great Tony McGee sat down with TheWarpath.net front office Tuesday morning and answered some TheWarpath.net questions about the Redskins 36-0 loss to the New York Giants. Please be sure to visit http://www.tonymcgeeplus.com and watch Tony McGee's Pro Football Plus Saturdays at 11:30 am on Comcast SportsNet and DirecTV to see Tony and his panel of guests answer "TheWarpath.net Question of the Week". Ok, let's get started here:

That was a good game Sunday night, and a nice win for the Redskins to wrap up the first half of the season. I still have some concerns about the team moving forward. Let me address Offiss' question first. Offiss has some questions about the running game. The running game needs to step it up in the second half if they're going to have legitimate playoff aspirations. The first problem I see is that maybe it wasn't such a good idea for Portis to put on that extra weight in the offseason. It looks like he's not so quick this season. I don't think the problem is that they're running him too much between the tackles. Problem is that he doesn't look like has that same burst he's had in previous years to rip through those tackles. On the other hand, you can argue that bulking up has made Portis a better blocker and thus a more complete player. But I'd like to see him shed that weight in the offseason and get back to being his quick former self. And I like the idea of giving the ball to Sellers as well. He's the prototype H-back. I think he could do some serious damage.

Dmek25, you're asking what a lot of people want to know-Why does Brunell look so different this year? There's no one answer to that question. It's a combination of several things. The primary reasons I see are better protection, a better grasp of the offense and let's be honest here, better receivers. While the QB may be the most glamorous position, it's important to remember it's a team game and individual performance is often dependant upon total team performance. That Guy, your question is about David Patten. I don't think it's that Brunell doesn't see him. But basically he's the third option. After Moss and Cooley (remember there's no rule that says your number 2 option has to be a WR, it can be a TE or HB). And no matter how open you are, if you're the third option you're just not going to get a lot of looks. I'd like to see the team get him more involved though. Maybe line him up on the left side of the field, essentially making him the first option on several plays.

Hog1, let's talk about the most important weaknesses moving forward. Two things. They need to develop a pass rush and improve the running game. That's it right there. Work on those two things and you have a playoff team.

So we have the second half of the season upon us now. But here's what you don't do. You don't look at it like it's the second half of the season. This week you worry about game #9, next week it's game #10. It's a cliche, but if you look too far ahead you start worrying about too many obstacles. The team only has to think about Tampa this week.

Let me address the TO situation before I go. Good move on the part of the Eagles to suspend him. It takes them out of contention in my opinion but he was causing too many internal problems that are damaging to the locker room. And let me tell you something else, a player like that would never be allowed in Joe Gibbs' locker room. We had some characters back in the day, but we were a team, a family. Terrell Owens is all about Terrell Owens and Joe Gibbs wouldn't bother with a person like that on his team.

*Warpath.net Front Office Note* The following is a brief clip from last week's show. There were some production issues which didn't allow it to come as crisply as it did week one, namely Tony was not able to participate in the question and answer, but here you'll get to see some free publicity for us on televison! Special thanks to Cpayne5 for providing the clip.
http://www.skinsfan.us/Redskins/warp...10505.0007.wmv

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Tony McGee's NFL career started in 1971 where he was a starting defensive end for the Chicago Bears. In 1974, Tony began a 7 year stint with the New England Patriots and earned the nickname, "Mac the Sack." His unique ability to swarm opposing quarterbacks helped coin the phrase, "designated pass rusher." Tony's career as a Washington Redskin began in 1982, and included a Super Bowl championship. Tony ended his spectacular career in 1985 with 106 career sacks and played in over 200 games -- a feat achieved only by a select group of NFL defensive linemen.
For more information visit http://www.tonymcgeeplus.com