Our run game is well underway to being fixed. The addition of Duane Brown proved to make the difference we were hoping for, with gaps finally appearing where there have been none for our RBs in such a long time.
All our running backs started racking up yards on Sunday, why in God’s name we abandoned the run game and went with all those crazy play calls that leave no running threat in the back field, signaling a pass play, baffles the heck out of me. I know Russell will run his ass off on those plays and pick up some running yards that way, but why put him in that predicament repeatedly when we don’t have to and when it will ultimately result in him getting injured again.
Rawls is our guy, he’s back at a 100% and running smart and aggressively when the O-line gives him a lane to run thru. The key to beating the Redskins on Sunday was sticking to our run game, which was there for us to succeed with. Dallas did it a week before, passing for only 150 yards, and running it the rest of the time, and made it look easy doing it.
Why in God’s name Darrell and Pete insisted on trying to win this one the hardest way humanly possible, and handing the Redskins their best and only hope of beating us, by reverting to a passing game, will leave me scratching my head for awhile. I throw Pete under the bus on this one because he is the only one who can step in and ask Bevell to change direction in his play calling when it’s obviously not working.
Blaming Russell was wrong of him in my opinion, he knew going in that the Redskins strong suit was their pass defense, and that at best we would struggle against them, and would constantly be at risk of committing turnovers, which we did. There are times when Pete needs to step up and take the bull by the horn, it’s his team, and his job that will be on the line if days like this one occur very often.
The coaches and more importantly the offensive play calling strategy in this game cost us what should have been an easy win. It’s Pete’s job to recognize when they have chosen to pursue a strategy that won’t work, and shift gears while there is still time. Insisting on trying to force the passing game damn the torpedoes cost us in this one. I really hope the next time this sort of thing occurs he has the sense and the courage to step up and take control.
If I’m fact he truly believed that Russell was irratic and out of sync yesterday, and that was the problem, then pull his ass off the field and put Davis in. Pete is no dummy, he is the smartest coach in the NFL, hands down. He knew that Russell was not the problem or solution in this game, he threw Russell under the bus to try and cover for Darrell’s failed strategy. Maybe him and Russell agreed to that sacrifice before stepping up to the post game mic.
Bevells play calling, and abandonment of a working running game was what cost us this one. The 3 missed Field Goals didn’t help any either, that’s another thread in itself. Walsh is going to cost us big this season if he can’t fix whatever it is that keeps happening with him. I’m ready to throw him overboard and sign some undrafted out there wasting his talent as a cashier at a 7-11 or something. They would have to be pretty terrible to play worse than Walsh has this year for us. God I hate to admit it, my wife is right, we should have kept Houschka lol.
Also as a final thought, I think we need to give Ifedie some slack, he’s a rookie still and he has a connection with Duane Brown, who I believe will have a profound affect on his development. I think Ifedie will come around pretty quickly and prove to be one of our better acquisitions by seasons end.
Go Seahawks!