The Washington Football Team came into Sunday’s NFL season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles with more questions regarding the team than answers.
Washington dealt with a tumultuous offseason that saw wholesale changes within the front office, retiring their longtime nickname, and scathing accusations of sexual misconduct at the highest team management levels.
Yesterday, the team and product on the field walked out of FedEx Field, having answered some questions about the team’s direction under new coach Ron Rivera.
It didn’t look good at the beginning. As underdogs, Washington looked the part of dysfunction in the first quarter. Nothing they tried to accomplish seemed to work against the Eagles on both sides of the ball. There was little resistance against Philadelphia, who looked inspired in building their lead.
Washington gained momentum on Eagles turnovers and ultimately outplayed Philaldephia the full second half.
In securing a refreshing Week 1 victory over a divisional foe, what did we learn about the Washington Football Team?
Here are three things that stood out in the 27-17 win to start the 2020 campaign:
1. Washington’s Coaching Staff Made Adjustments
During the glory years for the Washington Football Team, one of their coaching staff’s staples led by Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs was making adjustments, especially at halftime.
Over the past decade, whoever was coaching Washington seemed to miss the uncanny ability to make changes on the fly when needed.
Yesterday, albeit it’s just one game, was a breath of fresh air for fans because changes were made in the second quarter and in the second half that propelled Washington to smother anything the Eagles threw at them.
Love the up-tempo offense by Scott Turner. Philadelphia's defense is absolutely gassed. These are the second half adjustments everyone has been waiting for a long time. Del Rio has made some on defense as well.
— Lake Lewis Jr (@LakeLewis) September 13, 2020
After the game, while Zooming with team media, Rivera said that changes happened once his coaching staff settled in from rust of not having opportunities to coach in games with his new team.
“I know early on we struggled, we tried to force a couple of things, and I think we were reaching, and I will be honest, I thought Scotty [Offensive Coordinator – Scott Turner] was reaching,” Rivera said. “He and I had a little conversation over the headset real quick, and then he settled in, and he called a heck of a game.
“Again, we are all rusty at this because we really haven’t had the opportunity to work on it,” Rivera expounded. “And Jack [Defensive Coordinator – Jack Del Rio] will probably tell you early on he was rusty too. But man, he got into a rhythm, our guys got into a rhythm, and I thought they called a heck of a football game —all three of them.”
2. Washington’s Defense has “Special” Potential
There is no secret that Washington’s defensive unit has been expected to be one of the NFL’s best over the past two seasons. The team has invested heavily in their defense via the draft and through free agency.
Last year a talented group played nothing like what was thought to be potentially a dominant side of the ball, and it led to a few player trades and a new coordinator in Del Rio.
This offseason, the team drafted defensive star Chase Young out of Ohio State. With the rookie’s addition to a unit full of expectations, all eyes would be on the group to see if they could finally excel.
Against the Eagles, Washington’s defense started poorly. They were out of position and played without energy for the full first quarter. Despite their poor play and trailing by 17-points early on, they still had amassed four sacks.
The flood gates opened after a Fabian Moreau interception that was followed up by a Jimmy Morland pick.
From that point on, Washington’s defense played downhill and sacked Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz eight times and forced two fumbles.
The unit showed the potential to be great and now has something definitive to build off.
3. QB Dwayne Haskins is Showing Leadership
Last year, Dwayne Haskins had to endure waiting for his opportunity to be the team’s signal-caller. He wasn’t the choice of then-coach Jay Gruden, and as things would play out, not even that of some team supporters once he started to play.
This offseason, Haskins lost weight and improved his stock with the team and new coaching staff so much that he was named a team captain.
Against the Eagles, Haskins started slow, but what he did at halftime shows his maturation as a team leader.
Rivera said he was getting an IV at halftime and that Dwayne Haskins stood up and addressed the team. He mentioned he was proud of the 2nd year QB for stepping up and giving a pretty good halftime speech.
— Lake Lewis Jr (@LakeLewis) September 13, 2020
Trailing 17-7 at the half, Haskins rallied his teammates in the locker room with a speech that several of his teammates mentioned after the game was emotional, compassionate, and showed his leadership qualities.
Haskins mentioned to media via Zoom after the game that some of what he said was about how last year in the teams’ Week 1 loss to the Eagles they were ahead.
“Last year we were up 17-0..at their place,” Haskins said. “We thought we had them. They came back in the second half and basically demolished us.” We’re the home team, so there’s no reason for us to be the little bro to them in a sense.”
The speech helped awaken an offensive unit that would look different in the second half with adjustments.
On the day, Haskins numbers didn’t jump off of the stat sheet. He was 17 of 31 for 178 yards and a touchdown. He rushed for 17 yards on seven carries. More importantly, however, he didn’t commit a turnover, which is always a bonus.
Haskins’s second-half performance should make supporters feel good about the trajectory of the second-year player.
GOOD READ as always. Enjoy all the ariticles. They are factual, unbiased, and professionally done. Big fan of this site and the writers.
4. They should have easily gave up after falling behind 17-0. They didn’t.