Vision Quest: U….G….L…Y… this is how we live or die.

Sometimes I wonder what is going through the mind of my fellow Redskin fans. Over the last two weeks while our team fought to maintain leads and win games late against tough defensive squads. Yet some fans this is not enough. Personally I think it is a testament to our squad that we are 2-0 right now, and the goes especially for Monday night’s win in Philly.

I am not calling for every fan to be Kool-aid drinkers and swallow whatever comes out of Redskins Park. Far from it. I am one of the bigger critics of the front office and its structure. I also don’t think that fans should not question play calling and questionable defensive play during the game. I do it…often. Second guessing is what being a sports fan is all about. We all are living our lives with the realization we will never do the things we see on the TV in front of us and part of the fun is thinking you could maybe do better if given the chance.

But through all that I think we need to be realistic. This is not the Redskins of the early 90s who can throw the ball downfield with abandon. Nor are we the Redskins of the mid eighties where we can run the ball with consistency and play nasty defense all the time. We are the Redskins of 2007. One thing is very clear about these Redskins.

They are UGLY.

Now some of you may say that I am putting this team down. Let me reassure you right now that is not the case. I love this squad right now, warts and all. I liken our team to the Ugly Friend that everyone has. The loyal hardworking friend that means well, but doesn’t always succeed. He is not the squeaky clean guy at the bar with all the cool pick up lines that drives a Porsche. No he is wearing flannel and may have a stain on his shirt from the drink he spilled on himself when he tried to talk to a girl. He drives a 15 year old sedan that barely runs. And he always leaves his wallet at home.

As I said everyone has an Ugly Friend like that. And if you don’t know who that is, then you are someone else’s Ugly Friend.

Every now and then you have to wonder why do you keep hanging out with this guy? Why do you pay his light bill for him when he is facing disconnection? Why are you always buying the beers when you go out? Why do you listen to his endless excuses of why things aren’t going better for him?

And then it happens. You’re alone at night and your tire is flat and you forgot your jack. It is your Ugly Friend that is the one you call to help you change your tire and get you home safe. Or you need to take down a tree in your yard. It’s your Ugly Friend who gives up a Saturday to help you out.

The Redskins are that Ugly Friend for DC right now. Sure they sign a ton of Free Agents hoping to win the lottery of the NFL and it never comes true. Sure they waste draft picks and make questionable personnel decisions. And yes they bleed you dry making you pay top dollar for everything from beer to merchandise.

But they are the same group who gave us the 2005 playoff run and are right now 2-0. And they are the reason we are pretty damn happy at the office today as well.

So yes they run the ball inconsistently. And yes Jason Campbell is a young QB who makes a ton of mistakes. And yes the bend but don’t break defense is bending an awful lot late in the 4th quarter.

But what did you expect? We have a marginally talented team that is aging and past prime. And in the one area where experience often trumps youth, QB, we have a young guy with less then a full season of NFL game experience. We have a secondary which is inconsistent and Safeties who are athletic but raw.

This is Redskins football this year. We are going to be ugly, but we are also going to work hard. We may not win games by 20 points, but we will be in almost every game with a chance to win late. We have to improve in allot of areas to make the playoffs, but if last night is any indication we have just enough moxy to get us there.

Because sometimes, just sometimes, the Ugly Friend gets to go home with the girl. And Right now our Ugly Friend is on his way to just that.

5 Things We Know Now

Ok you know the drill. We won in Philly so it is time for the 5 things we know now:

We will have to hear about our Offensive Line Depth, or lack thereof, all season long. Ironically we heard about it all off season as well. At the time of this article it is believed that Thomas has a torn tri-cep. That is easily a season long injury. With Jansen done for the year our whole right side of the line is exposed. Wade filled in for Jansen and I have no real worries there. But I watched Fabini play guard all pre-season and he got blown up by the opposing team’s 2nd string defensive tackles, let alone their first string. I expect Pucillo to get some time there, but he and Heyer are now our only real depth on the line. If I am Brad Badger or Adam Timmerman’s agent I am calling Redskins Park right now and offering my client’s services.

Brandon Lloyd, the bell tolls for you on Sunday. Caldwell was inactive on Monday, but that won’t last. With a bye week coming after the Giants game on Sunday, Brandon Lloyd has exactly one more game to prove he is going to be an NFL receiver this year. He had a chance for another TD this week and could not make it happen. The ball was a little overthrown and Lloyd did try for it unlike last week. But we are beyond ‘try’ now. Lloyd either puts up or shuts up next week. Otherwise he will probably be inactive for the remainder of the Redskin games.

Jason Campbell is going to struggle, but also progress, all season long. It seems JC has a case of the nerves early on in the season. And who can blame him. Though he has been on our roster for three years he never started an opening day game and he has never started a Monday Night game. Now he has had to do those in successive order. So he has been inconsistent early in both games, but he has calmed down and been real sharp late in games. Coming back home will help him next week and the bye week will help him even more.

Only being on Monday Night Football once is a blessing in disguise. Not for the players mind you, but for the fans. There are less camera shots in the booth at an adult video store then on Monday Night. If I wanted to see three old guys sit around and talk instead of watching the game I would go watch a Neil Simon Play. And when Barkley joined the booth it got even worse. Never mind the fact they were blathering incoherently it was like the producers of MNDF wanted the audience to know that Barkley was really in the booth….every two seconds. SHOW THE DAMN GAME!!!!!! That is why I am watching TV and not listening to the radio. Bone heads.

This team has character and guts, and that is what the big difference from last year is. We can talk about the improvement at the skills positions. We can talk about the improvement in the game planning. We can talk about improvement in the defense. But the very fact is the last two games are games the Redskins would have found ways to lose last year. They are fighting their guts out, to borrow from our Coach. They are willing themselves to the win. We will see if it can last but right now I am proud of them.

Looking Ahead to the NY Giants. The team comes home on Sunday to face the NY Giants. This can be a big test to the character of our team. The NY Giants are 0-2 and reeling right now. We need to put our boot to their neck. More importantly going 3-0 right before the bye is a big win for our guys. Also NY is an inferior team coming into our house. Overconfidence is what has killed us in the past here, but we have pretty much owned the Giants when they play under our roof. A win here and we can send them on a tailspin they will never recover from.

That is it for now as Always HTTR!!!