How did Redskins QB Dwayne Haskins grow in Week 11?

Where is further growth needed?

Through the past few slides, we broke down the intricacies of Dwayne Haskins’ game with depth, and we went into the “why” of both his improvements and his past struggles. But at the end of the day, we only looked at three plays. Haskins was on the field for 68 offensive snaps against the Jets. There were some snaps where he mirrored these improvements. There were other snaps where he clung to bad habits. Consistency still needs to be attained for Haskins, but it’s easy to see how he’s grown.

For Haskins, there is still growth to be enjoyed, both on and off the field. On the field, Haskins must continue to piece together the many different aspects of quarterback play, and solidify his comfort at that position. He can still expand on the mental aspects of the game, but that expansion comes after the operational phase. A quarterback needs to know how to use the pocket before he can consistently work his progressions. There’s a vast depth to the mental side of the game that Haskins may soon be ready to explore, once he has a solid foundation under his feet.

Off the field, Haskins must continue to learn about his roles as an inherent leader at the quarterback position, and maximize the symbiotic bond between himself and his team mates. It’s a complicated process, and it’s one that Redskins quarterback and mentor Alex Smith can sympathize with. In a clip from the latest edition of the Alex Smith Report, Smith goes into detail about what Haskins is experiencing, and how he helps Haskins along.

"It’s hard as a rookie quarterback, being a first-round pick, and the expectations… I know it all too well. I felt like I had to show everybody… when I walked in the building, I had to be somebody I thought I needed to be. It took me years to figure out I just need to be me, and I just need to go out there on Sundays and execute my job, to give us a chance to win. I don’t need to be somebody I’m not. [As a quarterback], you’re inherently thrust into a leadership position. Nobody affects the game more than the quarterback. You touch the ball every single play. The entire team, the entire organization is trusting you, not only to make great decisions, but to be accurate with the football, to be on time, and these are split-second things. It takes time to learn all this stuff. At this level, you come in as a young quarterback, there’s a lot of voices. There’s a lot of people telling you what you need to be, what you need to do, all these things. I think in the end, and this has always been my message to Dwayne, I think he really just needs to focus on what is really important, [which] is playing well. Preparing himself to go play; don’t worry about the rest of the noise. In fact, eliminate it. Try to eliminate all of that outside noise, because in the end, all your team mates really care about is you going out and executing."

Smith also touched on Haskins’ earlier on-field appearances in 2019, emphasizing how hard it is to perform after coming off the bench as a rookie with no earlier preparation. Now that Haskins is getting all the practice reps, Smith has seen improvement in the rookie’s process, and

It’s a good thing for Haskins to have so many valuable voices in his corner, and even with inevitable changes coming from a coaching standpoint, Haskins has an opportunity to solidify the operational aspects of his game, so that any transition to a new scheme will be well within his capacity (And with any luck, the scheme will be tailored to his strengths).

Haskins has the traits to succeed as an NFL quarterback, and in quotes from Haskins, it’s clear that he has a desire to learn and win. Haskins, at just 22 years old, is still maturing and learning how to enact his role as a leader of men. With the right voices guiding him, that will come in time. For now, Haskins’ on-field developments take center stage, and there are things to like, under the spotlight.

Haskins’ development won’t be linear, and it’s important to have patience and perspective. There will be bad games in the future; after all, it takes time to exorcise bad habits and establish new routines. But Haskins’ growth against the Jets showed that he is taking in information and applying it effectively. With six games yet to play in 2019, there’s plenty of time for Haskins to keep growing, so that in 2020, he might be in position to take the next step.