No doubt about it: Two refs signal emphatically that Gary Clark has scored a touchdown on a Mark Rypien pass in an October 27, 1991 game against the Giants. The 17-13 win made it the eighth straight victory for the Redskins that remarkable season. (Rich Lipski/The Washington Post) |
He didn't give the Redskins the razzle-dazzle, big-burst threat they would have liked from a
running back, but he was everything else. In those three straight trips to the playoffs, Byner
set the tone by averaging 108.8 yards a game.
Gibbs seemed exasperated in that period when a reporter pressed him about team leaders and why the Redskins didn't seem to have any. At least there weren't Redskins who gave passionate pre-game speeches or who appointed themselves the team's public conscience. Gibbs pointed toward Monk and Warren and Coleman and said, "We're a businesslike team. We play with emotion, but just because you don't hear from guys doesn't mean they're not leaders."
They certainly were leaders now where it counted most — on the playing field. They took five of their last seven games in 1990, and they did it with a smash-mouth style that coaches and players love. They ripped Miami, 42-20, and edged Chicago, 10-9. In a cold, driving rain at New England, they clinched a playoff berth before their last two games with a 25-10 victory over the Patriots— and then savored their revenge against the Eagles.
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Other Pages in Chapter 5: 172, 173, 174, 175, 176, 177, 178, 179, 180, 181, 182, 183, 184, 185, 186, 187, 188, 189, 190, 191, 192, 193, 194, 195, 196, 197, 198, 199, 200, 201, 202, 203, 204, 205
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Table of Contents Introduction Chapter 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 Names, Numbers Trivia Quiz Index |
