Walk Before You Can Run: Washington Redskins Improve (a Bit) in the Air

The bad news is that Washington's aerial attack wasn't good enough to win their first meaningful game of 2009. While the defense bottled up the Giants run game, Eli Manning did just enough through the air and the Redskins running backs underperformed just enough that New York could hang on to win 23-17.  The good news? While it was by no means a flawless performance—mistakes included a lazy interception, a missed third down, and the decisive strip-fumble-return-td from Osi Umeniyora—Washington's passing was a lot better than last year. Unusually for the Redskins, most of their bright spots in the game in fact came through the air. QB Jason Campbell finished 19 of 26 (73 percent completion), looking poised and strong armed for much of the game. Just as crucially, he didn't spend the whole time on his back.  Standing up = better passing The offensive line—bane of the 2008 season—played better in pass protection than many expected, giv...