Against a talented and improving Cleveland Browns team that demolished the New York Giants only 6 days earlier, the Redskins again served notice to the NFL that they are a team to be reckoned with. In a good old fashioned slug fest, the two teams combined for only 28 completed passes and a whopping 16 punts.
The difference in this game was once again Clinton Portis who ran wild for 175 yards on 27 carries with his 7th touchdown of the season. Portis is playing his best football since becoming a Redskin and has now gone 4 straight games with at least 120 yards. Beyond his rushing totals, his selfless play as a blocker and as an occasional receiver, Portis has become the glue that keeps the entire offense together. As well as he played and as much credit as he deserves for his effort against Cleveland, it was Portis himself who almost coughed up the game when he fumbled deep in Redskins territory late in the game giving the Browns one last chance before Phil Dawson miss fired on a 54 yard field goal that would have tied the game.
Jason Campbell played another steady game going 14/23 and he has now thrown 202 passes this season without an interception, a great accomplishment. However, Campbell again only threw for 164 yards and this was the 4th time in 7 games this season that Campbell did not reach the 200 yard mark. Campbell did tweak his groin during the game, which naturally limited him, but the Redskins must find a way to get more out of the passing game as the season progresses.
On the defensive side of the ball, what can you say? The Redskins played stifling defense again. The strength of this team lies in its secondary, which continues to step up when called upon. The defensive line's strength is clearly against the run and they limited Jamal Lewis to 80 yards on 19 carries. If you take out Lewis' one big run of 22 yards, the Redskins held him to 3.2 yards per carry for the game. However, not all is roses for the Redskins defense. The Redskins again were not able to generate a consistent pass rush against the Browns. Andre Carter, who had an impressive 10.5 sacks last season, managed to record the teams lone sack of the game and now has the team lead with a measly 2 sacks. We can only hope that Jason Taylor makes a fast and furious comeback to help the situation and give the secondary some much needed relief.
Beyond Taylor, our only hope may lie in Erasmus James. The forgotten DE has not accumulated any stats yet this season and we have not heard any mention of him since he was acquired from the Vikings in the pre-season. Hopefully, James is building up and getting healthier from his past injuries and will be able to make some kind of contribution in the second half of the season. At age 25, James still has youth on his side, but he will more than likely never be the same player he was when he was drafted in the first round of the 2005 draft.
As all the stars and planets aligned themselves this past weekend, the Dallas Cowpokers lowered themselves to an entirely new level by not only losing to the St. Louis Rams, but by being shredded by the St. Louis Rams 34-14. How funny life can be. Last week, I hated the Rams more than more than a friction burn and this week I added Steven Jackson to my Christmas card list. Jackson ran over the Cowpokers like a monster just in time for Halloween. Brad Johnson pitched in and did a wonderful job spreading the ball around to 9 receivers including 2 of which were Rams players. Personally, I was hoping Tony Romo would have played so that Leonard Little could have knocked him into the middle of December. And then there was "Butter Hands" Barber letting his 5th fumble of the year slip right into the defenders arms. It's beautiful to watch when the Cowpokers work together as a team like this.
Speaking of Christmas, when Christmas does come this year and the ghost of Christmas Future shows Daniel Snyder that he eventually becomes the meddling Jerry Jones, we can only hope he will learn from his mistakes and stay out of player personnel decisions and stay in his overpriced luxury booth where he belongs.
On a final note, keep Jerry Jones away from the Steinbrenner family! Do not even let him in to Yankee stadium. We managed to overcome the buried David Ortiz's jersey, but not even the mighty Pinstripes can overcome the tainted ora of the Cowboys' owner. Someone call security and fast!
Final Score: Washington 14, Cleveland 11
Highlights of the Redskins' Week 7 Win over the Cleveland Browns---
JacksGhost
Washington Redskins Hog Blog
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