Redskins have got time for the pain

WASHINGTON (Map, News) - There were Dirty Birds and boo birds, but at least Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick didn’t flip anyone the bird in the Falcons’ 24-14 victory at FedEx Field on Sunday. After all, Vick wasn’t the home passer making mistakes this time.

Washington quarterback Jason Campbell continued his early regression with the worst of his young three-game career that turned even backers into booers. Two interceptions and some bounced passes exposed Campbell more than a naked bootleg.

Is it time for Todd Collins? Because it sure feels like time for a Tom Collins.

It was bad enough Campbell panicked during a sack and threw an interception to some mountain of goo named Chauncey Davis, who rambled 41 yards before being caught. That mistake set up the Falcons go-ahead touchdown. Throwing another pick to end a late rally was irritating, too. But the badly-thrown incompletions to open receivers seemed to irritate fans most. And yes, there were some boos. Penthouse to doghouse in one week — that’s the Redskins way.

“Today was a tough day for him,” coach Joe Gibbs said. “For a young quarterback that’s a process they have to go through sometimes.”

Campbell will probably regress further before he progresses. Defensive coordinators are gaining weekly insights into Campbell’s flaws. Atlanta successfully blitzed on third downs regardless of distance and Washington converted only 6 of 14.

Campbell threw 20 incompletions, half underthrown. His touchdown was a floater. His passer rating was a lousy 52.3 after completing 18 of 38 for 218 yards.

“You grow with the pains,” Campbell said. “You can’t get your head down. Understand things will get better. I learned a lot from this game.”

Maybe the Redskins will better learn to taper more plays to Campbell’s strength of throwing frozen ropes in the middle of the field for 15 yards instead of too many lame dump offs. Maybe they’ll protect Campbell a little better than allowing 11 hits and one sack. Both turnovers came when Campbell was hit.

Campbell raised expectations after throwing four touchdowns in his first two games, while winning the second start. He looked poised and further ahead than should have been expected. The Falcons were the first team to leave Campbell wide-eyed and perplexed. They won’t be the last.

The best part of this whole half-season experiment is Campbell gaining experience for 2007 and ’08 when a bad defense can be revamped, the kicking game rebuilt and team confidence restored.

The Redskins are 4-8, deserve to be 4-8 and may end up as the worst Gibbs team ever. But Campbell is still looking better than an aging Mark Brunell struggling to score.

Rick Snider has covered local sports for 28 years. Contact him at rsnider@dcexaminer.com.

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