Bring on the Jets!

Who needs this win more? The Jets, whose streak filled season consists of winning streaks of two and three sandwiched between losing streaks of two and three? Or the Redskins, who are fighting to find some kind of identity. This being a D.C. sports blog, I will spend most of my time looking at the Redskin's angle. The Redskins come into this game with a divided fanbase. Half of them desperate for a legitimate quarterback to lead this team, the other half wanting a team to surround the quarterback before we fill that gap. I understand   the   desire  for   the  Redskins  to   have   a  leader at the quarterback position, but I made my stance on what the Skins need most very clear. The next couple of weeks, much like last year, are going to show the fans what we have at each position. Roy Helu will get his second chance to carry a full workload, our future back up lineman will get more experience, Gomes will get more work at Safety with LaRon Landry out and Grossman will be pretty much the same.
The Jets are a defensive minded team that will come after you each and every down. Revis island should have no problem taking care of our wide receivers, so it will be up to Roy Helu and our running game to take advantage of a Jets run defense that gives up 115 yards a game. Look for the Redskins to have a pretty even distribution of run and pass plays this Sunday.
The Jets have a ton to play for on Sunday. Unfortunately for them they play in a division that features the New England Patriots. Because of that, they are fighting for a wild card spot. At 6-5, they are one game behind the Cincinnati Bengals for the last spot. The Jets have been under a lot of heat the past couple weeks, especially after losing to Denver two Thursday's ago. This led Rex Ryan to split practice reps between Mark Sanchez and Mark Brunell. Well, Sanchez rebounded well and they came away with a victory at home against Buffalo. Don't expect this Rex Ryan team to look past the Redskins.
The New York's offensive line has given up 26 sacks on the year, so look for Kerrigan and Orakpo to do what they do best and get in the backfield early. I'm not particularly worried about their run game because Rex Ryan has a hard time committing to it anyway.

All in all, I think this will be a test for both teams. The Jets will be making a push for the last playoff spot, and every Redskin player will be making their case for a roster spot. Each team has their own motivation, and after last weeks chippy game, I expect more of the same this week. The Jets aren't known for biting their tongues, so I wouldn't be surprised to see a couple post-play scrums. Regardless of Washington's record, I think Sunday's match up against the Jets will be an exciting one, and after picking Seattle to win last week, I'm picking the Skins in an upset this week, with the special teams making some big plays. I just can't see Danny Smith's place kicking unit playing so bad again. Gano and the place kicking unit got a lot of work this week and should be playing to regain some pride.

Redskins win 23-20 on the shoulder's Gano's 3 field goals.

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Happy Thanksblogging

You can thank ricky for this picture..

Today is Thanksgiving, my absolute favorite holiday. 


For that reason, I will do a quick blog brushing upon the Skins and the Caps before I begin the festivities. I am thankful to all our readers, because without you guys, I wouldn't have the $4.52 earned by this blog. Now that the pleasantries are out of the way, lets get to the Caps first.


Also, my fellow blogger Ricky said I need to take it easy with the girl pictures. What do you think?




CAPS



The Caps won their second straight last night against the Winnipeg Jets 4-3 in overtime. Jason Chimera is having a breakout year for himself and not many people are talking about it. He is silently leading the team in goals with 8 on the year. Chimera is in his third year in DC after being traded from Columbus. He is easily the fastest skater on the team, and probably up there with the best in the league. Chimera has been part of arguably the most productive lines this year alongside Brooks Laich and Marcus Johannson. What did Jason have to say when finally asked about the solid year he's having? 


"Well, I've just always had it," Chimera joked. "Was just going to wait until my later, mid-30s to get it going. I don't want to peak too early. I want to keep playing until I'm 45 so hopefully I'll keep on getting better."


Easily one of the best lines I've heard from a Caps player. Chimera is a workhorse who never seems to get tired, and will continue to play his game regardless of the score. I would love to see him keep this up.
As for the the entire Caps team, I like where they're going. Their shot total is climbing, averaging 36 shots a game in their last 5, and they have put up 4 goals in each of their past 2 wins. The key for them will be to stay motivated and take every game personally. I think Ovechkin is trying his best to be a leader, which is interfering with his style of play. He doesn't want to be suspended, or be a shot hog. You can see that he looks for the pass just as much, if not more, than he looks for the shot. This is good and bad, but I think we would all like to see him get a little more selfish. I also like the amount we are hitting the past two games. The first time we played Winnipeg, we mustered a laughable 5 hits. Last night was a completely different story, as they wrecked the Jets for 35 hits. The hit total shows effort and hard skating. The more we hit, the easier it is to dictate the style and pace of the game. I hope this trend continues, because skating hard and shooting the puck has been our game the past couple years, and it looks good.




SKINS




The Skins are stuck this season because of the lack of stability in the quarterback position. Everyone knows that the quarterback of the future simply is not on this roster, and that's a tough pill to swallow, especially for veteran guys like London Fletcher. This is a time of year for the Skins where they will be playing for their jobs. Young guys like Evan Royster will be given an opportunity to showcase his skills, and players like LaRon Landry who can't stay healthy will be looking to prove their worth. I like the framework we have on the defensive side of the ball and it would do well to keep it intact, and add to it. So hopefully we can work something out with Landry, who is a restricted free agent after this year. And for those of you who think he's the same guy on and off the field, check out Mike Wise's article on Landry's Leadership for Life program. 
The Redskins finish out the year with games against Seattle, the New York Jets, New England, the New York Giants, Minnesota and Philadelphia. Definitely not an easy schedule by any means, which means the heart and soul of this team will be tested each and every week. A lot will be revealed about their character, but it will be a struggle to finish out the season with more than 5 wins.


Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Hit up the comments section with your thoughts on where each of these teams are and where you want them to go. I'll be eating food and watching football all day, and hopefully you all will do the same. 


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