In the NFL, bye weeks can simply be a time of rest and healing for a team or, in the case of the Washington Redskins, it can become a milestone. The latter half of their season has become a series of “must-win” games, each more important than the previous.
After the bye week – which came after a discouraging home loss to the Carolina Panthers – Washington came out swinging. Led by rookie quarterback sensation, Robert Griffin, III, the team has worked themselves into serious playoff contention and is why every game now must be won.
That the Redskins came out of the bye more focused and energized should not be a surprise to anyone. Griffin had already delivered more than anyone thought was possible this season, putting up numbers that have wowed even the most skeptical of analysts. He said after that Carolina loss, “I promise you I’ll come back and I’ll be a better quarterback the second half of the season for us, for this team, and prayerfully everybody else comes back with the same mindset.”
He wasn’t joking. Even as good as RGIII’s pre-bye statistics were, he was nearly perfect in the first game after the break against the Philadelphia Eagles, completing 14 of 15 passes for 200 yards and four touchdowns. His quarterback rating of 93.3 was the second-best in the NFL this season.
And it just keeps getting better. Since the team’s “vacation,” the offense has been explosive, special teams have improved with kicker Kai Forbath remaining perfect in his field goal attempts (although he needs to work on his kick offs) and the return game has improved (rookie cornerback Richard Crawford set up the game winning field goal last week in overtime against the Baltimore Ravens with a 64-yard punt return). The most impressive improvement is, that even without extraordinary talent, the defense has stopped good teams (they held the Baltimore Ravens’ to seven points in the second half of that win last week, plus an additional stop in overtime) so that the offense has been able to win games.
At 3-6 before the bye, there was no thought of the playoffs, much less an actual post-season run. At the time, it was more about head coach Mike Shanahan being in the hot seat than thoughts of playing much after the New Year (remember the famous “evaluation” speech?).
But things have changed and the very real possibility exists that the Redskins could still be playing come the first or second weekend in January of next year.
So, just how important is it for Washington to win this game against the Cleveland Browns? Could they still get to the post-season with a loss in what some have called a trap game?
After injuring the LCL in his right knee, Griffin will not play today. Fellow rookie Kirk Cousins, who played very well last week against the Ravens and, in fact, scored the two-point conversion that took the game into overtime, will be under center. This makes sense for the long-term but it certainly will lessen the likelihood of a win against a hot Browns team. But the Redskins are a hot team as well, winning all four of their games since the bye. They have not done this since the 2008 playoff run which, ironically, was done when back-up quarterback Todd Collins stepped in for starter Jason Campbell after an injury to the latter.
This game is part of an historical season for this franchise and winning it would not only launch the Redskins further into the playoff hunt, it would result in more statistics to add to a record-breaking season for the franchise.
Washington can win this game without Griffin. While Cousins will not be asked to do the same things Griffin does in the option game, offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan should not change his play-calling a lot for this game. If their defense can hold the Browns to punts or, at the very least, just field goals, it will give Cousins –- making his first NFL start – time to settle down and get into a rhythm with the offense. And actually, having never seen Cousins for any great length of time in the regular season, only the coaches and his teammates know what he can really do. Both have a lot of confidence in the Michigan State graduate. And Cousins has said that he not only learned a lot from the short time he played in October against the Atlanta Falcons when his teammate was out with a concussion, he also said he has learned a lot just from watching Griffin play.
One of the most important factors in this game is Kyle Shanahan’s confidence in Cousins and the game he calls for him. He obviously thinks the guy can win.
“But Kirk will come in and sling it around,” the coordinator said on Thursday. “He reads defenses and lets it go. He hasn’t had a lot of reps in practice or the NFL. I think there were a few things in the Atlanta game that if he kept doing it, he’s going to let it go when he sees something. He doesn’t sit there and hesitate. But when that does happen, like a couple times in the Atlanta game, he made a couple mistakes. I know he learned from them and hopefully if he does get more reps this week, he’ll be better.”
This game is important for so many reasons but one of them is more about intangibles than statistics or game play. While winning it adds another number to the “Win” column in the standings, a victory without Griffin on the field would take off some of the pressure for him to carry the team down the road. It would mean that each squad on this team: offense, defense and special teams; are successfully contributing. This combination is the pretty much the only way the team can compete in the post-season anyway.
The Eagles and Dallas Cowboys are on the schedule after the Browns. These are obviously incredibly important games. Were the Redskins to “win out” and get themselves either a NFC East Division win or wildcard berth in the playoffs, they are going to be playing the best of the best in the league. The only way to advance is by playing complete games and executing in every phase. It happened in the second half of the win against the Ravens and a few times earlier in the season in increments.
Let’s see if the team can rally when their star quarterback is hurt and really show that they are the good team that many in RedskinsNation think they are. If they are, the learning that has gone on this season will have this team looking like the recurrent playoff contenders they were back in the glory days.
Hail.
Diane Chesebrough is Chief Editor, writer and photographer for SportsJourney Broadcast Network. Accredited media with the NFL, she has been a feature writer for several national magazines/periodicals. Follower her on Twitter: @DiChesebrough