Man-Handled

I watched the entirety of the Cowboys / Redskins game last night, except for the last few plays where Dallas was just taking a knee to run out the clock.

This is the second week in a row that they got man-handled. Especially the offensive line.

After the preseason, after week 1 when the Giants man-handled them, I told my buddy Tim I just didn't think this was a very good football team. They then played 5-1 football, and won some very big games. At one point, Tim was razzing me, and I told him I still wasn't convinced. But after giving up 10 sacks in two games and scoring 13 points total over those two games, I think the real team is the one we're seeing now.

What I saw in August was a team with an old, slow, offensive line who couldn't pass block and was mediocre in run blocking. The defensive line got p0wned as well, especially the defensive ends who couldn't stop the run OR rush the passer. Pittsburgh, and now Dallas, dominated in the trenches.

I was wrong about Jason Campbell, the quarterback. He's improving almost every week and his mechanics and technique are much improved. And the defense has played better than I thought they would this season. But football is mostly about the basics - blocking and tackling. Generally speaking, the teams who excel in those areas win.

It's also about imposing your will on your opponent. And the Redskins are allowing other teams to impose their will on them.