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Dan Patrick Show Chris Mortensen recaps some of the highlights from Week 3 in the NFL.wav: 1659 k Real: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 Dan Patrick Show Chris Mortensen makes his predictions for Monday Night Football.wav: 707 k Real: 14.4 | 28.8 | 56.6 | ||
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Chris Mortensen archive: columns Mort's Mailbag: Sept. 14 | ||
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Week 3 review: Whither the Redskins? |
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Here's my quick review of everything we saw in Week 3: Cowboys 27, Redskins 21: There are two striking impressions from the Cowboys' stunning win over the Redskins on Monday night. One, the Cowboys don't win the game with Troy Aikman at quarterback. Two, the Redskins are woefully average in skill talent on the offensive side of the football. Maybe even below average. It may be why they have to bench Brad Johnson and play Jeff George. Randall Cunningham, God bless him, really is a marvel to watch. His athleticism was so pivotal in making key plays for the Cowboys. He still has great mobility, flexibility and one of the strongest arms in the game. The pass rush that so paralyzed Aikman in the opener against Philadelphia was merely an opportunity for Cunningham to display his skills against the Redskins. Ah, the Redskins. What's going on here? Their 1-2 start is obviously a recipe for disaster in the face of a grueling schedule that sees them travel to New York to face the Giants in a key NFC East game Sunday night on ESPN. Bench Johnson? I don't know. It might be necessary. That's a decision Norv Turner will make, but he'll make it without being influenced by owner Daniel Snyder. Turner is not naive, however. When Michael Westbrook went down for the season with an ACL (knee) injury, he knew that the offense had lost a vital component. When 37-year-old Irving Fryar is your best receiver, well, that's a problem. Sure, the Cowboys have lost Joey Galloway but they still have Rocket Ismail and James McKnight to stretch the field. The Redskins have Fryar, Andre Reed, Albert Connell and James Thrash. The Cowboys knew it. Their most ordinary secondary (except for Darren Woodson -- more about him later) was able to blanket the Washington receivers and force Johnson to throw underneath. Maybe it will take a Jeff George laser-like arm to find a crease in opposing secondaries because Johnson's arm looks very suspect after three games. Yes, the Cowboys' defense played inspired and smart, extremely well-prepared by coach Dave Campo and staff. They were so well in position to make plays you would have thought they were intercepting Turner's radio signals to Johnson. But the Cowboys are in tune with Turner's offense because they have played it so often, and have even been tutored by it during their championship days. That's why it comes down to talent. Ultimately, there are few secrets in this league and you must be able to find matchups that put your best players on the other team's weakest players. The Redskins have no "best" players to do that, except for running back Stephen Davis. One must wonder whether they blew it by letting Brian Mitchell walk in the offseason -- how many big plays did he provide over the years on third down and kick returns? Maybe the Redskins also erred by not using one of their two first-round picks on Peter Warrick. But that would have meant passing up the best of those two first rounders -- left tackle Chris Samuels. LaVar Arrington, the other first-rounder with all the notoriety, is struggling. The one idea that seems right, other than to bench Johnson, is to take a much harder look at utilizing the gifted Champ Bailey at wide receiver. I'm not one for a knee-jerk reaction. The Redskins had to win the game Monday night. They didn't. But the typical call for the firing of Turner is shortsighted. Just take a closer look at the truth. Right now, the Redskins don't have enough bullets to fire, which must be a sobering thought for Snyder, Turner, et al. Back to the Cowboys, Aikman is supposed to be ready to play Sunday after missing two games with a concussion. But why rush him back? Cunningham posted 31 points against Arizona and 27 against the Redskins on the road. I'd ride with No. 7 for a while. Remember, Cunningham was an MVP candidate two years ago in Minnesota. One last thing, as promised, about Darren Woodson. I was shocked when the all-decade team of the '90s came out and Woodson was left off the first and second team. Nothing against the Packers' Leroy Butler, but Woodson was one of the best players on a three-time Super Bowl champion in the '90s. Based on Monday night, he's still one of their best players. Giants 14, Bears 7: This is another sign that the Giants are for real. They dominated the game and they won on the road against a wounded Bears team that desperately needed a win. The Giants overcame their own special-team mishaps because of an offense that can keep the other team off the field with the rushing attack of Ron Dayne and Tiki Barber. The change of pace Barber gives the Giants is tremendous, and I think Dayne is getting better every week. Jim Fassel finally has the pieces in place. Giants defensive coordinator John Fox -- who is destined to be on some short lists for head-coaching positions -- has his team playing at a high level. The Bears say they'll stick with Cade McNown but at some point they have to win games, so there is little question that Jim Miller will get his chance if McNown can't produce more points. Dolphins 19, Ravens 6: This is really an impressive win by Miami. The Dolphins were playing a Ravens team that should have had momentum after the win over Jacksonville. The Dolphins were without two key players, wide receiver Tony Martin and defensive tackle Daryl Gardener. They lost left tackle Richmond Webb in the first half. Yet their defense did not allow a touchdown -- in fact, the Dolphins' D has surrendered just 19 points in three games. The offense did its part. Jay Fiedler was efficient in the rain. Thurman Thomas was terrific on five third-down conversions. Lamar Smith and the O-line did its job against a stout Ravens defense. The other thing I liked is that the Dolphins could have been thoroughly distracted by a well-intentioned, but overdone extravaganza for Dan Marino. The Ravens must pick themselves up. They will -- the Bengals go to Baltimore next Sunday. Vikings 21, Patriots 13: Enough is enough. Everybody should be convinced that the Vikings are a legitimate playoff contender again and that Daunte Culpepper is exactly what Dennis Green said he'd be, especially after this road victory. The other surprising aspect of the Vikings is their defense under defensive coordinator Emmitt Thomas. It's been pretty respectable. Of the three losses the Patriots have suffered, this one is most troublesome. Yet their offensive woes are not surprising -- we knew back in the spring that the Pats' offensive line was weak and that the team lacked a true threat at running back, which only further sets up Drew Bledsoe for failure. Broncos 33, Raiders 24: When one side dominates the series, as the Broncos have done, is it still a rivalry? Brian Griese is playing winning football (no interceptions this season), and Mike Anderson ran hard for the second straight week in place of Terrell Davis. How many times must we hail the offensive genius of Mike Shanahan? The Raiders continue to show heart, but Rich Gannon's interception in the end zone (by John Mobley) was a killer. The Broncos now establish themselves as the AFC West favorite. Jets 27, Bills 14: Yes, this is an impressive win for the Jets, even if it was at home. What this tells us is that Bill Parcells has left a nice legacy in New York. He put this team together. He taught this team how to win. He orchestrated a gutsy draft that was second-guessed when he traded Keyshawn Johnson to Tampa. He convinced new owner Woody Johnson that Al Groh was the right guy. Almost unnoticed is Dan Henning's excellent work as offensive coordinator. The Bills' special teams were awful. Hmmm. They used to have a pretty good special teams coach named Bruce DeHaven, but they fired him. Oh well. Buccaneers 31, Lions 10: Oh, oh. The Bucs may not be just good. They may be scary good. They have accumulated 93 points in three games, two of them on the road. They devoured the Lions on the same turf that watched the Redskins lose the previous week. The thing about the Bucs, as quarterback Shaun King told me late in the preseason, is that this is an offense that promises to get better as the season rolls on because of its newness. If it gets a whole lot better, then the Bucs get a home game for the Super Bowl. The Lions can't expect to be a true playoff contender if they don't get running back James Stewart (13 yards on 8 carries) in gear. Browns 23, Steelers 20: One of the greatest fears in a young expansion franchise is that you blow the No. 1 draft picks given to you. It looks like the Browns have nothing to fear. Quarterback Tim Couch suddenly looks like a very mature quarterback, and defensive end Courtney Brown broke out with a three-sack performance, including a game-clinching sack of Kent Graham. Browns coach Chris Palmer again ran a tough training camp. Now that toughness is evident in their 2-1 start. I've got to wonder if the Steelers will be able to overcome this setback. They have had the worst possible start -- getting shut out (16-0 by Baltimore) to open the season, and then losing on the road to the Browns after having an extra week (Week 2 bye) for their AFC Central opponent. Oops. Packers 6, Eagles 3: Well, it's pretty evident that the Eagles' supposed push toward playoff identity has been put on ice. Donovan McNabb's youth, combined with a below-average corps of receivers, will make this a process, which is really what coach Andy Reid expected. The Packers defense can hold its head up. The Packers offense? Well, Brett Favre threw three interceptions but at least Dorsey Levens returned to the lineup and got 24 carries. That's a start. Rams 41, 49ers 24: The Rams almost took the 49ers for granted, which is a sign that they aren't playing the role of Super Bowl champs. The great 49er teams never let up on their division rivals, such as the Rams. Then there's the St. Louis defense. Not good. What is good? This offense is on a record pace as Kurt Warner tacked on another 394 yards. Even though the Rams seem to be going through a soft part of their schedule, they do have an interesting challenge next weekend when they play the Falcons in Atlanta. Chiefs 42, Chargers 10: Sylvester Morris introduced himself to the NFL with three TD catches from Elvis Grbac (5 TDs). You know the last 6-foot-3 receiver from Jackson State who made it big? Jimmy Smith. The Chargers look so bad, it's almost hard to believe. Stick with Ryan Leaf and start building something. Falcons 15, Panthers 10: I don't know what this game means. Jamal Anderson really looked like his old self, which is exactly what the Falcons need vs. the Rams next week. George Seifert will not be sleeping well after this one, although he could simply put this game tape on (or the Packers-Eagles) to cure his insomnia. Seahawks 20, Saints 10: You must admire Ricky Watters (105 yards) because he is showing he still has some juice. He has handled the presence of No. 1 draft pick Shaun Alexander perfectly. The Saints gave it a go on their second straight West Coast trip. I think Jim Haslett has to be pleased, despite a 1-2 start. Jaguars 13, Bengals 0: The Jags wanted to get Fred Taylor a few carries, but the rain and wet turf made them go the cautious route. When you play the Bengals, you can do that, although the Bengals defense accounted for itself. Taylor will be back for next Monday night's game in Indianapolis. Chris Mortensen, ESPN's NFL reporter, offers in-depth analysis each week on ESPN.com. |
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