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Redskins vs. Saints: Duds from Monday’s primetime matchup

By Ian Cummings

NEW ORLEANS, LA - OCTOBER 08: Michael Thomas #13 of the New Orleans Saints is tackled by D.J. Swearinger #36 of the Washington Redskins during the first half at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on October 8, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - OCTOBER 08: Michael Thomas #13 of the New Orleans Saints is tackled by D.J. Swearinger #36 of the Washington Redskins during the first half at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on October 8, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) /
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NEW ORLEANS, LA – OCTOBER 08: Alex Smith #11 of the Washington Redskins is pressured by Marcus Davenport #92 of the New Orleans Saints during the first half at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on October 8, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA – OCTOBER 08: Alex Smith #11 of the Washington Redskins is pressured by Marcus Davenport #92 of the New Orleans Saints during the first half at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on October 8, 2018 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images) /

No. 3 – The entire Redskins offensive line

The Redskins offensive line has done enough good to establish a reputation for itself as one of the better units in the league. But they’ve been very hot and cold this season, and on Monday night, they had perhaps their worst showing yet.

It’s easy to attribute offensive stagnation to coaching, but one of the biggest reasons for the Redskins’ offensive failures was the play of the guys up front, especially on passing downs. Alex Smith was routinely pressured early, even on consecutive plays.

A point was made out of getting Chris Thompson more touches ahead of the game, but whenever the Redskins tried to give him open looks on screens, the linemen simply didn’t get into position quick enough, allowing for the Saints to gobble him up early. Running the football, it was the same story. The Redskins had 39 measly rushing yards on 18 carries.

I don’t need to tell you how hard it is for an offense to function when the offensive line is getting demolished in every facet of the game. That’s what happened last night.The Redskins lost in the trenches, on both sides of the ball, frankly. At some point, the players need to live up to their reputation. They know the stakes. They know the pitfalls one can linger into on a bye week. And this week, they stumbled forward blindly into a bottomless pit.

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