If Sunday's game against Buffalo was the measuring stick game that Ron Rivera portrayed it to be, then Chase Young and the Washington Football Team's defense are not even close to deserving of the preseason hype bestowed to them, former NFL executive Michael Lombardi contends.
The Bills blew Washington's doors off, 43-21.
"Ron Rivera said this game was a 'measuring stick' for the Washington defense and, oof, they did not measure up," Erin Hawksworth said on 'BetQL Daily' on Audacy's BetQL Network. "What have you seen from Washington's defense and does it seem like Chase Young might be a little overrated?"
"Not a little, he's a lot overrated," Lombardi said. "I mean, all he does is run past the quarterback and the TV announcers get all excited because he makes a play every four quarters. I mean, like, seriously. This Washington defense, tell me when they've played good."
"Well let me ask it this way," he said. "Tell me what QB that they've played who's really good that they beat. Like, you can't answer that question. Go through all the quarterbacks last year that they played. This is not a good defense. They're a highly rated defense by their draft status, but they don't play that way. And if you're Ron Rivera, you've got to ask yourself the question: Is it coaching? Is it players? Is it scheme?"
Washington went 7-9 in 2020, which was enough to win a dastardly NFC East and make the playoffs. Washington's seven wins came against Carson Wentz (Eagles), Andy Dalton/Ben DiNucci (Cowboys), Joe Burrow/Ryan Finley (Bengals), Dalton (Cowboys), Ben Roethlisberger (Steelers), Nick Mullens (49ers), and Jalen Hurts/Nate Sudfeld (Eagles).
A few important caveats to note:
The Steelers were an 11-0 entering their Week 13 game against Washington, which was 4-7 at the time.
And in Week 17, with Philadelphia trailing Washington by three, Doug Pederson — who was relieved of his duties a week later — inexplicably took Jalen Hurts out of the game and put in Nate Sudfeld in the fourth quarter. Sudfeld subsequently threw an interception, took two sacks and fumbled the ball away. Washington won 20-14, securing the division title and a playoff spot.
"And they didn't play good last year," Lombardi continued. "I've said this so many times: If Jalen Hurts doesn't get taken out of that game in Philadelphia in Week 17, the Washington Football Team doesn't even make the playoffs! It's comical."
"And yet they have this reputation by the media that they're this great defense, when you can't find it on the tape. You can't find it on the tape," he said. "So I think Ron Rivera... I mean, yeah, that was a measuring stick. If you think you're a playoff team, and you're a nine-point dog when the lines opened up, and it got bet down to seven because everybody still buys the Washington concept that they're good, and you get blown out. I mean it wasn't even a game — they got blown out!"
"They are really lucky in Washington that Dan Snyder is no longer involved with that team," Lombardi said, "because Dan Snyder would be firing a lot of people today."
