Skins roster moves: Portis, Dockery, Carter, and others

Clinton Portis (29) was the first to be released, but he's not the only one. The Redskins have made a flurry of roster moves, choosing to get rid of some of the ineffective players who were injured or didn't really fit the team's new offensive or defensive schemes.

Here are the team's other recent roster moves:

• Released Andre Carter (31)
• Released Derrick Dockery (30)
• Tendered Chris Wilson (28)
• Expected to release Ma'ake Kemoeatu (32) by Thursday
• Tendered H.B. Blades (26)

Players' ages are in parentheses. Wilson and Blades are the youngest guys in the group, though with all of the uncertainty regarding the current CBA, there's no guarantee at the moment that either player returns. The Redskins are once again reworking their roster, and more players will likely be on the way out soon enough.

Portis's days in D.C. appear to be numbered

On Friday, Mike Shanahan hinted that the Redskins would not be bringing Clinton Portis back at his current salary, adding that the team would only bring him back at a much lower price, if he doesn't find a better deal with another team.

Here's the story, via Mike Jones of Redskins Insider:

Redskins Coach Mike Shanahan said Friday evening at the NFL Combine that the team will allow Portis to shop himself to other teams and that they only would bring the 10-year veteran back at a significantly reduced figure.

"With a guy with a high salary cap, I've always dealt with it a little differently," Shanahan explained. "If we're not going to sign Clinton to that high salary, I'll let him test the market out. Not to say we don't want him, but for a lower price, and obviously we'll try to find the best deal. It could happen. I don't want to say right now. If I said that, usually I'm being pretty honest with you. Could be two days from now, could be three days from now."

Seems reasonable, right? It wouldn't make much sense to pay Portis the $8.3 million he's owed for the upcoming season. Depending on what the Redskins do in the draft and what type of deal Portis can find in free agency, he could still end up back in Washington. But Portis, who's 29 and has carried (at least part of) the load for the Redskins for seven seasons, can't seem to stay healthy now because of the toll all those carries and huge blocks have taken on his body.

If Portis has played his last down with the Redskins, he played honorably in D.C. and will be considered one of the best Redskins running backs in the franchise's history. Currently, he's the second all-time leading rusher for the Redskins with 6,824 yards, trailing John Riggins's franchise-best 7,472 rushing yards.

There's a plethora of other memories/moments of Portis to rehash, and there will be time for that on another day (when he's officially not on the Skins anymore).

Appreciating Clinton Portis

In case you hadn't heard, Clinton Portis is expected to miss four-to-six weeks with a groin injury, meaning Ryan Torain is expected to receive the majority of the carries in the running game for the next few weeks. Torain ran hard last week against the Eagles, but he's still a question mark in terms of both staying healthy and handling a full workload.

But back to Portis. Sally Jenkins wrote a great article about Portis for The Washington Post, hinting that Portis may be nearing the end of the road and also saying that his work over the last several years in Denver and Washington commands our respect.

Here's a section of Jenkins's article, but I encourage you to read the entire thing:

Portis has earned some criticism for divalike behavior, like his occasional ingratitude to his linemen and quarterbacks, and for playing overweight. But lack of toughness isn't one of his failings. Overall, he's probably given as much to the Redskins physically as he has taken financially. If you're inclined to resent his salary of almost $7.2 million this year, try to remember that. Even former coach Jim Zorn, who was often frustrated by him, said that when Portis is on the field, "Your head better be on a swivel. Somebody is gonna get knocked down."

Remember that in four seasons, he has had at least 320 carries. Remember that he ran for a club-record 1,516 yards in 2005, alternately avoiding tacklers with suave cuts and knocking them down like bowling pins. Remember how he dislocated his shoulder in a preseason game with the Cincinnati Bengals, when launched into a tackle, trying to stop an interception return. Remember how just two weeks ago against the Houston Texans he raced half the length of the field to explode on a block and open a pathway for Fred Davis, resulting in a 62-yard play.

Hopefully Portis's career isn't over just yet, but even if he isn't in Washington after this season, I've definitely enjoyed his tenure with the Redskins.

Despite scoreless second half, Skins still beat Eagles

Here's a fun fact: Did you know that the Redskins (2-2) are in first place in the NFC East (thanks to tiebreakers) despite being outscored by six points (79-73) in their four games? That's probably not a good thing, but it's all about getting wins, right?

That seemed to be the case yesterday, when the Redskins played a fantastic first quarter and then were mediocre, or worse, on offense the rest of the game. In that first quarter, the Redskins scored two touchdowns on their first two drives. On the first TD, Brandon Banks set the offense up with outstanding field position after a 53-yard punt return. The Redskins ran the ball three times, the final play a 12-yard run by Ryan Torain, who ran over Eagles safety Quintin Mikell on his way to the end zone. On their next TD drive, the Redskins moved the ball from their own 22 into Eagles territory with ease, and that drive was capped off by a 31-yard TD pass from Donovan McNabb to Chris Cooley. With about five minutes left in the opening quarter, the Redskins were up 14-0 -- a great start. Unfortunately, the offense wouldn't do a whole lot else for three-plus quarters.

Tale of the tape (first quarter):
Redskins: 112 yards (plus a 53-yard punt return), 14 points
Eagles: 72 yards, 0 points

Sure, the Redskins kicked a field goal in the second quarter to take a 17-3 lead. But for the next 39 minutes or so (in game time), the Redskins scored no points. And after gaining those 112 yards in the first quarter, the offense gained just 181 yards for the rest of the game. That's just not good enough to win many games; however, the defense was up to the task yesterday.

Did it hurt the Eagles that Michael Vick had to leave the game late in the first quarter? Yeah, definitely. But the Redskins defense still held the Eagles to only 12 points, even with an offense that stopped moving the ball effectively after the first quarter and a punter (Josh Bidwell) who averaged 37 yards per punt and probably shouldn't be with the team going forward. The Redskins knew when to get rid of Larry Johnson; it's time to do the same with Bidwell.

The Redskins shouldn't expect to win a lot of games when McNabb ends up with a quarterback rating of 60.2 (8-19, 125 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT) and the offense fails to score any points in the second half, but the defense also took a step forward, holding the Eagles to just two field goals until a late TD drive in what looked a lot like some version of a prevent defense. The defense also forced, by my count, four holding penalties on the Eagles offensive line, and it probably should have been more than that.

The running game was also much better this week. Torain rushed for 70 yards on 18 carries (3.9 average), and Clinton Portis had 55 yards on 11 carries (5.5 average) and showcased some evasiveness that hasn't been seen for a few years. McNabb also ran five times for 39 yards, including a clutch run for a first down in the fourth quarter to, more or less, seal the game. (But why did he run out of bounds?) Still, the ground game was improved.

With consecutive games against the Packers and Colts coming up, and then a trip on the road to Chicago to play the Bears, the win over the Eagles was crucial. And not only that, but the Redskins are now 2-0 against the NFC East after finishing 0-6 against the division last season. They may not stand a chance in their next two games, but they've been competitive in their own division, which is important considering how average all four teams have looked at times.

Rams 30, Redskins 16: a familiar feeling returns

In the first two weeks of the season, the Redskins gave up a lot of yards. In the Week 1 Redskins win over Dallas, the Cowboys gained 380 yards but were held to just seven points. Then in a Week 2 shootout, the Texans gained a whopping 526 yards and earned a comeback victory in a 30-27 win over the Redskins. In two weeks, that adds up to 906 yards -- way too many to give up. Still, traveling to St. Louis to play the Rams, the Redskins were supposed to blitz and confuse a rookie quarterback, Sam Bradford, starting only his third NFL game.

And that didn't happen. Instead, Bradford completed 23 of 37 passes for 235 yards and a touchdown as the Rams outplayed the Redskins and won, 30-16. Most of Bradford's passes were short ones, but that strategy worked to perfection since not only did it get the ball out of Bradford's hands quickly, but it also forced the Redskins linebackers to cover, which didn't work out very well for Washington. Failing to really pressure and frustrate Bradford -- the Redskins only had one sack, by Brian Orakpo -- the Redskins allowed 30 points and 365 yards to, at the very least, an average Rams team.

One of the main reasons that the Redskins hired Jim Haslett and switched to the 3-4 defense was to get more pressure on opposing quarterbacks and create more turnovers. Against the Rams, the Redskins got a Kareem Moore interception, but that was their only turnover besides a Rams fumble on a kickoff return. One sack and one forced turnover simply isn't enough, especially against the Rams. And with their next four games against the Eagles, Packers, Colts, and Bears, not only is the subpar defense going to be under attack, but the Redskins missed a golden opportunity to move to 2-1 with the toughest part of their schedule coming.

The defense was pretty bad; the offense wasn't much better. Donovan McNabb played just about as well as Bradford, which isn't a good thing. He finished 19-32 for 236 yards and also had one touchdown pass and one interception. He looked OK, but the offense only scored three points in the second half and couldn't get anything going. The offense also couldn't sustain many drives in the second half, and, for the game, the Rams dominated the time-of-possession margin by nearly 10 minutes.

Removing McNabb's two runs for 25 yards, the Redskins averaged over six yards per carry (15 rushes for 91 yards) in the running game. Ryan Torain, recently activated from the practice squad, had seven carries for 46 yards; Clinton Portis had seven carries for 44 yards. But even though the running game was better this week, it didn't lead to more points.

The one player who had a great game was Santana Moss -- six catches for 124 yards and a touchdown -- but even he had a horrible fumble early in the game that set the Rams up for their second touchdown. Besides the second quarter, when the Redskins outscored the Rams 13-0, just about nothing went right.

Yesterday, neither the offense nor defense were good enough to win -- a very scary thought for the rest of the season. And despite the mediocre offensive performance, the team's main focus should be to fix a broken defense, if that's possible. If it's not, the Redskins are in big trouble.

Redskins cut Larry Johnson

On Monday, I speculated that Larry Johnson deserved to slide down the running back depth chart for his horrible running play against the Texans that lost 10 yards. Instead, the Redskins went a step further and removed him from the team.

Johnson's spot was taken by Chad Simpson, a running back out of Morgan State who played with the Colts in 2008 and 2009. In 25 games with the Colts, Simpson rushed for 147 yards and three touchdowns on 30 carries. He can also contribute on special teams if needed.

The official Redskins depth chart hasn't been updated yet, but Keiland Williams will likely move up to No. 2 behind Clinton Portis, with Simpson taking over as the third-string running back. In two games, Williams has yet to receive a carry, but he does have four receptions for 15 yards.

With Willie Parker's release before the season and now Johnson's departure, the Redskins have gotten younger in the backfield. Parker turns 30 in November, and Johnson turns 31 in November. Now, the Redskins have Portis, who recently turned 29, and two younger backs: Williams (24) and Simpson (25). Johnson and Parker obviously showed their age and have lost a step or two, and although the addition of Simpson doesn't make the Redskins much better, it's productive for the Redskins to have some younger, more flexible backs. Williams can catch the ball out of the backfield and Simpson can do that while also playing special teams. Parker and Johnson basically only carried the ball.

Still, according to the Redskins Insider post linked above, there still may be a slim chance that Johnson returns after this week:

"Asked whether the Redskins plan to re-sign Johnson after this week, [Peter] Schaffer [Johnson's agent] said, 'I don't know. There are no guarantees about anything in this league.'"

Isn't that the truth?

Texans complete comeback, stun Redskins in OT

Leading 27-10 in the third quarter after a 22-yard touchdown pass from Donovan McNabb to Chris Cooley, the Redskins allowed 20 unanswered points to the Texans, who went on to win 30-27 on a game-winning 35-yard field goal in overtime by Neil Rackers. The Redskins fought valiantly against the Texans, but they had a few opportunities to shut the door on a potential comeback, yet failed to do so. So despite the fact that McNabb threw for 426 yards, is this progress or more of the same?

I don't believe in a team "deserving to win" a game, but the Redskins had no business losing that game. They held a 17-point lead in the third quarter, and going into the fourth quarter were still winning by 10. But the Texans have a lot of weapons on offense, and they went to work in the second half. After the Redskins scored to go up 17 with about four minutes left in the third quarter, one big play seemed to give the Texans momentum back: a 50-yard screen pass to Arian Foster. It really was a fantastic play call; the Redskins had been blitzing a lot, and on 3rd and 15 from the Houston 44, they called a simple screen pass to Foster, who slipped past several blitzing defenders and followed a few blockers down the field for a huge gain. Matt Schaub then completed a short TD pass to Kevin Walter to cut the lead to 10.

That touchdown ended the third quarter, and the Redskins got the ball back with a chance to tack on some more points. Unfortunately, Larry Johnson entered the game and figured that that would be a good time to take a toss that seemed doomed from the start and, instead of losing maybe three or four yards by trying to get back to the line of scrimmage, make a U-turn and turn a bad play into a horrible one with a 10-yard loss. Thanks to that play, the Redskins went three and out and barely took any time off the clock. The Texans got the ball back and almost immediately answered with a field goal. With about 11 minutes to go, the Redskins' lead had been cut to seven.

So here's where the only-the-Redskins-do-this-kind-of-stuff part comes in. The Redskins start off at the 37 after a solid return and drive into Houston territory on passes to Anthony Armstrong (16 yards) and Joey Galloway (19 yards). The Redskins then run four straight times, and for the first time all game actually move the ball efficiently on the ground, getting the ball to the Houston 5. A false-start penalty gives the Redskins a 3rd and 6 opportunity, but McNabb throws an incomplete pass. Graham Gano comes on to try a 29-yard field goal, but the Texans block the kick. So instead of leading by 10 with about seven minutes left, the Redskins still lead by seven.

But there's still hope! On Houston's ensuing possession, London Fletcher gets a huge sack on Schaub, and the Texans punt the ball away after a three and out. After an awful Matt Turk punt, the Redskins have the ball on their own 49 -- fantastic field position -- with five minutes to go. On first down, McNabb hits Mike Sellers for a five-yard gain. And then, another confusing play: the Redskins attempt an end-around to Santana Moss, which loses eight yards. McNabb and the Redskins can't convert the 3rd and 13, so instead of icing the game by driving down the field, the Redskins have to punt the ball away.

With just over three minutes to go, the Texans drive down the field. And even though the defense made the Texans work, Schaub still hits Andre Johnson on a 34-yard touchdown on 4th and 10 to tie the game. The lead is gone, Trent Williams sprains his knee on the next possession, and the game goes to overtime.

In OT, the Redskins have a (another) chance to win with a 52-yard field goal, but Texans coach Gary Kubiak calls a timeout right before Gano nails his the kick, nullifying the play. On his next chance, Gano misses the kick wide right. So with great field position, the Texans drive down the field and get their own field goal chance, and Rackers makes his kick to win the game and give the Texans an amazing comeback victory.

So, to summarize, the Redskins had their moments but still did several Redskins-type things to lose the game. McNabb had a huge passing game, but he was overshadowed by Schaub, who threw for 497 yards and three touchdowns. The Redskins also did a decent job of stopping Foster (19 carries, 69 yards), but that's mostly because the Texans got behind and had to start passing (which still worked). Foster also caught three passes for 69 yards, including that huge screen pass.

The Redskins, though, had an awful game running the ball. Portis had 13 carries for 33 yards (and two touchdowns), and Larry Johnson had two carries for -7 yards. If that 10-yard loss play wasn't enough to move Johnson down the depth chart, I don't know what is.

Moss caught 10 passes for 89 yards, but besides that McNabb spread the ball around. Galloway (88 yards) and Cooley (64 yards) each caught three passes, and Fred Davis had a 62-yard catch.

I'll admit this: The Redskins do seem like a better team than last year. And while they could very easily be 2-0, they also could be 0-2. So 1-1 still feels pretty good. And if that seems negative, well, it's not. Consider this: A 3-8 Redskins team nearly beat an 11-0 Saints team last year in a game very similar to this one.

In that game, the Redskins led by 10 in the fourth quarter before allowing a late touchdown drive that sent the game into overtime. The Redskins got the ball first in OT, but Sellers fumbled the ball away, giving the Saints great field position. They easily moved the ball into field goal range and won, moving to 12-0.

If you'll remember, the Redskins had a chance to ice that game with a kick as well. But Shaun Suisham missed a seemingly routine 23-yard attempt to give the Saints new life. And they took advantage by driving the ball down the field for a touchdown and sending the game into OT. Another missed opportunity -- sound familiar?

Even if McNabb revitalizes the passing attack, which he did yesterday, the Redskins will be in big trouble if they can't 1) improve their rushing attack and 2) fix the defense. It's fun to play an opportunistic, bend-but-don't-break defense, but it's tough to ask a defense to do that all game while continuing to call blitzes that just don't get to the quarterback often enough. The Redskins did have five sacks -- that's pretty good. But they were also allowing big chunks of yardage in the passing game.

By the way, the Trent Williams injury is a big deal. If he's forced to miss more than a game or two, that'll spell big trouble not just for McNabb, but for the entire offense.

With the Rams on the schedule next week, the Redskins should be able to move to 2-1. Let's see how the team responds when they're actually favored in a game.

An injured Redskins team could be an ugly one

You probably already know by now that Donovan McNabb has a sprained ankle and hasn't been practicing. Head coach Mike Shanahan has said that he's not sure if McNabb will be ready in time to play in the season opener against Dallas. Unfortunately, Clinton Portis is also dealing with an injured ankle, though his injury isn't as much of a concern as McNabb's.

Neither practiced on Monday and both have already been ruled out of the Redskins' preseason finale against the Cardinals -- which is common since most starters are held out of the final preseason game anyway. Still, McNabb and Portis have nearly two weeks to get healthy, and according to Rick Maese (in the second linked story above), "both seemed to be walking around on their sore ankles without much problem" yesterday.

So they'll likely both be ready to play against Dallas. But don't expect this to be the last time that injuries plague McNabb and Portis this season. McNabb turns 34 in November, and although he's a tough guy and battles through an assortment of injuries, he has played a full 16 games just once in the last six seasons. (In three of those seasons, he played in 15, 14, and 14 games, so he's durable, but he will miss games.) Portis is a little younger -- he actually turns 29 tomorrow -- but he also plays a different position, running back, and has taken a pounding the last few seasons. Portis suffered a serious concussion last season and only played in eight games, but with Shanahan in town he seems to be in great shape and has been working out and practicing hard to impress the new coaching staff. If he stays healthy, he should unquestionably receive the bulk of the carries.

If McNabb and Portis miss games this season, especially at the same time, the Redskins are in big trouble. A starting lineup that features Rex Grossman at quarterback and Larry Johnson as the main rusher isn't exactly promising, to say the least. One of the risks the Redskins have taken over the last several years -- trading away their draft picks -- frequently results in a lack of depth at key positions. It's nice to have players like McNabb and Portis (both were acquired in trades), but it's even better to hold onto picks and draft solid players. Easier said than done, though, I guess.

For the Redskins to remain competitive this season, barring some kind of miracle, McNabb and Portis both need to be healthy and need to play well. It's a lot to ask of two players, but this team doesn't really have other options.

Portis could have practiced more

It's no secret that Clinton Portis didn't have the greatest 2009-2010 season. In the first eight games of the season, Portis rushed for 494 yards and one touchdown on 124 carries -- a 4.0 yards-per-carry average. In the Redskins' eighth game, against the Atlanta Falcons, Portis was hit hard and suffered a serious concussion that forced him to miss the team's remaining eight games.

But it's acceptable for Portis to acknowledge that he didn't have the greatest year -- the season obviously didn't go as planned for just about anyone with the Redskins. And out of all the positions on the field, running backs probably take the most abuse. However, it's entirely different for him to admit that he could have participated more or that he could have worked harder. If you can't watch the video, here's what Portis said: "The only thing I didn't do was participate in practices. Could I have participated in more? Yeah, I probably should have. Could I have fought through some? Yeah, I probably should have."

Portis goes on to say a few more things, such as that his situation was unfair, that he now has a chip on his shoulder, and that he wants to prove people wrong for doubting him (which is relevant because it looks as if Portis is going to remain with the Redskins in the upcoming season). Unfortunately, Portis seems to be missing the point. Working hard consistently isn't something that someone can just turn on and off -- it's a skill for someone to give that much dedication, and one that an aging running back certainly needs.

I've defended Portis and his antics from previous seasons before, but there's no chance of that happening here. He admitted that he didn't work hard enough even though he could have. And this is coming from someone who actually had the nerve to question Jason Campbell's leadership. Here what Portis said about Campbell at the time:

"No disrespect to Jason," Portis said while speaking with co-hosts Thompson and Doc Walker. "But everybody in that locker room can tell you, you'll never see Jason mad, you'll never see Jason's tempo change, you'll never see Jason get mad. He going to get up, dust himself off; he going to give you everything he got. But as a leader, you never heard -- it was always, 'Jason couldn't take control of the huddle,' or he didn't do this or he didn't do that. That wasn't Jason's character."

In retrospect, that certainly seems like a silly comment for Portis to make. Even if Campbell isn't the greatest leader ever, his work ethic can't be questioned and he was always there to take the blame if something went wrong (and for the Redskins, it frequently did).

If Portis really is going to return next season, I hope he can return to form. Maybe playing under Mike Shanahan again will give Portis a boost. He could use one.

Stump Mitchell: 'Clinton could've worked harder'

Besides Albert Haynesworth, one of the biggest targets of criticism this season was certainly Clinton Portis and his apparent lack of conditioning. Portis was occasionally seen gasping for air on the sidelines after a 10-yard run (though there weren't many of them) and didn't seem to be as in shape as the Portis of earlier seasons.

Stump Mitchell, the Redskins running backs coach the last two seasons who is now leaving to take the head coaching job at Southern University, offered similar thoughts when asked to reflect on Portis, according to an article in The Washington Post.

Said Mitchell:

"That's the only disappointment that I'll have. The fact that I couldn't persuade Clinton to do it a different way," Mitchell said Monday. "I want Clinton to be the best back in the league. But in order for that to happen, you have to prepare for it. But I don't know if that's what Clinton wants to do." . . . Asked if Portis's practice habits and offseason conditioning have held him back, Mitchell said: "That's a slam dunk. Clinton could've worked harder."

"He's got to do that," Mitchell continued, "and [owner Daniel Snyder] has to understand that that's what has to be done. In order for the Redskins to be successful, that's what Clinton has to do. He has to change the way he's done things in the past in order for them to be successful as a team."

Depending on the cap situation and what new head coach Mike Shanahan decides, the Redskins may or may not cut Portis. But, according to the same article, "if [the Redskins] released [Portis] before June, the team could still face a cap hit of as much as $14.8 million." Ouch.

Speaking of production, or lack thereof, it's hard to argue that the offensive line wasn't holding the Redskins offense back this season. The offensive line was the weakest part of the team -- and the most in need of an upgrade. But in terms of run blocking, the line wasn't nearly as bad in that department as in trying to protect Jason Campbell (and failing miserably). I mention this because as far as Portis's yards per carry average goes, his numbers have been fairly consistent. Here are his YPC numbers in his six seasons in Washington:

2004-2005: 3.8
2005-2006: 4.3
2006-2007: 4.1
2007-2008: 3.9
2008-2009: 4.3
2009-2010: 4.0

It's impossible to tell how much better Portis could have been if he completely devoted himself to getting in the best shape possible, especially with the beating he's taken since joining the Redskins. But we'll never know that.

The best thing Portis can do now to remain with the Redskins is to work as hard as possible to prepare for the upcoming season. Even though he's older now and isn't the same player he was back in 2002, maybe he'll get some motivation from this: In his two seasons in Denver, Portis averaged 5.5 yards per carry and ran for over 1,500 yards in both seasons. If anyone can get a little more productivity out of Portis, it's Shanahan.

Tuesday morning links

A lot has been going on lately, especially with some apparent chemistry issues with the Wizards. Let's get to it:

• According to Michael Lee, Gilbert Arenas and Caron Butler talked on the phone and have "resolved their differences." Butler also had this to say:
  

  
  "It's crazy, losing and everything. Man, it's tough," he said, "but in the midst of all of this, we've got to remain positive. That's all you can do. That's what I'm going to do. You got to find the silver lining in every situation. Collectively, we got to find a way to win games and work hard in practice. We'll see what happens."
  

  
  I really hope there aren't any serious problems between Arenas and Butler, but it's certainly possible. Teammates don't always get along with each other, but they do need to be able to play together and share the ball. And if it isn't obvious by now, the Wizards really, really need a win against the Sixers tonight. [Wizards Insider]


• Not surprisingly, the Wizards are again battling some injuries. Mike Miller is out three to six weeks with a strained calf, and Butler will be a game-time decision tonight with a sore right ankle. [Bullets Forever]


• Losing Miller really hurt the Wizards' offense. [Bullets Forever]


• What exactly is going on with Nick Young? With Miller out, this may be Young's time to shine (or at least get on the court some more). [Truth About It]


• These next two links are about a week old, but they're still worth linking to. Erik Manning of FanGraphs, using statistics from Baseball Prospectus, notes the best and worst baserunning teams. The Orioles finished last with a mark of -15 runs (which cost them maybe a win). [FanGraphs]


• In terms of individual baserunning, Melvin Mora finished tied with Jorge Posada for last place (-8 runs). It's not surprising at all to see Mora listed last; he really is a bad baserunner. Again, it's not really a huge deal, but it's certainly worth mentioning. [FanGraphs]


• Brad Bergesen is feeling much better and is able to run now. [School of Roch]


• Curious about the O's top prospects? Here's a top 13 list. [Camden Crazies]


• After tearing his ACL and MCL in the early stages of Sunday's loss to the Cowboys, Ladell Betts will miss the rest of this season and has some difficult rehab work awaiting him. But Betts is ready for the challenge: "My mindset is that I'm on the road to recovery. It's part of the game and it's part of the business. It's why we get paid the money we do, because we put our bodies in harm's way and at risk, so it comes with the territory. It's just one of the unfortunate parts of being a football player." [Redskins Insider]


• With Betts out and Clinton Portis still dealing with post-concussion issues, Rock Cartwright took advantage of the opportunity and had a great game in Dallas. He'll get the chance to be the main ball-carrier this week as well. [Mike Wise]


• With Betts, Chad Rinehart, and Eddie Williams all being placed on injured reserve, the Redskins have signed two players: running back (and familiar face) Marcus Mason and offensive guard Paul Fanaika. The third spot should be filled at some point later in the week. [Redskins Blog]

Reflecting on the Redskins' loss to the Panthers

After the Panthers scored the last 18 points to sneak past the Redskins 20-17 yesterday, I have to be honest: I was mad, but I wasn't surprised at all. When the Skins went up 17-2, it was more of a mirage than anything. DeAngelo Williams's fumble (recovered by Albert Haynesworth) on Carolina's first offensive play set the Redskins up with excellent field position at the 13 yard line, as did DeAngelo Hall's interception in the third quarter that he returned 44 yards to the Carolina 1. So by forcing two turnovers in Carolina territory, the offense only had to go a combined 14 yards for two touchdowns -- that's 14 points. The Redskins scored only three more points, which is completely unacceptable. But is it shocking? No.

And that's the level the Redskins are at right now. The offense is so terrible that basically being spotted 14 points wasn't enough to pull out a win. Besides not scoring enough points, the offense had only 198 yards of total offense. Nice work, guys.

Other notes:

• Let's start with the good. The defense forced two turnovers and held the Panthers to 248 total yards. Carolina's running game was more than held in check by the Washington defense: On 32 carries, the Panthers averaged only 2.7 yards per carry. Carolina's longest drive of the game was also only 57 yards, and when Carolina scored three times in the second half, their drives were relatively short: 40 yards (TD), 38 yards (FG), and 12 yards (TD).


• Andre Carter had 2.5 sacks, and Brian Orakpo had half a sack. The Redskins forced a decent amount of pressure on Jake Delhomme, who looked average at best. So the defense didn't give up much yardage, forced two turnovers to set up the offense, and rushed the passer effectively -- which is basically what everyone has wanted from the defense. And it still wasn't enough to get a win.


• Jason Campbell finished the game 17-23 for 145 yards and a touchdown. For the amount of pressure he was under -- the Panthers had five sacks -- he was pretty efficient. But besides the touchdown pass to Clinton Portis, there weren't many, if any, explosive plays in the passing game.


• The rushing attack was ineffective. Portis ran 19 times for only 57 yards -- a three-yard average. He did run for a touchdown though, so that's something.


• No receiver had more than 44 receiving yards. Those 44 yards came from Santana Moss, who had four catches. The rest of the receiving corps combined for 13 catches and 101 yards. Shockingly, Chris Cooley failed to catch a pass, and I don't remember Campbell throwing his way even one time, but I could be wrong.


• As mentioned before, the Panthers had five sacks, and the offensive line looked really bad. Losing Chris Samuels so early in the game was a significant loss. The line failed to open up many holes for Portis, and by pushing the Skins' line back inside the five, the Panthers forced a safety. The Redskins have to have the worst offensive line depth in the NFL.


• Shaun Suisham made his only field goal attempt, and Glenn Pakulak filled in for Hunter Smith with an average game. The biggest play of the game, though, came when a player was pushed into Byron Westbrook on a punt return. The ball bounced off Westbrook and was recovered by Carolina deep in Redskins' territory. It's hard to believe that an opposing player can just shove a blocker into a returner, but these are the kinds of plays that happen to the Redskins on a routine basis. Losing teams put themselves in situations like that.


• The Redskins' clock management and Jim Zorn's carelessness with timeouts was terrible. When the Redskins needed to stop the clock late in the fourth quarter, all of their timeouts were gone.


• DeAngelo Hall's inability to tackle Jake Delhomme in the open field with the game on the line was hard to believe. Even Deion Sanders was (probably) shaking his head after that tackling attempt.

Now 2-3, the Redskins face the Chiefs, another team seeking its first win, at home on Sunday. If Kansas City wins, the Redskins will have allowed three teams to gain their first victory against them (not counting the Giants in the season opener).

Zorn, Redskins should embrace winning ugly

To put it mildly, the Redskins (particularly the offense) have struggled in the first four games of the season. They lost on the road to the Giants by six, beat the Rams at home by two, lost to the Lions by five, and beat the Bucs by three, meaning they're 2-2 even though they've been outscored by six points. The loss to the Giants is understandable: They're 4-0 and look like one of the NFL's best teams. But the other three teams are a combined 1-11 on the season.

In the next two weeks, the Redskins play at Carolina and at home against Kansas City. By the way, those two are a combined 0-7. But as the Redskins' early play has indicated, opposing teams' records don't really mean a whole lot. The Redskins have played down to their competition (unless they're just a bad team too), but they were also an onside kick away from getting the ball back against the Giants and potentially having a chance to score some more points. They were outplayed in New York, but they still lost by less than a touchdown. So, while the Redskins could have lost all four of their games if they didn't make a few key plays, all of their games have been winnable and have at least been competitive in the fourth quarter.

Anyway, here's the point: The Redskins have flaws. Every team in the NFL does, but the Redskins' flaws are more obvious than most: the offensive line is pretty bad; they can't (or haven't been able to) run the ball effectively; besides Santana Moss and Chris Cooley, other receivers haven't stepped up and haven't scared opponents; Jason Campbell sometimes holds the ball too long and doesn't make quick decisions; and the defense can't always get pressure on the quarterback and until recently has struggled to force opposing offenses off the field on third down. I know I left some out, but those are the major concerns.

As you probably have noticed, most of the correctable problems are on the defensive side of the ball. Rookies Brian Orakpo (15 tackles, two sacks) and Jeremy Jarmon (three tackles, one forced fumble) seem like they can get pressure on the quarterback and should keep improving. Albert Haynesworth has been criticized harshly at times, but he's doing a pretty good job occupying blockers inside. Chris Horton, LaRon Landry, and Reed Doughty have, so far, formed a solid group of safeties. Even Justin Tryon showed in the win over Tampa Bay that he's making some strides, taking over the nickel corner role for Fred Smoot and recording a sack. And, of course, London Fletcher is a tackling machine (leads the NFL with 52 tackles).

Obviously, though, the offense has been awful -- 27th in points scored (14 points per game). Jason Campbell has been about average, ranking 16th in quarterback rating (85.5), ninth in completion percentage (65.3), 11th in passing yards (963), and t-11th in touchdowns (five). But after his three-interception performance on Sunday, he's tied for the fourth-most interceptions with five and has been sacked eight times.

As for other individual performances on offense, Moss has 17 catches for 293 yards (10th among wide receivers) and two touchdowns. Cooley has 22 receptions for 254 yards (third among tight ends) and two touchdowns. Portis has the 10th-most rushing yards among running backs with 281 yards, but his 3.9 yards-per-carry average isn't even in the top 25 among qualified rushers. Part of that is certainly due to the lack of running room, but not every offensive line in the NFL is that much better than Washington's line.

But besides those three skill players, the Redskins really don't have any other weapons. No other running back has done much of anything, and Malcolm Kelly, Devin Thomas, and Fred Davis have a combined 10 catches for 82 yards. That's it. Oh, and Antwaan Randle El had a good first game against the Giants (seven catches, 98 yards), but since then he only has six catches for 60 yards -- and he didn't catch a single pass against the Bucs.

It's also worth noting that Rock Cartwright is 18th in kickoff return average (23.9) while Randle El has returned only four punts for 35 yards (an 8.8-yard average).

So, again, here's what the Redskins have:

• a defense that can certainly play better even though it's allowed only 15.5 points per game (against bad teams -- but still);
• an offense that has struggled to score points even against bad defenses;
• a lack of playmakers on offense besides Moss and Cooley (and sometimes Portis);
• an average (at best) offensive line and a group of inconsistent wide receivers who cannot be relied upon;
• and kickoff and punt returners who haven't set the offense up with a short field.

Even with all of this going down, though, Jim Zorn is still striving for perfection on offense:

"I'm just going to keep pushing. It's my responsibility. I feel like I'm the one it's reflecting on as well. It's reflecting on all of us, but I'm the focal point and it should reflect on me. I'm not going to be happy with that and we're going to keep pushing. . . . It's just been something that we're going to continue to push toward. We demand perfection out here during practice, but you really do have to take . . . you have to look at what's being given during a game and that's hard to take. It really is. I still want that perfection in a game as well."

I'm pretty sure the Redskins aren't getting perfection in practice out of many of their offensive players, but statements like that are fine. Coaches are supposed to say stuff like that. But there's basically nothing that this offense will be able to do perfectly. So far, they've seemingly had to struggle for every yard and every point. And that's fine -- improvement, at least some signs of it, should be coming soon. But deep down, I'm sure Zorn knows that this offense will never be a powerhouse and won't start scoring tons of points against anyone. But there's nothing wrong with winning ugly games, even against bad teams -- the key is actually winning. Whether or not the Redskins can actually keep doing that will depend mostly on how well the defense plays.

But a few more deep touchdown passes to Moss sure wouldn't hurt.

Portis will be a game-time decision vs. Bucs

The beginning of the season hasn't been kind to the Redskins -- or Clinton Portis. Already battling some ankle issues, Portis is questionable this week with a calf injury he sustained in last week's loss to the Detroit Lions.

Portis didn't have much to say on the issue and even offered some advice for the reporters: "Whatever Jim [Zorn] say. Game-time decision. Have a nice night, guys. Don't drink too much. Okay?" Well, that was nice of him.

The Redskins' offense, which is currently ranked 28th in points per game (13.3) yet is 13th in yards per game (341.3), could certainly use a healthy and productive Portis. But so far, Portis and the Redskins' rushing attack have struggled: In three games, he has carried the ball 47 times for 183 yards -- a 3.9-yard average -- and no touchdowns.

Over at Staying Medium, a relatively new Redskins blog that breaks down notable plays after games, Dave O. expresses some concern with the Redskins' ground game and the offensive line in general:

And some final wrap-up thoughts for the week:

- Casey Rabach and Chris Cooley are still the weak links of the Redskins running game.

- Much was made of Portis' bone spurs, but I don't think the injuries hurt him too much. When holes were there he made the most of them; the weak running game was due to the pass-heavy play calling in the first half and problems with blocking (see above).

- I'm worried about Chris Samuels. He hasn't been terrible, but he has appeared this year like an average tackle. I don't know if that is a result purely of age or if he is not fully recovered from last year's injuries.

- Chad Rinehart appeared... somewhat adequate. He was overpowered at times, but managed to not be conspicuously awful, which is all I really ask from a backup guard.

None of those things seem to be particularly hopeful at all. Even if Portis is still running well, injuries seem to be catching up to him. And if the line isn't opening up holes for him, this season may not turn around anytime soon.

Redskins notes for Rams game

The Redskins are favorites heading into today's home game against the St. Louis Rams, and many, if not most, fans consider it to be a must-win game. Here are some notes and storylines for the game:

• Defensive coordinator Greg Blache on Albert Haynesworth: "He's 'not Superman'":
  

  
  Blache said Haynesworth played well in the Week 1 loss to the New York Giants, and acknowledged the Pro Bowler is a "very, very, good player," but he seemed downright offended by the suggestion Haynesworth might actually help to make the players around him better. Middle linebacker London Fletcher was credited with a team-high 18 tackles in the 23-17 loss at Giants Stadium, prompting one reporter to theorize Fletcher had more freedom to race to the ball because Haynesworth often occupied two offensive linemen while being double-teamed.
  
  Well, that's a stupid theory, Blache said in effect, pointing out the Redskins had defensive tackles last season, too. Haynesworth and Fletcher each performed their duties well, Blache said, but Haynesworth was not responsible for Fletcher's success, or any other player's success. "Albert's a good player, but let's not make him King Kong," Blache said. He's "not Superman."
  

  
  I kind of understand what Blache is trying to say, but if Haynesworth is only just as good as the rest of the Redskins' defensive tackles, a lot of fans are going to be disappointed. [Redskins Insider]


• Matt Mosley explains his negative take on Haynesworth's debut:
  

  
  I may be holding Haynesworth to a ridiculous standard ($41 mil guaranteed), but what I focused on was that he looked completely worn down at the most important juncture of the game. When the Skins were actually hanging around in the third quarter, Haynesworth had to keep making his way to the sideline to catch his breath. Yes, he made some plays in the game. But when Washington truly needed to clog the middle, Haynesworth was sucking wind. Was I too hard on him? Maybe so.
  

  
  Maybe he should have written that in the first place. [NFC East Blog]


• Fred Smoot is questionable with a rib injury. [ESPN]


• Everyone on ESPN's NFL experts' panel is predicting a Redskins' win. [ESPN]


• The Redskins need to stop Steven Jackson. [Redskins Insider]


• Clinton Portis says the offense needs to stay on the field longer and be more efficient:
  

  
  "Having 40-some plays, it ain't gonna get everybody the ball. We have 40-some plays. I touched the ball 18 times, so you've got 30 more plays to get everybody else the ball. That's not gonna be enough to win. We've got to go out and have 60 or 70 plays a game; therefore, everybody can touch the ball, everybody can contribute."
  

  
  He's right. [D.C. Sports Bog]


• Haynesworth actually played pretty well against the Giants:
  

  
  Haynesworth played more than 70 percent of Washington's defense's snaps in the opener against the Giants, so it's hard to say that he was begging out of playing time. And when he was in there, he gave a good effort. Especially when it comes to pass rushing, it's pretty easy to tell when a player is out of gas and giving no effort. They can just stand at the line, move their feet a little bit and get in a stalemate with the offensive linemen.
  
  In watching Haynesworth's every snap against the Giants, I saw only one pass play where he took the play off and just stood up at the line. There was also one running play the other way where Haynesworth jogged in pursuit, instead of running at full speed. That's two snaps out of 45 plays. That's two more than you want to see, but it's not a bad effort for a 350-pounder.
  

  
  Good job, Haynesworth. [FanHouse]


• A Seahawks' blogger gives his take on the Rams and their struggles in Week 1 at Seattle. [Hogs Haven]


• Thomas Boswell says it's time to open up the offense. "But if not now, with the Rams and the Lions on deck, when?" he asks. Good point. [Washington Post]

Weekly Rundown: Citi Field, Andre Woodson, Guthrie

Weekly Rundown is a combination of links and brief comments on stories and topics that I couldn't get to during the week. If there's something important that I missed, don't hesitate to send an email or leave a comment.

• Thomas Boswell on the Orioles:
  

  
  After years of meddling, owner Peter Angelos has gotten out of the way. Now, if the front office spots a David Ortiz released by the Twins, his signing won't be nixed so David Segui can stay at first base. If the Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell trade is offered to the O's with Larry Bigbie the biggest piece Florida would get in return, no one will kill the idea and let the Red Sox jump on it.
  
  Now MacPhail decides. But how much can he spend? No one knows yet.
  
  "We need a big bopper in the middle of the order and a veteran starter to stabilize all our young pitchers," said one veteran Oriole.
  
  "Grow pitching. Buy bats," responded MacPhail.
  

  
  He also talks about how difficult it is for the O's to compete in the AL East. It's nothing new or surprising, but it's still a good read. [Washington Post]


• Citi Field, the Mets' stadium that hasn't even been open for a full season yet, is apparently falling apart. That's not good. [Bugs & Cranks]


• Here's what happened after Prince Fielder's game-winning home run against the Giants yesterday in the bottom of the 12th:
  
  
  
  
  I wouldn't be surprised if his teammates weren't acting -- Fielder may actually be that powerful. [Larry Brown Sports]


• John Feinstein on Daniel Snyder amid the whole "ticket scandal" thing:
  

  
  All of that said, a lot of people in this town have gotten pretty tired of Dan Snyder’s act. He’s owned the team for 10 years and, like any owner, would be forgiven pretty much anything if the team was winning. But after being a truly great franchise from 1982 to 1992, the Redskins have won two playoff games since Snyder bought the team. Every year he spends huge money on free agents because he loves having his picture taken with them and bragging about how rich he is to other owners and then, because all the team’s cap money is spent on a half-dozen players, the Redskins usually fold somewhere along the way when the inevitable injuries that hit every team hit them because they have no depth. Hearing Joe Gibbs talk about injuries during his four year return as coach almost moved people to tears. The Redskins, it appeared, were the only NFL team that EVER had an injured player.
  
  While Snyder has spent big money on big names, he has done everything in his power to make every possible dollar. Some call this good business; others call this ripping off a public that adores the team. He’s jammed more seats—many of them obstructed—into the stadium, upped prices every chance he gets, charged outrageous ($35) prices for parking and tried a few years ago to more or less blackmail club seat holders into renewing with years left on their contract at twice the price by threatening to raise prices even more if one didn’t renew instantly. A lot of people—I was one of them—didn’t take him up on it.
  
  At the same time that Snyder was paying $107 million for Albert Haynesworth this winter, he was laying off office employees. Again, fans will forgive that if Haynesworth produces and the Redskins win. Winning will get you forgiven for just about anything.
  

  
  Feinstein's right -- if the Redskins win, no one will care about the owner. However, it is getting a little tough to stomach his act of nickel-and-diming fans at every turn. [Feinstein on the Brink]


• Clinton Portis and John Riggins just can't get along. [Hogs Haven]


• A remote-control airplane interrupted a Diamondbacks-Dodgers game last Tuesday night. Matt Kemp on the airshow/distraction: "That was tight, I liked that." [Big League Stew]


• Dan Steinberg presents a rational assessment of the Redskins ticket controversy. [D.C. Sports Bog]


• Chase Daniel opted to join the New Orleans Saints' practice squad, so the Redskins have signed former Kentucky quarterback Andre Woodson. [Redskins Insider]


• Kelly Dwyer thinks that Gilbert Arenas is the top second-round draft pick of the last decade. [Ball Don't Lie]


• Jeremy Guthrie has been pretty good lately, and his performance yesterday -- seven shutout innings -- was no different. [Camden Crazies]

PFT's Florio gets bitter in defending Portis 'reporting'

I mentioned this post in Sunday's Weekly Rundown, but last Friday, Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk wrote that Clinton Portis and Jim Zorn weren't getting along in the team's recent OTA sessions. Florio included this quote from one unnamed source: "Portis totally has no regard for [Zorn] and thinks he’s above everyone." Florio then went on to include some comments made by John Riggins, who has obviously disliked Portis for a while now, in a rant he made on Portis in January.

Well, a couple of D.C. blogs weren't too happy with the post. On Friday afternoon, Hogs Haven posted a mocking write-up titled, "Multiple Source Confirm Mike Florio Is Clueless." Here's a sample:

I have had the opportunity to contact multiple sources, and they all advise me that Mike Florio has no idea what he is talking about. Does he ever come outside? Where does he get his sources? First he drops a completely unfounded rumor that LaRon Landry is asking to be traded. When we asked the Redskins Public Relations about the rumor, they responded that they had not heard of anything even remotely like that. Then LaRon himself denied that anything like that was going on.

Today he "reports" that Clinton Portis is creating a huge problem in Redskins camp. Again, we asked the Redskins, "What's going on?" We were told that this couldn't be further from the truth. In fact, it is a classic case of Florio manufacturing the news. He trotted a quote from Riggins that is about 6 months old, and the quote about Clinton thinking he is above everyone else smacks of a quote from last year as well. This is what NBC is paying for?

Over at Mr. Irrelevant, the Mottram brothers, already on tilt after Florio's Favre-to-the-Redskins speculation on Thursday, had a little barb aimed towards Florio in a links post this morning: "Florio does what Florio does, says Zorn has a problem with Portis."

Interestingly enough, the war of words didn't stop there; instead, Florio fired back earlier today at Portis and "some bloggers":

Redskins running back Clinton Portis has denied our recent report that he has demonstrated disrespect to coach Jim Zorn during offseason workouts.

"How this story came about, I have no idea," Portis told David Elfin of the Washington Times. "There's nothing going on. There's no beef between me and Coach Zorn. We're on good terms at this present moment. There's no problem."

Portis admitted that there was a past "flareup" with Zorn, but that it happened "a long time ago."

Portis also told Elfin that we (as in PFT) are trying to make trouble where none exists.

Clinton, we honestly don't give a [expletive]. We use the stuff we get that we think our readers will find interesting. And when a credible source tells us that you mouthed off to your head coach during offseason workouts and another credible source corroborates the notion that you have no regard for Zorn, then it's something we're going to share with our audience.

And we assume that Redskins fans (including some bloggers who lack the ability to be objective because they're more concerned about seeing their favorite team be successful than they are about getting to the truth) will blindly accept the version of the events being told by Portis and quarterback Jason Campbell and anyone else with a vested interest in keeping the team's dirty laundry in the locker room.

Ah yes, the blogger who couldn't get any respect from the mainstream media is now beginning to take shots at bloggers himself.

Here is Mr. Irrelevant's response:

Here’s the thing: We aren’t “blindly accepting” anything. We are accepting, for now, CP and Campbell’s version of the story because it is the more believable side. Florio’s Redskins speculation is inaccurate more often than not (he’s 0-3 this month), and there has not been one report — not even a whisper — from anywhere else that Portis has treated his head coach this offseason in the manner in which Florio’s source suggest. In fact, believing Florio’s report would be the very definition of blind acceptance — simply trusting that Florio’s unnamed informant knows something that has not been mentioned anywhere else.

Florio's speculation isn't anything new; it's something that his site came to be known for, and it's the reason why a lot of people read and will continue to read his NFL coverage. What's interesting to me is that he responded to criticism at all, dropping a rare S-bomb in the process. "Why so serious?"

In most cases, Florio would be right about blogs defending their team, but many Redskins fans already take shots at their team and how it's run -- I know I do. But in this case, if Florio can't provide definitive proof or list his sources, he looks like someone who's just trying to start some trouble. And if that was his goal, he succeeded.

Weekly Rundown: Arenas, Portis, Ryan Howard

Weekly Rundown is a combination of links and brief comments on stories and topics that I couldn't get to during the week. If there's something important that I missed, don't hesitate to send an email or leave a comment.

It's been a couple of weeks since I posted one of these, but here's what caught my eye during the last week or so:

• The Washington Post's Michael Lee provides some information on Gilbert Arenas's offseason workout plans:
  

  
  I never got the chance to run into Gilbert Arenas at the NBA Finals, but Washington Times reporter Mike Jones stumbled into him in the hallway during Game 4. Arenas told Jones that he plans on spending this summer working out with the famed trainer Tim Grover, who worked with Michael Jordan and helped Dwyane Wade resurrect his career last season and finish third in MVP voting behind LeBron James and Kobe Bryant.
  
  Although I didn't get Arenas, I did talk for a while with Grover, who was at every game working exclusively for Finals MVP Bryant. Grover told me that he expects Arenas to come to his Attacks Athletics facility in Chicago in about two weeks. Arenas has committed to coming and Grover said while he hasn't seen Arenas's medical records, he estimated that it will take at least a two month commitment for Arenas to get the necessary training required. He added that several stars overcoming left knee injuries, including Tracy McGrady and Jermaine O'Neal, are expected to be in Chicago this summer.
  

  
  Arenas working out with Grover certainly seems like great news. [Wizards Insider]


• The Detroit Tigers' Curtis Granderson weighs in with his thoughts on the buzz surrounding 16-year-old Bryce Harper and his decision to enroll in community college. And he makes a convincing argument. [Big League Stew]


• Mike Florio says that Clinton Portis is becoming a "major problem" for Jim Zorn and the Washington Redskins. Florio: "Multiple sources have advised us that Portis shows little or no respect to coach Jim Zorn, and that the situation bubbled over at least once during the team’s OTA sessions, with Portis telling the coach off in front of other players." If this is true, I'm sure it won't be the last time it's brought up before and/or during the season. [Pro Football Talk]


• Truth efficiently dismisses a couple of odd Wizards trade rumors. [Truth About It]


• Mike Jones of The Washington Times believes the Minnesota T'Wolves may want the Wizards' No. 5 pick:
  

  
  According to one insider, the Timberwolves (who already have the sixth, 18th and 28th picks in the draft) disparately want to move up in order to land UConn big man Hasheem Thabeet. Another report has them badly wanting Rubio. Either way, the T'Wolves are said to be craving Memphis' No. 2 pick, but believe to land it, they need to offer two top-six picks in the draft. Enter the Wizards.
  
  Minnesota reportedly has been working the phones nonstop and of all the teams in the league they're talking to, they've been in speaking with the Wizards the most. Some of the pieces Minnesota is believed to be offering up are swingman Mike Miller, who has a $9.75 million expiring contract, guard Randy Foye, the expiring contracts of Brian Cardinal ($6.75 million) and Mark Madsen ($3.6 million) and possibly the 18th and/or 28th picks.
  

  
  I still think the Wizards will trade the pick, though I have no idea what exactly they'd be targeting. But even if Miller isn't the best defensive player, he would provide the Wizards with a consistent threat from three-point range. [Outlet]


• Mike Prada tries to discover the best possible match(es) for Arenas in the backcourt. [Bullets Forever]


• Peter Schmuck does his best to defend Dave Trembley's decision to let Danys Baez pitch to Ryan Howard last night. Howard hit a three-run homer, but the Orioles fought back to earn an impressive win. Still, I disagree with Schmuck. If the Orioles were going to pitch to Howard at all, they should have done so with their best left-handed reliever: George Sherrill. Sure, Sherrill's the closer, but the Orioles don't have a better left hander in the bullpen right now. If Trembley wanted to challenge Howard at all, Sherrill should have been the guy -- not Baez. Just take a look at Howard's splits against RHPs (.299, 17 HR, 1.080 OPS) and LHPs (.194, 3 HR, .615 OPS). It's some outside-the-box thinking, but as important as that moment was, Howard should have either been facing Sherrill or put on base. [The Schmuck Stops Here]


• Rob Neyer discusses the high number of rookie starters this year. [SweetSpot]


• Rick Dempsey, shockingly enough, believes it may be time for the Orioles to start pursuing some trades. That doesn't mean he'd be OK with the O's trading Gregg Zaun, though. [MASN]


• Finally, Andy MacPhail says the Orioles are not in "salary dump mode." [Baltimore Sun]

Portis is not pleased

Remember when the Redskins were 6-2 halfway through the season? Remember when Clinton Portis was one of the frontrunners for league MVP?

Those days sure seem like a long time ago.

Following a Week 8 win at Detroit, the Redskins have dropped four of five games to fall to 7-6. Washington will need to win its last three games over the Bengals, Eagles, and 49ers to have a chance to make the playoffs, and even then a wild card spot may not be guaranteed.

To make matters worse, head coach Jim Zorn apparently has issues with Portis's lack of practice time during the last few weeks, which allegedly resulted in Portis's benching in the second half of the Redskins' loss against the Ravens on Sunday.

Portis, who was interviewed today on the John Thompson show, obviously wasn't happy with the situation. He also had no problem voicing his frustration.

"If they need to cut ties with me, cut ties with me," he said. "It is what it is, bro."

Later in the interview, Portis added, "Maybe I'm the problem. Maybe I should go on IR."

He even managed to drop an S-bomb during the live show, which caught Thompson off guard.

I don't understand what Zorn is trying to do with Portis. Is he trying to send some kind of message or something? The problem can't really be the lack of practice time because then other players like London Fletcher and Chris Samuels would also have been benched against the Ravens. And if missing practice last week was such a big deal, why did Portis even play in the first half?

It's bad enough that the Redskins have looked so terrible (mainly on offense) these last several weeks; now the team's best player is under attack even though he's one of the hardest working guys on the team.

I've never heard of a situation off the field where Portis is missing meetings, showing up late, or not being prepared for game day. Whatever is going on, it doesn't sound like it's going to end well.

(For more, check out the D.C. Sports Bog.)

Redskins defense shines in first half

The Redskins offense ranks seventh in the NFL in yards per game at 364.3 but is scoring just 20.6 points per game, 23rd in the league. In 2007, the Redskins scored a few more points, 20.9 per game (t-18th), but gained around 31 fewer yards per game (333.4, 15th). Keep in mind, this is the team's first year in Jim Zorn's new offense, and the team is scoring just about the same amount of points and is gaining more yards. With Jason Campbell continuing to take care of the ball, Clinton Portis putting up MVP numbers, and Santana Moss having a solid season, the Redskins offense should keep improving each week.

However, though the offense appears to be in good shape, the defense has actually been the key to an impressive 6-2 start. The defense is 8th in scoring (18.1), 6th in total yards (278.1), 5th in rushing yards allowed per game (82.8), and 11th in passing yards allowed per game (195.4) -- all solid numbers, but let's examine those numbers further.

Here are the points and yards allowed by the defense in the first eight games of the season, followed by that team's current NFL ranks in both categories:

Game 1 vs. Giants: 16 points, 354 yards -- 6th in scoring (27.3), 3rd in yards (378.9)
Game 2 vs. Saints: 24 points, 250 yards -- 7th in scoring (27.0), 1st in yards (403.1)
Game 3 vs. Cardinals: 17 points, 313 yards -- 1st in scoring (28.6), 5th in yards (369.3)
Game 4 vs. Cowboys: 24 points, 344 yards -- 10th in scoring (25.3), 6th in yards (365.5)
Game 5 vs. Eagles: 17 points, 254 yards -- t-4th in scoring (27.7), 8th in yards (361.1)
Game 6 vs. Rams: 19 points, 200 yards -- 29th in scoring (16.0), 28th in yards (267.1)
Game 7 vs. Browns: 11 points, 236 yards -- 27th in scoring (16.4), 30th in yards (265.7)
Game 8 vs. Lions: 17 points, 274 yards -- 28th in scoring (16.3), 29th in yards (266.3)

To summarize, the defense held five of the NFL's top 10 scoring offenses below their season averages in points and yards per game despite ranking 28th in sacks (10) and forcing only 8 turnovers (only Detroit and Seattle have fewer in the NFC). Also, the defense performed even better than the numbers indicate; the Saints' Reggie Bush returned a punt for a touchdown in Week 2, the Eagles' DeSean Jackson returned a punt for a touchdown in Week 5, and the Rams defense recovered a fumble and returned it for a touchdown in Week 6. Those three plays account for 21 points that the defense did not allow.

Intriguingly, the defense has faced a Cardinals offense with a healthy Anquan Boldin, a Cowboys offense with a healthy Tony Romo, and an Eagles offense with a partially healthy Brian Westbrook; all three players have missed several games for their respective teams.

If Shawn Springs and Jason Taylor are able to get healthy after the team's bye week (Week 10), it's scary to think exactly how strong the defense could finish the season.

Most of the credit, so far, goes to: Defensive Coordinator Greg Blache, DE Andre Carter, DT Cornelius Griffin, MLB London Fletcher, CB Carlos Rogers, CB Fred Smoot, S Chris Horton (fourth-to-last pick in the 2008 Draft), S Laron Landry, and LB Rocky McIntosh. Horton may be the early favorite for NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year, and a much-improved Rogers could be the NFL Comeback Player of the Year after recovering from a torn ACL and MCL.