And as long as I’m already a star on more than one site, I should tell you that I did this week’s power rankings on our Fan Sided mainsite.  You can find those here.

Finally, for those who missed me on Finsnet Radio a few weeks ago can find me on the 7/22 archives here.

Yes, there really is nothing here for you, and I’m just totally telling you to do the work and find stuff I did.  Sue me.  At least I don’t want to legally change my name to Ocho Cinco. As long as Chad Johnson exists, I look humble.

-DW

The best part of the new series is that EA has become aware that the game has gotten complicated enough that it is not particularly accessible to the new player.  To help this, they have created the Madden Trainer.  Long time players will note that the Madden trainer is really just replacing the old minigames, but first time players will likely feel more comfortable with the hand holding and the helpful button pushing suggestions that will allow you to learn to incorporate spins and jukes a little faster into your game.  I’ve been playing Madden for at least 15 years, and I found it helped me a little bit with incorporating some of the moves that came late to the party because I had been relying on my old moves.  For instance, I hadn’t really incoprated the truck stick into my play because the juke had been around so much longer. It wasn’t that I didn’t use it, but I wasn’t using it very effectively.

Another helpful addition for new players is the Madden Rewind.  This is a fabulous new feature.  How many times have you had your deep receiver wide open and missed it until right after you tap the button for the 8 yard hitch?  Or how many times have you tried to throw to your x receiver and hit the y button by mistake and thrown an INT? Well, the Madden Rewind will allow you to “take back” those mistakes and run the play again. Depending on your settings you can have between 5 and 0 do overs (so for you purists, just turn it off) and this is great for the new player, particularly the casual new player. If you make a mistake in the game, when is the next time you are going to get a chance to practice that very situation?  You are likely going to wait a long time and then make the same mistake again.  This allows you to iron it out right there and then.  But beware, just because the WR was wide open on the last play doesn’t mean he’ll be open the next time.  The defense will react like it is an entirely new play.

Another great new feature for newbies is the Madden Backtrack.  Backtrack will show you plays where you screwed up like TV commentators do with the telestrator.  They’ll run a replay and show you what you did and what you should have done, usually showing you the wide open receiver you missed.  While this is a great teaching tool, I found it was actually infuriating after just a few times.  Not only does it only show you when you suck (an already rude thing), but it also points out flaws in the game. I was playing a game last night where my TE had an option route.  From reading the defense, it was obvious to me, that the TE was going to run a post and be wide open down the middle.  Cooley (who would never make the mistake in real life) decided to cut it off into an in route right by the MLB.  But of course, silly me, I had read the defense (a cover 2 with the safeties going to the sidelines because I had Moss and Randle El going deep down the sidelines) and knew we had a big play from the post and like the vet I am, I was already pushing the button for the lob throw up the middle for the big gain just as Cooley breaks off his route.  INT to the MLB.  Worse yet, backtrack is trying to tell me that I “didn’t see the MLB” and should have dumped it off to Portis. Now, I can accept the defensive read issue because a) I know the AI isn’t always perfect and b) it could be simulating Cooley’s lack of “awareness” or something.  But knowing I didn’t screw up and then being told by a computer that I did was pretty annoying.  Similar things have happened where I have thrown an INT because QB accuracy was a problem and they blamed it on me.  One especially annoying long pass was where I threw to a wide open Devin Thomas and the ball missed by a good 15 yards and was lambasted by Chris Collinsworth.  I think Collinsworth is the best commentator in the business today, but his voice is especially annoying when he’s telling you that you suck.

One addition that was designed to help the newbie that is just plain terrible is the Madden IQ.  Madden IQ is designed to give you a custom difficulty level based on your ability, and it changes as you play games so that it is constantly adjusting to you.  This is an especially good thing for when two players of different ability levels play.  The settings can be adjusted so they can play against each other.  The problem is that the original Madden IQ is based on your ability to perform certain drills. I was ranked All-Madden in both running and passing.  The thing is, I have a two year old.  I’m not really an All-Madden level player anymore.  I’m more of an all-pro level player, but the drills are easier than the game.  In fact the rushing drill is ridiculously easy.  They put the button you need to beat the defensive player over the head of tackler.  Essentially, it becomes a quick game of guitar hero.  I really defy any 12 year old not to get a perfect score on this even if they’ve never played Madden.  So, I fire up my first game and the defense I’m playing against is all-Madden level.  Every time I run, I hit the right hole and get immediately tackled for two yards.  I know that really good Madden players know how to do better than that.  But I am an above average Madden player at best at this point, and the game thinks I’m great.  So the first game out of the box, I threw 4 INTs in 20 minutes. My advice to players that don’t play at All-Madden level–tank the Madden Test.  If not, you’ll spend the first few weeks you own the game waiting for your Madden IQ to drop from continually being beaten.

There are other big problems with the game.  I think game play is very chunky.  Though to be fair, I’m a long time fan of the NCAA series.  The noticeable difference between the series is the ratio of player size to field size.  NCAA tries to make a wide open game to simulate the stretch offense.  Madden feels crowded in comparison and less fun.   Running outside seems much more difficult, and short passes rarely lead to YAC.  Now, I’m not saying All-Madden players, or maybe even Madden fans that never play NCAA, will necessarily agree with me.  But when you go from one to the other, the difference is startling.  And I prefer the matchup-based, wide-open game of NCAA.  Either way, I definitely know that the controls are much smoother in NCAA.  I don’t understand why the two don’t share an engine, but they clearly don’t seem to.

Another flaw is the commentary.  I’m happy it is back.  I really didn’t like the first next gen versions of the game that only had the PA announcer.  But the problem is that the commentary gets repetitive very quickly.  By my third game, I was hearing tons of repeat lines. I recognize that this is a very tedious part of the game development.  The recording and programming process must be very time intensive.  Still, what amazes me is that they have nearly 20 years of recording to draw from.  It seems like if you took some of the old accumulated files (to be fair, Madden is not a commentator in this game, but I just don’t see why he isn’t) and added them year after year, you’d have a really big set of options.  In any case, kudos to EA for bringing it back, but man, they really don’t do a very good job at it yet.

EA did add a nice touch to the game that is also part of the NCAA series now.  As a game is loading between two division rivals, the history of the rivalry shows up on the screen.  When the game is loaded, Madden comes on to talk about the stadium, the weather, and what kind of matchup we can expect.  The way they do it this time is exciting and definitely makes me ready to play the game. And speaking of rivalrys, when you play one of your three team rivals, the playoffs, or the Super Bowl, the difficulty level goes up a notch.  I like this, though it is rather annoying it if it means you go 10-6 and lose twice to the Eagles, Giants, and Cowboys.

As for the Skins themselves, EA has given them a fair amount of respect.  We are ranked 89 out of a possible 100 and so are the Giants.  I did not see what the Cowboys or Eagles are ranked, but I was amused to see the Cardinals are ranked 88. I expect the first mid-season roster update will change that.  At any rate, they definitely upgraded Campbell who was only in the 70’s last year, and he is now very playable.  The defense does not yet have Jason Taylor (ranked 98!) on it, and the Madden AI was not as willing to take a 2nd rounder for him as the Dolphins were.  Of course, that can be changed by force, and when the special Favre download is available, I’m sure we will get Taylor, too.

Overall, the game is fine.  There are improvements.  They really made an effort to help the new gamer, but honestly, I popped in ‘08 and didn’t see particularly big difference between the two in game play.  Most of the changes were in presentation. If you own ‘08, I just don’t see much of a reason to own ‘09 unless you have friends who will make fun of you or you plan on trying the new online leagues which should rock. If you are new to the franchise and have been thinking of jumping in, this is definitely the year to do it.  Jump in the pool, the water is fine.

Anyone out there playing it?  What do you think?

-DW

QBs (carrying 3)- Campbell and Collins are locks.  Colt Brennan has demonstrated enough talent that he is not being released either.

RBs (carrying 5)-Portis, Betts, Sellers, and Cartwright are locks.  Marcus Mason or Nemo Broughton will be the 5th depending on whether we decide to carry two FB’s.  Mason has also put enough on film that I can’t imagine even with the fumble that he’d pass wiavers so Nemo is the guy who gets cut. Sellers gets hurt, we can always call Broughton back in.

WRs (carrying 6)- Moss, Randle El, Thomas, Kelly, and Thrash (for special teams at least) should all be locks.  Billy McMullen has had a great camp and with Anthony Mix’s injury, he’s likely going to be the 6th.

TEs (carrying 3)- Colley, Fred Davis, and Todd Yoder seem obvious in the least suspenseful camp battle.

O-line (carrying 9)- Samuels, Jansen, Thomas, Kendall and Rabach are obvious.  Heyer and Rhinehart seem locks as well. Andrew Crummey is the backup center but if Rhinehart or long snapper Ethan Albright or someone can prove to be an emergency center, he likely won’t make the team.  Wade and Fabini also have done enough to make the team.  Depth has definitely improved here.

DE (carrying 5)- Jason Taylor, Andre Carter, Erasmus James and Demetric Evans are locks. Chris Wilson gets in if James looks like he’s not going to be healthy right away. I’m guessing he will.

DT (carrying 4)- Cornelius Griffin, Lorenzo Alexander, Anthony Montgomery, and Kedric Golston are locks.

LBs (carrying 6)- Washington, McIntosh, Fletcher, Blades and Campbell are locks.  Matt Sinclair seems to be getting enough time with the new defensive headset that he looks good. No one else has really stepped up in a position that is thin for us.  Ideally, one more LB would have stepped forward at least for special teams.  Don’t be surprised if we bring in a camp cut from another team.

CBs (Carrying 5) Springs, Rogers, Smoot, and Torrence are locks.  Tryon looks like he’s done enough and Westbrook should be the odd man out. Again, we’re a little thin here.  It would shock me if we brought in a cut or kept Westbrook at the expense of lineman either side of the ball.

Safeties (carrying 5)- Landry and Doughty are locks.  Veronon Fox hasn’t been on the field much because of an excused absence but is likely to make the team as a veteran.  Rookie safeties Kareem Moore and Chris Horton also look like they should be OK even if one has to go to the practice squad at first.

Specialists- Shuisham is the kicker. Ethan Albright is the long snapper and will likely be the emergency center that prevents Crummey from making the team. The punter battle is close and is likely to come down to which is the better holder.  My bet will be on rookie Durant Brooks because he has that new kicker smell.

Last cuts- Byron Westbrook, Derrick Frost, Nemo Broughton, Andrew Crummey, and Anthony Mix.

Comments?  Anyone getting cut you’d hate to see go?  Think I’m nuts?  Comment below.  Hail Skins!

-DW

There isn’t a ton of stuff to say about this other than “thank god.”  Thomas needs to be on that field to learn the offense and contribute.  As it is, with the extra preseason game, he still has three games to prepare. 

I don’t expect Erasmus James to play until the 5th preseason game while he rounds into shape, and really I don’t want Laron to play much, but I know he’ll have to because we’re a bit thin there.

At any rate, the roster is rounding in to shape nicely.  Assuming Wade and Heyer get over their minor injuries shortly, this is a roster that has gone from tons of injuries to being relatively healthy. If we can carry this in to the season, it will bode well for us.

-DW

Our thoughts and prayers also go out to the Yoder family.  It was reported in the same article that Todd was excused from practice on Monday to attend the funeral of his grandmother. Todd has been a real gamer for us, and I’m sure a ton of that came from his grandmother.

Sorry for the downer post, but just like with Sean Taylor’s death last year, I think it is important all of this is handled by the family.  And unlike most teams, I really do think Redskins players, coaches, and fans really are a family. Hail Skins! Hail Joe and Todd!

-DW

- Another big mo game.  I’ll keep saying it every time even if we go 5-0 in the preseason, pre-season means nothing.  The old Gibbs teams almost never had a good year in preseason the years we won the Super Bowl. But for this team, this coach, this offense, winning is way better than losing.  I haven’t heard anyone on TV say, “Zorn hasn’t even called plays before.  There is no reason to assume he’s ready for this,” since the HoF game.  Zorn has proven to be remarkably organized, energetic, and intelligent.  He’s great with the media.  The momentum we get from winning these games is media momentum and player confidence momentum.  It won’t help us beat the Giants in the opener (but we’ll do that anyway), but it will help Coach Zorn and the players relax and that will help the organization as a whole.

- Clinton Portis looks primed for a great year.  He looks a little bigger, but with no loss of speed or acceleration.  His numbers were artificially lowered by the goal line series where he ran the ball 4 times for 2 yards.  Mike Patrick made an astute comment about the first run on that series.  You might remember Portis took the ball over LT and burst into the hole.  The Bills filled that gap and stopped Portis at the one. Patrick mentioned that Portis clearly wasn’t interested in giving himself up on that play and instead protected himself and allowed himself to be tackled.  In the regular season, he’s have twisted or pushed or made some sort of move and made the TD.  Portis did exactly what he should have done, and that’s great.  I’m getting ready to predict that Portis might break the Skins single season TD record. Oh, and how about that block on the blitz pickup that allowed Randle El to break free on that drag route that went for 20?  He absolutely stoned the LB he was blocking and then ran to the sidelines pumping his fist.  He’s ready.

-Todd Collins looked a little more comfortable, but I still didn’t like what he looked like throwing on the run.  It is too early to tell for sure, but it seems one of the wrinkles that Zorn is throwing into the West Coast offense, is a series of short waggles.  Colt Brennan ran a lot of plays where he’d move the pocket a few feet left or right to open up the short pass to TEs or RBs and Collins seemed to run two that went badly.  I can’t recall Campbell doing it though, so it is possible this is happy feet rather than a wrinkle.  If it is happy feet, I’d like to lobby to Zorn that we start making it a real wrinkle. I think it has worked well.

-Again, we came out relatively injury free.  I feel bad for Anthony Mix who hurt his ribs because it probably means he’s back on the practice squad with Billy McMullen playing so well and Thrash being so key on special teams.  Randle El’s arm injury is minor as well.

-And let’s give the Fed Ex crowd some serious props.  They were in regular season form on Saturday.  They were so loud they were the obvious cause of one (if not two) false starts and a TO being wasted by the Bills in the 1st quarter alone. Let’s keep that up all season people.  Let’s make Fed Ex feel like RFK used to.  Can we make it sway and move like RFK did?  I think we can!

-This seems nitpicky considering his numbers so far in preseason, but it should be pointed out that in 2 out of 3 of Campbell’s incomplete passes, they were his fault.  He double clutched and threw behind the receiver.  I don’t bring this out as a knock on Campbell.  He is clearly a more confident and accurate QB than ever.  I point this out to show how excellent Jim Zorn’s play calling is.  One of the misses for Campbell was a 3rd and 4 slant to Moss where Moss was open for the first down.  This team easily could have scored again on the first drive when Campbell works out the timing and confidence the few times it falters.

- Jon Jansen had his second relatively poor game.  I’m not trying to get on the guy.  He’s been great for us for nearly a decade and he has to be rustier than the Tin Man.  But it might be time for this team and our fans to consider that the accumulated effect of injuries over the last two years might be finally taking their toll.  Given how good a game Chad Rhinehart played at tackle, I hope the Skins are willing to make the tough choice there if it comes to it.  Obviously, the next three games should be for Jansen to get back into game shape.  I don’t want to take anything away from a true Redskin, but I’d hate to see him struggle if he’s not right either.

OK, plenty for now. Come back later today for my post on the first annual Fan-Sided blogs fantasy draft.  You’ll get a chance to mock me terribly for my picks.  Who doesn’t want to do that? Hail Skins!

-DW

We can also expect to see Anthony Montgomery who is back from his broken hand. Others we can expect to see in action for the first time include Ladell Betts and London Fletcher.

And now for the obligatory “what to watch for” section:

1) No injuries.  This is the only thing that really matters.  We escaped well from the HoF game with only minor injuries to Wade and Heyer.

2) The continued crispness of the offense. We can’t actually expect that every team will let us start on their own half of the 50 so it is time to see if the first string offense can go 80 yards for a TD.  The second series looked great last game until Jansen and Samuels allowed simultaneous sacks. Stuff happens.  Let’s see what we do when stuff doesn’t happen.

3) The rookies. Colt, Horton, Rhinehart, and Jackson looked great in the game.  Fred Davis is making a good second impression now that he bought himself an alarm clock and hopefully we’ll see an expanded role for him.  Kareem Moore has rebounded from early knee problems and is getting rave reviews.  It would be nice if Moore and Horton provide cheap and long term answers to the post-Sean Taylor crisis.

4) Jason Taylor. I know, we can’t expect an immediate impact, but is it too much to ask to see him sack Trent Edwards in the first series?  Probably, but I’d love to watch it anyway.

Other things to expect:

1) With Heyer and Wade hurt, expect to see Samuels and Jansen get a little more work.  Also expect to see Chad Rhinehart play a bit at tackle after playing mostly guard in the HoF game.

2) The defense should look much better this week.  Not only are we playing a weaker offense, but one predicated on the running game.  The depleted seconadry won’t be quite as easy to ravage.  But don’t expect Blatche to be any easier on him.  He’s a tougher, more vocal guy than Gregg Williams was.

3) A win.  A big win. 

For those who don’t know the Bills that well, let me give you a little preview. If you know the offense the Redskin ran in the first Gibbs tenure, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how familiar the Bills are.  They lead the league last year in 2 TE formations and ran almost exclusively without a FB.  When not using 2 TE’s, they were using three receiver sets very similar to those used by the Doug William’s era of the Gibbs tenure. They are a conservative offense that ran 57% on first down, near the top of the league and ran more screen passes than any other team in the league, more than twice the league average.

Marshawn Lynch and Trent Edwards were at the head of the second straight good Bills rookie class.  Lynch, a power runner in the mold of his predecessor Willis McGahee is a decent, but little used threat out of the backfield.  Look for Fred Jackson, an undrafted free agent rookie last year, to take most of the screens and dumps.  They use him as a change of pace back. An interesting aspect to the Bills running game is that they stay in it even when behind in the second half.  They rely heavily on the concept that they will wear down the D. And some of their success against us last year in the infamous timeout game was linked directly to that.

Edwards was considered an accurate but weak-armed system type QB during the draft.  But he provides the stability and confidence missing during the “JP Losman era.”  Losman had a higher completion rate, yards per catch, and was mobile in the pocket.  But in a hundred fewer plays from scrimmage he threw 6 INTs to Edward’s 8.  The INT’s were apparently enough to bench Losman.

Lee Evans is a bona fide threat at WR, but is not the type of player than can break double teams consistently.  To take the pressure off of Evans, the Bills drafted James Hardy, a player often linked to the Skins.  Hardy is tall and relatively polished, but he pointed a gun at his own dad this offseason. Not a great start. The other receives, Roscoe Parrish and Josh Reed fit better as 3rd and 4th options and will work well if Hardy is ready to shoulder a full load.

On defense, the Bills are a disaster.  They were a very vanilla defense that lacked any discernible pass rush last year.  They were behind only the Dolphins for worst defense against 3 receiver sets.  They have added aging substance abuser Marcus Stroud and one dimensional Kawika Mitchell who could create some push, but the bigger addition might be top pick Leodis McKelvin who might shore up the pass defense. Still, this team isn’t a real threat this year.  But look out next year or the year after.

I’d be disappointed not to come out of the first three series with a TD and a FG.  Still, the Bills are exactly the kind of team that can get you in the preseason.  They draft well and have a great wealth of young talent.  They’ve got two QB’s that belong in the NFL, and because they are young and have lots of players fighting for playing time, they are far more likely to play like they care than the Colts did. So, overall, expect us to win, but don’t be too shocked or disappointed if their young and hungry talent plays harder than our veterans and pulls out the score in the end.

-DW

Well, I have several key sources that have provided me with that card.  The interesting thing is that each source found a different card.  You decide which one is right:

Source 1

1. Show up wearing skin tight clothes. 2. Listen to women chant my name. 3. Flex.  4. Wait a week to practice.

Source 2

1. Learn to dance. 2. Get traded to captial of the free world. 3. Take over the world with my awesome moves. 4. Make Edyta my queen.

Source 3

1. Teach teammates to dance.  2. Convince Portis that he should share his costumes. 3. Get Cooley to trim his beard to look like Joey Fatone.  4. Form new boy band called “Fourskins.”

Anyone who happens to know Taylor personally and wants to prove my “sources” wrong, feel free to tell me about it in the comment section.

-DW

For anyone who missed the earlier posts, you can find all the details here. We’re going to be trying to cover the event this weekend.  Come back to hear about the fun.

-DW

Of course, that is, those who play at all.  The mothership has a quote from Clinton Portis that is understandable and a bit telling, “I don’t feel the need, but if coaches want to see me [play in a game], I’m all for it.” In other words, expect to see CP in for one series against the Jags or not at all.  Portis’s injury history in the preseason is part of the reason, but I have to say given that there are new blocking schemes and a huge amount of responsibility in the short passing game for the RB in this offense, I think it behooves the Skins to get him in there.  What is Campbell supposed to do when he builds rhythm with Betts and Cartwright and Mason and then Portis steps onto the field and blows an assignment or ends up in a slightly different spot on the field?  The West Coast Offense is about throwing to spots on the field in timing.  I know there’s practice, but I hope the coaches push Portis on the field a bit.

So back to Taylor.  I’m honestly not sure what to expect from Taylor.  He looks in great shape and I suspect that there is a pretty large package of defensive plays where all he has to do is go up field and go after the QB. At the same time, what seperates Taylor from your average DE is how he can move around the field and chase plays down.  He’s particularly good at sniffing out the screen play and using his hide to disrupt it which is great considering how good the Eagles and Giants are with screen plays. Are those instincts intact or whill he question himself in a new defense?  Does he have the speed he had when he was younger?  I’m looking forward to finding out. A good game from him will show that at least when managed well, he has the ability to disrupt a game.  But don’t assume if he has a poor game that he is washed up.  Even at DE there is a transition period.

Here’s hoping Taylor and Fletcher shore up a defense that Greg Blatche said, “stunk like 3 day old fish.” Hail Skins!

-DW