Pro Bowl voters validated Vinny Cerrato's personnel prowess by naming Lorenzo Alexander to the 2013 Pro Bowl. The Gibbs-Snyder-Cerrato front office signed Alexander to the practice squad mid-season 2006. He has since proven to be the most versatile player on the roster by playing as defensive tackle, offensive guard and now outside lineman.

Alexander has been selected as a Pro Bowl special teamer, and this tack was to find a different angle to the story that everywhere else will lead with Robert Griffin III's selection to his first Pro Bowl in his rookie season.

Greg Rosenthal called Griffin's performance "frighteningly efficient." That's all too well known to Redskins fans, so Hog Heaven won't waste more of your time to describe it. Andrew Luck and Russell Wilson are also having outstanding seasons, but neither rookie was selected for the game.

The NFL selected LT Trent Williams to the Pro Bowl. Does anyone remember that Williams was suspended last season for violations of the league's drug policy? Good. Williams promised to have learned from the mistake. Everything we've seen thus far shows that he has learned.

Allow me to use Williams and Chris Samuels in the same sentence. Trent Williams will make multiple Pro Bowls just as Chris Samuels did.

Rookie RB Alfred Morris has been named a Pro Bowl alternate. Adrian Peterson, Marshawn Lynch and Frank Gore are named Pro Bowlers. With that bunch, Hog Heaven does not quibble with Morris' selection as an alternate. We expect that Morris will make the most of his time with his exposure to stud runners.

We close with our annually vain lament that London Fletcher was not named to the Pro Bowl on the strength of his performance. 49ers Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman were the named players. We don't get to see a lot of 49ers game here on the East Coast. I get that I could be missing something about one of the NFL's top defensive unites, but the snub feels like a San Francisco tilt to me.

HOG HEAVEN CONGRATULATES ALL THE REDSKINS 2013 PRO BOWLERS. HAIL!        

Image: redskins.com from here.

Enjoy this story? Like it on Facebook and Tweet it to your Followers. Click the buttons below. Leave a comment down there, too.
 

Hog Heaven does not wish you Merry Christmas because you are Christians.

I wish you Merry Christmas because I am.

Thank you all for reading Hog Heaven, liking us on Facebook and following us on Twitter.

Fight on 'til you have won, Sons of Washington.

The NFL, as expected, flexed the Cowboys at Redskins game to prime time, 8:30 PM ET Sunday. The Redskins entered the season with an underwhelming TV schedule. The Thanksgiving Day game in Dallas was a highlight, but the league didn't see the pairing as anything special. It was just Washington's turn in the rotation. But then, Washington didn't do its part to make Cowboys and Redskins compelling drama. I still see Norv Turner as a Cowboys plant to destroy a great rivalry.  

The Redskins won in Dallas. Many saw it as an upset at the time. Now Cowboys at Redskins will be the last game of the regular season. The winner takes the division. Wow.

Numerous #Redskins players not willing to celebrate today's win, but rather shift focus to next week's huge game against the Cowboys.

— Daniel Shiferaw (@dshif) December 23, 2012

The football smarts, including Hog Heaven, projected six or seven wins for the Redskins. For the whole season. They just won their sixth-straight game in this streak. Wow. Wow.

Thr Redskins are undefeated since naming Robert Griffin III, Barry Cofield and Stephen Bowen team captains. Coincidence? #DontThinkSo

— Anthony Brown (@SkinsHogHeaven) December 24, 2012

For a great game recap, see Tom Jackson's piece Eagles come up short again... on the Eagles Eye blog. Yes, it's an Eagles blog, but Tom is an great writer and excellent football analyst who gives an even-handed treatment to the game.

I won't try to improve on it. Go take a look. We'll be here when you get back.

Tom's had a rough year following the Eagles. I'm sympathetic to a point. Eagles fans have had a great run since 2000, better than what Redskins fans endured through that time. Hog Heaven isn't gloating. we're too busy in joyous delirium at how the Redskins season is turning out.

Alfred Morris on the verge of breaking Clinton Portis' single season franchise rushing record set in 2005. Portis rushed for 1,516 yards and 11 touchdowns that year. Morris has 1,413 yards and 10 TDs with a game to go. It would be downright poetic if Morris breaks the record in the last game of the season against Dallas in prime time.

There are a lot of playoff scenarios involving the Redskins and the Cowboys. We don't want to mess with them. The Redskins should focus on one thing. Win the next game. As we've already said, they should just get plain mad dog mean to do it.

HAIL
 

The Redskins burst another bad habit last weekend with a win over the Browns in Cleveland and while being led by back up quarterback Kirk Cousins. So often in the Norv Turner – Daniel Snyder era, Washington played up or down to the level of the opponent, beating Super Bowl contending Packers one day, then losing to a two-win team the next.

The Eagles game is not a must-win game. (Every game is "must win.") The Redskins can make the playoffs even with a loss. But a loss costs them control of their future.

It's hard to read the mindset of the Eagles. Their season has flamed out, but NFL teams want to go out with a flash. Beating the Redskins today, or the Giants next Sunday would be a feel good moment for a team destined to be blown up by next Draft day.

Does Washington know how to keep up its intensity for a team like Philadelphia? The Eagles will test them today. The Eagles are a trap. Beware.

The three stats worth watching point to a Redskins win.

QB Passer Differential
Redskins QBR 103.6, Opponents 89.2, Differential +14.4
Eagles (Nick Foles) QBR 77.6, Opponents 95.7 Differential -18.1

Hog Heaven thought it best to isolate Foles' passer rating from that of the team. It was a wasted effort because Foles' performance was not far off from Michael Vick's number (79.2). Of all the evils to beset the Eagles, none was so devastating as the season long injuries along the offensive line; more anecdotal evidence that the O-line causes 51 percent of the success of any team.

Advantage: Redskins

Turnover Differential
Redskins +9
Eagles -7

The football world "discovered" the Redskins defense since Washington's win streak began at the Bye. Yet, the Redskins have forced turnovers all season long. The biggest factor in the differential, however, is that the Redskins simply take care of the ball. Bobby Three-Sticks and Capt. Kirk have a mere seven INTs between them, and the Redskins haven't lost any fumbles. A good offense makes the best defense.

London Fletcher and DeAngelo Hall lead the Redskins in interceptions with four each. Rob Jackson has three. Jackson, Ryan Kerrigan and Madieu Williams each scored off of interceptions.

Eagles rushers LeSean McCoy and Brice Brown have lost three fumbles apiece.

Advantage Redskins

Third down conversions allowed
Redskins 44%
Eagles 40%

This one stat shows how well the defense makes stops. The Redskins aren't very good, but the Eagles are not much better. The inability of Philadelphia's defense to grow from last season to this is one of the great mysteries of the universe. Careers will be ruined by it.

Advantage: Eagles

The Magic 8 Ball don't lie, but it will break your heart

My Magic 8-Ball says "Outlook no so good" for Redskins over Eagles today. The 8-Ball don't lie, so is makes me sad.

— Anthony Brown (@SkinsHogHeaven) December 23, 2012

The Hog Heaven Magic 8-Ball called the correct outcome for the last six games. That's 6-0 since I started asking the question "Will the Redskins win."

Alfred Morris could break the Redskins franchise rushing record set by Clinton Portis in 2005.

Portis rushed for 1,516 yards that season. Morris has 1,322 yards with two games to go. Portis scored 11 touchdowns in 2005. Morris has eight, so far.

Enjoy this story? Like it on Facebook and Tweet it to your followers. Click the buttons below. Leave a comment down there, too.

Clever nicknames are a sign that our local Redskins heroes are crossing into the public realm as cultural icons. Do any of the current Redskins have a handle that rivals Capt. Chaos that shall forever be tied to Chris Cooley?

Here are a few candidates that arose with Washington's current winning streak.

Bobby Three-Sticks – Robert Griffin III. Donovan McNabb was the first to call Griffin III "Bobby Three-Sticks," not irreverently, by the way, on the NFL Network several weeks ago. Since then, it's cropped up on several other sites. Griffin goes by his full name. He was not the originator of "RG3," but he was savvy enough to trademark "RGIII" and use it as his Twitter handle. But this is sports, so that's not enough for beer-fueled chatter in sports bars. Bobby Three-Sticks could have legs, just like the player it describes.

Amtrak Al – Alfred Morris. Hard running, forward falling Morris is the new John Riggins, the most famous fullback in Redskins history until Alfred Morris. The Diesel described Riggins running style. Amtrak is just as descriptive for Morris. Mike Wise coined the term for a story published in The Washington Post this week. I wish the Redskins would allow use of air horns at FedEx Field like they once did at RFK. The train's a-coming and you're gonna be wrecked.

Capt. Kirk – Kirk Cousins. This play on words to Cousins' first name is too easy. But as long as we are using a reference to starship heroes, lets recall this dialog between Kirk and Dr. McCoy from The Search for Spock:

Kirk: My God, Bones...what have I done?
McCoy: What you had to do. What you always do: turn death into a fighting chance to live.

Applies to Cousins, don't you think?

Voters have done it again: #Redskins QB @kirkcousins8 named NFL Rookie of the Week! Hail to the fans! #HTTR

— Redskins (@Redskins) December 21, 2012

??? – Pierre Garcon. Garcon answered all of Hog Heaven's doubts about him. He deserves a nickname, too. We're not clever about these things, so Hog Heaven nominates a placeholder nickname that combines Garcon's French-Haitian heritage with cartoon legend Savoir Faire. Readers of a certain age know that "Savior Faire is everywhere" and too damned fast to be caught.

The Redskins are young. It's stars are new. We'll track other player nicknames as they emerge.

Image: Alfred Morris, Redskins vs. Giants via zimbio.com.

Enjoy this story? Like it on Facebook and Tweet it to your Followers. Click the buttons below. Leave a message down there, too.
 

The message was unspoken, hidden, yet plainly obvious. It was couched by all the right words by all parties. But Robert Griffin III's pouty demeanor during the Browns game said it all. Griffin expected to play. Da coach had other ideas.

Was Mike Shanahan sending a subtle message to the savior of Redskins football? Did RGIII get the point?

Hog Heaven never agreed with others who think the Redskins coaching staff is mistaken to run Griffin. On the contrary, Griffin's elusiveness paired with accurate passing makes him the most dangerous man in football. Cut down the running, and you cut down the effectiveness of the offense.

Shanahan wants Griffin to run. He just doesn't want him to take hits..., because Griffin healthy is more important to Washington than that last yard on a play.

There was a huge sigh of relief when Cousins started against Cleveland. Getting the last yard is Alfred Morris' job. Griffin's main role is to befuddle defenses.  

Coaches deliver messages by benching players. If Griffin doesn't run out of bounds, or take to ground when defenders are within three yards of him, maybe he should sit awhile.

We know now that the Redskins have to luxury of losing Griffin for a game or two and can still win big. You've heard the cliché how nothing speeds a player's recovery like seeing your back-up play well. So let's paraphrase that Prilosec tag line to "slide, and don't give your coach heartburn in the first place," Robert.

The beauty of Kirk Cousins is that the coach doesn't have to say anything for that message to get through.  

Image: Robert Griffin III and Kirk Cousins from Washington Redskins official Facebook page.

Enjoy this story? Like it on Facebook and Tweet it to your followers. Click the buttons below. Leave a comment down ther, too.