Observations From Week 2: Redskins vs. Jaguars
The Washington Redskins beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 41-10 on Sunday, below are some observations from the game.
– The pass Robert Griffin III threw to Desean Jackson early in the game looked like a catch to me in real-time as well as the replay…not sure what the officials had their eyes on in the booth. Griffin was 2-3 for 39 yards (QB Rating 109.7) and rushed twice for 22 yards before he hurt his ankle. On the play Griffin was hurt on, he made one heck of a decision to roll towards the sideline and then throw a perfect dart to an open receiver for a first down on a play many thought was dead. As Griffin tossed the ball, his ankle buckled as he shifted his weight…you could tell immediately he was hurt.
Still early in the process of things but I have to believe it is going to take some time for Griffin to get right. More information will be available on Monday so I will wait to comment any further but Griffin dislocated his ankle in the process.
– Desean Jackson came down hard on his shoulder and left with a sprain…Jackson has had issues with the same shoulder in the past.
– Alfred Morris was a monster among men today. He rushed 22 times for 86 yards and two touchdowns. He would have had three touchdowns, but a Trent Williams unsportsmanlike conduct penalty killed a run inside the Jaguars five. For those that don’t already know, the most important player on the 53-man roster for the Redskins is Morris. He passed Clinton Portis today for the fastest to 3000 yards rushing in Redskins history, his two touchdowns moved him into 10th place all-time in Redskins history.
– Kirk Cousins was calm under fire in relief of Robert Griffin III. Cousins came in and completed his first 14 passes. For the day he was 22-33 for 250 yards and two touchdowns, his passer rating on the day was 109.4. Cousins had 22 completions to 8 different receivers, pretty impressive day for the backup. The Redskins are lucky to have a guy who can step in and be a quality contributor.
– Ryan Kerrigan was a complete BEAST on the football field today recording four sacks. I’ve been shouting from every rooftop I can for months that this is Kerrigan’s breakout season. More multi-sack games will be in Ryan’s future as long as the Redskins pass-rushers keep playing the way they have.
– The Washington Redskins tied a team record that was originally set in 1977, by registering ten sacks in one game. Perry Riley had 1.5, Hatcher had 1.5, Frank Kearse had 1, Brian Orakpo had 1, Ryan Clark and Keenan Robinson each had a half a sack to go with Kerrigan’s four sacks on the day.
– Niles Paul had a really good game, his best as a pro thus far hauling in 8 catches for 99 yards and a touchdown. Starting to see the thing that former coach Mike Shanahan saw in Paul when he converted the Nebraska Alumni from receiver to tight-end a couple of years back.
– Andre Roberts has the ability to make the first man miss on nearly every kick return…it’s only a matter of time before he takes one back for a touchdown….he had to real good chances today. Also good to see Roberts step in for the injured DeSean Jackson, there was a time right after the Redskins signed Roberts where everyone thought he would be the starting receiver opposite of Pierre Garcon.
– Bacarri Rambo made another fatal mistake in coverage, which resulted in a Marcedes Lewis 77-yard touchdown…which was the only highlight for the Jaguars all day. Rambo makes me nervous in the starting role at strong safety, Brandon Meriweather getting back next week will be a blessing.
– The Redskins defense only gave up 148 yards total offense, including 25 yards rushing on the day. To say the Redskins defense dominated would be an accurate assessment. The Jaguars could not do anything with consistency.
– Taking things into perspective, it was nice to see the team end it’s nine-game losing streak (stretches back to last year). Always good to start a year off on the right foot at home, but (no disrespect to the Jaguars) the Jaguars are a team in rebuild mode, these are games the Redskins are supposed to win. The next two weeks the Redskins will have to travel to Philadelphia to take on the Eagles and then back home to take on the Giants. While the NFC East is not the best division in football, these next two games are critical for the Redskins if they want to be in contention for the east this year.
Philly doesn’t play until Monday night when they face the Colts, but they are currently 1-0, the Giants (0-2) on the other hand, lost today as Eli Manning looked horrible yet again.
