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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BAL at SD | BUF at JAX | DEN at CHI | GB at DET | HOU at CLE | IND at ATL | MIA at PIT | MIN at NYG |
| NO at CAR | NYJ at DAL | OAK at KC | PHI at NE | SEA at STL | SF at ARI | TEN at CIN | WAS at TB |
Week 12 Game Recap: Washington Redskins 13, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 19
What you need to know
| Washington Redskins |
Jason Campbell and the Redskins got off to an awful start, fumbling the ball away four times in the first half that all led to Tampa Bay scores. The only score they were able to come up with was a field goal, and the team trailed 19-3 at halftime. Campbell and the Redskins came out a different team in the second half, scoring ten unanswered points to cut the lead to 19-13 and had a chance to win the game late in the fourth quarter. Campbell led a 77 yard drive with three minutes left in the game and had a chance to complete a comeback with a score, but Campbell's pass intended for WR Santana Moss in the end zone was picked off by Tampa Bay DB Brian Kelly and the game was over.
Clinton Portis finished with 20 carries for 68 yards and had two fumbles that the Buccaneers turned into points. Backup RB Ladell Betts chipped in with 47 yards on just eight attempts for the Redskins.
TE Chris Cooley led Washington in receiving, with six receptions for 96 yards and a 39 yard touchdown, and WR Keenan McCardell added six receptions of his own for 60 yards for the Redskins.
The Washington defense couldn't catch a break in the first half, and was handed a short field to defend following four turnovers by the offense. They came out of it giving up 19 points, but turned it up in the second half, shutting down and shutting out the Tampa Bay offense to give their offense the opportunity to come back.
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
Jeff Garcia was injured on the first drive and left the game with a back injury. He was replaced by backup Bruce Gradkowski, whose poor play landed him back on the bench in favor of the injured Garcia in the fourth quarter. Garcia couldn't get much going himself, and the Buccaneers' two drives in the last quarter ended after just three plays.
RB Earnest Graham ran hard and finished with 75 yards on 21 carries, including a one yard touchdown run in the first quarter.
Ike Hilliard led the way receiving for Tampa Bay, with just four receptions for 44 yards. WR Joey Galloway could have had a monster game, but was missed twice on long routes that could have been scores, but fell through due to badly thrown balls.
Tampa Bay's defense deserves a game ball for this win. They forced six turnovers, four of which came on first half fumbles and went a long way in helping their struggling offense put points on the board. Their two interceptions came at the right time as well, with DB Ronde Barber picking off Campbell with just over three minutes left and fellow DB Brian Kelly interception the potential game winning pass attempt to Santana Moss in the end zone with under a minute left.
What you ought to know
| QB Jason Campbell, Pass: 30 - 49 - 301 - 1 TD / 2 INT, Rush: 2 - 4 - 0 |
Jason Campbell had another game to learn from in his young career. He finished 30 of 49 for a respectable 301 yards and a 39 yard touchdown pass, but also lost a fumble and threw two interceptions, including one on the last drive in the red zone that ended Washington's comeback hopes. On that final drive, before the interception, Campbell looked comfortable running the hurry up offense, and looked at ease leading his team down the field before throwing the pick. He continued to show strides and can use this game as a learning experience.
| RB Clinton Portis, Rush: 20 - 68 - 0, Rec: 5 - 33 - 0 (8 targets) |
Clinton Portis ran the ball 20 times for 68 yards and caught five passes for 33 yards on eight targets in the passing game. He struggled finding room against the Tampa Bay front seven and lost two fumbles that each led to Tampa Bay field goals.
| RB Ladell Betts, Rush: 8 - 47 - 0, Rec: 3 - 32 - 0 (4 targets) |
Betts chipped in with 47 yards rushing on eight attempts and added three receptions for 32 yards in the passing game. He made positive plays on nearly every touch he got, but just wasn't used enough to make a bigger impact.
| WR Keenan McCardell, Rec: 6 - 60 - 0 (8 targets) |
Keenan McCardell was targeted eight times, finishing with six receptions for 60 yards. He was targeted four times on third downs, converting three of those into Washington first downs.
| WR Reche Caldwell, Rec: 5 - 43 - 0 (6 targets) |
Caldwell contributed in the passing game with five receptions for 43 yards on six targets. He made a couple nice catches, showing great body control and athleticism.
| WR Santana Moss, Rec: 5 - 37 - 0 (11 targets) |
Moss was targeted 11 times, finishing with five receptions for 37 yards. Moss still looked to be struggling with his foot injury, and did not show any of the explosiveness he's capable of. He lost a fumble on Washington's first drive that led to a Tampa Bay touchdown, and two passes attempted for him were intercepted, including a red zone target on the team's final drive that ended the club's comeback attempt.
| WR Antwaan Randle El, Rush: 1 - 1 - 0 (2 targets) |
Randle El was targeted twice, but did not record a catch. He also had one rushing attempt for one yard.
| TE Chris Cooley, Rec: 6 - 96 - 1 (11 targets) |
Chris Cooley was targeted 11 times and finished with six receptions for 96 yards and a 39 yard touchdown reception. He continued to be a reliable target for his young quarterback.
| PK Shaun Suisham 2 - 2 FG, 1 - 1 XP, 7 points |
Suisham was successful on field goal attempts from 43 and 38 yards out and he added one extra point to finish with seven points.
| WAS Rush Defense |
Washington's defense was put in tough spots early and often, with four first half turnovers that left them with a short field to defend. They came out of it giving up 19 points, but it could have been a lot worse. The only touchdown did come on the ground, with Earnest Graham scoring on a one yard run. The second half was a different story and Washington played well on both sides of the ball. For the game, they gave up 99 yards on 25 carries, for a 4.0 ypc average.
DB LeRon Landry led the way with five solo tackles and one assist and LB London Fletcher totaled four solo tackles.
| WAS Pass Defense |
The Redskins secondary had been torched in recent weeks, but the unit played much better against the Buccaneers. Some of that could be attributed to the early exit of Tampa Bay QB Jeff Garcia, but they made plays when they had to, regardless of who was throwing the ball. They gave up just 93 net passing yards for the game, held the Buccaneers to one of 12 on third downs and had three sacks.
DL Andre Carter, LB Marcus Washington and DE Chris Wilson each contributed a sack for the Redskins.
| QB Bruce Gradkowski, Pass: 9 - 19 - 106 - 0 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 2 - 24 - 0 |
Gradkowski entered the game in the first quarter following the injury to Garcia. He was unable to get much going in the passing game as he finished nine of 19 for 106 yards and no touchdowns. Gradkowski did not turn the ball over, but the offense lost any luster it had with Garcia as soon as he entered the game. He was erratic in the pocket and could not complete anything downfield. On one play, Gradkowski had Galloway open downfield for what could have been a huge play, but he threw a poor ball that was short and over the wrong shoulder and Galloway showed his disappointment. After getting nowhere with Gradkowski, Gruden turned back to Garcia in the fourth quarter to try to get something going.
| QB Jeff Garcia, Pass: 2 - 4 - 9 - 0 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 2 - 0 - 0 |
Jeff Garcia was hurt on the first drive and left the game with a back injury. He went into the locker room and had the injury x-rayed, put a heating pad on it and came back out to the sideline. He remained on the sideline until the fourth quarter, and returned to try to give the offense a much needed spark. Garcia didn't fare much better than Gradkowski, and couldn't muster up anything but two three and out drives in the fourth quarter, putting the pressure on the Tampa Bay defense to hold on for the win. Luckily for Garcia and the Buccaneers, they were able to do just that. His final stat line read two of four passing for nine yards, no scores and no interceptions.
| RB Earnest Graham, Rush: 21 - 75 - 1, Rec: 2 - 9 - 0 (4 targets) |
Earnest Graham could not find much running room against the Redskins, as he finished with 21 rushes for 75 yards and had a long run of 12 for the game. He was able to get into the end zone, scoring from one yard out in the first quarter. Graham was targeted four times in the passing game and caught two of those targets for nine yards.
| WR Ike Hilliard, Rec: 4 - 44 - 0 (4 targets) |
Hilliard caught all four passes thrown his way for 44 yards. He had a big reception before halftime, catching a 16 yard pass to help set up a Bryant field goal before intermission.
| WR Joey Galloway, Rec: 2 - 21 - 0 (7 targets) |
Galloway finished with just two receptions for 21 yards, but his day could have been much bigger with better quarterback play. He got separation twice, and was open downfield, but was missed on both plays that could have been scores. Washington made stopping Galloway a priority, and used deep coverage with their safeties throughout the ballgame.
| WR Michael Clayton (1 targets) |
Clayton was not a factor in the game, getting one target and finishing without a reception.
| TE Alex Smith, Rec: 3 - 41 - 0 (4 targets) |
Smith was targeted four times and finished with three receptions for 41 yards. He's got some ability, and he showed that on one reception, with great athleticism and leaping ability to make a tough catch downfield.
| PK Matt Bryant 4 - 4 FG, 1 - 1 XP, 13 points |
Bryant was busy against the Redskins, kicking field goals from 35, 27, 48 and 39 yards out and adding one extra point to finish with 13 points in the game.
| TB Rush Defense |
Tampa Bay played well against the run, finishing off tackles and swarming to the ball like they have all season long. They gave up 120 net rushing yards on 31 attempts, for a 3.9 ypc average and did not allow a score on the ground. When they hit the Redskins, they hit hard, forcing and recovering four fumbles that all led to scores. Included in those four fumbles were two by RB Clinton Portis.
LB Derrick Brooks led the way defensively for the Buccaneers, with nine solo tackles and three assists. DB Jermaine Phillips and DE Greg White each forced Portis fumbles.
| TB Pass Defense |
Tampa Bay allowed a passing touchdown and gave up over 300 yards passing, but had a bend but don't break defensive effort against the Redskins. They gave up some plays in the passing game, but continued bringing pressure with their front four and made plays when they had to in the secondary to hold on for the win.
DB Philip Buchanon finished with seven solo tackles, one assist and a forced fumble and DE Greg White added four solo tackles, one sack and another forced fumble. DB's Ronde Barber and Brian Kelly each had an interception, with Kelly's coming at a crucial time late in the game on a pass in the end zone that could have given the Redskins the victory.
