You don't typically expect, in a story titled "DE Taylor will have second surgery" predicting medical procedure next week, to read:

Taylor did not practice but still hopes to play Sunday against the Detroit Lions. He is listed as questionable on the injury report.

At least that's the word from Dr. Taylor:

"There has been talk about it, but to be honest, I don't even know what the gameplan is right now," Taylor said. "I'm going to the hospital now to find out what we're going to do. The only thing I'm really focusing on right now is hopefully playing the game on Sunday and try to help this team beat the Lions. The rest of it doesn't really matter right now. I've been hurt for a month and it hasn't changed. There's been a slight change and that's part of the reason why we're doing all this talking. I really don't know any details."

Coach Zorn said the problem was something like, uh, playing football isn't conducive to healing stabby-like wounds.

“He’s trying to play football on it, but that may not be allowing it to heal fast enough,” Zorn said.

Who'd have thought? To get an idea of how that plays out on the field, apparently Taylor has bloody sock syndrome and is bleeding out all over the football field week by week:

"Yeah, that was hot, did you see his sock?" Casey Rabach asked me. "It was all red. Kind of like Curt Schilling, but amplified. It was cool."

"We had quite a bit of blood come out," Taylor said. "It's still bleeding. It's been a month and it's still bleeding, but there's nothing I can do about it."

The "cool" oozing red goo is simply necessary and we're full of it, so Jason Taylor is absolutely right. You can't take any magic pill to cure "Blood." But one thing he can do about it would be... rest a bit, don't expose a leaky valve to the wear and tear necessarily resultant in violent sports. That would be the easy way out, and the question to readers: Does Jason Taylor need to walk this one off for a week or two or should he instead force it and play, with the added potential of this thing dragging on for, per him, a month now and leading to new surgery next week? I love his attitude about it, it is obvious mutant/hybrid Jason Taylor wants to play something fierce, so I hate even suggesting that maybe the medical staff needs to get in his face about healing up.

But we need him. Our pass rush is currently about as bad as anyone in the league besides Kansas City. Football Outsiders pegs us with a 4.8% adjusted sack rate. That puts us well below the 6.6% league average and higher than just Jacksonville, Cincy, and the aforementioned Chiefs. As skinsider pointed out, Taylor draws double teams that free up Andre Carter to go do harm and pain to the opposing quarterback. We don't have enough starter-quality defensive ends. If Taylor isn't on the field, Carter gets the double team and Demetric Evans or whomever on the  far side isn't capable of defeating a single blocker with any sort of consistency. Chris Wilson, Rob Jackson, Demetric Evans and Erasmus James have combined for one sack. Someone please step up.

I won't fence sit, I want him to play. While a part of me almost thinks -- and this is crazy considering what happened two weeks ago -- if ever there was a game to miss, it's tomorrow, I appreciate too much the attitude exhibited by a player's willingness to fight through the pain. That's the kind of thing that makes me love football, and I'm certain that it impresses teammates. Leaving human gore on the field is leadership, man. Get out there and hurt them Jason.

I may not feel the same way three weeks down the road if/when we're still talking about this damn calf injury.

Back to actual (rather than theoretical) football. My sincerest apologies for selfishly not posting much besides this massive nerdfest. I write a near 5,000 word essay on the two point conversion and the extra point and, typically, think it's more interesting than it is. I just couldn't bring myself to bump it.

Fortunately I am bringing to you someone who is knowledgeable about actual football in particular his Arizona Cardinals. cgolden of Revenge of the Birds graciously agreed to exchange content for the upcoming game. This will be a nice change of pace from the typical 5 Questions, as cgolden suggested we do key matchups and I feel the format worked out quite well. He also just posted a helpful injury summary for the upcoming game here. I steal stuff:

Washington Redskins: The Skins have a few more players dinged up with London Fletcher (rib) and Marcus Washington (hamstring), Carlos Rogers (groin) and Jason Taylor (knee) limited in practice. Malcolm Kelly (ankle) and James Thrash (ankle), H.B. Blades (knee) and Fred Smoot (hip), did not practice but most are still expected to play this Sunday. 

He is good at blogging.

Enjoy this:

Match-up #1: Redskins secondary vs. Cardinals WRs

Master of Universe: Advantage: Cardinals - No shame in admitting that there's no good way to deal with Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin. Last week: 12 receptions, 293 yards, 3 touchdowns. Shawn Springs I don't worry so much about, but this is way above Carlos Rogers' pay grade. The good news is rookie Chris Horton, who both looked phenomenal last week and may or may not retain the starting position vacated briefly by a sick Reed Doughty [ED NOTE: Ben says naw, he's usually righteous which is to say correct]. Boldin and Fitzgerald, at least in this young season, are very much playing two impossibly difficult to cover roles. Boldin, despite being the shorter of the two, plays the reliable favored son, who moves chains at will. His three touchdowns are tops in the league and his impossibly high 78+% 1st down catch rate is about as high as anyone else. Fitzgerald, as stated, is a physical monster but somehow also is the speed demon get behind you receiver. His 20.4 YPC is remarkable, especially when one considers he's done most of it on 20-40 yard receptions, meaning he's consistently down the field catching footballs. Four of his nine receptions were +20 yards.

Merely extremely talented Cardinal blogger who knows much (more than I) about football but has yet to master universe: Advantage: Cardinals - I don't know that there's a secondary in this league that I'd say had an advantage over Boldin, Fitzgerald and company, but I will say that I had to at least think about this one. Shawn Springs may not be what he once was but when he's paired with Carlos Rogers and Fred Smoot, you've got a solid trio of corner backs. When you add in one of the best young safeties in the league, LaRon Landry and rookie Chris Horton who had a great game last week, they're a formidable secondary. As solid as a secondary may be though when Warner is playing like he has the past two games and Fitzgerald and Boldin are catching everything in sight, the passing game is hard to contain.

Match-up #2: Redskins pass rush vs. Cardinals offensive line

Hogs Haven: Advantage: Redskins - I don't know enough about the Cardinals offensive line to really comment, so I'll just rant on the Redskins. At four sacks the 'Skins are good but not great so far. Jason Taylor is a big name with one sack so far, which is again, good but not great. Andre Carter and Cornelius Griffin round out a solid unit with the combo of Golston/Montgomery closing it out. As I'm of the opinion that Montgomery is probably the most underrated lineman on the team, I feel good at all positions. That said, who knows to what degree these guys remain healthy (or healthy enough; Taylor isn't long removed from injury)? This front downgrades subtantially when Demetric Evans is in for either Taylor or Carter. The emphasis will be the pass rush, since the Cardinals haven't looked so hot running the ball thus far.

cgolden: Advantage: Redskins - The Redskins have some formidable edge pass rushers in Jason Taylor and Andre Carter and Cornelius Griffin has been decent at providing some pressure up the middle. The turning point of this game could be whether or not the Skins are able to put pressure on Warner with their front four or if they'll have to blitz to get in his face. The Dolphins tried to blitz last week and they got burned numerous times. Warner is very capable of recognizing the blitz and standing in the pocket just long enough to deliver the pass. If Taylor and Carter are able to be get around Levi Brown and Mike Gandy, if could be a long day for the Cards.

Match-up #3: Redskins receivers vs. Cardinals secondary

Hogs Haven: Advantage: Unknown - We've been simultaneously blessed and cursed with receivers in Washington. In 2005 Santana Moss put together one of the best receiving performances in the history of the franchise. In 2007 it took us like 10 weeks to get a receiver with a touchdown. Antwaan Randle El has developed much as a receiver over the past few years even as he's totally forgotten how to return punts. The real question is who plays that #3 spot, and we've got a pair of rookies dueling with James Thrash for that right. I have to think the rookies are better in the long run but, so far, due to injury and Thomas and Kelly halfassing it apparently, Thrash is the guy. Chris Cooley should be the gameplan focus of the Cardinals. The Cardinals' pass defense is playing very well so far, although I don't know how much of that is due exclusively to their secondary. In any event, because the Redskins' receivers --passing game in general-- are so Jekyll and Hyde, there's no telling how this one plays out.

CG: Advantage: Redskins - This is a tough match-up to judge because the Cardinals corner backs haven't been tested much this season, but Santana Moss, Antwaan Randle El and company should be a nice measuring stick. If Jason Campbell looks like the quarterback of week 2 instead of week 1, the Skins might be able to stretch the field and open up the underneath for Chris Cooley. The Cardinals secondary isn't star studded but they do have some talent and depth. Adrian Wilson and Karlos Dansby will likely be relied upon to limit Chris Cooley while Antrel Rolle will have to keep Moss from getting deep. If Campbell has time in the pocket, they've got enough weapons to give the Cardinals some problems.

Match-up #4: Cardinals pass rush vs. Redskins OL

Hogs Haven: Advantage: Redskins - I was terrified of our O-Line coming into the season with Jansen who, for many years was painted on our starting roster, lost his job to Stephon Heyer. He looked shaky, if only briefly, in our first game. But this O-Line is playing good football, having given up just three sacks, which is very above average especially having played the Giants (though they were limited by injury). In pass protection I'm more worried about Campbell holding on to the ball too long than I am them not giving him the time to make plays down the field. Our yards per carry (4.2) is good, nothing special, but we've done it without breaking big runs. Our running game and Arizona's running defense meet halfway, although they're a little better so far. The fun thing to watch will be their pass rush, which has generated 6 sacks and probably accounted for much of their success against the pass so far. I worry about the blitz, but the Cardinals will find that Clinton Portis is one of the best blitz pick up backs in the league. Someone will be eaten, mark my words.

CG: Advantage: Cardinals - The Redskins only gave up one sack to the Giants in week one but they really haven't faced a team that blitzes as much as the Cardinals yet. The Cardinals pulled back the intensity last week once they jumped out by three scores, but they put constant pressure on the Niners in week 1. The Skins line is full of experienced veterans but the Cardinals will be coming from every direction on Sunday. Clancy Pendergast has a plethora of pass rushers and he's had some creative ways of getting them all on the field in various situations. Campbell will have to keep his head on a swivel and make sure that he gets rid of the ball quickly.

You should definitely check out his post because he has like pictures imbedded comfortably into the side of his content. It's amazing. And they are topical. When they was picking people to run websites on this network, reader(s) here definitely got jobbed.

Regarding the Cardinals, this ain't your daddy's team (which is to say, this isn't the team we've beaten 62% of the time in like 120 games -- did you know the Cardinals have scored 2,206 points against us? WTF, mate?) now sitting 2-0 atop the weakest division in football. While I'm unwilling to admit the Cards have been tested, they've done what good teams are supposed to do against bad teams which is: win convincingly. Their DVOA is strong.

Just got off the phone with a friend (who is tortured over which two of Chad Johnson, Steve Smith, and Santana Moss to start) and the meme was that I had no useful information to provide regarding Mos because: The Cardinals are a team I don't know much about and indeed not much is to be known about them given their schedule thus far. This is a good team that has beaten two historically (don't take that term too literally) bad teams. I believe it is a good defense but don't know for sure.

Will soon.

CptChaosSidekick already has the story but it is consequential enough that I had to write up my own thoughts as well. Today is a sad, sad day in Redskins history, as the team (I'm sure reluctantly) cut the greatest backup FB who happened to play tight end in College in history. My fan-heart is broken into a million pieces as I try -- fail -- to comprehend the horror, the horror. Per the Official Site, emphasis added somberly:

To make room for Thomas on the roster, the Redskins released fullback Pete Schmitt.

This isn't actually a surprise to me, since not-too-long ago I asked a person of interest who would know something about it whether Schmitt had any chance of surviving the cuts, and was told matter-of-factly that he didn't. Deep down I knew it was always a long shot, but damn me for loving the underdog.

My support for Pete Schmitt is well documented. After this space's interview with Pete, the first Hogs Haven player interview, Schmitt struck me as a classic overachiever experiencing what many of us only dream of. He also drank Miller Lite and Gin and Tonics, which only endeared him to me more. And now, unfortunately, he's been cut.

Best wishes to Pete Schmitt and I hope he sticks somewhere. Apparently I didn't root loudly enough. I apologize.

I guess congrats are in order for Lee Gibbons of The Redskin Report. Although he didn't say anything, he could have as he called Nemo Broughton as the sure-fire starter over Pete Schmitt many months ago. As per usual, my prediction turned out to be bogus. Lee Gibbons is a reliable commenter on all things Redskins, and he's right once more.

The good news is that Devin Thomas is now signed:

The Redskins have signed rookie wide receiver Devin Thomas, the team's top selection in last April's NFL Draft.

Thomas was the Redskins' second-round draft pick, 34th overall, in the draft.

Thomas was at Redskins Park on Friday morning, along with his agent Drew Rosenhaus, to sign the contract. It is a four-year deal, the team has announced.

Redskins Insider has the semantics:

Thomas will earn a max of $4.8 million in his deal, with $2.75 million as his signing bonus, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.

I never thought the team would have trouble signing Thomas so I'm not dancing in the moonlight over this, but good on the team for getting him under contract meaning one less thing to worry about during training camp. Speaking of TC, it hasn't received the coverage it deserves here and I apologize for that. As CptChaosSidekick pointed out, the Official Site has their own training camp battles to watch this season. It is:

PUNTER: FROST vs. BROOKS

SAFETY: DOUGHTY vs. SCHWEIGERT

THIRD CORNERBACK

FOURTH DEFENSIVE END

FIFTH WIDE RECEIVER

If I were to rank them in order of interest I'd say: Defensive end, then safety, then cornerback, then fifth wide receiver, then punter. Why?

Defensive End: I'm of the opinion, having watched the unimaginable happen when the Giants beat the Patriots in the last Super Bowl, that defensive line is the single greatest equalizer in the game. Am I relying too heavily on one anecdote that probably doesn't capture the larger scheme? Who cares, it makes for easier print. Andre Carter and Phillip Daniels are secure. The real issue is the trio of Erasmus James vs. Demetric Evans vs. Chris Wilson and how that shakes out. The good news to keep in mind is that we could end up with two solid backups plus a situational pass rusher. One carry-over from the Gregg Williams era I hope Greg Blache keeps is rotating the defensive ends in and out to keep them fresh (also we like to line up Daniels at tackle sometimes). Even if Wilson or Evans or James don't end up as the clear-cut backup DE, they still could make the roster and get some PT.

Safety: This is the Doughty show. My real interest in this is to see just how much of an overachiever he is; obviously the team didn't show tonnage of faith in his ability to be the starter as we went out and brought in some people to challenge him for position. Having said that, I thought he played reliably enough last season and would love to see him win the battle this time around. I noticed that Sean Taylor regressed a bit when Ryan Clark left town. I don't know if that wasn't just the result of a general decline in the total defense. I think chemistry at safety matters, anyways, and LaRon Landry has more with Doughty than anyone else on the team.

More Training Camp thoughts will follow this evening, but for now I'm taking the lady friend out to dinner and a movie (I am so, so cool). Get your thoughts in the comments section before I return to put you all to sleep. Cheers and thank ye Football Gods we're so close to the season.

Eric Karabell (hat tip to Extreme Skins) of ESPN has the Fantasy scoop (or does he?) on... the offensive line?

On the line: Keeping tackles Chris Samuels and Jon Jansen healthy is critical, especially with Campbell being a bit fumble-prone. Jansen missed the entire season because of a dislocated ankle, while right guard Randy Thomas has not been durable. It's an old, brittle line learning a new system it might be able to thrive in, although that shouldn't hold back Portis. The defensive line welcomes former Viking Erasmus James, but he's not guaranteed to start. Andre Carter can be an impact guy in deep IDP leagues, but for the most part, fantasy owners need not worry about this defensive line.

Despite the fact that the article hails from ESPN's 2008 Fantasy Football Draft Kit, the author obviously went off the fantasy sports reservation, because I've never played a fantasy football league where the offensive line garnered points. Maybe he's focused on the indirect effects a struggling line has on your RB and QB and everyone else. Who knows?

There is no news, so we'll talk about the defensive line, I suppose. Issue is which or whether either of James or Chris Wilson will make the team. I have absolutely no read on how this non-battle has played out so far, as there's sufficient print supporting both of them to give me pause. For instance, you can read about Erasmus James at ESPN or Wilson at TSN:

PERSONNEL ANALYSIS: Two backups could play prominent roles for the defense this season. Chris Wilson is a lightweight in terms of bulk, but the DE comes off the ball with a great deal of explosion. He's quick enough to get around most offensive tackles, and fast enough to get to the QB before the pass is thrown. Defensive coordinator Greg Blache plans to play to the individual strengths of his players, and that could mean Wilson gets more snaps in passing situations. ...

I think I've said it before, but if the team wants to keep both Wilson and James it could mean the end for Demetric Evans. We've got a lot of Defensive Ends, including recently signed draft pick Rob Jackson, undrafted FA Dorian Smith. Not everyone can make the team.

They weren't kidding about Wilson being on the small side, either. The team lists him at 240 lbs, which makes him the smallest by over 10 pounds. Then again, Carter was the 2nd smallest on the line last year but by far the most productive. From the looks of it, lean and mean is the strategy for rushing the bad guy's passer.

Situational defenders are great so long as the starters remain healthy.

There really is nothing going on right now, these are the offseason doldrums. Enjoy.

Full quote via Star Tribune, emphasis added (except for names):

Vinny Cerrato -- the executive vice president of football operations for the Washington Redskins, and a former Gophers recruiting coordinator who grew up in Albert Lea -- is in the Twin Cities for a family vacation. He said his team is confident that Erasmus James, the oft-injured defensive end traded from the Vikings to Washington, will be ready to play in the final two preseason games this fall. "He spent the last week down with Dr. James Andrews rehabbing his knee, and he had spent the previous few weeks with our rehabilitation guys, then he'll be back for the next three weeks rehabbing," said Cerrato, who believes the former first-round pick out of Wisconsin will play this year after not doing much in his three seasons with the Vikings. "What he wants to do is, in college he weighed like 258-260 [pounds], then when he went to the Vikings they wanted him big, so he was like 275. So, we wanted him back to where he was in college."

That's big news for James, who faces an uphill battle just to make the roster. He won't supplant Andre Carter or Phillip Daniels and so will need to steal a spot from either Chris Wilson or Demetric Evans or, alternatively, hope that the team keeps 5 DEs.

I think everyone here hopes, as Cerrato says, that he looks and plays more like he did in College than so far in the NFL. He was the 2004 Big Ten defensive player of the year (and, obviously, Big Ten defensive linemen of the year) and a first team All American. In the NFL? Nothing much.

Regarding the weight, if he's playing for Wilson's spot or a 5th DE spot, I am all about it. Anything he can do to speed up his pass rush is good, since that's all we've asked Wilson to do so far. And as a backup, backup DE, I'd love him as a situational pass rusher. But I don't know if I need him lighter and leaner if he's supplanting Demetric Evans. Evans is a complete DE (even if an uninspiring one) and is serviceable against the run. I doubt Daniels will start 16 games next year, so we'll need a run stopper on that line at some point next year.

This post was too timely not to write, given that I recently found myself in the market for a new vehicle and owed some positive blog-space to Demetric Evans for questioning his future with the team as recently as yesterday. I didn't get to say all I wanted in yesterday's post, but let me quickly express appreciation for what Evans has done in Washington. He has been a consistent and reliable backup on a defense that has been very, very strong in three of the four years he's been with the team. His part in all that should not be ignored, which is why Redskins 360 (probably correctly) predicted him as a lock to make the team.

It turns out Demetric Evans is an intern at a car dealership :

Evans took an internship at Infinity of Tysons Corner in order to learn everything about the automobile business. He has always been one to make the most of every opportunity...

Evans said he's not really a car guy but he has spent time studying the industry during NFL-sponsored programs at the Harvard and Northwestern business schools.

The suggested long-term plan is for Evans to eventually own a dealership. I don't know how quickly one can make the leap from intern to owner, but I presume it's much quicker for those few individuals blessed with million dollar incomes over the past few years and a name relatively popular amongst the locals.

This isn't actually "news." DC Sports Bogger and highly approvable Washington Post reporter Dan Steinberg already had her (the story, that is):

Anyhow, Evans has never had a "real job," although he's already interned for a TV station in Texas and taken seminars for NFL players at the Harvard Business School and Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management. He's also got an offseason reading list; this year's entries included "Enough" by Juan Williams. His wife has questioned his motives--"she thinks I'm up there trying to get a dealer car," he joked--and almost none of his teammates know about his new job. I suggested his time might be better spent at the beach, but Evans demurred.

Having lost my own auto, I wouldn't begrudge Evans one bit were he just there trying to get a great deal on a brand new Infiniti. As for the reading... pretty heavy stuff, from the looks of it. Certainly heavier than anything I'd hoped to blog about this morning after settling on an article about our backup defensive end interning at a car dealership. I had planned on ending with a campy car dealership commercial -- there's no other kind -- via youtube, but this is as good a chance to post my current favorite commercial as ever:

It's cars, right? When it comes to Skin Patrol, the story ends with Skin Patrol putting Skin Patrol into the wall. (Tragically, true story.)

For all you NASCAR fans, make sure to spend some time at our very own Restrictor Plate This. I think RPT is just a little bit too down on Kyle Busch, but besides that it's a phenomenal racing blog, if you're into that kind of thing.

Also, soliciting advice from reader(s) on what I should purchase as far as a new vehicle is concerned. My spending limit is some amount less than "quality" but more than "may cause exploding" if only by a nose. Have at it.

Football Outsiders has their post-draft analysis of the NFC East up, go enjoy. Author is a guest, one Mike McGibbon, and all seems to be in order in the story. I found no glaring errors, though I'm not sure the Redskins got, as McGibbon wrote, 10 draft picks as a result of our 1st round draft pick trade (I thought we gave up a 1st, 3rd, 5th ro a 2nd, 2nd, 4th. It's been a minute, though, so maybe my memory doesn't serve).

Either way, McGibbon knows a lot more about our undrafted free agents than I do, and thus I direct your attention to some guys to watch, per him:

Undrafted Free Agents

In all, the Redskins brought in 13 undrafted rookie free agents. Of those 13, four were offensive linemen. And of those four, Florida State’s Shannon Boatman and New Mexico’s Devin Clark may have the best chance to make the team, given that both started for most of their final two seasons. Dorian Smith, an All-Pac 10 first-team defensive end from Oregon State, will also challenge for a spot.

Quick look at the roster reveals that Shannon Boatman has already been lost. He, uhh, failed a physical. Tough break, guy. But both Dorian Smith and Devin Clark are, as of this writing, still with the team. The team has a lot of defensive ends (nine) and certainly more than we will by final cuts. Locks would be, in my opinion, Phillip Daniels and Andre Carter as starters with Demetric Evans and Chris Wilson backing up. Let's speculate that the team keeps 9-10 defensive linemen, and you have to imagine Kedric the Barbarian, Mt. Gomery, and Cornelius Griffin, with Lorenzo Alexander and Ryan Boschetti both in good position to make the team (although Alexander could make the team in any number of his superhuman capacities, so maybe he wouldn't even count as a D-Linemen). We're in need of upgrade on the defensive line, but that doesn't mean any rookie can just step in and take the spot of one of the more established veterans. That might've been the case a few years ago, but young linemen Anthony Montgomery, Chris wilson and Kedric Golston have started a youth movement at that position. Until Griffin and Daniels take the long walk, the Dorian Smiths of the world will have to earn a place on this team.

At offensive line I think recent injuries may encourage Coach Zorn -- a former expansion team quarterback who knew a thing or two about the perils of a bad offensive line -- to keep a larger than normal contingent of offensive linemen on the roster. Locks are the starters, obviously, in Jon Jansen, Randy Thomas, Chris Samuels, Casey Rabach, and Pete Kendall. I think Fabini and Stephon Heyer will probably be around as well. I hope Chad Rinehart makes the team, and he should. On Todd Wade I'm indifferent, as he hasn't done much to impress. We'll need to keep someone about to backup Casey Rabach at center; with versatile Mike Pucillo gone, the spot as of now belongs to Kyle DeVan, unless there is someone else on the team who can snap the football and block effectively.

Question to readers is: We've got a good crop of undrafted rookie free agents. These things are remarkably difficult to predict, and we are really at the mercy of the team in telling us who has impressed thus far, but is anyone willing to go on record on who will or will not make the roster? Who will be this year's Stephon Heyer (acknowledging that his position was aided in large part by factors outside control or prediction: injuries)? I'm aspecifically soliciting commentary on players local to reader(s) markets that maybe the rest of us haven't seen play so much.