Riggo's Rag
FanSided

The Redskins and the Dolphins: A tale of two tanks

By Ian Cummings

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - AUGUST 29: Head coach Brian Flores of the Miami Dolphins looks on during an NFL preseason game against the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes Benz Superdome on August 29, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA - AUGUST 29: Head coach Brian Flores of the Miami Dolphins looks on during an NFL preseason game against the New Orleans Saints at the Mercedes Benz Superdome on August 29, 2019 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Sean Gardner/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 4
Next
LANDOVER, MD – AUGUST 15: (L-R) Washington Redskins team president Bruce Allen, head coach Jay Gruden and owner Dan Snyder look on during warm ups before a preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals at FedExField on August 15, 2019 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD – AUGUST 15: (L-R) Washington Redskins team president Bruce Allen, head coach Jay Gruden and owner Dan Snyder look on during warm ups before a preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals at FedExField on August 15, 2019 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) /

The Difference

One team prepared for the tank. The other refused to see it coming. And now, the stark contrast between the two is only growing.

Both the Dolphins and Redskins are 0-4, with no end in sight to their incompetence. But for the Dolphins, this failure was an expected part of their master plan, and it’s allowed them to reload for a monumental 2020 NFL Draft. The Redskins depleted their own future assets to go in on competing in 2019. For them, this failure is a nightmare in broad daylight.

The root of the problem? The Redskins front office was complacent. They failed to introspect and self-scout. They were lazy. And now, they’re paying the consequences for their short-sighted view of mediocrity. Mathematically, yes, one could say they were close. But structurally, functionally, they were closer to a total collapse.

Five Redskins players to watch against the Patriots. dark. Next

Things will get better for the Dolphins. They turned the page, and took the first step in the next direction in unison. Before anything changes in Washington, the Redskins need to embrace the ugly, exchange costly, aging veterans and un-aligning players for draft picks, and re-assess the very foundation of the franchise. Otherwise, they won’t see the next tank coming, either.

Home/Commanders News