Two Lessons to Take Away from the 2014 Season
Whether you saw the Washington Redskins live at FedEx Field thanks to ScoreBig.com, or just watched the season play out from the comfort of your couch, it’s an unfortunate fact that the 2014 Skins season left a lot to be desired. The team brought in a new coach and some highly-touted free agents in the hopes of starting a new era in Washington, but a 4-12 record just won’t cut it. Here are two lessons Redskins fans should take away from a disappointing year, one good and one not so good.
1. DeSean Jackson was worth every penny
The Redskins were so bad in 2014 that it’s easy to overlook how good DeSean Jackson was all year. The 28-year-old receiver put up over 1100 yards on just 56 receptions, for an incredible per-catch average of 20.9 yards. Some NFL analysts worried if Jackson was carrying ‘character concerns,’ given the controversial nature of his exit from Philadelphia, even though Jackson has never had ANY issues off the field during his career. Those critics were wrong as usual.
The most amazing thing is that Jackson put up big numbers in 2014 with three different quarterbacks getting sizable playing time. Imagine what he might be able to do if he has a full 16 games to develop chemistry with one passer.
2. Jay Gruden Needs To Find a Quarterback and Stick With Him
But that’s a big if, and it leads us to #2. Gruden had an inauspicious rookie year as a head coach, most specifically in his inability to settle on a starting quarterback. RG3’s early season injury opened the floodgates, but even when Griffin returned, the team seemed out of sorts. Cousins and McCoy are career back-ups in the NFL. They are serviceable back-ups and will have flashes of greatness in a game here or there, but your team isn’t winning 10-12 games with either under center unless you feature a great running game, or a dominant defense in spite of those quarterbacks.
That leaves Griffin. There’s no denying RG3 has had a precipitous drop since the promise he showed in his rookie season, but Gruden didn’t make things any easier by constantly yo-yo’ing his choice for a starter. It seems silly that Gruden is dead set against shaping his offense around the players he has. So for Griffin to succeed under Gruden he will have to improve as a pocket-passer. The way Gruden talked about RG3 to the media last year was just plain un-needed. It did nothing to improve Griffin as player and honestly did more to fuel the media circus that was already in town.
The 4-12 record from 2014 stings, but 2015 will bring a new year and new expectations. And when that moment comes, head over to ScoreBig.com, where you’ll save on every Washington Redskins ticket, every day. And, in the meantime, check out their amazing selection of cheap MLB, NBA, NHL, and theatre tickets, too!
