Sammy Baugh: 1914-2008

There are a few constants that Redskins fans have to deal with.

One is the feast-or-famine principle, the fact that the years of feast (late '30s through early '50s, 1982-1991) will always be followed by an equal or larger era of famine (the '50s and '60s, 1993-doomsday).

One is that the #2 quarterback is always more popular in this town than the #1, as long as #2 hasn't played recently. One thing the Redskins unequivocally do better than any other NFL franchise is quarterback controversy: Jurgensen vs. Kilmer, Williams vs. Schroeder, Schroeder vs. Rypien, Shuler vs. Frerotte, Johnson vs. George, Danny (shudder) Wuerffel vs. a lick of sanity, Brunell vs. Campbell.

One is that only the number 33 will ever be retired. We love our #7, our #44, our #81, our #42 and #43, and most recently our #28 and we understand that we will never see those numbers on any Redskin player's back even though they have not been officially retired. We understand that #33 is special, that there is a reason no other team of even half the Redskins' age only has one retired number.

The other thing we understand is that #33, Sammy Baugh, will live forever.

Forever.

Slingin' Sammy Baugh died Wednesday evening of kidney failure and double pneumonia. It is telling that neither one of those ailments was enough to take him down independently, that both had to consipre to attack simultaneously, while he was in a weakened state of Alzheimer's and dementia. And 94 years old.

Redskins owner George Preston Marshall brought Baugh from Texas Christian University to Washington in 1937 to lead a team that had just moved from Boston and was desperately in need of an identity in their new town. Marshall insisted that Baugh buy a cowboy hat and boots to wear for public appearances, despite the fact that the quarterback was a small-town kid with no connection to ranches whatsoever. Baugh would eventually end up retiring to a ranch in Texas after his playing career; ironically, the greatest Redskin of all time would be turned into a cowboy by the team's owner.

And when I say that Sammy Baugh was the greatest Redskin ever, I really mean that I genuinely believe him to be the greatest football player of all time, who just happened to play for the Redskins.

Consider this: in an era when quarterbacks averaged three passes per game, Baugh won the 1937 NFL Championship game against the Bears by throwing for 335 yards and three touchdowns of 35, 55, and 78 yards. In his rookie season, no less. That's nothing short of a 2007 Tom Brady game, a 1999 Kurt Warner game, a 1983 Dan Marino game. As soon as he hit the league, Baugh was transforming it. He invented the forward passing game almost single-handedly from inside the huddle, on the fly.

Consider also: a three-way player, Baugh led the league one year in passing, punting, and defensive interceptions, the only NFL player to ever lead stats on offense, defense, and special teams in the same season--or ever. As a safety, he is still number three all-time for interceptions as a Redskin (31), despite having played in an era where quarterbacks were just starting to pass.

Consider third: he retired with a whopping 13 NFL records, and still holds two of them 56 years later. The two? Punting records. When pundits complain about Ray Guy not being in the Hall, that there are no punters in the Hall, I have to laugh: Hell yes there's a punter in the Hall of Fame. He just happens to be in there as a quarterback. And he was a fair sight better than Ray Guy.

Sammy Baugh was the last living member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's inaugural class. He was Babe Ruth. He was Michael Jordan. He was Wayne Gretzky.

He grew into an irascible old cuss who would have shared a hearty laugh at being called an irascible old cuss. Holding nothing but good-natured contempt for the modern game and its players, he separated himself from the pomp and circumstance of the modern NFL, but would occasionally allow himself to be interviewed well into his 80s. These films and transcripts are worth seeking out for their insight, unpredictability and sheer hilarity. The phrase "sharp as a tack" was invented to describe Sammy Baugh in his 80s.

Two-way players are almost extinct now, though Brian Mitchell remains one of my favorite players of all time, a threat on special teams and out of the backfield as receiver, running back, or quarterback. And let's not forget the recent three-way glory of Patriots receiver/returner/defensive back Troy Brown. That was freaking awesome.

Any discussion about the greatest football player of all time must begin and possibly end with two-way players, with special consideration given to those who go all three. As much as I respect great players like Unitas, Jim Brown, Rice, Payton, and Montana, I'd like to see any of them punt for a 50+ yard season average. (You think punting's easy? Try it.) I'd like to see them tackle. I'd like to see how fast Rice is if he's playing all the snaps on defense. I'd like to see how accurate Montana is if he has to deliver ball-jarring hits.

Sammy Baugh is the greatest Redskin of all time, and the greatest football player ever. #33, the cowboy Redskin, has moved on to a bigger, more beautiful ranch. We will never see his like again.



Washington Post article: "The First of the Gunslingers."

Stop and go

I've been reading about the Redskins' victory over the Eagles this morning, doing my usual scanning of the major sports websites to read reports and commentary. Everybody is now officially impressed.

But there's a big point being missed, one that no one at ESPN, SI, Sportsline, or anywhere else seems to have caught: In reporting that the Redskins have out-gained the Eagles and Cowboys on the ground 364 yards to 102, everyone is focusing on the Redskins' offensive line and Clinton Portis. That's fine, I love Portis (pictured) and have long been a proponent of the idea that any offense is only as good as its offensive line.

What's being missed is the performance of the Redskins' run defense, and that's going to be a factor this year. Yes, the Cowboys inexplicably stopped handing the ball off, and the Eagles' Brian Westbrook came into the game injured and missed a couple series. But Philly was stopped twice on the 2, and Andre Carter is doing a very good impression of a run-stopper for a dedicated edge pass rusher.

So why no picture of the D-line stopping a Dallas or Philly running back? Shhhhhh. Let's keep this a secret for as long as possible.

Antwaan Randle El Versus a Bear

Quality NFL coverage. Look at the way Antwaan's eyebrow raises when they start talking about the ham.

Honoring Sean Taylor at the Pro Bowl

From Fox Sports:

Players get final chance to honor Taylor
by Alex Marvez
Updated: February 11, 2008, 12:58 AM EST HONOLULU

Three Washington players entered Sunday's Pro Bowl wearing No. 21 jerseys as homage to late teammate Sean Taylor.

They left Aloha Stadium knowing a new head coach named Saturday will be leading the Redskins upon their return home. In between, the trio played in a 42-30 NFC victory over the AFC.

That convergence of past, present and future events made the Pro Bowl experience unique for tight end Chris Cooley, left tackle Chris Samuels and long snapper Ethan Albright.

"Life goes on and things happen fast, especially in this business," Albright said. "It doesn't change the fact Sean will be remembered, but time does heal wounds. The further out you get from (Taylor's death), the more you accept it.

"But every day you go in the (Redskins) locker room, his locker is going to be there just like he left it. Everybody that comes in is going to know about Sean Taylor."

Taylor's presence couldn't be missed Sunday. Redskins players were designated the NFC's captains for the pre-game coin toss. The NFC then opened defensively with just 10 players. Washington did the same in its first game after Taylor was killed in late November following a botched robbery at his South Florida home.

NFC (and Green Bay) coach Mike McCarthy suggested the gesture, which was overwhelmingly welcomed by Taylor's peers. Taylor became the first player voted posthumously to the Pro Bowl in December.

"Knowing he's still in our heart, it was a big deal for all the players," said Minnesota's Darren Sharper, who was the lone safety on the NFC's first defensive snap. "We wanted to play hard for Sean."

When a Taylor tribute began airing on the stadium video screen late in the first half, Dallas tight end Jason Witten grabbed Cooley's arm and pointed it out. The duo spoke briefly and watched together as P. Diddy's "I'll Be Missing You" blared over the public address system.

"I told Chris, 'He was a special guy, wasn't he?'" Witten said. "Chris said he was."

Players traditionally swap team clothing during Pro Bowl week. Taylor had so much respect among them that Seahawks quarterback Matt Hasselbeck noted "there was probably more Redskins gear being worn than normal."

"I liked talking to Chris and the Redskins guys this week just to understand what (Taylor) was really like," Witten said. "I knew what a great player he was, but I found out he was an even better guy."

After almost breaking into tears during the video montage, Cooley took the field and scored on a 17-yard Hasselbeck pass.

Eerie — just like when Washington defeated Dallas by the same point total as Taylor's jersey number to clinch a playoff berth in the regular-season finale.

"Sometimes things just happen and you don't know the reason," Hasselbeck said. "He just happened to be the guy open on that play."

That touchdown wasn't the only time Hasselbeck and Cooley connected at the Pro Bowl. The two went to dinner Tuesday night so Cooley could pick Hasselbeck's brain about Jim Zorn, Seattle's quarterbacks coach the past seven seasons.

Four days later, Zorn was promoted to Redskins head coach after recently being hired as offensive coordinator. Cooley is admittedly glad that the "musical chairs of head coach interviews are over" after the Redskins met with eight other candidates considered to replace the retired Joe Gibbs.

"I was initially a little surprised (about Zorn), but it is the Redskins," said Cooley, referring to team owner Dan Snyder's history of making unconventional coaching hires. "We kind of sat back and waited to see what happened with no real expectations.

"It's hard to not have anything solid there. We were ready for it to be done. No one really expected Coach Gibbs to leave. It's been an interesting month, but I'm happy we got our guy."

At the Pro Bowl, the focus was on a guy who wasn't there. Samuels remembers seeing Taylor level Buffalo's Brian Moorman on a fake punt during last year's Pro Bowl.

Yes, even punters weren't off-limits to Taylor.

Samuels said he and other Redskins players tried to bring that same intensity to what is essentially a glorified exhibition game.

"We wanted to represent Sean the way he would have played the game," Samuels said. "I think about Sean every day. I also pray for his family."

Samuels' girlfriend is compiling a scrapbook of Pro Bowl events as a memento for Taylor's girlfriend and their infant daughter. Samuels, though, also knows the Redskins must close the book on a season that saw Washington rally for a playoff berth by winning four of five games after Taylor's death.

"We buried Sean a while ago," Samuels said. "We have to put him to rest. We'll still think about him from time to time, of course. But now we have a new head coach. We're going to play for this guy like if it were Coach Gibbs there.

"Hopefully, we'll carry some of that (2007) momentum over. But it's a new season, We can't live off the past. We've got to go out and start all over again."

For three Redskins, that process began Sunday.

Decision 2008: I Finally Endorse a Candidate

It's a tense and exciting time in Washington.

A second, four-year term of mixed results passes, and we're on the verge of selecting a replacement for the biggest job in town. Big names have come and gone in the quest. There have been several intriguing candidates, with three coming clearly to the forefront as of Tuesday's action.

Yes, things are tense around town, with all three big-time candidates representing strong ideas and some obvious flaws. Whatever decision is made, I'll support the eventual winner. But the time has come for me to make my will known and pick a horse. I don't expect anyone to be influenced by my decision, but I feel a civic duty to make it known. I've had to balance a lot of issues here, most notedly experience versus the ability to inspire.

After much consideration, I am supporting Ron Meeks to be the next head coach of the Washington Redskins.

I would have been very happy with Gregg Williams as head coach, keeping the Gibbs 2.0 regime's core in place. But Williams is gone, taking over the defense in Jacksonville. Steve Mariucci is an intriguing prospect, but doesn't appear likely at this point. I think Fred Thompson threw his hat in the race for a little while, but surprisingly never turned out to be a serious contender.

Which brings us to the big three candidates.

I originally wanted Jim Fassel, and had been a big Fassel supporter for the job four years ago before Gibbs came back. And Fassell could be a fine head coach; Washington is one of the biggest pressure cities in the league, and Fassell's experience as New York Giants head coach certainly has him prepared for that. He's a fine, solid coach. But I want something new; I want the Redskins to be the team that discovers the new hotness, rather than bringing in the same old merry-go-round of established guys.

Giants defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is an intriguing prospect. His defense certainly gave the Patriots offense more than they could handle. But I'm just not enamored of the idea of hiring a first-year coordinator based on his players' performance in one game, even if it was the Super Bowl. No, especially if it's the Super Bowl; players play out of their minds in that game. I don't want to hire somebody based on one game, or even one playoff season.

Which brings us to Meeks, the Barack Obama of this chase. A one-time defensive backs coach in Washington, he knows the scene and is familiar with management. With Dan Snyder or Jerry Jones as your owner, that's extra important. He turned a Colts defense that had resembled a sieve just a couple years ago into one of the league's best last year, with mostly the same personnel. His players would run through walls for him. He's young, he's hot, he's hungry, and frankly, I just have a feeling.

I'll support any of these guys because they'll be wearing burgundy and gold and that's how I roll. All three have the potential to be great coaches. All three have the potential to be huge disasters. Last time we could say that, we were looking at Steve Spurrier.

Please let this not be Steve Spurrier.



EDIT: Spagnuolo is out of the race. He agreed today to a three-year contract worth more than two million dollars a year to stay in New York, making him the highest-paid defensive coordinator in the game.

So it's looking very much like Jim Fassel will be the next head coach of the Redskins. We could do a lot worse.



EDIT: Holy crap, it's Jim Zorn! If I'd had any idea he was in the running, he would absolutely have been my candidate.

Last notable name to jump from QB coach under Mike Holmgren to head coach? Andy Reid of the Philadelphia Eagles. That seems to have worked out pretty darn well.

I'm totally jazzed! This is just the kind of guy the team needs. Can it be that Dan Snyder has actually grown up as an owner with Gibbs at his side for four years?

Art Monk and Darrell Green Elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame!

Art Monk is finally going to be enshrined in the Hall of Fame!

It almost makes the wait worthwhile to have him make it the same year as Darrell Green, not to mention one-time Redskins coach Emmitt Thomas. Now if we can just get Russ Grimm in to represent the Hogs, we might have a real representation of the team that won three Super Bowls in nine years.

Congratulations to Art and Darrell!

Redskins Head Past Cowboys Into Playoffs

Unashamedly copied from the AP:



Redskins Head Past Cowboys Into Playoffs

By JOSEPH WHITE, AP Sports Writer
Mon Dec 31, 1:27 AM ET

LANDOVER, Md. - From disarray to dominance, the Washington Redskins will enter the playoffs as the hottest team in the NFC.

And with the hottest quarterback in the conference. And maybe the hottest running back. And with a defense coming off a game in which it allowed exactly 1 yard rushing.

The Redskins reached the postseason Sunday with a 27-6 victory over the archrival Dallas Cowboys, capping an emotional renaissance to a season that appeared lost less than a month ago. Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs, seemingly on the ropes after a four-game losing streak, received warm embraces from players and assistants as the final seconds ticked away.

The Redskins did it by beating a Dallas team that rested anyone who was questionable with an injury because it had clinched home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs the week before. Still, the Cowboys played their healthy starters most of the game and were trailing 20-3 when quarterback Tony Romo was pulled for Brad Johnson with about 6 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter.

The Redskins (9-7) will travel to Seattle on Saturday for a 4:30 p.m. game, a rematch of a 2005 division playoff won 20-10 by the Seahawks. Washington will be riding a four-game winning streak, the longest currently in the NFC. Its last three victories have been by double digits, a remarkable turnaround for a team that stayed afloat with close, ugly victories before losing four straight, the last coming days after the shooting death of safety Sean Taylor.

The Redskins are 4-0 since Taylor's funeral, and all the victories were engineered by backup quarterback Todd Collins after Jason Campbell dislocated a kneecap in the first half against Chicago on Dec. 6. The 36-year-old Collins went 22-for-31 for 244 yards and one touchdown Sunday and is 67-for-105 for 888 yards with five TDs and no interceptions since relieving Campbell.

Clinton Portis ran for two touchdowns and had 104 yards on 25 carries and 27 yards on four receptions, setting a career high for yards receiving in a season (389). His yards from scrimmage in the four-game winning streak: 122, 126, 124 and 131. Santana Moss caught eight passes for 115 yards and a touchdown.

The game ultimately turned out to be irrelevant — other than to serve as a possible preview of a postseason game two weeks from now. Minnesota lost 22-19 to Denver and New Orleans fell 33-25 to Chicago, giving Washington the two out-of-town results it needed to make the postseason without having to beat Dallas.

The NFC East champion Cowboys (13-3), who will have a bye next week, tried to muster any motivation they could find, but almost none of their goals were realized. They had hoped to win a 14th regular-season game for the first time in franchise history. Jason Witten caught only two passes, falling four short of becoming the second tight end to get 100 in a season. Receiver Terry Glenn, active for the first time all season, failed to catch a pass.

Marion Barber not only finished 25 yards shy of his first 1,000-yard season, but Barber (minus-6 yards) and Julius Jones (7) combined for 1 yard — setting a new franchise record for rushing futility. The Cowboys defense allowed a 100-yard rusher for the first time this season. The offense went 0-for-11 converting third downs, and Dallas lost its season finale for the eighth straight year.

At least Romo (7-for-16 for 86 yards and an interception) set the single-season franchise record for completions (335). And four injured starters — receiver Terrell Owens (ankle), cornerback Terence Newman (knee), center Andre Gurode (knee) and nose tackle Jay Ratliff (knee) — will get extra time to heal before the playoffs.

Former Redskins great Dexter Manley revived memories of the old days by taking the microphone and leading cheers of "We want Dallas!" from the field before kickoff. The Redskins obliged by outgaining the Cowboys 105-14 in the first quarter.

The first four Redskins drives ended in Dallas territory, although they produced only 10 points. Portis somersaulted into the end zone to celebrate the end of a 23-yard scoring run; he broke free after Cowboys defensive backs Anthony Henry and Roy Williams collided trying to tackle him.

Back-to-back completions to Moss and Portis set up a 46-yard field goal by Shaun Suisham, giving the Redskins a 10-0 lead. The score was 13-3 at halftime, and Portis' 1-yard run in the third quarter pushed the lead to 17 and turned the rest of the game into an exhibition.



All week long, I told anyone who would listen that I thought the Redskins might beat the Cowboys by three touchdowns. Dallas would rest their starters early, Romo would only play a couple series, T.O. and Glenn would be out. If the Cowboys stayed in it, I acknowledged, it would be because of Marion Barber and Julius Jones.

Well, Dallas didn't rest many starters after all. Romo played most of the game and couldn't get anything done. (In his defense, he did throw a pretty pick to Shawn Springs, and he lay down pretty well after Chris Wilson sacked him on the final play of the first half.) Jones and Barber, the best one-two rushing punch in the league, combined for one freaking yard. Yes, the Cowboys had nothing to play for. But if you're a Dallas fan, you've got to be concerned that your team really looked like a team with nothing to play for. They didn't show up, not just the starters but the backups who should have been using this opportunity to show what they can do.

Dallas Fan is blowing this game off. He says his team is 13-3, they had nothing to play for, and no reason to risk injury. He might even point out that the 1991 Redskins put in a similar effort in their season finale, losing to finish 14-2 before plowing through the playoffs and the Super Bowl. But the Cowboys haven't been able to run effectively for a few weeks. They haven't had a consistent passing attack with Owens injured. They haven't won a playoff game in more than a decade; they lost one to the Cardinals, for crying out loud. They're 13-3 in a weak, weak conference (one that has a once 5-7, now 9-7 Redskins team as the sixth seed--I'm a fan, but that's weak). They have no reason to believe they can turn it on and off at will. Maybe they'll turn it around in two weeks for their divisional round playoff game, which could be against these same Redskins. But I'm not sure I'd bet on Dallas in that matchup.

Meanwhile, the Redskins are playing like the best team in the NFC. Not just the hottest, the best. Much like two seasons ago, when the team ran off five straight to finish 10-6, they finish on a four-game win streak, the current longest in the NFC. Portis, who missed the entire preseason, is running like mama's homemade biscuits: hot and fresh. Backup QB Todd Collins is really connecting with Santana Moss and Antwaan Randle El. The defense is playing like eleven #21s; they're flying around the field, making big plays, and hitting like sledgehammers. And they're stopping the run like a brick wall: the one thing which has been the Redskins' downfall for years. Seriously, NFC playoff teams, raise your hand if you want to face the Redskins right now. No hands? Sorry, Seattle. You're up next, Saturday at 4:30.

So I predicted a three-touchdown victory and the Redskins delivered. It was the players who noticed that the margin of victory was 21, Sean Taylor's number. Multiple Redskin players told the same story after the game: After the last defense meeting before the game, coach Gregg Williams put a photograph up on the projector. It was a picture of Sean Taylor, taken by a fan during training camp. Taylor had signed his name on the pic, and under his signature had written, "WE WANT DALLAS!"

Shawn Springs with the interception!

Antwaan Randle El dances... or something.

Santana Moss makes the defenders miss! Moss is a certified Cowboy killer, and I wear his number every time the 'Skins and 'Boys tangle.

The Cowboys' vaunted two-headed rushing attack combined for a grand total of one yard.

My man C.P., last week's NFC Offensive Player of the Week, scored two touchdowns. He just keeps getting stronger as the weeks go by.

Chris Coooooooooooooley with the first down catch!


Touchdown Santana Moss! You know, it wasn't just that they pulled some starters; the Cowboys looked like a downright bad team yesterday.

I wasn't sure I wanted Joe Gibbs to stick around any more, but after this winning streak I'm okay with the two-year extension that's been rumored...

Incredibly, the Redskins Are in the Hunt!

After beating the Vikings 32-21 last night, the Redskins unbelievably find themselves positioned to win the sixth playoff spot in the NFC. Why "unbelievably?" Let's examine:

The Redskins currently have nine players on injured reserve. Four were week 1 starters. Pro Bowl RT Jon Jansen was lost for the season in week one; pro Bowl RG was lost for the season in week two, so there's the right side of your O-line shattered for essentially the whole year. Starting CB Carlos Rogers was having a great year until tearing up his knee against New England: gone for half the season. LB Rocky McIntosh was tearing stuff up until tearing up his knee against the Giants last week. Then of course there's our starting quarterback Jason Campbell, who dislocated his kneecap with four games to go - the very day I first wore my new Jason Campbell jersey, naturally. Campbell isn't on IR because he just might be able to come back for a first round game, but he missed the last four games of the season.

Then, of course, there's the eleventh player gone for the year: safety Sean Taylor, who led the league in interceptions at the time of his death despite the fact that he had missed the previous two games.

Clinton Portis has been reported with injuries to his knee, ribs, other knee, back, and shoulder. Both starting receivers, Anwaan Randle El and Santana Moss, have missed games with leg injuries. Number three receiver Brandon Lloyd has been one of the biggest free-agent busts in league history, and he's on IR with a broken collarbone anyway. His replacement James Thrash has missed several weeks with injuries, and the team has signed Reche Caldwell and Keenan McCardell off the street to pick up the slack.

The football fans who say to the above litany, "Boo hoo. Everybody has injuries" are out of their minds. I've never seen a team so snakebit in my life as a fan, at least not one in playoff contention.

And that, my friends, is the bottom line here. The Redskins have won three in a row (after losing four), and they sit at 8-7 in position for the sixth playoff spot in the NFC. A win against Dallas next Sunday at 4:00 and they're in; and this is against a Dallas team that has already clinched home-field and has nothing to play for at all. No T.O., probably very little Romo, and no real incentive for the Cowboys to risk much of anything. Not a gimme, but certainly something to be taken.

So merry Christmas, Redskins. A season that looked awfully bleak after 5-3 turned into 5-7 has officially turned. Honestly, with all those injuries and after losing #21, 8-7 almost feels like the Super Bowl.

One thing's for sure: no one in the NFC relishes the idea of playing a wild-card Washington team right now.

Vegetarichili!

In years past, it was a tradition for me to make homemade chili on football Sunday afternoons. In college, my roommates knew that they didn't have to cook on those days, that I would have dinner taken care of. After Daniel Snyder bought the Redskins, he revealed in an interview that his childhood football tradition was to sit on the floor of his living room and eat chili. So even when I've had disagreements with his football decisions, I've always felt chili kinship with my team's owner.

Yesterday, I decided to try to make vegetarian chili. It's been years since I made chili of any kind. I would start with my mother's recipe, the template I've always gone from. I've made it with ground turkey, ground chicken, chicken breat, and even steak, but never with no meat or fake meat (or, as I like to call it, feat.)

Over the years, I've added a few refinements; a bit of steak sauce for pop and a few teaspoons of sugar to reduce the bitterness of the tomatoes. I've used specialized ingredients that no longer exist; Del Monte Mexican Style stewed tomatoes are much missed. And I like peppers. A lot. But Karen doesn't like food too spicy, so I also wanted to cut down on the bite in favor of flavor.

So I decided that, since this would be an all-new dish, I would write down the amounts and document the process. That seemed like just the kind of thing to put on this silly blog! So here is an illustrated guide to the chili I made today.

(Bear in mind that it is still simmering as I type this; I have not yet tasted this concoction. It may be awful. But it smells great!

Here are the ingredients:
2 1/2 cups of chopped vidalia onion (1 large one)
2 cups of chopped red bell pepper (1 large one)
2 cups of chopped green bell pepper (1 large one)
2 cups of chopped yellow bell pepper (1 large one)
4 cups of diced tomatoes (approximately 3)
15 oz. can of dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
15 oz. can of light red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
15 oz. can of black beans, drained and rinsed
12 oz. of corn (frozen)
16 oz. of Yves meatless ground (the feat)
2 tbsps. chili powder
1 tbsp. steak sauce
2 tsp. sugar
1 tbsp. crushed garlic
1 tbsp. salt

Look at those gorgeous peppers! And an almost-equally colorful assortment of beans. Here's a chili secret I've learned in recent years. Much of the undesirable gas produced from eating beans actually comes from the juice. So I drain and rinse my beans.

And the other ingredients:

I began by sauteing the onions in a wok with some vegetable oil. Usually, I add the crushed garlic at this point, but today I forgot and added the garlic and salt to the simmering end mixture about half an hour before serving. That's bad.

After the onions have become translucent, add the feat.

Next add the peppers to the wok.

Stir them.

Once the peppers have just begun to change texture, throw the whole thing in a crock pot.

Add the tomatoes, corn, beans, and everything else. Stir.

Steak sauce, which is mostly tomato sauce and vinegar, adds a cool kick that you can't really identify.

It's a good idea to add some of the spices, stir, then add some more, then stir, etc. until it's all in. If your crock pot is anything like mine, you need to stir carefully in order to avoid spreading chili all over the counter and floor.
The sad end result is a LOT of dishes.

Like I said, I forgot to add the garlic and salt until quite late in the game. Also, my old crock pot was not performing up to spec; after 90 minutes it still wasn't hot enough to simmer, so I moved it into a stew pot on the stove top.

Ideally, the chili should simmer for at least an hour, maybe even two or three. Of course, all of my assumptions are based on cooking with meat, which really likes spices to be slowly cooked in. I'm not sure how the soy feat will respond.

Serve with beer (something fairly light and hoppy like a pale ale is my favorite), and optional sour cream, cheddar cheese, and minced uncooked onions! And watch in front of the TV on the living room floor while rooting on the Redskins!

So that's the chili story! I'll let you know how it turns out. And I'm really interested in hearing your recipe suggestions! What should I have added?



EDIT! The chili was delicious! A little cheddar cheese, a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, and a 22-10 Redskins victory made for a lovely evening. Karen also made corm bread from scratch and it was a delicious accompaniment.

I have to say that I do prefer meat in my chili, especially some nice lean chicken breast or steak, but this was very good. And it's easy enough to simmer two pots next to each other, one with meat and one with feat.

I'm going to have some more for lunch!

Sean Taylor: 1983-2007

I really don't know what to say. I feel like I should post something, if for no other reason than to give people a forum to post some thoughts.

Sean Taylor died yesterday morning of a gunshot wound to the leg. His home was broken into Sunday overnight, and the invaders shot him in his bedroom, damaging the femoral artery and causing catastrophic bleeding. After six hours of surgery, there were some positive signs, but he passed away approximately 24 hours after being shot. His fiancee and baby daughter were unharmed.

Sean Taylor was a Pro Bowl safety for the Washington Redskins. That is the least important thing I can think about right now.

Yes, he was the best player on the team, and may have been the most popular despite playing on the defense (offensive players are always the most popular). Yes, he was often referred to by pundits and players as the best safety in the NFL, and one of the best defensive players. And yes, he has the skills and drive to make a Hall of Fame career seem likely.

But I don't care about that much right now. Next year, maybe as the draft approaches, that part will matter.

Here's what matters.

Sean Taylor got in a lot of trouble early in his career. He suffered from what I like to call "Miamitis," an affliction affecting University of Miami football players that manifests in unbearable arrogance and a sense that they're untouchable. He skipped the NFL rookie symposium, was arrested for drunk driving, and apparently pulled a gun on some men he suspected of stealing his ATVs. And he had been drafted by Joe Gibbs, a man who, like me, prizes character above almost any other factor. So even as Taylor excelled on the field, I didn't much care for him.

Then a funny thing happened. He grew up.

He had a baby, a little girl, a year and a half ago, and everything changed for him. According to his teammates, he smiled more, he was calmer. He stayed out of trouble. The drunk driving charges had been dropped, and the gun thing was reduced to probation. He proposed to his girlfriend. And he got even better on the field.

Know this: there is nothing in the world more powerful or precious than redemption. There is nothing I value more than someone turning their life around and fixing what was broken or ill-spent. In the last year, Sean Taylor has turned from my least favorite Redskin to one of my favorites, not because he still leads the NFC in interceptions, but because he grew up, looked into a mirror, and turned his life around.

So my prayers are for Sean Taylor's fiancee and daughter, and for his large family, with whom he stayed on draft day. My prayers are for the Redskins off the field, because the on-the-field loss, though great, pales in significance. And my prayers are for the gunman, inexplicable and still at-large. We may never know what happened that night. And only those close to Sean Taylor really know what has been lost.

I don't own a Sean Taylor jersey. I'm poor, and I buy my Redskins jerseys when I can get a great deal (except my #28 Darrell Green jersey, which I bought new in New York City). But I have a new redskins hat, the one I wore every Sunday during Richard II. It's got a "21" drawn on it in Sharpie. When it fades, I'll draw it again.

Bully for You, Patriots

Every NFL fan has teams he or she hates.

Of course, there are the obvious arch-rivals; Raiders-Chiefs, Packers-Bears, Steelers-Browns. I myself have a shirt that reads “MY TWO FAVORITE TEAMS ARE THE REDSKINS AND WHOEVER’S PLAYING THE COWBOYS.” And of course we root against division rivals, but I have to admit that I don’t feel the same level of white-hot hatred for the Giants and Eagles as I do for Dallas.

But occasionally personal experience brings a personal hatred. About twelve years ago, a quirk of scheduling had my Redskins playing two games in one season against Tampa Bay, home and away. It was like they were honorary NFC East for a season. This was, I believe, the last year they wore orange-and-orange; 1994 or 1995. The ‘Skins lost both games in ugly fashion; not by blowouts but by simple inability to execute. The Bucs were a bad team, but the ‘Skins made them look good, and that’s the worst kind of loss. I have despised the Buccaneers ever since. I’m commissioner of my fandom, and the commish holds a grudge.

It is with that experience in mind that I congratulate Bill Belichick and the New England Patriots for their 52-7 victory over Washington on Sunday. Well done, Coach. You have earned my enmity, taken a team I rooted for in every postseason of the 2000s and placed them just one layer of Hell higher than the Cowboys for me.

It’s not that they beat my team badly; that I can take. Hell, since 1992 I’m pretty used to an annual savage beat-down. With the Redskins' offensive line on crutches and stretchers and quarterback Jason Campbell suddenly reverting to doe-eyed-rookie play quality the last two weeks, a bad loss was inevitable. It’s the completely classless manner in which New England scored the last, oh about 30 points, that has earned my hatred, as well as the scorn of NFL commentators across the nation. Before this week, the Patriots looked like a team of destiny. Now they just look like bullies.

I have to acknowledge that I didn’t watch the whole game. I had a performance of Richard II at 2:30, and the game started at 4:15. I got to my car after the show and turned on the radio with the Redskins down 17-0 and driving down the field. Campbell turned the ball over and the Pats had just over two minutes remaining before the half. They threw a couple of passes, which the ‘Skins secondary just clearly couldn’t defend. Suddenly I noticed that they weren’t calling any running plays. The clock and game management was excellent; it was precise and well-executed, and they scored another touchdown with just a few seconds left to lead 24-0 at the half.

I muttered out loud in my car, “Running up the score a little, don’t you think?”

I hadn’t seen anything yet.

My viewing of the second half was marred by the fact that I had to figure out how to turn on the heat in my house before the sun set. In between reading the wrong manual and trips in and out of the back yard, I saw the Patriots execute pass after pass, a fake spike, a linebacker catching passes, passing on fourth down, and not a sniff of Redskins offense.

I’m sure some random Patriots fan ( Scott Wichmann ) will be posting any second now to explain how this wasn’t running up the score, but he’ll be wrong. In the first-ever regular-season meeting of coaches who have won three Super Bowls, Bill Belichick demonstrated to football America what the difference between old school and new school is. Old school kicks your ass, then promptly gets back to work on the next game plan; new school kicks your ass, wants everyone to see them kick your ass, wants them to see how they kicked you ass, wants them to see just how badly they kicked your ass, and wants them to see just how they’re going to kick the next guy’s ass.

But mostly, new school wants to punish the NFL for finding out they cheated.

Here’s what you do in the NFL if you have any class or respect whatsoever. Once you get a four-touchdown or so lead, you hand the ball to the running back. You call plays that don’t cause injuries to your team or the other team, you kill the clock, you take your double-digit victory and you go home happy. If the opposing defense is so inept that they can’t stop your run-after-run and you score, the fault is theirs. You can beat them without intentionally humiliating them. A bad team humiliates itself.

Joe Gibbs would never have called those ridiculous pass and gadget plays with an opponent down 24-0, 31-0, 38-0. Vince Lombardi wouldn’t have. Tom Landry, Bill Walsh, and even Bill Parcells, whom I loathe with all my soul, wouldn’t have. But Bill Belichick would.

Thanks again, Coach, for showing us who you are so clearly. I could look past the cheating and the snubbing of opposing coaches enough to still root for Tom Brady. But humiliating Joe Jackson Gibbs like you did on Sunday is so far across the line that I can’t anticipate ever coming back.

And it’s not just Washington fans who are going to see this. Don’t think NFL players and coaches are just going to take being disrespected. This is coming back to bite the Patriots, and soon. Some linebacker, his team down 35-7, is going to take Brady down with a late hit; some free safety is going to spear Moss across the middle, someone is going to take Vrabel down low. His team will take the 15-yard penalty, the offender will be kicked out of the game, he’ll be fined six figures, and he’ll get thank you cards from players on 31 teams. I’m not recommending this, nor am I approving it; I’m just the messenger. Starting week 10 (because the Colts’ Tony Dungy is too classy to allow it in week 9) we’re going to see increasingly dirty play against these Patriots.

Congratulations, Coach Bullychick, on your 52-7 victory over the Redskins. Your Patriots are my new Cowboys. I guess you finally understand the full power of the dark side of the Force.

GO COLTS!

Jon Jansen... wooo....

I had a conversation about football with the pastors at Redeemer Lutheran Church (where I work) yesterday. This is a fairly common occurrence; it is a genuine blessing to serve with other sports fans, even if one of them is a Yankees fan. Jim Byork mentioned that the Redskins have not had a really great quarterback since Sonny Jurgensen. In fact, it could be argued that the Redskins have had only two great quarterbacks in their 75-year history; Jurgensen and Sammy Baugh, the greatest football player of all time. Jim's point was in line with my personal belief: that great offenses, and quarterbacks in particular, are often the product of great offensive line play.

It's a fair point. As great as Joe Theismann was for a few years, the Redskins' success in the 1980s was really centered around the Hogs. Great seasons by Doug Williams, Mark Rypien, and even Gus Frerotte and Brad Johnson were hardly the norm for their careers; in fact, the best of the bunch is probably journeyman Johnson. I have high hopes that Jason Campbell is going to buck the trend, but of course I felt that was about Heath Shuler and Patrick Ramsey, too...

Which brings me to the subject line of this blog: right tackle Jon Jansen, my current favorite Redskin on the roster. Wait: does it count as "on the roster" if he's on injured reserve? Maybe not, but he's still my current favorite Redskin.

Jon Jansen suffered a fractured dislocation early on in Sunday's game against the Miami Dolphins, and is gone for the season. After a fairly routine play, Dolphins linebacker Zach Thomas rolled up Jansen's ankle, breaking his fibula and dislocating his ankle.

This makes the second full season that Jansen, a horse who played much of 2005 with two broken thumbs, has suffered in four years. 2004 was lost to a ruptured achilles in preseason. Jansen a well-known and respected player the league wide, has inexplicably never been to a Pro Bowl, unlike his counterpart, left tackle Chris Samuels, a comparable player. (Samuels is another personal favorite; you might remember him from the NFL commercial where he cries in a classroom at the end of Little Women, immediately denying that the book is his.)

Jansen, cornerback Shawn Springs, and broadcaster Chick Hernandez used to co-host a casual Redskins interview show called Monday Night Live on Comcast SportsNet. It was held in a restaurant in NoVa and featured a wide array of guests and local musical acts. A few years back, they had linebacker LaVar Arrington, another past favorite, on the show as a guest. Here's a transript from my favorite part:

Hernandez: Who's your favorite Redskin?

Arrington: Jon Jansen. (Brief pause. Then:) Wooooooooooo!

(Later in the same interview:)

Hernandez: Your favorite Halloween costume?

Arrington (instantly): JON JANSEN! WOOOOOOOOOOOO!

In my house, any time anyone says "Jon Jansen," Karen and/or I automatically shout a high-pitched "Woooooooooo!" like LaVar Arrington.

Now there is no woo. Or it's a quiet, sad woo. Jansen is out for the season, and while backup Todd Wade is a more than capable substitute, I'm going to miss my boy Jon. It breaks my heart to see a team's fortunes turn on the twist of an ankle, even a team I hate; sports should be determined on the field, not in the O.R. But when it's a player I love, at the beginning of a season where I think the Redskins are going to be one of the biggest surprises in the league, it's just heartbreaking.

So get well, Jon Jansen. We'll see you in 2008.

I mean: Get well, Jon Jansen. Wooooooo....

Sports Fan Traditions and Superstitions

I read recently that animal lovers nationwide have been sending old Michael Vick jerseys to the Atlanta ASPCA and other organizations with instructions that the jerseys are to be used as rags or shredded for cage lining. First of all, that's awesome. I wrote a month ago that if I had a Vick jersey I would have had to hold a ritual burning to atone for the sin of having worn it. This is a much better option, much more karmic and productive. Okay, I'll admit it: it's also just totally kick-###.

This got me thinking about my sports paraphernalia traditions and superstitions. I'm going to share some of mine and invite you to share a few of your own.

Most of mine are football-related. The reasons are twofold: 1) The NFL schedule is so much more dramatic and conducive to preparation; game day is an event every week. And 2) With all due respect to the Red Sox and the Phillies, my Washington Redskins fandom dwarfs all of my other sports interest. Maybe it's because the 'Skins were the first sports team I ever followed, or maybe it's because that first year was the 1991 Super Bowl season. (Long story short: I worked for a Northern Virginia optical lab in summer of 1991, where I had the opportunity to make Joe Gibbs' glasses before the season, and I decided to follow the team to see what happened. Am I off-base in thinking I deserve a little Super Bowl ring?)

It's gameday today (albeit pre-season), and I must drink my morning coffee out of a giant oversized Redskins coffee mug. During the baseball season, I drink coffee out of a Red Sox mug every single day. I probably need to get a Phillies mug to alternate...

During the game, I will only drink red- or gold-colored beers, and only out of a beer glass with a Redskins logo on it. I sure miss George Starke's Head Hog Beer...

When opening a beer to drink during a Red Sox game, I will only use my talking Red Sox bottle opener. "Grand slam! Go crazy, folks! The Red Sox win!"

For a while, I was crazy enough to change jerseys during the Redskins game: offense, defense, and even special teams. For a couple years, I would switch between #82 (Michael ####ing Westbrook) when the Redskins were on offense, #24 (Champ Bailey) on defense and #30 (Brian Mitchell) on special teams. It got pretty exhausting, though I should probably re-think the strategy; the 'Skins did make the playoffs that year. Now I change jerseys depending on what I think the team really needs right now: old-school excellence (#28 Darrell Green), hard-nosed ballsy play (#30) or flash and style (#26 Clinton Portis). Usually, I'll wear one jersey for the entire game, but sometimes circumstances will require a switch mid-game.

(The Bailey jersey now hangs sadly in the closet next to the #82, the #5 Shuler and the #12 Frerotte. Of course I can't wear those jerseys.)

If I'm ticked off at a player, I'll bench his jersey. The Westbrook jersey vanished for months after the Stephen Davis training camp beat-down. I probably should have shredded the damn thing, honestly. When Clinton Portis came out in defense of Michael Vick's right to do what he wants on his property, I put his jersey away. Fortunately, Portis was turned around by legions of fans who sent him information about the cruelty of dogfighting (you gotta love the loyalty of Washington fans), and he admitted he was wrong and apologized. I still had to lay down the law, though, and suspended Portis' jersey for the first four games of the regular season. I won't wear it until the sentence has been served. I am the commissioner of my own fandom, and I take the responsibility very seriously.

I will not draft a Dallas Cowboy or a New York Yankee on my fantasy teams. I will not start a player who is playing against the Redskins that week.

My Red Sox 2004 World Series Champions hat only comes out during the playoffs or a pennant race.

I am convinced that all of these actions affect my teams' performance.

News Flash: Pro Athlete Admits He Was Wrong!

It's my man Clinton Portis, who initially responded to the Michael Vick dog-fighting investigation by saying, "It's his dogs. If that's what he wants to do, do it."

From the Washington Post today:



"A couple of weeks ago, when I made those comments I didn't understand the seriousness behind it," Portis said. "I didn't know it would affect that many people, and didn't think what I said was that offensive. But after doing some research and seeing how serious people take this, I shouldn't have made the comments. I'm going to just leave it alone and hopefully it will die down and people will understand that. At that time I had no idea the love people have for animals, and I didn't consider it when I made those comments."

Portis said he received an outpouring of mail and informational pamphlets from critics, and paid more attention to the way humans and animals interact. He recently noticed a woman caring for her dog at an airport and thought about television coverage of people weeping over a whale that was stuck in a canal, and reconsidered his remarks.



Now, of course Portis also pled "my comments were taken out of context," which is cliche even when true. But I'm glad to see that Portis is man enough to have his mind change and admit it. That's a very rare thing in our society these days, almost unheard of in sports and impossible in politics.

Still, my #26 jersey is getting a four-game suspension. I won't wear Portis' number until week five. That's down from the season-long suspension I had given it previously.

Also, Michael Vick is a dingus. We're done with him here.

Super Bowl©® XLI Is Here!

This is it! Your destination for useless chat about Super Bowl©® XLI, or Forty-One, whichever you prefer!

Watch the game with a laptop on your, you know, lap and stuff! I'll be at the Creasy party chiming in with whatever nonsense myself and the local partying yokels have to share. Tune in early, open the Comments window, and refresh often.

Finally, the Redskins' Quarterback Future Is Now.

After much hemming and hawing, the Mark Brunell era in Washington is over. Enter second-year quarterback Jason Campbell, about a month too late to save the season.

Please let that #17 on his chest remind us of Doug Williams, not Danny Wuerffel.

I guess Coach Gibbs has finally realized that Mr. Hyde has taken Dr. Brunell's place permanently, or that his record-setting 22-receptions streak a couple months ago was like Robert DeNiro in Awakenings.

Apparently, this kid is the future of the Redskins. I'm interested in seeing what he does Sunday against the Buccaneers, but don't anyone let images of Tony Romo dance in your head. Clinton Portic' broken hand probably has as much to do with the Redskins giving up on the season as Brunell's inefficiency, and while Ladell Betts is a very good back, Portis is elite.

I'm actually more interested in seeing if T.J. Duckett ends up in the mix now that Portis is out for at least a month.

So welcome, Jason Campbell. For the next five days, you get to remain the most popular man in town, the backup quarterback who's all dreams and potential. Enjoy it, because as soon as you throw your first three-interception game at home you'll know what being a Redskins quarterback is really like.

So as we depart, let's examine a few quarterbacks who have torn the NFL up in recent years after being released by the Redskins in favor of such gems as Wuerffel, Heath Shuler, Jeff George, and Shane Matthews:

Trent Green, Kansas City Pro Bowler
Brad Johnson, Tampa Bay and Minnesota Pro Bowler, Super Bowl winner
Rich Gannon, Oakland Pro Bowler and AFC champion

Jack Kent Cooke, where are you when we need you?