Three takeaways from Washington Football Team’s Week 7 win vs. Cowboys

2. Washington’s offensive game plan was excellent

Dallas’ defense is bad, but Washington’s offense played well It’s important to acknowledge that both of these things are true. Yes, Dallas has one of the worst defenses in the NFL. They were allowing 36 points per game coming into this contest after all.

But it’s also important to give Washington credit. They played very well on offense. They played smart, hard, and Scott Turner came in with a good game plan. That allowed the team to control the game from the outset, rack up some early points, and cruise to a win.

Washington used its passing game to target Dallas’ weaknesses. They haven’t been good against tight ends this year, so they made sure to get the ball to Logan Thomas and design some plays to get the ball to him.

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However, the biggest thing they made sure to do was target Terry McLaurin. Washington’s star receiver caught seven passes for 90 yards and a long TD. He had a team-high 11 targets, and that represented more than half of the targets that Kyle Allen created during the game. That concerted effort to get McLaurin the ball paid off and Washington’s performance was better because of it.

While the passing game performed well, the team’s effort on the ground, the running game was the real key to finding the team success against the Cowboys. Antonio Gibson was excellent for the team and had 128 yards on 20 carries to go along with a TD. He looked shifty between the tackles and used his speed and elusiveness to make big plays.

That said, it was the commitment to sticking to the run that really paid off for the team. Running backs carried the ball 35 times and running plays overall represented 59 percent of Washington’s offense. That let them control the clock early and wear down Dallas’ already suspect stop unit.

Everything went well for Washington on offense. The unit wasn’t elite, but they were consistent and sustained drives. That’s what gave them the opportunity to win and it’s something they’ll have to do moving forward to continue to find success against weaker opponents.