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Snap Judgments: Week 2- Redskins vs. Jaguars - DEFENSE

Looking beyond the box score to see how the Redskins utilized their defensive players in Week 2

Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

Describe your emotions during the Jacksonville game in one word. GO....

I'll take: Stunned. Everything was a blur from Griffin's injury until the beginning of the 3rd quarter.

"I can't believe this is happening to him again." "Are we really scoring at will?" "Not DeSean, too!" "Is this the Redskins defense, like.... THE Washington Redskins defense???"

The dust has settled a bit for everyone but Chad Henne, who still has Ryan Kerrigan in his nightmares. The Jaguars are the Jaguars but a DOMINATING performance against any NFL team is tough to come by.

So, take it in while you can, fellow Redskins fans: The Washington Redskins are the #1 statistical defense in the NFL. They lead the league in sacks with Kerrigan (and his Shawn Michaels pose) sitting atop the sacks leaderboard as well.  Watching lineman collapse the pocket, linebackers fly all over the field, and defensive backs actually cover receivers, was a sight for sore eyes in Washington. With Robert Griffin III sidelined for roughly 2 months, don't be surprised if the inspired play of this defense continues beyond Houston and Jacksonville.

Here's the snap counts for the defense against the Jaguars:

***Disclaimer: This is my own count. Plays aborted by pre-snap penalties are not included while plays with accepted in-play penalties ARE INCLUDED.

Defense took 50 snaps against them

40 snaps resulted in passes

10 snaps resulted in rushes

Down Number of Snaps
1st 19
2nd 17
3rd 13
4th 1
  • The Redskins forced the Jags into 13 3rd-downs out of 19 sets of downs. That means 68% of possessions resulted in 3rd-down attempts. That number is up from the already impressive 65% against Houston in Week 1.
  • More impressive is that 10 of the 13 3rd-downs were of distances 7 yards or more.
  • 6 of the Redskins' 10 sacks came on 3rd-down.
  • The Jags converted on only 3/13 (23%) of their 3rd-downs.
Personnel Packages

Package Number of Snaps
Base 3-4 27
Nickel 'Psycho' 1-5-5 16
Nickel 2-4-5 7

  • Haslett brought the heat! The Redskins rushed 5 or more defenders on 25 of the 40 pass snaps.
  • 4 of the Redskins' 10 sacks came via a 4-man rush.
  • The defense more than doubled its usage of the 'Psycho' formation from 7 to 16 snaps from Week 1 to Week 2.
  • The 'Psycho' packaged was utilized on all but one of the Redskins 3rd-down defensive formations.
  • Like in Week 1, Jason Hatcher was the lone defensive lineman, Trent Murphy was the roaming LB, and EJ Biggers was the slot CB in all but one of the 16 'Psycho' formations (Frank Kearse replaced Hatcher in garbage time).
  • From the two week sample size, it's safe to expect Murphy and Biggers in the game on 2nd-and-long and 3rd-and-4 or more.
Defensive Snaps

Snap Percentage Snaps Name
100% 50 Perry Riley, DeAngelo Hall, David Amerson
96% 48 Keenan Robinson
92% 46 Ryan Clark, Ryan Kerrigan
88% 44 Brian Orakpo
62% 31 Jason Hatcher
56% 28 Chris Baker
54% 27 Trent Murphy
50% 25 Jarvis Jenkins
48% 24 Trenton Robinson
46% 23 E.J. Biggers
38% 19 Bacarri Rambo
32% 16 Frank Kearse
20% 10 Clifton Geathers
14% 7 Bashaud Breeland
8% 4 Duke Ihenacho
4% 2 Will Compton

Player Notes
  • The now free agent safety, Bacarri Rambo did not receive a single defensive snap in the second half. He was benched for Trenton Robinson at halftime after his coverage gaffe on the Marcedes Lewis touchdown. He did, however, play on the kick coverage unit. "Tell me something I don't know, right?"
  • Trent Murphy saw the largest increase in snaps from Week 1 (33%) to Week 2 (54%).
  • Murphy rushed the passer on EVERY SINGLE pass play he was in on (23/27 plays resulting in passes).
  • Duke Ihenacho replaced Ryan Clark and Will Compton replaced Keenan Robinson on the last drive of the game.
  • Bashaud Breeland played the exact same number of snaps in Week 2 as he did in Week 1 (7). Again, he was used as a spell-DB for Rambo/Robinson in low pass probability downs. Biggers is the slot CB of choice in long distances.
  • Baker played in 23 snaps at nose tackle. Baker is the primary replacement for Barry Cofield at nose tackle, however, Jason Hatcher and Frank Kearse played 3 and 5 snaps at the nose, respectively.
Here are the special teams snaps (if you care):


  • Main takeaway, Roy Helu Jr. was replaced by Gabe Miller on the punt protection/coverage unit after his whiff against Houston.
  • The hands team was on to field an onside kick late in the game, so don't be alarmed by seeing Pierre Garcon on this list.
  • One of these days we'll break down the different ST units for your viewing pleasure.
My Two Favorite Stats
  • The Jaguars' first play in Redskins territory came with under 10 minutes left in the 4th quarter!
  • Frank Kearse has more sacks than....the Atlanta Falcons!