Category: 2019 NFL Regular Season

Behind Enemy Lines: Previewing the rematch with Giants Wire

The Giants and Redskins will face off in the ‘Chase Young Bowl’ on Sunday, and both teams have a major incentive to lose the game.

Singling out the moment that started the Washington Redskins’ weeks-long run at rock-bottom is hard to do, but September 29th might be the most logical date.

It was almost three months ago that the Redskins and New York Giants faced off for the first time in the 2019 season. A 24-3 loss — accompanied by three interceptions from rookie QB Dwayne Haskins — left Washington with an 0-4 record, and coach Jay Gruden was just a week away from being shown the door. Since then, things have picked up a little bit for the Redskins, and though they aren’t by any means a good football team, they have at least shown some improvement.

Ahead of this Week 16 rematch between NFC East divisional foes, we caught up with Dan Benton, the managing editor for USA TODAY’s Giants Wire to preview the matchup, and swap stories from two disappointing seasons. Here’s our conversation:

Redskins Wire: For the first time in what hopefully becomes a long rivalry, we get to watch Daniel Jones vs. Dwayne Haskins. Who do you think will come out on top and have the better day as a rookie quarterback?

Dan Benton: That’s an interesting question because I can see this game playing out a multitude of ways. Dwayne Haskins will have the opportunity to feast on a very poor Giants defense that is now without cornerback Janoris Jenkins, so it’s possible he puts up some early career-best numbers. Additionally, Daniel Jones has missed the past two weeks recovering from a high ankle sprain, so rust is entirely possible. He may also have his mobility limited a bit due to that injury, so based on the scenario, I think Haskins will probably have the better game. And I would mention why that’s a good thing, but I’ll save that for the next question…

RW: Neither team has had a particularly successful season, and both would largely benefit from losing this game, as it would greatly aid their position in the draft order for 2020. Do you think that we’ll see any hint of that on the field, or do you expect both teams to be playing for the win on Sunday?

DB: I played football from Junior High School through Semi-Pro and have been covering the NFL since 2003, and over that span, I’ve never once encountered an athlete who was willing to lose a game or intentionally throw a play in the hopes of losing. That’s not to say it hasn’t been done, but as I am sure you can also attest, anyone who has experienced the competitiveness of the game of football knows it’s 100% max effort 100% of the time. Not only is it dangerous for players to scale it down, but it’s also just not how their DNA is written. And while a loss would benefit both the Giants and Redskins, I have to believe (and would be willing to bet) they both go out there on Sunday and do literally everything they can to experience a winning locker room.

RW: Though the Redskins are usually the king of a quarterback controversy, the Giants have been flopping between Manning and Jones this season, though it’s had more to do with injury than anything. With Jones back under center, do you expect any aspects of New York’s offense to return to form?

DB: I think that “return to form” may not necessarily be a good thing for these Giants. That’s not intended as a knock on Daniel Jones, but even in the first two weeks of the season, the Giants offense was more functional with Eli Manning under center and that really had to do with his experience. While Jones is more mobile and willing to air it out, he doesn’t have the wealth of knowledge Manning does. As a result, Jones isn’t free to adjust plays at the line of scrimmage based on what he’s seeing and he also doesn’t yet have the wherewithal to readjust and call out protections, which is an area Manning excels. As a result, Saquon Barkley and the offensive line have struggled substantially more under Jones than Manning, and I imagine we see that again on Sunday. That will change with time and experience, but for now (and as hard as it may be for some to admit), the offense is less functional under Jones than it is under Manning.

RW: This isn’t a question about the Redskins-Giants game this weekend, but rather something I’ve wanted to ask you since we last talked in Week 4. Odell Beckham Jr.; how are Giants fans feeling now? Vindicated? Exuberant? Sympathetic? The floor is yours…

DB: I am not going to lie… A large smile crossed my face as I read this question. I never wish ill on any NFL players and want them all to experience success because I know firsthand what goes into their craft, but when it comes to Odell… I don’t know, there’s just something about that entire situation I find some level of joy in. But before I go down that road, I want to say that I had gotten to know OBJ a bit over the years and as a person, he’s as good as it gets. He genuinely and truly is a well-intentioned guy who just wants to win. However, that often manifests itself in really bizarre and dramatic ways that become tiring and unintentionally detrimental to a team. Moreover, his subtle trash-talking of Eli Manning was completely out of line, so seeing him suffer through a career-worst season feels somewhat warranted. I’m sure GM Dave Gettleman feels similarly after the insane amount of heat he received for dealing Beckham. Hopefully, this humbles Beckham and helps him realize that he’s the common denominator in all of these dramatic situations.

RW: The game on Sunday could accurately be named ‘The Chase Young Bowl,’ as the winner of this matchup is likely to be terrorized by the generational talent out of Ohio State for years to come. Of course, drafting him is not a foregone conclusion. I have a good feeling about the answer for the Redskins, but if the Giants had a chance to take Young, is there any chance they pass on him?

DB: None. I legitimately can not envision a scenario in which the Giants were to pass on Young if he were available. The team’s primary need is an elite edge rusher and there are none better than Young coming out of college in 2020. I’m sure Gettleman & Co. will give some level of consideration to the top left tackles, but when push comes to shove, you can’t pass on Young. As Gettleman has said the past two seasons, when you pick in the top 5, you have to take someone with Hall of Fame potential. And Young absolutely fits that bill.

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The Redskins’ foundation is quite literally dysfunctional and deteriorating

The Redskins’ struggles on the field are well-known, but a new report details dysfunction all the way down to the core.

December football is largely equated with playoff runs and nail-biter games that have a chance to swing the postseason while several upper-echelon teams duke it out on their hopeful road to the Super Bowl.

However, that viewpoint disregards approximately half of the teams in the league, many of which are left struggling at the bottom, waking up every morning to a note on their bedside table that reads ‘There’s always next year.’

While the NFL’s array of fanbases are divided at this time of year — some with hopes for January and the playoffs; others with dreams of April and the NFL Draft — a reporter from ESPN took a trip to Dumpsville and profiled some of the most incompetent teams in the league. What he found was disturbing.

What David Fleming witnessed in Washington had little to do with the Redskins, but more the environment they inhabited. The scene-setting graf panned away from rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins to detail the vibe of a cluttered garage out of the show ‘Hoarders.’

Just out of frame to the left are boxes of sports drinks stacked halfway up the wall, next to a row of steel dead-lift bars, burgundy laundry carts, random piles of electronic equipment and postal boxes. To the right is a blue floor-cleaning machine the size of a pony parked between red metal dollies, another tangle of electric cords and several restaurant-size soda canisters.

The piece goes on to question what Haskins may think of his surroundings, after having spent time in the state-of-the-art facilities at Ohio State before seeing his dream of playing the NFL realized, only to walk through the front doors and see a locker room that likely closer-resembles the one he occupied in high school, rather than college.

The dysfunction in Washington has never been a secret, but at least before getting a mental image of the facilities, fans could trick themselves into believing that it was an on-field issue, and not a brick-and-mortar issue.

Through all of this, though, we found ourselves asking one question: Does any of this come as a surprise?

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DeAngelo Hall doesn’t think Bruce Allen is in jeopardy of losing his job

After a private meeting with Bruce Allen, Hall didn’t get the sense that the GM was about to be shown the exit in Washington.

If you were to ask fans of the Washington Redskins, many would likely tell you that the first step in steering the ship in the right direction would be to fire team president and general manager, Bruce Allen.

On the same note, many people connected to the organization might also tell you that they think Allen is likely on his way out, based on some developing trends, as well as a familiar string of events that took place a decade ago. However, former Redskin DeAngelo Hall doesn’t seem to agree. He told The Athletic‘s Erin Hawksworth on Friday that it wouldn’t surprise him to see Allen stick around after having a private meeting with the GM.

“I left that meeting not feeling like Bruce was in jeopardy to lose his job,” Hall said.

He stopped short of delving into details, but something was said in that meeting that made Hall think that Allen would make it at least another year with the Redskins. Hall, who played for 10 seasons with Washington, was actually linked loosely to the job earlier this month after he came out and said that he desired a front-office job with the Redskins.

“Do I think this team needs to do a lot of things to right the ship? Absolutely,” said Hall. “Has Bruce done the best job? Maybe not. But I have all the confidence in the world that the people in that building can get it fixed.”

If Hall is, in fact, looking for a job with the team, he surely wouldn’t be helping his stock by bad-mouthing the man in charge, so this quote needs to be taken with a grain of salt. Still, through all of the conflicting reports that have sprung from the Washington circles over the past month, there is now one more that goes into the Pro-Allen column. It may not end up meaning much, but it’s at least an opinion to take note of.

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Redskins can double their cap-space and attract coaches with a few simple moves

There’s a way that the Redskins can become a contender in the NFC East as soon as 2020, and all it takes is ridding the roster of some aging and expensive talent.

After it was announced this month that the NFL’s 2020 Salary Cap was likely to increase to somewhere between $196 and $201 million next season, it probably caused many fans of the Washington Redskins to do some research and find that the team will have approximately $48 million of cap space this coming offseason.

However, there are several moves that could make that number grow even higher for the Redskins, and that increased flexibility might behoove them in other areas this offseason, as they look to find an elite coaching candidate to fill their vacancy at the top stop.

According to NBC Sports JP Finlay, if Washington were to make these five roster moves this offseason, it could potentially clear up $50 million in extra cap-space, giving the Redskins more than $90 million to work with. As it stands now, that would be the third-most in the NFL. Here’s what Washington would need to do:

  • Cut CB Josh Norman | Saves $12.5 million in 2020
  • Cut WR Paul Richardson | Saves $6.5 million in 2020
  • Cut or reach an injury settlement with TE Jordan Reed | Saves $8.5 million in 2020
  • Trade LB Ryan Kerrigan | Saves $11.7 million in 2020
  • Trade LT Trent Williams | Saves $12.75 million in 2020

All of those roster decisions seem highly possible, and any logical franchise would likely pull the trigger instantly. However….well, I don’t need to say it.

Not only would this freed-up cap-space allow the Redskins to be highly active in free agency, but the added flexibility could be a huge selling point for any coaching candidate who may be wary of stepping into a difficult position in Washington. As it stands now, the Redskins have a stubborn owner, an incompetent general manager, and a whole host of players who are either injured or refusing to play taking up more than half of their cap space. You’d have to be a fool to willingly take on that job.

However, with a few of the moves we mentioned earlier, the Redskins could rid their roster of aging and expensive talent, spend on committed players who are in their prime and surround their talented young core with playmakers who are coming into their own. You pair that with the right coach, and suddenly you have a contender in the NFC East on your hands.

All of this can be done with a few roster decisions and a commitment to the future. Any logical franchise would do it…

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Should the Redskins choose to sit Landon Collins on Sunday vs. Giants?

Collins has been held out of practice for much of the week after complaining of soreness in his Achilles, but the coaches hope he will play.

The Washington Redskins have a major decision to make regarding one of their most valuable assets. No, it’s not Trent Williams, or Adrian Peterson, or even Dwayne Haskins. Rather, the focus now is on safety Landon Collins.

Collins, who signed a six-year, $84 million contract with the Redskins this offseason, has been dealing with soreness in his Achilles this past week and is in question to play this Sunday against the New York Giants. The 25-year-old has been held out of practice for most of the week, but head coach Bill Callahan expressed some confidence that the top-level defender — who was named as an alternate for the Pro Bowl this past week — would be able to play.

So, what are the arguments for and against playing on Sunday should he be deemed healthy by the team doctors? Let’s break them down.

Argument Against Collins Playing

Next to Alex Smith, Collins is the most expensive contract that the Redskins have on the books and any risk of injury when talking about such a valuable asset should be negated completely. If we were talking about a pivotal game late in the season that might have a chance to improve Washington’s postseason standings, then sure, it would behoove Collins to do everything in his power to get back on the field and show up for his teammates. However, we’re not talking about a must-win game; quite the opposite, actually.

It would be extremely beneficial for the Redskins to lose to the Giants on Sunday, as it would greatly improve their draft position for 2020 with New York currently sitting two picks in front of them in the order.

It also seems like a time in sports history where people are keenly aware of Achilles injuries, and when not to push them. Over the past year in the NBA, we’ve seen two Achilles-related injuries play a part in a teams’ future outlook, though one is largely more significant than the other. Former Golden State Warriors star Kevin Durant went down in Game 5 of the NBA Finals with a ruptured Achilles tendon, and Portland Trailblazers forward Rodney Hood felt the tendon tear earlier this season as well. Both players had been complaining of soreness in the area, and in Durant’s case, he has sat out several weeks prior to the injury with a calf strain to the same leg.

Arguments For Collins Playing

There are none.

So when Landon Collins comes out and complains of soreness in his Achilles, but still looks to get ready for a meaningless game in December against another 3-11 team, what do you do?

We would choose to sit him down, but hey, that’s just us.

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Tress Way details how he found out about being named to 2020 NFL Pro Bowl

Way was named the starting punter for the NFC team in the 2020 NFL Pro Bowl, and his story about Callahan telling him is pretty touching.

For the first time in his career, Washington Redskins punter Tress Way was named the starter for the NFC team in the 2020 NFL Pro Bowl — an achievement that he’s been after for quite some time.

While the trip to play in the league’s all-star game in Orlando, Fla. won’t take place until January of 2020, Way enjoyed his day in the sun earlier this week as he told reporters how he found out, on a call from head coach Bill Callahan.

“I hear, ‘Tress, this is Coach Callahan,'” Way said, via NBC Sports Washington. “And my heart started frickin’ racing. And I was like, ‘Oh my god.’ I was in the car with my wife, and we’re talking, and he said, ‘Hey, I just want to let you know that you’re the starting punter for the NFC in the Pro Bowl.’ I said, ‘Are you serious?’ And he goes, ‘You are. You’ve done a heck of a job.'”

Not only was Way named to the Pro Bowl roster, but he was named the starter, cementing his place as one of the top punters in the NFL. It’s well deserved, too, as he’s put on an absolute clinic over the past two seasons. Way has pinned an opponent inside its 20-yard line 50 times the past two years and booted it into the end zone for a touchback just twice in 145 attempts over that time.

“I said, ‘Coach, thank you,'” Way said. “If you don’t mind, I’m going to hang up because my wife’s here, and I’m going to start crying.’ And he started laughing, and I hung up. I looked at my wife and I kind of had some tears in my eyes and she goes, ‘It’s the Pro Bowl, isn’t it?’ And I just lost it.”

Way is one of four players on the Redskins to be named to the 2020 NFL Pro Bowl, but he is undoubtedly the most deserving.

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Searching for the logic in Bruce Allen’s continued employment with the Redskins

All signs point towards an expected dismissal of team president Bruce Allen, but Daniel Snyder has refused to pull the trigger as of yet.

Many fans of the Washington Redskins are probably scrolling through their newsfeed today and reading about the Jacksonville Jaguars’ firing of Tom Coughlin — the team’s top executive — with envy, and a hint of resentment.

It’s THAT easy to rid of a front office decision-maker? All you have to do is recognize that the team didn’t improve under his watch and has failed to build a solid foundation for the future, and then you can just fire him? Why haven’t we done that?

Why is Bruce Allen still employed by the Redskins?!

The answer is unclear. After 10 years in Washington, with a 62-98-1 regular-season record, Bruce Allen is still the Team President of the Redskins. Why has owner Daniel Snyder not moved on from him yet? The team is in disarray, the fanbase is dwindling, ticket-sales are plummeting, and a new head coach needs to be hired this offseason — one who is unlikely to take the job should Allen remain, unless they are desperate to get back into the coaching game. What’s the rationale there?

This may seem like an abundance of questions right off the top, but when you don’t have any answers, all you can do is keep asking questions until something starts to make sense. So far, we’re still searching for the logic in all of this.

In 2009, Snyder fired front office leader Vinny Cerrato, who had failed to right the ship in Washington and had caused multitudes of unrest in the fan base. Sound familiar? With just a couple of weeks left in the regular season, Allen was dubbed the savior of the Redskins, and the fanbase rejoiced. Many were optimistic at the prospect of a new general manager coming in and repairing the locker room while focussing on the roster talent in a much-needed way.

Deja Vu? If I were to take the last paragraph and make slight edits to the date and the name, it could easily be pasted into an article that might come out in a few weeks, should Snyder decide to give Allen the ax. Look at this quote that The Athletic‘s Ben Standig dug up from SB Nation on the day that Cerrato was fired, and tell me it doesn’t sound familiar.

“Redskins fans across the country are waking up to the greatest news they could’ve possible (sic) heard about their disappointing team: VP Vinny Cerrato, the man in charge of making the horrid personnel decisions for the franchise, has resigned. For many Skins fans… the dismissal of Cerrato was the only good that could’ve come from this season. Now that it’s really happening, it makes the 3-win year feel like a winning season.”

This isn’t a new spot for the Washington Redskins to be in, they’ve had to make this type of decision before. But for some reason, this time around, Snyder seems reluctant to pull the trigger, and both Allen and the fanbase as a whole are waiting with bated breath.

Will it happen before the regular season ends, or the 2020 season begins? Who knows, we don’t have the answers; we’re still searching for the logic in all of this, and coming up short.

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Adrian Peterson gifts record-setting game ball to Terry McLaurin

McLaurin was partially responsible for Peterson’s record-setting touchdown on Sunday, so the veteran gave him a gift to remember the play.

In the spirit of the holiday season, Washington Redskins veteran running back Adrian Peterson gave rookie wide receiver Terry McLaurin a thoughtful gift on Wednesday.

Just days after Peterson moved into a tie for 4th on the Career Rushing TD list in NFL History, tieing Walter Payton, he gifted the ball he did it with to McLaurin for his helping hand in the play. McLaurin, who was spread out right on the play, held onto his block long enough for Peterson to reverse field and cut up into the endzone.

On the ball, Peterson wrote “Terry, here’s a token of appreciation! Great block youngster, you made this possible.”

Earlier in the week, McLaurin expressed that he was more excited about the block he had to spring AP than his 75-yard touchdown earlier in the game. Now he has a way to commemorate it for the rest of his life.

Good luck topping that gift this holiday season!

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Dwayne Haskins says he wants to throw up watching film of first game vs. Giants

Haskins threw for 107 yards with three interceptions in his NFL debut against the Giants, something that he wants to avoid this weekend.

When the Washington Redskins host the New York Giants this weekend at FedEx Field, it will act as a small milestone moment for rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins.

There aren’t any stats that he’s chasing or material things he might achieve, but it will undoubtedly act as a mile marker in his career, as it will be his first chance to face a team for the second time in his career.

Haskins made his NFL debut back in Week 4 of the 2019 season against the New York Giants, coming in for relief of Case Keenum. The debut didn’t go quite as planned, with Haskins finishing the day throwing three interceptions on 9-for-17 passing with just 107 yards and no touchdowns. It’s safe to say that he has grown a little bit as a player since then.

Outside of this past week’s performance against the Philadelphia Eagles — Haskins threw for 261 yards and two touchdowns — immaculate stats haven’t been easy to obtain for the rookie. Nonetheless, anyone who has watched the 22-year-old play for the last six games can see a distinct development that has left him more comfortable in the pocket, and more accurate throwing it downfield.

It may not all culminate into a game where Haskins is able to pad the stats on Sunday against the Giants, but it would be pretty tough to play worse than he did that first time around. For the first time in his career, we will be able to take these two games against New York and see just how far Haskins has come since that Week 4 game.

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ESPN Mock Draft 1.0 has Redskins picking Alabama receiver Jerry Jeudy

The Redskins would be hard-pressed to pass on a receiving talent like Jerry Jeudy if they are able to grab him early in the first round.

The 2020 NFL Draft order is sure to receive a massive shake-up this coming week, as the teams who are currently pegged for the top-four picks play against each other.

The Washington Redskins (3-11) will host the New York Giants (3-11), and the Cincinnati Bengals (1-13) will travel to take on the Miami Dolphins (3-11).

While the Redskins and Giants battle it out for the bottom spot in the NFC East, the Cincinnati Bengals (No. 1 pick) travel to face the Miami Dolphins (No. 3 pick) in a matchup that has similar stakes on the line. If the Bengals lose, they will lock up the No. 1 overall pick in 2020, and it will leave the Redskins and Giants fighting it out for the No. 2 pick.

Though the question of “who gets who?” is sure to change a number of times over the next few weeks, there is still no harm in taking a look at some of the possible options that might be available to your team.

Earlier this week, ESPN’s Todd McShay released his 2020 NFL Mock Draft 1.0. With a current hold on the No. 4 pick in the draft, the Redskins may be pegged to miss out on a generational defensive lineman like Ohio State’s Chase Young, but McShay thinks that they’ll still land a supreme talent, predicting that they’ll take Alabama WR Jerry Jeudy. 

Washington needs an offensive tackle and some cornerback help, but it also has to get more playmakers around rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins. And it would be really hard to pass on adding Jeudy opposite Terry McLaurin. Jeudy is by far the best route runner in the country.

It’s tough to get extremely excited about a pick this far away from the end of the season, as the draft order is highly subject to change over the final two weeks, but as a consolation prize for coming in at No. 4, Jeudy is nothing to think twice about. Though Washington might be better served drafting for need and taking a tackle like Andrew Thomas out of Georgia, it would be extremely difficult to pass on the type of talent that Jeudy brings to the table, which would bolster their young receiving core beyond belief.

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