Washington Football Team: Three takeaways from win vs. 11-0 Steelers

No. 1 – Win against Steelers is a reflection of Ron Rivera’s culture

All throughout the 2020 season, while visible progress has been evident under Ron Rivera, there have still been the same preventable mistakes and untimely miscues that have so often defined the Washington Football Team in previous years. Even in the beginning of the game against Pittsburgh, Washington continued to beat itself.

But the win of Pittsburgh is perhaps the most resounding reflection of Ron Rivera’s new culture yet to be seen. Washington went down 14-0. They lost their second-best offensive weapon and their Pro Bowl right guard, and their best weapon — Terry McLaurin — was being locked down. Their defense suffered at the hand of a few demoralizing big plays engineered by Pittsburgh’s passing offense.

Heading into the half, things looked like they were falling apart — as you would expect for a 4-7 team playing an 11-0 team. But then, something changed.

The Washington Football Team came out of the locker room with a new energy. They scored a touchdown on their first drive back. They blanked Pittsburgh in the third quarter. They held them to a field goal in the fourth. Then Alex Smith drove the offense down the field. Cam Sims took over in the clutch. Logan Thomas found the end zone. Dustin Hopkins made the kicks. Jon Bostic made the pick.

The second half of Washington’s game against the Steelers was incredible, not simply for the result, but for the journey. In that second half, players stepped up, one by one, one after another, and their efforts built and built until the win was in their grasp. It was a universal, symbiotic inertia. No matter what the Steelers did, Washington’s players resisted, recoiled, and prevailed.

Perhaps we’ve never seen anything like this in so long because the culture has never been good enough to put a win like this into motion. This win is proof, more than anything else, that Ron Rivera has changed things. Washington truly willed itself to a win, against the only undefeated team in the NFL.

There’s an air of finality to this game, but it’s not over yet. The Washington Football Team is now tied for the lead in the NFC East with the New York Giants, and at 5-7, they have four games left to secure the division crown. They got the win they needed. Now, can they continue to control their destiny?

That question has elicited doubt before for Washington. But after they reclaimed control so fervently in the third quarter against the Steelers, their grip on control is stronger than ever.