MVN - Most Valuable Network

Redskins Looking Good

The score said otherwise, but the Washington Redskins looked good when it counted.

Jason Campbell led the first team 70 yards to a touchdown on the opening drive. Campbell was five for five on the drive, with his last pass a 23 yard scoring strike to Antwaan Randle El, who seems to have held off Brandon Lloyd as the number two wide receiver.

Rock Cartwright opened the series at running back. He rumbled for 16 yards on his first carry and ended the night with 21 yards on three carries.

Mark Brunell saved his best preseason performance for Jacksonville where he was the face of the Jaguars franchise in the Nineties. He went 5 of 6 for the night for 46 yards and a touchdown pass to WR Ryan Hoag, who played for little Gustavus Adolphus in St. Paul, MN.

Rookie RB Marcus Mason’s performance will give the coaches a sleepless night with his strong bid to make the active roster. The Potomac, MD native gained 54 yards on 12 carries in the first half. His longest was a 25 yard second quarter burst. Mason averaged 24 yards on his two kick-off returns. Give this man a job, people!

The Redskins two scoring drives went for 146 combined yards and consumed 8:46 of the game clock.

Defensive starters effective

The starting defense brought pressure to hamper Jacksonville’s scoring chances in the first quarter. The Jags were forced to punt in their first series after being held to eight yards. They gained two first downs in their second series before David Macklin’s sack ended the effort.

On their third drive, Jacksonville drove from their 20 to Washington’s 33. The drive stalled when Jacksonville could not convert a third and three to a first down. They kicked a field goal to make the score 7-3 Redskins.

A defensive gaff allowed for the Jaguars first touchdown. On fourth and seven with :44 left in the fourth quarter, a misplayed tackle by Bryant Westbrook gave Jags receiver Reggie Williams an open field to the end zone after he snagged Quinn Gray’s pass. The 40 yard play closed the half with the score Redskins 14, Jaguars 10.

The Redskins held a slight time-of-possession advantage at half-time. Yardage for both teams were near even.

With starters done by half time, the Jaguars took control with a rushing touchdown by LaBrandon Toefield and a TD reception by Isaac Smolko. Roy Manning intercepted a Jordan Palmer pass and returned it 27 yards for a score. The game ended Jaguars 31, Redskins 14.

Report Card

The Redskins improved on offense averaging 3.7 yards per carry on the ground. The quarterbacks completed 63 percent of their passes. Jason Campbell and Mark Brunell combined for 10 of 11 completions and two TD passes.

The defense made one sack. They did not force a turnover, but preserved the lead at halftime.

Winning the third down battle remains a team issue.

The Jaguars rested 19 of their starters according to published reports.

Redskins Preseason Report Card:

BENCHMARK	TITANS	STEELERS	RAVENS	JAGUARS
Yards/Rush 4.5	2.8	1.9	2.5	3.7
Gross Yards/Completion 9.0	17.9	8.7	11.0	8.6
Completion 60%	53.6	63.6	47.0	63.1
TD:INT 2:1	0:0	1:1	0:0	2:1
Offensive TDs	1	1	0	2
TOP 30 Min	28:22	30:39	15:08	23:47
3rd Down Conversions	40% -	46.7% +	0% -	33.0% -
Defensive Disruption	0	1	1	1

Notes: Campbell and Brunell completed 91.7 percent of their passes and averaged 9.2 gross yards per completion. Defensive disruptions are sacks, interceptions and forced fumbles.

For the Jacksonville perspective, go to Jaguars Journalon mvn.com.
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Brunell leaving?

After the game WTOP-9 TV reported reliable sources who claimed the Redskins were close to completing a trade of QB Mark Brunell to the Seattle Seahawks for a draft pick. Brunell is said to be in favor of the deal.

Brunell renegotiated his contract downward this year, reflecting his status as a back-up. He played for the University of Washington Huskies and has family in Washington State, so the move to the other Washington would be something of a homecoming.

Although he enjoyed the staunch support of Joe Gibbs, Brunell was never a fan favorite, with many attributing last season’s collapse to him [rather than to the defense where it belongs].

The deal, if it happens, is supposed to be concluded in a few days.

Elfin: Redskins believe progress was made.

This entry was posted on Friday, August 31st, 2007 at 2:32 am and is filed under Redskins, Washington Redskins. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.