Redskins Starter Snaps- The Washington Redskins played nine of their eleven offensive starters against the Atlanta Falcons in the Week 3 dress rehearsal game. The two who did not play were Trey Quinn (thumb) and Adrian Peterson (rest). All of the offense’s important role players also got on the field in this one.

The bulk of those first stringers and complimentary pieces played the entire first half, which spanned 31 snaps and five drives. During that time, the team scored 6 points, gained 162 yards of offense (5.59-yard average), picked up 7 first downs, went 1-for-5 on third down, failed to score on their lone red-zone possession and lost a fumble.

Adding those numbers to what we saw from the starters last week against the Bengals gives us the final preseason totals for the first-team offense: 8 drives, 46 snaps, 41 plays, 244 yards (5.95-yard average), 10 first downs, 6 points (0.75 points per drive), 1 turnover, 1-of-8 on third down (12.5%) and 0-for-1 in the red zone (0%). There is really no way to make those results look pretty.

Falcons Starter Snaps- Atlanta played nine of their defensive starters in the game (Deion Jones and Tyler Davison did not play). The majority of the Falcons first-team D was on the field for three drives and 16 snaps.

The Washington offense gained 88 yards, picked up 5 first downs, scored 3 points and turned the ball over once over the course of those three drives. As you might have noticed, this means that half of the starting offense’s points and nearly the same percentage of their yards came against Atlanta’s backups.

Yards- The Skins gained a preseason-high 280 yards of offense on Thursday night. The team averaged five yards per play in the game, marking the first time they had hit or bettered that number since week 14 of last season (5.1 vs. New York).

Points- The Burgundy and Gold put 19 points on the board against the Falcons, which was their highest total since scoring 23 points in last season’s Thanksgiving Day matchup with the Cowboys.

Red Zone- The Redskins went 1-for-3 when it came to scoring touchdowns on their trips to the red zone. Two of the team’s three possessions in Atlanta’s red zone came courtesy of fumble recoveries on punts the Falcons muffed.

The 33% success rate in the red area is certainly nothing to get excited about, but their one score did represent the team’s first touchdown from inside the 20 this year. Washington’s 20% red-zone-touchdown rate (1-for-5) this preseason is tied for dead last in the league.

Giveaways- Both of the Skins’ turnovers were the result of fumbles, the first of which was a sack-fumble that was recovered at the 50-yard line by former first-round pick Tak McKinley and returned 17 yards to the 33. The Falcons scored their only points of the game five plays later (a touchdown).

Atlanta also forced a fumble at their own 1-yard line just before Washington DB Ashton Lampkin was able to return a fumble recovery of his own for a touchdown. The ball rolled out bounds in the end zone and resulted in a touchback and a turnover.

Those were the team’s sixth and seventh giveaways this August, which ties them with the Falcons for the second-most turnovers in the preseason.

3rd Down- A week after converting on just 2-of-12 third downs, the offense was only able to move the chains on 2-of-11 plays on the money down (18.2%).

However, this week’s number is a bit skewed for a couple of reasons. The offense picked up first downs on two other third downs by forcing a penalty on them, but those plays are not counted in this calculation. Also, the final third down came when Dwayne Haskins kneeled down to run out the clock. All things considered, it’s more like the team actually went 4-for-12 on third down (33.3%).

It’s worth noting that Jay Gruden called running plays on ten of the twelve first downs prior to the third downs we just discussed; the Redskins averaged 1.83 yards per carry on those rushes.

Penalties- The Washington offense was responsible for three of the team’s six penalties (all accepted) and for 20-of-35 penalty yards. This is a major improvement, as the offense averaged 8.5 total penalties, 5.5 accepted penalties and 47.5 penalty yards between Weeks 1 and 2.

QUARTERBACKS

Dwayne Haskins- The Skins’ top draft pick of 2019 was in for all six drives and 30 snaps of the second half. He completed 7 of his 13 passes (53.8%) for 74 yards (5.69 YPA), 3 first downs and no touchdowns or interceptions. However, all of those first downs, 77% of his yardage and 57% of his completions came on the same fourth-quarter drive that produced just 3 points after reaching the Atlanta 22-yard line.

Haskins didn’t turn the ball over or get sacked for the first time in his three NFL games. He also didn’t scramble after doing so in each of the last two weeks; his only official rush was a kneel down for a loss of 2 yards.

So far this preseason, Haskins has completed 22-of-41 throws (53.7%) for 305 yards (7.43 YPA), 11 first downs (26.8%), a touchdown and 2 interceptions (4.9%). He’s been sacked five times (10.9%) for 43 yards, as well.

NFL football is a whole lot different than Big Ten football, but I think we can expect some of the poor rate stats we just saw to improve based on how Haskins played in college. Look for his completion percentage (53.7% NFL, 70.0% college), sack rate (10.9% NFL, 3.8% college) and interception rate (4.9% NFL, 1.5% college) to improve as he continues to learn and get more comfortable with the pro game.

Case Keenum- Keenum started for the third consecutive week and stayed on the field for the entire first half (31 snaps). He went 9-of-14 (69.2%) for 101 yards (7.21 YPA), 5 first downs (35.7%) and no touchdowns or interceptions.

He was sacked once for 3 yards and lost a fumble on the play. That was both his first sack and turnover of the preseason. The turnover probably never would’ve happened if Keenum had not held onto the ball for 3.9 seconds before being sacked.

His summer season ends with the following line: 16-of-30 (53.3%), 213 yards (7.1 YPA), 9 first downs (30%), one sack, one touchdown and no interceptions.

Jay Gruden hasn’t said as much yet, but Keenum is going to be the Redskins’ starting quarterback in Week 1. He started all three games, took every single snap with first-team offense and generally posted better numbers (passer rating, adjusted net yards per attempt, TD rate, INT rate, FD rate, sack rate, PFF grade) than Haskins did while playing against superior competition.

Colt McCoy- McCoy will not play this preseason and it sounds like his absence will extend at least a couple of weeks into the regular season. This will be the first time in his 9-year NFL career that he did not play in a single exhibition game.

Jalan McClendon- McLendon was a healthy scratch on Thursday night. He will likely be under center for most, if not all, of the Redskins’ offensive snaps next week against the Ravens. Perhaps he will be able to gain more than 205 yards of total offense in a game for the first time since he was in high school (2013). Just in case you couldn’t tell, the last sentence was code for saying McClendon is not good at football.

WIDE RECEIVERS

Paul Richardson- Washington’s highest paid receiver made his 2019 debut on Thursday night and played 9 snaps in the game. He was not targeted on any of his six snaps in route.

P-Rich tied for the team lead in receiving touchdowns (2) and ranked second among the club’s wideouts in 20-yard receptions (5) last season, despite only playing in 7 games and on 368 snaps.

Terry McLaurin- After only playing one snap between the team’s first two games, the rookie third rounder was on the field for 17 snaps in Atlanta. McLaurin’s first NFL target (unofficial), which was his only target in this game, was a success, as he drew a 13-yard pass-interference penalty in the end zone on the 3rd-and-9 play. He also made the tackle on Tak McKinley’s fumble return.

If McLaurin were to start on the outside opposite Paul Richardson, then the Redskins would be the only team to feature a pair of starting outside receivers that both ran a 4.40 or better.

Josh Doctson- Josh Doctson is McLaurin’s main obstacle to a starting job. Doctson started alongside of Richardson and played 9 snaps. He caught his only target for a 16-yard gain, which gave him his first and only reception of the preseason (19 snaps and 2 targets).

The team has reportedly been trying to trade the first-round bust for some time now, but they haven’t been able to find any takers willing to pay their asking price. I could tell you a handful of stats right now that demonstrate how bad Doctson has been, but I wouldn’t even know where to start, so I’ll just direct you to my offseason article on the subject instead.

Trey Quinn- Quinn was held out once again because of his thumb injury. However, it’s worth noting that he said he would’ve definitely played if this had been a regular season game.

Quinn will produce if he can stay on the field this upcoming season. He’s caught at least three balls in every NFL game he’s played 30 or more snaps in and made at least four grabs in every one of his games in his final year at SMU.

Robert Davis- Davis didn’t play much on offense (7 snaps) but I guess he doesn’t have a lot to prove in that area considering he caught long touchdowns in each of the last two weeks. He was targeted on one of his three routes and would’ve extended his scoring streak to three games had a Dwayne Haskins pass from the 22-yard line not just slipped through his fingers in the end zone.

It was all good for Davis, though. He still had a huge impact on the game; it just came on special teams this week.

Cam Sims- We finally got another glimpse of the 2018 version of Cam Sims that led the team in preseason receiving yards (131).

His 28-yard chain-moving grab in the second quarter was tied for the team’s longest play of the game. In the fourth quarter, he caught passes on back-to-back plays for gains of 4 and 16 yards, with the latter of those coming on third down.

So, after only catching one pass for 6 yards on 3 targets across the team’s first two games this August, Sims racked up 3 receptions for 54 yards and 2 first downs on 5 targets against the Falcons.

The towering receiver from Alabama should easily make it through final cuts and onto the final roster for the second straight year.

Kelvin Harmon- Harmon played for most of the second half (29 snaps), but all of his action came on a single fourth-quarter drive. He caught passes for gains of 21 and 16 yards on the first two official plays of the series (37 yards). Three plays later he drew a third-down holding penalty that gave the offense a fresh set of downs. He also nearly made an acrobatic 25-yard touchdown grab to cap the drive off.

Through three games, Kelvin Harmon has caught 4-of-8 passes for 54 yards and 3 first downs. He would’ve been credited a 42-yard reception and a 30-yard DPI too, if a pair of questionable calls had gone his way last week.

Darvin Kidsy- Kidsy started for the first time in his NFL career and replaced Trey Quinn as the team’s primary slot receiver for the second straight week.

He was targeted twice on the night and caught both balls, but only gained 11 yards between the plays. His 6-yard grab on a 2nd-and-3 pass gave the offense a first down on a drive that ended with a field goal.

The second-year Texas Southern product who led the team in targets (7), receptions (5), receiving yards (86 yards) and receiving first downs (2) in Week 1 against the Browns has cooled off considerably since then. Kidsy has notched just 4 receptions for 16 yards and one first down between his last two contests.

Kidsy has never gained 95 or more yards in the NFL and only did so once in college (200 yards vs. Houston Baptist in 2017), so if he sticks around, we should expect to see more performances like Weeks 2 and 3, not his outlier Week 1.

Steven Sims- Steven Sims just missed out on what would’ve been a monster game for a UDFA like him. All three of his targets came in the end zone, but he was unable to haul in any one of them. Sims isn’t totally without fault here, but he also shouldn’t take all of the blame either, as each of the three passes thrown his way were fairly inaccurate.

Unfortunately, those misses are part of what has turned into a string of bad luck for Sims. Last week against the Bengals, he had a 44-yard gain get negated by a questionable penalty and Haskins overthrew him on what would've been a gain of at least 20 yards.

Brian Quick- The 30-year-old receiver was a healthy scratch in the regular season dress rehearsal. That tells you everything you need to know about his chances of making this team.

Yes, I know he started in Weeks 1 and 2, but he only played in 10 combined snaps across those games and did not catch a single pass in either of them. I mean look, this is a guy who has only gained 51 total yards in the last 657 days (including preseason). Barring an injury to another wide receiver, Quick will no longer be a Redskin in a week’s time.

Jehu Chesson- Chesson was only on the field for one offensive snap.

This has been said countless times relative to how trivial this subject is: Jehu Chesson is a pure special teams player. He hasn’t done anything of note as a receiver since he caught 50 passes for 764 yards and 9 touchdowns in 2016 at Michigan. Chesson followed that up with a 35-500-2 campaign as a senior. Through three years in the NFL, he’s only tallied 14 receptions for 124 yards and no touchdowns.

TIGHT ENDS

Jordan Reed- The oft injured tight end suffered what will likely go down as his seventh documented concussion when Keanu Neal made helmet-to-helmet contact with him just after he picked up 10 yards on a 3rd-and-7 pass. The Falcons were penalized 15 yards for Neal lowering his helmet to initiate contact.

He was targeted on another third down on the previous drive, but dropped what would’ve been a first down. It was just his fourth drop since Week 4 of the 2016 season.

Reed only wound up playing in one game and 9 snaps this preseason, both of which were the second-lowest totals of his career (0 for both in 2018), but that still wasn’t enough to keep him from being injured, yet again.

He’s missed an average of 3.33 games after he’s been concussed in the NFL game (6 games in 2013, 2 games in 2015 and 2 games in 2016).

Vernon Davis- Davis played 17 snaps and ran five routes in Atlanta. His lone target came on a 2nd-and-8 pass at the Falcons’ 14-yard line. Davis ran a wheel route into the end zone on the play, but Keenum was under heavy pressure and threw the ball behind VD. The pass might have gone for a touchdown if Keenum had more time to throw.

He hasn’t played in Week 4 of the preseason since 2013, so his summer will likely end with the following stat line: 2 games, 1 start, 28 snaps, 3 targets, 2 receptions, 2 first downs and 43 receiving yards.

Jeremy Sprinkle- The third-year Arkansas product led the tight end corps in snaps (20) and had what may have been his best game as a pro.

Case Keenum ran a bootleg off a play-action fake and threw Sprinkle the ball 4 yards past the line of scrimmage; he caught the pass and gained another 24 yards after the catch (28-yard reception). It was the team’s longest play of the night.

That one play gave Sprinkle both his longest NFL reception (previous high of 15 yards) and a career high in receiving yards for a single game (previous high of 22 yards). In fact, 34% of his receiving yards as a pro have come in the last two weeks (41 of 134 yards).

Sprink didn’t fare quite as well as a pass blocker. He did prevent a sack which allowed Keenum to throw the aforementioned 16-yarder to Doctson, but he gave up a QB hit that could’ve easily been a sack had Keenum not gotten rid of the ball at the last second.

Sprinkle also made a tackle for the first time in two years, when he and Marquis Flowers teamed up to make the tackle on Atlanta’s fake punt run.

He earned a career-high 87.4 PFF grade for the performance.

Matt Flanagan- Matt Flanagan had a rough day at the office against the Falcons.

For starters, he dropped what would’ve been a chain-moving reception on third down, which led to a three-and-out for the offense. That was the only target he’s had in the last two weeks and he blew it.

Later on, he committed an illegal shift penalty that nullified a 12-yard Craig Reynolds run. And to top it all off, he injured his hand, too.

Flanagan’s 33.3 PFF grade for the game ranked dead last on the entire team this week.

J.P. Holtz- Holtz hauled in his only target of the night and picked up 12 yards on a 2-and-16 play. This was his third consecutive game with exactly one target and one reception. He’s already gained seven more yards this August than he did in his other three preseasons combined (33 to 26 yards).

Donald Parham- Parham got triple the amount of playing time he did last week, but that only took him from two to six snaps. He ran a route on two of those plays and blocked in the running game on the other ones. The receiving tight end out of Stetson was not targeted for the second straight week. He should get more PT and targets in next week’s finale to the exhibition season.

RUNNING BACKS

Derrius Guice- The 2018 second-round pick played in his first game since tearing his ACL exactly 378 days prior and he did not disappoint. Guice led the team or tied for the team lead in carries (11), rushing yards (44), yards from scrimmage (48) and avoided tackles (2).

The former LSU star ran for gains of 6 and 7 on his first two carries and was never stopped in the backfield for a loss (2 for no gain). His longest play and his only first down came on a 12-yard rush. Guice also scored a touchdown from a yard out that was nullified by a holding penalty. He caught his only target on a screen pass for a gain of 4 yards.

Only four Redskins who were 22-years-old or younger have ever gained 700-plus rushing yards in a single season (Robert Griffin - 815 yards, Larry Brown - 888 yards, Mike Thomas - 919 yards and Reggie Brooks - 1,063 yards); Guice will try to join that list this season, and he just might do it if he gets enough carries.

Chris Thompson- Thompson played 12 snaps, including on all six of the third-down snaps taken by the starting offense.

CT rushed the ball three times for 20 yards (6.7 YPA). His lone first-down and the Skins’ longest run of the night, was a 16-yarder that put the offense in the red zone. It was tied for his longest rush since his 61-yard touchdown against the Rams in Week 2 of the 2017 season.

Thompson caught 2-of-3 targets in the game, with both receptions coming on back-to-back plays at the end of the first half, but only picked up 4 total yards on the plays.

Adrian Peterson- A healthy and effective Derrius Guice could certainly have an impact on Peterson’s workload this season; well, Guice and of course his advanced age.

Last year, AP became just the sixth player who was 33 or older to run the ball 250-plus times in a season. That list drops to three players (John Riggins, Emmitt Smith and Frank Gore) when we increase the age to 34. However, all three of them accomplished the feat multiple times after turning 33, which is exactly what Peterson will try to do.

Samaje Perine- Samaje Perine, who had only gained 15 yards on 12 touches in the first two weeks of the preseason (27 snaps), touched the ball on all five of his snaps this week, gained 19 yards on those plays and scored Washington’s only rushing touchdown and red-zone touchdown this summer.

After averaging just 1.27 YPC on his 11 combined runs against the Browns and Bengals, Perine gained 16 yards on four rushes on Thursday night (4.0 YPC). He picked up at least 3 yards on each run, drew a 15-yard face-make penalty and scored what was just his third career touchdown on a goal-line run. Perine also caught his only target for a gain 3 yards on a 2-and-5 play.

He needed a performance like this if he wanted to maintain his spot as the team’s fourth running back.

Byron Marshall- Marshall got the rock on five of his ten offensive snaps against the Falcons. He was stuffed for a gain of 1 on a 3rd-and-2 and lost a yard on his next run. He rebounded by gaining 5 yards and 6 yards on his third and fourth carries, the last of which picked up a first down. Marshall caught a 2-yard pass at the Atlanta 5-yard line a play after his chain-moving carry.

He had a couple of nice plays, but was inefficient overall, with a yards-per-touch average of just 2.6. His 3.58-yard average across the three exhibition games is a bit better, but not by much.

Craig Reynolds- The rookie running back gained 19 yards on his five rushes in the game (3.80 YPC). He also had a 12-yard rush get negated by a holding penalty. He gained between 3 and 6 yards on each of his official runs and was unable to pick up a first down for the second straight week.

He was not targeted on the day, but it would be nice to see him get more looks in the passing game. Reynolds, who started his college career as a slot receiver and gained over 400 receiving yards in three of his four college seasons, and has only been targeted once with the Redskins (5-yard reception).

Shaun Wilson- The second-year running back and return man sat the game out with the ankle injury he suffered against the Bengals. There’s a good chance the injury will sideline him for the remainder of the preseason.

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN

Brandon Scherff- The Redskins’ top lineman played on all 31 snaps and allowed one pressure on his 17 plays in pass protection.

Unfortunately, that pressure turned into a sack-fumble which set the Falcons up with good field position and paved the way for them to score their only points of the contest. Of course, as I mentioned earlier, Keenum bears some responsibility for holding onto the ball too long on the play.

Scherff allowed just the one pressure and did not commit any penalties over the course of his 46 exhibition snaps.

Morgan Moses- Moses played three fewer snaps than Scherff did this August (43 snaps), but he one-upped his partner on the right side of the line by not allowing a single pressure in his two games.

The veteran right tackle will look to rebound from a 2018 season that saw him commit a league-high 16 penalties and allow a career-worst 14 combined QB hits and sacks.

Chase Roullier- Roullier, who turned 26 the day after the game, also did not allow a pressure during the preseason. The only mark against him was a holding penalty that stalled a drive against Cincinnati.

The third-year pivot out of Wyoming has played on every snap with the Redskins’ first-team offense in 23 straight games (including preseason).

Ereck Flowers- After a decent game in Week 2, Ereck Flowers came crashing back to earth against the Falcons.

He allowed a team-high 2 pressures in the game, both of which were QB hits. The hits came on a third down at the end of the team’s first drive and on a second down in the red zone that could’ve easily ended up being a touchdown had it not been for the pressure. His PFF pass-blocking grade for the game was a pathetic 2.2. You read that right, 2.2 out of 100.

On top of all that, Flowers’ holding penalty at the 1-yard line nullified a Derrius Guice touchdown run. To be fair, he generally did hold his own as a run blocker. Of the team’s 64 first-half rushing yards, 46 or 71.9% of them came on the left side of the line.

Flowers has had plenty of opportunities to show that he’s capable of starting at left guard (3 starts and 90 snaps this preseason), but he has proved to be too inconsistent to trust in the regular season.

Wes Martin- The rookie fourth rounder out of Indiana took over for Flowers at left guard in the second half. He did commit a first-down false start that played a big part in stalling a drive, but he did not allow any pressures and helped to pave the way for Perine’s rushing touchdown. This was his second straight week with a penalty, but he’s also only allowed one pressure all month.

Martin has a ton more experience at left guard than Flowers does (50 games and 43 starts in college vs. 90 2019 snaps for Flowers) and is better in pass protection. We can’t prove that last point because they were playing different positions at two totally different levels of football, but consider that Flowers has given up 9 sacks in his last two years and 1,589 snaps, while Martin allowed just two sacks in his last two seasons and 1,501 snaps at IU.

The Redskins shouldn’t think twice about starting Martin over Flowers.

Donald Penn- Penn made his first start for Washington at left tackle. He manned the blind side for all 31 first-half snaps and stayed there for the first two drives and six snaps of the second half with the backups, as well. He also didn’t allow a sack or multiple pressures for the first time this preseason (0 pressures at Atlanta).

Geron Christian- Penn’s start led to Geron Christian getting relegated to a backup role. He spent the first six snaps of the second half at right tackle and flipped over to the left side after Penn departed, where he would play the final 24 snaps of the contest.

Christian actually held his own against the Falcons. He did not allow a single pressure in the game, which marks the first time he had ever accomplished that feat when playing on more than 3 snaps.

Christian has played a team-high 95 offensive snaps so far this preseason.

Tony Bergstrom- Bergstrom didn’t play much in this one (10 snaps), but he kept Haskins clean and helped lead the way on Perine’s touchdown run when he was out there.

Timon Parris- Parris has shown improvement each week this August. He allowed 4 pressures and committed two penalties (15 yards) in Week 1, allowed one pressure last week and was perfect on his 16 snaps at right tackle against the Falcons this past Thursday. He was given a team-best 92.5 PFF grade for his efforts.

Zac Kerin- Kerin played 15 snaps at right guard after Scherff departed. This was the first time this summer he did not allow a pressure.

Third-Team Offensive Line- Third-stringers Corey Robinson (LT) and Jerald Foster (LG) did not play for the first time this August. As far as we know, they were both healthy scratches.

Ross Pierschbacher played 20 snaps in the contest, which was the most playing time any of Washington’s third-team O-linemen have gotten this preseason. The rookie fifth rounder gave up a QB hit in the game, which was the first pressure he’d allowed in his pro career.

Right guard Hugh Thornton and right tackle Blake Hance were on the field for 15 and 8 offensive snaps, respectively. Neither player committed a penalty or surrendered any pressures against the Falcons.

ALL OFFENSIVE PLAYERS

*All statistics are courtesy of ESPN, NBC Sports, NFL.com, NFL Gamebooks, Pro Football Focus, Pro Football Reference, Redskins.com and The Washington Post*