Game Thread: Week 5: Redskins @ Ravens

[Caliskinsfan]

Nice to see this team getting the 'ugly win' instead of losing it in the last drive of the game as has been the norm in dark times. That is progress that I'll take any day. Baby steps.

 

[Caliskinsfan]

 

[Caliskinsfan]

There’s a thin line between winning and losing in the NFL, and the Redskins were on the right side of the line when Ravens linebacker C.J. Mosley fumbled an interception return into the end zone and out of bounds for a touchback, inches short of seven points. (Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post)



By Jerry Brewer Columnist October 9

BALTIMORE — This is who the Washington Redskins are, imperfect yet impervious to flaw, maddeningly flaky, mysteriously enjoyable. They’re the prototypical good, bad NFL team.

They have a 3-2 record despite serving as physical comedy every week. You’re not sure whether you’re laughing at them or laughing with them. Heck, they’re not sure, either. But they have a quality, no matter how difficult to quantify, that keeps them on the right side of mediocrity. They have a gift not only for winning ugly but for winning kooky. The crazier the game, the more likely they are to triumph. They have been this way for about a year now, and for all the confused facial expressions they inspire, wacky works for them.

If you want to explain Washington’s 16-10 victory Sunday over Baltimore in one play, sync your laugh track with the 6:09 mark of the third quarter. With Washington leading 13-10 at M&T Bank Stadium, Kirk Cousins threw an interception to Baltimore linebacker C.J. Mosley, who leaped high to snag the pass at the Washington 13-yard line. Then Mosley weaved toward the end zone, en route to one of those plays that would incite another round of local quarterback bellyaching. And just when you knew that Cousins was being fitted yet again for a goat’s backward-curving horns, Mosley fumbled at the 1-yard line. The ball trickled through the end zone and out of bounds. It was a touchback, not a victory killer.

It was so apropos for this game.

“My stomach dropped more than a few times,” safety Will Blackmon said of riding this roller coaster.


This is the NFL at its best — or its worst, depending on your tolerance of parity. The upper echelon is almost deserted, the slums are just as uncongested, and the middle tier is overpopulated and rancid. The middle can seem like purgatory sometimes. It’s full of bad games that produce good drama, and a team’s fate is determined by how well or poorly it handles playing grimy football.

Every year, there are playoff teams that have this mystical knack for collecting wins in this manner. Every year, there are teams that finish 7-9 or 8-8 and curse how close they were to two or three more victories.

Of the latter, Baltimore outside linebacker Terrell Suggs says: “It’s a [expletive] feeling. [Expletive] that, losing sucks.”

Of the former, Washington Coach Jay Gruden says: “I think it’s just everybody staying together. I know what type of team we have. We know these games are going to come down to the wire. I don’t know if we’ll ever dominate everybody and win 53-3. We have to understand that these games are going to be 60 minutes long. They all are nowadays in the NFL.”

The Ravens won three close games to start the season, and now they have lost two straight close ones. Washington’s route to 3-2: Lose the first two, then claim three straight games that could have gone either way. Two of those victories have been on the road.

On Sunday, one foot was the difference between winning and losing. With 33 seconds remaining, Joe Flacco seemed to complete a 23-yard touchdown pass to Breshad Perriman, who made the catch over cornerback Josh Norman. But the replay showed that Perriman had only one foot inbounds. The initial touchdown call was reversed, and the pass was ruled incomplete. Baltimore went from being an extra point from winning to losing in painful fashion.


In four of Washington’s five games, the line between winning and losing, between blame and praise, has been that thin. The team could be 4-1 right now. It could be 1-4 or 0-5. So 3-2 is a comfortable place for a team with so many shortcomings.

Really, what does Washington do consistently well? What’s the one thing that you can depend on an entire unit of this team to excel at, regardless of the opponent? Unless there’s a stat for persuading opponents to join you in making stupefying errors, Washington is a team without a constant strength. Still, it knows how to manipulate a scoreboard in its favor.

It’s an art.

“I’ve been on teams where bad things happen, and then it’s just a cloud over your head, never ending,” defensive lineman Ziggy Hood said. “But if you look around this team and all this talent, if everybody pulls together and sticks together, you can walk out here with a W. Every game is not going to be pretty. From here on out, it’s going to be grimy. Just give everything you’ve got, and then when the time runs out, just make sure you have more points than they do.”

Through five games, Washington has scored seven fewer points than its opponents. But it has won two of three games that have been decided by six points or fewer. The offense still abandons the run too often, especially in short-yardage situations. The defense still starts too slowly. The entire team still does too many incomprehensible things on the field.


But it also has the talent to get an 85-yard punt return touchdown from Jamison Crowder and a beautiful 21-yard Cousins touchdown pass to Pierre Garcon. And it has the toughness that leads Norman to play the final three quarters as “the one-hand bandit” after aggravating a right wrist injury. It has the persistence to deliver its best defensive performance when the criticism is most extreme.

“We’ve got a lot of people who have been here and been a part of tough games, and a lot of times in the past, we’ve come out on the losing end,” left tackle Trent Williams said. “I think all those times have been learning experiences. Thus far, we’ve been good in those situations. We’ve learned not to panic.”

They don’t perform. They play football games. Judge them like you’re at the theater, and you will be disappointed. Judge them on competitiveness, and, well, they’re not beyond disappointing you there, either.

Still, they keep playing and correcting. They keep winning their fair share, too.

 

[Caliskinsfan]

 

[Krusheasy]

ESPN 980 Audio Vault - Play Now

The Cooley Film Breakdown! Cooley & Kevin breakdown, analyze & grade the performances of the Redskins Offensive Players in their win over the Ravens. Plus, in-depth analysis on Kirk Cousins' game, the running backs, wide receivers & offensive line! (Date Added: 10/11/16)

ESPN 980 Audio Vault - Play Now

Galdi gives his five biggest takeaways from the Redskins' 16-10 win at Baltimore. (Date Added: 10/10/16)

 

[skinsdad62]

we need to stop talking about scherf like he was a draft mistake sooner or later

 

[Sportster 72]

we need to stop talking about scherf like he was a draft mistake sooner or later

That boy is a beast, he seems to have at least one block like that every game .... so good in some cases the refs couldn't believe he wasn't holding.

 

[Caliskinsfan]

we need to stop talking about scherf like he was a draft mistake sooner or later

Never not been on board

 

[Caliskinsfan]

 

[Caliskinsfan]

FWIW

 

[Krusheasy]

The Cooley Film Breakdown! Cooley & Kevin breakdown, analyze & grade the performances of the Redskins Defensive Players in their win over the Ravens. Plus, in-depth analysis on Josh Norman's game, the rest of the secondary, the linebackers & defensive line! (Date Added: 10/13/16)

ESPN 980 Audio Vault - Play Now

3 players earned a 9.0 grade from cooley .... some of the highest of the season. Ravens rookie OL made the ILB look really good... hopefully that experience can help them build some confidence so that kind of production can continue

 

[Krusheasy]

lol think Cooly just had an orgasm speaking about Matt Ioannidis around the 15 min mark

 

[Sportster 72]

I watched Matt on a number of plays and thought he played well. Not great but pretty well.

 

[Caliskinsfan]