Redskins vs. Bengals - Studs and Duds

This may be sounding a bit redundant, but the Redskins did not look good "yet again" this preseason, this time against a team head coach Jay Gruden is very familiar with - the Cincinnati Bengals.

The Redskins came out flat offensively (yet again), and mistakes and missed opportunities pretty much ruled all of the first half. There were some bright spots, especially how the team rallied to put points on the board in the second quarter, but costly penalties and mental mistakes "yet again" hurt the offense.

Below are my Studs and Duds of the Redskins game against the Bengals.

Studs:

Rob Kelley - Kelly made the most of his opportunities on a day where the offensive line was not clicking, gaining 57 yards on 10 carries, and scoring a touchdown. He ran hard and gained the tough yards when they were just not there. He added a reception for three yards.

Jamison Crowder - Although he did drop a pass (who didn't) Crowder looked sharp against a solid Bengals defense, making an excellent catch on a slant, and showing good open field moves on a WR screen.

Bashaud Breeland - I thought Breeland played well Sunday afternoon. He was solid in coverage, and showed good run support and excellent tackling when he arrived.

Martrell Spaight - Spaight was a human wrecking ball on Sunday. He was all over the field, and was credited with a team high 9 tackles. He also looked good dropping into coverage and making plays on the ball. On one played, he timed an A-gap blitz perfectly, and destroyed the back for a big loss.

A.J. Francis/Joey Mbu - It's unlikely that both men make the 53-man roster, but each showed they can play in this league against the Bengals. Francis generated more pass pressure, while Mbu was sound in the run game. Both players looked quick, showed great effort, and played with an attitude inside. Francis recovered a fumble on a botched handoff by Mixon in the first quarter.

Josh Holsey - Holsey made his case to make the Redskins 53-man roster with a solid showing on Sunday. He had some solid plays in coverage, and recorded a sack when he was sent on a blitz off the edge.

Duds:

Kirk Cousins - I know his offensive line played very poorly, and I know his receivers dropped a bunch of catchable passes, but overall, Cousins was late with his reads, inaccurate with some of his passes, and had an inexcusable pick six on what was just an awful read and throw. He needs to pick his game up a notch after yet another poor preseason.

Trent Williams - Our All-Pro left tackle played like he was a rookie on Sunday. He was beaten multiple times off the edge by rookie pass rusher Carl Lawson, and was called for a hold on what would have been another sack. Hie run blocking was below average.

Brandon Scherff - Scherff has not looked good in his limited action this preseason, and that trend continued on Sunday against the Bengals. He was overpowered on several run plays to his side, and looked bad in pass protection, once giving up immediate pressure up the gut forcing an intentional grounding call on Cousins.

Vinston Painter - If there was a linemen who looked worse than the two previously mentioned, it was Vinston Painter. Playing with the second unit at right tackle, Painter was responsible for multiple pressures, one resulting in a strip-sack of McCoy, and a costly holding penalty down by the goalline. His chances of sticking on this roster grown smaller by the day.

Terrelle Pryor - Pryor continues to be plagued by the drops, letting two more slip through his hands on Sunday. He did make a great catch on a DIG route in the second quarter, but the drops have negated his positive plays so far.

Josh Norman - This may be getting a tad picky here, but Norman struggled early against A.J. Green, and missed a few tackles on the day.

Notes:

- Overall, I thought rookie center Chase Roullier did a nice job filling in for the injured Spencer Long at center. He showed the ability to get outside and find a man to block on Thompson's screen pass, and picked up a few blitzes by the Bengals front 7. Solid performance by the rookie.

- We finally saw Jordan Reed in action today, and overall, he looked like the same mismatch threat we expect.

- Junior Galette played significant time against the Bengals and looked fast and explosive. He generated a few pressures, and was seen chasing down plays all over the field.

- Although I didn't list Moses and Lauvao in my Duds category, they easily could have been. Both players were driven back on a few plays, and overall, looked incredibly rusty on the afternoon.

- I thought the tandem of Foster and Brown looked good against the Bengals first team offense. I believe the coaches got it right with these two as our starters.

- Hopkins has looked pretty good this preseason on his field goal attempts. Hopefully that carries over into the regular season.