With playoff dreams dead in D.C., focus goes to Campbell

By Connor Byrne  |   Tuesday, December 05, 2006  |  Comments( 1 )

Washington Redskins
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Though the highly disappointing, 4-8 Washington Redskins are finally dead in the race for the NFC playoffs, they can still be glad that second-year quarterback Jason Campbell is getting the opportunity to develop.

In his first three starts at the helm of the Redskins, the 2005 first-round pick from Auburn has gone 1-2. His stat line hasn't been too impressive: 50.5 percent completion rate, 531 passing yards, five touchdowns, three interceptions, 71.9 QB rating. However, as most know, it's not about statistics when it comes to young passers. Instead, it's about their overall growth as decision makers.

Campbell had a typical game often seen in neophyte quarterbacks this past Sunday, completing just 18 of 38 passes for 217 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. That came against one of the league's worst pass defenses, the Atlanta Falcons, in a 24-14 loss. While looking at those numbers, the biggest negative that jumps out might not be the two turnovers, but the low completion rate.

Luckily for Washington, poor completion percentages are more often than not seen in young QBs. Usually, unless your name is Ben Roethlisberger circa 2004, there's no way around it. Of course, the same exact thing can be said for turnovers and their correlation to youthful signal callers.

With the Redskins' playoff dreams essentially out of the way, a certain amount of pressure has been removed from Campbell, a 6-foot-4, 230-pound athlete under center. Rather than trying to get the under-talented Skins into contention, he can now focus purely on development.

Campbell, obviously, would like to win, too, but given the low amount of ability on this current Redskins team, that dream is probably gone. The team simply isn't good enough, especially with its best player -- running back Clinton Portis -- out for the season.

For the remainder of the 2006 season, the Redskins' schedule reads like this: versus Philadelphia, at New Orleans, at St. Louis, versus the New York Giants. None of the above four teams have been eliminated from contention in the NFC, meaning Campbell will have his work cut out for him against defenders striving with all they have to earn a postseason bid.

Of the four opponents left on the Skins' schedule, none have defenses in the league's overall top 10. However, oddly enough, the Eagles (fourth) and Saints (sixth) both boast elite pass defenses. Even the Rams' weak 'D' is good enough for ninth against the pass. The Giants, meanwhile, rank a meager 23rd.

Of course, when it comes to the three in the top 10 against the pass, which can be a deceiving number. For instance, the Eagles are just 23rd against the run, so opposing offenses tend to attack that weak point. The same can be said for the Saints and Rams, ranked 27th and 31st against the ground attack, respectively.

All that said, Washington will no doubt utilize the season's final four games to see how good of a QB Campbell can develop into. If the 25-year-old can begin showing early signs of turning the corner, the team will be in solid shape entering next season. This year, obviously, at 4-8, things haven't panned out as originally planned.

Goodbye, playoffs (officially). Hello, development (officially).

--Connor J. Byrne can be reached at cbyrne@realfootball365.com.

Get more on the Washington Redskins at RealFootball365.com.
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