LANDOVER, Md. — The Redskins’ season came to a crashing end at FedEx Field Sunday night in a 24-0 loss to the Eagles, in front of a crowd that was 70 percent Philadelphia fans.
The Eagles clinched a playoff spot while the Redskins finished 7-9 and in third place in the NFC East.
The Eagles controlled the game from the start and limited the Redskins to just 16:41 time of possession while holding the ball for 43:19. The Redskins were outgained 360 yards to 89 while picking up only eight first downs. The Eagles converted 8-14 third downs, while the Redskins went 0-9.
The 6-3 start for the Redskins turned into a 1-6 finish thanks in part to a number of things, mainly injuries. The Redskins started four quarterbacks this year and the season now ends with 24 players on injured reserve.
They simply didn’t have enough to compete with an Eagles team playing for a playoff berth.
The offseason is here and now the fun begins. Jay Gruden is expected back, but there most certainly will be changes on the coaching staff.
Will Bruce Allen be reassigned in the organization while shuffling the front office in the football operations department?
There are a lot of on-the-field questions at key positions that need to be answered as well. There is no clear starter at quarterback. Regardless of if Alex Smith plays or not, they have to incur his $20 million cap hit next year. They need a big-play receiver. The secondary is thin after the release of D.J. Swearinger and the uncertainty of Montae Nicholson after his arrest.
Running back is another position that causes some uncertainty. Derius Guice is expected to return after a torn ACL and be the starter.
But, what happens with Adrian Peterson?
The 33-year-old proved to everyone that he has something left in the tank, rushing for over 1,000 yards. He said he wants to be back.
“Hopefully I’m back here,” he said. “I want to be a part of what I see we could be as a team and an organization. I definitely want to be a part of it.”
He also addressed the team after the game.
“I told them to be patient about what you do,” he said. “I’ve been playing for 12 years, and I’m still chasing a championship. The passion that I play with every time I step on the field is because I’m chasing that.”
That’s the type of player you want in the locker room.
The theme of the postgame locker room echoed Peterson’s words. The players feel like the team is close when everyone is healthy. Chris Thompson is among those that took the end of the season very hard. He said he feels that when Alex Smith went down is when things started going down hill.
A number of players praised Smith’s leadership. When he broke his leg, they lost a lot of that energy since he wasn’t around.
Another offseason of questions and uncertainty lies ahead for this team with no clear cut answers.
Stop me if you’ve heard that before.
