Washington Redskins: 3 Takeaways vs. Vikings in Week 10
1. Mistakes
There was one sequence in the second half with Washington down 35-17, where the Redskins were close to scoring touchdowns on numerous plays. It was two drives, one of which set up by one of Swearinger’s interceptions, and Redskins came away with three points in those two drives. On one series, Washington was looking at first-and-goal inside the five-yard line, yet three straight passes led to a field goal.
The first-down play, wide receiver Josh Doctson runs a strong route to shake free in the corner of the end zone, yet slips on the awful grass at FedEx Field. Missed opportunity. Then, on two successive plays, Cousins hits Crowder in the hands on both plays and the receiver can’t come away with the football.
On the next possession, Cousins has Doctson streaking down the middle of the field wide open. He pulls the string and overthrows him. Washington fails to come away with points on the drive. That’s an 11-point swing that the Redskins couldn’t come back from.
Crowder had his hands on at least three catchable balls he failed to come up with. The Redskins need more from him. And the Cousins’ interception was a terrible throw. A big problem for Cousins is he gets under duress at times and throws off his back foot. There’s no reason he should’ve been picked on that throw.
On the fourth down play late, Gruden calls for a stretch play to Thompson to the right side. However, Pro Bowl guard Brandon Scherff failed to maintain his block and Thompson was stuffed for a four-yard loss and the ball went back to Minnesota.
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Defensively, there were far too many breakdowns, especially in the secondary. Norman and Breeland both had their worst games of the season. It was probably Norman’s worst game as a Redskin. In the end, the Redskins again fail to build off a special win the week before. This same theme has followed them for years and is precisely the reason why they never take the next step.