Patrick Ramsey had a quarterback rating of 75.9 last season, which ranked 22nd among qualified starters. Al Tielemans/SI

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Redskins are winning the offseason again. For the third straight year Washington is the team hiring the the most stunning headliners and acquiring the biggest stars.

Two years ago, the Skins made news with the hiring of Steve Spurrier -- which looked at the time like a brilliant move -- the drafting of quarterback-of-the-future Patrick Ramsey and the signing of waived middle linebacker Jeremiah Trotter from the rival Eagles. Last year, they pillaged New York, luring Laveranues Coles, Randy Thomas, John Hall and Chad Morton away from the Jets.

This is what the Redskins have done with those great expectations: They've gone 7-9 and 5-11, respectively, the past two seasons. The NFL, as you know, does not award Vince Lombardi trophies (or Richie Petitbon trophies, for that matter) for Offseason Championships. It's only February, and already the Redskins are lapping the field for another offeason title. I mean, who can beat hiring Joe Gibbs and trading for Mark Brunell? Who wouldn't want those two trophies on the mantel?

I think both are great men, in football and in life. Gibbs is a Hall of Fame coach and quite possibly a better person. I think Brunell has three strong years left, and he's a terrific guy. But if I were the Redskins, I'd never have made the trade. More about that later.

What bothers me more, I think, is that Gibbs unwittingly is trying to recreate 1992, which you just can't do in the NFL's salary cap era. He wants two high-achieving quarterbacks, so once the Redskins determined that they were going to trade for Brunell, they also decided they were NOT going to deal Ramsey. And they were sorely tested on the latter point last Friday when the Dolphins came calling for Ramsey. The conversation between front-office operatives lasted about eight seconds. Under no circumstances would Ramsey be available. Period.

Had the Redskins been interested in making the deal, they could have finagled one of two things from Miami:

1) The Dolphins' 26-year-old stud defensive end, Adewale Ogunleye, who has 22 sacks in his last 23 games.

2) Miami's first-round pick in April's draft, the 20th overall selection.

The Dolphins didn't actually make those hard-and-fast offers to Washington, but I know they would have given up either Ogunleye or  their first-round pick for Ramsey.

Ogunleye just might be the best young pass-rusher in football. At 6-foot-4 and 255 pounds, he's a slithery, speedy guy who has benefited from playing opposite Jason Taylor. He's a restricted free agent. Maybe the Redskins are going to make a big-money play for him, which sure might be worth it. If they do go after him, then my aforementioned criticism would be muted. He would solve the Redskins' biggest problem right now. Washington has no current player, and no prospects, who can be counted on to sack the opposing quarterback. And if you're a Redskins fan, and you know Gibbs is going to be around for only three years, what daily double would you rather have: Brunell and the best answer for the team's pass-rush troubles, or Brunell and Ramsey?

My problem with the Brunell deal, basically, is that the Redskins have nine pretty substantial holes by my count -- running back, tight end, center (unless they re-sign free-agent Lennie Friedman), three defensive linemen, two linebackers (assuming they make Trotter and Jessie Armstead cap casualties) and safety. They didn't fill any of those when they signed Brunell to a seven-year, $43 million deal. (Which really is more like a three-year, $15.36 million deal, with a $4.9 million cap hit coming in 2007, assuming ESPN.com's Len Pasquarelli is right about the the numbers, and I'm sure he is. And, by the way, don't forget the cap pain the Redskins will feel down the road from signings such as Brunell and Trotter. It's all well and good to say Brunell's a pretty cheap cap buy this year, at $2 million, but remember that the cap acceleration will come when the franchise throws him on the side of the road in three or four years.)

You may disagree with my estimation that Washington has nine positions to fill. Let's say you think the Redskins have only six remaining needs. They just committed $5 million a year, on average, for the next three seasons, and they didn't solve a single one of those problems. Washington could have dealt with one of them -- and perhaps could have come close to solving two issues with that kind of dough -- but chose not to when it decided not to trade Ramsey.

Ramsey is ticked off right now. He might get over it. But if Brunell gets the majority of the playing time the next three years, by the time Ramsey hits free agency, he won't want to stay.  Gibbs could have gone with Ramsey and, say, Jeff Blake to back him up. But the coach said Saturday, "You can't afford to go into a season and say if we have one guy get hurt, we're up a creek. To me, that would pretty much destroy a football team.'' In other words, Gibbs thinks a team needs 23 starters -- 22 regular ones and a second quarterback.

Gibbs told me that the Redskins would probably spend less this year on their quarterbacks than almost every other team does. He's right. Assuming he stays around, Ramsey will count $1.65 million against the Redskins' cap. Add Brunell's $2 million and the $380,000 of projected third-stringer Tim Hasselbeck, and the Washington signal-caller budget will add up to a tidy sum -- $4 million. When your quarterback allotment is only five percent of your $80.5 million total payroll, it appears to be smart cap management ... unless you consider the fact that you still have those nine holes unfilled.

No one in the current Washington organization can tell Gibbs, "Joe, that's dumb. Don't do it ..." -- as Bobby Beathard did in the old days. Gibbs is the guru now. He's going to get everything he wants. I'll be curious to see if Gibbs is happy with his decision in Week 7, when his defense gets strafed for 34 points because there's no one to rush the passer and the run defense is crumbling.

Gibbs is going to learn some harsh lessons the second time around. I said it before and I'll say it again: I think he's going to be successful in Washington. This will be no Steve Spurrier replay. But I also think Gibbs is going to look back at this dual decision about the quarterbacks -- signing Brunell, refusing to deal Ramsey when the time was golden -- with regret in a few months. He said something ominously prescient Saturday at the Scouting Combine: "I think pro sports change about 30 percent a year. So if you're away from it for three or four years, you pretty have to learn it again. The big question obviously is, Can I adjust?''

A very big question.

"The assumption that Patrick Ramsey is not playing is a bad assumption.'' --Gibbs

Miami (Ohio) quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, a likely top-10 pick in April's NFL draft.

MMQB: Did it help you to play wide receiver in high school before getting the chance to play quarterback?

Roethlisberger: I think it did, because now as a quarterback I see defenses from the front. As a receiver, you see it from the back. I've had the opportunity to see defenses from both sides, so I can see holes.

MMQB: Why didn't you play quarterback until your senior year in high school?

Roethlisberger: The coach's son was the quarterback, and he was a year older than me. He graduated, and it was my turn.

MMQB: Where did the coach's son end up?

Roethlisberger: He went to play receiver at Denison University.

This should tell you everything you need to know about the scintillating action at the Scouting Combine, particularly with so many players choosing not to do anything but show up for physicals:

On Thursday, just after noon, Giants general manager Ernie Accorsi set what is believed to be a Combine record by being interviewed, nonstop, for two hours and 16 minutes in and around the media workroom inside the Indiana Convention Center.

My SI.com colleague Don Banks and I stepped out for a 45-minute Steak-and-Shake double steakburger in the middle of the Accorsi-athon, and when we returned, it was Groundhog Day. He was standing in precisely the same place he had been when we left. We think he might have shifted his feet.

From hither and yon, and ever farther, come a variety of queries.

IT'S A CHESS MATCH WITH DREW HENSON. From Bill Pritchett of St. Louis: "I read that if the Texans don't sign Drew Henson, then he goes back in the draft. My question is, do you think teams will play a little hardball with Houston GM Charley Casserly and try to get him to take less, because of the risk of Henson going back in the draft and not getting anything for him?''

Good question. They will. But because several rival GMs really would like to have Henson, providing the money is not outlandish, one of these teams will give Casserly the compensation he's looking for -- namely, a second-round pick in either this year's draft or next.

THE BUCS NEED A GAMEBREAKER. From Matt of Tallahassee, Fla.: "Other than offensive line, isn't the Bucs' most glaring need an impact skill-position player? I know that Keenan McCardell had a Pro Bowl year as a possession receiver, but wouldn't a great kick returner/deep threat be the difference maker for an aging, but still very good defensive team?''

Matt, the Bucs could use a Steve Smith-type, no question. But I'll make the point I made in my last column here again: The Patriots have won two of the last three Super Bowls with the least-scary set of skill players since the Giants won a championship 13 years ago. An impact guy would would be nice to have, but is certainly not essential. If I'm Jon Gruden, I'm starting to try to reinforce the aging defense first.

A VOTE FOR NOTE DAME. From Andrew of New York City: "What did you and your daughter think of your visit to Notre Dame? As an alum I can say with no bias that all of the facilites there are top-notch and the educational experience will be second to none. In addition, no need to worry about Starbucks. There is one on campus in what is referred to as 'The Huddle.'"

	MAILBAG Peter King will answer your questions each week in Monday Morning Quarterback: Tuesday Edition. Your name: Your e-mail address: Your home town: Enter your question:

I found the Starbucks a couple of hours after writing there wasn't one, so my apologies there. Notre Dame is fabulous. Mary Beth liked it too. But there is no white puff of smoke coming from her chimney yet. The thing I liked about being on that campus is the feel of the place. Seemed like every other kid had a Notre Dame hat, or Rudy jacket, or sweatshirt. A lot of people were smiling. I'm no pollster, but that appears to be a sign that people like it there. And this might seem like a little thing, but I didn't think so: There were scores of unlocked bikes outside classroom buildings and dorms. Our thanks to Meghan Donaldson, daughter of Providence Journal sportswriter Jim, for being the best campus host we could have found, by the way.

GOOD QUESTION. From Karl Henrichs of Merrill, Wis.: "It is not very often that a safety makes the Hall of Fame. Which of these impact safeties of the 1990s has a legit chance to make the Hall someday -- Darren Woodson, Eugene Robinson, Merton Hanks, Leroy Butler or Carnell Lake?"

Interesting to ponder. I'm dubious any of them will make it, but my first choice would be Lake, then Butler. Lake was such a great and athletic player that he could play safety and corner at high levels, which I hope will be an asset for him when he is considered.

HE DOESN'T LIKE MR. CLARETT. From Fred Brennan of Nashua, N.H.: "Has there ever been more written about a player likely to have less impact on the playing field than Maurice Clarett?''

No.

1. I think these are my quick-hit NFL thoughts, a week from the start of free agency:

a. I'd bet that, deep down, the Patriots would like to trade two of their four draft picks (all among the top 64) up to get in position to pick Oregon State running back Steven Jackson, who, at 6-3 and 240, is a good blocker with good hands and has the ability to run inside and outside. "I can play all three downs,'' Jackson said. "I think I'm the most complete back in the draft.'' I'll tell you this: We're going to enjoy watching Jackson play. Twenty-two touchdowns and playing for two head coaches with NFL head-coaching experience (Mike Riley and Dennis Erickson in college) are two pretty good signs that the kid's going to be an impact player very soon.

b. I can't see the Giants passing on Iowa tackle Robert Gallery with the fourth pick in the first round. Why wouldn't they take a 6-7, 325-pound left tackle who runs a sub-five-second 40 and who has the character and the work ethic to be their left tackle for the next 10 years?

c. The Titans are really worried about losing wideout Justin McCareins in restricted free agency. They'll likely put a first-round tender of $1.368 million on him, then if he gets an offer decide if they want to match it. If not, they'd receive that team's first-round pick in return.

d. Ground Control to Major Reid: Sign McCareins. Donovan McNabb needs him. You're not going to get a better player at the end of the first round than McCareins, believe me.

e. Kellen Winslow Jr. sure seemed edgy, or unhappy to be there, or mad at the press, or something, when he stopped by the media room at the Combine Saturday morning. Why the mope?

f. Free-agent cornerback Troy Vincent. Carolina Panthers. Match made in heaven.

g. I wonder what the next meeting between Bill Parcells and Al Davis, long-time friends, will be like. There are those in Raider Nation who think Parcells talked Sean Payton out of taking the Oakland head-coaching job, which reportedly did not please Al. But I have it on good authority that Parcells did NOT talk Payton out of the Raiders job. Payton thought himself out of it.

h. What I like about the A.J. Feeley trade from Philly to Miami is it gives the Dolphins an efficient, mistake-free quarterback with a decent upside. The Dolphins lost out on Brunell, then Ramsey. In the NFL landscape, there's no question that the next-best option was Feeley. I like him. Tough, cool, great teammate. Then there's the Heather Mitts factor. Your girlfriend will fit in just fine in South Beach, A.J.

i. What I don't like about the Feeley deal is that it leaves Miami with one draft choice among the first 64 picks in each of the next two drafts. (The Dolphins gave their 2004 second-rounder to New England for a third-round selections last year that turned into lineman Wade Smith. The Feeley compensation is a 2005 second-rounder.) So Miami has a first-round pick this year and next, and no twos. By contrast, the team Miami's chasing, New England, has two ones and two twos in 2004 alone.

2. I think the Chargers are pretty solidly on the fence about their No. 1 overall pick, but here's my guess: They'll trade down to the middle or lower part of the first round and get multiple picks in exchange for the first choice. This comes from a gut feeling I got here from San Diego GM A.J. Smith, who didn't seem married to any player or pick, and from the fact that the Chargers have asked the agent for North Carolina State quarterback Philip Rivers if Rivers would be amenable to a plane-full of Chargers coaches and execs flying to Raleigh for a personal workout and get-to-know-you session.

3. I think this was the smartest, brightest, most respectful crop of kids I ever remember encountering at a single Combine. So many prospects -- from Larry Fitzgerald to Lee Evans to Ben Hartsock to Eli Manning to Roethlisberger to Jackson -- were impressive as people. 

4. I think Tennessee will let Jevon Kearse -- who was sackless in his final seven games last year -- test the free market. I sure would. Kearse is going to want big bucks ($10-12 million, at least) to sign, and how can you give a guy with questionable durability and production that kind of money, particularly when you're a franchise that is $16 million over the cap entering the free-agency season?

5. I think Marvin Lewis had better know what he's doing. Lewis is going to give the Bengals' starting quarterback job to Carson Palmer any day now. I always thought the quarterback gig was about performance. And Jon Kitna got the Bengals from two wins in 2002 to eight last year. Kitna was the league's ninth-rated QB last year. Now, I understand that Palmer's a swell guy; he and Kitna, in fact, are pals and even went out together Saturday night. I understand Palmer's arm puts Kitna's to shame. I'm not calling this a patently bad decision. But I've seen a lot of good deep throwers in my life, and I've seen a lot of very good quarterbacks who didn't have as strong an arm. Kitna deserved to be beaten out on the field, not in the offseason. I heard one Bengals operative say here that, well, they're paying Palmer all this money, and you can't have a backup quarterback making all those millions and not playing.

MEMO TO BENGALDOM: The only way to run your business is to play the best players, regardless of how much money they're making. Their logic reminds me of what Bobby Beathard told me when the Chargers threw Ryan Leaf into the lineup before he was ready in 1998. They had to play him, Beathard said; he's making all that money. Pshaw. But let me also say that if Palmer is the 63 percent passer the Bengals think he's going to be, the move will work. Here's a look at how Kitna's numbers in 2003 compare to those of two-time Super Bowl MVP Tom Brady's:

6. I think I like Sean Taylor, the Miami safety, to go to Washington with the fifth overall pick. Great, athletic player. Not as big a sledgehammer as Dallas' Roy Williams, but close in every other way.

7. I think the most amazing thing that happened at the Combine happened to poor Isaac Hilton, a defensive line prospect from Hampton Institute. Waiting in line to weigh in the other day, Hilton had, shall we say, a urinary tract malfunction. (Not to be confused with a wardrobe malfunction.) While he scurried away to find a fresh pair of dry shorts, the piddle puddle was dried. I guess you get pretty nervous at the Scouting Combine.

8. I think the Bills are still my leaders in the clubhouse in the Drew Henson derby. "The trade isn't going to be the problem,'' said Cleveland coach Butch Davis. "Negotiating the contract will be.'' Well, Tom Donahoe is pretty good at such things.

9. I think these are my non-football thoughts of the week:

a. Bob Costas said on WFAN radio in New York Monday morning that if he'd been commissioner of baseball, he'd have vetoed the A-Rod-to-the-Yankees deal. "It's not in the best interests of baseball,'' Costas said. "Unless you think of the rest of baseball as the Washington Generals ... all this does is compound the already overwhelming advantage the Yankees have. They're just bludgeoning everybody.''

b. Montclair (N.J.) High Mock Trial Note of the Week: The Mounties copped the Essex County Mock Trial title Friday night in Newark, beating Seton Hall Prep. Seeded low in the county's eight-team finals bracket because of a close loss to Montclair Kimberly Academy in the tournament's first round, MHS rebounded by beating MKA and defending county titlist Livingston to make the finals. "We took the best hits Essex County had to offer,'' said Montclair High team coach George Burroughs. "We had to go through MKA, then the defending champ, then a very good Seton Hall Prep team, and we beat them all. I think the best team in the tournament won.'' I love how when it comes right down to it, Mock Trial is a sports event. Now onto the regionals, beginning Wednesday.

c. Coffeenerdness: I believe I'm now a caramel macchiato guy. Venti, with three shots. It has more of an espresso bite, and combined with the caramel topping, it's a little better sugar fix.

d. I won't miss Sex and the City, but I feel for the women in my life, who are going to be hurting for a while without it.

10. I think, regardless what you hear out of the Rams in the coming days and weeks, they will trade Kurt Warner. The party's over for the Warners in Ramsville.

Last Tuesday afternoon, my daughter Mary Beth and I were preparing to fly from South Bend, Ind., to Cincinnati on a Delta Connection flight. We planned to continue on to Newark from there, and then drive home. We got to the airport at 2:45 p.m. for the 4 p.m. flight. At about 3:25, Mary Beth said she was going to get yogurt pretzels. "Hurry back," I told her. Well, she tarried, and finally, at 3:40, I told the agent to page her, which he did, and then told the guy I was running to find her. I found her. We sprinted back, went through security, and arrived at the gate at 3:46. "Flight's closed," the gate agent announced. Rather than explain anything -- you have to board within 15 minutes of flight time or you risk surrendering your seat -- his co-agent commenced putting us on the next flight. The 4 p.m. plane would have put us on the ground in Newark at 7:40; the next flight wouldn't get us there until 12:30 a.m. Mary Beth begged for them to open the door. The two guys said nothing. Stone cold. The second agent just continued typing furiously. I saw how unresponsive they were and knew we were cooked. I knew the flight was full, and there were two standbys, or more, and figured he'd just given away our seats at 3:45 on the nose, even with me running to get Mary Beth.

We'd gotten to bed at 3:30 Monday morning because of a two-hour, 48-minute Delta Connection delay in Cincinnati Sunday night, then Mary Beth stayed with two students in a dorm at Notre Dame Monday night, and heaven knows how much sleep was had that night. She was fried. Anyway, I finally spoke up and said, basically, that you guys saw me run to get her, and the South Bend airport is no bigger than a postage stamp, and, really, you knew I'd be right back, and you gave away the two seats to standbys anyway? "Sir, if you don't want seats on the next flight, you can take your business elsewhere," Idiot No. 2 said. I simmered. He printed out the tickets for the later flight, handed them to me, and the biggest two aviation numbskills in Indiana history walked outside to close up the commuter flight.

An older fellow who was in the waiting area for another flight then walked up to the counter and proceeded to start screaming at my Delta foes, who stopped in their tracks. "What you just did is the worst thing I've ever seen done by an airline!'' Mr. Neutral Onlooker yelled. "I will never fly Delta again! I will tell people I know never to fly Delta again! You ought to be ashamed of yourselves!'' To which Idiot number 2 replied: "Would you like us to call security?" He didn't have to. A female security agent came over and asked what the problem was, and Mary Beth told her how evil the two clowns behind the counter were. At this point, the two agents walked outside, and then the first guy stood behind the plate-glass door and made faces at us -- raised eyebrows and phony smiles, head moving smugly from side to side -- and announced loudly and mockingly, in a sing-song way: "Good-bye! Good-bye! Enjoy your flights!''

The later flight began its taxi to the runway at 3:55. Western civilization was saved. Gold stars to all involved! You were five minutes early!

You know, when you fly a lot, as I do, you need to have thick skin. Things happen. I waited out a five-hour delay in Orlando last summer because the crew didn't show up. I didn't make a peep. Things happen. But 99 percent of the the time, you're treated with some kind of common decency, even in the longest of delays. And here are two uncommunicative, unresponsive, totally unprofessional slugs, who can't spend 10 seconds explaining what happened but who can threaten to call security and mock our anger. All they had to do, even one of them, was to explain exactly what happened, which they never did, and say they're sorry, but rules are rules, and we had to be there at 3:45, and we weren't. I would have been angry, but not volcanic. Things happen, but in 24 years of flying for my job, I've never been treated like this, and I will not accept being treated like this.

The only thing you can do in a case like this is to not fly the airline. And so my little protest will be just that, a little protest. But it will be real. For the next year, until Feb. 23, 2005, I will not fly Delta. My guess is that will cost them maybe $5,000 in business. If Mary Beth goes to college in a town serviced by Delta, she will not fly the airline for one year either. I'm sure Delta will get a chuckle out of this protest. My only hope is the airline disciplines the two numbskulls -- I just wish I'd gotten their names, but Delta can figure out easily enough who they are -- for costing the company a few G's.

Sports Illustrated senior writer Peter King covers the NFL beat for the magazine and is a regular contributor to SI.com. Monday Morning Quarterback appears in this space every week.