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This past Thursday night was another prime time game for the Washington Redskins as they were hosted by their division rival New York Giants. After a dominating win against the St. Louis Rams the previous week that showed a Redskins squad with a new attitude and seriously physical approach to the game, everyone was eager to see if the Redskins could show the world that they are a team that should be considered a real threat to lead the NFC east division.
The “wear-you-down-knock-’em-upside-the-head” bullies that they were last week was nowhere to be found Thursday night. The game got off to a rough start.
The Redskins’ first offensive series of the game was clever, designed to catch the Giants’ defense off guard and get them thinking more about the weapons on the outside than the running game… which has been dominant through the first two games.
A pass interference call on tight end Jordan Reed would be the beginning of miscues and mistakes that continued to snowball out of control. Many have decided that Redskins’ fourth-year quarterback Kirk Cousins was the main cause of the lackluster offensive performance. Cousins was 30-of-49 for 316 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.
The former Michigan State signal-caller definitely wasn’t as sharp as he was in his Week 2 match up against the Rams. He made some huge third-down throws on Thursday night but his poor decision making reared its ugly head once again. Cousins’ old habits of not slowing down to make the smart play when necessary — even if it meant throwing the ball away and living to fight another day — resurfaced.
He also missed some throws to wide-open receivers that could have potentially been for touchdowns. Cousins had what would looked to be an easy touchdown to receiver Pierre Garçon but, because of an under thrown ball, it was batted down by Giants cornerback Prince Amukamara. The Redskins would have to settle for a Dustin Hopkins field goal.
But should this loss be put on the back of the Redskins quarterback?
The answer is absolutely, positively, unequivocally “NO!”
The Redskins’ offensive line did not seem to be firing on all cylinders. Poor execution and their inability to push around the defensive front of the Giants at the point of attack really stifled the running game for Washington. After producing 150+ yards on the ground in Weeks 1 and 2, the Redskins were only able to gain 88 yards total rushing and only rushed the ball 20 times against the G-Men.
Washington played from behind the whole game but it seems as if Head Coach Jay Gruden & Co. abandoned the running game a little more quickly than they should have. For the most part the Redskins were in striking distance going in to the locker room at the half, only down by nine points. When a team passes the ball nearly 50 times and only has 20 running attempts, its offense is clearly out of balance and becomes really easy to predict. If Cousins had hit a higher amount of those deeper throws, perhaps the defense would have backed off and given them easier running lanes.
Despite the lopsided score, the Redskins offense only allowed one sack.
If Washington’s special teams would be consistently special instead of habitually less-than-average — like allowing big plays such as the punt block by the Giants which ended up as a safety — there might be more hope. The only bright spot on special teams was the two incredible onside kicks delivered by Hopkins and the 101-yard kick return for a touchdown delivered by speedster and wide out Rashad Ross.
The Capital Punishment crew, led by defensive coordinator Joe Barry, is certainly from the Nation’s Capital but it didn’t deliver any punishment. The defensive front of the Redskins didn’t have the tenacious attack anticipated by fans. The line appeared to be in slow motion, unable to shed blocks and push the Giants offensive line in to the face of Eli Manning.
For some strange reason the Redskins secondary was playing softer than the Pillsbury Doughboy, allowing Giants quarterback Eli Manning to find his targets. As a matter of fact, Washington’s defense was able to keep the game in reach only by allowing the one touchdown and two field goals by New York in the first half. But Manning put on a surgical passing clinic going 23-of-32 for 279 yards, two touchdowns and a QBR of 199.1.
Once again, the Redskins defense was unable to force any turnovers and special teams was unable to flip the field position for the offense. To make matters worse, the offense could not stop shooting themselves in the foot by killing drives with penalties and miscues.
One thing must be remembered… this is a young team that is learning how to come together and overcome adversity. Cousins is in just his second year in Gruden’s offense but it’s his first year preparing and working as the team’s starter. This loss was not just on one player by any means. This was a complete breakdown in all three phases of the game and a complete dud by the Redskins coaching staff.
The good news is that it’s only the third week of a young season in the National Football League and, having played their Thursday night game, Washington has this mini bye week to gather their composure, circle the wagons and get refocused for their next division opponent, the Philadelphia Eagles.
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