The Washington Redskins face their third new head coach in four games when they go against Greg Schiano's Tampa Bay Buccaneers. In every case, going against a new coach proved to be a surprise.

Washington surprised the world in a good way when they beat the Saints who are coached by acting interim head coach Aaron Kromer. But don't call the win an "upset." Winless teams are not upset. Washington's win gets less impressive by the week.

The St. Louis Rams have given Washington fits since 2006 no matter who coached them. Defense-minded Jeff Fisher inspired, or goaded, his team to new aggression that neither the Redskins nor the substitute officials handled well. New offensive coordinator Brian Shottenheimer found gaps in pass coverage that Washington could not close. The result was a loss when Washington was widely expected to win.

Enter Greg Schiano, a very good coach at the college level. College coaches were the only serious candidates Tampa Bay considered to replace Raheem Morris, now Washington's defensive backfield coach. Packers OC Joe Philbin interviewed for the post. So did former Packers, former Texas A&M head coach Mike Sherman. But it was Oregon's Chip Kelly nearly sealed the deal before backing away. Perhaps he reconsidered the after comparing the Buc's roster to the Ducks'. Then, the Buccaneers turned to Schiano in a big way.

The search says something about how owner Malcolm Glazer sees his team – young, undisciplined, unable to break a long-term slump. With the Bucs unable to handle the success of 2010, Glazer is giving it the old college try.

Glazer and Schiano are swimming against the tide. Some mighty fine NCAA coaches struggled at the NFL level. Jimmy Johnson was the rare exception, but only because he snookered the Vikings into the stupidest trade in NFL history.

Like Fisher, Schiano is attempting to infuse a culture of toughness on his young team. He has twice violated the unwritten rule not to rush the victory formation. Word to the wise, Mike Shanahan. With Schiano, hope is never lost.

"The Buccaneers are like a box of chocolate. You never know what you are going to get." ~ Forrest Gump

Schiano was a natural to replace Joe Paterno, but reportedly rebuffed every lure offered by Penn State. Patriots OC Bill O'Brien took the job. That seems backwards. O'Brien should be in Tampa Bay (and may wish he were) and Schiano should be in State College, PA (and apparently glad he is not).

Washington was surprised by the Rams and the Bengals. What happens when they have no video on a coach they've never faced? Yes, this worries me.

Five Buccaneers to watch

1. Poor Josh Freeman is working under his third offensive coordinator in four years. Where have we seen this before? Oh yeah, Jason Campbell. We know what high turnover of coaches does to a young quarterback.

Freeman trails Campbell's statistical performance at similar points in their careers. In 43 starts, Freeman has thrown 55 touchdowns against 49 INTs. His average yards per attempt is 5.9. The gold standard is 7.0. Freeman has a 59.9 completion rate and a career passer rating of 78.6.

After his first season (7 starts), Campbell never completed less than 60 percent of his passes while with the Redskins. He threw 55 touchdown passes for the Redskins against 38 INTs. His average yards per attempt was 6.3, also below the 7.0 gold standard. Campbell's career passer rating in Washington was 82.3. He raised his passer rating every year he played for the Redskins.

The worst that can be said of Campbell is that he is not a playmaker. That might be true of Freeman.

2. Vincent Jackson, the receiver of our dreams. How many years have Washington fans professed man-love for Jackson? When he was finally a free agent, the Shanahans took the team in another direction, by the name of Pierre Garçon. Jackson landed with the Bucs ... where he is off to a slow start (10 catches, 27 targets). Um, no thanks.

New team, new offense, new quarterback, Vincent was bound to struggle. That's bound not to last, but please Lawd, let it not end this weekend. Jackson on the field will always out-perform Pierre Garcon on the bench. Hmm. Garçon is day-to-day. 

3, 4 - RBs Doug Martin and LeGarrett Blount. Martin won the starting job, but Schiano says he would like to use Blount more in the rushing rotation. That might be an attempt to force Washington to prepare for both backs. It's likely that Schiano himself does not know what he means. He is still learning his personnel. Here's a certainty. Both Martin and Blount average less than 4.0 YPC. That's always a sign of problems with the offensive line.

5. George Johnson, or whoever is replacing Adrian Clayborn. Clayborn led the team in sacks (7.5) last season, but he is out for the season with torn knee ligaments.   Johnson played for Schiano at Rutgers. He should be comfortable with Schiano's coaching concepts. He goes against Trent Williams who should win that battle, if he plays. Analysts in Tampa Bay think Schiano will break tendencies and rush Johnson from other positions.

That's just what we need. More new stuff from a culture-changing coach we've never seen before.

BONUS - Cody Grimm, son of Russ, plays safety for the Buccaneers. Did someone say safery?
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Hear Redskins Hog Heaven's game commentary during the game thanks to the techno-magic of Let Me hear Ya. Follow the link to my profile page and click your way through the instructions. Those of you who are handy with your DVR can adjust your timer and hear Hog Heaven commentary on your PC in synch with the game. The rest of us will notice a slight lag of my audio to the game action you see on your TV. I'm not attempting to do play-by-play, just my thoughts as the game unfolds. To comment on my comments, use "#HogHeavenTV" on Twitter.
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Image:  September 8, 2012 - Source: J. Meric/Getty Images North America via zimbio.com.

We knew the season was over as soon as Jammal's hip blew a gasket his first 100 yard dash this preseason, but we were in denial and pretended otherwise.

We knew the season was over as soon as Chase Minnifield blew his knee again, but we were in denial and pretended otherwise.

We knew the season was over as soon as Tanard Jackson blew one too many joints, but we were in denial and pretended otherwise.

We knew the season was over when it was clear that NONE of the offensive lineman we drafted this year would be able to produce anything this year, but we were in denial and pretended otherwise.

We knew the season was over as soon as Pierre Garcon stayed out 2 plus games with a nagging foot injury, but we were in denial and pretended otherwise.

We knew the season was over as soon as Orakpo and Carriker fell for the season, but we were in denial and pretended otherwise.

We knew the season was over when Trent Williams started bruising bones left and right, but we were in denial and pretended otherwise.

We knew the season was over as soon as they signed Davey Jones (of the Monkees?  Heck, they can't even cover a Beatles song let alone an NFL receiver), but we were in denial and pretended otherwise.

We knew the season was over when RG3 started getting pounded ruthlessly dozens of times per game, but we were in denial and pretended otherwise.  In fact, we should call him "Wile E. Coyote" and all opposing defensive ends "Road Runner."  You can almost see the puff of smoke as they race past Polumbus and/or Black on their way to a certain hit on RG3.  RG3 can cover the Nike logo with an "Acme" logo.

It's officially a 'rebuilding' season folks, with the exception of RG3, whose body is now 'deconstructing.'

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Image Source: March 11, 2010, Sunset over Sphinx and Pyramid, © Patryk Kosmider | Dreamstime.com. Used with permission. 

The Washington Redskins placed second year running back Roy Helu on Injured Reserve the result of nagging Achilles injuries and recent turf toe problems. Zac Boyer of The Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star broke the story.

The move creates roster room for RB Ryan Grant. The Redskins had interest in Grant before training camp, but the moment passed. Grant was working out for the Chicago Bears when he got the call from Washington.

Rookie running back Alfred Morris is up for Week Three Pepsi MAX Rookie of the Week honors over at NFL.com. He needs your vote. Click here and do it.

Rams WR Danny Amendola is not up for weekly honors after a mere five catches for 66 yards against the Bears. Amendola, you recall, had 15 catches for 160 yards and a score the week before against the Redskins.

We touched on issues with the secondary in an earlier post today. Washington managed to, um, restrict Amendola to 10.7 yards per catch. No other team has done that this season.

It sure seems like the Rams are doing something different with Amendola that the Redskins failed to pick up. That's an emerging theme in the third year of Washington's conversion to the 3-4 defense. Performance should be at a high level in the third year of any rebuild. The season is still young. We are not joining the chorus calling for Jim Haslett's head ... yet.

The Redskins signed CB David Jones and waived/injured CB Crezdon Butler.  

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Image Source: September 22, 2012 - Larry French/Getty Images North America via zimbio.com 

Games against the Rams and the Bengals revealed how opponents will attack the Redskins.

Attack Robert Griffin III from the edges.

Attack the safeties.

The outdated cliché was run the ball; stop the run. Now it's pass the ball; stop the passer.

Football is a game of blocking and tackling, said Vince Lombardi. The Redskins have trouble with both.

We entered the season with doubts about Washington's secondary. So what happened? Two of the veteran solutions imported by Mike Shanahan and Jim Haslett are off the field. Tanard Jackson is suspended for at least a year and Brandon Meriweather has been injured.

I like that Shanahan turned to young DeJon Gomes to fill the void. That strategic move can help now and in the future. Veterans like Madieu Williams can help for now. Both moves – starting youth or starting vets – can be risky, but the fact that Gomes has a greater potential makes him the way to go. I applaud Coach Shanahan for taking that direction ... even when we see Gomes getting beat deep by AJ Green on the opening play of the last game.

In the long view, Washington is haunted by the ghost of Sean Taylor and mystified by the medical choices of LaRon Landry. 

So what does Shanahan do now? Why, sign running back Ryan Grant, of course. Before Redskins fans go bonkers, remember the lesson of Kenny Wright (2006). In a disastrous season, with grizzled Joe Gibbs calling the shots, Washington favored "proven talent" over youthful development. With Shawn Springs out, the Redskins turned to veteran cornerback Kenny Wright who was proven not very talented. All the Twittercisms applied. We were all OMG, WTF and we LOL'd to keep from crying.

The 2006 season was caused a series of dumb front office decisions. That's too deep a discussion to get to here, but if you are curious, find an old copy of Pro Football Prospectus 2007 and read the chapter on the Redskins. The punch line is that Gibbs did not have young players under development and was stuck with the likes of Wright.

I have no idea whether we prosper with Gomes, but I like what Shanahan is doing. Don't pick a warm body to fill a hole at safety and steal game reps from developing players.

But ... but, but, the 'Skins just signed RB Ryan Grant with Roy Helu and Evan Royster on the roster. Um, WHAT? The difference is that Tristan Davis, who might have been promoted from the practice squad, is on Injured Reserve. Helu has been limited all season and suffered turf toe in Sunday's game. Royster has a strained patella tendon.

Their actual condition is all a big secret, but the fact that Ryan was signed while he was working out for the Bears suggests things are worse than anyone is saying.

#Redskins' Helu to IR

— Zac Boyer (@ZacBoyer) September 26, 2012

There are questions about the Redskins training staff. We'll know in a few weeks if these guys area any good.

Kyle Shanahan accepts NFL fine

We criticized OC Kyle Shanahan for losing his head over calls by replacement officials and drawing an unsportsmanlike penalty at a critical point in the Bengals game. We are sticking by our contention that it was poor leadership on his part. Coaches cannot hector players for losing their heads when they do the same. (Perhaps players lose their heads because coaches do the same.)

Young Shanahan manned up to the offense after the league office docked him $25,000. At his pay, that's the equivalent of a parking ticket, and just might be an acknowledgement that Shanahan had reason for his wrath.

Missed and wrong calls by game officials are part of the football atmosphere now. Players and coaches have to stay focused on the mission. The replacement officials will get better given enough time. Teams know how to "work" the officiating crew. The initial response by everyone is to exploit lapses by officials to wage guerilla warfare on opponents.

Owners are not the only group charged with protecting the shield. It falls to players, too. They have to be more professional because game officials are not. That includes professionalism at working the officials for unfair advantage. It's how the game is played.

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Image Source: September 15, 2012, Jamie Squire/Getty Images North America via zimbio.com. 

DOH! So close. Bengals 38, Redskins 31.

1. Cincinnati threw the winning touchdown on the first play from scrimmage on a trick play. With QB Andy Dalton lined up on the line and WR Mohamed Sanu lined up in the Wildcat, Washington somehow, mysteriously, inexcusably lost tract of AJ Green. Green met up with Sanu's deep pass about 60 yards downfield and ran unvexed across the goal line.

Without that score, Washington-Cincinnati would have been the fourth overtime game of the weekend and the Redskins would have had a shot for the win.  

2. To beat the Redskins, target the secondary and challenge DeAngelo Hall.

Redskins Should be 3-0 but now its Not b/c of QB play or offense why we lose, like previous years. Now its the defense. Frustrating for Fans

— Tony (@soupgfx) September 23, 2012

There is nothing new in that, but the Redskins expected pass pressure by the front-seven to minimize the exposure. It seemed that the Bengals double-teamed Ryan Kerrigan more with no Brian Orakpo to worry about. The video shall reveal all.

Rob Jackson had a nice day in Orakpo’s place. He made three tackles for a loss and had that sweet interception behind the goal line for the answering score to the Bengals’ trick play. But the Bengals handled the pass rush for most of the game. Dalton never seemed under duress.

Rob Jackson, just another late-round find from the legendary Vinny Cerrato.

— Matt Terl (@matt_terl) September 23, 2012

Redskins fans should expect more shootouts. Washington won’t be on the short end for all of those, but there is no real fix for the secondary, except that our guys play better as the season goes on. Dalton is behind us, but Joe Flacco and Ben Roethlisberger are AFC North opponents still to come, along with our good friends Tony Romo, Michael Vick and Eli Manning.

I am convinced that no NFC East, or AFC North, team will have a 10-win season after beating up on each other.

3. Unsportsman rewind – really? The Redskins suffered an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that took them out of scoring range. This time, the offender was Fred Davis. (Please, Redskins fans, no more death tweets. That’s unsportsmanlike, too.)

Robert Griffin III led the team from the Redskins' two yard line to the Red Zone (19 yard line) without benefit of a time out. We haven’t see stuff like that since Joe Theismann in the last century. There was a false start penalty on that play, for which I would not be too critical. It was a chaotic situation. But “pro” is short for professional  ̶  the conduct we expect from these guys. An unsportsmanlike penalty with the game on the line is stealing from fans, not to mention teammates, coaches and owners.

UPDATE: John Keim's story this morning clarifies that the unsportsmanlike conduct was actually on OC Kyle Shanahan. (Apologies to Fred Davis.) That makes the penalty even worse. Shanahan the Younger is sure to hear from the league office that will apply a suction pump to his wallet. It is a management principle that captains must model the behavior they want from the crew. In other words, stuff rolls downhill. If coaches want players to keep their head in the face of poor officiating, they must do the same. Better that they escalate the matter to the owner who then pounds the NFL Management Committee to settle with the real game officials.    

4. Are the Redskins ever out of a game with RGIII at quarterback? I’m in awe of Washington’s last drive from the Redskins’ two to the Bengals’ 19 in six plays. Griffin is Mr. Cool Under Fire. The more his boys on offense see that, the sooner they will internalize it. Then we will see the end of fourth-quarter stupidity.

I'm forcing myself to wait until after Thanksgiving before calling for the team to extend Griffin’s contract now, right now, when it’s cheap. I’m ready to do it now. Who’s with me on that?
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If you tuned into my audio commentary during today's game, you noticed that long dead spot in the second half. That was the result of my stupidly walking out the door to walk the Hog Heaven mascot without my keys. Oops. Fortunately, the cavalry arrived with the spare key, but not until after the more exciting part of the game. I'm flagging myself for unsportsmanlike conduct on that one.

Like the Redskins' secondary, I'm trying to get better with the technology to see where it takes me. And like the secondary, I'm working with pedestrian talent. We shall all get better. 

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How close is today's Washington Redskins - Cincinnati Bengals match-up? Of the 12 experts at ESPN.com, seven back the home team 'Skins to win. Sportsbook Bovada calls it a three-point spread with the advantage to Washington. The sportsbooks favored Washington by 3.5 against the Rams last week. Just saying.

Paul Bessire's Prediction Machine had the Redskins winning 54 percent of the preseason game simulations. The Prediction Machine flashed a loss to the Saints (wrong) and had the Rams winning a bare majority of the of the game simulations (right).

Games are not played on paper. They are played on television. That's why we love sports – the possibility that human effort will overcome fate.

"Never tell me the odds, kid." ~ Han Solo, Star Wars V, The Empire Strikes Back

The Redskins and the Bengals are evenly matched. This game could go either way.

The early season has not panned out as Hog Heaven expected. The defense is not carrying the team to provide cushion for the rookie quarterback. Robert Griffin III carried the team, and this week may carry the defense. St. Louis hit Washington where it hurt, in the secondary. The video is there for all to see. Bengals QB Andy Dalton saw it.

When the secondary is second-rate, teams count on the pass rush as an equalizer. Losing LB Brian Orakpo and DE Adam Carriker for the season adds pressure on Washington. It's the offense, not the secondary that will answer. Washington's secondary made Rams WR Danny Amandolo a Pro Bowler. The Rams did most of their damage in the second half with Orakpo and Carriker out.

Can Jarvis Jenkins do the "dirty work" required as a 3-4 DE? Adam Carriker excelled in this -- and the linebackers appreciated it. #Redskins

— John Keim (@john_keim) September 23, 2012

Robert Griffin III gave Washington two opportunities to pull out a win late in the game. On one, Aldrick Robinson dropped a beautifully thrown deep pass that surely would have been the game-winner. The last chance was ruined by Josh Morgan's empty-headed reaction to Cortland Finnigan. The resulting penalty gave Washington less than a one-percent chance to tie on Billy Cundiff's 62-yard field goal attempt. Things like that just seem to happen when it's 'Skins vs. Rams. The point is that Griffin gave the team its chances.

Don't call Robert Griffin III a running quarterback. The term itself is a kind of slur. Let me digress. In college football, a running quarterback emerges from an option formation where he either tosses the ball to a running back, or is himself the running threat. It seems passing is optional in those systems, which is not how option play got its name. Running quarterbacks mostly ran the ball and were less skilled passers when they reached the pros.

Tim Tebow was a running quarterback. He is still a running quarterback. What do you expect him to do when the Jets feed him the ball on a Wildcat play? Surely, not to pass it. People rarely call Tebow a running quarterback. Michigan's Denard Robinson proved himself a running quarterback against notre Dame last night. He will enter the NFL tagged with that label.

Griffin was a dual threat in his last year at Baylor, excellent at both passing and running, but a better passer than rusher. In keeping with his Baylor profile, RGIII is an efficient passer (70 percent completion rate, 9.6 yards per pass attempt), and he is Washington's second-leading rusher. With only one interception, Washington enters the game as the league-leader in net take-aways. Today he matches up with Andy Dalton whose 2011 passing performance I believe RGIII will match. 

Through two games, Griffin and Dalton have thrown for three touchdowns. Griffin averages 268 passing yards per game; Dalton averages 270. Dalton's TCU squad beat Griffin and the Baylor Bears 45-10 when the two faced off in September 2010.  

I'm going with the spread, but expecting a high-scoring game with both teams scoring over 30. Redskins 35, Bengals 31.

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Hear Redskins Hog Heaven's game commentary during the game thanks to the techno-magic of Let Me hear Ya. Follow the link to my profile page and click your way through the instructions. Those of you who are handy with your DVR can adjust the timer and have Hog heaven commentary in synch with the game. The rest of us will notice a slight lag of my audio to the game action you see on your TV. I'm not attempting to do play-by-play, just my thoughts as the game unfolds. To comment on my comments, use "#HogHeavenTV" on Twitter.

I promise a completely Redskins-biased view based on reality. To those who heard me last week, gimme another chance. I promise to do better.
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Injury Report -

The Redskins report that WR Pierre Garcon is DOUBTFUL. Unofficial reports say he is OUT. Who ya gonna believe? Must be one of those "force the Bengals to prepare for him" things.

The Bengals report that DE Jamall Anderson and CB Dre' Kirkpatrick are OUT.

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This is from John Keim:

"OK, I’m tired of talking about the Rams’ game too. But a couple more things. One reason rookie corner Richard Crawford had success vs. Danny Amendola on the two times he faced him? He’s covered him already. As Crawford prepared at SMU for an all-star game last year, Amendola happened to be on campus and was working out. Crawford was asked to cover him.

"'I shadowed him for an hour,' Crawford said. 'I don’t think he recognized me [Sunday]. But I knew what he was going to do. I remember one thing when he goes out wide, he comes back in or he comes out hard one way and he goes back the other way. He’s fast, but he’s not a speed guy so I knew when he was going to pivot.'"

I for one, find it very disappointing that DC Jim Haslett didn't call on Crawford earlier in his failed defensive approach.  What kind of shop does he run where this invaluable information wasn't shared with the team before the game?

A failure of communication goes on the boss.  If Haz doesn't start Crawford and instead starts Cedric Griffin against the Bengals, I'll be on the fire-Haslett bandwagon.

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