The Washington Redskins have been battling the injury bug on both sides of the ball but on defense, in particular, it has been critical. The injuries there have especially affected the way defensive coordinator Joe Barry has been able to rotate the guys in and out of his packages (based on down-and-distance or game situations). This is important because, not only does this keep his guys fresh, it gives the opposition different looks. Despite the issues that this unit has had however, there have been signs of real improvement since the season opener.
With some versatility in the secondary, Barry loves to mix up the coverages. Depending on whom they may be facing at quarterback or whatever game situation they are facing, the secondary can play man-to-man or many different types of zone coverage. The DC had CBs Chris Culliver, DeAngelo Hall and Bashaud Breeland back for this most recent game; healthy and in the rotation, and it made a huge difference against the New Orleans Saints.
The Redskins were able to play different types of zone coverage, many times shading a guy over the top of the No. 1 pass-catcher in some of the Saints’ different wide receiver sets. As well, some of the defensive backs were finally able to move back to their natural positions where they are most comfortable.
Here are some key areas in which the defense has made strides:
Stopping the Run – Washington’s defense has struggled most of the season in this area, allowing over 700+ yards in the past five weeks. This week it allowed 158 yards on the ground but this has to be viewed in the proper context… the numbers are skewed due to a long 70-yard run by New Orleans running back Mark Ingram and this one play really drove up the stats. After that play, the Redskins only allowed 32 yards of rushing in the rest of the first half. In the second half they would only allow 56 yards. Removing that single long run by Ingram would show them holding the Saints rushing attack to 88 yards total.
This improvement became possible by eliminating the things that were a thorn in the side of this defense earlier in the game: bad tackling and miscues. On that first Saints’ drive, it was missed tackles and guys being out of position due to over-pursuing that caused Washington’s struggles on that quick score.
Reducing Points Scored – Going into the game against New Orleans, Washington’s defense was allowing 20+ points per game. While it did give up 14 quick points to the Saints, these points were put on the board in two quick 80-yard drives. But this really isn’t a huge deal in the big scheme of things. The Saints did not sniff the end zone again for the rest of the game. The Redskins defensive players knew they had to play up to their potential and were benefiting from having their full complement of players healthy for a change.
Middle linebacker Perry Riley, Jr. is one of the guys who had been battling nagging injuries. He came into the game maligned for bad play but changed all that with a big interception to stop a Saints drive in the fourth quarter.
“I mean, the two touchdowns we gave them were just busted plays,” Riley said about the adjustments the squad made after the early 14 points were given up. “They got 80 yards on both plays. We just stayed together, you know what I mean? We knew they were busted plays. We were going to get over it and we could overcome it. The offense was doing good. We just didn’t panic. We stayed together and we executed the game plan down the stretch.”
Getting Turnovers – Everyone knows how important the turnover ratio is. Whether by forced fumble or interception, these miscues by an opponent give an offense an extra opportunity to, not only get the ball back and score, but to control the pace of the game. Most NFL fans have heard the saying that “the best defense is a good offense” but, when a defense produces points on turnovers, that’s the icing on the cake.
Washington’s defense was able to capture the ball via turnovers twice against the Saints. Once with an interception by safety Dashon Goldson — who played his position to perfection on that play, attacking the ball and taking it to pay dirt with the help of some nice blocks from his teammates. And the other; the aforementioned Riley interception… he got in on that party as well with his late game turnover.
Goldson was asked by reporters about his pick-six.
“Well, it was a good play,” he said. “It was a good play-call by our coach. [It was] good pass rush by our defensive lineman… credit goes out to them getting pressure on the quarterback. He saw a pass. He threw it. It was kind of a bad throw — I mean it was a little high. The deflection on the pass came on the receiver’s end. I came up with it and took it to the house.”
This is the first time in weeks that the Redskins defense has been healthy… not only healthy for the game itself but, as importantly, they were healthy in the prior week’s practices and preparations. Having everyone participating in practice helps make the unit sharper. It gives the young guys on the team that needed chemistry so that guys know what to expect from each other.
It was evident that this squad had its swagger back and was living up to the nickname” Capital Punishment.”
“I think they made their minds up to make some big plays,” Head Coach Jay Gruden said, “they really did. They had a big stop on a third-and-one or fourth-and-one to start the third quarter. I think that was a huge play — a lot of momentum swings there. And then they made the interception for a touchdown and they had some big stops there in the second half. So, it’s a matter of them stepping up. Like I said, the pass rush was solid enough where it made [Saints QB] Drew [Brees] a little bit uncomfortable, then guys made some plays. We were fortunate with a couple. I think they dropped one on third down and they dropped another we got for the pick. It’s good to see our guys flying around the ball making some big plays.”
That determination and hard-nose-rock-‘em-sock-‘em style of gritty football will need to be on full display as they take on another team that likes to get physical… the 9-0 Cam Newton-led Carolina Panthers.