Redskins owner Dan Snyder released a statement on the news Friday night about the arrests in connection with the fatal shooting of Sean Taylor earlier this week:

"This is another step, but not a conclusion, in a very personal and painful tragedy. The police have done a wonderful and professional job in quickly making arrests. I thank them for keeping us informed and involved from the very beginning.

"I also want to thank everyone who has joined us in mourning the loss of Sean. People from all over the world contacted the Redskins to share our grief and offer their prayers for Sean and his family.

"We will never forget the courage his family, especially Jackie, Pete and Donna, have shown. Their composure has been a source of strength for us all."

Seems like the Redskins' loss to Tampa Bay happened about six months ago, doesn't it? It's been a week, arguably, unlike any other in professional sports history, a team having one of their best players murdered in the middle of a season.

My Sean Taylor-related coverage will continue for another few days. The Redskins plan a tribute to No. 21 before Sunday's game against the Buffalo Bills. Sunday night, myself, columnist Dan Daly and photographer Peter Lockley will fly to south Florida for Monday morning's funeral at Florida International University.

But the games go on and so does the El Gaucho Bowl with Jim Ducibella of the Virginian-Pilot in Norfolk. The clock is counting down for Duce on the Redskins beat -- five games and counting. During a difficult day last Tuesday, his humor, wit and eagerness to be made fun of was a nice diversion.

The old dog continues to hold a three-game lead in the contest. And if my playoff picks in Saturday's paper hold true, I may have to pay up -- I have the Redskins playing at Seattle in the wild card round and that's where El Gaucho's is located.

Buffalo at Redskins
Duce: Redskins
Ryan: Redskins. Emotion will carry the day and carry the Redskins back to the .500 mark.

San Francisco at Carolina
Duce: Carolina
Ryan: Carolina. I'd rather watch Boston College-Virginia Tech than this stinker.

Jacksonville at Indianapolis
Duce: Indianapolis
Ryan: Indianapolis. The Colts have been off since Thanksgiving and are the front-runners for the AFC's second seed. These teams may play again in January.

San Diego at Kansas City
Duce: Kansas City
Ryan: San Diego. If the Chiefs can't beat Oakland at Arrowhead, they certainly can't beat the Chargers at Arrowhead.

NY Jets at Miami
Duce: Jets
Ryan: Miami. The Toilet Bowl Game of the season -- 1-10 Jets vs. 0-11 Miami. Expect the Fins to go all-in (trick plays, fake punts, blitzes) because they time is running out.

Detroit at Minnesota
Duce: Detroit
Ryan: Minnesota. The Lions are finished. The Purple get Adrian Peterson back and move to 6-6.

Tampa Bay at New Orleans
Duce: New Orleans
Ryan: Tampa Bay. The Buccaneers defense was impressive last week (except on third down). They are the fastest defense I've seen this year.

Seattle at Philadelphia
Duce: Philadelphia
Ryan: Seattle. Remember last week when I wondered what the Redskins had left after giving everything and still losing at Dallas? The Iggles are in the same situation -- they almost beat New England and here comes the letdown.

Atlanta at St. Louis
Duce: St. Louis
Ryan: St. Louis. I'd rather watch Missouri-Oklahoma than this stinker.

Houston at Tennessee
Duce: Houston
Ryan: Tennessee. The Titans were smoked at Cincinnati last week so I expect them to rebound.

Cleveland at Arizona
Duce: Cleveland
Ryan: Cleveland. Romeo Crennel was at the top of Will-Get-Fired list before the season. A win in the desert and the Brownies are 8-4.

Denver at Oakland
Duce: Denver
Ryan: Oakland. I'd rather watch Tennessee-LSU than this stinker.

NY Giants at Chicago
Duce: Giants
Ryan: Chicago. The Bears are done if they lose so look for that kind of effort against a Giants team that goes into they're-reeling-mode with a loss.

Cincinnati at Pittsburgh
Duce: Pittsburgh
Ryan: Pittsburgh. A few weeks ago, the Steelers had to keep winning so they had a chance at the No. 2 seed. Now they need to keep winning to win the division.

New England at Baltimore
Duce: New England
Ryan: New England. The Patriots will be ticked. Last week's win wasn't up to their standards. I'll go 45-14.

Records
Duce: 7-5 last week, 111-59 season.
Ryan: 7-5 last week, 108-62 season.

*Above the club level in one end zone was a '21 SEAN TAYLOR' sign with ribbons on either side. Towels with No. 21 were handed out to most fans.

*One of Gregg Williams' sons was on the field before the wearing Taylor’s white jersey.

*Every Redskins jersey had a '21' patch on their right shoulder.

*The 4-minute, 5-second tribute to Taylor was well done. It started about 12:40 p.m. and most of the lower bowl was already filled. The video, with background music from "Braveheart," included past comments by Taylor and recent interviews by Joe Gibbs, Gregg Williams, Clinton Portis, Marcus Washington, Santana Moss and Pierson Prioleau.

*Former Bills Pierson Prioleau and London Fletcher were two of the Redskins' captains. Interestingly, close Taylor friends Portis and Moss weren't among the players at midfield for the coin toss.

*The game-time temperature was 40 degrees, compared with 81 degrees last week in Tampa.

*In the lower level, somebody wore a burgundy Brandon Lloyd No. 85 jersey. No, really, he did.

Funerals stink, period. Whether the deceased is 24 or 84, funerals stink. And they stink even more if you have to take notes and then try to write a coherent narrative of the festivities afterward. Yet that was the task for myself and columnist Dan Daly yesterday in Miami, where a nearly three-hour ceremony was held to remember Redskins safety Sean Taylor.

After a day that included wretched navigation on my part (I can't read a map that includes an ocean nearby -- North Dakota, I can handle; south Florida, not so much), finding a Starbucks in Fort Lauderdale to file my story (harder than you think) and experiencing one of the most harrowing landings in my flying career (the winds at BWI were making the plane sway big-time), some reflections on the Taylor funeral.

1. It was too long. When the thing stretched past two hours, it began to defeat its purpose -- remembering Taylor and telling those who didn't know him well (present company included) what he was all about. Spectators and most media began leaving at that point. The D.C. media stuck it out for the entire two-hour, 40-minute service.

2. The reason it was too long was because some speakers made their opportunity on-stage more about them than Taylor. The mayor of Florida City railed against the media for drawing conclusions about why Taylor was killed. He got his standing ovation, which I hope made his day. What I know is that Taylor's closest ally at Redskin Park -- Gregg Williams -- thanked the media twice last Thursday for how they handled the situation. Maybe the mayor should have read the coverage of the Washington newspapers and television stations before making such an insane accusation. And the final speaker -- he said he was Taylor's pastor in south Florida -- made it totally about him. A safe estimate is he talked for 30 minutes. The less-is-more approach would have worked better.

3. People who I hoped would speak: Gregg Williams and Larry Coker.

4. A reader emailed me this morning with this question: Was LaVar Arrington's tears genuine? I think they were. Before the funeral started, LaVar was being consoled by current and former NFL players. He was clearly broken up by Taylor's death and the fact that Pedro Taylor had singled him out to speak before the audience.

5. For those watching back in D.C., I don't know how visible it was, but the sight of 18-month-old Jackie during the funeral was equal parts a good diversion and gut-wrenching. Here's a little girl that has recently discovered she can run without falling on her face so she did exactly that for most of the ceremony.

6. I have one Taylor off-the-field memory. Look for my Redskins Debate with Channel 4's Lindsay Czarniak later this week for that. Also a note: A reader asked why all the photos in the paper today from the service were credited to the Associated Press. Only one photographer was allowed inside the arena -- a Miami Herald staffer who then "pooled" his photos to the Associated Press. Our photographer, Peter Lockley, was stuck waiting outside the arena for reaction pictures.

A few members of the local media were just allowed in the locker room for the first time since Sean Taylor was shot.

His locker, the third to the left as you enter, is encased in plexiglas. His jersey and shoes are arranged neatly as opposed to the usual player's jumble of equipment.

The top shelf displays Taylor's shoulder pads upside down next to a framed photo of him and his 18-month-old daughter Jackie.

It's sad and eerie at the same time.

After practice yesterday, I asked Gregg Williams about the possibility of using all of his defensive personnel because of the quick turn-around from Sunday's game to tomorrow. He said they started doing that against Buffalo in anticipation of having a short recovery time before the Chicago game.

That semi-surprised me because watching the game, I didn't see a lot of reserves on the field, especially among the front seven. So that naturally sent me to the DVR to rip through the defensive snaps. Here are the results:

Defensive line

Phillip Daniels: 53 of 56 snaps
Andre Carter: 53 snaps
Cornelius Griffin: 51 snaps
Anthony Montgomery: 37 snaps
Kedric Golston: 9 snaps
Demetric Evans: 17 snaps
Chris Wilson: 5 snaps

LB

London Fletcher: 56 snaps
Rocky McIntosh: 56 snaps
Marcus Washington: 45 snaps
Randall Godfrey: 3 snaps

I was surprised Daniels and Griffin played so many snaps considering their ages and injury histories. I'm not surprised that Fletcher was on the field the entire game but he looked a little tired during the second half. He's a player to watch against Chicago.

Redskins beat reporter Ryan O'Halloran and Lindsay Czarniak from NBC 4 look back at Sean Taylor's funeral, the loss to Buffalo, Joe Gibbs' game management. And, they make a pick for Thursday night.

1. You were both down in Miami on Monday for Sean Taylor's funeral. Did anything surprise you about the atmosphere or the messages delivered by the speakers? What was a highlight from one of the speakers?

Ryan: The length of the ceremony was a little surprising (nearly three hours) especially since the first page of the proceedings went pretty quickly. But a lot of people wanted to be heard and that's fine. The Florida City mayor's cheap shot at the media for saying Taylor's death was because of his past issues was uncalled for and meant to get a reaction from the crowd. Among the speakers, I thought Taylor's uncle, Michael Outar, was very impressive on-stage with the stories he told about Sean's first day of football as a 6-year old playing defensive line.

Lindsay: The most heart-warming part of the service was hearing Sean's fiancee's sisters' story about when Sean met Jackie in high school, he wanted to learn Spanish to be able to learn more about her. That's one of the things that made me sad and happy at the same time because I wish I would've known more about him when he was alive but I think that's a really cool story. The speaker that surprised me most was LaVar Arrington because I really felt that because of Sean's death, he had a realization that he wanted and needed to tell his former teammates how much they meant to him. It sounded really heartfelt to me and the message I took from it was don't just move on and not "look back" but don't be afraid to take the time to tell people how much they've meant to you. The most surprising guest I ran into was the Bengals flashy wide receiver Chad Johnson, who told me that Sean was one of the only players that made him nervous on the field. That says a lot.

2. In the loss to Buffalo, did either of you sense a flat-ness or non-intensity to the Redskins effort/performance considering the week they had to endure?

Ryan: I couldn't believe the Redskins came out flat for the game. Going in, I believed they would ride emotion and adrenaline to wins over Buffalo and Chicago before the 10-day break would eventually doom them. Instead, there was hardly any outwardly emotion on the field. Granted, things would have gone differently had the offense punched it in even once during three first-half red zone trips.

Lindsay: I was most surprised by what I saw as a drop-off of intensity toward the end of the game. I was watching some of players on the sidelines, one in particular covering his face and breaking down in the final seconds of the game, overcome with emotion. I thought they were more worn out walking off the field than I'd seen in awhile and I was disappointed they couldn't capitalize on opportunities they gave themselves in the red zone.

3. Joe Gibbs had more game management issues in the final seconds of the Bills game, calling a second consecutive timeout even though that was against the rules. How concerning that these situations keep cropping up? And while you're at it, your take on Gibbs not knowing the Redskins would play 10 men on the first defensive snap?

Ryan: I don't know what concerns me more -- the fact he wasn't informed of the playing-10-men-to-pay-tribute-to-Taylor thing or not knowing the rule. He said the rule snafu was something that happened in the heat of the moment. Where are his assistants? Was his head-set turned on? Sunday night, flying to Miami, I talked with somebody about how the Bills game may be the first time -- judging by Gibbs' post-game comments (he plead guilty on the timeout debacle) -- that Joe might be thinking he's hurting the team more than helping it.

Lindsay: First, I am really surprised that Gibbs didn't know about the 10-men salute to Sean Taylor. I think it may have been a miscommunication -- something that was relayed that got lost in the shuffle. I am extremely concerned with the decision that cost them the penalty on the Bills kick, but I'm more concerned because I don't understand how that could've happened that there was no one there to stop it. Why didn't someone filter that, especially if we've seen an issue with calls in recent weeks. I know Gibbs went by what the official said but usually, someone would be there to consult with him.

4. Although Taylor didn't do a ton of interviews or provide much insight to his personality, you both were around the Redskins during his time with the team. Any one story stick out?

Ryan: The last time I asked Taylor a question was after the Minnesota game in Week 1 of 2006 when I pressed him about being targeted by the officials for personal fouls. He shrugged it off. Here's my Taylor memory: My father attended the game at Arizona in December 2005. As a die-hard football fan, he likes watching certain players on certain plays. As somebody who lives in North Dakota but knows more about the Redskins than the Vikings because of my job, he knew to watch No. 21 on kickoff coverage. After the game, before I caught red-eye back east, we were sitting at the Chili's in Tempe when he said: "I know Taylor is a pain the butt, but tell him I love the way he plays." A few days later, I told Taylor in the locker room of my father's message. His eyes lit up. He flashed the smile that people at the funeral Monday remembered. And the tables were turned. He started asking questions: Where does he live? North Dakota? It's really cold there, isn't it? Where did he sit at the game? Who does he root for? It was quite shocking how appreciative he was of the compliment. As I walking away, he said, "Tell your Dad that I love playing special teams." In due time, I think Taylor would have become more cordial with everybody around him, us media-folk included.

Lindsay: Two seasons ago, I was trying to set up a story with Sean to shoot hoops with him and do an interview. He was obliging but in the end, the dates we had chosen fell through. What impressed me was at the very beginning of the next season, he remembered that and he actually sought me out to say he "owed me" and he granted me a one-on-one when we were at the Park one day. That meant a lot. The last time I talked to him as far as an interview was earlier this season, he was leaving Redskins Park. I noticed a definite change as far as a much more polite attitude in him. After we were done with questions, Taylor looked us right in the eyes and very kindly said, "Thank you for being here today." I keep thinking about that moment because I think, after hearing about the man that he really was, he sincerely meant that.

5. The Redskins have the quick turnaround after Sunday's loss and Monday's funeral and play Chicago on Thursday night. Who ya got?

Ryan: Maybe they can harness a sense of closure from the funeral and the fact they have a few days off after the game to will themselves to a victory. The Bears (5-7) aren't great, either, so it's an even match up of mediocre teams. But just as I projected the Redskins beating Buffalo and Chicago, the Bills loss might have been it for the Redskins. Chicago 17-14.

Lindsay: We know it's not fair to put this kind of pressure on them, but the Redskins seem to be putting pressure on themselves that they still need to get the win for Sean. Knowing the leaders in that locker room, particularly on defense, a loss would be another failure and right now, these guys can't take that. I have the Redskins succeeding thanks to their defense. Rex Grossman was sacked six times last week by the Giants and I think the Redskins defensive front will feast on the Bears QB. Redskins 17-14J

BONUS 6. Since Lindsay became the first of the Redskins Debate crew to tackle the magazine cover business (this month's Washingtonian, above) which magazine will be calling her next and which one may help Ryan escape from the newspaper business?

Ryan: I want to write for "Entertainment Weekly" or "Esquire" so that's as close as I'll get to a cover – maybe a byline. My next guess for Lindsay now that she's on a regional magazine is probably going national. We'll go with "People" once she ditches the local television business and goes national, she'll be a big-time celebrity after appearing on a reality show like "Survivor" or "Dancing With The Stars."

Lindsay: Oh man, great question and if there ever was such an opportunity, I'd be much more likely to try to struggle through "Dancing with the Stars" than battle it out on "Survivor" because I can't eat worms. Although, I will admit my first choice would be "the Amazing Race" … love that! I can't necessarily see any covers in my future , however, I will say that if any magazine is going to help Ryan escape from the newspaper business, it's going to be Vanity Fair. It will be a shot of him writing an exclusive about some huge exclusive like a Brad Pitt/Angelina Jolie breakup.

Redskins quarterback Jason Campbell, one play after returning from a right elbow injury, sustained what looked to be a left knee injury in the second quarter tonight against Chicago.

Campbell was hit by Mark Anderson and fell to the ground after completing a pass to Ladell Betts. Campbell immediately took off his helmet and the pain was evident on his face.

Trainers put a blue air-cast on the knee and carted Campbell off the field.

Campbell also injured his left knee in the Pittsburgh preseason game and missed two weeks.

Tight end Chris Cooley (left leg) and Randy Thomas (elbow) have also been hurt and removed from the game.

Throwing his first passes in three years, Todd Collins threw 21 yards to Todd Yoder for a 7-0 Redskins lead with 17 seconds remaining in the first half. The play was set up by Shawn Springs' interception and 53-yard return.

In the first quarter, Chicago lost quarterback Rex Grossman to a knee injury.

More updates as we get them.

— Ryan O'Halloran

UPDATE (10:12)

The word from the Redskins -- Jason Campbell has sustained a dislocated patella tendon in his left knee. Basically, that's a dislocated knee cap.

Also, Chris Cooley has returned to the game.

Update from the press box -- the initial announcement of Jason Campbell's injury was incorrect. He dislocated his patella -- not the patella tendon. And as Ryan wrote earlier, that's basically a dislocated knee cap.

Other injuries of note:

- Fred Smoot was carted off the field with what we're told was cramps

- Clinton Portis left the game with a "stomach illness" but returned with 2:15 left in the third quarter.

- John Taylor

That's what Casey Rabach had to say about quarterback Todd Collins, who came into the game in relief of injured starter Jason Campbell for good late in the second quarter.

Collins had not thrown a regular season pass in three years, but came in and performed admirably, thowing two touchdown passes while keeping the Redskins offense moving.

The final numbers perhaps show why offensive guru Al Saunders wanted Collins on the roster when he joined coach Joe Gibbs' staff before last season. The pair spent five years together in Kansas City (2001-05), but Collins never had top billing during that run.

But Saunders obviously knew what he had. And when duty called in the form of Jason Campbell's knee injury, Collins was ready. And his performance kept the Redskins' faint playoff hopes alive, if but for another week.

"We knew Todd can play football. He's been playing for a long time, he's a veteran quarterback," wide receive Santana Moss said. "He's been in this offense a lot longer than Jason, so he knows pretty much everything, we just had to go out there and make plays for him."

-- John Taylor

Twelve hours after the Redskins beat Chicago 24-16 and nine hours after returning to Casa O'Halloran in Ashburn, I'm back at Redskin Park for the day-after stuff.

The only news item this morning is that quarterback Jason Campbell's MRI on his dislocated left kneecap has been pushed back to 1:30 p.m. so it's going to be awhile. The hope is that the results will be available for when Joe Gibbs chats at 3 p.m.

The players are off until a film session on Tuesday but I expect several players to trickle in throughout the day for treatment.

A couple of quick takes on the game.

* The Redskins' offensive line was brutal. Chris Samuels was beat on a relatively simple outside-inside move when Campbell was hurt. Rookie Stephon Heyer played like an undrafted free agent -- he allowed too many back-side tackles in the run game.

* The secondary was very efficient, especially when limiting yards after the catch.

* Both Bears quarterbacks stink. Chicago's only option is to go with Kyle Orton -- a few Chicago writers were surprised that didn't happen at halftime -- for the final three games and then hit the free agent or trade market for a new starter.

* Also, I'll be on the John Thompson Show (980 AM) today at 1:30 p.m.

Todd Collins' wife, Andrea, is due to give birth any day now so she wasn't at the game on Thursday night and didn't watch the whole thing, not knowing of course, that he husband would play more than he had in almost a decade.

After Collins had led the Redskins to the 24-16 victory over the Bears, he was talking to his wife on his cellphone when coach Joe Gibbs asked to speak to her. Gibbs, typically revved up after a victory, enthusiastically grabbed the phone and said, "This guy saved our hide!"

The coach also promised to send her a tape of the game pronto.

Incidentally, Collins' last start was on Dec. 14, 1997 for Buffalo. A home loss to Jacksonville, whose quarterback was ... drumroll, please ... Mark Brunell.

Funny how life turns out sometimes.

The El Gaucho Bowl with Jim Ducibella of the Virginian-Pilot rolls into the final quarter of the season.

And folks, it's on now. I gained three games on Duce last week and we're both 119-66 for the season.

This week's picks:

Miami at Buffalo
Duce: Buffalo.
Ryan: Buffalo. The 1972 Dolphins should be more concerned about their franchise going 0-16 than the Patriots going 16-0.

St. Louis at Cincinnati
Duce: Cincinnati.
Ryan: Cincinnati. Don't expect a ton of defense in this game.

Dallas at Detroit
Duce: Dallas.
Ryan: Dallas. The Lions' losing streak shouldn't be called a collapse. That would mean they're actually a good team. They stink.

Oakland at Green Bay
Duce: Green Bay.
Ryan: Green Bay. Game-time temperature at Lambeau: 24 degrees and snow showers.

Tampa Bay at Houston
Duce: Houston.
Ryan: Tampa Bay. The Bucs get Jeff Garcia back. This team, as long as he stays healthy, could make some noise in the playoffs.

Carolina at Jacksonville
Duce: Jacksonville.
Ryan: Carolina. Letdown time for the Jags after losing to Indianapolis last week.

Pittsburgh at New England
Duce: New England.
Ryan: Pittsburgh. The 1972 Dolphins can pop open the champagne bottles.

NY Giants at Philadelphia
Duce: NY Giants.
Ryan: NY Giants. Bye-bye to the Eagles' playoff chances. Bye-bye to McNabb?

San Diego at Tennessee
Duce: Tennessee.
Ryan: San Diego. Nobody leads a team in December like Norv Turner. Feel free to laugh.

Minnesota at San Francisco
Duce: Minnesota.
Ryan: Minnesota. Redskins fans should pay attention to this one. If the Vikings lose, the Redskins are right back in contention for the final wild card spot.

Arizona at Seattle
Duce: Seattle.
Ryan: Seattle. The Seahawks will likely play a second-round playoff game in Dallas.

Kansas City at Denver
Duce: Denver.
Ryan: Denver. Don't care.

Cleveland at NY Jets
Duce: NY Jets.
Ryan: NY Jets. Another bad loss for the Browns.

Indianapolis at Baltimore
Duce: Indianapolis.
Ryan: Indianapolis. The Ravens sold out last week against the Patriots and lost. A short week plus Peyton equals a 4-9 record.

New Orleans at Atlanta
Duce: New Orleans.
Ryan: New Orleans. One of the least-appealing Monday night games ever. ESPN can't even fawn over Reggie Bush, the overrated running back who's injured.

Records

Last week: Duce 8-7, Ryan 11-4.
Season: Duce 119-66, Ryan 119-66.

With the Redskins (6-7) and Vikings (7-6) battling for the NFC's final playoff spot, their Dec. 23 game in Minnesota has been moved from 1 p.m. Eastern to the 8:15 p.m. slot on NBC.

That will be Washington's third straight night game, following its 24-16 victory over Chicago last Thursday and this Sunday's visit to the New York Giants.

— David Elfin

Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick was sentenced to 23 months in prison today for his part in a dogfighting scandal. U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson told Vick,"You need to apologize to the millions of young people who looked up to you."

Vick, wearing a prison jumpsuit after turning himself in last month, told the judge that he had used poor judgment in establishing "Bad Newz Kennels" on property he owns in Virginia.

"I'm willing to deal with the consequences and accept responsibility for my actions," said the Newport News, Va. native who starred at Virginia Tech before the Falcons took him first in the 2001 NFL draft.

If Vick is a model prisoner, he could be released as soon as August 2009. Vick will still be just 29 then, but he will have missed two complete football seasons and the Falcons won't likely wait for him to begin their rebuilding project. A contender throughout Vick's four healthy seasons as a starter, Atlanta was 3-9 this year heading into last night's game against New Orleans. Some team struggling on the field and the box office figures to give Vick another shot come 2009 or 2010, despite the inevitbale protests from animal rights groups, but it probably won't be the Falcons, who built their franchise around him.

"This is a difficult day for Michael's family and for a lot of us, including many of our players and fans who have been emotionally invested in Michael over the years," said Falcons owner Arthur Blank. "We sincerely hope that Michael will use this time to continue to focus his efforts on making positive changes in his life, and we wish him well in that regard."

A few days off allowed me to catch up on keeping track of some of the things from Redskins games that got sidetracked because of the recent hectic schedule.

I wrote about the Redskins' dormant run game today. Here is some of the information that didn't make the paper. It's the rushing statistics based on which personnel grouping the Redskins were using.

AT DALLAS

1 WR/1 RB: 1 carry, 3 yards.
2 WR/1 RB: 5 rushes, 13 yards.
2 WR/2 RB: 4 rushes, 6 yards.
3 WR/1 RB: 6 rushes, 40 yards.
4 WR/1 RB: 1 rush, 0 yards.

Comment: The Redskins had to give up on the run in the second half when Dallas pulled ahead. Plus, they couldn't run it with any consistency against the Cowboys' front seven while the passing game was very efficient against a so-so Dallas secondary.

AT TAMPA BAY

2 WR/1 RB: 1 rush, 1 yard.
2 WR/2 RB: 13 rushes, 62 yards.
3 WR/1 RB: 14 rushes, 45 yards.
3 WR/2 RB: 2 rushes, 7 yards.
4 WR/1 RB: 1 rush, 5 yards.

Comment: The Redskins rushed for 120 yards. The Redskins ran well against Tampa Bay in the second half, especially out of the 2 WR/2 RB personnel. But they got away from running in that formation against Buffalo.

VS. BUFFALO

1 WR/1 RB: 2 carries, 1 yard.
1 WR/2 RB: 4 carries, 9 yards.
2 RB: 3 carries, 4 yards.
2 WR/1 RB: 8 carries, 25 yards.
2 WR/2 RB: 2 carries, 13 yards.
3 WR/1 RB: 7 carries, 14 yards.
4 WR/1 RB: 3 carries, 13 yards.

Comment: Al Saunders tried running out of just about every possible personnel grouping. Clinton Portis needed 25 carries to reach 50 yards. As a team, the Redskins rushed 29 times for 79 yards.

VS. CHICAGO

2 RB: 2 carries, 1 yard.
1 WR/2 RB: 2 carries, 0 yards.
2 WR/2 RB: 7 carries, 11 yards.
3 WR/1 RB: 7 carries, 12 yards.
3 WR/2 RB: 3 carries, 10 yards.
4 WR/1 RB:2 carries, minus 2 yards.
Kneel down: 1 carry, minus 1 yards.

Comment: Portis got all of the carries from the 3 WR/1 RB formation and his longest run was just 5 yards from that personnel grouping. In 24 carries (for 31 yards), the Redskins had six that gained 1 yard, 0 yards or lost yardage.

So we're a bit slow getting it up on the site. ... but here's a clip from last Friday's John Thompson Show on SportsTalk 980, when Coach and the gang interviewed Ryan O'Halloran. Enjoy.

Open locker room sessions in the NFL are always a crapshoot. Some guys are ticked at a former player's comments on television and doesn't talk (Fred Smoot, for instance). Other guys are sitting at their lockers but they're on the practice squad and, really, what can they offer?

And then there was LaRon Landry and John Eubanks today.

Myself and Holly from 980 approached Landry shortly after the locker room opened at 12:30. He said he had to eat lunch and would return. An hour later, still no Landry.

Eubanks limped into the locker room with a boot-cast on his left foot. Myself and Jason from the Post approached Eubanks since he wasn't on a post-game injury report. He mumbled something about a toe infection.

And then he -- JOHN FRIGGIN' EUBANKS -- blew us off.

Rant over.

Thanks to center Casey Rabach, newly minted Redskins starting quarterback Todd Collins had to begin his first mid-week press conference in almost 10 years by talking about his nose. Make that the his habit of sniffing things.

"Todd's a real good guy, but there are a few quirks about him," center Casey Rabach said of Collins, whom he calls 'Rain Man.' "Todd sniff everything. He sniffs the football. He sniff his hands a lot, smells papers. He's a kind of a goofy guy. He keeps the mood real light."

Collins said that while he might have smelled a football or two in his time -- it gets pretty boring standing and watching a decade -- he's not a serial sniffer.

"Don't believe Rabach, he doesn't know what he's saying," Collins said. "Those O-linemen like to play jokes on me all the time. I like to sometimes smell the football before I get going. I just love the game. You've got to love the football. Try it sometime. Cowhide."

For one of the few times this season and the first time since the Week 9 win over the New York Jets, Gregg Williams went back to what he truly likes to do -- send pressure.

In the 24-16 win over the Chicago Bears, the Redskins sent 5 or more rushers on 43 -- FORTY THREE! -- of Chicago's 53 drop backs (79.6 percent). Against the Jets, the Redskins blitzed on 50 percent of the snaps.

The breakdown:

Rush 3: Zero times.

Rush 4: 12 times. Bears QBs were 8 of 11 with one scramble.

Rush 5: 15 times. Bears QBs were 11 of 14 with one touchdown, one sack, one interception and one scramble.

Rush 6: 18 times. Bears QBs were 7 of 18.

Rush 7: 5 times. Bears QBs were 2 of 5.

Rush 8: 4 times. Bears QBs were 1 of 2 with an interception and a Redskins penalty.

The most important statistics were the number of times the Redskins rushed eight defenders. Eight defenders basically constitutes 'Cover 0' meaning the corners have no help in coverage. The Redskins were burned against Tampa Bay in 2005 and the Giants earlier this year when playing that coverage. But the Bears went sack-INT-Redskins penalty-10 yard gain on the plays when the Redskins blitzed eight.

Read for a further analysis of the Redskins' coverage principles as it relates to safeties LaRon Landry and Reed Doughty in Friday's paper.

The Redskins gave into reality and put guard Randy Thomas on injured reserve, ending his season. Thomas tore his left triceps in Week 2 and the Redskins kept him on the roster all season, hoping he would be able to return for the December stretch run. Thomas did just that, starting a week ago in the losing streak-ending victory over Chicago. However, his arm gave out before the first quarter ended. So the Redskins wound up getting less than nine quarters from their starting right side: seven from Thomas and two from right tackle Jon Jansen, who broke his leg in the opening victory over Miami.

Redskins beat writer Ryan O'Halloran and Channel 4's Lindsay Czarniak look back at the win over Chicago and Todd Collins' performance, contemplate LaRon Landry's personal foul penalties, make a pick on Redskins-Giants and look ahead to the draft.

1. The Redskins broke a four-game losing streak with a win over the Chicago Bears last week, but all of a sudden, they can't run it. What items would you put in Al Saunders' suggestion box to get the running game untracked?

Lindsay: I'd put a suggestion to get Ladell Betts more involved. I think Clinton Portis is back in his stride but I have felt all season that Ladell should be used more, especially for the fact that by going to him only a few times here and there, it's got to be hard to get in rhythm. I will say I'm excited to see how Todd Collins handles the offense as a starter because I do think his experience in the system will show some things that we haven't seen and maybe this will be more of an open, passing offense that thrives.

Ryan: Totally agree on Betts but as Lindsay pointed out, he's not a back that's effective if getting 8-10 touches. He needs a heavier workload to be productive. But he has to learn how to take advantage of his limited chances and Al should give a specific package of plays -- a screen pass, a throw down the hashmark, a couple of hand-offs -- that are suited to Ladell's strengths, which are different than Portis' favorite plays. Betts' running style (between the tackles) could be conductive against the Giants because their defensive ends rush up the field to funnel everything into the middle. As for Collins, I'd order a ton of quick slants to Moss and Randle El to set up some shots down the middle of the field to Chris Cooley.

2. Redskins safety LaRon Landry picked up another personal penalty last week, his third of the season. He was fined for the first two offenses. A reason for concern or a rookie still learning to play the football and not the player's cranium?

Lindsay: I'm not concerned by this. I don't like the penalties, but I think LaRon has a certain someone who will not let that behavior continue (Gregg Williams). I think Gregg is smart enough to get in his face and make sure that he knows that he is costing the team when he gets the personal penalties. What I really like about him is his aggressiveness and another thing about LaRon, I don't think people realize how tough he took the tragedy of Sean Taylor. Taylor was a mentor to LaRon and worked more closely with him than anyone else on the team.

Ryan: The Redskins should be a little concerned because Taylor had the same problem as a first- and second-year player and he was clearly watched more closely by the officials. As Landry picks up more fines, he will not get the benefit of the doubt. In due time, though, he'll learn that this isn't college football and shots to the noggin are penalized 99 times out of 100. Now, about Landry's development. I watched the Chicago game on DVR the other night for a story on Landry and Reed Doughty. I was really impressed by Landry's play. He played all 77 snaps, including 46 plays as the only deep safety and didn't get beat for a long ball. He also blitzed five times and was in coverage five times.

3. Todd Collins hasn't started an NFL game since you two were in college (December 1997). How surprised were you by his relief performance and what can we expect from him against the Giants?

Lindsay: Wow, you're right, I may have watched his last start from a watering hole on the campus on James Madison University. I think we are going to see an exciting, different looking offense this week. I expect them to pass the ball a lot more with Todd this week against the Giants and I tell you, I think his experience and knowledge of Al's system gives him a different, earned confidence that sort of "will's" it to work. Basically, they have a week to put it together before they go up against the number one pass-rushing defense in the league, so I think the Redskins need to find out what their true identity is going to be these last three games. I do not think Todd is as naturally "talented" as Jason Campbell, but at this juncture in the season, I think he may be a very strong chance for the Redskins to come out swinging.

Ryan: This may be a "Redskins Debate" first -- Lindsay used a Joe Jackson Gibbs cliche -- "come out swinging." I can guarantee I didn't watch Collins' last start. My guess is that I was sweating out a final exam and wondering if the grade would be high enough for me to attend graduation at Kansas State the next weekend. I was stunned by how efficient Collins was considering the circumstances (weather, leaky offensive line, no running game). His knowledge of Al's offense does give him an advantage in terms of changing things at the line of scrimmage depending on the Giants' look. The biggest difference between Collins and Campbell is Todd is more apt to get rid of the ball quicker and avoid sacks. He certainly isn't a candidate to make things happen out of the pocket. What we can expect is plenty of short, quick passes mixed in with play-action downfield to Cooley.

4. The Pro Bowl rosters will be announced in the next week. Name a couple of candidates from the Redskins that deserve consideration.

Lindsay: If I only got one choice, I would hands down say London Fletcher should get a Pro Bowl nod. Fletcher is fifth in the NFL right now in tackles. He shows consistency, having had more than 100 tackles each of the past nine seasons while starting for three different teams. He's been the leading tackler on three defenses ranked top five in his career. The most impressive thing about London is that he has it all together. He is such a steady leader and a mentor for the Redskins. It's not like he's just "found a system he thrives in". The guy is a standout aggressive playmaker and leader wherever he plays in the NFL. Enough with the Pro Bowl Snub!

Ryan: Not a lot of names pop into my thoughts. I agree about Fletcher, he's been a tackle machine and a leader for a defense that has needed to play plenty of young guys. But he's slowed down a little bit the last couple weeks and isn't as good in coverage as I thought he would be. He's the Redskins' best choice, though. Another big game Sunday night could earn Chris Cooley more consideration. I would love to see Rock Cartwright make it as a return guy/special teams performer.

5. The Meadowlands has been a horrible place for the Redskins against the Giants the last three year (0-3 record). What are a couple of keys and who wins Sunday night in what could miserable weather conditions?

Lindsay: Todd Collins needs to operate a quick offense because of how strong the Giants are at rushing the passer. The Redskins offensive linemen are going to have their work cut out for them because three of the Giants have at least nine sacks. On the flip side, I think the Redskins need to rattle Eli Manning early and get him off kilter a bit. I would like to see them use the blitz more and not rely so much on whats been a shaky skins pass rush. I may sound crazy because this is the Meadowlands and this is a Redskins team without its starting quarterback but I do firmly predict a Redskins victory and I think they are FINALLY going to make good on opportunities they are getting in the red zone. Redskins win 20-16.

Ryan: 1. Keep Collins upright. The Redskins will have to use a double team to contain Michael Strahan on the obvious passing downs, especially if rookie Stephon Heyer gets the start. 2. Get something out of the run game. Last week, the Redskins' 31 yards was the lowest for a Gibbs-coached team. 3. Like Lindsay said, pressure Manning. In the teams' first meeting, the Redskins sent five-plus rushers on 14 drop-backs, which produced a sack and an interception. They should pressure on half of the drop-backs. Lindsay's predictions have been more accurate than mine this season but this isn't a great match up and the Giants can clinch a playoff berth with a win. Giants 27-17.

BONUS 6. It's never too early to look ahead to the NFL Draft. Unless they lose the rest of their games, the Redskins figure to pick in the middle of the first round. What's their greatest need at this point?

Lindsay: Hmmm, I'm really impressed with how the Redskins defense and their reserves have stepped up in the void of Sean Taylor, and I do believe LaRon Landry is the guy that set the tempo for safeties, but I would like to see the Skins address a need in the secondary. I think that with the loss of Sean, its been too much of a hit for the Skins to overcome looking down the road.

Ryan: The obvious decision would be to trade down and get some more picks since the Redskins are already without a fourth-round pick to complete the T.J. Duckett trade. They gave a conditional fifth-round pick to the Jets for Pete Kendall but that will likely escalate to a fourth-rounder in 2009. This team needs youth and the best way to do that is by gaining picks. That, of course, won't happen. I think they'll address the safety spot through free agency and bring in a veteran that has a few years left. Their needs: Receiver taller than six-foot, offensive line depth and a defensive end they can develop.

Jason Campbell just walked out of Redskin Park using a cane, instead of crutches, for support. I guess that's progress. Campbell was accompanied by cornerback Carlos Rogers, out since midseason knee surgery.

Campbell and Rogers starred at Auburn with fellow first-round 2005 draft picks Ronnie Brown of the Dolphins and Cadillac Williams of the Buccaneers, both running backs. Amazingly, all four had their 2007 seasons cut short by knee injuries.

Not only will Todd Collins start his first game in a decade on Sunday, but the Redskins' new starting quarterback dashed out of the locker to be with his wife, Andrea, who's on the verge of giving birth to their second child. They already have a son, Max.

As expected, Redskins LT Chris Samuels will be cutting a check to the league office for his chop block Antonio Garay. Samuels was fined $12,500 today. The block was illegal because C Casey Rabach was engaged with Garay and Samuels, who didn't see Rabach engaged, went for a low block.

Safety LaRon Landry was not fined for his late hit on Bears WR Mushin Muhammad. Landry has been finished twice this season but I'm guessing he escaped punishment this time around because he led with his right shoulder and not his helmet.

Late Redskins safety Sean Taylor was named to the Florida High School Athletic Association's All-Century high school football team this week. His father, Pedro, represented him during a ceremony last night during a state championship game last night in Orlando.

At Gulliver Prep in 2000, Taylor set the state scoring record with 44 touchdowns on a 14-1 Class 2A state title team.

The team is a who's-who of college and NFL stars, including former Redskins linebacker Wilber Marshall, Daunte Culpepper, Tim Tebow, Emmitt Smith, Michael Irvin, Darrell Jackson, Lomas Brown, Steve Hutchinson, Larry Little, Anquan Boldin, John Carney, Jerome Brown, Ted Hendricks, Deacon Jones, Jack Youngblood, Derrick Brooks, Rickey Jackson, Ray Lewis, Bennie Blades, Leroy Butler, Deion Sanders, Reggie Nelson, Warren Sapp and Pat Summerall.

Eight teams are favored by 10 or more points. The league currently has four teams with 11 or more wins and five teams with 10 or more losses. Ugh. If I got paid for this blog, I might actually look up the last time there was this kind of disparity between great teams and stinky teams in the NFL.

With the spread in mind, myself and Jim Ducibella of the Virginian-Pilot have a lot of the same picks this week. I haven't reached desperation stage quite yet ; I trail by two games with two weeks to go so I played it conservative and went mostly with favorites.

Before getting to the picks, a comment about Bobby Petrino quitting on the Atlanta Falcons to go to Arkansas: Whatever. The Falcons lucked out. The players reportedly had already tuned him out and the coach was miserable in the NFL. Granted, the professional thing would have been to wait until after the season but the Falcons are 3-10 and now the owner gets a chance to start over instead of possibly firing Petrino and being on the hook for millions of dollars. I wouldn't trust Petrino with any of my valuables but he did the Falcons a favor.

Here are the picks:

Redskins at Giants
Duce: Giants.
Ryan: Giants. Although I've picked Giants 27-17 in print and on the blog, I do think the Redskins have a chance if they can force Eli Manning into some mistakes.

Cincinnati at San Francisco
Duce: Cincinnati.
Ryan: Cincinnati. If I bet on this crazy sport, I'd take the 49ers plus the 9 1/2 points. Be interesting to see if the 49ers panic and fire Mike Nolan.

Seattle at Carolina
Duce: Seattle.
Ryan: Seattle. Don't count out the Seahawks to pull off a second-round upset at Green Bay, but then again, they may not get past Minnesota in the wild card round.

Buffalo at Cleveland
Duce: Cleveland.
Ryan: Cleveland. Second-best game of the week behind Jacksonville-Pittsburgh but the most important AFC game of the week. If Buffalo wins, it takes hold of the final AFC playoff spot; if Cleveland wins, it's in firm control to spend the first weekend of January in Pittsburgh.

Tennessee at Kansas City
Duce: Tennessee.
Ryan: Tennessee. The Chiefs stink. When will the jig be up for Carl Peterson?

Baltimore at Miami
Duce: Baltimore.
Ryan: Miami. The Dolphins will win a game. They see a Ravens team that laid down on their home field last week and smell opportunity.

NY Jets at New England
Duce: New England.
Ryan: New England. The largest opening line in league history -- 27 points -- was down to 24.5 points on Wednesday, which begs this question: Who the hell is betting in favor of the Jets?

Arizona at New Orleans
Duce: New Orleans.
Ryan: Arizona. Elimination game in the NFC -- the winner stays alive and the loser looks ahead to next year. Interesting player in this game: Old friend David Patten, who was discarded by the Redskins last spring and has 40 catches for 627 yards and two touchdowns. Compare that to Brandon Lloyd: 25 catches for 379 yards and no touchdowns ... the last two years. BUT, Arizona wins.

Jacksonville at Pittsburgh
Duce: Pittsburgh.
Ryan: Pittsburgh. Game of the Week from a smash-mouth perspective. The Steelers feel a sense of urgency because Cleveland is just a game behind.

Green Bay at St. Louis
Duce: Green Bay.
Ryan: Green Bay. The Packers roll on. My fake money is on them facing Tampa Bay in the divisional round.

Atlanta at Tampa Bay
Duce: Tampa Bay.
Ryan: Atlanta. The Falcons pull the upset by taking a The Coach We Hate Is In Arkansas mentality.

Indianapolis at Oakland
Duce: Indianapolis.
Ryan: Indianapolis. The Colts will have to beat Pittsburgh in the divisional round to get a re-match at New England, a game I think they can win.

Philadelphia at Dallas
Duce: Dallas.
Ryan: Dallas. In 2005, the Eagles went from first to worst. In 2006, the Eagles are likely to go from first to worst.

Detroit at San Diego
Duce: San Diego.
Ryan: San Diego. History is going to show the Lions as one of only a handful of teams to start 6-2 and finish with a losing record. Reality will show the Lions got lucky in the first half.

Chicago at Minnesota
Duce: Minnesota.
Ryan: Minnesota. An astounding line (Vikes by 10). The Bears will get a boost by starting Kyle Orton at quarterback, but not enough to avoid a ninth loss.

Records
Last week: Duce 13-2, Ryan 11-4.
Season: Duce 132-64, Ryan 130-70.