Tag: 2021 NFL season

Twitter reacts to Washington’s win over the Giants

The top Twitter reactions from Washington’s season-ending win over the Giants — it features plenty of Joe Judge.

The Washington Football Team ended the 2021 regular season with a win over the lowly New York Giants to finish 7-10. One year ago, in Ron Rivera’s first season, Washington went 7-9 and won the NFC East.

A pair of four-game losing streaks with a four-game winning streak in the middle defined Washington’s 2021 season. The biggest stories of Washington’s season were a defense that played far below expectations for much of the first half of the season, led by inconsistent quarterback play and injuries.

In Sunday’s win over the Giants, Washington showed some glimpses of potential, despite a depleted roster. Mainly, it was running back Antonio Gibson and wide receiver Terry McLaurin who put on a show for Washington.

Safety Bobby McCain also had himself a game, recording two interceptions, including one he returned for a touchdown.

Now, we review some of the top Twitter reactions from Sunday’s win over Joe Judge and the Giants.

 

Washington vs. Giants game recap: Everything we know

Everything we know from Washington’s 22-7 win over the New York Giants.

The Washington Football Team defeated the New York Giants 22-7 Sunday to complete the 2021 NFL regular season. Washington finishes the season with a 7-10 record.

It was an ugly game, but two players specifically stood out for Washington: running back Antonio Gibson and wide receiver Terry McLaurin. Gibson went over 1,000 yards rushing for the first time in his career and scored a touchdown. Meanwhile, McLaurin went over 1,000 yards receiving for the second consecutive season.

Washington’s defense also came to play, limiting a punchless New York offense to 177 total yards.

Now, here is everything we know from Washington’s win over the Giants to end the 2021 season.

 

Antonio Gibson goes over 1,000 rushing yards for the season

Antonio Gibson goes over 1,000 yards rushing for the first time in his young career.

On a day where Washington wide receiver Terry McLaurin went over 1,000 yards receiving for the second consecutive season, another young Washington player celebrated his own milestone.

Second-year running back Antonio Gibson went over 1,000 rushing yards in the fourth quarter of Washington’s game against the Giants. Entering Sunday, Gibson had 891 rushing yards on the season, needing 109 against the Giants.

Gibson was sitting at 102 yards, needing seven to reach 1,000 for the season, when he took the Taylor Heinicke handoff and rumbled 18 yards to clinch the first 1,000-yard rushing season of his young career.

A few plays later, Gibson took the ball into the end zone, giving Washington a 19-7 lead and essentially securing win No. 7 for the WFT.

Gibson has a career-high 146 rushing yards on the day, on 21 attempts.

 

WATCH: Washington safety Bobby McCain with a pick-six vs. Giants

Bobby McCain intercepts Jake Fromm and returns it for a touchdown.

The Washington Football Team was clinging to a 6-0 lead during the third quarter of the Week 18 regular-season finale against the New York Giants. While New York’s offense was going nowhere, Washington still couldn’t pull away from its NFC East rival.

Washington safety Bobby McCain decided to do something about the WFT’s one-score lead, picking off New York quarterback Jake Fromm and returning the ball 30 yards for a touchdown to give Washington a 12-0 lead.

Washington went for the two-point conversion in an attempt to make it a 14-0 lead, but Taylor Heinicke’s pass to Antonio Gibson fell incomplete, and Washington maintained its 12-0 lead.

It was McCain’s third interception of the season, which leads Washington, and the first touchdown of his career.

Washington now leads the Giants 19-7 in the fourth quarter.

Washington leads Giants 6-0 at halftime

Washington leads the Giants 6-0 at halftime. At least Terry McLaurin and Antonio Gibson were worth watching in the first half.

The Washington Football Team leads the New York Giants 6-0 at halftime in Week 18 of NFL action.

It was an ugly half of football that featured bad football, weird coaching decisions, such as Giants coach Joe Judge calling for consecutive quarterback sneaks, including one on third-and-9 and good defense. Wait, was it good defense or bad offense? Or, perhaps a combination of both.

Washington’s first drive was impressive, as quarterback Taylor Heinicke found Terry McLaurin for two completions for 41 yards, and Antonio Gibson did the rest. Unfortunately for Washington, Heinicke’s third-down pass to Cam Sims in the end zone was high, and the WFT settled for a field goal.

Some good news for Washington was McLaurin went over the 1,000-yard mark for the second consecutive season, becoming the first Washington player to do so since Henry Ellard in the mid-1990s.

McLaurin caught three passes for 53 yards in the first half, while Gibson rushed for 71 yards on 10 attempts. He needs 38 more rushing yards to go over 1,000 for the season.

Heinicke completed three of six passes for 53 yards — all to McLaurin.

Washington’s defense held the Giants to 48 total yards in the first half, including just 10 passing yards.

The Giants will receive the second-half kickoff.

Terry McLaurin goes over 1,000 yards receiving for the season

Terry McLaurin goes over 1,000 yards for the second consecutive season.

Terry McLaurin needed 40 yards to reach 1,000 yards receiving for the second consecutive season. McLaurin entered Washington’s Week 18 game with 73 receptions for 960 yards.

It didn’t take long for McLaurin to hit the 1,000-yard mark. Washington quarterback Taylor Heinicke found McLaurin for his first completion of the game, an 11-yard pickup on the WFT’s first drive.

After a couple of runs, Heinicke drops back to pass, avoids the sack and rolls to his left, finding McLaurin for a 30-yard gain and a first down deep in Giants’ territory. Just like that, McLaurin goes over 1,000 yards on Washington’s first drive.

Here’s the play:

Surprisingly, McLaurin is the first Washington receiver to go over 1,000 yards in back-to-back seasons since Henry Ellard accomplished the feat in three straight years (1994-96).

That’s a bit of a surprise considering how good Pierre Garcon and DeSean Jackson were for Washington under Jay Gruden. Garcon and Jackson each had a pair of 1,000-yard seasons but not consecutively.

Washington should do everything in its power to have McLaurin extended as soon as possible.

Washington inactive players vs. Giants

Here is Washington’s final inactive list of the 2021 season.

The Washington Football Team has announced their final inactive list of the 2021 season for Week 18’s game against the New York Giants.

Here’s the complete list of inactive players for Week 18:

  • WR Curtis Samuel
  • K Brian Johnson
  • QB Garrett Gilbert
  • DE Nate Orchard
  • T/G Saahdiq Charles
  • TE Sammis Reyes
  • DE Montez Sweat

Samuel ends his first season in Washington, missing 12 games. He caught six passes for 27 yards.

Reyes was initially listed as questionable Friday on the final injury report, but Washington ruled him out Saturday and placed fellow tight end Ricky Seals-Jones on injured reserve. Washington promoted Temarrick Hemingway from the practice squad as the team’s second tight end behind rookie John Bates in Week 18.

Sweat is out for the second consecutive game after the tragic death of his brother almost two weeks ago.

Charles started at three games recently, two at right guard in place of Brandon Scherff and one at left guard for Ereck Flowers. He’s done a solid job and could figure into the mix at right guard if Scherff departs via free agency.

Washington finds its quarterback in the latest Draft Wire mock draft

Washington finds a quarterback in the latest Draft Wire mock draft. But it’s not in the first round. Who does the WFT target in the first round?

The Washington Football Team’s biggest offseason need is no secret. Washington desperately needs a quarterback. No surprise, right?

In his Friday meeting with the media, Washington coach Ron Rivera spoke to the media and was asked specifically about the quarterback position, and this is how he answered:

“We’re gonna look at every opportunity, every prospect, every situation, every circumstance,” Rivera answered. “Hopefully, as we go through this, we can come up with the right answer.”

Rivera didn’t downplay Washington’s need at the game’s most important position.

Picking a quarterback in the 2022 NFL draft is almost a certainty for Washington. And, there’s no guarantee a first-round quarterback will succeed, but that’s your best opportunity to find a passer who can play immediately.

Washington will know where it’s picking in the upcoming draft after the season finale against the Giants. That could determine what Washington does in its offseason search for a quarterback.

In the latest Draft Wire mock draft, Washington finds its quarterback — in the second round. Here is Washington’s three picks in the following three-round mock draft with comments on each selection.

No. 9 — Notre Dame S Kyle Hamilton

Quarterback is obviously the biggest need here, but there’s just not a prospect on the board worthy of passing up one of the top overall talents in this year’s class. Despite missing much of this season due to injury, Hamilton’s well-rounded skill set and limitless potential make him the rare safety worth taking in the top 10.

Hamilton is a fantastic prospect, but I do not see Rivera going for a safety this high in the draft. If no quarterback is available, then cornerback makes more sense than safety.

No. 40 — Liberty QB Malik Willis

Willis received a lot of first-round buzz over the last year, but there are some concerns about his accuracy. He fits the current NFL, possesses a strong arm and has a strong build. He is an excellent runner, and perhaps Rivera sees a little of Cam Newton in Willis. Willis has a high ceiling, and if he fell to the second round, he could prove to be a steal. If Washington keeps Taylor Heinicke around, there won’t be as much of a rush to get Willis on the field immediately.

No. 71 — Miami OT Zion Nelson

Nelson has prototypical size and athleticism to play left tackle in the NFL. He is a true junior, meaning he is young and, like Willis, has a big-time upside. If Cornelius Lucas leaves via free agency, Nelson could be Washington’s swing tackle as soon as 2022.

 

 

 

Washington offensive coordinator Scott Turner describes how he evaluates college quarterbacks

Scott Turner explains what he looks for in evaluating college quarterbacks.

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The Washington Football Team desperately needs long-term stability at the quarterback position. While Taylor Heinicke has proven to be a nice find, he has limitations. Make no mistake, Heinicke has proven he belongs in the NFL and could be a high-quality backup, but he’s not Washington’s quarterback of the future.

For anyone still trying to convince themselves that Heinicke can lead Washington to a Super Bowl has seen some of his limitations on display in recent weeks. That’s not a knock on Heinicke, he can play, and Washington doesn’t win its six games without him in 2021, but the WFT will be looking for a quarterback this offseason.

That search will likely begin on the trade market. Washington will check the availability of veterans such as Aaron Rodgers, Russell Wilson and Deshaun Watson, but acquiring any of the three is highly unlikely. That means Washington will draft a quarterback high in the 2022 NFL draft.

Offensive coordinator Scott Turner, himself a former college quarterback, discussed what he looks for in evaluating quarterbacks. Turner cited accuracy and decision-making as critical skills.

We talked about decision making, obviously. I think accuracy, you gotta be an accurate passer. There’s degrees of that. You know what I mean? But the ball’s gotta go where you want it to go. I think those two things really go hand in hand. There’s like a list of attributes. Depending on the guy, it’s like what’s more important than the other? If a guy doesn’t move as well, that’s tough. It makes it tough to play. Well, he better have a really quick release and a strong arm. Those decisions better happen fast, and the ball’s gotta come out. Maybe his arm isn’t quite as strong, then the athleticism better be up there. His athleticism, his ability to move, to get outta the pocket. I think, ultimately, and we talked about this before, the most successful quarterbacks in this league over time are guys that are gonna beat you throwing the ball. You got guys like [Packers QB] Aaron Rodgers who has an unbelievable arm or like [Chiefs QB] Patrick Mahomes, unbelievable arm. They’ve got a lot of really good athleticism too, so they can extend plays.

Outside of accuracy and decision-making, Turner mentioned the need for athleticism and arm strength. While having a big-time arm doesn’t guarantee success, it doesn’t hurt. But in this day and age, mobility is more important than ever. As Turner said, you don’t necessarily need someone who can run like Lamar Jackson, but the quarterback must be able to move well. If he can’t move well, then he better have a quick release and a strong arm.

While some will debate the overall strength of the 2022 quarterback class, there are some good options available for Washington. Kenny Pickett, Matt Corral and Sam Howell are a few of the top quarterbacks in the upcoming class. All are passers first but have the athleticism to pick up yards with their legs.

Washington’s front office spent plenty of time at the college games of some of the top passers eligible for the 2022 draft. It’s almost a lock Washington comes out of the draft with one of the top passers.

 

 

 

Thursday injury report for Washington vs. Giants, Week 18

Thursday’s injury report featured four players out for Washington, more for the Giants.

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The Washington Football Team has faced their share of injuries and COVID-related absences this season. Washington looks to finish its season on a strong note Sunday when it travels to the Meadowlands to face the New York Giants.

Giants coach Joe Judge fired some early shots at Washington after Sunday’s loss to the Bears. Washington coach Ron Rivera was not amused. Judge later backpedaled and said his comments were not about Washington.

So, you’d think there would be a lot of animosity and emotion from both sides heading into the regular-season finale. Washington is fired up, but it looks like the Giants would rather opt out of Week 18.

A look at Thursday’s injury report and the Giants had six players miss practice and nine players limited. New York will be starting its third-string quarterback Sunday in Jake Fromm.

Rookie wide receiver Kadarius Toney missed practice Thursday, while star running back Saquon Barkley remained limited with an ankle injury.

As for Washington, four players missed practice: OL Saahdiq Charles (knee), WR Curtis Samuel (hamstring), TE Ricky Seals-Jones (concussion) and DE Montez Sweat (NIR-personal).

RB Antonio Gibson, DE James Smith-Williams and TE Sammis Reyes were limited. Sam Cosmi returned to practice Thursday.

Washington looks to end its four-game losing streak Sunday and sweep the season series against the Giants.