WASHINGTON — The Redskins went into one of the toughest places to play in the NFL and were one drop in the end zone away from victory as the Chiefs beat Washington 29-20. The Redskins hit the bye week at 2-2, and it comes at the perfect time considering all the injuries that they suffered on Monday night. Despite the injuries, the Redskins still had a chance to steal one in Kansas City.
Kirk Cousins
The Redskins didn’t have the ball much in the second half at all, only 18 snaps — but when they did, it was Cousins who put them on his back. He had two drives to tie off to take the lead in the second half after the Chiefs put together long scoring drives.
He also thought he had the go-ahead score after throwing a great pass that Josh Doctson couldn’t come down with in the end zone. Cousins used his legs more than I can remember, leading the team in rushing with 38 yards on seven carries. He had two big scrambles on the final scoring drive that resulted in first downs.
Defense
Before the players started dropping due to injury, the defense had a great start to the game forcing punts on the first three drives by the Chiefs. They were getting pressure on Alex Smith all night, but just couldn’t get off the field in the second half for a number of reasons. The Chiefs had the football for 37 minutes to the Redskins 22. That’s a big difference.
Costly Mistakes
If the Redskins were going to win on the road against one of the best teams in the league, they couldn’t afford the self-inflicted wounds which ended up costing them. The Chiefs got five first downs because of defensive penalties in the second half. Perhaps the biggest mistake happened after the Redskins had stopped Kansas City on and third-and-goal from the 1, but Preston Smith lined up offside. The next play, the Chiefs scored a touchdown. In all, the Redskins committed seven penalties, all on defense. That can’t happen.
Other than the penalties, the Redskins had a couple of big drops. No drop was bigger than Josh Doctson on the final drive, it looked like he had come down with the go-ahead touchdown but couldn’t hang on. The Redskins settle for a field goal to tie the game, then the Chiefs went down the field and won the game.
Also, in the fourth quarter, the Redskins were putting together a nice drive in Kansas City territory when running back Samaje Perine couldn’t hang on to a pitch. He had plenty of room to run and would have picked up the first down, but instead he lost it out of bounds.
These kinds of mistakes add up in a game like this.
Injuries
The Redskins suffered a number of injuries on Monday night, including cornerback Josh Norman (ribs) and running back Rob Kelley (ankle). Due to the injuries on the defensive side, rookies Montae Nicholson and Fabian Moreau were among those in the game on the Chiefs’ final game-winning drive. A number of guys got hurt and came back in, but as the injuries mounted, it started to remind me of The Body Bag game in Philadelphia in 1990. The Redskins lost nine players due to injury on that Monday Night Football loss to the Eagles.
At the end of the day, this team is 2-2 heading into a much needed bye week. The way the season started and the tough schedule that it faced early, if you had said this team would be 2-2 a quarter of the way into the season, I think a lot of people would have taken it. They showed a lot in Kansas City on Monday night and are definitely an improved football team that believes it can win every Sunday.
