The Redskins managed to hold on to a victory, and their playoff chances, in Philly on Sunday afternoon. The game was a nail-biter, and came down to the final minutes, only to end when Ryan Kerrigan, who had come so close to sacking Carson Wentz on numerous occasions during the afternoon, came up with the game's biggest play with just seconds left in regulation. Kerrigan beat the right tackle off the edge, and finally got to Wentz, causing a fumble that was recovered by the Redskins to end the scoring threat by the Eagles.
It was far from a pretty victory, but in a December division game in a hostile environment on the road, Gruden and company will surely take it. With three games left in the regular season(all must-wins), the Redskins need to focus on getting healthy, as Sunday saw some more key players leave with injuries.
Below are my studs and duds of the game.
Studs:
DeSean Jackson - Jackson again tourched his old team, catching an 80 yard deep touchdown on a beautiful over-the-shoulder grab. He had 3 receptions for 102 yards and a touchdown on the afternoon.
Pierre Garçon - Garçon continues to produce for this offense. He lead all receivers in receptions with 5, and hauled in a beautiful fade route for a touchdown. It looks like the veteran has discovered the Fountain of Youth.
Fat Rob - What a pleasure it is to watch this rookie run. This kid funds with patience, power, determination and speed. He scored a touchdown on the ground, and chipped in with two nice receptions in the passing game. Matt Jones should never get his job back here in DC. Fat Rob is the present and future.
Chris Thompson - Thompson does all the small things well. He returns kicks, showed heart picking up blitzes, runs with authority, and despite no offensive targets today, is a threat out of the backfield. Today, he made a HUGE play on a 25 yard sweep he took to the house to score what would be the team's game winning touchdown.
Ryan Kerrigan - Kerrigan applied pressure all day long, but it was his sack that forced a fumble which Trent Murphy recovered in the final seconds in the fourth quarter, that finally iced the game.
Josh Norman - Norman was lights-out in coverage today; his best play coming on a slant he broke up in the endzone that was a would-be touchdown. He also chipped in with a huge tackle on a botched field goal attempt. This guy is worth the money!
Ricky Jean-Francois - RJF played well today, notching a few tackles for loss or no gain at key points in the game, and also applying pressure up the gut on Wentz. You may be surprised to see his name on the list, but the bar on the defensive line has been set very low, and RJF exceeded it today.
Duds:
Bashaud Breeland - Breeland was just awful in coverage against the rookie Wentz, and his pedestrian receivers. He gave up multiple big plays, and an easy touchdown to Sproles in the back corner of the endzone. His nightmare season continues.
Quinton Dunbar - We all complained for weeks about rookie Kendal Fuller, but it's clear that Dunbar is no better. The pass interference call in the first was bad, and he continued to let receivers make plays against him in coverage throughout the game.
Dustin Hopkins - Hopkins miss in the first quarter could have came back to haunt this team. Luckily for him, Kerrigan's sack/fumble saved his ass. He's already responsible for two losses on the season. He better watch his back in this cut-throat league.
Joe Barry - We got absolutely destroyed by the Eagles tight ends today in coverage. It probably didn't help that Cravens went out early with a biceps injury, but still, when you are paid to study film, and come up with ways to defend a team's strengths, and your scheme fails to do so....you get the blame!
Stud/Dud:
Deshazor Everett - I love the aggression, but two personal foul penalties really hurt this team. On the flip side, his interception in the endzone was HUGE!