Thursday's loss to the Cowboys highlighted all kinds of problems with the Commanders defense, as defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio was fired just hours later.
But Washington's struggles on defense have been known throughout the season. What concerned Grant on Thursday was watching the team's top receivers in Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson find no separation in the lopsided loss.
"What is going on with this offense and the inability to get receivers open?" Grant said. "Do I need to start worrying a bit about McLaurin and Dotson as my top couple of guys? Have I overvalued these players?"
Dotson grabbed five catches for 52 yards on the day, while McLaurin hauled in four catches for 50 yards, as Curtis Samuel again seemed to take on a bigger role. Dotson is just weeks removed from not making a single reception, while McLaurin is averaging a career-low 11.6 yards per catch on the year.
"I view McLaurin as a top-15 receiver in the league, and I view Jahan Dotson as the best route runner on the team, as a possible star in the making," Grant said. "And I'm sitting here on Thanksgiving…and I'm seeing the Cowboys throwing downfield to wide open receivers all game long, and every single time Sam Howell drops back, and puts a little arch on the ball to throw it down the field, the camera would pan, and you would see a receiver with a defender draped all over them.
"How did we get here, and why is it happening?"
