When you’ve been as bad as the Burgundy and Gold have been the last 30 years, it’s easy to be overoptimistic in September.
A 2-1 start is the best Washington has dialed up since 2005 (the second year of Joe Gibbs’ second coaching tenure) and we’ve seen previous lukewarm starts like this end anywhere from 7-9 to 4-13.
But with a new owner, general manager, coach and quarterback, one must feel the 38-33 win at Cincinnati was the start of something special — right?
We’ll know Sunday night, when this team is either flying high with their first 3-1 start since 2011 (don’t ask how that season turned out) or flying home at .500 with more questions.
First Down: Washington’s 38-33 win saw an offensive extravaganza, where quarterback Jayden Daniels completed a rookie and franchise record 91.3% of his passes (21 of 23 for 254 yards). He ran for a touchdown and threw for two scores, one of which was a 27-yard strike to Terry McLaurin.
Getting McLaurin going was key: four catches for 100 yards, after netting eight for 39 over the first two weeks. But behind the glow of scoring on every possession the last two weeks (minus end of half kneel-downs), is a defense that has yet to find its feet.
After three weeks they’re last in the league at stopping the pass and getting off the field on third down, while ranking 29th in total yards and points given up.
Second Down: Washington technically leads the NFC East thanks to their 1-0 division mark, but Philadelphia is also 2-1 after getting a pair of fourth-quarter Saquon Barkley touchdowns in a 15-12 win at New Orleans.
The New York Giants got three touchdowns for the second straight week, but a healthy kicker delivered three extra points in a 21-15 victory at Cleveland.
And what is going on with Dallas? The Cowboys trailed by 22 in the fourth quarter before their comeback came up short against the Baltimore Ravens. The 28-25 defeat drops Big D to 1-2 and 0-2 at home, while the Ravens avoid an 0-3 start.
While a strong September does not guarantee the postseason, a faulty first month is a crater that is tough to crawl out of. Three teams are 0-3: Tennessee, Jacksonville and Cincinnati.
Third Down: Can they bottle the last two weeks up? Washington went 5 of 9 moving the chains but went 3 of 3 on fourth down and on the other fourth down they kicked a field goal.
Daniels completed 4 of 5 passes for two conversions (one 8-yard pass failed to reach the marker, but turned a 3rd & 12 into a 4th & 4 they’d make). His top target? McLaurin caught two of the three passes thrown his way for two conversions (one of which was a 27-yard touchdown).
He also suffered a sack and ran twice for two conversions, while Brian Robinson Jr. moved the chains on his lone third down run.
Yardage breakdown: 4-5 on third and short (1-3 yards needed), 1-3 when needing 4-6 yards and 0-1 in long-yardage.
Another glimpse behind the numbers: Eight of Washington’s nine third downs took place on the Bengals’ side of the field. And while the defense allowed Cincinnati to convert 6 of 10 attempts, they held twice inside the red zone to force the Bengals to settle for field goals.
Flying Flags: Only three penalties for 28 yards, all coming in the fourth quarter. Two false starts on the offense plus a defensive pass interference. That’s seven false starts in three weeks and even though Washington was still able to score on the possession where both of those flags occurred, it’s a problem that hasn’t gone away.
The most costly flag this week was the pass interference on Noah Igbinoghene that placed the ball at the Washington 1-yard line and led to the Bengals’ final touchdown.
Fourth Down: After getting the prime-time treatment on ABC with Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, it’s back to ‘gen pop’ for Sunday’s late window on the non-doubleheader network. For the second time this year, the No. 5 team of Chris Myers and Mark Schlereth will call the Burgundy and Gold.
I know the way of the world in 2024 has games flipped often (meaning CBS and FOX won’t be exclusive to one conference’s road games), but I like the familiarity a broadcast team can build with the division or conference they call throughout the fall.
On the print front, Sunday was a bummer with the Commanders idle the Washington Post’s NFL preview section almost nonexistent. Previous years saw breakdowns of the major (and sometimes even minor) matchups, while this year one just gets a schedule of games.
One would think that in a city and region where there are plenty of out-of-market fans, the Post would cobble something together to digest with their Sunday morning coffee (we recommend Eggs Norwegian).
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