Well, of course, the “Commanders” have never been 3-0.
Neither was the “Washington Football Team” 3-0 in its brief two-year run (2020-21).
The 2011 Redskins were 2-0 after opening the season with home wins over the Giants (28-14) and Cardinals (22-21). However, they traveled to Dallas in Week 3 and lost 18-16 after leading 16-9 in the third quarter.
The following week, the 2011 team defeated the Rams 17-10, only then to lose six consecutive games, finishing the season with a very disappointing 5-11 record.
The 2007 Joe Gibbs (2.0) team was 2-0 but lost in Week 3 at home to the Giants 24-17. They finished 9-7, earning a Wild Card playoff birth before losing in the first round in Seattle 35-14.
We have to go back to the 2005 team as the last Washington team to begin an NFL season 3-0. Joe Gibbs was in his second season in his second term as head coach. Patrick Ramsey started at quarterback in the opener but struggled against the Bears, yet Washington defeated Chicago 9-7.
Mark Brunell and the Redskins offense was literally non-existent for over three quarters in their Week 2 Monday Night game at Dallas. Trailing 13-0, Brunell connected with Santana Moss from 39 yards, and it was 13-7 with 3:46 remaining.
On their next possession, Brunell and Moss again made sweet music, this time from 70 yards, and the Redskins stole the game from the Cowboys 14-13.
Their third game found Washington traveling to Seattle. The Seahawks scored in the last two minutes to force overtime. But Nick Novak’s 39-yard field goal provided the Redskins the road win and their last 3-0 start to date.
Will this year’s Commanders team make it to 3-0? They are at home Sunday at FedEx. There is increased fan support in the DMV since the ownership has been transferred from Daniel Snyder to the Josh Harris group. It is an announced sell-out. However, there will no doubt be many Bills fans in attendance.
Sam Howell has had his struggles, but he has also made several big plays in the first two wins of this season. The fan base is increasingly excited that Howell is showing signs he might develop into a long-term answer at quarterback.
The defense will have to rise to the occasion. They yielded 33 points to the winless Broncos last week, while the Bills destroyed the Raiders 38-10. Josh Allen enjoyed a career game, completing 31 of 37 passing attempts for three touchdowns and no interceptions and a 124.5 passer rating.
The Commanders have defeated the Cardinals and Broncos, who are a combined 0-4. After Sunday’s game against the Bills, we will have a much better gauge monitoring the Commanders.
