Riggo's Rag
FanSided

Washington Football Team: Week 6 reality checks, predictions vs. Giants

By Tim Payne

LANDOVER, MARYLAND - OCTOBER 11: Kyle Allen #8 of the Washington Football Team throws a pass against the Los Angeles Rams in the first half 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 against the Los Angeles Rams in the first half at FedExField on October 11, 2020 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 5
Next
GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN – DECEMBER 08: Jon Bostic #53 of the Washington Redskins lines up for a play in the fourth quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field on December 08, 2019 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)
GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN – DECEMBER 08: Jon Bostic #53 of the Washington Redskins lines up for a play in the fourth quarter against the Green Bay Packers at Lambeau Field on December 08, 2019 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images) /

3. The Reality Is, the Washington linebackers are likely the worst starting tandem in the league.

Jon Bostic and Kevin Pierre-Louis are both hard-working journeyman linebackers. Neither has consistently played, let alone started, in their other NFL stops. Neither is particularly solid in run support or coverage. Both are fast, but tend to have that speed come back to bite them as they over-pursue in coverage.

Missed tackles, covering air instead of matching in zones, poor man-to-man coverage, and biting badly on play-action have plagued both of these guys this season. This team needs a spark at linebacker.

My Prediction: Cole Holcomb gets his chance this week to play a significant amount of snaps, and by next week, he’s taken over in one of the starting linebacker spots. His speed matches that of Bostic and KPL, and his tackling and coverage ability is superior to theirs.

More from Riggo's Rag

4. The Reality Is, the Washington safeties are possibly worse than the linebackers.

Troy Apke has been getting hammered by Washington Football fans ever since many felt he was over-drafted in the 2018 draft. Apke is more suited to being a special-teamer than as starting safety. He struggles with angles in pursuit, he is not a sound tackler, and his speed actually gets him into trouble, often, as he over-runs plays.

Landon Collins is the much greater disappointment this season, however. His missed tackles, slow reactions, and painfully poor coverage performances make it hard to decipher who is actually playing worse among Washington’s two bad safeties. (And don’t even get me started on Deshazor Everett and his nearly comical pass interference penalty on Sunday.)

My Preference: Solve a couple of problems by moving Landon Collins to the Mike Linebacker spot, play Kamren Curl as the strong safety, and Kendall Fuller at free safety.

My Prediction: Collins will continue at SS and continue to struggle. Apke will split time with Everett while the coaches search for any upside from either one. Fuller will play a few snaps of Nickel and few snaps of FS.

Home/Commanders News