I got the DC Blues

(note: I keep trying to add pictures, but for some reason it won't allow me to do it. Anybody know what I'm doing wrong?)

Good Lord, is there ANY Washington team that wants to win these days? The Nationals suck (as does baseball in general), the Redskins have more problems than they know how to fix, and once invincible DC United hasn't won a game in a month!

Let's start w/ United first, since this is technically a soccer blog, but don't worry, I'll get to the Redskins shortly.

DC loses another game, this time against a vastly-improved Chicago Fire team that looks like they know how to beat DC. They destroyed them in the Open Cup a few weeks back, and have given them fits all year. Josh Gros continues to show a lack of discipline and gets ejected for the 2nd time in 4 games, while Bryan Namoff was also shown the door, leaving United to finish the game w/ 9 players. That just won't cut it in MLS boys.

After the game, Peter Nowak mentioned he wasn't too worried about the game, as they've pretty much locked up the Eastern Conference and home field throughout the playoffs. Still, this team's lack of form, when combined with injuries, and, let's just say, stupid cautions and ejections really have the team playing poorly. They need to gather some kind of cohesion and discipline as the playoffs roll around. I can understand that the team is taking it easier because they have things pretty much sewn up, but most pro teams just can't "turn it on" w/ the flick of a switch. Steve Goff from The Washington Post mentioned in one of his recent articles about the sudden lack of depth up top for DC, with the injuries to Alecko, Jaime, Lucio Filomeno's leaving the club, and Jamil Walker's poor form. So they go and bring up USL 2 MVP and goal-scoring champ Robert Sjjemba from Richmond to provide a spark. The guy is a great finisher, but I don't think his touch and diminutive size are going to bring much to the table.

The team has a huge game with Bruce Arena and the Red Bulls Saturday night at RFK. They'll be celebrating the 10th Anniversary of DC's 1st historic MLS Cup beforehand, so there should be a big crowd. Despite the suspensions, DC needs to dig deep, get the 3 points, which would almost secure the Supporter's Shield (for best regular season record) and come close to knocking New York out of the playoff hunt. Stay tuned.

As for the Redskins, what can you say? Let's get started w/ this little analogy, and let me know if this sounds familiar:

You bring in a high-priced offensive coordinator because you've had trouble adjusting to the offensive schemes of the NFL. The new OC wants to open it up a bit and be aggressive, but he can't because you're sticking to your guns and staying the course with your aging QB who has taken too many hits, is too old, and lacks the arm strength and mobility to really let you use your weapons. So, instead of seeing what the kid on the sidelines can do, the team is mired in its struggles and is in disarray.

Sound familiar? If so, then you know I'm describing "Any Given Sunday," one of the better football movies made.

Al Pacino = Joe Gibbs
Dennis Quaid = Mark Brunell
Jamie Foxx = Jason Campbell
Aaron Eckherdt = Al Saunders
LL Cool J = Clinton Portis

Am I wrong? I don't think so.

For as nice of a guy as he is, Mark Brunell might be the worst starting QB in the league (and yes, I'm including Kerry Collins and Aaron Brooks). Those guys don't have much talent around them. Brunell does, and he can't get the ball to them. Some of his bounces were hitting the ground 5 yards in front of their intended targets, and you could start to see some of the frustration in the actions of Santana Moss and Brandon Lloyd. Let's be clear; you CANNOT win in the NFL if you only throw for 100 yards a game. That's what we're looking at folks, and when it became obvious the Redskins weren't going to be able to go deep on Dallas last night, they started bringing 8 and 9 guys up every time to stuff the run or blitz Brunell, and it worked.

I realize not having your best player on either side of the ball hurts (Portis and Springs), but you've just got to do better than that. One of the criticisms of this team is that the team spent so much money on superstars that they have no depth on either line, nor in the secondary. That was proven last night as without Springs, they DB's got beat all evening. When they weren't getting beat, they were holding to make sure they didn't get beat.

This team is already in a serious hole at 0-2. Remember, they were in a hole last year at 5-6 when everybody counted them out, and they responded by winning the final 5 to get into the playoffs and then beat Tampa on the road. However, a lot of that was on Clinton Portis and the O-line, while Brunell still struggled for large parts of those games. Washington needs to beat up on that weak sister known as Houston on Sunday to right this ship. If they lose, the season is essentially over, and you might as well start playing Jason Campbell. Heck, most of us 'Skins fans want to see what the kid can do anyway. I'm pretty sure he can eclipse the 100-yard passing mark.

G