Take a Sip. It's Yummy.

So with another day separating me from Monday night's inexcusable loss the Vikings, I have regained a little more faith in the Washington Redskins. I've never been a big proponent of the old coaching philosophy that sometimes a loss is necessary to faciliate a better understanding of where a team stands. I would always ask, "Since when is losing ever a good thing? Why wouldn't you want to win a game? Don't give me this adversity stuff." And to a great extent, I still tend to eschew the losing equals winning talk as nonsense and counterintuitive. But today, as I reflect some more on the Redskins, I'm thinking maybe the loss will help push them forward. They were way too nonchalant in the offseason, particularly during the preseason games. "Trust us," they would say, "We'll have it all put together by Monday night." Well, Monday came and the team constructed an uneven, uninspired effort. Maybe the Vikings knocked some sense into the Redskins.

I sit here now, thinking that the Skins have something to play for Sunday night. I'm almost unabashedly confident they can beat the Cowboys. I think Gregg Williams will scheme better defensively. I think Al Saunders will exploit the Cowboys secondary. I think Clinton Portis will run roughshod. I think the Redskins will get this turned around, so long as it doesn't come down to a kick at the end of the game.

There were countless negatives from Monday night, but the positives seem to be more glaring. Maybe it's because I'm a hopeless optimistic at this point, failing to recognize the faults of a team not primed to make a strong playoff push, but I don't think so. I just have a feeling that the Redskins can right their season sooner rather than later. I look at the NFC East after one week, and only one team, the New York Giants, really established themselves as legit. And they did so in a loss. The Cowboys still have an atrocious secondary, a weak offensive line and a quarterback prone to throwing interceptions and getting sacked. The Eagles beat the Texans. So what?

The Redskins will get it together and beat Dallas Sunday night. I'm thinking something like 28-17. Mark it down!