NFL Network: 'Lombardi's Redskins'

Source:NFL Network- I believe Redskins QB Sonny Jurgensen and head coach Vince Lombardi 

"Lombardi's Redskins | The Story of 1969 "The Forgotten Year"

Source:NFL Network

When I think of the Redskins from the late 60s and 1970s, the expression what if comes to mind real fast.

What if, Vince Lombardi hadn't died and lived to coach the Redskins for even 5-10 years; how many Super Bowls would they have won, let alone winning a Super Bowl and beating the Miami Dolphins in Super Bowl 7 with Lombardi as their head coach/general manager and Sonny Jurgensen as their QB. Even if Lombardi dies the way he did, what if their new head coach and GM George Allen, doesn't name veteran journeyman and mediocre QB Billy Kilmer as his starting QB and he instead let Sonny finish his career as the starting QB of the Redskins and Allen kept the Redskins offense in place, instead of playing a lot more conservatively on offense, how many Super Bowls would have the Redskins won with Lombardi or Allen as their head coach and GM.

But to get back to Lombardi and his impact on the Redskins, you have to know what kind of franchise they were in Washington the previous 13 seasons, before you get to 1969: pre-Lombardi, a good season for the Redskins even with Sonny Jurgensen as their QB, a good season for the Redskins was 6-8 or 7-7. The Redskins of the 1960s, were very similar to the San Diego Chargers of the mid and late 80s: they scored a lot of points mostly with their passing game, but gave up just as much if not more. One of the top offenses in the NFL, to go along with one of the worst defenses. From 1956-68. 13 straight non-winning seasons for the Redskins where again a good season 6-8 or 7-7. Not 10-4 and just missing the playoffs.

Also to understand Vince Lombardi's impact on the Redskins, you have to know what he brought to the Green Bay Packers in the 1960s as well: Lombardi, believed that the way you win in the NFL, was to control the line of scrimmage, very similar to Bill Parcells and another great Redskins head coach Joe Gibbs. You win in the NFL by running the ball, stopping the run, protecting your QB and attacking the other QB. And then go to play action in the passing the game, to move the ball down the field, but to also keep the defense off balance so they can't concentrate so much on your running game.

The Redskins of the 1960s pre-Lombardi, passed the ball 30-35 times or more a game with Sonny Jurgenson and whatever running game they had came after long passes from the passing game. Lombardi, kept the explosive passing game with Sonny, WR's Charley Taylor, Jerry Smith, and Roy Jefferson, but added RB Larry Brown and improved the offensive line and now the Redskins had a good running game, with one of the best passing games in the NFL. So Lombardi, brought balance to an already explosive Redskins passing game.

The Redskins go from 5-6 in 1967 and 5-9 in 1968, to 7-5 in 1969. Now you might say that winning an extra 2 games from the previous season in 1969 is not a big deal, especially since the Redskins already had a good offense, but again Vince Lombardi's first season in Washington and the Redskins first winning season of any kind since 1955. Lombardi's first season in Green Bay, he was 7-5 and the Packers get to the NFL Championship in his second season in 1960 and win the Championship in 1962. Lombardi, brought discipline to Washington and taught a young Redskins team how to win and not settle for being OK, but that instead you need to be as good as you possibly can be, so you can be as successful as you can be. Something that they hadn't had since the Ray Flaherty era in the 1930s and 40s, which was Vince Lombardi's impact on the Redskins.  

You can also see this post on WordPress.

NFL Films: NFL 1983: The Washington Redskins Yearbook

Source:The Daily Press

Even though the 1983 Redskins won the NFC Championship but lost Super Bowl 18 to the Los Angeles Raiders in a blow out, I believe they are the best offensive team the Redskins have ever had in the Super Bowl era. The only other team that I would consider would be the 1982 Redskins that did win Super Bowl 17 over the Miami Dolphins because they were better defensively, but the 1983 Redskins had a dominant offense, one of the best ever scoring something like 540 points.

The 1983 Redskins blew teams away and also playing a toughest schedule just to get to the Super Bowl. In the NFC East alone, playing the Dallas Cowboys twice and the Philadelphia Eagles and St. Louis Cardinals that were still competitive. Playing three conference finals teams in the regular season, the San Francisco 49ers, Raiders and Seattle Seahawks. Playing the Anaheim Rams (as I called them) twice in 1983 including in the NFC Playoffs, playing the Atlanta Falcons that were in the NFC Playoffs in 1982.

The Redskins played a lot of playoff teams in 1983 and still won 16 games including in the NFC Playoffs and lost 3 including the Super Bowl. They also had some close games, but those games were against playoff teams, including against the Cowboys twice. The 1983 Redskins were also in a bunch of shootouts as the game against the Raiders would indicate. Because even though their run defense and pass rush were still very good, the pass defense slipped a bit because they were working in people like rookie corner back Darrel Green who's in the Hall of Fame and safety Ken Coffey. But offensively they were much more explosive.

Super Bowl 18 against the Raiders where the Redskins lost 38-9, the score is a little misleading. I'm not saying the 1983 Raiders didn't have a great team, because they obviously did if you look at their team, their head coach Tom Flores, where they ranked in the NFL and who they beat. But the Redskins made some key mistakes in that game, first on defense trying to cover Raiders wide receiver Cliff Branch who I believe should be in the Hall of Fame with a rookie CB Darrel Green, they should've double teamed Branch the whole game at least on post routes.

And on offense when the Raiders were playing 8-9 Man Fronts on defense, with the Redskins consistently trying to run and getting nowhere against those fronts they should've thrown the ball against them short routes worked the tight end throw screen passes, to both tailback Joe Washington and work TB John Riggins in the pass offense as well when they couldn't use him in the run offense. And the late in the first half when they were trailing 14-3 deep in their territory instead of throwing that (infamous) screen pass to Joe Washington that worked for a long TD against the Raiders in the regular season, they threw that same pass, but it was picked off by linebacker Jack Squirek for a TD making the score 21-3. Because the Raiders defense saw that same play and remembered it and saw it coming. They should've tried to run out the clock instead.

I'm not saying the Redskins would've beaten the Raiders in Super Bowl 18 had they had a better game plan, but without that INT in the first half for a TD, its probably 14-3 Raiders at the half. And the Redskins scored a TD to start off the 2nd half but got the extra point blocked. This should've been a 14-10 game Raiders leading in the 3rd quarter with the momentum with the Redskins. Their defense feeling recharged thinking they are back in it. Super Bowl 18 should've been one of the best Super Bowls of all time, had the Redskins had a better game plan instead of a 38-9 blowout as it was.

NFL Films: NFL 1987: The Story of the Washington Redskins

The 1987 Redskins to me exactly goes to the brilliance of General Manager Bobby Beathard and Head Coach Joe Gibbs. A strike season where the NFL decides to play on with replacement players. That Beathard and his staff had to find for Joe Gibbs and his coaching staff. And Coach Gibbs and his crew having to determine which of these part-time NFL players can even play under these conditions and against NFL players that decided not to strike and how to use those replacements in the best way possible. Because the Redskins still had a job to do, which was to win as many games as possible in 1987.

The 1987 NFL season also goes to the depth of the Redskins with the players they lost to the players strike and the player they lost to injury. They had two starting quarterbacks in 1987, both Pro Bowl caliber quarterbacks that could start for a lot of NFL teams in Jay Schroeder and Doug Williams. They lost their starting tailback in George Rogers, another Pro Bowl running back. They had injuries on the offensive line and had to bring in new starters like Raleigh McKenzie. Gibbs was constantly having to change his lineups around on offense and defense.

The 87 Redskins perfectly exemplify the Joe Gibbs era in Washington. As a club that just had great depth everywhere and perhaps the best depth in the NFL. They didn't have the most talent in the NFL, but they arguably had the best players and the most good players and talent in the NFL. And when the strike was over and had they had all of their key players back, that is when the NFL got to see how really good of a team that they had. I believe especially on defense where they dominated the NFC Playoffs and Super Bowl. And on offense that could pile up points in the air and dominate on the ground.

Redskins Chronicles: 18 Plays- The Story of Super Bowl 22

This game was really won on two plays. The two touchdown passes to WR's Rickey Sanders and Gary Clark. The rest of it as we now know was a show between a dominant football team the Redskins in this game, against a good young football team but a team that was simply overmatched physically up front and not enough speed in the secondary in the Denver Broncos defense to cover three great fast wide receivers in Art Monk a Hall of Famer, Gary Clark who should be in the Hall of Fame and Rickey Sanders perhaps the best third WR in the NFL at this point.

This is a game that made a drug addict whose been a screw up most of his life as an adult, look like a great running back in RB Timmy Smith for the Redskins who only played in this game because Pro Bowl RB George Rogers who probably deserves consideration for the Hall of Fame as well, was not healthy because of a bad foot, but that is how dominant the Redskins offensive line was in this game. And how great they were most of the time going up against an overmatched undersized Denver Broncos front seven.

Going into this game it looked like a great matchup. The Broncos having the best young quarterback in the NFL if not the best QB of the era. Against a very good team on both sides of the ball, the Redskins. With not a lot of great players, but with a few great players and a lot of very good players. But the game was a mismatch because of how the Redskins dominated the Broncos up front on both sides of the ball once the Redskins figured out the Broncos offense and defense.