Dwayne Haskins shows leadership in win over Philadelphia

The Washington Football team looked like two different teams today in an impressive Week 1 win over the Philadelphia Eagles.

Washington was flat in the first quarter and a portion of the second quarter. Trailing at halftime, Washington came out and looked like a much more confident and relaxed team. They completely outplayed and shut down the Eagles offense making Carson Wentz look uncomfortable for most of the day.

After the game, the big news was what Washington quarterback Dwayne Haskins said, specifically at halftime, that got his team together for their impressive second half?

“He just basically got everyone riled up,” said defensive back Fabian Moreau. “Like a leader, he stepped up and gave a speech… he helped us.”

Speeches are supposed to be one of head coach Ron Rivera’s strong suits, but the coach was getting an IV to make sure he wasn’t dehydrated and could not address the team before leaving the locker room for the second half. Haskins took the opportunity to step up to the microphone, literally.

“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 worked. Washington continued its scoring streak, adding 20 unanswered points to its column to win its first NFC East game in more than two years.

“Apparently, Dwayne stepped up, and it was a pretty ruckus one from what I understand.” That was the way Rivera described it. The head coach said the halftime IV was planned before the game, more a preventative measure than anything else, but he was pleased his quarterback took ownership of the situation.

Haskins’s final stats will not jump out in the box score. He finished 17 of 31 for 178 yards and one touchdown. Most importantly, however, he did not throw an interception. The day’s collective star was the defense that racked up eight sacks, two interceptions, two big 4th down stops, and two short fields that lead to touchdowns.

While the second-year quarterback didn’t have to carry his team, he did what was necessary to win.

“For me, it was find a way to win,” he said. “They found a way to win last year. And this is our house.”