Skins vs. Packers: Quick Observations on a Lousy Game

• David Amerson was abused repeatedly. He struggled with both coverage and tackling, and the Packers noticed and took advantage often.

• In general, the Skins' secondary, which relies heavily on rookies and non-starters, is overmatched by NFL offenses. It's hard to see this improving anytime soon.

• RGIII's passing looked better but his throws still arrive less accurately and less quickly than in the past. The result is more dropped and defended passes. 

• The Skins front seven can generate good QB pressure.  

• Theoretically, as the season progresses RGIII will continue to return to form, the offense will find its 2012 rhythm, and the Skins defensive rookies will noticeably improve, so there's reason to stay optimistic ... probably ... maybe ... hopefully ... ugh.

Skins vs. Eagles: The Great, the Good, and the Not-So-Good

The game was a mess, and I'm ready to move on, so let's get this over with.

The Great

• Ryan Kerrigan.  7 tackles, a sack, and a huge forced fumble that translated to 7 points.  Hopefully he passes his concussion test and stays healthy.
• Kai Forbath's Kickoffs.  Forbath, who struggled on kickoffs all of last year and all of pre-season, kicked 3 touchbacks on 4 tries.  Touchbacks are each worth an average of more than 10 yards on field position, so this is important long-term.
• Perry Riley.  Riley had a sack, a fumble recovery, and a thousand tackles.  

The Effects of Year 1 ACL Recovery On Passing Efficiency

If you just awoke from a deep sleep and haven't yet heard, RGIII has been medically cleared to start the regular season tomorrow night against the Eagles.  Let's assume that RGIII stays healthy and has no medical setbacks. Can we expect him to be at full efficiency his first year back from ACL/LCL surgery?

For answers, we have two reference points:
1) Tom Brady’s performance the year after his ACL injury, and
2) RGIII’s performance in college the year after his first ACL injury. 

Cut Players the Skins Should Consider (and Avoid)

NFL teams are cutting down their rosters to 53 today, which means other teams may release players of use to the Skins. Here are two players the Skins should consider signing, and two others they should avoid.

Consider Signing

• Fernando Velasco (Center) - Velasco was cut by the Titans after starting all 16 games last season, and he has experience in a zone-blocking scheme. Meanwhile, the Skins have reportedly cut both their backup centers Kevin Matthew and Tevita Stevens. Sure, starting guards Lichtensteiger or Chester could play center if needed, but then the Skins would be playing backups at both the center and guard positions.

What Mattered in Pre-Season Game 4

As expected, the Skins rested their starters for pre-season game 4.  But there were still important issues to be addressed involving some potentially key players, including Kai Forbath, Evan Royster, Chris Thompson, and Pat White.  Let's handle these one at a time.

Is Kai Forbath reliable on kickoffs?
Forbath is extremely accurate on FGs, but he is below average on kickoffs.  In fact, in college he only handled FGs, and he has struggled to kick the ball deep in the NFL.

Four Observations From Pre-Season Game 3: Skins vs. Bills

It's Skins vs. Buffalo in the 3rd game of the pre-season.  The stakes are low, but there is still much to be learned about the team. Below are 4 observations about RB depth, kickoffs, turnovers, and backup QBs.  

The View from FedExField

Some of you  may know that I live in Vancouver, Canada.  So I don't get to attend many Skins games -- a far cry from childhood when my dad took me to every home game from 1983-1987.  But I happened to have a meeting in Maryland this week, and took the opportunity to catch tonight's pre-season game against the Steelers.

It had been awhile since I last saw a Skins game in person, and I appreciated being able to experience some things, mostly small things, that are not part of the television experience:

1.  Before the game I saw Dan Snyder casually hanging out on the field talking with ex-Washington, now Pittsburgh special teams coach Danny Smith.  Snyder looked like a nice, friendly, confident, short, frumpy man-child.