Tag: Terry McLaurin

Eagles’ DC Jim Schwartz has high-praise for Redskins rookie WR Terry McLaurin

Jim Schwartz has high-praise for Redskins rookie WR Terry McLaurin

When the Philadelphia Eagles visit the Washington Redskins on Sunday, they’ll have a closeup view of what could have been. During the 2019 NFL Draft, the Philadelphia Eagles selected JJ Arcega-Whiteside with the 57th pick in the 2nd round.

So far on the season, Arcega-Whiteside has 8 catches for 130 yards and one touchdown. He’s slow ascension isn’t bust worthy, but it’s concerning considering how the wide receivers drafted after him have performed this season.

Seattle took DK Metcalf with pick No. 64, and he’s accumulated 50 catches, 783 yards, and five touchdowns.

Pittsburgh took Toledo’s Diontae Johnson at No. 66 and he’s accumulated 42 catches for 483 yards and four touchdowns.

The player the Eagles will deal with in Week 15 has done the most damage thus far out of all the rookies. Terry McLaurin was selected with pick No. 76 out of Ohio State, and he’s racked up 46 catches for 703 yards and 6 touchdowns.

Against the Eagles in the season opener, McLaurin torched the Eagles for 5 catches on 125 yards and a TD, including a 70-yard bomb. With the Eagles having to win out, the focus of Philadelphia’s defense will, in fact, be the star wide receiver.

Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz addressed the media on Wednesday, and he spoke about what impresses him the most about McLaurin.

“He’s a guy that can make a big play … he’s proven that he’s a good player in this league.”

McLaurin leads the team in receptions, yards, and TD receptions and on Sunday it’ll be hard not to say what if and daydream about what could have been in regards to Wentz chucking bombs to the former Ohio State star.

Instead, it’ll be up to Jim Schwartz to put his cornerbacks in position to not be embarrassed by the youngster on Sunday.

Redskins eliminated from playoffs with 20-15 loss to Packers

The Redskins couldn’t quite get it done against the Packers on Sunday, but they showed a lot of heart in the loss.

The Washington Redskins were unable to get the job done on the road in Green Bay on Sunday, falling to the Packers, 20-15, officially eliminating them from the playoffs.

It was always going to be a tough win to get, but Washington was forced to play from behind early on with a long string of injuries that depleted the starting lineup for the Redskins.

Through it all, the offense was stagnant but largely mistake-free, and the defense did a great job of keeping future Hall of Fame QB Aaron Rodgers in check and holding the Packers to only 20 points on the day. Here are our instant takeaways from the game.

Injuries Steal the Day

It’s long been a joke within the Washington Redskins fanbase that the injury bug is part of the 53-man roster every year, as it plays more of a role on the team than any other player does. That was as true as ever on Sunday against the Packers, and it started early on.

In the second quarter, it was announced that cornerbacks Quinton Dunbar and Fabian Moreau had both suffered hamstring injuries and were questionable to return. Moreau eventually came back into the game, but Dunbar remained questionable. Just a few plays later, running back Derrius Guice — who has battled injuries through his entire career — took a brutal hit to his left leg and fell awkwardly to the turf. He remained there for a minute, then walked off the field under his own power. It was announced at halftime that he would not return to the game.

To start the third quarter, linebacker Ryan Kerrigan pulled up short on a rush attempt around the right edge, favoring his right leg. It was announced that he would miss the rest of the game with a calf injury, but many fear that, by the way that he was walking, it could have something to do with his Achilles tendon.

On top of all of this, QB Dwayne Haskins suffered a leg injury on one of the many hits he took in the first half, but he toughed it out and played throughout the game, although it was obvious that he was injured and less mobile than normal.

The injury bug is ever-present in Washington, but it made the trip with the team to Green Bay this week.

Haskins Shows Heart

It wasn’t a great statistical game for Haskins, but he proved a lot on Sunday. He showed that he is willing to play through immense pain and stick it out for his teammates.

After getting hit several times in the first half, Haskins limped to the locker room, leaving many to call for the team to bench him and bring in Case Keenum for his own well-being. Nonetheless, Haskins started the second half and played for the rest of the game, making a few nice plays along the way. It was announced in the fourth quarter that Haskins was dealing with a sprained ankle, but he was still willing to tough it out, based on the mentality that Bill Callahan had instilled in the team.

At the end of the day, Haskins 170 yards and one touchdown weren’t quite enough to take down the Packers, but in the process, he showed the type of resolve and resiliency that is desired in NFL QBs. It was a good day for the rookie, despite the L on the score sheet.

Adrian Peterson Makes More History

Father time is still left waiting for Peterson to slow down.

After Guice was ruled out with an injury, Peterson took over and scored another touchdown, making him the only player in NFL history to score seven touchdowns at Lambeau Field.

Peterson finished the day with 76 yards and 1 touchdown on 20 carries. Depending on how serious Guice’s injury is, AP could be left as the main option in Washington once again. We’ve seen him excel in that role before, and there’s nothing to say he can’t do it again.

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WATCH: Terry McLaurin makes incredible TD grab from Dwayne Haskins

The former college teammates connected for a highlight reel-type touchdown late in the game on Sunday.

What a catch!

Washington Redskins’ rookie duo Dwayne Haskins and Terry McLaurin connected for a highlight reel-type touchdown late in the game on Sunday against the Green Bay Packers, cutting it to a one-score game late in the fourth quarter.

Haskins found McLaurin streaking up the middle of the field into the end zone, and he put the ball up where McLaurin was able to snag it with one hand and come down with the touchdown.

It was the first touchdown for either player today.

The present may be frustrating in Washington, but if this connection between former college teammates can stay strong, the future may be bright.

 

Can you trust any Redskins in Week 1 of the fantasy football playoffs?

It’s week 1 of the fantasy football playoffs for many people, so what are the chances that you’ll have a Redskin in your lineup?

For many NFL fans, Week 14 marks a special time of the year where the stakes get a little bit higher. For many leagues, the fantasy football playoffs start now.

If you’ve been fortunate enough to make the cut, congratulations. A couple of key decisions stand between you and the promised land, where either a nice prize pool or a heap of bragging rights await. If you missed out on the playoffs once again, that doesn’t give you an excuse to pack it up and go home, especially if a humiliating punishment awaits the last-place finisher.

So as you prepare for the first round of the postseason, some major roster decisions lie ahead of you. There’s one question we have in particular, and it doesn’t come with an easy answer:

Are there any players on the Washington Redskins that you can trust in Week 1 of the fantasy playoffs?

Adrian Peterson? Maybe in extremely deep leagues, but his limited roll in the passing game and work in the red zone caps his ceiling pretty low.

Terry McLaurin? He may have gotten your team off to a great start, but as of late it’s more of a crapshoot trying to figure out when he’s going to put up numbers in a streaky Washington offense.

Derrius Guice? Bingo. It may take some guts to click ‘Save’ on a lineup with Guice either in your RB2 or FLEX spot this weekend, but of any fantasy-relevant Redskin, he undoubtedly has the highest chance of making you look like you know what you’re doing. The fact is, though, that since his return from injury in Week 11, Guice has found some pretty impressive fantasy success. Here are his numbers in the three games since his return from the IR:

Week 11 vs. NY Jets: 8 touches, 69 yards, 1 TD (13.9 FP)
Week 12 vs. Detroit Lions: 11 touches, 38 yards, 0 TD (4.8 FP)
Week 13 vs. Carolina Panthers: 12 touches, 138 yards, 2 TD (27.7 FP)

That Week 12 dud is a bit concerning, but even with it in there, he is still averaging over 15 points per game. This week, as the Redskins travel to Green Bay to take on the Packers, a relatively easy matchup awaits for Guice and the Redskins rushing attack. The Packers’ defense as a whole is near the middle of the pack, and they allow over 22 fantasy points per game to opposing running backs, which is the 24th best in the NFL.

Guice’s workload split with Peterson is at times a cause for concern, but any rational person would have cause to believe that Washington would start to give him more touches as they hope to grow him as a player. He’s proved so far that he has the talent to get the job done when given the chance, he just simply needs more chances.

So if you’ve got him, feel free to start him. It may be on a wing and a prayer, but Guice has shown over the past few weeks that he is a dynamic runner who has a nose for the endzone. It may be a risky play, but it has a definite chance to pay off in the end. If you ever find yourself doubting the decision, just remember this:

Nobody ever won a fantasy championship by playing it safe.

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Redskins’ rookies continue to show improvement as the season goes on

Highlighted by Dwayne Haskins and Terry McLaurin, the Redskins have a nice crop of rookie talent poised for a bright future.

There’s one thing that is pretty hard to argue when you watch the Washington Redskins as of late; the rookie talent is definitely improving.

Over the past several weeks, rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins has take a couple of noticeable steps forwards, and he has back-to-back wins under his belt to show for it. At first, he looked unsure of himself in the pocket, and liable to make snap decisions based on instinct. However, as of late, his footwork looks sound, his accuracy has improved, and his seems to be more comfortable with rushers closing in around him.

Pro Football Focus has also noticed the improvement, and they have Haskins rising in their rookie rankings up to No. 15 among this years’ first-round picks — coincidentally where Haskins was drafted back in April.

Aside from the quarterback, Washington has a couple other dynamic rookies, namely WRs Terry McLaurin and Kelvin Harmon. McLaurin has been a joy to watch all season, and he continues his brilliant career-start with a 6th overall ranking among rookies in the NFL, according to ESPN.

Young talent is the name of the game, and Washington seems to have a bright future when it come to that aspect alone.

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Terry McLaurin isn’t the Redskins’ only dynamic rookie wide receiver

Kelvin Harmon is built like Julio Jones, and he has the attributes to be a dominant receiver in the NFL.

Obviously, you already know all about Terry McLaurin, the rookie wide receiver in Washington that has made waves so far in this first season of his career. However, there is another pass-catcher in Washington who has a superb upside, and he’s flown relatively under the radar so far this season.

That doesn’t mean that his expectations should at all be tempered.

Kelvin Harmon is a rookie receiver that looks like an aged veteran. With a 6-foot-2, 220-pound frame, Harmon is built like Julio Jones. He may not be the fastest receiver on the field, but his ability to go up and snag contested balls gives him a dominant presence over the middle of the field and in the back corner of the endzone. The Redskins drafted him in the sixth round of the 2019 NFL Draft, and while his rookie running-mate has taken all the shine, Harmon’s breakout is starting to show itself.

Part of that breakout can be accredited to a budding relationship between Harmon and rookie QB Dwayne Haskins, who has been named the starting QB in Washington for a few weeks now. Harmon and Haskins go way back; they both grew up in New Jersey and attended many 7-on-7 camps together. While the two were preparing for the draft, they worked out together and grew that relationship. Now, with his college teammate out on the edge as well, Haskins has a nice duo he can look for downfield.

“Having known both of them for years before even coming to the Redskins is really great for our relationship as a quarterback and receiver,” Haskins said, via Redskins.com. “They come to me to talk about anything, I talk to them about anything and it’s really great because we have a great relationship.”

While the relationship between quarterback and receiver is critical for success, Harmon also has the attributes to take that connection to the next level: good hands, large catch radius, ability to run the short and intermediate routes and gain separation in man coverage.

“He has all the traits and skills you look for in a wide receiver,” coach Bill Callahan said. “Now it’s a matter of grooming him and his techniques against the week-to-week competition that he’s schemed against, the type of corners he’s going to be faced up against.”

You may have noticed him popping up around the field already this year, but get ready to see it much more. There’s more than one dynamic rookie receiver in Washington.

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Ron Rivera calls Terry McLaurin ‘an explosion waiting to happen’

The Panthers coach was very high on Terry McLaurin as he previewed this weekend’s game with the media.

It’s safe to say that the Carolina Panthers are going to be focused on trying to shut down rookie wide receiver Terry McLaurin when they face off against the Washington Redskins this weekend.

After McLaurin proved how good he really is last week by going toe-to-toe with Lions’ corner Darius Slay, one of the best CBs in the NFL, the league is now taking notice, and attempting to scheme McLaurin out of the Redskins’ gameplan.

Unfortunately for Washington, the easiest way to nullify McLaurin is to rattle rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins, which has proven to be fairly easy to do. Haskins completed less than half of his pass attempts last week, and his inability to complete a couple of long-balls to the rookie WR severely hindered Washington’s offensive production.

However, the Redskins now know that they have half of the puzzle figured out with McLaurin, and all they need to do is get Haskins comfortable enough to find him downfield. If they can put those two things together, then that combination can definitely be an explosion waiting to happen.

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Terry McLaurin earned the respect of All-Pro CB Darius Slay on Sunday

McLaurin faced the toughest test of his career on Sunday against CB Darius Slay, but he turned some heads and earned respect along the way.

A few years down the road, we will likely look back on last week’s matchup and wonder how we got so lucky to witness such greatness.

Obviously, I’m not talking about the matchup between the Washington Redskins and Detroit Lions, but rather the one between WR Terry McLaurin and CB Darius Slay.

Slay has become one of the best cover corners in the NFL over the past few years, and his ability to shadow an opposing teams’ No. 1 option and remove them from the equation is rarely seen. On the other side of the ball, McLaurin has proven that he is among the best receivers in the league, and his rookie showcase has been humming along, despite an abysmal offense in Washington.

In the Redskins 19-16 win on Sunday, it was tough to say who really had the upper hand, which in retrospect can be considered a win for McLaurin, as he was expected to be completely shut down by Slay. The All-Pro corner made sure to let it be known after the fact as well.

The stats won’t show that McLaurin had a great game — he finished with five catches for 72 yards — but rookie QB Dwayne Haskins was wildly inaccurate, and missed his former college teammate several times on the day.

With a time-tested veteran like Slay on the field, expectations for high-level play were set early on. McLaurin proved that he could compete with one of the best defenders in the league, and he gained the vet’s respect along the way.

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Three takeaways from the Redskins 16-13 win over the Detroit Lions

The Redskins found a way to come back and beat the Lions on the back of Dwayne Haskins and some fellow rookies.

The Washington Redskins won a game. In 2019. Hold on, that might not be a crazy enough statement to describe what we just witnessed.

The Redskins held a lead, gave it up late, and then came back down the field thanks to a couple of budding rookie players and kicked a game-winning field goal, ending their nine-game home losing streak, picking up their second win of the year.

Many problems still surround the franchise as a whole, but if that win can’t put a smile on your face for a split second, then I can’t help you. Rookie quarterback Dwayne Haskins showed a lot of poise and improvement, and fellow rookies Terry McLaurin, Kelvin Harmon, and Steven Sims put on a show on offense and special teams. When all is said and done it won’t matter much, but for now, it’s good enough for an afternoon of celebration. Here are our three biggest takeaways from the game.

A Rare and Inspiring Win for Washington

The Redskins took a lead early, then lost it late, but then they regained it in the final second. If you were to take a straw poll at halftime as to who would win the game, I think the result would show little confidence in Washington, but they managed to pull it out on the back of Haskins and an impressive defensive performance.

Washington held a 10-point lead at the half, and they scored 13 points in the first two quarters, which is their highest point total in the first half since putting up 20 points against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1. After relinquishing the lead late in the fourth quarter, back-to-back field goals from Dustin Hopkins gave Washington a three-point lead late, and the defense held on to win it.

When looking at the game from a broad scope, Haskins was decent, the offense was fine, and the defense was pretty good. The rookie quarterback finished the game with 156 yards and 0 touchdowns on 13-for-29 passing with 1 interception. Terry McLaurin and Kelvin Harmon were the top receivers in Washington, hauling in a combined 115 yards.

The Redskins snapped their nine-game home losing streak, and Haskins got the first win of his career. The draft stock took a hit, but fans got to celebrate for a day.

Steven Sims Needs to Touch the Ball More

It only took two plays, but in that small sample size, undrafted rookie Steven Sims proved that he is one of the most dynamic players that the Redskins have, and he needs to be given more of an opportunity to shine in Washington.

On the very first play of the game, a kick-return for the Redskins, Sims hauled in the kick and scampered upfield for a 33-yard return to near midfield. A couple of drives later, with the game tied at 3-3, Sim was back to receive again, and he made some magic happen. 

We’ve seen Sims’ ability a couple of times this season when the Redskins have tried to get him touches in the offense, but fans have always been left begging for more. It’s clear that the rookie has explosive speed and a knack for making things happen. With the season all but over, he needs to be getting more reps.

A Chance to Feel Happy

Obviously, there are still a lot of things to be upset about if you’re a fan of the Washington Redskins. You still have an inept owner, a general manager who can’t make two correct decisions in a row, and a team that can’t get out of their own way. But for a day at least, fans should take a second to feel happy.

The future of the Redskins showed itself of Sunday against the Lions, and it has a chance to be bright. Haskins didn’t put up eye-popping stats, but he did what needed to be done at the most critical times and got his team in a position to win the game. McLaurin ran all over the field and out-played Darius Slay, one of the better cornerbacks in the NFL, and Kelvin Harmon proved that he can be something special when given the chance.

In the end, it ended in a rather meaningless victory that won’t matter when all is said and done, but that doesn’t mean it can’t matter right now. Though the stands at FedEx Field were nearly empty, the seats that were fill got to witness a show. If some things are able to break in the right direction, there’s a chance the team can grow from this in the future.

This is not the week to put Terry McLaurin into your fantasy football starting lineup

McLaurin got off to a blazing start this year, but his ensuing drop-off, plus a matchup against Darius Slay, will make him a non-factory.

After starting the season on a remarkable tear and thrusting himself into fantasy football relevance, Washington Redskins rookie wide receiver Terry McLaurin has regressed to the mean as of late.

It’s not by anything that he can control, but rather the offense that he plays in went 16-straight quarters without scoring a touchdown, and struggled to move the ball downfield. After scoring 93.8 points through the first five games of the season — an average of 18.8 ppg — McLaurin has totaled just 27.8 points in the four games since — an average of 6.9 ppg.

Unfortunately for his fantasy owners, it doesn’t look like this week’s game against the Detroit Lions is one in which he’ll prosper, either. With a head-to-head matchup against Detroit’s All-Pro cornerback, Darius Slay, there is a good chance that McLaurin is shadowed all afternoon, and he will likely be made a non-factor on offense. This is tough for both McLaurin and Dwayne Haskins, who will lose his No. 1 option on offense.

In order for the Redskins to get any offense going, they will likely need to rely on the running back duo coming out of the backfield, Adrian Peterson and Derrius Guice. With his first career touchdown scored last week, Guice proved to be a great value for the few fantasy owners who were brave (or crazy) enough to start him, and if you’re feeling lucky, he might just do so again.

However, don’t start McLaurin this week and consider yourself brave. With a matchup against one of the best cover corners in the NFL, a move like that would be crazy.

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