Reply With QuoteYeah Duff, it was not Portis' skill in Denver, it was the Denver system.
Portis gives Gibbs a triumphant return vs. Bucs
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Joseph White / Associated Press
Posted: 2 hours ago
LANDOVER, Md. (AP) - The emotions were churning on the eve of Joe Gibbs' first opener in 12 years, for both the coach and his family.
"Good gosh! I don't know when I've ever wanted one like this," Gibbs recalled his wife as saying.
Pat Gibbs must have been a nervous wreck in the fourth quarter, when the score was still tied. An interception by Antonio Pierce turned the momentum, however, and the Washington Redskins beat the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 16-10 Sunday to welcome the Hall of Fame coach back to the NFL.
"It was huge for me, I can tell you that," said Gibbs, who got his 125th regular season victory and 141st overall. "And I think it was for our players, too. ... As a family and everything else, for us it's a big deal. I told my players that I hope now the attention can go on them."
Gibbs pointed to the crowd and gave a thumbs-up sign before heading into the tunnel after the final whistle in game in which his offense reached the end zone just once: on a 64-yard run by Clinton Portis on his first carry with the Redskins. Otherwise, the game was decided by an aggressive game plan from assistant coach Gregg Williams, to whom Gibbs has given complete control of the defense.
The Redskins held the Bucs without an offensive touchdown for the game and without a first down until midway through the second quarter. Two of Washington's three field goals were set up by turnovers.
"I can't take any credit for that," Gibbs said. "All I do is walk down there and scream, 'Stop 'em.' "
Tampa Bay finished with 169 total yards, including just 30 rushing. "They did a great job with their coverages and different blitz schemes," said Tampa Bay quarterback Brad Johnson, who was sacked four times. "We've got a lot of work in front of us."
The Bucs also lost Joey Galloway to a groin strain in the second quarter. Coach Jon Gruden would only that Galloway is out "indefinitely."
Gibbs led the Redskins to three Super Bowl les in his first stint with the team from 1981-92, and it appeared the old magic was still there when his team dominated the first half. But Washington's offense began to sputter, and it took John Hall's 30-yard field goal with 8:55 to break a 10-10 tie. Hall added a 34-yard field goal with 16 seconds to play.
Portis finished with 148 yards, and his touchdown was a thing of beauty from Gibbs' bag of tricks: A counter play that suckered the Buccaneers defense the wrong way. Portis took one step to the left, then headed for daylight to the right and was never touched.
The defense did the rest, motivated by the desire to outperform Tampa Bay's strong defense. Blitzing safety Matt Bowen stripped Johnson of the ball to set up a field goal in the second quarter, and Pierce's interception led to the go-ahead field goal. Tampa Bay's last realistic chance to win was thwarted by back-to-back sacks, the first one by Renaldo Wynn and Ron Warner, and the second one by Bowen.
"When you play against a good defense, you want to be that good defense," said Bowen, who got his first two career sacks. "It makes you play hard, it makes you want to make the plays. You want to be the defense everyone's talking about."
Tampa Bay's first score came without a first down, a 47-yard field goal by Martin Gramatica in the second quarter set up by Frank Murphy's 54-yard kickoff return. The Bucs tied the game at 10 on Ronde Barber's 9-yard fumble return in the third quarter, the result of a botched handoff by Redskins quarterback Mark Brunell.
In all, the Bucs found that another good performance by their defense wasn't matched by their offense.
"That's Buc ball," Barber said. "We won a Super Bowl that way. We've been to the playoffs a lot that way. We can't get frustrated with ourselves. It's easy to, and it's easy to have doubts, and start pointing fingers, but it's the first game of the year."
Yeah Duff, it was not Portis' skill in Denver, it was the Denver system.
He had one big run to start then game, then he averaged less yards per carry than Eddie George on his other 28 carries.
Counter trey, one of the BASIC Gibbs plays. Don't think Dallas won't be ready for that one...Portis finished with 148 yards, and his touchdown was a thing of beauty from Gibbs' bag of tricks: A counter play that suckered the Buccaneers defense the wrong way. Portis took one step to the left, then headed for daylight to the right and was never touched.
uhm it doesn't matter what he avged after that 1 carry. he still wound up with 5.1 ypc for the game.
It shows that he's just a homerun hitter. And that if the D takes that away, he's simply small and average.
TLC, are you that much of an idiot??? Do you not that the Emmitt Smith's, Barry Sanders' or Walter Payton's stats were made in the same way??? You do not know the NFL game if you think that any back that gets the ball 25+ times is going to have 3 runs that make the average look great and the other 22 runs for grunt yards. The great backs, the ones that run for 1500+ yds in a season all have that home run speed that if they get the slightest crease, they can go the distance, and only a handful of backs have that ability to make 50 yd runs. Washington has not had a back run for 50 yds on a run in 60 games, now they have that back. That tells you what a great back can do for your team....you are really an ignorant person, you know that?
Counter trey, one of the BASIC Gibbs plays. Don't think Dallas won't be ready for that one...
Yeah, like they were in 82, 83, 84, 87, and 91?
I'm saying that today his only impressive run came on the first run of the day and once Tampa adjusted he busted nothing, unlike in Denver when he would bust 4-6 big runs every week. I'm comparing Portis to Portis, not those other guys.
And if you think Emmitt was a breakaway back you didn't watch him much.
also, your mother smells funny :eyebrow
Emmitt was a breakaway back, he would have 2 or 3 long runs a game, I know, as I watched him do it to my Skins 100 times.
Umm, my mom is dead, but thanks for the memory.also, your mother smells funny
Breakaway backs don't get run down by the secondary.
Anyway, not the point, as I said I was just comparing Denver Portis to Washington Portis.
Umm, my mom is dead, but thanks for the memory.
You've never been to the afterlife, people may reek there.
You are talking about the Smith in 00, 01, I am talking abot the Smith in 92-97.
You've never been to the afterlife, people may reek there
Not where she is, but maybe where you and other gamblers like you are going. Brimstone stinks, you know.
Jim making gambling smack
Just because you sent a special needs boy to school doesn't mean your mighty.:evil
I was being facetious.
:p
Man, I have been waiting for this day for 9 months and you people are going to have to listen to my Redskins smack til dallas beats them, that is just the way it is.
GO GIBBS!!!!
It's all good, My bloodline requires that I defend Redskins praise as best I can.
If the Redskins could assemble something even 50% as effective as the Hogs, I'd be worried. They haven't.82, 83, 84, 87, and 91
Jim.... "you people are going to have to listen to my Redskins smack til dallas beats them, that is just the way it is." ....... we won't have to wait for more than two weeks Jim! . I congratulate you on their win Jim, but don't act as though they have won the Super Bowl. Besides, I'll bet the Vikings beat the Skins worse than the Cowboys.
Q. Griffin
23car
156yds
3 total TD's
Didn't stop you last year.Man, I have been waiting for this day for 9 months and you people are going to have to listen to my Redskins smack til dallas beats them, that is just the way it is.
Mikey, we beat before, we will do it again.
TLC, Kansas City is the 3rd(30th at 147 yds a game) to the worst team in the NFL in rushing defense.... , I could get 100 yds against them.Q. Griffin
23car
156yds
3 total TD's
we didn't beat dallas last year Jimbo.
this pissing contest about running backs is meaningless....
bring the D on Monday night....cuz the Skins will.
may the best team win, no excuses.....way past time to uphold our end of the rivalry....
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