Jason Campbell May Not Want to Be a Redskin Anymore

Word is that Washington QB Jason Campbell will request a trade if the Redskins acquire a quarterback in the draft. If the Skins do draft Mark Sanchez, I'm pretty sure Campbell will get his wish.

It is a shame. Around Week 8 of last year, some people were throwing "MVP" at Campbell. He had a very effective first half of the season and led his team to a 6-2 start. It all came crashing down in the second half of the year and there were fans yelling that Campbell isn't the answer.

There is the issue. Is he the answer? Can he be a QB that can lead his team into the playoffs and, ultimately, the Super Bowl? Most Redskins fans aren't so sure about that and it seems that neither are the Redskins power players.

So now we are at the major crossroads. Campbell has one year remaining on his deal and it is obvious that the Redskins aren't convinced that he is the answer. They've already tried to bring in Jay Cutler and now are the buzz team to trade up for Sanchez. All this isn't sitting well with the man who Washington traded up for to be the franchise quarterback several years ago.

It shouldn't sit very well. Campbell has been completely disrespected and undermined. Your QB has to be a leader on the team and what player will fully follow a guy that the people upstairs don't trust. Campbell has been under three different offensive systems since he's arrived in D.C. and he hasn't been given the chance to grow in any of them. If there is one thing we've seen from the successful teams in the NFL it is that there is a bond between the quarterback and the offensive coordinator and/or quarterbacks coach. That hasn't happened here.

I feel bad for Campbell since I'm one of the Redskins fans who think he can be a nice QB in this league. I don't see him being an elite guy, but I think he can be solid enough that the Redskins can win a lot of games.

Cutler may already be an elite guy, so I was cool with the Redskins expressing their interest in him. But Sanchez? There is so much debate about the kind of career this kid will have. Even his coach at USC, Pete Carroll, didn't support Sanchez coming into the draft. Hard to change horses midstream.

And why would I believe Daniel Snyder about Sanchez? Didn't the Redskins trade up to get Campbell? Didn't the Redskins trade back to get Patrick Ramsey?

I just hope this all works out.

Reviewing the Redskins 2009 Schedule

The NFL released the 2009 schedule last night and football fans everywhere are excited.

My beloved Washington Redskins have a very interesting schedule coming up. Let's take a quick look at it.

WEEK 1-Redskins at Giants: For the second straight year, we open the season in New York against the G-men. Hopefully it will go better than it did last year.

WEEK 2-Rams at Redskins: Another rematch that didn't go well last year. The Redskins were one of the lowly Rams only victories.

WEEK 3-Redskins at Lions: Yet another rematch against a bad team from '08. So far, nothing exciting and new.

WEEK 4-Buccaneers at Redskins: Last year, these two didn't meet in the regular season for the first time in what seems forever. Should be a very interesting game. There is a great chance that the Skins could be 3-1 after this week.

WEEK 5-Redskins at Panthers: My game I have circled (well, outside of a couple later on). Hopefully I will make my way down to Charlotte (my hometown) to see this one.

WEEK 6-Chiefs at Redskins: Battle of the teams activists hate. And yet another game against a team that wasn't good last year. But this team has Matt Cassel now. This will be the Chiefs second trip to Washington since 1983.

WEEK 7-Eagles at Redskins: Always an interesting battle. Washington swept Philly last year. This one will be on Monday Night Football.

WEEK 8-Bye: The bye week is nearly smack dab in the middle of the season. Pretty advantageous.

WEEK 9-Redskins at Falcons: Another interesting game featuring two young QBs, two great running backs and teams who will be fighting for a wildcard berth.

WEEK 10-Broncos at Redskins: Two teams that don't have Jay Cutler as their quarterback. This will be Denver's first trip to Washington since 1998.

WEEK 11-Redskins at Cowboys: The first trip to the new Cowboys Stadium.

WEEK 12-Redskins at Eagles: For the second straight season, the Redskins have back-to-back games in Dallas and Philly. This year, the order is reversed.

WEEK 13-Saints at Redskins: These two met in a shootout last season. I remember this game since it happened during a horrible windstorm here which knocked out my power for most of the day. I had a handheld TV (a Watchman) that I caught the rest of the game on FOX.

WEEK 14-Redskins at Raiders: I can't remember the last time Washington travelled to Oakland for a game (it was 1998). Another bad team from '08.

WEEK 15-Giants at Redskins: This starts a hellacious final stretch for Washington. This is a Monday nighter.

WEEK 16-Cowboys at Redskins: This is tenatively the Sunday Night game. Hopefully ... for the Redskins sake ... NBC will still want to show this game.

WEEK 17-Redskins at Chargers: Just like last year, the Redskins will end the season on the west coast.

Redskins Are Fine Without Cutler

When the rumors swirled that the Redskins were interested in Jay Cutler, I leaned toward not bringing him in. I mean, I like his game and all but the price is too high for a mild upgrade.

Unlike some Redskins fans, I would have seen Cutler as an upgrade over Jason Campbell. But that edge isn't worth what the Denver Broncos wanted for him.

Think about this: the Patriots traded Matt Cassell to the Chiefs for the 34th pick in the upcoming draft. Cutler yielded Kyle Orton, two first round picks and a third. Yet ... for some reason ... the Broncos valued Cassell over Cutler.

I'm glad my Redskins didn't pull off this trade. Bringing Cutler in would have cost us Campbell and a couple of first rounders at the very least. That isn't worth the small advantage Cutler has over Campbell -- confidence. Cutler has a cocky attitude that helps his game (and hurts it too). Campbell is a cool customer but there are worries that he is a bit fragile.

Both have cannon arms and Campbell seems not to make as many mistakes as Cutler does. You can argue that Cutler's numbers are better than Campbell, but he also was on a team that has a horrible defense and needed Cutler to gun all day. The Redskins rely on Clinton Portis and an elite defense to win games.

Please don't give me this crap that "now the Redskins have pissed off Campbell". I'm not going to say it didn't bother him that there was talk he'd be replaced, but Campbell isn't in the same position. Campbell's contract ends after this season and it doesn't seem like he is close to a new deal. Despite some people's gripes about Campbell, I believe he deserves some time to get things going. He's been bounced around in so many different offenses that there is no way you can feel he should master any of them. This is the second year working alongside Jim Zorn and hopefully Campbell will turn the first half of the 2008 season into a full effort in 2009.

Excuse me while I begin my posts about the Redskins staying away from Plaxico Burress.

Of Course My Redskins Are Interested in Cutler

Word is that the Redskins are one of the teams that is strongly thinking about trading for QB Jay Cutler. Of course they are. When I heard that the Broncos were looking to deal Cutler away, I just figured that Washington would be in the hunt.

The thing is, I don't know how I feel about that. I just spent another season defending current Skins' QB Jason Campbell and it would be hypocritical of me to ship him out of town. He's been here for four years, been with Jim Zorn for one year and I don't think he's been given a fair shake yet.

I do like Campbell. He's a likeable guy with a cannon arm, huge body and seems to be a hard worker. He has suffered from too much turnover during his big-time football career. He had three offensive coordinators while at LSU and has three coordinators while with the Redskins. The Skins went from the Joe Gibbs big play offense to the Jim Zorn dink-and-dunk offense last year. Campbell got out to a great start (too bad it didn't end well). That shows me that he is learning and if he got a chance to actually stick with a system for a couple of years, it's gonna click for him.

Cutler has more name power. People see his All-Pro season and automatically think he'd be better than Campbell. Maybe they are right -- I don't know. Part of me salivates at the thought of Zorn coaching a guy like Cutler and molding him into a top tier QB.

This is a tough call.

OMG! I Get It!!! The Redskins Have a Bad History With Free Agents!

So, I go to work today feeling pretty good about the Redskins reeling in Albert Haynesworth from the free agent pool. I had my Redskins hat and jacket on (it was kinda cool today in the 'Nati area) and ready for the "ooohs" and "aaahhhs" that may come my way.

Remember, I just said I live in the Cincinnati area. These people root for a team where their next big free agent signing will be their first. Last season, they signed Haynesworth's former teammate Antwan Odom to the biggest free agent deal in franchise history. Their team is sitting back and watching Stacy Andrews leave for Philly and T.J. Houshmandzadeh and Cedric Benson courting other teams.

Those Bengal fans were all over my Redskins.

"They are just trying to buy a championship!" one said. Um, yeah. "Haynesworth ain't worth $100 million" another said. I can get with that but I also understand that it will probably be a cold day in hell before Haynesworth actually sees all of that $100 million. The way NFL contracts work (which no one fully understands; but many are clueless) the Redskins and Haynesworth may rework this deal or trash it all together before the contract ends in 2015. And if Haynesworth does make it those seven years and get all that $100 - $115 million? Well, I guess he played up to it.

Then I heard the same thing that I read on blogs and message boards: "Here comes another Redskins bust." That is unfair and untrue.

Unfair because many, many teams have overspent on guys. Sure, my Redskins have done it more than most. But to pin it all on Washington isn't right. I watched as people reeled off names like Bruce Smith, Deion Sanders, Jeremiah Trotter, Adam Archuleta and Dana Stubblefield. No one mentions London Fletcher, Shawn Springs (who was cut earlier today), Andre Carter or that trade/signing of Clinton Portis. Again, you can say that is picking nits but to say that every single free agent signing has been perceived as a bust is unjust.

Untrue because none of that has anything to do with what happened today. What do those failures have to do with Haynesworth? Most of those busts were past their primes; Haynesworth is climbing up his. He drew strong support to be the defensive player of the year last season (some were putting him in MVP categories) and turns 28 in June. He has many, many great games in front of him.

Like someone wrote today, if the Redskins hadn't signed him, someone else would have broken the bank for him.

Albert Haynesworth is a Redskin!

I'm fairly excited today. The Washington Redskins have made the first big free agent splash by signing DT Albert Haynesworth to a 7-year, $100 million contract.

Of course, the Redskins haven't had the greatest history with "big time" free agent acquisitions during the Daniel Snyder era. The only one that comes to mind that worked out fantastically was bringing in London Fletcher a couple of years ago. We do overspend on guys (like the huge deal we gave D'Angelo Hall earlier) and this could start a domino effect of cuts or restructured deals (word is that the Skins have already released Shawn Springs). Remember there is another huge name that will be playing down the line in Jason Taylor.

But I love this move! Yes, the Redskins already had one of the better defenses in the NFL ... but they did so without making too many big plays. They rarely intercept any passes, they rarely sack the quarterback and they rarely get any pressure on the QB. With Haynesworth (and, maybe, a healthy Taylor) that can happen.

Now, if we can figure out how to bring in a couple offensive lineman that can keep guys off Campbell and ... maybe ... a possession receiver and we could have something here!