Let me first get off my chest - who's idiotic idea was it to line up Josh Wilson on the line of scrimmage against Victor Cruz with less than 2 minutes less in the game and the game on the line?  As soon as I saw that formation and Mr. Magoo (Mr. Madeiu) fumbling around the backfield I knew the game was all over even before the snap.  


Now onto the main issue.  The Redskins starting lineup is starting to look like it has served time in Iraq.  What is it with all of these injuries?

LaRon Laundry said several weeks ago that the Redskin's medical staff is the worst he's seen and the coaches aren't much better when it comes to injuries.  Given he is running around playing for the Jets without surgery (that the Redskins insisted upon), he may be onto something.

For anyone that has torn a pectoral or a rotator cuff, you know there is NO chance that part of the body will ever be the same again.  It certainly takes a long time to get 98%.  Enter Brian Orakpo and his pec tear the last week of last season.  Many people were commenting "this is a more serious injury than the Redskins are treating as when the preseason started."  Linebackers commented that Rak just wasn't the same in training camp.  What do the coaches do?  Throw him into preseason games!  Idiotic at best, Rak is out, and if he returns to the game next year and thinks he can straight-arm tackle again, his career is over.

Consider Pierre Garcon.  Shanahan said it was a matter of dealing with pain.  Now after shoving him back into games way too early, he is out for an undisclosed period and needs just to rest.  Didn't he need to just rest when he first got the injury?  Apparently, the injury has compounded to a tendon or the original diagnosis was completely incorrect.  Again, Redskins medical management and overall coaching staff gets an "F" on how Garcon has been managed.

Chase Minnifield - once they saw he looked good enough to play they should have sat him out of training camp - insisted he wear a brace - something.  Every other team in the NFL passed on him because his knee injury was so serious.  What do the Redskins do?  Torch his knee again in training camp.

Next for literal Achilles heels (losing Laundry on this issue as well), is Roy Helu and Fred Davis.  Does anybody warm up before a game over there?  Don't they rub pounds of Tiger Balm on their Achilles tendons, feet, knees and ankles before a game?   With billions of $ at stake, you would think the NFL has perfected some kind of stretching warm-up regimen.

On the plus side for the Redskins on this issue is the offensive line.  They gave Kory Lichtensteiger lots of time to heal and kept him out of the preseason.  It seems to have worked.

Injuries in football are inevitable.  Patience, proper treatment, and proper prevention are coaching and staffing issues.  Let's start with a simple suggestion - season ending injuries mean NO preseason play the next season PERIOD.   Secondly, when Haslett starts packing his boxes after this season, let the medical and training staff go with him.

Editor's Note: Some good thoughts raised here. I vaguely recall that Mike Shanahan swapped out the medical and training staff when he arrived in 2010. Even then, there were whispers about the group.

The NFL fined the Redskins $20,000 for the description and reporting of Robert Griffin III's mild traumatic brain injury (concussion) in the Atlanta game. Washington handled the injury itself properly, but if words betray thought, perhaps something about the Redskins thinking about injury needs to be "shaken up."

Image Sources:
Former Redskins safety LaRon Landry, August 17, 2012 - Source: Drew Hallowell/Getty Images North America via zimbio.com.
Redskins receiver Pierre Garcon, September 29, 2012 - Source: Al Messerschmidt/Getty Images North America via zimbio.com.

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Redskins fan's kids celebrate RGIII touchdown pass, only to be crushed a few moments later by a defensive lapse. Still they believe. 

Video provided by Owen West. 

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Me when Eli cancelled RG3:tout.com/m/d0wola?ref=t…

— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) October 21, 2012

I am still sick about what Eli did to RG3.

— Skip Bayless (@RealSkipBayless) October 21, 2012

Sign of depression – when you resort to quoting Skip Bayless. 

Skip Bayless video from here.

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We opened this story with Denny Green's famous rant because it's perfect for the Washington Redskins' 27-23 loss to the New York Giants. We let 'em off the hook. I'm P'O'd about it.

Moral victories were acceptable for the first four games. They are not acceptable now, especially when the team let their win literally slip through their hands.

Check it out. The Redskins committed two interceptions and lost one fumble in their two games against the Giants last year. Three turnovers, two wins over the Giants, and we had Rex Grossman at quarterback.

Today, the normally sure handed Redskins had four, 1-2-3-FOUR, turnovers in one game.

I give this team high marks for playing as well as they do with available talent that does not yet match the Beast. There is no shame in losing to the Super Bowl Giants in their home stadium, but a rookie interception and three lost fumbles are stupid. And they came from the most unexpected sources.    

Robert Griffin III, Alfred Morris, Josh Wilson and Santana Moss, of all people, fumbled. Moss' fumbled was the dagger that killed Washington's slim comeback hopes. It came after an 11-yard gain to the Redskins 43 with about 30 seconds to go. The Giants recovered and that wrapped the game. 

I heard an audible exhale from the New Meadowlands at that point.

Sad, because the Redskins should have won this game. Control time of possession 32:43? Check. Rush for 248 yards and gain 480 yards? Check. Go score for score on the defending champs? Check. Exciting sports entertainment? Check.

Washington did everything it should have done to win, and everything it must not do –gift turnovers and penalties – to lose.  Hog Heaven won't flog the team further. The players will kick themselves all week over this.

Six Observations

Lets call the man Robert Griffin the Great. RGIII doesn't just make the offense look better. He makes the coaching staff look better. Mike Shanahan would not have had the guts to call two fourth-down plays in the same drive with Grossman, John Beck or even Kirk Cousins under center.     

Fans will call for DC Jim Haslett's head again. Coaching isn't the whole story here. Washington's problem with the secondary began with LaRon Landry's slow recovery from assorted leg injuries. Both Landry replacements, Jackson and Meriweather, have been out. CB Cedric Griffin made his first appearance this season. CB David Jones was inactive. Washington is playing little-known Jordan Pugh at safety. Haslett is making do with smoke and mirrors.

His role in how it got that way is a discussion worth having, but it's an off-season discussion not for now. Now is when you focus on getting it done with who you have. Firing the DC mid-season, even making him look over his shoulder, hurts the effort because it hurts the team sense of "we're all in this together." 

Slingin' Sammy Baugh played both ways. I betcha RGIII could play both ways. One of my tweeps suggested that as we watched Josh Wilson and Madieu Williams trail Victor Cruz on the killer 77-yard TD reception.

@skinshogheaven put @rgiii back there. Nobody outruns him.

— Keith B Parsons (@therealkparsons) October 21, 2012

Just sayin'.

The Redskins have been in every game this year at the 4:00 mark. They are so much better than they were last year. They just have to learn to finish. Starting tomorrow, refuse to lose.

40 men who refuse to lose can't be beat. ~ George Allen, or somebody.    

Prayers sent up for my tight end Fred Davis for a full and speedy recovery.

— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) October 22, 2012

Fred Davis is lost for the season. Logan Paulson, not Niles Paul, is next man up. Davis ruptured his Achilles tendon and is lost for the season. Davis was the 'Skins' leading receiver coming into the Giants game. Hog Heaven readers know my feelings about this. It ain't good. That is no knock on Davis or Chris Cooley. There is just something wrong with your passing game if a tight end is the leading receiver.

What's wrong here is that Washington is much too coy about what's ailing the official, No. 1, bought and paid for wide out. A story on usatoday.com says Garcon tore a foot tendon and will be out a few more weeks. 

The NFL fined the Redskins $20,000 for misspeaking of RGIII's concussion in the Atlanta game. If the league is going to be picky about what the team said vs. what they did about a player then, I wonder why they are not looking at what the team is saying or not about Garcon. At this point, no one believes he will play until he actually catches a ball in a live game.

@skinshogheaven Might as well just fill us in the week he comes back. Until then, we can just expect him in street clothes.

— Shae Cronin (@BetBigDC) October 19, 2012

Now will the Redskins call Chris Cooley? My Magic 8 Ball says "Outlook good." My Magic 8 Ball said the Redskins would win today "Without a doubt." 

UPDATE: THE REDSKINS RESIGN COOLEY SAYS WASHINGTON POST.

Let me be clear that it's Logan, not Paul, who should move up. It's difficult to execute a change of position in the NFL. I'm prepared to give Paul all season to do it. Paul hasn't shown me good enough hands to be a receiving tight end, however. That's odd since he came to the league as a wide out. Paul missed on a pass to him at the Giants' two yard line. Griffin never cam back to him.

I believe that was the play Fred Davis Achilles' exploded.    

AP recap on ESPN.com – Manning's TD pass to Victor Cruz rescues Giants from Redskins.

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I hear Jason Pierre-Paul talking, but all I can think about it Roadrunner.

“Don’t bring it to my side,” Pierre-Paul said of Redskins QB Robert Griffin III in a recent interview. “Go the other way.”

“Trust me; we chase quarterbacks all the time. We turn and run to the ball, no matter what. He may get past us and zoom right past us, but trust me we’re right behind him. You’ve got to respect that, too. It’s not all about the speed. We’ve got guys, all 11 guys that can run to the ball very quick.

“You’d be surprised. Very surprised.”

I expect bravado from the Giants' ace defensive end. But, I also heard John Madden call Griffin the best player – and the fastest – he's ever seen.  

I share everyone's concern that RGIII is subject to big hits when he runs, but it's a general concern for everyone in the sport. It's football. Hit happens.

Griffin is lanky, not fragile. He is in the same weight range as NFL running backs. Chris Johnson? 195 Lbs. Marshawn Lynch? 215 Lbs. Griffin III? 217 Lbs.

Backs usually see hits coming and brace for it. RGIII the RB is no more disadvantaged than any back on designed runs. I worry about blindside hits on Griffin after a snap or while scrambling on a broken play – the same quarterback risks that apply to Matt Ryan, 217 Lbs, by the way.

Hurt Griffin while he is running? You have to catch him first.

Beep Beep 

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"Washington Redskins offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan has taken his share of criticism in D.C., based on the play of former starters Donovan McNabb, Rex Grossman and John Beck. But this year with Robert Griffin III, Shanahan looks like an outstanding coach, with the ability to adapt an offense to the skill set of his premier player. The 'Skins' balanced attack is fun to watch, averaging 5.2 yards per rush and 8.3 per pass attempt. Those are incredible numbers, and Shanahan deserves a ton of credit" 

~ Michael Lombardi, Item No. 10, Front Office View, NFL.com. 
 

New York is Washington's oldest NFL rival dating to 1932 when the then Boston Braves earned its first ever win against the New York Football Giants – "Football" Giants to distinguish them from the MLB team with the same name. There was a lot of that back then. The Football Braves split their series against the Brooklyn Dodgers.

The Redskins renew their rivalry with the Giants Sunday. Much has gone well since Washington swept the series last year. The Giants are on a 6-2 regular season run since the home loss to the 'Skins last December. They won the Super Bowl, too. But the two losses were to Dallas and Philadelphia. They can't afford another loss to a division rival.

We wondered about the Giants' mindset these days and turned to our Bloguin colleagues at Ultimate NYG for some answers. Rich Conforti delivered the goods. Our questions, his responses below.

Q. When we did this Q&A last season, you guys said the Redskins were irrelevant to the division race. I'm not naming names because Andy is a friend. How has that perception changed, or has it?
Can’t blame him. Plenty of respect for the history of the Redskins (even if all of it was written in the pre-internet era)  But seriously, I think Washington can and will be a factor in the division race deep into the season. If they can manage 2-1 going into the bye week, I think we will find them right in the thick of the NFC East and NFC wild card hunt.

Q. I am a long-time admirer of the Giants' front office. They have stability, a long-term strategic focus and a true next man up roster. Who is the next Victor Cruz of the offense and the defense?
Great compliment. I just hope other Giants fans realize how well things have operated with their squad over the last few years. To me there won’t be another Victor Cruz anytime soon. If you watch him on a day-to-day basis, you appreciate his ability to EXCEL at everything you ask for out of a wide out. It’s rare to see a player like him slip through the cracks.

I had mentioned in the off-season that Domenik Hixon, if healthy, had an opportunity to step in and be a major contributor for the Giants and he has shown that so far. He isn’t a Cruz type in that he didn’t come out of nowhere and when healthy, has shown ability to be a very solid player. In terms of someone coming out of nowhere, I am going to go with OLB Spencer Paysinger. With Keith Rivers hurt and Kiwanuka slowly making the move back to a full time DL, Paysinger has seized the opportunity to get some serious reps in both the nickel and base packages. Paysinger, in his second year out of Oregon, has shown that he not only can move quickly, but can react and think quickly and that has earned him the PT as of late. Keep an eye out for him on Sunday as he will be someone who will be crucial not only in pass coverage, but in the collective effort of slowing down the artist formerly known as “Bob.” Although he was a 3rd round pick (not as “Cruzish”) I really think that rookie CB Jayron Hosley is also going to be an impact player in this league for a very long time.
 

Q. Are Giants fans sold on Tom Coughlin yet?
This sort of feels like a quick (albeit well deserved) jab at Giants fans. Not attempting to toot my own horn, I am a believer in continuity (which during the hard times was Coughlin) and never really was a part of the group calling for Coughlin’s head.  At times, I have even turned red in the face a la TC when defending him, just ask Andy. But seriously, I think that not only has Coughlin earned the unconditional trust of the Giants’ organization but he is also one of the few men to slay the world’s largest peanut gallery-- irrational NY sports fans.

Q. Both the Giants and the Redskins are high scoring teams; both teams average 29.7 points per game. The defense is the difference. How will the G-men attack the Redskins defense?

The G-men will attack the Redskins defense the same way they have done for the good part of two seasons now, over the top. But there’s a catch. They need to be patient enough to let those plays come to them rather than force it, something that both Gilbride and Eli liketo do at times. Teams know this. That is why it is crucial for the Giants offense to keep them honest through the use of “small ball” as we so often harp on UNYG. Run the ball and attack the short routes early and the rest will come as the game goes on. Find that balance and Eli is a safe bet to become the 6th QB to throw for 300+ yards on the Skins (mind you Josh Freeman was one yard away from becoming the 7th). A defense that allows 417 yards per game and allows 16 more pass YPG than the 31st ranked team must have Eli and the boys salivating. This will only be the second week that he has Nicks, Cruz and Hixon at his disposal.

Q. How should Washington's offense attack New York's defense? 

You have to establish the run. Even if it isn’t successful for the most part, it needs to be done. I know this applies to every opponent, but it is especially crucial when you play New York. Even if you fall behind the Giants, you need to stay balanced. Last week, trailing only 17-3, SF abandoned the run and despite what you will hear on TV, they were pretty successful with it in the first half. Once you give up on the run, you might as well give the d-line the green light to tee off on your quarterback. You must stay disciplined and that means sticking with the run NO MATTER WHAT. I’m a big fan of Alfred Morris (and have been) and is a back that can handle the 25-30 carries, give them to him in this one. Keep the pass rushers honest and you should be able to move the ball for the most part.

Q. Your game prediction and score?
31-20 Giants. No disrespect to a good Redskins squad but I think that the Giants are going to ride their win over San Fran and take a third straight game to begin what we call, a "winning streak." Big Blue continues to get key players back (and others who are returning to full strength) and have seemed to have found the right mix of players on the offensive line, a key to their balanced attack the last two weeks. The group has kept Eli sack free on all but five occasions so far this season and if they continue to do that then Eli will hurt whatever defense he faces.

Q. Predict the division order of finish?
1. NY Giants 11-5
2. Washington Redskins 9-7
3. Dallas Cowboys 7-9
4. Philadelphia Eagles 6-10

Redskins Hog Heaven answered Ultimate NYG's questions about the Redskins that are posted on their site right now. Click here to see it. Go take a look. We'll be here when you get back.

Image Credits:
Ultimate NYG Banner by Bloguin.com
Domenick Hixon, December 5, 2009 - Source: Jim McIsaac/Getty Images North America via zimbio.com.
Eli Manning, September 29, 2012, Alex Trautwig/Getty Images North America via zimbio.com.
Robert Griffin III hands off to Alfred Morris, September 29, 2012, J. Meric/Getty Images North America, via zimbio.com. 

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