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Monday Night Football, a must win football game, all burgundy uniforms. Yup, I know what you are thinking - recipe for disaster.
For once, the Washington Football Team said enough is enough and slowly began the process of changing the narrative in a 17-15 victory over the Seattle Seahawks. In many regards, it could be argued that tonight's performance was the team's best performance of the year. It was crazy at times with some freak plays, the referees got involved and tried their hardest to sink us, we played without a kicker, but when you really step back and look at it, the 17-15 score line is really deceiving. We mopped the floor with the Seahawks tonight. Now sitting at 5-6, the Burgundy and Gold are in sole possession of the 7th and final playoff spot in the NFC. At Halloween, it was inconceivable to think of this as a possibility, but the team is playing their best football of the season and is really hitting their stride. Can we maintain this level down the stretch and maintain our playoff spot? Time will tell. In the meantime, let's get right to our studs, duds, and hat tips.
Studs:
1. Taylor Heinicke: the stat line for the night was one of efficiency - 27 of 35, 223 passing yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT. I thought Heinicke did a nice job throughout the evening of simply taking what was there and not forcing the issue. In what was utter domination for Washington in terms of time of possession, Heinicke did a nice job, especially late in the game, of extending drives with some key passes and keeping the clock moving. The touchdown pass to McKissic in the first half was a good example of such - just dump it off when nothing is there and let your skill guys do the rest of the work. He did the same thing on several occasions in our 8-plus minute drive in the 4th quarter that should have sealed the game. He hit Logan Thomas on a short pass on a key 2nd and 9 that he then converted into 12 yards and a first down. A bit later, on 3rd and 12 with 3:38 to play, throwing the dump off to McKissic set us up for a makeable 4th down where Heinicke then connected with DeAndre Carter on a nice 15 yard pass. As well, #4 did a better job this week of not taking sacks and used his feet in a few instances to get out of trouble. All in all, he was better than Russell Wilson, who has long been regarded as one of the top signal callers in the NFL. Nothing really stood out - he was just efficient and executed what was asked of him in a critical late November game.
2. Antonio Gibson: on the night, Gibson accumulated 29 carries, 111 yards, and 1 rushing TD. As well, he contributed a bit in the pass game with 35 total yards on 7 receptions. Let us not forget what was arguably his biggest play of the night, the successful two-point convert which proved to be the difference on the scoreboard. All in all, it was the type of performance and stat line that you associated with pass successes in Redskins football - have your RB carry the load and wear down the opponent more and more as the game goes on. I thought Gibson ran with some of the best burst, power, and vision we have seen from him all season long. I have personally always felt that #24 held the keys to success for this offense in 2021. We are beginning to see just how efficient we can be as a unit when he becomes our centerpiece. The one blemish on his night was going out of bounds on the late 3rd and goal with just over 2 minutes to play in the ball game. It preserved roughly 30 seconds of time for Seattle prior to the 2 minute warning. Ironically, Seattle scored with just over 20 seconds left in the ball game to pull within 2 points. Thankfully it didn't affect the outcome in the end, but Antonio Gibson still seems to be having a brain fart or lack of concentration type play every week.
3. JD McKissic: can we just start calling him JD "Electrissic?" Every single game, no matter how many touches he gets, he finds a way to add juice and electricity to what this offense is doing. Two 10 yard touchdowns on the night made for a pretty good day at the office for JD. He is a fun player to watch when he gets the ball in his hands and just surges forward with speed and burst. He has quickly made his claim as potentially the best free agency acquisition in the Ron Rivera era thus far. I certainly hope there is mutual interest to maintain a relationship into the future between JD and the organization. We need to find a way to keep this guy in burgundy and gold. He is one of those glue type pieces that does all the little things, which every successful team needs to win.
4. Kam Curl: in November and December last year, Kam Curl was making impact play after impact play for this defense. The same seems to be happening this November. He has really amped up his play to another level and the defense on a whole is benefitting from it. He notched 4 tackles and a key sack on Russell Wilson last night. After the game, Logan Thomas started touting Kam as potentially being one of the top five safeties in the NFL. If he maintains this level of play, in due time, that might very well come to fruition.
5. Landon Collins: the coaching staff has finally bit the bullet and put this guy in a role where he can succeed, and much like what we are seeing with Kam Curl's play, it is taking the defense to a whole new level. Collins was really active all over the field last night, notching 5 tackles. His most important play of the night was the forced fumble/turnover on Alex Collins. Prior to that play, it was 7-3 Seattle, they had just intercepted Heinicke, Wilson had just hit Tyler Lockett on a long 39 yard reception, and the Seahawks were banging on the door near midfield. You felt like a score there by the Seahawks could have changed the look of this game. Thankfully, Collins delivered in a spot when we needed it most and the offense followed by doing exactly what it needed to - converting the turnover into 7 points on the next drive. It really was a game changer.
6. Shaka Toney: it was a pretty tall order asking this kid to give a bit of a contribution in the absence of Sweat and Young against one of the better QBs in football. Regardless, Toney delivered and had his best game as a pro. He got home and sacked Wilson once and made an absolutely amazing hustle play to catch Russ on another occasions where he appeared to be on the verge of taking off and making a big play with his feet. His continued development can be huge for our defense in the coming weeks and even into next season. Let's hope we keep hearing his name called for good reasons.
7. Kendall Fuller: we were used to hearing Kendall Fuller's name called repeatedly in September and October for all the wrong reasons. His struggles in terms of coverage were massive and it seemed like he had fallen off the face of the earth. He has slowly but surely played better and it culminated last night with his best performance of the season. Fuller appeared to be matched up against DK Metcalf all night long and he shut him down completely all night long as well. Metcalf had one reception for 13 yards and 4 targets on the evening. He appeared visibly frustrated and Kendall Fuller likely played a large role in that. Fuller's huge stop on the Seattle two-point convert sealed the victory for Washington and it was only fitting that he was defender who made the difference on that play. He was our best player of the evening.
Duds:
1. Referees: we saw atrocious officiating in the Dallas-Vegas Thanksgiving matchup and that trend seemed to continue in spots las night. I thought the referees missed a defenseless receiver call on the Logan Thomas interception play. As well, the overturned TD to Thomas was nonsense. The call on the field was a touchdown. There is no way anybody can tell me that there was enough evidence to overturn that catch. Maybe I was wearing burgundy coloured glasses, but I thought we got hosed. I think John Mara was in the official's ear while he reviewed the play. On a positive note, we aren't going to be talking about how the officials' decisions lost us the game for once. We overcame adversity and that is huge in terms of this team's development and maturity.
Hat Tips:
1. Scott Turner: he called a nice game again last night for my liking. I felt we did exactly what we needed to in order to win. Keep Wilson on the sideline, control the clock, and put yourself in makeable 3rd down situations. I mean, we were outgaining Seattle by 190 yards of offense prior to their final possession of the night. We had 371 total yards compared to their 267. We ran for 152 yards compared to their 34. We had 27 first downs compared to their 10. Most importantly, Turner committed to doing what every other opponent of Seattle has successfully done this year - keep their defense on the field. The time of possession battle was lopsided in our favour (41:40 to 18:20).
2. Ron Rivera: the blocked extra point, playing without a kicker, the overturned Logan Thomas touchdown, the late drive to almost tie the game by Wilson on a night where he otherwise was doing nothing - this game had the feel of one that would somehow slip through our hands. Give credit to Rivera for instilling what seems to be a mentally tough attitude into our players. They rose to the occasion in a primetime game at home and that shows how he is helping this young group of players grow in maturity. That is all we can ask for at this stage in the team's development.
3. Tress Way: I thought he did an admirable job of handling kickoffs last night. It could have gone a lot worse. They were all kept in bounds and Seattle did not start any drive on which he kicked off beyond their own 30 yard line.
4. Defensive Line: led by Allen and Payne, these guys played like bullies last night. The line just seems to be a cohesive unit right now. They are playing disciplined football, executing their assignments, and the defense as a whole is getting rewarded because of it. People left these guys for dead without Young and Sweat, but instead, we seem to ironically be playing a better brand of football in their absence. Go figure.
That's it for this week. I am tired and emotionally exhausted after almost experiencing my heart give out during last night's game, but am very thankful that we find ourselves currently in the #7 seed in the NFC!
Do you agree/disagree with this week's list? Who did we miss?
Keep throwing stones.
For once, the Washington Football Team said enough is enough and slowly began the process of changing the narrative in a 17-15 victory over the Seattle Seahawks. In many regards, it could be argued that tonight's performance was the team's best performance of the year. It was crazy at times with some freak plays, the referees got involved and tried their hardest to sink us, we played without a kicker, but when you really step back and look at it, the 17-15 score line is really deceiving. We mopped the floor with the Seahawks tonight. Now sitting at 5-6, the Burgundy and Gold are in sole possession of the 7th and final playoff spot in the NFC. At Halloween, it was inconceivable to think of this as a possibility, but the team is playing their best football of the season and is really hitting their stride. Can we maintain this level down the stretch and maintain our playoff spot? Time will tell. In the meantime, let's get right to our studs, duds, and hat tips.
Studs:
1. Taylor Heinicke: the stat line for the night was one of efficiency - 27 of 35, 223 passing yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT. I thought Heinicke did a nice job throughout the evening of simply taking what was there and not forcing the issue. In what was utter domination for Washington in terms of time of possession, Heinicke did a nice job, especially late in the game, of extending drives with some key passes and keeping the clock moving. The touchdown pass to McKissic in the first half was a good example of such - just dump it off when nothing is there and let your skill guys do the rest of the work. He did the same thing on several occasions in our 8-plus minute drive in the 4th quarter that should have sealed the game. He hit Logan Thomas on a short pass on a key 2nd and 9 that he then converted into 12 yards and a first down. A bit later, on 3rd and 12 with 3:38 to play, throwing the dump off to McKissic set us up for a makeable 4th down where Heinicke then connected with DeAndre Carter on a nice 15 yard pass. As well, #4 did a better job this week of not taking sacks and used his feet in a few instances to get out of trouble. All in all, he was better than Russell Wilson, who has long been regarded as one of the top signal callers in the NFL. Nothing really stood out - he was just efficient and executed what was asked of him in a critical late November game.
2. Antonio Gibson: on the night, Gibson accumulated 29 carries, 111 yards, and 1 rushing TD. As well, he contributed a bit in the pass game with 35 total yards on 7 receptions. Let us not forget what was arguably his biggest play of the night, the successful two-point convert which proved to be the difference on the scoreboard. All in all, it was the type of performance and stat line that you associated with pass successes in Redskins football - have your RB carry the load and wear down the opponent more and more as the game goes on. I thought Gibson ran with some of the best burst, power, and vision we have seen from him all season long. I have personally always felt that #24 held the keys to success for this offense in 2021. We are beginning to see just how efficient we can be as a unit when he becomes our centerpiece. The one blemish on his night was going out of bounds on the late 3rd and goal with just over 2 minutes to play in the ball game. It preserved roughly 30 seconds of time for Seattle prior to the 2 minute warning. Ironically, Seattle scored with just over 20 seconds left in the ball game to pull within 2 points. Thankfully it didn't affect the outcome in the end, but Antonio Gibson still seems to be having a brain fart or lack of concentration type play every week.
3. JD McKissic: can we just start calling him JD "Electrissic?" Every single game, no matter how many touches he gets, he finds a way to add juice and electricity to what this offense is doing. Two 10 yard touchdowns on the night made for a pretty good day at the office for JD. He is a fun player to watch when he gets the ball in his hands and just surges forward with speed and burst. He has quickly made his claim as potentially the best free agency acquisition in the Ron Rivera era thus far. I certainly hope there is mutual interest to maintain a relationship into the future between JD and the organization. We need to find a way to keep this guy in burgundy and gold. He is one of those glue type pieces that does all the little things, which every successful team needs to win.
4. Kam Curl: in November and December last year, Kam Curl was making impact play after impact play for this defense. The same seems to be happening this November. He has really amped up his play to another level and the defense on a whole is benefitting from it. He notched 4 tackles and a key sack on Russell Wilson last night. After the game, Logan Thomas started touting Kam as potentially being one of the top five safeties in the NFL. If he maintains this level of play, in due time, that might very well come to fruition.
5. Landon Collins: the coaching staff has finally bit the bullet and put this guy in a role where he can succeed, and much like what we are seeing with Kam Curl's play, it is taking the defense to a whole new level. Collins was really active all over the field last night, notching 5 tackles. His most important play of the night was the forced fumble/turnover on Alex Collins. Prior to that play, it was 7-3 Seattle, they had just intercepted Heinicke, Wilson had just hit Tyler Lockett on a long 39 yard reception, and the Seahawks were banging on the door near midfield. You felt like a score there by the Seahawks could have changed the look of this game. Thankfully, Collins delivered in a spot when we needed it most and the offense followed by doing exactly what it needed to - converting the turnover into 7 points on the next drive. It really was a game changer.
6. Shaka Toney: it was a pretty tall order asking this kid to give a bit of a contribution in the absence of Sweat and Young against one of the better QBs in football. Regardless, Toney delivered and had his best game as a pro. He got home and sacked Wilson once and made an absolutely amazing hustle play to catch Russ on another occasions where he appeared to be on the verge of taking off and making a big play with his feet. His continued development can be huge for our defense in the coming weeks and even into next season. Let's hope we keep hearing his name called for good reasons.
7. Kendall Fuller: we were used to hearing Kendall Fuller's name called repeatedly in September and October for all the wrong reasons. His struggles in terms of coverage were massive and it seemed like he had fallen off the face of the earth. He has slowly but surely played better and it culminated last night with his best performance of the season. Fuller appeared to be matched up against DK Metcalf all night long and he shut him down completely all night long as well. Metcalf had one reception for 13 yards and 4 targets on the evening. He appeared visibly frustrated and Kendall Fuller likely played a large role in that. Fuller's huge stop on the Seattle two-point convert sealed the victory for Washington and it was only fitting that he was defender who made the difference on that play. He was our best player of the evening.
Duds:
1. Referees: we saw atrocious officiating in the Dallas-Vegas Thanksgiving matchup and that trend seemed to continue in spots las night. I thought the referees missed a defenseless receiver call on the Logan Thomas interception play. As well, the overturned TD to Thomas was nonsense. The call on the field was a touchdown. There is no way anybody can tell me that there was enough evidence to overturn that catch. Maybe I was wearing burgundy coloured glasses, but I thought we got hosed. I think John Mara was in the official's ear while he reviewed the play. On a positive note, we aren't going to be talking about how the officials' decisions lost us the game for once. We overcame adversity and that is huge in terms of this team's development and maturity.
Hat Tips:
1. Scott Turner: he called a nice game again last night for my liking. I felt we did exactly what we needed to in order to win. Keep Wilson on the sideline, control the clock, and put yourself in makeable 3rd down situations. I mean, we were outgaining Seattle by 190 yards of offense prior to their final possession of the night. We had 371 total yards compared to their 267. We ran for 152 yards compared to their 34. We had 27 first downs compared to their 10. Most importantly, Turner committed to doing what every other opponent of Seattle has successfully done this year - keep their defense on the field. The time of possession battle was lopsided in our favour (41:40 to 18:20).
2. Ron Rivera: the blocked extra point, playing without a kicker, the overturned Logan Thomas touchdown, the late drive to almost tie the game by Wilson on a night where he otherwise was doing nothing - this game had the feel of one that would somehow slip through our hands. Give credit to Rivera for instilling what seems to be a mentally tough attitude into our players. They rose to the occasion in a primetime game at home and that shows how he is helping this young group of players grow in maturity. That is all we can ask for at this stage in the team's development.
3. Tress Way: I thought he did an admirable job of handling kickoffs last night. It could have gone a lot worse. They were all kept in bounds and Seattle did not start any drive on which he kicked off beyond their own 30 yard line.
4. Defensive Line: led by Allen and Payne, these guys played like bullies last night. The line just seems to be a cohesive unit right now. They are playing disciplined football, executing their assignments, and the defense as a whole is getting rewarded because of it. People left these guys for dead without Young and Sweat, but instead, we seem to ironically be playing a better brand of football in their absence. Go figure.
That's it for this week. I am tired and emotionally exhausted after almost experiencing my heart give out during last night's game, but am very thankful that we find ourselves currently in the #7 seed in the NFC!
Do you agree/disagree with this week's list? Who did we miss?
Keep throwing stones.
