tyke1doe said:
Cowboys fans like to rag on the Skins, and that's understandable.
But remember this: the Skins have won three Super Bowls and have been to five. And they have traditionally done that by deemphasizing the draft and emphasizing trades and signing veterans.
I would also remember this…
asterisk noun
A star-shaped figure (*) used chiefly to indicate an omission, a reference to a footnote, or an unattested word, sound, or affix.
While George Allen and Joe Gibbs should be respected for their drafting, trading and veteran acquisitions for their respective Super Bowl VII and Super Bowl XXVI teams, I would have to apply asterisks unto Gibbs’ —
* Super Bowl XVII
* Super Bowl XXII
—teams. Those championships followed—
* Strike Years
--which loosely translates as NFL titles won by the luckiest team following labor disputed seasons. But the Gibbs’ Super Bowl XVIII Commanders' team should be acknowledged as Super Bowl worthy opponents.
Of course, I’m a Cowboys fan and a Raiders fan might disagree with my opinion.
tyke1doe said:
It works for the Skins, and, apparently, it worked last year as the Skins not only whipped our behinds 35-7, but got into the playoffs and WON a playoff game.
True, true and true. Yet, it should also be pointed out Washington’s season-ending winning streak included:
A win over the Rams, a team with finished with the second-best number of wins (six) in the NFC West, but had a division worst 1-5 record.
A win over the Cardinals.
‘nuff said.
An admittedly impressive win over the Giants at home. Still, that impressive victory could be tempered by the fact that New York was a .500 road team. If the game had been replayed in the Meadowlands, another 0-36 loss (like their first game) to the Giants would not have been far fetched.
A win over a reeling Philadelphia team, which New York and Dallas also took equal advantage of.
A win over a Tampa Bay team, which lost to the Commanders despite: (1) limiting Washington’s offense to a postseason worst 120 yards; and (2) significantly outgaining their opponent in first downs, passing & total yards and time of possession.
And a win over our team, which was another admittedly impressive victory. Even though, Parcells had the team positioned to make a postseason appearance following the win over the Lions, his team did not respond consistently down the stretch. As much as I hate to say it, Dallas did not even deserve a wild card invite after the way the team finished the season.
…but I’m not going to heap praises on Washington’s season-ending, winning streak for the aforementioned reasons, either.
tyke1doe said:
And with the addition of the offensive coordinator from KC (can't remember his name right off hand) to par with defensive coordinator Greg Williams, don't think for a second the Skins won't be a challenge, especially with Gibbs, who is one of the best in-game strategists in the NFL.
Agreed.
tyke1doe said:
I'm a Cowboys fan, but my fellow posters are deceiving themselves if they dismiss the Commanders.
I won’t dismiss them. They are not the most overrated team, imo. With their starting quarterback recovering from a serious injury and having to share the same division as the defending Super Bowl champions, I think that the Bengals are getting a little too much hype. Yet, despite their postseason appearance last season, Washington hasn’t shown me anything which makes me believe that they won’t be competing with the Eagles for third place within the division this season. Present hype for the Commanders says differently, though.