Redskins youth shines through in Week 11 studs and duds
By Ian Cummings
Stud No. 3 – Second half Dwayne Haskins
If there’s any big-picture positive to take away from the Redskins loss against the Jets, Dwayne Haskins continued his weekly trend of looking more and more comfortable, and as the game went on, he displayed more confidence, and his upside was very much on display.
At the end of the first half, Haskins had just 28 yards on seven completions and 11 attempts. He finished the day with 214 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception, while completing 19 of 35 passes. It wasn’t a perfect day for Haskins, but he finally found the end zone, and we’re starting to see some of his growth translate to on-field production.
The biggest areas of growth from Haskins? Pocket mechanics and toughness. The rookie was under pressure frequently, courtesy of subpar play from the offensive line, and yet, he showed more comfort in his pocket manipulation, and his mechanics were more consistent, allowing him to put more heat on his throws on a consistent basis. He showed off his arm strength on numerous occasions, most notably on several throws to Terry McLaurin.
It’s also worth noting that Haskins’ interception wasn’t his fault; as analyst Mark Bullock noted on Twitter, Trey Quinn sat in a zone between linebackers and then moved abruptly as Haskins delivered a low strike to him, opening a lane for a linebacker to swoop in and pick off the pass. It was a miscommunication, something that shouldn’t happen as often as Haskins continues to progress.
On Sunday, in spite of the loss, Haskins showed something; he showed that he has the upside to live up to his first-round billing, and it was more prevalent than it’s ever been in his NFL career. If the Redskins can find a coach who more accurately attunes the offense to Haskins’ strengths in the offseason, then we could see a quick, dramatic leap in 2020.