Redskins Reality Checks after a Week 5 Win vs. Carolina

6. Reality Is, good football teams bounce back after being made to look bad.

The difference between a win and a loss in the NFL is razor-thin many Sundays. One bounce, one penalty, one drop, and the entire game goes another direction. The same is true for the feeling after a win.  If the Redskins had given up a touchdown on the final drive, the narrative this week would likely be all about Gruden being on the hot seat and the Alex Smith trade being a bust. (Don’t look now, but Kendall Fuller isn’t looking great this season in KC.)

But with that gutsy win, the narrative can flip back to positive for one more week. Hope gets to prevail leading into a massive home game against the hated Cowboys. Instead of calling for Jay Gruden’s head, fans get to shout about how it’s time to avenge their 1-5 record against the division last year. Gruden and his team have warded off the vultures for at least one more week with this win.

Reality Check: The game didn’t go exactly as I expected, but the Redskins were extremely aggressive on both sides of the ball in the first quarter and did jump out to a 17-0 lead.  The Panthers did indeed keep it close, but the Redskins did hold on for the win, 23-17 (not 24-23 as I had predicted).  This team now faces the task of trying to notch back-to-back wins for the first time in a while.  Good football teams bounce back after being made to look bad. The Redskins bounced back this week. Does that mean they’re good? The reality is, we don’t know yet. But it means they could be…which is a nice place to be after five games.

Now say it with me, “WE WANT DALLAS!”. Join the conversation @TheRealityIs__ on Twitter, or in the comments below. And look for my Pregame Reality Checks for the Dallas game later this week