Since we haven’t heard anything different from the coaching staff in Washington this past week, we are still to be operating under the assumption that this team is doing everything they can to win week-in and week-out in order to try and scrape their way into the NFC East division lead and subsequent playoff spot that comes with it. As of now, Washington is 1.5 games out of first place in the division, trailing both the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants, while tied with the Dallas Cowboys for last place.
If Washington is going to make up any ground on the rest of the teams in their division, it is absolutely imperative that they find a win on Sunday against the Cincinnati Bengals. So far during this stretch of ‘winnable games’ that started in Week 9 against the Giants, things haven’t gone great for Washington, who is now 0-2 with losses to both New York and the Detroit Lions. If they want any chance of meeting their lofty goal of making the post-season this year, it has to start with a win over the Bengals. If not, everything shifts to the NFL draft next year.
Here are some major things that Washington needs to focus on if they’re going to come out with a victory.