The Washington Football Team scored 27 unanswered points to lead a second-half comeback over the Philadelphia Eagles, upsetting their division rival and starting the 2020 season off undefeated.
Go ahead and read that again. And again. And again.
It absolutely wasn’t pretty, but Washington got it done when the going got tough. After falling behind 17-0 in the first half, Washington flipped a switch that nobody knew existed, and their defense was able to come up with huge stops, while the offense finally got in a rhythm.
Team defense was the name of the game, and in the end, it was the dominant defensive line that sealed the deal, getting a strip-sack off of Carson Wentz after going up 27-17 late in the fourth quarter. In all, the defensive line finished with eight sacks, and the offense scored every touchdown they had when starting in Philly field position.
All that matters is that they started the year with a victory. After blowing a 17-0 lead to the Eagles a year ago, this is about as good as you could ask for.
Final Score: 27-17
Key MomentS
4th and 1 Conversion in 4th Quarter
Tie game, midway through the fourth quarter, and Washington has the ball with a 4th and 1 inside the Eagles 10. Kick the FG and go up by 3, right?
Not when Riverboat Ron is your coach. Washington decided to go for it, putting all of their chips on the table. It worked out, and Peyton Barber was able to rush to the right side for a conversion. A few plays later, Barber’s name was called once again, and he punched it in for the score, giving Washington a 24-17 lead.
95% of coaches would have gone for the easy lead. Not Ron.
Fabian Moreau Interception in 2nd Quarter
The tide officially started to turn in the game when Fabian Moreau came up with a big interception late in the second quarter, giving Washington the ball back with some time to play. Dwayne Haskins then led the offense on a nice drive, capping it off with a touchdown to TE Logan Thomas before the half. Washington officially got things clicking.
Jimmy Moreland Interception in 3rd Quarter
After an uninspiring start to the half from Philly, Moreland came up with a big pick and nice return to get Washington back into scoring position. The offense was able to get the ball down to the one-yard line with a nice connection from Haskins to Steven Sims Jr., and Peyton Barber punched it in from there.
Jon Bostic 4th Down Sack
With Philadelphia searching for anything to go their way in the second half, they pushed the envelope by going for it on 4th and 4 near midfield. Jon Bostic came blitzing up the middle un-touched, and was able to sack Wentz for a big loss and turnover on downs. Washington took the ball down and tied the game at 17-17 with a field goal.
Biggest Takeaway
Ron Rivera is the Real Deal
Give the players all of the kudos you want, they definitely deserve them. However, what stood out the most on Sunday was the lack of quit in this team, and that is something that Rivera has been harping endlessly since taking over as head coach.
At one point, Washington was down 17-0 in the first half. They then scored 27 unanswered points and took the lead over the Eagles late into the game.
It definitely wasn’t the prettiest of games, and the first half was extremely forgettable, but what matters is that Washington was able to buckle up their chinstraps and keep fighting throughout the entire game.
That may have been the most meaningful victory in Washington in years. A new era is here, and it’s led by Ron Rivera.
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