Is the Washington Football Team halfway to a potential playoff season or midway through another mess?
At 2-6, Washington needs to win three straight against equally mediocre rivals starting at Detroit on Sunday for any chance at the playoffs. They did win seven consecutive games in 2012 after a 3-6 start, but don’t count on it happening again. That team had electric rookie quarterback Robert Griffin III. This season has seen three starting quarterbacks already.
Midway through the season, I’d give the defense a big fat D+ overall, the offense a D, special teams a C and a D to the coaching staff. While the 2-6 mark isn’t worse than expected, this team has looked miserable, just as the four-win preseason forecasts suggested.
The biggest culprit – the defensive line. This unit was supposed to be great with five first-rounders lining up, including second overall pick Chase Young. While Young has fulfilled great expectations, he’s still a rookie whose bigger impact will come in following seasons.
Montez Sweat is also looking good, as the defensive ends may be the team’s best tandem since the 1980s heydays when winning two Super Bowls with Dexter Manley and Charles Mann, largely because of the pair. Mann stayed for a third Super Bowl, too. So, there’s hope given Young and Sweat.
Jonathan Allen is always praised by teammates, but frankly I don't see it. Neither does Daron Payne greatly impress me. They're OK and have moments, but first rounders are supposed to produce memories, not moments.
Defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio shares the blame for this unit's poor production. Aside beating up crippled offensive lines in Philadelphia and Dallas, Washington hasn’t regularly harassed opposing quarterbacks. Why hasn't Del Rio dialed up more blitzes and mismatches? The secondary isn’t so bad that he can’t leave them naked on blitzes.
Speaking of coaching, why was Washington on its heels down 20-3 in the first half to the New York Giants on Sunday, following a bye while the Giants played the previous Monday? This happened often under previous staffs, but this group of coaches is better than recent predecessors. Yet, Washington was on its heels the entire first half, much like most of the season. They’re not ready and that’s on coaching.
We’ll probably see Ron Rivera return to his normal aggressive style in the season’s second half after undergoing cancer treatments for the first seven games. Rivera’s effort was admirable, and now that he’s not receiving treatments, he seems to have more energy in his pressers. He’s back on the field in practices after watching from a cart. Rivera will carry the team more and that has to help.
Offensively, we’ll see if Alex Smith is the 2021 starter after Washington lost Kyle Allen to a dislocated ankle against New York. It was always iffy whether Smith could return after a horrific leg injury in 2018, but in his second appearance he looked much like his old self. That is, until forcing two passes for interceptions against New York. Maybe that was just nerves, because Smith is not turnover-prone.
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Washington's playoff chances will be clear come Thanksgiving night after playing Dallas. Maybe December will be worth watching. Perhaps it's the early 2021 preseason. Either way, it has to be better than a sad first half of this season.
Rick Snider has covered Washington sports since 1978. Follow him on Twitter: @Snide_Remarks