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Washington Football Team: Five positives and negatives vs. Rams

By Ken Johannesen

LANDOVER, MARYLAND - OCTOBER 11: Alex Smith #11 of the Washington Football Team throws a pass in the second half against the Los Angeles Rams at FedExField on October 11, 2020 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MARYLAND - OCTOBER 11: Alex Smith #11 of the Washington Football Team throws a pass in the second half against the Los Angeles Rams at FedExField on October 11, 2020 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) /
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LANDOVER, MARYLAND – OCTOBER 11: Kyle Allen #8 of the Washington Football Team throws a pass in the first half against the Los Angeles Rams at FedExField on October 11, 2020 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MARYLAND – OCTOBER 11: Kyle Allen #8 of the Washington Football Team throws a pass in the first half against the Los Angeles Rams at FedExField on October 11, 2020 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) /

Positive and Negative No. 3

Positive No. 3

For the first time this season, Washington had a good first quarter and actually scored a touchdown to take the lead for a brief period of time.  It is not a huge positive, but the first quarter successes were a step in the right direction.  Kyle Allen had a decent first quarter and while he wasn’t perfect, the former Houston Cougar provided a spark early in the game.  From the second quarter to the finish, the team was definitely struggling and the lack of passion and execution began to limit the team.

If Washington is able to establish themselves early in a game as they did against the Rams, the chances of a victory will increase exponentially.  In previous games this season, the Washington Football Team has fallen behind shortly after the coin toss, and the difficulty of trying to manufacture a comeback week after week has taken a toll.

Sunday’s opening quarter against the Rams was a start to overcoming the early-game deficits.  Can the team establish enough consistency in the coming weeks and play at a competitive level in all four quarters?  It’s possible that we saw a glimpse of it against the Rams.

Negative No. 3

The tight ends were nothing short of atrocious against the Rams and that is putting it mildly.  As mentioned in this week’s clunkers article, Logan Thomas is not a natural tight end.  He produced one catch for four yards on four targets against the Rams.  He had one catch for eight yards the previous week.  That level of production after 16 games amounts to 16 catches.

Thomas came to the Washington Football Team with grand expectations, but we must ask why.  His best season in four previous years was, you guessed it, 16 catches.  Perhaps it is time to take advantage of his size (6-foot-6, 250) and see if this former quarterback can play a Taysom Hill type of role with the team.  It can’t hurt to give it a try – he simply isn’t a tight end.

The other tight end, Jeremy Sprinkle, had a short pass opportunity with room to pick up an extra ten yards or more in the first quarter.  The ball was delivered straight to Sprinkle’s waiting hands and he dropped it.  The two top tight ends produced one catch for four yards on Sunday.  Yes, that is certainly a negative.

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