Washington Football Team getting healthy heading into final stretch

Somebody find some wood to knock on; we’re talking about Washington Football Team injuries again.

In the past, when we’ve talked about the Washington Football Team and injuries in the same context, it’s been accompanied by proclamations of throwing in the towel on the season, or lamenting at how Jay Gruden has another excuse to keep his job.

With Ron Rivera, the process is a bit more structured, without all of the drama and the confusion of the previous era. Washington has still suffered a bit from injuries this season, having lost key contributors like Matt Ioannidis, Kyle Allen, Landon Collins, and Geron Christian, but they’ve managed to institute a next-man-up philosophy that’s taken root with impressive quickness.

Of course, replacing players effectively is good, but simply staying healthy is even better, and luckily for the Washington Football Team, they’re looking healthy as they head into their Week 13 matchup against the undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers.

Only four players showed up on Washington’s initial Week 13 injury report, available on the team’s official website. Edge rusher Ryan Anderson and tackle Morgan Moses were listed as limited participants in the most recent practice session, while safety Deshazor Everett and tackle Cornelius Lucas were listed as full participants.

The Steelers’ injury information was largely unavailable, as the team likely had a day off after an unusual Wednesday afternoon game in Week 12.

For Washington, having just four players on the injury report is big, but it’s also big to have two starters, Lucas and Everett, well on their way back to playing, after each missing games due to injury. Lucas has arguably fared better than Christian at left tackle, while Everett has at least been a modest upgrade at free safety in limited snaps.

Moses’ injury is concerning, but the veteran will have an additional day to recover after the Washington-Pittsburgh game was bumped back to Monday afternoon due to COVID-19 concerns. If Moses and Lucas both go, then the Washington Football Team’s offense has its best shot at competing with Pittsburgh’s vaunted defense, especially after edge rusher Bud Dupree was lost for the year.

Washington shouldn’t be expected to win against the 11-0 Steelers, but a win would certainly mean a lot. Washington is currently tied for the NFC East lead with the Giants, but New York holds the tiebreaker after sweeping Washington earlier in the year. There’s only so much Washington can do to control their own fate at this point, but getting healthy and staying healthy is a definite plus.