Vinny Cerrato of the Skins...

[Chocolate Lab]

The Commanders have been playing a lot of press-man coverage with their corners early in camp, more than what seemed to be the norm. Playing man is nothing new around here, but there was no cushion being given at all. Fred Smoot and Shawn Springs, the starting corners, have loved it, 'cuz now they're even closer to the WRs to beat them up a bit and also to ensure all of their smack talk is audible.

You know our guys are shaking in their boots at the thought of 170-lb Fred "One Rep" Smoot pressing them.... :shiver:

 

[Hostile]

No, the safeties are back deep. Only on the second one, is Landry perhaps too far forward, but it's difficult to know what his responsibility was on that play - you would think with 4 wrs wide he wouldn't be worrying about the run.

The question is can he acknowledge that he said something utterly stupid?

 

[Skinsmaniac]

Ross Tucker, sports illustrated


Seamless transition for Taylor?

The Washington Commanders have been roundly praised for the expeditious manner in which they moved to trade for Jason Taylor after losing starting defensive end Phillip Daniels, and rightfully so. The loss of Daniels created an obvious hole along the Commanders front, at a position most observers felt was lacking even before Daniels went down on the first day of training camp. The Commanders are extremely fortunate that a Pro Bowl-caliber player like Taylor was available, and they pounced on the opportunity immediately.
But this move doesn't come without some concern on the part of Commanders players and management. Though he never had much of a national media profile, Daniels was considered a core Commander and was admired by everyone within the organization. He was a team leader, a player the team could count on in any adverse situation. Those intangibles cannot be discounted or minimized.
On the field, he was a standout run defender and had enough size at around 290 pounds to bump inside to tackle on passing downs and create a push while providing the hammer as an attack guy for a lot of the stunts in the passing game.
Though Taylor moved around quite a bit during his time in Miami, he was primarily a blind-side pass rusher working against left tackles. His transition to the other side will be more difficult than advertised for a multitude of reasons.
Taylor will now be covered by a tight end more often as most teams play-callers are historically right-side dominant when calling the strength of the formation. That will limit Taylor's freedom and ensures he will face more double teams in the run game than ever before. His lean, Dancing with the Stars physique will be tested on a weekly basis.
More importantly, Taylor will need to use the next six weeks to gain confidence in his pass-rushing prowess from the opposite side. It is not nearly as easy as one might think.
For starters, his line of vision to the ball will be different, as will his body lean as he runs the imaginary hoop towards the QB. Taylor is used to dipping his left shoulder. He will have to get accustomed to dipping his right.
The biggest difference will be with his pass rush moves. Taylor could previously use his right hand to club the outside arm of the offensive tackle or to grab his shoulder and pull himself through. He will have to become equally adept at using his left in order to have the same type of success.
Can Taylor become as dominant a force on the defense's left side as he was on the right? Absolutely. Is it a foregone conclusion? Not at all.
----------------------------------------------------------------------

The more I think about it, the more I hope that on passing downs we play Taylor at RDE, Erasmus James or Marcus Washington at LDE and move Andre Carter inside. We're going to probably have to rest Taylor a lot on running downs. I could see him getting frustrated at having to learn a new position this late in his career.

 

[Mansta54]

Ross Tucker, sports illustrated


Seamless transition for Taylor?

The Washington Commanders have been roundly praised for the expeditious manner in which they moved to trade for Jason Taylor after losing starting defensive end Phillip Daniels, and rightfully so. The loss of Daniels created an obvious hole along the Commanders front, at a position most observers felt was lacking even before Daniels went down on the first day of training camp. The Commanders are extremely fortunate that a Pro Bowl-caliber player like Taylor was available, and they pounced on the opportunity immediately.
But this move doesn't come without some concern on the part of Commanders players and management. Though he never had much of a national media profile, Daniels was considered a core Commander and was admired by everyone within the organization. He was a team leader, a player the team could count on in any adverse situation. Those intangibles cannot be discounted or minimized.
On the field, he was a standout run defender and had enough size at around 290 pounds to bump inside to tackle on passing downs and create a push while providing the hammer as an attack guy for a lot of the stunts in the passing game.
Though Taylor moved around quite a bit during his time in Miami, he was primarily a blind-side pass rusher working against left tackles. His transition to the other side will be more difficult than advertised for a multitude of reasons.
Taylor will now be covered by a tight end more often as most teams play-callers are historically right-side dominant when calling the strength of the formation. That will limit Taylor's freedom and ensures he will face more double teams in the run game than ever before. His lean, Dancing with the Stars physique will be tested on a weekly basis.
More importantly, Taylor will need to use the next six weeks to gain confidence in his pass-rushing prowess from the opposite side. It is not nearly as easy as one might think.
For starters, his line of vision to the ball will be different, as will his body lean as he runs the imaginary hoop towards the QB. Taylor is used to dipping his left shoulder. He will have to get accustomed to dipping his right.
The biggest difference will be with his pass rush moves. Taylor could previously use his right hand to club the outside arm of the offensive tackle or to grab his shoulder and pull himself through. He will have to become equally adept at using his left in order to have the same type of success.
Can Taylor become as dominant a force on the defense's left side as he was on the right? Absolutely. Is it a foregone conclusion? Not at all.
----------------------------------------------------------------------

The more I think about it, the more I hope that on passing downs we play Taylor at RDE, Erasmus James or Marcus Washington at LDE and move Andre Carter inside. We're going to probably have to rest Taylor a lot on running downs. I could see him getting frustrated at having to learn a new position this late in his career.

All of this at the age of 34yrs old, on the downside of his career, and coming into possibly the most physical Div. in the league. Wow!!! That sure is asking alot from a dude who was just talking about retirement a month or so ago.. Just sayin man!!!!

 

[gambit187]

TO has been smoking Springs since SEattle vs 49ers

 

[Mansta54]

TO has been smoking Springs since SEattle vs 49ers

:shush: Don't say that to loud, Foreskin fans get very defensive....:laugh2:

 

[Hostile]

:shush: Don't say that to loud, Foreskin fans get very defensive....:laugh2:

Your brother doesn't have a clue what that means. The word has 3 syllables.

 

[gambit187]

:laugh2: :laugh2: :laugh2:

I got a private message from a poster telling me to "cool it with CC" because he's "special"...!

I wrote him back saying, "what"? The guy is a Sergent in the Air Force!!

So, yeah, I guess he is "special"....!

My Bad :bang2:

GO COWBOYS

 

[Skinsmaniac]

http://www.nfl.com/videos?videoId=09000d5d809722f7
According to Adam Schefter, the Cowboys also inquired about Jason Taylor. Presumably we offered higher picks. Seems like Jerry really wants to make a run this year.

 

[NinjafromTron]

In the first Dallas game against the Commanders Shawn Springs at cornerback was supposed to be following TO. Reed Doughty was in the FS position as a backup for Sean Taylor. Laron Landry was at the strong safety position. In the game Shawn Springs blew several coverages and Reed Doughty did not have the physical prowess to deal with Terrel Owens. Since then Reed Doughty has been placed at Strong Safety where he has excelled. Laron Landry has gone to his college position at Free Safety and got two interceptions as a rookie in his first playoff game. Carlos Rogers was also not in that game.

TO will have to deal with Laron Landry, not Reed Doughty when he goes for the deep ball. This is a much better matchup in the Commanders favor.

As for Jason Taylor, he is a big upgrade over Philip Daniels in pass rushing situations. Andre Carter received 10.5 sacks in 2007. That is not too shabby when the other side is Philip Daniels. The Commanders will have a better pass rush and less of a run defense in this move. Will this be a large problem? The Commanders defense during the 2007 regular season ranked 4th in run defense. Only time will tell how much Philip Daniels had to do with that ranking.

 

[Hostile]

In the first Dallas game against the Commanders Shawn Springs at cornerback was supposed to be following TO. Reed Doughty was in the FS position as a backup for Sean Taylor. Laron Landry was at the strong safety position. In the game Shawn Springs blew several coverages and Reed Doughty did not have the physical prowess to deal with Terrel Owens. Since then Reed Doughty has been placed at Strong Safety where he has excelled. Laron Landry has gone to his college position at Free Safety and got two interceptions as a rookie in his first playoff game. Carlos Rogers was also not in that game.

TO will have to deal with Laron Landry, not Reed Doughty when he goes for the deep ball. This is a much better matchup in the Commanders favor.

As for Jason Taylor, he is a big upgrade over Philip Daniels in pass rushing situations. Andre Carter received 10.5 sacks in 2007. That is not too shabby when the other side is Philip Daniels. The Commanders will have a better pass rush and less of a run defense in this move. Will this be a large problem? The Commanders defense during the 2007 regular season ranked 4th in run defense. Only time will tell how much Philip Daniels had to do with that ranking.

to The Zone.

Did you watch the video I posted?

Laron Landry was visible on 3 of the 4 TDs and Doughty was visible on 1.

You can ask anyone here, no one was higher on Laron Landry than I was. I still am. But the truth is pretty evident if you just care to open your eyes and look at it.

 

[NinjafromTron]

In them Laron is playing from the SS position. He's not playing 30 yards back like we played him when he went full time FS (how we played Sean Taylor.) He's playing catch up, can't play catch up with TO. Shawn Springs was supposed to be covering TO, he wasn't doing a very good job of it. In the position Commanders normally play their high end FS they are deep off of the line and play sideline to sideline, moving forward not backward against the play. Reed Doughty was not placed like that because he does not have the speed.

 

[random Cs]

Right letter "S"...but wrong word! Their Stupid!!

:laugh2:

At least edit it. :

 

[Hostile]

In them Laron is playing from the SS position. He's not playing 30 yards back like we played him when he went full time FS (how we played Sean Taylor.) He's playing catch up, can't play catch up with TO. Shawn Springs was supposed to be covering TO, he wasn't doing a very good job of it. In the position Commanders normally play their high end FS they are deep off of the line and play sideline to sideline, moving forward not backward against the play. Reed Doughty was not placed like that because he does not have the speed.

Regardless of where they lined up, Landry was part of the secondary who got burned multiple times. Why deny this when you can clearly see him get wrong footed in the video, run right past, and arriving late one time? I think he will be a great Safety, but the truth is he had a bad game just like Springs. Not saying Doughty is better. I am saying it is ridiculous to place more blame for TO's great game on Doughty than on Landry. That doesn't make any sense. TO probably will never do that to the Skine again because games like that are rare, but let's not pretend things happened that didn't. This is the real world not Fantasyland.

 

[Sonny#9]

This is the real world not Fantasyland.

It's NOT?! ****** -- I knew I shouldn't have made that left turn at Albuquerque!

As a Skins fan, I find it embarrassing when people make excuses for that game. While I do believe in the "If we had Sean Taylor..." defense, I will never rely on it in an argument. Fact is we didn't. TO scorched us. Making excuses for him running wild on our secondary are just that, excuses. He killed us.

Skins fans digging for lame reasons why we had no answer for TO are no better then the Cowboys fans doing the same for Moss and Cooley in '05.

 

[SkinsHokieFan]

Regardless of where they lined up, Landry was part of the secondary who got burned multiple times. Why deny this when you can clearly see him get wrong footed in the video, run right past, and arriving late one time? I think he will be a great Safety, but the truth is he had a bad game just like Springs. Not saying Doughty is better. I am saying it is ridiculous to place more blame for TO's great game on Doughty than on Landry. That doesn't make any sense. TO probably will never do that to the Skine again because games like that are rare, but let's not pretend things happened that didn't. This is the real world not Fantasyland.

Yup an awful game for the secondary. It was also the first game without Sean Taylor (he was injured the previous week) and it clearly showed that afternoon as it was bombs away, and the secondary looked downright lost most of the afternoon

Yet for all of TO's heroics that game, there was a very good shot for the Commanders to win it in the end

With all this said and done, and reliving last season, I guess the whole point of this thread is that my Cowboy friends here feel the Commanders defense has significantly downgraded because "Spring is an old man" (despite coming into camp in great shape) Smoot and Rogers suck (despite each having their best seasons last year) and Blache can't coach as well as GWilliams (despite being a pretty respectable D-coordinator in Chicago).

I have no doubt in my mind the Commanders defense will be just fine. Nobody will run all over it because of Jason Taylor (honestly, this might be one of the most absurd suggestions I have seen) and the secondary will be pretty solid

Is it a top 5 D? Probably not. Is it going to lose the Commanders games? No

The season ultimatley comes down to if JC can take to the WCO and how Jim Zorn does as a HC and OC. Odds are, the O will be slow out of the gate, we'll lose our first 3 division road games and be playing catch up in December again, and with an easy stretch run in December to get into the 7-9 to 9-7 range

 

[Chuck 54]

Here in Richmond,VA, I've seen plenty of footage of Jason Taylor practicing. He's wearing #55 and he's playing left DE, which puts him on Columbo.

I much prefer he be on Columbo than Adams...speedy guys tend to make Flozel jump offsides. Meanwhile, we are accustomed to helping Columbo out a lot in the passing game anyway, so Jason will be getting Columbo and a TE or he'll be chipped by a RB, etc.

That would be a great game to come out in a two TE set with T.O. out wide and try to run the ball against Carter and Taylor, but Taylor is a great player and not exactly a big liability against the run...he's a solid player, but he does NOT make the Commanders a playoff team.

They have a new offense, an entirely new coaching staff including the loss of Williams on defense, and they still have Campbell at QB overthrowing receivers. I'm not worried.

The Giants will miss Shockey, don't think for a second that they won't miss a beat with Boss...they will. But they are still the team we have to beat in our division. They found a winning formula with a solid coaching staff, and Eli will be much more confident this season.

I'm thinking the Cowboys will repeat their 13-3 record of last season, but have a successful post-season run.

 

[Hostile]

Yup an awful game for the secondary. It was also the first game without Sean Taylor (he was injured the previous week) and it clearly showed that afternoon as it was bombs away, and the secondary looked downright lost most of the afternoon

Yet for all of TO's heroics that game, there was a very good shot for the Commanders to win it in the end

How did I know this was going to come up. Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.

Congratulations on almost winning.

With all this said and done, and reliving last season, I guess the whole point of this thread is that my Cowboy friends here feel the Commanders defense has significantly downgraded because "Spring is an old man" (despite coming into camp in great shape) Smoot and Rogers suck (despite each having their best seasons last year) and Blache can't coach as well as GWilliams (despite being a pretty respectable D-coordinator in Chicago).

That hasn't been my stance. But thank you for rehashing your points with them for me. I feel honored.

I have no doubt in my mind the Commanders defense will be just fine. Nobody will run all over it because of Jason Taylor (honestly, this might be one of the most absurd suggestions I have seen) and the secondary will be pretty solid

Yeah again, that hasn't been my stance.

Is it a top 5 D? Probably not. Is it going to lose the Commanders games? No

I think it is too soon to say this. Every year there is a loss that can be directly related to how one side of the ball performs or fails to perform.

The season ultimatley comes down to if JC can take to the WCO and how Jim Zorn does as a HC and OC. Odds are, the O will be slow out of the gate, we'll lose our first 3 division road games and be playing catch up in December again, and with an easy stretch run in December to get into the 7-9 to 9-7 range

I don't disagree with a word of this. If you really struggle it could be worse. It has happened before to other teams.

 

[Sonny#9]

With all this said and done, and reliving last season, I guess the whole point of this thread is that my Cowboy friends here feel the Commanders defense has significantly downgraded because "Spring is an old man" (despite coming into camp in great shape) Smoot and Rogers suck (despite each having their best seasons last year) and Blache can't coach as well as GWilliams (despite being a pretty respectable D-coordinator in Chicago).

I have no doubt in my mind the Commanders defense will be just fine. Nobody will run all over it because of Jason Taylor (honestly, this might be one of the most absurd suggestions I have seen) and the secondary will be pretty solid

Well, you have to consider the source of those statements. It's usually the crowd here that bash just to bash -- with no rhyme or reason -- make the Quincy Carter is Jason Campbell comparisons. Clearly they don't know a whole lot about football and do not even know the definition of "objective" (or look up gullible in the dictionary!)

Is it a top 5 D? Probably not. Is it going to lose the Commanders games? No

The season ultimatley comes down to if JC can take to the WCO and how Jim Zorn does as a HC and OC. Odds are, the O will be slow out of the gate, we'll lose our first 3 division road games and be playing catch up in December again, and with an easy stretch run in December to get into the 7-9 to 9-7 range

I think we're on the same page there.

 

[zrinkill]

Congratulations on almost winning.