Hail To The Redskins

This season has been nothing short of a roller coaster ride for the Washington Redskins. After starting out with two straight wins, things were looking bright. By midseason, however, they found themselves on a sustained losing streak, including an embarrassing 52-7 loss to the (still) undefeated Patriots.

But the low point was yet to come. That was the violent death of Sean Taylor in a home invasion.

If nothing else, my perception of team owner Dan Snyder changed a great deal during that sad week. I had never particularly cared for him, and along with many other fans, thought he had driven the team into the ground. However, he--as much as head coach Joe Gibbs--became the public face of the Redskins during that week of mourning. Snyder took charge but never once overdid it, and seemed to handle everything with just the right amount of emotions. Though I hate to admit it, my respect for the man increased tenfold.

Just when it seemed things couldn't get worse, starting quarterback Jason Campbell was injured early in a game against the Bears. His replacement was backup quarterback Todd Collins, a 36 year old benchwarmer who hadn't started an NFL game in ten years and was on the cusp of retirement.

And what does Collins do? Leads the 'Skins from behind to beat the Bears, ending his team's four game losing streak. Collins went on to engineer three more impressive wins, including a 27-6 trouncing of the evil Dallas Cowboys.

The Redskins now improbably find themselves in the playoffs and will be facing the Seahawks in Seattle this afternoon. However that game turns out, the team deserves a lot of credit for what they've managed to accomplish this year.