His play questionable at best early in the season, Redskins cornerback Carlos Rogers (22) stuck on Keyshawn Johnson like glue yesterday. GREG FIUME/GETTY IMAGES Visit the Photo Place

Defense tackles its faults

Steve DeShazo on the Redskins: Defense finally plays up to its abilities

Date published: 11/27/2006

LANDOVER, Md.--Sometimes it's hard to tell which is more popular: the actual NFL or the video version. One thing is sure, though: If Gregg Williams could copy yesterday's inspired performance by his defense to a floppy disk, the Washington Redskins might never lose again.

They certainly wouldn't be 4-7 and on the edge of irrelevance if they'd consistently reproduced the intensity and execution that stunned the talented Carolina Panthers yesterday.

"Everybody wants to find an answer key that will work every week," said Williams, Washington's defensive chief. "But it's a moving coverage, and a moving game. It changes week to week."

It had been consistently frustrating for the underachieving Redskins, who had sunk to the dregs of the NFL rankings in almost every defensive category. Nothing brightened up the eyes of struggling runners like Tennessee's Travis Henry or Tampa Bay's Cadillac Williams more than a play date with Washington.

Maybe that's why the Redskins themselves weren't quite sure where yesterday's superior effort came from. With occasional double-team help, Shawn Springs held the NFL's most explosive receiver, Carolina's Steve Smith, to 34 yards receiving. The Panthers managed a mere 264 yards (95 less than Washington's per-game average).

"We were definitely a little more physical," defensive end Renaldo Wynn said.

Added linebacker Warrick Holdman: "We played basically a simple defense--just faster. We didn't have to think about this and that. We just lined up and played downhill."

The schematics weren't significantly different from weeks past--but the effort and the results were. It helped that Springs stuck with Smith, and fellow cornerback Carlos Rogers shadowed Keyshawn Johnson, and that Washington's front four got in Jake Delhomme's face consistently.

Springs described the game plan thus: "Simple in theory, hard in application."

Williams rarely assigns his corners to a specific receiver; he usually keeps them on a side of the field. Yesterday, knowing that Springs was finally healthy after abdominal and hamstring injuries, he challenged his No. 1 corner to Smith, whom Joe Gibbs said "has ruined some people in this league."

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Date published: 11/27/2006