Cousins & Morris Lead Redskins Past Browns & Giants

Saturday the news broke: No RG3. Sunday would be the Kirk Cousins show and he undoubtedly impressed. I personally hoped for this to happen so RG3 could rest up his knee and be 100% when he played again and everything worked out perfectly. Kyle Shanahan created a magnificent game-plan, easing Cousins into his first start and abusing the Browns desire to stop the run. Cleveland's game plan was simple: stop Alfred Morris and force Cousins to throw to the Browns decent secondary. Kyle Shanahan abused the Browns with naked bootlegs and hard play actions, taking advantage of their aggressive game plan. They finished with 3 rushing and 2 passing touchdowns and only one turnover compared to the Browns two.

Kirk Cousins had more passing yards than RG3 had in any one game this season. He even ran the read option and had the team's longest run of the day. Cousins was decisive and smart with most of his throws, he got off to shaky start, his first completion went to a Browns defensive back, but after that he got into a groove and never looked back. His accuracy was good on most of his throws, he missed a couple due to pressure but overall was sharp, especially for a first round pick. Despite his limited action every analyst agrees that he is at the very least better than Brandon Weeden and Nick Foles, two quarterbacks taken higher than him in the draft.

This is one the most instant impact draft classes the Redskins have ever had. In their rookie seasons
they all lead the NFL in some way. Alfred Morris is 3rd in the league in rushing yards and 4th in touchdowns scored. RG3 has more rushing yards than any quarterback in the league and leads the league in passer rating (104.2). Kirk Cousins has came in in three games and won two out of the three. In the one loss he at least tied the score before losing the game. He also has an above 100 passer rating like RG3. Richard Crawford hasn't done much but had what was a game winning punt return against Baltimore. These rookies are playing hard, making plays and winning games. And right now they sit atop the NFC East.

The Playoff Picture:
 The Giants and Bears both lost and the Redskins won a 5th straight game. They are now "tied" for first  with Dallas and New York but hold the tie breaker between all of them. Seattle holds the 5th wild card spot and may even win the NFC West but then in all probability the 49ers would get the wild card. That leaves one wild card spot open. The best case scenario would be for the Giants to lose one more and the Redskins to win out, this would keep both rivals out of the playoffs.

If they do end up winning the division then their first playoff game would most likely be at home against Seattle. Seattle has knocked the Redskins out of the playoffs the only two times they made it in the last decade and revenge at FedEx Field would be sweet.

What You Want to See:
The Giants and Cowboys losing. (Nothing new)
The Redskins making it 6 games in a row. (They already romped over Philly once)

Captain Kirk Caps a Thrilling Overtime Win Over Baltimore

Kirk Cousins waves to the crowd after the win!

After an explosive first half of offense from both teams the Redskins and Ravens went into half-time with the score 21-14, Ravens. Joe Flacco tore up the secondary for three scores while RG3 had a touchdown pass and Alfred Morris had a touchdown run. A shoot-out in D.C. was in the making...except not. With no other explanation than sheer witchcraft, both defenses stepped up in the second half, turning an offensive showcase into a defensive standoff. The Redskins held the Ravens from scoring in the third quarter and mustered two turnovers, on which the Redskins scored two field goals, narrowing the lead to 20-21.

The fourth quarter came in and neither offense was able to accomplish anything until a long drive engineered by Joe Flacco and Ray Rice culminated in a Rice touchdown run. The ensuing extra point made it 28-20, requiring a two point conversion to tie. The Redskins had all three time-outs and with little under four minutes to play, a touchdown was required, there was no guarantee of a second possession.  

Cue the T.O. crying saying "Thats my quarterback!"

RG3 took 6 plays to get the Redskins 35 yards down the field to their own 40. But it came with a price, after going to the ground Griffin took a jarring hit to his leg, twisting one half with tremendous force and putting all the pressure on his knee. Griffin stayed down and limped off the field as Redskins fans held their breath. In came fellow rookie quarterback Kirk Cousins, who in his only other action threw a 77 yard touchdown but also two interceptions against Atlanta. He gunned the ball to Pierre Garcon but it fell incomplete, thankfully Garcon was interfered with, giving the Redskins a first down. RG3 trotted back onto the field to finish the game. He played four more downs and got the Redskins to the 16 yard line of Baltimore, at which point he fell on all fours and had to be helped off the field. Griffin would not return to the game. 

On his last play Griffin caught a bad snap and hurled it out of bounds, resulting in an intentional grounding call, pushing Kirk Cousins back to the 26 yard line before his first play. With 45 seconds to go Cousins dropped back and gunned the ball to Leonard Hankerson, taking it to the 11 yard line with 36 seconds to go and no more time outs. The next play Cousins dropped back, pump faked, and rolled out to his right and lofted a pass to Pierre Garcon. There were no flags thrown, and the referee raised his hands in the air.

Touchdown. 

The score was now 26-28. The game rested on a successful two point conversion attempt, essentially another touchdown from the two yard line. Cousins dropped back, and pulled it for a quarterback draw -a sheer genius play call by Kyle Shanahan- and he walked into the end-zone. With 29 seconds to go Baltimore got the football back with the score tied. They didn't try anything and headed into overtime. 

He out-ran the whole defense...except the punter

The Redskins lost the opening coin toss and Baltimore got the ball to start. If they scored a touchdown, they win. Miraculously the defense came through, forcing a three and out and a punt on fourth down. The punter nailed a boomer, driving rookie Richard Crawford back to his own twenty to accept the punt. He caught it, made a move, sped down the sideline, then cut it back across the middle. He was gone...until he ran out of gas, he tried to cutback against the punter but got tackled inside the Ravens 25 yard line. Since this was the second possession of the game a field goal would win it for the Redskins. They ran the ball, got an offside penalty and ran it one more time to set up Kai Forbath on the left hash. Third down and on comes the kicker. Forbath was perfect in his NFL career, and hadn't missed a field goal all year. This was a chip shot but everyone knows what pressure has done to Redskins kickers in the past. Unlike them, Forbath had ice running through his veins and drilled the kick down the middle to win the game. 

Final score: 31-28 Redskins

The current playoff picture:

Earlier, I wrote about how this game was the one game the Redskins could afford to lose, and they haven't but at the same still still can't afford another loss. Seattle blew out Arizona, New York blew out New Orleans, and Minnesota edged out Chicago. This makes the two wild card teams both 8-5, the same record as the NFC leading Giants. 

The Redskins are one game behind in the wild card race and a loss by Chicago against Green Bay puts the Redskins in the drivers seat for the wild card seat. Chicago plays a tough one against Green Bay and an injured Jay Cutler (who will still probably play) may not be enough to top a hot Packers team making a nice comeback against the Lions last week. Seattle can easily win out if they keep playing like they are and they have a tie breaker in common games played against the Redskins. Seattle would probably need to lose two out of the next three which isn't likely. Ultimately, Chicago needs to keep losing for the Redskins to claim the wild card.

The alternative is for the Redskins to win the NFC East, which is probably easier than getting the wild card. The Redskins are one game behind the Giants and have the best division record in the NFC East. If the Giants lose to either Atlanta or Baltimore (preferably both) then the Redskins will also be in the drivers seat for the NFC East crown. 

What you want to see on Sunday:

Chicago losing to Green Bay

Seattle losing to Buffalo

New York losing to Atlanta

Redskins beating Cleveland

RG3 surviving for the rest of the season

Alfred Morris and RG3 Push Redskins to 3rd Straight Win

Following the Carolina Panthers game I had lost hope for the season. To win 7 straight games against mostly NFC East opponents was pretty much impossible, but three weeks and one round of NFC East opponents later, the Redskins are nearly halfway to their goal. This week featured a Monday night contest against the Giants, a team that the Redskins had almost beaten back in the Meadowlands. The Redskins needed a win to continue their hopes at making the post season while the Giants wanted to put a dagger in the rest of the NFC East. Needless to say the Redskins inched closer to their goal, while at same time pushing the Giants away from theirs.

The first half was disappointing. The first drive ended on what should've been a routine 5 yard hitch route. The Giants took the ball and held on for a little over 6 minutes, and finished off the drive with a field goal. They converted one third down on the drive.

After the kick-off the Redskins got the ball back at the 20. RG3 started up with a nice 25 yard pass to Pierre Garcon and then ol' reliable Alfred Morris rushed twice, amassing twenty seven yards. The Redskins scored on the next play when Griffin ran the triple option, pulled it, and then on his attempted slide fumbled the football right into the hands of Joshua Morgan who raced in for the touchdown. A lot of people are saying this was a fluke play and while it probably was, it would not have been possible if Morgan had not stuck to his assignment. On the triple option the pitchman is supposed to remain in pitch relationship with the quarterback, even if its obvious the quarterback isn't going to pitch it to him. (Pitch relationship is essentially being a yard behind and few yards to the side of the quarterback, so he is ready to receive a legal pitch when the need comes.) Griffin ran the ball and then slid; there was no logical reason for Morgan to follow except that those are the coaches' instructions. It paid off big time as he caught the lucky "pitch" and scored.

The Giants offense continued to tear up the Redskins secondary and get good yardage on the ground but faltered in the red-zone. Eventually the Redskins were up by one point in the 4th quarter and the defense stopped the Giants on a third down (a rare sight that night) and they punted with just under 4 minutes to go. Kyle Shanahan called aggressively, playing to win rather than playing not to lose, and it paid off when Alfred Morris took a third and three and romped through the defense for a game clinching first down.

The New and Improved: 

1. Alfred Morris:
I feel bad for this guy, after high school he got one scholarship offer for a crappy team that didn't win much in college. Then he gets drafted onto an NFL team, unlikely for players from his school, and becomes the number 3 rusher in the NFL, only to be out-shined by fellow rookie phenom RG3. No one chants Alfred Morris at games, no one watches his gritty five yard runs, no one puts him on the highlight reel unless he scores. He puts in work at a pro-bowl level but gets little recognition for it, and that's just how his humble-self likes it. Less people need to be like Chad Johnson (Ochocinco? I just can't keep track anymore) and T.O, and instead be like Alfred Morris: work hard and help your team win football games by letting your playing do the talking. Morris is definitely this week's MVP.

2. Robert Griffin III
He is smart, doesn't make bad decisions, is athletic and a natural born quarterback. He is also a winner. He's the Valium depressed Redskins fans needed after two decades of sub-par play. I write about him every week, there isn't much to say that hasn't already been said. Keep doing whatever you're doing soldier.

3. Defense:
While they still get gouged for the occasional big play and haven't really improved in terms of yards, they have buckled down in the red-zone and are keeping teams from scoring points. They held Philly and New York to under 20 points and they only gave up 3 to Dallas in the first half, allowing the offense to build an insurmountable lead. They get turnovers, and aren't giving up points and that's what they need to do.

4. Kai Forbath:
A perfect 11 for 11 on kicks, and not only does he make them, he drills them down the center; pure awesomeness.

5. Pierre Garcon:
After returning to action against the Eagles he has given new life to the offense. He is an electrifying play-maker and has scored in each of the last three games. His speed allows him to gain massive yards after the catch and his hands allow him to catch the rare off target throw from RG3. I can't wait to see him after his toe completely heals up.

The same old 'Skins. 
1. Defense 
The defense needs to get off the field on third down and find a way to pressure the opposing quarterbacks. They force teams into third down situations but give up the conversion more times than not. They get gassed out when they have stay on the field for more than half of the game. If they don't give up points then its all nice and dandy but this isn't a consistent way to win games.

2. Kai Forbath
His kick-offs are not good. They rarely make it into the endzone, even Billy could do that! This costs the defense in terms of starting field position and the coverage team might have one get by them for a touchdown. Not good.

Looking to next week:
The Raven's showed they can be beat after falling to the Charlie Batch led Steelers. The only difference is that the Steelers forced many punts giving the offense chance to score. This will be a competitive game but Redskins cannot get complacent or cocky after sweeping the NFC East. If they can win it'll be a great leap towards their playoff hopes but if they lose, it isn't the end of the world. If they have to lose one game during this stretch, it should be this non-conference one against a tough team.