It's a part of the job of being a NFL quarterback. That's what Mark Brunell said of the increased scrutiny of his performance in recent weeks.

While he accepts the scrutiny, he prefers to stay upbeat and focused on improving his play.

"I am really confident in the scheme," Brunell said. "We have been good at times. We have done some good things with this scheme. It's proven. I don't believe it is out of date. There's a lot there and if we just execute, we will make some plays."

Head coach Joe Gibbs said Brunell is probably shouldering too much of the blame when the offense struggles.

"Every quarterback, particularly anyone who makes it through to this level, gets a lot of credit but also takes too much blame," Gibbs said. "I would say anyone who gets to this level and isn't ready for that probably doesn't belong playing quarterback. Mark expects it, and I know I expect it as a coach. I'm going to get criticized. That's a part of what I do--and rightly so, probably.

"You win, and things go well. You lose, and you're going to expect to take some heat."