1. I had some unpaid time off from the Ten Yard Fight last week so there is lots of business to take care of today. I'll hop around and try to knock some of it out. First, I want to thank everyone for their very kind words and wishes regarding the arrival of my new daughter Drew. If you needed further proof of how strong the Hogs Haven community is, check this out: our labor and delivery nurse, Kelly (who pretty much runs the whole delivery process from the time you get there until the baby is born) is married to a diehard Skins fan and faithful reader of Hogs Haven, Stan. Stan--your wife is the greatest and made our experience as enjoyable and comfortable as delivering a baby can be. She was so awesome, I won't even mention the big blue team from the north that she pulls for these days. You have some work to do, buddy.
2. My daughter is officially undefeated as a Redskins fan. She was awake for a good portion of the game yesterday and I'd like to think that her youth and energy had a hand in the 31-6 thrashing of the Eagles.
3. To all of the Eagles fans that made the trip down I-95 yesterday: I am so glad you were on hand to watch Robert Griffin III lay one on you. Having shared FedEx Field with fans of the opposing team for the last 15 years, there are very few fanbases that deserve a six-game losing streak more than the one from Philadelphia. They have become more mouthy than Dallas fans, less classy than a crack dealer that sells to first-graders and act more entitled than Ricky Stratton. I hope in my heart that all Eagles fans are not the same as the ones that have represented them at FedEx over the years. It takes a lot to cross my line, but year in and year out, the fans from Philly do just that. Welcome to the basement, Philly. We left it nice and clean for you.
4. I told Kevin yesterday that I would allow myself only one mention of the "p" word in this week's Sixpack. The Giants--despite their recent woes--are still the class of this division and they are still miles ahead of us. That said, we are talking about a division where anything can happen. The polish that the NFC East has had for years has really worn off. Even after considering that the defending Super Bowl champs are from the East, the landscape of the NFL clearly shows us where our division ranks. The Giants can screw it up, and we have the ability to help them screw it up, but it is their division to win right now.
5. One game at a time is the only way you can attack this thing and this week we have a game that I have been waiting to get for a long time: a nationally televised game that the entire country will be tuned in to watch with actual meaning. The winner of the Thanksgiving tilt between the Cowgirls and the Redskins will still be alive in the playoff hunt and the loser will not. Yes, it's in Dallas. Yes, it's against a team that will likely be favored over us. Make no mistake though--this is a game we can absolutely win.
6. Robert Griffin made big headlines with his performance yesterday, and it was very meaningful, but at the end of the day, it was in a game between between two lower-tier teams in the NFC. On Thursday, he has an opportunity to seize the stage and drop the kind of game on both Dallas and the nation that can move the Redskins up a notch. A win on Thanksgiving has the ability to elevate our playoff chances as well as the perception of the world. We have labored in the cellar of both the league and in people's minds for a long time. It sounds silly to suggest that a 5-6 record would cause people to think twice about our team, but at 5-6 with a bullet, we can credibly talk about how close we were to winning some of our early season games. At second place in the division, we can credibly suggest we have been "close" all season. If the Redskins start building some momentum going into December, my words sound less like the ramblings of a lunatic and more like the musings of a fan that roots for an honest-to-goodness playoff contender. Yeah, there is a lot at stake on Thursday...time to put on our big boy pants.