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Snaps- Gruden utilized 33 of his 43 offensive players over the course of 64 snaps. Nine of the 11 offensive starters played in the game, with Trent Williams and Jamison Crowder being the two exceptions.
Starter Results- Alex Smith and the other offensive starters who suited up, played for just one drive and 10 snaps. They did, however, move the ball 71 yards down the field (56 yards of offense), pick up 4 first downs and score 3 points on that lone series.
The Jets’ defensive starters played for 3 drives and 23 snaps. The Redskins’ first and second stringers combined to gain 147 yards (6.68 yards per play), record 8 first downs and score 3 points against New York’s top-line defenders on those snaps.
Penalties- The offense was responsible for four of the team’s five accepted penalties and 25 of their 32 penalty yards. All four penalties were committed on different drives, and the offense scored just 3 points on those series.
3rd Down- The Redskins converted just three first downs and posted a third-down conversion rate below 30% for the second straight week. This time around they went 3-for-11 (27.3%) on the money down. Three is also the number of times that the quarterback was sacked (2) or the offense committed a penalty (1) on third down.
McCoy was responsible for two of the conversions and Smith picked up the other one; Kevin Hogan didn’t convert on a single third down.
Red Zone- The Skins failed to reach the paint on any of their four trips to the red zone and instead had to settle for field goals on each drive. Washington was clearly the better team, and this would have been reflected on the scoreboard if the offense had been more successful in the red area. Instead, they had to settle for a last-second field goal in order to pull off the 2-point victory.
Rushing- The Redskins gained 97 yards on their 24 rushes, which gave them an average of 4.04 yards per carry. The team would’ve topped 100 yards on the ground for the second consecutive week if they had not lost 7 yards on a failed wide receiver reverse.
What they did actually do for the second straight week was to only move the chain four times in the rushing game. Only four of their rushes gained 5 or more yards, while they lost or failed to gain any yardage on six occasions. Finally, you can’t totally discount the team’s two rushes of 30-plus yards, but it should be acknowledged that they were only able to muster a total of 31 yards on their other 22 rushes (1.41 YPC).
QUARTERBACKS
Quarterbacks (3 Players) | ||
Player (* - starter) | Snaps | Snap % |
Colt McCoy | 29 | 45% |
Kevin Hogan | 25 | 39% |
Alex Smith * | 10 | 16% |
Alex Smith- Alex Smith finally made his debut as a Redskin on Thursday night. As usual, Smith avoided mistakes (no interceptions, sacks or penalties) and showcased his brand of solid, if unspectacular, football on his lone drive of the game (10 snaps).
He completed 4 of his 6 pass attempts (66.7%) for 48 yards (8.0 Y/A) and 3 first downs; the Skins starters’ other first down on the drive was the result of a roughing the passer penalty committed against Smith. Smith’s passer rating would’ve jumped from 91.0 all the way up to 142.4 had he and Trey Quinn been able to sync up for a touchdown on the final play of the drive.
Washington’s newest signal caller also went 2-for-2 on play action passes and passes thrown under pressure. He completed one of the two passes that he threw 10 or more yards in the air.
Colt McCoy- It was yet another productive preseason outing for Colt McCoy, who went 12-for-16 (75%), threw for 140 yards (8.75 Y/A) and picked up 7 first downs on those passes (43.8% first down rate).
McCoy’s numbers would’ve been even better if two of his attempts had not been dropped; his interception was a direct result of one of those drops. He was also sacked once, but only lost a yard on the play, and the Redskins were still able to hit a field goal on the very next play.
In what amounts to roughly a regular season games worth of work (65 snaps and 34 attempts) between Washington’s two preseason games, McCoy has posted the following line: 329 passing yards, 15 first downs, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception, 73.5% completion percentage, 9.7 yards per attempt and a 110.0 passer rating.
Kevin Hogan- Relative to what he showed against the Patriots, Kevin Hogan made something of a leap forward in this game, although that’s not saying much considering how poorly he played last week.
After not picking up a single first down or finding success of any kind on a single play in the preseason opener, he actually picked up 3 first-downs (2 passing and 1 rushing) over the course of his 25 snaps of action in this contest. However, it should be noted that all three of those chain movers came on the final drive of the game. Hogan’s efforts on that drive were instrumental in setting up the team’s game-winning 40-yard field goal. Per the telecast, this was his first game-winning drive since he led Stanford to a late win over Notre Dame in 2015. Per Rich Tandler, outside of that series, Hogan has only been able to lead the Redskins’ offense to 89 net yards of offense in his nine other preseason drives combined.
Hogan finished the night with 58 yards on 11 passing attempts and 7 completions (5.27 Y/A and 63.6% completion rate). He was sacked once for 0 yards and gained 5 rushing yards on a scramble; his other rush (13 yards) was negated by a holding penalty.
The most distressing thing about Hogan’s performance is that he put up these pedestrian numbers, despite not being pressured on any of his 13 dropbacks.
Again, Kevin Hogan showed some improvement in this game, but he will need to do a lot more than this if he wants to get back in striking range of earning a spot on the final 53.
WIDE RECEIVERS
Wide Receivers (11 Players) | ||
Player (* - starter) | Snaps | Snap % |
Trey Quinn | 33 | 52% |
Simmie Cobbs | 29 | 45% |
Cam Sims | 25 | 39% |
Brian Quick | 24 | 38% |
Shay Fields | 21 | 33% |
Darvin Kidsy | 19 | 30% |
Josh Doctson * | 14 | 22% |
Paul Richardson * | 10 | 16% |
Jamison Crowder | DNP | N/A |
Maurice Harris | DNP | N/A |
Dan Williams | DNP | N/A |
Josh Doctson- The former first-round pick played on all 10 snaps with the starters and on the following four-play series with Colt McCoy and the second string. Doctson corralled a third-down pass from Alex Smith for a gain of 11 yards on his only target. This will be a make-or-break season for the 25, going on 26-year-old wideout.
Paul Richardson- Richardson also played every snap with Alex Smith and the starters, but unlike Doctson, he exited the game after that. He was used in a variety of different alignments, including out of the backfield on the first play, when he caught the first pass of the game for a gain of 9 yards.
The Redskins made Richardson the sixth highest paid player on the team this past offseason ($8M APY). That is a lot of money for a player with just one 1,000-yard season in his entire football career (high school, college and the NFL). P-Rich will need to reward this faith in him if the Redskins’ offense is going to take a major step forward this year.
Cam Sims- Cam Sims led the team in receiving yards (57), yards from scrimmage (57), first downs (3) and yards per route run (3.35) for the second straight week. Sims’ final catch of the night was a 20-yarder which set the team up to make the game-winning field goal as time expired. In addition to all of that, he caught a spectacular 8-yard touchdown in the back of the end zone, but it was negated by an illegal formation penalty. His 87.6 PFF grade ranked first among all offensive players on the team with more than five snaps played.
It wasn’t all roses for Sims, though. He failed to haul in a would-be back-shoulder touchdown pass and dropped a pass that ended up bouncing off his chest into the waiting arms of Jets safety Doug Middleton, who would return the pick 39 yards from the New York 7 almost out to midfield.
Cam Sims currently ranks fourth in total preseason receiving yards (131 yards) and leads all players with at least five targets in yards per route run (5.46). He ranks second among all backs and receivers with at least five targets in PFF grade (92.1). It’s getting harder and harder to imagine Sims not making the final roster.
Brian Quick- If Sims does make the team, then that would likely leave veteran Brian Quick on the outside looking in. Quick played 24 snaps, but only caught one ball for a 13-yard first down. It was an easy catch for Quick, who caught the ball two yards behind the lin eof scrimmage on a rollout play.
Quick does not bring much as a special teamer (105 ST snaps and 3 ST tackles in his career) and he’s only caught 35 passes for 348 yards in his last 25 total contests (preseason and regular season). This gives him averages of 1.4 receptions and 13.9 receiving yards per game in that span. He will likely need to produce in the final two preseason games if he wants to stick around for another season.
Trey Quinn- After being limited to just 11 snaps last week due to an injury, Trey Quinn tied for most snaps by a Washington skill-position player in the game (33 snaps). He was out there for 50% of snaps taken by Alex Smith and the starting offense (5-of-10 snaps).
Quinn caught 3 of his 4 targets for 36 yards and 2 first downs, but it was the catch he didn’t make that stood out. He was unable to bring in what would have been a 4-yard TD toss from Alex Smith on the final offensive play of the opening drive.
Simmie Cobbs- The big-bodied (6’3” and 220 lbs.) rookie out of Indiana caught both of his targets for a total of 14 yards and 1 first down. Jay Gruden also dialed up a wide receiver reverse for Cobbs, who promptly lost 7 yards on the rush. Cobbs is only averaging 0.57 yards per route run, the third worst figure on the team. I expected a bit more from a player who has a 1,000-yard season in the Big Ten on his resume.
Shay Fields- Shay Fields played 21 snaps but wasn’t targeted until the final minute of the contest, when he was thrown to on back-to-back plays. Fields couldn’t bring in the first pass, but caught the second one for a gain of 5 yards. Unfortunately, that was essentially the only contribution he’s made this preseason. Fields’ lowly 0.22 yards-per-route-run average ranks dead last on the team.
Darvin Kidsy- Kidsy took 19 snaps with the offense and caught one of his three targets for 21 yards. That reception came on the first play of the Redskins’ game-winning-drive. He also operated as the primary return man on two of the team’s three kickoff returns.
Allenzae Staggers- The UDFA out of Southern Miss was just signed to the roster. He tallied 107 receptions for 1,636 yards and 12 touchdowns during his two-year stint as a member of the Golden Eagles. Before that, he amassed 66 receptions for 875 yards and 11 scores at junior college.
Jamison Crowder- Crowder was one of the few Washington starters who did not suit up for this game. He is currently battling a groin injury.
Maurice Harris- Moe Harris sat this one out because of an ankle injury. I suppose his exploits in this past week’s practices against the Jets will have to do.
Dan Williams- When the Redskins placed Robert Davis on injured reserve this past Monday, they signed Dan Williams in a corresponding move. The 6’3” 200-pounder out of Jacksonville State did not sniff the field on Thursday and figures to be nothing more than camp fodder.
TIGHT ENDS
Tight Ends (6 Players) | ||
Player (* - starter) | Snaps | Snap % |
Matt Flanagan | 33 | 52% |
Jeremy Sprinkle * | 25 | 39% |
Vernon Davis * | 8 | 12% |
Garrett Hudson | 8 | 12% |
J.P. Holtz | 5 | 8% |
Jordan Reed | DNP | N/A |
Vernon Davis- The Redskins’ oldest player suited up for the first time in what will be his 14th NFL season. Davis played on 8 of the 10 snaps taken by Alex Smith and the rest of the offensive starters. He caught his only target of the night for a 16-yard first down. Fellow freak tight end, Travis Kelce, is the only player who has caught more passes from Alex Smith than Vernon Davis has.
Jeremy Sprinkle- Sprinkle started alongside Davis and took 7 of his 25 snaps with the first-team offense. He was not targeted on any of his 12 passing snaps and was used as a run blocker on the vast majority of his other plays.
Matt Flanagan- Matt Flanagan led the tight end corps with 33 snaps played against the Jets. He caught one of his two targets for 5 yards and dropped the other one. Flanagan’s 40.0 PFF grade ranked second worst among the 33 players who took offensive snaps for the Redskins in this game.
Garrett Hudson- The rookie tight end only played 8 snaps on Thursday night. He was not targeted in the game and has yet to have a ball thrown his way this preseason. Hudson spent five of his eight snaps against the Jets as a run blocker.
J.P. Holtz- This was the first appearance with the team for the third-year tight end from Pittsburgh. Holtz only played five offensive snaps, but he made the most out of his limited opportunity. He made the key block on Samaje Perine’s 30-yard rush and earned the highest PFF grade among Washington offensive players in the game (89.5). He was used as a blocker in the running game on all five of his snaps.
Jordan Reed- Reed has played in Week 3 of the preseason every year since 2015. He also hasn’t played in any other week of the preseason in that span, so I guess, why change things now? In case you’re wondering, Reed averaged 30 snaps played a 41% snap rate across those three games.
RUNNING BACKS
Running Backs (6 Players) | ||
Player (* - starter) | Snaps | Snap % |
Kapri Bibbs | 35 | 55% |
Robert Kelley * | 12 | 19% |
Martez Carter | 11 | 17% |
Byron Marshall | 5 | 8% |
Samaje Perine | 1 | 2% |
Chris Thompson | DNP | N/A |
Robert Kelley- Rob Kelley was your starting running back for the second straight week, and he was on the field for 9 of the 10 snaps taken by the first-team offense. Kelley took his final 3 snaps of the night with Colt McCoy and the other backups.
Once again, his production left a lot to be desired, as he gained just 17 yards on his 7 carries (2.4 YPC). He did not move the chains once as a rusher and only one of his seven rushes was considered successful. His longest gain of the night was 4 yards, which is just a yard shy of his 2018 preseason long of 5 yards.
Here’s Kelley’s rushing numbers through two weeks of preseason action: 11 carries, 23 yards, 2.1 YPC, 1 first down, 9.1% first-down rate, 0 touchdowns, 2 successful rushes, 18.2% success rate.
This isn’t a new problem, either. In his 10 total appearances last season (7 regular season and 3 preseason), Kelley rushed for more than 30 yards and/or averaged better than 3.30 yards per carry just twice, and one of those games came in the preseason. The soon-to-be 26-year-old has gained 100 or more yards from scrimmage just once in his entire NFL career and twice in college.
He was at least able to save a little face on Thursday night by taking an Alex Smith pass for a 13-yard first down (the 10th receiving first down of his career). That reception set the Redskins up in the red zone.
Samaje Perine- Samaje Perine came in and smashed Rob Kelley’s entire preseason rushing total on his first carry of the game. Perine was given a big hole to run through and he made the most of it by gaining 30 yards on the rush, which ended up being tied for the second longest play of the game. The run was tied for the longest play of Perine’s career.
Unfortunately, that was also Samaje Perine’s only carry of the night, as he twisted his ankle at the end of the run. The injury will likely sideline him for the rest of the preseason.
Byron Marshall- The injury bug plagued the Redskins’ running back corps yet again, as Byron Marshall also suffered sprained ankle. His injury occurred on just his second offensive touch (third touch overall) of the game. He is expected to miss about twice as much time as Perine is (2 to 4 weeks).
Marshall only gained a single yard on his two rushes, which gives him a total of just 3 yards on 4 preseason carries. Like with Kelley, this is a recurring problem for the third-year receiving back out of Oregon. Marshall has only gained more than 42 rushing yards once in his NFL career (56 yards in Week 4 of the 2017 preseason) and the longest run of his entire pro career went for just 12 yards.
He took one snap with the starters and was not targeted on the night.
At this point, Marshall, who looked like a roster lock last week, could easily lose his spot to Kapri Bibbs.
Kapri Bibbs- Bibbs played more snaps in this game than the rest of the running backs on the team did combined (35 to 29), which marks the second consecutive week that he led the RB corps in snaps.
After impressing as a runner against the Patriots, he only gained 6 yards on his 5 rushes this week; however, two of those runs were successful and one picked up a first down. He broke a pair of tackles in the running game, as well.
Bibbs did most of his damage through the air. He caught 7 of his 8 targets against the Jets on Thursday night. Both of those numbers are preseason highs for a Redskins player, and the reception total actually more than doubles the next highest mark (3 receptions). He gained 47 yards on those catches, with 29 of those yards coming on a screen pass.
He also excelled as a pass blocker by not allowing a single pressure on his 9 pass-blocking snaps (12-for-12 in the preseason).
Martez Carter- It was rookie Martez Carter, and not Perine or Bibbs, who had the longest play of the game. On one of his 11 snaps, Carter made a couple of nifty cuts en route to a gain of 33 yards on the ground. That rush came just after Carter picked up 9 yards on what was the first NFL carry of his career. Unfortunately, the diminutive rookie (5’7” and 195 lbs.) was only able to gain 3 yards over the course of his final five rushes in the game.
He finished the night with 7 attempts, a game-high 45 rushing yards, 2 successful runs, 1 first down and a 6.4-yard rushing average.
Unfortunately, Carter’s first NFL game of 2018 was also his last. He was injured in the game and waived with an injury designation today. The Redskins’ running back depth is currently frighteningly thin. Expect the team to sign a new back in the coming days.
The team is reportedly bringing in veteran Orleans Darkwa for a workout on Sunday.
Free agent running back Orleans Darkwa will be among those participating in a tryout at Redskins Park Sunday, a source said. The Redskins need to add another back thanks to several injuries. Both Samaje Perine (ankle) and Byron Marshall (ankle) both... https://t.co/5vq1DuqYqK
— John Keim (@john_keim) August 18, 2018
Chris Thompson- CT is still on the mend from the broken leg he suffered in Week 11 of last season, so he stayed on the sidelines for this one.
OFFENSIVE LINEMEN
Offensive Linemen (17 Players) | ||
Player (* - starter) | Snaps | Snap % |
Geron Christian * | 64 | 100% |
Isaiah Williams | 54 | 84% |
Tony Bergstrom | 39 | 61% |
Kyle Kalis | 39 | 61% |
John Kling | 39 | 61% |
Timon Parris | 16 | 25% |
Casey Dunn | 15 | 23% |
Demetrius Rhaney | 15 | 23% |
Shawn Lauvao * | 10 | 16% |
Morgan Moses * | 10 | 16% |
Chase Roullier * | 10 | 16% |
Brandon Scherff * | 10 | 16% |
Tyler Catalina | DNP | N/A |
T.J. Clemmings | DNP | N/A |
Cameron Jefferson | DNP | N/A |
Ty Nsekhe | DNP | N/A |
Trent Williams | DNP | N/A |
Offensive Line (Team)- The Redskins’ line play was by no means outstanding in this game, but it was far better than what we saw last week against New England.
Washington’s passers were sacked twice, but the team only lost 1 combined yard on those plays and both sacks came on scrambles. No offensive linemen were credited with a sack allowed on either play. The trio of Smith, McCoy and Hogan were only pressured on 6 of their 36 combined dropbacks in the game (16.7%).
There was also an improvement in the run-blocking, as the team’s running backs averaged 2.27 yards before contact per attempt (1.35 last week).
On the downside, linemen were responsible for committing three of the offense’s four penalties (20 of the 25 offensive penalty yards).
The Regular Starters- The entire starting offensive line, sans Trent Williams, played on Thursday night; however, they were only out there for a drive and 10 snaps.
Left guard Shawn Lauvao suited up for the first time since Week 11 of last season (at New Orleans). He picked up where he left off by allowing a QB hit on one of his six pass-blocking snaps.
Fellow starters Chase Roullier, Brandon Scherff and Morgan Moses didn’t allow any pressures or commit any penalties. Moses earned the highest PFF grade by an offensive lineman on the team (72.2).
Geron Christian- Geron Christian started in place of Trent Williams and Ty Nsekhe at left tackle and played all 64 offensive snaps. Christian was the only player in the contest who was in on every snap, and he led all players in snaps from scrimmage (offensive and/or defensive snaps) and total snaps (offensive + defensive + special teams snaps).
This, however, was yet another case of preseason playing time not being an indicator of success. Christian surrendered 3 pressures (all hurries) and was penalized for a false start. His 33.8 PFF grade for the game ranked dead last among Washington offensive players.
Isaiah Williams- Williams took over at right guard when the starters went out and he stayed there for the remainder of the game (54 snaps). He didn’t allow any pressures for the second straight week and combined with Kapri Bibbs to shut down Doug Middleton’s 39-yard interception return.
Kyle Kalis- Kyle Kalis manned the right guard spot for 39 snaps against the Jets. Unfortunately for him, his showing in this game was only mildly better than his abysmal performance last week against the Patriots.
He didn’t commit any penalties this time around (3 in New England), but he did allow a hit and a hurry as a pass-blocker. Pro Football Focus gave him an absolutely horrid 15.6 pass-blocking rating and an overall grade of 42.3; those figures ranked worst and third worst on the offense, respectively.
Tony Bergstrom- Backup center Tony Bergstrom didn’t have a particularly good night, either. He committed a holding penalty that negated a 13-yard Kevin Hogan run on third down and earned subpar marks from PFF as both a pass (43.4) and a run blocker (58.7).
John Kling- John Kling took over the right tackle spot after Morgan Moses departed. Like Bergstrom, he played the next 39 offensive snaps of the game. Not allowing a single pressure on his 21 pass-blocking snaps is a big part of the reason he was given a team-best 82.3 pass-blocking grade.
Kling didn’t fare nearly as well as a run blocker (51.0), but he did make a key block on Samaje Perine’s 30-yard run.
Third-Team Offensive Line- Casey Dunn, Demetrius Rhaney and Timon Parris were the last O-linemen to come off the bench. They played the final 15 snaps of the game at center, right guard and right tackle, respectively. The majority of their work came as blockers in the passing game (12 snaps).
None of them allowed any pressures, but Parris was flagged for a false start penalty.
Kendall Calhoun- The former Cincinnati Bearcat was signed to the roster today.
Other Offensive Linemen- Trent Williams was the only projected starting offensive linemen who didn’t play for the Skins on Thursday night. He and Ty Nsekhe, Tyler Catalina, T.J. Clemmings and Cameron Jefferson all stayed on the sidelines for this game.
ALL OFFENSIVE PLAYERS
Offense (43 Players) | Offense (43 Players) | |||||
Player (* - starter) | Snaps | Snap % | Player (* - starter) | Snaps | Snap % | |
Geron Christian * | 64 | 100% | Shawn Lauvao * | 10 | 16% | |
Isaiah Williams | 54 | 84% | Morgan Moses * | 10 | 16% | |
Tony Bergstrom | 39 | 61% | Paul Richardson * | 10 | 16% | |
Kyle Kalis | 39 | 61% | Chase Roullier * | 10 | 16% | |
John Kling | 39 | 61% | Brandon Scherff * | 10 | 16% | |
Kapri Bibbs | 35 | 55% | Alex Smith * | 10 | 16% | |
Matt Flanagan | 33 | 52% | Vernon Davis * | 8 | 12% | |
Trey Quinn | 33 | 52% | Garrett Hudson | 8 | 12% | |
Simmie Cobbs | 29 | 45% | J.P. Holtz | 5 | 8% | |
Colt McCoy | 29 | 45% | Byron Marshall | 5 | 8% | |
Kevin Hogan | 25 | 39% | Samaje Perine | 1 | 2% | |
Cam Sims | 25 | 39% | Tyler Catalina | DNP | N/A | |
Jeremy Sprinkle * | 25 | 39% | T.J. Clemmings | DNP | N/A | |
Brian Quick | 24 | 38% | Jamison Crowder | DNP | N/A | |
Shay Fields | 21 | 33% | Maurice Harris | DNP | N/A | |
Darvin Kidsy | 19 | 30% | Cameron Jefferson | DNP | N/A | |
Timon Parris | 16 | 25% | Ty Nsekhe | DNP | N/A | |
Casey Dunn | 15 | 23% | Jordan Reed | DNP | N/A | |
Demetrius Rhaney | 15 | 23% | Chris Thompson | DNP | N/A | |
Josh Doctson * | 14 | 22% | Dan Williams | DNP | N/A | |
Robert Kelley * | 12 | 19% | Trent Williams | DNP | N/A | |
Martez Carter | 11 | 17% |
*All statistics are courtesy of ESPN, NBC Sports, NFL.com, NFL Gamebooks, Pro Football Focus, Pro Football Reference, USA Today, Redskins.com and The Washington Post*
Poll
Which one of these offensive players on the bubble should make the final roster?
This poll is closed
-
24%
Kapri Bibbs
-
0%
Martez Carter
-
1%
Tyler Catalina
-
1%
Simmie Cobbs
-
1%
Kyle Kalis
-
1%
Brian Quick
-
69%
Cam Sims