Game Thread: Week 2: Redskins @ Rams

[skinsdad62]

ASHBURN, Va. -- The Washington Redskins' defense provided glimpses of hope. They did something Sunday they rarely accomplished the last two seasons: Stop the run.

They also provided another heavy dose of frustration. They did something they also did quite often last year: Get burned on third down -- third and long, to be exact.

Which leads to this question: Where is the Redskins' defense headed? They'll get a challenge Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams, whose offense has been energized by new coach, and former Redskins offensive coordinator, Sean McVay. His skill designing offenses and helping quarterbacks will challenge the Redskins.

"They've got enough weapons they can hurt you," Redskins coach Jay Gruden said of the Rams. "It'll be a great challenge. We have a good idea of what he likes to do, but you just don't know when he's going to do it."

There were equal parts optimism and concern after the opener for Washington's defense.

Reason for optimism

Stopping the run: They'll get a chance to pad their stats against the Rams. Running back Todd Gurley averaged 3.18 yards per run last season and carried 19 times for 40 yards in the opener.

Nose tackle Ziggy Hood said he felt better prepared to play the position this season after making the switch early in 2016. He showed an ability to slide down the line and maintain his leverage, setting up others for plays. When the Redskins ran their base 3-4 defense, they allowed 3.89 yards per carry, according to ESPN Stats & Information. More impressively, they allowed just 2.14 yards on seven carries in their nickel package. Last year? They allowed 5.07 yards per carry in nickel and 4.13 in base.

The linemen did a solid job defending the run. On a third-and-1, both Hood and Terrell McClain not only occupied double teams but also didn't get moved back. They set up a stop.

The key will making this a trend and not an aberration. Keep in mind last year there were only four games in which they allowed 4.0 yards per carry or less -- and five in which they allowed more than 5.0.

Rookie Jonathan Allen stood out as well, playing with good leverage most of the game. He also had several good bull rushes. His presence will continue to be felt.

Linebacker Zach Brown: His athleticism was evident as was his ability to help in multiple situations. On that third-and-1 stop, Brown quickly shot through to make the tackle -- a quick diagnosis helped by good line play. Brown finished with two tackles for a loss and a sack. He also set up a sack with a stunt in which he attacked the inside shoulder of the right guard, allowing Matt Ioannidis to loop inside for a free path. Brown was in position to make plays and he finished. His speed adds a needed element.

Cross your fingers

Linebacker Junior Galette: After he missed two years with injuries, it's natural to worry about his health. He's healthy now and played 15 snaps Sunday, providing snapshots of how he can help, winning with explosiveness to the inside for quick rushes. His one sack was wiped out by an encroachment penalty, but the play still showed what he could do. If that continues -- Gruden said his reps will increase this week -- then the Redskins will benefit. He'll also then help the next category.

Concern

Third-down defense: Nothing has changed after the team finished last in this category in 2016. If the Redskins want to sniff the playoffs they'll have to improve. By a lot. Sunday, they allowed 8 of 14 third downs to be converted (and 5 of 9 on third-and-7 or longer). Eagles quarterback Carson Wentzcompleted 9 of 11 passes for 141 yards and two touchdowns on third down.

Rams quarterback Jared Goff completed 7 of 10 passes for 80 yards, one touchdown and four first downs on third down in Week 1. Last year he had a 71.4 passer rating on third down, but McVay helped improve that number -- at least for one game.

In two weeks the Redskins face the Oakland Raiders' David Carr. So the challenge will continue.

Sunday, they were burned by Wentz's legs -- on the opening-drive 58-yard touchdown pass he kept the play alive for 8.7 seconds. Two defenders didn't plaster to a receiver, as they are supposed to do in that situation: linebacker Mason Foster, who was closest to receiver Nelson Agholor when Wentz started to scramble, and safety D.J. Swearinger. The latter said after the game he wasn't supposed to plaster the receiver, but he did miss the tackle after the catch. Foster's eyes stayed on Wentz; Agholor ran free.

They rushed four on some third downs and blitzed on others. Nothing consistently worked.

One time, slot corner Kendall Fuller, playing off, allowed a catch behind the first-down marker with a two-yard cushion. Another time it was failing to corralWentz. Another time on a third-and-10 in the fourth quarter, safety Deshazor Everett appeared to have help inside, yet lost outside leverage on a route in which tight end Zach Ertz cut inside and then back outside for an easy completion. Swearinger (who also showed that he should be a help) was animated with Everett after the play. But that was a correctable mistake. The problem: So were a lot of the third-down issues last season. After one game, they weren't corrected. There's reason to think they'll be better; there's reason to wonder.

"The defense did play hard," Gruden said. "We just had some tough deals on third down."

 

[skinsdad62]

Jay Gruden: "We Have To Be Able To Be Balanced" 

gruden presser wed, MKD aka dox , pulled a vagina muscle in practice

 

[skinsdad62]

http://www.redskins.com/media-galle...ery_Well/ef595e5d-8f5b-4f98-ba3d-6f6ed2cdcee8

wed presser part 2

 

[skinsdad62]

http://www.redskins.com/media-galle..._Over_It/77243405-88fa-4583-9234-d4efa8294fcc

part 3 wed presser

 

[Krusheasy]

mcvay presser

Los Angeles Rams Head Coach Sean McVay


On how QB Kirk Cousins helped his career:

“Well, I think when you look at his success – being around great players – you know anytime that you are able to be involved with one side of the ball that has a good amount of success like we were fortunate to do the last couple years and when you have got the quarterback position playing at such a high level, a lot of times coaches or coordinators end up getting credit for it. But I think it is more that I am lucky to be able to have worked with a player like Kirk just because of the way that he approaches the game. He is one of the few players that you’re around [that] makes you accountable as the coach because you want to make sure you have answers for all the questions he has because he is going to do such a thorough job with his preparation and his approach. You feel accountable to those types of guys to make sure that you’re doing everything you can to try to help those guys succeed. It was a great relationship and you guys know how highly I think of Kirk.”



On what he can take from his experience with Cousins and apply it to QB Jared Goff:

“I think just being able to work with the quarterback position. I think very highly of Colt McCoy too. So I think the experience – as far as learning how important that rapport is between your quarterback and your play caller, making sure you guys are on the same page, they kind of can almost know what call is coming before you say it. I think that rapport and that connection that you have is very important and that is what you’re trying to continue to work to establish here with Jared and Sean Mannion. I think it is a credit too to our whole coaching staff. We have got [Offensive Coordinator] Matt LaFleur and [Quarterbacks Coach] Greg Olson that have done a great job of getting him ready to go. He had a good week last week and we know it is going to be an excellent challenge against a really tough defense this week.”



On his first impressions of Goff:

“I think the biggest thing I would say is when you get a chance to work with him and then you evaluate the games that he did play last year – like I have said over and over – you look and you see a natural thrower of the football. You see a tough player that will keep his eyes down the field and not watch the rush. As he continues to gain that experience, playing underneath the center, working the play-action game, the boots and different things like that, I think you see him getting more and more comfortable just like anyone else would. But even though you are playing out of the gun exclusively at Cal, you are still working progressions, seeing coverage, trying to throw with the timing and rhythm. It just might be a little bit different philosophical approach. He has played the quarterback positon at a high level. I think it has really been about – over the last handful of months – figuring out what he’s comfortable with and then kind of what fits our players while you also still also do want to have an identity. I think that is something as we gain experience together, I think we will get a better feel for each other and he will continue to get more comfortable with that experience that is going to be accumulated.”



On how the league could have more success integrating college quarterbacks from that kind of system:

“You know, it’s interesting. You get that question a lot because, at the end of the day, when you look at college football and you look at NFL football, they’re both based on production. Certainly the schooling and all that stuff in college is very important, but coaches are paid to win football games. When you see the way college football is set up, these teams that are competing for national titles and doing a good job offensively, a lot of them are operating out of the spread and that’s the best way they feel to move the football. I think the results speak for themselves. Now you do have a handful of teams that will operate under the center and do a couple different things that are a little bit more similar to what you see around the league. I think what is very important as far as just working that transition from college to the NFL is doing a great job with the evaluation of the person to see how you think those skills would translate. You know, how do they process information? Are they able to make quick, good decisions with the football? That’s where you see guys that have played in – I guess spread if you will. You look at what some of the guys in his class alone, with Dak [Prescott] and Carson Wentz. Those guys made a pretty quick transition and they got a lot of experience last year.”



On his familiarity with the Redskins and if it benefits his team:

“I think Jay [Gruden] said it best earlier in the week. I think you do have an idea, but you don’t know when they are going to do it, and that’s where you still have to play a football game – it’s reactionary. You want to try to put your guys in good spots, but you also want to be careful of not giving too much information where it doesn’t allow them to play fast. You want to help guys out with some of the keys that you have, but it will be the same thing with Jay knowing exactly how we want to operate offensively. So I think it kind of goes both ways, but really as a coach, you are just trying to make sure we make good decisions and try to put our players in good spots to have success.”



On what he saw in Cousins that made him believe in him:

“Well, I think you see the traits and the characteristics show up on a daily basis. One of the things that I’ve always heard said is that if you see a guy play at a high level, then it’s your job as a coach to try to bring it out in him consistently. I think just the way that when you get to know the human being too, mentally tough guy, clearly he’s extremely talented throwing the football where he can speed his release up at the top, he’s got a naturally quick release, he’s special in terms of that. And then I think he’s also a special human being in that, any time you spend time with Kirk, as you guys know, he’s not a guy you want to bet against. He’s a guy that you believe is going to figure it out eventually, and I think once he got his chance, he clearly showed why he’s very capable, and he’s only going to continue to get better. That’s why he’s a guy that he’s really easy to believe in. And I think that’s pretty consistent with any coach that’s ever worked with him. You talk to any of these guys that are football guys, the thing that you’ll hear consistently is that nobody is surprised that Kirk has played this well.”


On Cousins giving him a signed jersey that says he owed him his career:

“That jersey is up in a room that’s kind of like a theater room in my house. That’s probably as special as a gift as I’ve ever received from a player because of how much Kirk meant to me. I think it happened that a lot of the good things that have happened with us kind of coincided together and I think there was a bond that was shared between us. To be able to do that and for him to write that, certainly I know that’s not true because he’s done a lot of that on his own. But to be a part of it and to try to help him is what coaching’s all about. And guys like Kirk are why you get into coaching.”



On if this game will be different from a regular game emotionally:

“Well, I think it’s different because of getting to see the people, and it’s weird, you know you’re watching a lot of guys that you know and you’re talking about some of the offensive players that have been instrumental in helping your career go the way that it’s gone. The one thing that you do know is, at least you’d like to think so, is that there’s a lot of emotions. It’s certainly never something because of how important these wins and losses are that if you had your pick, you wouldn’t want to have to go against people that you really care about where usually, with the exception of games like Cincinnati, there’s a winner and there’s a loser. I think you try to keep it as much about the game as possible, while there is still the human element and a lot of people that are important to you. But I’m hopeful that once this game kicks off, and once we get past the pregame warmups and stuff like that, you fall into your normal routine where you’re calling plays and trying to make sure that you’re in tune with what’s going on in the game to make good decisions and see if you can come away with a good result.”



On if he’s talked to Redskins Head Coach Jay Gruden since Week 1:

“Oh yeah, of course. I talked to Jay on Sunday after our game. Jay’s really… he’s been great to me and he’s a close friend. We can keep it where we’re talking and not giving competitive advantages but you still care about somebody that’s been such a close friend. You want to see those guys do well and we keep in touch very regularly.”



On how different the Redskins’ defense looks under Defensive Coordinator Greg Manusky:

“Once you get into the flow of the season… Like during training camp, you have a good feel for what your defensive scheme is doing and things like that, but as the season progresses and you get more game plan specific, you don’t have a whole lot of… I didn’t really know as much what was going on on the defense with Joe [Barry] as the season went on, just because during periods that they were performing, you’re trying to get some extra work in with Kirk or things like that. Different than that, I’m not watching their film. You’re moving on, you’re watching yourself and you’re making sure that you’re doing what you can and trying to make sure the offense is operating at a high level. To see really where our defense progressed last year, I could’ve told you right after training camp kind of what the things that Joe was emphasizing were. But as the season progressed, you get a little bit further away from it just by the natural rhythm of the season. But in terms of seeing this defense, I’ll tell you one thing that you do see, is you see guys playing extremely hard up front, credit to Coach [Jim] Tomsula and Coach Manusky. You see the linebackers with K.O. [Coach Kirk Olivadotti], in the back end with some of the new additions they’ve made, those guys compete, they fly around, they do a good job of communicating. There’s a handful of guys that jump off the screen at you that at you that we’ve got to be ready for.”



On how different it will be to game plan against Cousins:

“Yeah, I mean, it will be different, but I think at the end of the day, you don’t know when they are going to do certain things. You might know what certain guys tendencies are and stuff like that, but you still have got to go play and react. We have got some great players on defense. They have some great players on offense. I think it is going to be a great matchup.”

 

[Krusheasy]

ESPN 980 Audio Vault - Play Now

LA Rams Head Coach & former Redskins Offensive Coordinator Sean McVay joins Cooley & Kevin discussing the Rams win over the Colts is his NFL Head Coaching debut! Plus, Sean tells us his expectations for Sunday when the Redskins play the Rams! (Date Added: 9/13/17)

 

[Krusheasy]

 

[SJ76]

mcvay presser

I really like McVay, especially compared to what the Rams have had the past 10 years +. Nice change, different mentality and leadership. Our offense has been so bad for years and our defense kept us in games (sometimes).

Should be a good game.

 

[Krusheasy]

this weeks crew

 

[Krusheasy]

I really like McVay, especially compared to what the Rams have had the past 10 years +. Nice change, different mentality and leadership. Our offense has been so bad for years and our defense kept us in games (sometimes).

Should be a good game.

I believe he'll have long & successful career ... and he's only 31 so our grandkids could be watching him coach

i predict the redskins will run into the same issue every week, including this week vs the rams. They will shut down the redskins run game, make them one dimensional ... and start to tee off on cousins and the o-line leading to turnovers and get boat race by double digit deficits. People will blame the defense for allowing so many points ... but its the offense fault for not staying on the field.

 

[SJ76]

I believe he'll have long & successful career ... and he's only 31 so our grandkids could be watching him coach

i predict the redskins will run into the same issue every week, including this week vs the rams. They will shut down the redskins run game, make them one dimensional ... and start to tee off on cousins and the o-line leading to turnovers and get boat race by double digit deficits. People will blame the defense for allowing so many points ... but its the offense fault for not staying on the field.

Would have been nice if the Skins would have grabbed a RB before the 4th round. If you all don't have much of a running game, not sure what to expect from Kirk - especially after losing your OC, Desean, and Garcon.

 

[skinz2winz]

Would have been nice if the Skins would have grabbed a RB before the 4th round. If you all don't have much of a running game, not sure what to expect from Kirk - especially after losing your OC, Desean, and Garcon.

The Skins had opportunity to grab a RB earlier in the draft as well as another OL (LG) and could have pulled one or either in FA but refused. You reap what you sow and as it should be, we are struggling up front and with our overall run game. Our QB and WR's cannot get on the same page and it's a no wonder things seem in disarray.

As an organization, we cannot get out of our own way it seems!

 

[skinsdad62]

The Skins had opportunity to grab a RB earlier in the draft as well as another OL (LG) and could have pulled one or either in FA but refused. You reap what you sow and as it should be, we are struggling up front and with our overall run game. Our QB and WR's cannot get on the same page and it's a no wonder things seem in disarray.

As an organization, we cannot get out of our own way it seems!

ok what FA do you pass on ? or 2 ? do you pass on pryor ? brown ? DJ ? which hole dont you want to address this year ? sure wont say we coulddnt have gotten a RB or OG or NT . but there is a trade off and when our other positions are playing stop gaps then what ? do we complain about that ? i think DJ solves a safety position and allen solves a DE ,. jury out out pryor and brown is a potential upgrade at ILB , perine could be a solution at RB

mcgee and mcclain started out ok week one so jury is out on them

so do we give up FM for an OG ? or anderson for a RB ? is that what you wanted ?

 

[Krusheasy]

ok what FA do you pass on ?

they are still 5 million under the cap

Washington Redskins Salary Cap | Over the Cap

 

[gkekoa]

The Skins had opportunity to grab a RB earlier in the draft as well as another OL (LG) and could have pulled one or either in FA but refused. You reap what you sow and as it should be, we are struggling up front and with our overall run game. Our QB and WR's cannot get on the same page and it's a no wonder things seem in disarray.

As an organization, we cannot get out of our own way it seems!

Yes they did. They could have passed up on a top 5 pick at 17.

Now the second round was an option. We could have gone with a third round RB or a low rated G and kept a hole at OLB.

In the third round, we could have passed up on a possible first round CB.

Who exactly could we have got in FA?

 

[Krusheasy]

Who exactly could we have got in FA?

lots to choose from under 5 mil

2017 NFL Free Agents Tracker

 

[gkekoa]

lots to choose from under 5 mil

2017 NFL Free Agents Tracker

So nobody?

 

[Krusheasy]

So nobody?

you want me to type out the names ?

Karlos Williams & Ryan Matthews are both available.

Its too late to play the coulda/woulda/shoulda game ...

but Ronnie Hillman is a name on the list they should have at least brought in for a physical.

 

[gkekoa]

you want me to type out the names ?

Karlos Williams & Ryan Matthews are both available.

Its too late to play the coulda/woulda/shoulda game ...

but Ronnie Hillman is a name on the list they should have at least brought in for a physical.

Are any of these guys doing anything to make us believe they are an improvement?

 

[Krusheasy]

Are any of these guys doing anything to make us believe they are an improvement?

i am no evaluator of talent

but the staff should have done their due diligence

how does it improve the squad by saving that 5 mil ?