Terry Robiskie, right, with receiver Albert Connell Reginald A. Pearman Jr. washingtopost.com

Terry Robiskie, the Redskins' passing game coordinator, discussing the loss to the Lions and tonight's game with the Cowboys, said the team let Dallas off the ropes last year but has no intention of having that happen again.

Robiskie joined the Redskins as wide receivers coach in 1994 after spending 12 years as a coach with the Raiders. A running back out of LSU, he was drafted by Oakland in 1977 and played for five seasons, three for the Raiders and two for the Dolphins.

Terry Robiskie: Welcome to all the fans and of course all the family and friends. Welcome to another day of Airing It Out. Sorry about the loss at Detroit, and I know there's a million questions about that game. So let's get started.

Austin, TX: Terry,
I know you're going to get this question alot, but ... Why did we go away from running Stephen Davis in the 4th quarter? This is the same thing that happened in Detroit last year. We were only down two points at the beginning of the quarter, and SD did not get even one touch in the 4th (if I remember correctly). Granted the going was tough, but I still think him pounding the middle could've opened some more things up.

Terry Robiskie: Well, like you said this sounds like a replay from last year after the Detroit game. It's a very difficult question for me, and it's really one I don't have the answer for. For two years we have gone into Detroit and Stephen hasn't touched it in the fourth quarter. But I must say I don't have the answer.

Kansas City, MO.: Coach T,
Tough loss last week. I watched the game and I came away wondering how the Lions were able to drop into deep zones to protect against the long ball and cover the middle of the field. Late in the game the Lions seemed to bring a LB from the outside most plays. Who covered the TE? I hope to see more of Stephen Alexander in coming weeks. I think he can help balance our attack. Thanks! Go Skins.

Terry Robiskie: Yes, I think Stephen is one guy that's a major factor in our passing game and begining tonight we must do whatever we can to get him going. Stephen's an excellent player and we must get the ball in his hands. Versus Detroit, they were doubling Stephen with the outside linebacker and the inside linebacker. So that's why it was difficult for him to shake free.

Camp Hill, PA: Coach - Tell Michael that we will miss him immensely!!!! Everybody talks about losing Michael and his deep threat. Although that may be true, don't you think the team will miss him more because of his success and physical presence running the slant and dig routes because those are the toughest routes to run?? I also think those are his greatest strengths, do you agree?? Good luck against the Cowboys. A win is the perfect remedy for the bad week you and we have had with the loss and injury. Hail to the Redskins!

Terry Robiskie: Yes, thanks for your support. You must be a true Redskins fan and I agree with you. The one thing we will miss is Mike catching the underneath stuff. For example, the slant route versus Philly in Philly last year that he broke for forty-eight yards. That's the thing I will miss. But Mike will be okay and I think the Redskins will be okay. Like you said, nothing a win tonight wouldn't solve.

Redwood Shores, CA: Coach, I noticed that Derrius Thompson was released today to make room for the new kicker. From this move, I'm gathering that the coaches feel more comfortable with Andre Reed even though he's been on the team for less than a week. Will Reed get a lot of playing time tonight? Would you like to resign Thompson if you have the opportunity?

Terry Robiskie: I'm not sure Derrius Thompson is ready to play today against the Dallas Cowboys. I do know that Andre Reed is. I think Andre Reed, over his career, has caught 900 balls. I'm not sure Derrius has caught nine. So today I felt it was best to go with Andre as opposed to Derrius. However, it was unfortunate that we had to create a roster spot for a new kicker and to do that we had to let Derrius go. It's unfortunate but we had to.

Mountain View, CA: Hi Coach,
I've got DirecTV out in California so that I can watch every game. Hail! I'm wondering - with the opposing team's CBs consistently playing 10-20 yards off our WRs, why isn't Norv calling more 10 yard outs/ins, comeback routes, quick-hitting slants, etc. to make them pay for that cushion? Thanks for taking my question Coach, and good luck Monday night!

Terry Robiskie: I'm happy about your DirecTV and thanks for watching. Now, you're in California asking why we're not throwing more short passes. People here want to know why we're throwing so many short passes. I think we're calling pass patterns with deep routes and short routes. The ones that are coming up are the short routes. So we're trying hard to have a good mix. Hopefully, we'll get it done tonight.

Columbia, Md: Terry- When the defense stopped Detroit on the goal line last week, many commentators described it as a defining moment for the unit. Do you think the offense needs a similar defining moment, like a last minute drive or a blowout, to give them a spark?

Terry Robiskie: Yes, I do. I think the first drive to open the game and start the season against Carolina was a major step towards what we needed. However, we were unable to follow that with any success. I think we need one or two more drives with success like that first drive so we can get some continuity and some confidence going. Maybe a fourth and goal from the two and we get it in to win the game. Something like that might be what we need.

San Francisco, California: Hello, coach. Looks like you'll have your hands full in the coming weeks. Is Albert ready to be the #1 receiver? What are you telling him to get him ready? He talks like he's ready to be the man. We'll find out soon enough whether he can walk the walk. Good luck against Dallas. Please, whatever you do, please find a way to beat Dallas!

Terry Robiskie: I agree with you and everything you said. I think Albert always talks the talk and starting tonight we will see if he can walk the walk. I think he can, but time will tell.

Norfolk, VA: Terry,
Tough loss on Sunday. We'll bounce back Monday night. I understand two of the four interceptions are being assessed to Brad. The other two, in my opinion, were more on the receivers than the QB. How do the coaches assess that when you evaluate Brad's overall performance? Good luck on Monday.

Terry Robiskie: We went back and looked at the film and unlike our fans we don't attribute our interceptions to this one or to that one, to the quarterback or receivers. We simply say that we did not make this play or that play when we had the opportunity to. Larry Centers was not able to get a handle on the ball Brad threw to him so he tipped it in the air and Detroit ended up intercepting it. It was unfortunate that it was a negative play. The other interceptions were just plays that we were unable to connect on. Fortunately, we never put blame on this one or that one, we simply say they were plays we were unable to make.

Stafford, Va.: Will the long passing game/big play offense come back to life?? I know the defenses are taking that away, but other teams seem to have the capablitiy to hit the long pass once in a while.

Terry Robiskie: Well, the only thing I can say is I will be there tonight and regardless of whether you're a defensive coach from the Cowboys or not, I will say let's watch tonight. We have every intention of airing it out.

Atlanta, GA: Hi Coach,
Who on the Dallas defense causes the most concern amongst the coaching staff?

Terry Robiskie: I would say Leon Lett. There's also a very good strong saftey in their secondary. Woodson is a concern. But Leon Lett is the biggest concern.

Ashburn, VA: Terry, I love reading your chats every week, but with six hours left before a critical game, is this the best time to be doing this? Couldn't it wait until tomorrow?

Terry Robiskie: Well, I committed to doing my show every week and today is the only day that I could have done it for this week. Like you said, it is still six hours before the game. I'm not sure what you expect me to be doing at 3 p.m. for a 9 p.m. game. I promise you I've watched every film I could watch so there's really nothing else I could do today to go get ready. Three o'clock, five o'clock or eight o'clock I'm as ready as I can be. So I'm not sure my talk will affect my preparation.

Atlanta: Hey Terry, Good luck tonight. How long do you think it will take for Andre Reed to become familiar with our offense? Early on will you give him just a few plays until he gets to know the entire offense, similar to what you might do with Champ Bailey?
Thanks for your time. And don't pay attention to all these so-called "fans" who are already calling for Norv to be fired and Brad to be benched after one loss!

Terry Robiskie: Thank you for your support, you sound like a true fan. You sound like a fan that understands one loss on one Sunday doesn't make a season. Yes, we do plan on bringing Andre along very slowly. I think each week we will include 10 to 15 plays that he will know and hopefully in about three weeks he should know our playbook. Andre is a veteran, he's a Hall of Fame receiver and he's an outstanding player so he should pick it up pretty easy. He will play a few plays tonight. Hopefully, he'll catch a few. Again, thanks for your support. You sound like a true fan.

Atlanta, GA: Does the coaching staff have anyone upstairs in the booth to help Norv call plays? That would seem like the perfect job for you.

Terry Robiskie: Yes, our quarterback coach is upstairs in the coaching box and he's the one who's in direct contact with the head coach about what's going on with the defensive front and the defensive coverages. All the coaches are on the headset listening and communicating, but of course all of us cannot talk at the same time. There's some talking and some listening but the guy upstairs doing most of the talking is the quarterback coach.

Atlanta, GA: Coach,
How is Champ Bailey looking as a receiver? What are his best routes?

Terry Robiskie: Well, of couse a go route. The streak, the fly, the nine route. However you call it, it's the one where you take off and run. The one thing we all know that Champ can do is run. He's looking, to me, like a guy named Roy Green. I hope you remember that guy. Roy Green was a very explosive guy. Just an incredible speed guy. Champ Bailey looks like that same type of guy. He's something special no matter what side of the ball.

Silver Spring, MD: Coach, a lot has been made about the level of determination of the Cowboys to beat the Redskins but not vice versa. I think that is a load of you know what. What do you say?

Terry Robiskie: I think the difference is we don't want to talk about it, we want to do it. We don't want to talk about a lot of, as you said, you know what. We just want to go out and get it done. We had the Cowboys on the ropes last year and we let them off. We won't let that happen this year.

Atlanta, GA: Coach, I assume the coaching staff doesn't take stock in a lot of the media reports. But how do you react internally as an organization when the media brings up the hype about benching Brad for Jeff? It's driving me crazy and I hope you've got a good remedy to pass along.

Terry Robiskie: Well, like you said the thing for us is to not read what the media is saying. The media cannot and should not run this team. We've got to do what we believe is best.

Richmond, VA: Terry, how come Stephen Davis almost always comes out whenever it is third and more than a yard? This has been the case throughout the Norv Turner years, regardless of who the back is. Try running on third and two or three for a change-up!

Terry Robiskie: Again, you are saying on third and three run as a change-up. Last week on third and two against Detroit we ran it. We ended up with fourth and one and everyone else wanted to know why we didn't throw it. Stephen Davis is not always out on third and two or three but when we do go to our third down package, the third down package is Larry Centers or Adrian Murrell. But we do run on third and two.

Washington: Terry,
While I applaud Deion for stepping up and admitting he played poorly vs. Dertoit, I'd feel better if he told us why. Any thoughts on that?

Terry Robiskie: I don't know if he knows why. It's difficult for any athlete to say why. Why did Jerry Rice drop a pass? He doesn't know why, it just happened. Why did Michael Jordan miss a shot? I guess it's because they discover they're not perfect. They'll have good days and bad days. Deion had a bad day.

Pasadena, CA: Coach: I'm hoping you have been able to relax and focus this week. It was sure a miserable time for me and I imagine many others! Looking forward to the rebound on Monday night against the team from Texas. I am curious to know how you and your team handle a week like this. We suffered a bad road game while losing a veteran for the season. Has the mood been upbeat? Has the team been able to focus and does there continue to be a positve attitude at Redskin Park?

Terry Robiskie: I think it's been a very difficult week. The plus side is that it's a Monday night game and we have been able to stretch the week out a little. I think we've had time to think about the low periods, the loss to Detroit, the loss of Mike. But we've moved on. I think now we're on to the next week. It's tonight, it's Monday Night Football and hopefully we'll show tonight that it's all behind us.

Bethesda: Coach,
Does Irv have enough in the tank to assume the role of a starter, in terms of number of plays? Can you give us a feel for how you plan to use/rotate your guys tonight?

Terry Robiskie: I have no intentions of rotating the guys anymore tonight than two weeks ago. Irving Fryar is in great shape. He is starting as the Z receiver and he's got to go. This is no time to be trying to save people or protect people. It's the Redskins versus the Cowboys. If a guy is healthy and he can go, he's got to go. There's no saving for tomorrow.
Coach Turner just called a quick meeting. Thanks and I'll talk to you next week.

washingtonpost.com: Thanks for joining us. Airing It Out will be back in its regular Friday at 3 time slot on Sept. 29. See you then.