WASHINGTON — The reality check for the Washington Redskins 2016 came in the form of a 26-15 loss to the Carolina Panthers on Monday Night Football. The Redskins are now 7-6-1 and that’s who they are.
This is not like the late Cardinals’ head coach Denis Green’s famous outburst after a Monday Night football loss when he said of the opposing Bears, “They are who we thought they were.”
Saying the Redskins are a struggling .500 team is just a cold accurate statement. It matches the weather.
Monday Night Football does not have the cache it once did since it now seems like there is an NFL game every night, including Thursday when teams dress in colors like cartoon characters. But the game against the Panthers was still in prime time, it was at home, and if the Redskins were better than their record they should have won.
The Redskins were outplayed by the Panthers, but Redskins’ fans should not overreact. To be sure it was a bad loss, but many of the conclusions drawn from Monday night you already knew. Even with his bad night, Kirk Cousins is still the quarterback of the future and improvements still need to be made to the Redskins defense.
All season the Redskins have displayed resilience and character and still might find a way to make the playoffs, but as they showed in prime time, they are just not ready for prime time.
