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Some games are competitive and fun to watch regardless of the result. This was not one of them! This was a beat-down in every sense of the word.
Washington yet again came out flat on offense, and unlike last week against the Lions, couldn’t get it together in the second half. There was no coming back in this contest to even make it SLIGHTLY competitive!
The Eagles defensive line completely embarrassed the Commanders front five in the trenches and that set the tone of the entire game. John Matsko really has his work cut out for him with this unit!
Below are my Studs and Duds of the game, followed by some notes.
Studs:
Benjamin St-Juste - The Canadian made the most of his opportunity on the outside, playing some really good football in both man and zone. He was credited with three passes defended on the afternoon - one in the endzone.
Jon Allen - Allen didn’t record a sack, but he was plenty disruptive. He had four solo tackles, one for a loss, two stuffs a batted pass and two quarterback hits.
Duds:
Ron Rivera - This mess starts at the top. We can argue about firing Del Rio or Turner until we are blue in the face, however this mess all rolls back to the head man.
We all complained this offseason while we watched teams like the Eagles go out and make moves in free agency to improve their squads. Well, guess what - it worked. We sat on our hands and the results show it!
How do you NOT throw a challenge flag in time on the deep ball to Smith!!!!! Pathetic!
The ENTIRE Offensive Line - What an embarrassment this unit was. I argued with some last week that our line wasn’t very good, but folks felt good because SOMEHOW the great PFF had rated Leno as our top player... Well, if PFF rates ANY of our offensive line over a 50 this week, I will go off!
First off, Sam Cosmi may have played the worst game I’ve seen from a Washington offensive lineman since Geron Christian and Wes Martin actually had starting roles on the unit. Now, let’s address the 75% of low snaps that Wes Schweitzer was firing back to Wentz. Oh well, let’s not belabor it any longer - THEY ALL STUNK!!!
Kendall Fuller - He should simply leave the team. I have nothing more to say!
Rachad Wildgoose - This may be a bit unfair putting Wildgoose as a dud, seeing that he’s only been with the team for a few weeks and the communication on the back end just isn’t there...however he looked like he didn’t belong in the league. Aside from his poor coverage, he was called for pass interference twice.
Carson Wentz - I get it...I GET IT - he didn’t have time to even set his feet most of the game. Well, a LOT of this is on Carson. He has to get rid of the football faster! And shame on Scott Turner for not adjusting the damn game plan to help him do just that! You know what - TURNER is a DUD too!
The Outside Pass Rush - I turn on games all over the league and I watch guys generate pressure off the edge, get sacks and forced fumbles. I watch our guys and it seems no one gets home off the edge. And if they actually happen to, the QB steps up and either finds a passing lane or scrambles for positive yards.
Is this on coaching? Is it the scheme?...the players? - probably a combination of all three!
Notes:
- Terry had six catches for 102 yards, but many of these came in garbage time when the Eagles were playing a shell zone coverage. He had a few drops as well.
- Curl, in his return, made some plays. But, he also whiffed badly on the Goedert TD.
- Jamin Davis played well today. He’s starting to make more and more plays each week and is definitely playing faster.
- After a ridiculous opening game, Darrick Forrest has come back to earth these last two games. He didn’t have a terrible game yesterday, but he’s certainly come back to reality.
- There seems to be many times in a game where Bobby McCain is in place, but fails to make a play. This happened again against the Eagles Sunday. I don’t think he played bad overall, but he needs to step up and make some plays when the coverage in front of him breaks down - this includes picking up Fuller’s jock strap and returning it to its rightful owner!
- Did I mention this offensive line SUCKS!
- David Mayo has found his place - and it’s on SPECIAL TEAMS!