A win is a win is a win. The NFL doesn’t rely on polls to determine its overall standings, so instead of focusing on what didn’t look good in the Washington Commanders’ 20-19 win at New Orleans, let’s focus on the team’s first 9-5 start since 1992.
The Burgundy and Gold also have their first winning season since 2016 and remain in position to make the playoffs for the first time in the first year of the Dan Quinn regime.
First Down: Washington played like we hoped they would play against Tennessee (and they did) in the first half, only to play like we feared they would play (and they did) against Dallas after intermission.
There’s plenty to clean up, from pass protection (eight sacks allowed) to nine penalties (more below). And that’s before addressing the clock stoppage late in the fourth quarter that gave the Saints a breath of fresh air, as they were driving with time running out.
It was nice to see Marshon Lattimore for the first time since his trade to Washington, and if Sunday’s play was any indication of his impact, then bravo to the brain trust for bringing him here.
Second Down: The win keeps the team on track to make the playoffs, standing one game ahead of Seattle for the third Wild Card in the NFC.
Philadelphia (12-2) is one win or one Washington loss away from locking up the division, while Dallas (6-8) remains on the precipice of playoff elimination. The New York Giants (2-12) aren’t on the clock yet, but they’re tied for the worst record in the league with Las Vegas.
Elimination Island grows by two teams this week with Chicago and Carolina arriving. Still in the Wild Card mix: Atlanta and Arizona are two games back at 7-7, while San Francisco and the Cowboys remain on the fringe at 6-8.
Third Down: Washington moved the chains on 9 of 17 money downs, with Jayden Daniels completing 6 of 6 passes for four conversions. He scrambled three times for a first down while also moving the chains on a called run. Daniels was sacked four times on third down. His top option? Jamison Crowder caught all three passes thrown his way for one conversion.
Brian Robinson Jr. converted a third and 1, while gaining seven yards on a third and 23.
Yardage breakdown: 7-8 when needing fewer than four yards and 2-9 when needing more than six yards. Talk about feast or famine. The defense held the Saints to 3-11 on the money down.
Flag on the Play: Nine accepted penalties on 10 flags covering 84 yards (an illegal forward pass penalty on Brandon Coleman was declined). Six were on offense (four holds, one illegal shift, and a false start) while three were on defense (two roughing the passer plus an illegal hands to the face). Dante Fowler Jr. was whistled twice for roughing the passer.
The four holds give that penalty 14 on the season, two behind the 16 false starts that is the most frequent infraction this year. Sam Cosmi’s hold gives the lineman a team-high eight penalties on the season.
The most costly flag? A fourth quarter hold on Nick Allegretti wiped out a pass that would have given Washington the ball a first and goal from the Saints 10 and a chance to put the game away.
Fourth Down: The game was broadcast on FOX by the network’s No. 5 team of Kenny Albert and Jonathan Vilma, although originally the No. 2 duo of Joe Davis and Greg Olsen were ticketed for the trip before being reassigned to Dallas-Carolina.
Through fourteen games a sub-.500 Cowboys team has either been in prime time or assigned the network’s No. 1 or No. 2 broadcast crew. Washington might get the No. 1 team of Kevin Burkhardt and Tom Brady, as FOX does not have the doubleheader and the team’s matchup with division-leading Philadelphia is the best of the early window.
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