One loss has given the Washington Football Team an offseason game plan – look for another quarterback for 2022.
Dwayne Haskins showed little growth in the 20-15 loss to Seattle on Sunday, despite two months of reflection while Kyle Allen and Alex Smith played. Haskins returned as mostly the same wide-eyed young passer who doesn’t quickly recognize defenses.
Maybe Haskins is more of a gamer. Indeed, he improved after throwing two interceptions when mad at himself and just playing ball. See those three-quarter arm throws? Those are his best ones and come when not worrying about too much. Perhaps that’s why he plays well in spurts, using his natural skills to succeed. Certainly, Haskins made a few plays with his legs and took over for a few series. There’s nothing wrong with this.
But, much of Haskins’ success was against a prevent defense. When Seattle needed to pay attention late to avoid a loss, it shut down Washington. So, Haskins’ numbers are tempered and tainted by a defense trying to run out the clock.
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Washington needed to see Haskins once more before making offseason decisions. He did nothing to say, given time, he’ll be better. Oh, Haskins might improve marginally if playing regularly, but coach Ron Rivera has a playoff bid to grab and a team to improve and there’s no more time to waste on a passer who, after two years, still lacks nor inspires confidence.
Washington has the makings of a Super Bowl contender for 2022 if it drafts wisely and finds a passer. It might be too much to expect Smith to produce at 38 years old when he wasn't expected to do anything this season.
Smith can go another year, but whether Washington carries Haskins another season is the big offseason question. Washington won’t draft high enough for a big name and probably can’t waste a developmental pick in the first three rounds. So, either Washington thinks Allen might be the future starter or it looks for a free agent quarterback. Retread passers seldom find salvation in their second or third stops, though.
Washington probably wasn’t going to beat Seattle no matter who was quarterbacking. The Seahawks are a legitimate Super Bowl contender. Washington played respectably against the visitors, though. If reaching the playoffs, Washington will be a tough out.
Getting one last peek at Haskins was one positive in the loss. There’s no pretending he’ll get better when showing little more versus the Seahawks than he did over the opening month. A game plan that was too conservative early revealed offensive coordinator Scott Turner was afraid to put much on Haskins. Trailing 20-3 in the second half, Turner had no choice but to let Haskins fire away for 55 passes overall in a streaky performance.
It won’t be easy to say goodbye to a 2018 first-round passer nor get fair value in a trade. But if Washington doesn’t see a future with Haskins, both sides need to move onward. And, Sunday showed that’s probably the best path.
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Rick Snider has covered Washington sports since 1978. Follow him on Twitter: @Snide_Remarks.