Extremeskins at the Game: Giants at Redskins (UPDATED w/ POST-GAME AUDIO and PICS!)

[Blade]

I didnt really think there would be a bigger game than last week.... but here we are. This is the game that will REALLY tell us just how good the 2005 Redskins are. As Tarhog and I always say as we are walking on the field at FedEx, it NEVER gets old.... and I dont think it could get old having meaningful division games in late December!

And the fans here know it too. The Extremeskins Tailgate was as roudy as its ever been and the fans are out in numbers today. Pez and Huly have it down to a science now, and the DTC was as raucous as ever. I pity the Giants fans today. If we can do what we did last week, then we will see FAR less of the opposing fans next year.

A brief shoutout to Tarhog who caught the flu two nights ago and had to miss working this game. Big props to themurf for stepping in to help the staff cover this game from the fan perspective with his photojournalist skills. Also, props to jthomas who is our Extremeskins Staff IT guru. I finally got him to another game this season and got him to the sidelines.

Post-Game Locker Room Interviews
(courtesy of themurf)

Click HERE to hear Post-Game comments by John Hall

Click HERE to hear Post-Game comments by Matt Bowen

Click HERE to hear Post-Game comments by Randy Thomas

Click HERE to hear Post-Game comments by Ray Brown

Click HERE to hear Post-Game comments by Renaldo Wynn

Click HERE to hear Post-Game comments by Casey Rabach

Click HERE to hear Post-Game comments by Chris Samuels


Extremeskins Game Action Photos
(courtesy of Blade and themurf)

Click HERE to see Game Action Photos #1

Click HERE to see Game Action Photos #2

Click HERE to see Game Action Photos #3

Click HERE to see Game Action Photos #4

Click HERE to see Game Action Photos #5

Click HERE to see Game Fan Pics

Click HERE to see themurf's Game Pics #1

Click HERE to see themurf's Game Pics #2

Click HERE to see themurf's Game Pics #3





jthomas takes a break from his troubleshooting software glitches!


'themurf' getting some good shots of the pregame warmup.


Pic from the Pressbox:

[Tarhog]

We pull this game out, I could give a rat's ass about the flu.

GO SKINS! :gaintsuck

[Blade]

UPDATE:

Two plays make the difference between a 21-3 game and a 21-17 game. That tipped ball was a heckuva play by Toomer, and that INT returned for a TD by the Giants appeared to be due to a bad route.

I really thought the fans could not get louder than last week against Dallas, but the Redskins fans are out in force at FedEx today! Its so loud on the field that it literally hurts my ears!

Funny moment: Gregg Williams says jokingly to Marshall after the INT, "Damn good thing you got that pick since you let him get that 1st down a few plays ago!" And then he slaps him on the helmet

[xXliquidXx]

ye 35-20 doing preety good i might say :P

[fnkdctr(007)]

It's over man. I've been in the bahamas and I can only get that lame espn cast with no details. what happened to Brunell. How did Ramsey look in person?

[xXliquidXx]

ramsey looked shaken up but he did fine brunell leg got hurt

[Huly]

great seeing y'all again and what a great Christmas present!

[HapHaszard]

WOW what a game, I'm so hyped I spilled my Dr. Pepper.

[PresidentClinton07]

Santana Moss is a MONSTER!

[bigpoppa]

Santana Moss is a MONSTER!

He was the best trade we ever made!

[Lawrence]

Merry Christmas Redskin Nation!!!!
Redskins 35 Giants 20
Wear That Burgandy And Gold Redskin Fans!!!
Keep Up The Support!!! Our Team Deserves It!!!
Let Us All Get Ready For Philly!!

[FightForOldDC21]

nice win skins

[themurf]

Call me the luckiest ‘Skins fan alive. I’m a journalist with the Army and a huge Redskins fan, so I pitched a story to my boss to let me do a feature story on former soldier Robert McCune during minicamp. My boss goes for it and I get to spend a couple days at Redskins Park interview my favorite team for my story. While I’m out there, I meet TK and Tarhog and we hit it off.

Next thing I know, a couple weeks later ExtremeSkins and the Redskins are now on a much friendly basis, and I’m being asked to take photos for the Bengals and Steelers preseason games with Tarhog. Needless to say it was amazing. I figured once the season started the mods would all divvy out the games and my days as a sideline photographer would be complete. It was cool with me because I have season tickets and I was just thrilled that they even offered to let me do the preseason games – as far as I was concerned I was playing with house money.

Fast forward to this past week. I just got married at the end of November and hadn’t been spending nearly as much time on ExtremeSkins as I’d like. I’ve been keeping up, but my time has been severely limited. So I was shocked to get a phone call from Tarhog Thursday night asking me if I’d be available to cover the Redskins-Giants game because he had the flu. If he was kidding I might have cried on the phone, but thankfully he was not – I was in.

Talk about pressure – Blade and I would be tasked with covering one of the biggest games in the history of FedEx Field. The Redskins hadn’t played in a such an important game in … a week. Seriously though, if Washington couldn’t beat the Giants we all know the season was basically over. Each game became a must win. Going back to the preseason game – being on the sideline was awesome, but the crowd was still in preseason form. When the Steelers took the field in the final preseason game the crowd was loud enough to upset Mike Tice. I was stunned that so many fans from an opposing team were in our stadium and basically taking over.

Let’s just say that’s not a problem anymore. Words cannot describe (and if they can, than we’ll blame me and say I cannot describe) how pumped up the homefield crowd is these days. The players’ eyes light up when you ask them what it’s like to play in front of a crowd so into every single play. The crowd gets the defense amped during the game, and in turn the defense dictates the tempo of the game. And now, throw in a suddenly hot offense, and you’ve got a team peaking at the perfect time.

Before kickoff I got to shake hands with David Patten and I wished him a speedy recover. Likewise, I said hello to Randy Thomas and told him to get healthy soon. Even though these two guys were a part of the game today, they were excited to be on the sideline – especially with crowd buzzing during warm-ups.

You guys watched the game, so I won’t go play-by-play on that. Instead, I’ll tell you that this group truly is the close-knit family you hear about. If the offense goes three-and-out, the defense is telling them to keep their heads up while they grab their helmets and head onto the field. If the defense makes a huge stop, Clint Portis and the offensive line and running onto the field to be the first to congratulate them. This team really does get along, and the players really do like the coaching staff.

Everyone said the ‘Skins were passing too much and playing too conservative. Then you start seeing Portis throw a touchdown pass and Antonio Brown running a reverse. The newfound commitment to the running game has seen Portis run for eight 100 yard games and now he’s less than 30 yards from breaking the Redskins single-season rushing record. But that’s the only reason his teammates love him. They love him because he is willing to do whatever it takes to win – whether it’s blocking a blitzing linebacker or coming out to catch his breath on a pivotal third down.

And when he’s on, teams cheat up and Santana Moss has a field day. Listen to my interview with Randy Thomas after the game when he offers up his thoughts on the Moss-Coles trade out of nowhere. Just classic. As the game ended and everyone ran on the field, I found myself next to the rejuvenated Phillip Daniels. I asked him what happened to him in the second half and what was his status. He said he suffered a stinger and he’d be fine. So I said “last week you had your son’s birthday and you responded with a career day. What was it today that had you playing so well?” He looked at me, smiled and said “The after party.”

Then I almost bumped into Cornelius Griffin. I asked him what’s changed over the last couple weeks with the Redskins. He said “The offense is playing good. The defense and special teams are playing good. We’re just coming together at the right time.”

Then we headed into the locker room. I interviewed Matt Bowen, Ray Brown, Chris Samuels (although this one got cut short because he had to go), Casey Rabach, Randy Thomas, Renaldo Wynn and John Hall – who was dressed up like Santa. You know the team is in good spirits when the kicker is dressed like Santa. I asked him if his name was Santa Hall, and he quickly looked at me and said his name was “Santana Claus.”

I didn’t have the heart to tell him the real Santana was sitting a few stalls down from him. It’s Christmas – the Redskins had just giving me a great present by winning such an important game, the least I could do was let the kicker enjoy the moment and pretend to be the best Moss in football. Take care and Merry Christmas ExtremeSkins.

murf.

[themurf]

We did interviews with seven players after the game - Matt Bowen, Ray Brown, John Hall, Casey Rabach, Chris Samuels, Randy Thomas and Renaldo Wynn. Please be patient - we're trying to get everything uploaded.

[cactitle]

Great post..Go Skins! Redskins Nation!