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Washington Football Team Reality Checks: Week 11 vs. Cincinnati Bengals

By Tim Payne

EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY - OCTOBER 18: (NEW YORK DAILIES OUT) Terry McLaurin #17 of the Washington Football Team in action against Logan Ryan #23 of the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium on October 18, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Giants defeated Washington 20-19. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY - OCTOBER 18: (NEW YORK DAILIES OUT) Terry McLaurin #17 of the Washington Football Team in action against Logan Ryan #23 of the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium on October 18, 2020 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Giants defeated Washington 20-19. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /
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Oct 4, 2020; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Football Team defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio (M) watches from the sidelines against the Baltimore Ravens at FedExField. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 4, 2020; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Football Team defensive coordinator Jack Del Rio (M) watches from the sidelines against the Baltimore Ravens at FedExField. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports /

1. The Reality Is, the defense has regressed the past two weeks.

After largely carrying the team to whatever bits and pieces of success they had experienced early in this season, this defense has struggled mightily the last two weeks.

The lack of gap control in the run game, the lack of sound coverage in the secondary, the poor situational play-calling defensively, and the seeming regression of the rookie personnel are all signs of just how disappointing this defense has been the last few weeks. Jon Bostic looks lost. Kendall Fuller just had one of the worst games by a cornerback in recent Washington Football Team history.

Even the superstar in the making, Chase Young, was ineffective in the run game and made almost no positive impact in the pass game against the Lions. In fact, he hasn’t appeared to progress or develop at all this season. His most impactful game was Week 1. Clearly, other teams are game-planning for him, so it’s now on Jack Del Rio and the defensive coaching staff to get creative to free him up and give him better chances to make impact plays.

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The final drive of the game against Detroit on Sunday was yet another circumstance where Del Rio appeared to whiff on his play calls. It almost appeared they were caught by surprise on all three plays of that 16-second drive.

That same defense has gotten gashed by Wayne Gallman, Alfred Morris, and D’Andre Swift the last two weeks (not exactly a who’s-who of pro-bowl backs). Clearly, this defense experimented with some different personnel groupings and calls during their bye-week, and so far, that tinkering has not worked out well. It will be fascinating if they get back on track against Joe Burrow and Cincinnati.

My Prediction: This team doesn’t have enough talent at safety or linebacker to be an excellent defense, but they will shore up the massive mistakes this week by playing less complex coverages in the coming weeks. Look for Kendall Fuller to play more safety, especially if Deshazor Everett is out. Also, look for Bostic to start losing some snaps to Kevin Pierre-Louis and Shaun Dion Hamilton.

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