Brunell Has Odd Numbers

With the ascension of the running game as the top priority, Brunell has not been asked to win games solely with his arm. Since the Redskins abandoned the run in the second half of the Nov. 20 loss to Oakland, Brunell has been asked to do less through the air. In his first nine starts, Brunell threw 308 passes, or 34.2 per game. In seven starts since, including the playoff game, Brunell has attempted 147 passes, or 21 per game.

But Gibbs said that in the Philadelphia and Tampa Bay games, two plays underscore Brunell's value and toughness, qualities that supersede whatever statistical evidence suggests the quarterback is under-performing

Against Philadelphia, the Redskins were leading 24-20 with 4 minutes 21 seconds left , with Brunell standing in the shotgun from his 18-yard line. It was third and eight and a Philadelphia stop would have given the Eagles good field position, possibly at mid-field, and plenty of time to mount a drive for the winning score that would have kept the Redskins out of the playoffs.

Brunell looked for Moss, and saw nothing. He looked for Chris Cooley, who was covered. He slid a few steps to his left, avoided pressure and then took off up the middle, a 12-yard limping run combination that netted the Redskins a clutch first down. The Redskins took another 1:10 off the clock, moved the ball to their 37 and wound up pinning the Eagles back to their 25-yard line. Four plays later, Sean Taylor picked up Mike McMahon's fumble and ran 39 yards for the game-clinching score.

Gibbs considers Brunell's dreadful performance last week against Tampa Bay -- in which the Redskins set an NFL playoff record low for total yards by a winning team -- and instead prefers to think about him taking the snap from the shotgun on third and seven with 7:42 left in the half and the Redskins leading 14-3. Again, Brunell looked for Cooley, before bolting around the left side for nine yards and a first down. Four plays later, John Hall kicked a 47-yard field goal that gave the Redskins a two-touchdown lead.

To Gibbs, these plays are proof that for every area where Brunell is statistically deficient, he is nevertheless a winning quarterback. By allowing Brunell to struggle -- in a way never afforded Patrick Ramsey -- Gibbs is also telegraphing another message about his own preference for a veteran quarterback presence, albeit clearly injured, especially in the postseason.

"He's out there making more plays. He's very, very good at doing the little things, getting rid of the ball when it's the right thing. I think he has helped us win football games the last two weeks," Gibbs said. "And sometimes it doesn't look good in the stats and all the things that happen there, and I understand that. I know he wants to be more productive than that and needs to be more productive than that, but he's made very key plays in both games. So to me, he's pretty much done for us what he's done all year."

Staff writer Leonard Shapiro contributed to this report.