Washington Redskins: 5 Major Concerns

The days at Redskins Park would look a lot better if it weren’t for Rex Grossman’s miserable performance this past Sunday. The Washington Redskins lost to a team that had been in disarray beforehand, as a win against the Philadelphia Eagles would have solidified their position in the NFC East in which a division title seemed reachable. 

Prior to Sunday’s game, the Redskins were healthy and dull, which is exactly what Mike Shanahan wanted. Coach Shanahan has a reputation of always having his teams prepared and focused on one goal; there will be no controversy or media frenzied dramatic stories. 

All of that changed in a span of three hours. Three major injuries occurred (Trent Williams, Kory Lichtensteiger and Chris Cooley), the referees made some horrible calls and Rex Grossman threw some passes that even he would question at times.

This is what happens to teams throughout a season.  Just about every team will suffer from the injury bug at some point or another. Just about every team will have a game that features questionable penalties and just about every team will have position battles.

For the record, I hate blaming referees for a game, but some of the calls were ridiculous.  Even an unbiased fan can recognize that there were some costly penalties.

When there is a loose ball, like there was on the errant snap in the first quarter, players are taught to attack the ball. That’s exactly what Rocky McIntosh and Brian Orakpo did. Brian Billick, the announcer of the game, figured the flag was for intentional grounding, which would have resulted in a safety; instead, roughing the passer was called against the Redskins.

In addition to that, there was a holding call against Ryan Kerrigan that went unnoticed on a third down play that turned into a first down reception by DeSean Jackson. In my opinion, that 15-yard penalty in the endzone completely changed the game. At that moment, the Redskins were in control, they had all of the momentum and FedEx Field was behind them.  After that point, the Skins had to play catch up.

Well that’s enough bantering for now; the Washington Redskins have a winning record going into Week 7. There is still a long way to go in the season and more hurdles will continue to arise as injuries will become more prevalent and John Beck has been given the opportunity to start.

Despite the Carolina Panthers record, they are an uprising team that should not be taken lightly. Ask any Redskin fan: This team is historically known to play down to teams and to keep games close no matter what.

If you look at this matchup on paper, by all means the Redskins should blow Carolina out. I would be shocked if that happens.

The future of this team remains at limbo, with concerns at numerous positions or aspects that need to be remedied for this team to have any legitimate success this season. To look at this optimistically, at this point we really don’t know what’s to come with this Washington Redskins team.

Considering that they’ve only had a total of 10 wins the past two seasons, I can say with conviction that this team is remarkably better. Anyways, I have put together five major concerns that if properly addressed, a playoff berth is near.

Concern #1: The Quarterbacks

This is obvious. Rex or Becks? I envision this question to linger throughout the season. It’s the seasoned veteran Grossman that has essentially played like himself. He’ll make a good play every now and then, but he’s entirely way too dangerous and refuses to play like a “game manager.”

If intangibles are the only component of a starting quarterback, then John Beck would not be starting his first game in almost four years. There are many attributes that I like about Beck. He’s extremely dedicated, intelligent and deceptively athletic, however, I find it odd that two of football’s greatest evaluators got rid of him for essentially nothing (Bill Parcells in Miami and Ozzie Newsome in Baltimore).

What makes John Beck so interesting is that nobody really knows anything about him and that is what is concerning at the same time. He has an understanding of this offense and if he stops acting like Donovan McNabb by throwing ground balls, then I think Mike Shanahan made the right decision. Say what you want about the John Beck, Rex Grossman debate, but Beck will not throw as many interceptions as him.

That all being said, going into the season the quarterback position was the biggest concern and it remains that way. The game has changed; you need a great quarterback to carry your team year after year. John Beck certainly seems willing for the challenge, but most likely our quarterback next year is sitting in a college classroom right now.

Concern #2: Injuries

This feels weird writing this, but the Kory Lichtensteiger injury will be devastating. He has improved in both run and pass protection, but he suffered a gruesome knee injury against the Eagles.

In addition to that, Trent Williams will be sidelined for a few weeks as well as Chris Cooley. This has been something Washington is used to: Putting together a patchwork offensive line as they are expected to protect a less than mediocre quarterback as DeMarcus Ware is salivating at increasing his sack total.

Just as Trent Williams seemed to be turning the corner and becoming the left tackle he was drafted to be, he came down with an ankle injury. The sooner he gets on the field, the better, but if there is any unit that needed to avoid injuries it’s the offensive line.

Injury problems has been something that has plagued the Redskins year after year, luckily fill in tackle Sean Locklear has a lot of starting experience in Seattle, but opposing teams will attack this weakness.

Concern #3: Brandon Banks and the Return Game

Brandon Banks was electric last year. He was a spark for the special teams unit that has been looking for a player of his caliber for a long time. Excellent special teams play is an underrated aspect of a football game, where one play from a player with Brandon’s skill set can sway momentum in their team’s favor.

After a successful rookie campaign, high expectations amongst Redskins Nation were set for the severely undersized return man.  However, after an off-the-field incident and recurring knee problems, Banks had to play his way onto the roster again this season.

As expected, Banks made another play in the preseason and has been the team’s primary kick and punt returner thus far. Since then, we’ve been waiting for Banks to show his speed in a regular season game as it seems that he does not have the same burst he had last year.

A major issue is that the only thing Brandon can do is return kicks. He’s not used in the team’s offense at all, so if he continues to struggle in the return game, Mike Shanahan will find a player that can put up similar numbers while contributing to other aspects of the game.

Scoring touchdowns has already proved to be a daunting task for the Redskins so far. I know it’s unrealistic to think that Banks should reach the endzone every game, but giving the offense good field position is something that needs to be improved immediately.

Concern #4: Inconsistent Running Game

Giants game? Nope. Cardinals game? Check. Cowboys game? Nope. Rams game? Check. Eagles game? Nope. What can you discover from this? Inconsistency, which is exactly what the running game's issue has been so far.

Mike Shanahan has been known for a strong running attack throughout his coaching career, but it has not developed during his time in Washington. If there ever has been a year for the Redskins to need a potent running game, it’s now. If it is Rex Grossman or John Beck, it doesn’t take a genius to know that the Skins will not be a successful team if either one of those guys is throwing it 40 times a game.

Tim Hightower, Ryan Torain or Roy Helu need to step up. Hightower had flashes of brilliance in the preseason, Torain had an excellent game in St. Louis and Helu has shown his big play ability at times. Unfortunately, this hasn’t been happening on a consistent basis. Having a dependable rushing arsenal will control the time of possession, keep our defense fresh and will wear down opposing defenses.

This is an absolute necessity for Washington. If they somehow improve this aspect of the offense, then I feel very confident in this season. The Redskins defense has already proven that they keep their team in the game for four quarters, but they are going to need help and a performance like the one against Philly is not acceptable.

Concern #5: Play-Calling

Mike Shanahan liked to run the ball in Denver. Kyle Shanahan liked to throw the ball while he was the offensive coordinator in Houston. As the father and son duo would sound like a match made in heaven, it’s been quite complicated thus far.

I’m not overly critical with Kyle Shanahan’s play-calling, but what bothers me is that it seems that he is not fitting his scheme around the talent that has been assembled. He doesn’t have Pro Bowlers Matt Schaub and Andre Johnson effortlessly matriculating the ball down the field. He has an inferior quarterback with marginal receivers, but he does have three talented running backs that all seem willing to be the workhorse.

Last year is different from now. Our defense has improved tremendously; therefore, we don’t have to play from behind as often. I predict the rest of the season to be a strenuous grind, where we will have to protect a small lead. And that’s what is the most concerning to me. Our playcalling while we have the lead seems to shy away from a power running game and leans more to the playaction game.  In other words we’re getting “cute.”

I understand that the Redskins are finally in their version of a rebuild, where they are grooming their own players and coloring it up with some handpicked solid veterans. So this is going to take time for the offense to develop character, but please Kyle Shanahan, simplify it a little bit.

Let our quarterbacks manage the game and our rushers carry the load. It might be boring, but I’ll take that over another Rex Grossman fourth-quarter interception any day of the week.