That’s a pretty fun way to start the 2020 NFL season, isn’t it?
Not many people gave Washington a chance to even stay competitive in this game, let alone win against their division rivals, the Philadelphia Eagles. So what do Ron Rivera and the Washington Football Team do? How about 27-unanswered points to come back from 17 down and win going away.
It wasn’t always pretty, but it was good enough to get the job done on opening day of the season. Here are our biggest takeaways from the wild comeback victory.
Defensive Line Better Than Expected
We all had extremely high hopes for Washington’s defensive line coming into this season, but I don’t think any of us quite expected that to happen. 8 sacks on the game, with Chase Young, Montez Sweat, Jonathan Allen, Daron Payne, Matt Ioannidis, Ryan Kerrigan, and Jon Bostic all getting in on the action. Kerrigan is the obvious winner out of the group, as he made history by passing Washington legend Dexter Manley to become the franchise’s all-time sack leader with 92, but the game ball goes to the defensive line in general.
They did exactly what was asked of them, keeping Carson Wentz under pressure the entire game while neutralizing the run. Wentz finished the game with 270 yards on 24-for-42 passing, with two touchdowns and two interceptions. The Eagles ran for only 57 total yards, and weren’t much of a threat outside of the TE position, where Dallas Goedert leading the way with 101 yards receiving.
Everyone knows that if Washington is to be successful, they’ll need to lean on their defense in order to do so. Well, one week into the season, and it looks like that’s more possible than people might have thought.
Dwayne Haskins is Capable
Call it first-half jitters, or call it rust, but the first half was not much fun to watch if you’re a fan of Dwayne Haskins. After a couple of drives were under his belt, though, the second-year QB was able to get a rhythm going and start driving down the field.
In the end, Haskins finished with 178 yards and one touchdown on 17-for-31 passing. While those stats are not impressive in the slightest, it was the poise and confidence that he showed down the stretch that really stood out.
While attempting to complete the comeback, Haskins was able to orchestrate two drives late, notably a 13-play, 48-yard drive midway through the fourth quarter that was capped off with a touchdown that gave Washington the lead.
If you have questions about his viability to be a franchise QB in the future, they probably weren’t answered on Sunday. But he did enough to win when it mattered, and sometimes that’s all you can ask for.
Still A Lot to Improve
Though all is happy-go-lucky right now after a Week 1 victory, don’t let that detract you from the terrible first half that we saw from Washington. There’s time for celebration right now, but a number of things need to be cleaned up going forward if Washington is to have any hopes of stringing together some wins in the future.
One of the biggest holes came early on in the defensive secondary, where it seemed that the Philadelphia tight ends were running free and getting anything they wanted. There was also worry on third-down when on defense, with the Eagles converting a number of plays that kept the drive alive.
On the opposite side of the ball, Washington was unable to convert anything early on, going just 1-for-7 on 3rd in the first half. These are the types of things you can’t have happen and expect to win a game. Luckily, the defense in Washington is that good.
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