Decimated Offensive line

[Coff]

Originally Posted by redsk1

I'll blame Gibbs when appropriate, but this isn't one of them. The players have to catch the ball and hold onto the ball. If Moss catches that long pass and doesn't fumble we would have won the game. Gibbs can't make that catch for him!!

I know what you're saying; there is only so much a coach can do, and some things he just can't be held responsible for. However, it can be argued that the primary role of a head coach is to mentally prepare his players, especially when the coach is neither the offensive or defensive coordinator. This team was not mentally prepared in the second half of this game, nor was it in the second half of the NYG game. They appear to be mentally weak, and this frailty has plagued us for years. I'm just not sure that this coaching staff instills the mental toughness that a unit needs to be successful. Granted, this is all conjecture of the most subjective nature, but watching a team collapse, and to do so consistently and predictably, leaves one questioning those whose charge it is to prevent such collapse.

[skinsguy]

Originally Posted by Coff

I know what you're saying; there is only so much a coach can do, and some things he just can't be held responsible for. However, it can be argued that the primary role of a head coach is to mentally prepare his players, especially when the coach is neither the offensive or defensive coordinator. This team was not mentally prepared in the second half of this game, nor was it in the second half of the NYG game. They appear to be mentally weak, and this frailty has plagued us for years. I'm just not sure that this coaching staff instills the mental toughness that a unit needs to be successful. Granted, this is all conjecture of the most subjective nature, but watching a team collapse, and to do so consistently and predictably, leaves one questioning those whose charge it is to prevent such collapse.

But when do coaches need a psychology degree to coach? While I agree that coaches need to have their teams physically and mentally prepared, it is also up to the players to adhere to the coach and play team football. This may mean staying after practice with the QB and putting in some extra work. Not all of our guys are willing to do that. If the players are there for the prestige and money mostly, all the psychology in the world won't work on them. This is what is happening to present day atheltes.

[GusFrerotte]

Cards Shmards, we have 2 away games withthe AFC East coming up. We might have no O line after that two game road trip!!!

[GusFrerotte]

Originally Posted by Coff

I know what you're saying; there is only so much a coach can do, and some things he just can't be held responsible for. However, it can be argued that the primary role of a head coach is to mentally prepare his players, especially when the coach is neither the offensive or defensive coordinator. This team was not mentally prepared in the second half of this game, nor was it in the second half of the NYG game. They appear to be mentally weak, and this frailty has plagued us for years. I'm just not sure that this coaching staff instills the mental toughness that a unit needs to be successful. Granted, this is all conjecture of the most subjective nature, but watching a team collapse, and to do so consistently and predictably, leaves one questioning those whose charge it is to prevent such collapse.

Gibbs isn't to blame, the play calling was pretty good, just dropped passes and that fumble for the TD killed us. Our O line is toast though. I mean my god they said they had to bring in a D lineman out there on the last play. If we can't get at least 2 guys back soon our season is toast!!!!

[Coff]

Originally Posted by skinsguy

But when do coaches need a psychology degree to coach? While I agree that coaches need to have their teams physically and mentally prepared, it is also up to the players to adhere to the coach and play team football. This may mean staying after practice with the QB and putting in some extra work. Not all of our guys are willing to do that. If the players are there for the prestige and money mostly, all the psychology in the world won't work on them. This is what is happening to present day atheltes.

But if it is happening to all present day athletes, why is it more of a problem for the Redskins than for most other teams? Why are the Redskins the team to breakdown, lose concentration, collapse, and come out on the losing end of games like Sunday's, or the game agains the Giants? Like I've said, such collapses have plagued us for years, and have plagued us much more than they have plagued other teams, so the fact that all athletes today "are there for the prestige and money" does not explain why they are disproportionately playing for the Redskins.

[SmootSmack]

Originally Posted by Coff

But if it is happening to all present day athletes, why is it more of a problem for the Redskins than for most other teams? Why are the Redskins the team to breakdown, lose concentration, collapse, and come out on the losing end of games like Sunday's, or the game agains the Giants? Like I've said, such collapses have plagued us for years, and have plagued us much more than they have plagued other teams, so the fact that all athletes today "are there for the prestige and money" does not explain why they are disproportionately playing for the Redskins.

But is it happening more so to the Redskins, or is it that as fans of the team we're much more critical of their every move compared to say what the Lions do. I'm aware of the "2nd Half Collapse" stat, but what about those teams that never lead at any point. Those teams "collapse" before the game even begins.

[Longtimefan]

I'm really concerned about the current state of the O-line. Our offense has been struggling at best, and with the line in such flux it's going to be difficult to maintain any offensive continuity. Teams have already taken notice of the fact we no longer run to the right, and have taken steps to take advantage.

I'm mostly concerned with how it's going to affect the continued maturation process of our young QB. It's not going to be good if we continue having difficulty running the ball, or that he has to scramble for his life while trying to pass. It's imperative that we have success up front because nothing else on offense works if we dont.

[GTripp0012]

Originally Posted by skinsguy

So much for running the ball. If we have no offensive line, we can't run the ball and Campbell is going to be chased all day long. I will be curious to see what Buges is going to do to put our offensive line back together.

We aren't going to stop running the ball altoghether.

With a good, efficient passing game, we can make up for unsuccessful runs. You want to run enough to keep the D on their heels, but we still want the ball in JC's hands as often as possible.

[GTripp0012]

Originally Posted by Coff

But if it is happening to all present day athletes, why is it more of a problem for the Redskins than for most other teams? Why are the Redskins the team to breakdown, lose concentration, collapse, and come out on the losing end of games like Sunday's, or the game agains the Giants? Like I've said, such collapses have plagued us for years, and have plagued us much more than they have plagued other teams, so the fact that all athletes today "are there for the prestige and money" does not explain why they are disproportionately playing for the Redskins.

But are they breaking down, losing concentration, etc or are they just getting outplayed?

If they are breaking down, why did we only lose to the Giants by 7 points, and to the Pack by 3 points? Shouldn't it have gotten ugly?

Thing is, there wasn't (and isn't) anything at issue with the psyche of this team. The Giants played really good football in the second half. Just give them credit and move on.

The Redskins did not play good football in the second half of the Packers game. It was the first time in three weeks this team had struggled. Why all the concern? Why must we expect it to happen again?

[skinsguy]

Originally Posted by Coff

But if it is happening to all present day athletes, why is it more of a problem for the Redskins than for most other teams? Why are the Redskins the team to breakdown, lose concentration, collapse, and come out on the losing end of games like Sunday's, or the game agains the Giants? Like I've said, such collapses have plagued us for years, and have plagued us much more than they have plagued other teams, so the fact that all athletes today "are there for the prestige and money" does not explain why they are disproportionately playing for the Redskins.

It seems like it is happening more to the Redskins because we, as fans, keep up with the Redskins more than the other teams in the league. This is happening all over the league, not just with the Redskins. Why do the Cardinals lose year in and year out? Why do the Lions fail to reach expectations year in and year out? Believe me, this isn't an exclusive problem the redskins have. One thing that curves this problem is winning. The problem is, you have to have enough key players to put the work in that it takes to turn a losing team into a winning team. It takes more than just the scheduled practice. It takes 110% effort and then some more. That is what it is going to take for this team to become a team like the Colts or the Patriots. It's not just something that the coaches can wave their magic wand and fix. The players are going to have to be willing to do whatever it takes to take that next step.

I think we have the players on this team who are willing to take that next step, but we need all of our key players to do the same.

[MTK]

Originally Posted by skinsguy

It seems like it is happening more to the Redskins because we, as fans, keep up with the Redskins more than the other teams in the league. This is happening all over the league, not just with the Redskins. Why do the Cardinals lose year in and year out? Why do the Lions fail to reach expectations year in and year out? Believe me, this isn't an exclusive problem the redskins have. One thing that curves this problem is winning. The problem is, you have to have enough key players to put the work in that it takes to turn a losing team into a winning team. It takes more than just the scheduled practice. It takes 110% effort and then some more. That is what it is going to take for this team to become a team like the Colts or the Patriots. It's not just something that the coaches can wave their magic wand and fix. The players are going to have to be willing to do whatever it takes to take that next step.

I think we have the players on this team who are willing to take that next step, but we need all of our key players to do the same.

That's it exactly. Our focus is on the Skins so our issues are magnified in comparison to other teams, but in reality the issues we have are not always exclusive to the Washington Redskins.