When people say, “it gets no better than this,” they usually mean that life is good and they can’t imagine it being better. For the 2020 Washington Football Team, things couldn’t get much worse and have little hope of getting better.
Take Sunday for example, when Washington was coming off of a bye week following a decisive victory over the Dallas Cowboys. They were riding high on Kyle Allen’s best NFL performance and recent film to study from their Week 6 road loss to the Giants.
Playing in front of their first home crowd of the season, they came out flat on both sides of the ball, fell behind early, and lost Allen to a gruesome ankle injury.
Dwayne Haskins was inactive again this week, continuing his protracted stay in Ron Rivera’s doghouse. Alex Smith relieved Allen, threw his first touchdown pass since returning from injury, but also delivered three interceptions en route to another loss.
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After the game, head coach Ron Rivera didn’t hesitate in naming Smith starter for next week, with Haskins taking over the QB2 role.
Why? Presumably, Smith gives Washington a better chance of winning the putrid NFC East.
“We’ve got a few more games going forward that we’ve got to play and see exactly where we are as this thing unfolds,” Rivera told the media. “The nice thing about it that the division is still up for grabs and we’ll see what happens.”
The scariest thought during a spooky season is that Washington is still trying to win. Here’s why:
1. The price of winning: Call it “tanking,” but Rivera should be coaching for the next four years of his contract. That starts with positioning his team to get better in the 2021 NFL Draft. Play well enough down the stretch to figure out which players are keepers, but expect to have a major roster rebuild this offseason.
If the season ended today, Washington would draft fifth, giving them ample options for a new quarterback. If they win the division and make the playoffs, they will draft no earlier than 19th overall, even with a losing record. This difference in draft position could have significant personnel consequences.
2. The blame for losing: Yikes! Sometimes it’s easier to pretend you weren’t trying to win, even if you were. Injuries and the limitations of this roster are well documented, but at some point, the coaching staff shoulders some blame.
Remember Dwayne Haskins got benched because Allen had a better understanding of Scott Turner’s offensive system. That knowledge resulted in a lopsided loss to the L.A. Rams and two losses to the Giants. Allen played well against Dallas, the NFL’s worst defense. Maybe the problem is mostly player execution, but the system hasn’t helped the players.
3. Rebuild Haskins’ value: The NFL trade deadline came and went this week, but Haskins remains under team control through 2022. Even though the team has systematically destroyed his trade value with negative media reports and demoting him to third-string doesn’t mean he doesn’t have football value.
It’s not too late to start Haskins. If he plays and plays well, Washington can still shed his contract this offseason for a late-round pick. If he plays and plays poorly, he helps Washington’s eventual draft position.
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Almost exactly 18 years ago, then-New York Jets coach Herm Edwards stood in front of the media and explained: “This is what the greatest thing about sports is: you play to win the game...I don’t care if you don’t have any wins; you go play to win.”
Yet, even Edwards might have to think twice about winning the 2020 NFC East.
At this point, Rivera should downplay the value of wins and switch to player evaluation. If the team wins games and backs into the NFC East title, so be it. But starting players who have nothing to do with this team’s future will leave them with more questions than answers when the clock strikes zero this season.
Brian Tinsman has covered D.C. sports since 2011, both from the team marketing and skeptical fan perspectives. Tweet your criticisms @Brian_Tinsman.
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