Positives and negatives from the Washington Football Team’s win over the Steelers.
The Washington Football Team won their third straight game on Monday and firmly placed themselves into a spirited battle for the playoffs. The team they defeated was shocking to football fans everywhere.
Are you still in shock and awe of this Washington Football Team? Can you actually believe they went to Heinz Field in Pittsburgh and handed the 11-0 Steelers a humiliating loss?
Monday night’s game started off poorly for Washington and it seemed as if the game was slipping away. Before the first half ended, the WFT put together a solid drive and salvaged a field goal out of it just before the half ended. They carried that little bit of momentum into the second half and Washington was able to hand Pittsburgh their first loss of the season, 23-17.
Guess what? With the upset victory, Washington slid into a first-place tie once again in the NFC East. With four games to go, they would lose the division in a tiebreaker with the Giants for now.
However, there is a silver lining. With this three-game winning streak, the Burgundy and Gold was able to thrust themselves into the NFC wild-card playoff race. A division title is certainly not out of the question, but having another route to the playoffs is what consistent winning will provide an organization at this time of the year.
If anyone had predicted a few years ago that the WFT would sweep the Cowboys and beat the Steelers on their home field in the same season, would you have believed it? Washington went to Dallas on Thanksgiving Day and won convincingly. Eleven days later, Washington traveled to Heinz Field and beat the 11-0 Steelers.
That is why we are talking about a division title or a wild card berth. With four games to go in the 2020 season, anything can happen. With that in mind, we have five positives to focus on from Monday’s game and we will examine a few of the negatives as well. Let’s get right to it!
Positive 1
We have been really tough on Dustin Hopkins this year and while he deserved some strong scrutiny, the former Florida State kicker connected on all three of his field goal attempts (49, 45, and 45 yards) against the Steelers. His third field goal came with 17 seconds remaining in the game and Pittsburgh was defeated.
Is Hopkins righting the ship at the most opportune time in the season? It sure looks that way.
The kickoffs were solid. The field goals were needed. Hopkins was definitely a positive in this game and earned the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week nod for his performance.
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One game doesn’t turn a season around, but it is something he can build on over the last four games of 2020 – and in the playoffs, if the WFT can advance that far.
Negative 1
Last week, it was Ronald Darby. This week, it is Kendall Fuller. Quite frankly, he had a poor outing and Washington is fortunate that it wasn’t too costly.
Yes, he was struggling that much against the Steelers. Fuller was constantly getting beat on short and intermediate routes for much of the game. He was so ineffective on a 50-yard touchdown catch and run (in the second quarter) to the point of looking very fatigued or disinterested. Either way, it was disturbing to watch.
Fuller has been a solid cornerback this season and it’s possible that he is dealing with an injury or illness at this time. As we mentioned with Darby a week earlier, good players can have a bad game once in a while. Fuller was a negative on Monday, but let’s hope it was temporary.
Positive 2
This is a spot that is normally reserved for a certain wide receiver, but the focus for our second positive is Cam Sims! He was amazing to watch Monday evening.
Sims possesses a genuine knack for adding yards after a catch and not just a small amount. He has added 20 or 30 yards with many of his receptions this season and Washington is reaping the benefits. What was looking like a 14-0 halftime deficit became 14-3 after Sims exploded for more real estate after a catch downfield.
Did his efforts boost the mood of the team at halftime? It’s quite possible.
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Sims contributed five receptions for 92 yards against the Steel Curtain, including a beautiful one-handed grab with three minutes remaining in the game. The 29-yard reception led to the winning points (field goal) with just over two minutes to go. That is clutch football and it is becoming clutch Cam Sims.
Negative 2
The second negative for this week is a familiar gripe. The WFT had another poor first half, but the defense kept the game close enough and afforded the offense a chance in the second half. The three-game winning streak is impressive and the latest victory is nothing short of sensational. Just imagine what the final score could’ve been if Washington had a better first half on Monday.
We won’t dwell too much on the details but suffice it to say that the first half is still a detriment to this team, and solutions are needed as soon as possible. Yes, Pittsburgh is a legitimate Super Bowl contender, and winning at Heinz Field is special. However, Washington’s offense needs to score sooner in these next four games if they hope to win the division or capture a wild card slot.
Positive 3
Logan Thomas is another player that received a lot of scrutiny earlier in the season, but he is quickly becoming a true TE1 option.
Since Week 6 against the Giants, Thomas has been a force at tight end and he has been used as a quarterback in a few trick plays – often with very good results. Against the Steelers, Thomas made several key plays throughout the game and recovered an early fourth quarter J.D. McKissic fumble deep in Washington territory. That could’ve been costly, but Thomas alertly prevented a potentially huge disaster.
The former Hokie caught nine passes on nine targets and the game-tying touchdown nearly halfway in the final quarter. It was his most productive game since entering the league in 2014.
Washington Commanders
Before this season, Thomas’ most productive season was last year when he hauled in 16 receptions. Thomas has 43 catches so far in 2020 and it’s possible that he could reach 60 four games from now.
Negative 3
Shaun Dion Hamilton returns to the list this week. Here is what we said about him last week.
"His role on the defense and special teams continues to diminish. While he had no bad mistakes on Thursday, Hamilton’s impact this season has been minimal. Is he playing his way out of Washington in the coming months? At the risk of sounding impertinent here, please realize that raw statistics don’t lie. SDH needs to produce over the next five games or he will be searching for a new home during the upcoming offseason."
Hamilton appeared in five plays on defense and 27 plays on special teams. Not one tackle. Not one assist. Not a single statistic. It is now four games and counting. Can he turn the negatives into positives over the next four weeks?
Positive 4
Let’s talk about that defensive line for a bit. One word could suffice here. Wow!
Pittsburgh is playing at home. They are 11-0. They have first down inside the one-yard line. The Washington defensive line stops them cold on first down. The Steelers are stuffed on second down. Same result on third down. Fourth down and Washington stops them again! That is a unit determined to win and make the playoffs.
Four of Washington’s pass deflections came from behind the line of scrimmage. Pittsburgh gained 21 yards rushing on 14 carries. Yes, Pittsburgh’s famed quarterback was not sacked, but he did feel the pressure often from Washington’s front four. The defensive line was a forceful positive on Monday.
Negative 4
With nine minutes remaining in the second quarter, Washington was facing a fourth down and a yard to go at their own 34-yard line. Alex Smith lined up in the shotgun. Logan Thomas went in motion and lined up behind the center. Thomas hands off to J.D. McKissic for a three-yard loss.
If Washington is going for it there, a better play would’ve been Thomas running ahead behind the center and right guard.
Luckily, the defensive line produced what you just read in the fourth positive for the week. This was a poor decision and Scott Turner called the wrong play.
Positive 5
Sharing our fifth positive this week is J.D. McKissic and Alex Smith.
Smith went 31-46 and 296 yards against the Steelers. He also tossed the game-tying touchdown pass. The former Utah star has completed 70.5 percent of his passes over the last five games and he has led this team to the brink of a division title. Alex Smith is the likely comeback player of the year this season, but there is more work to do.
McKissic was on fire in the second half with 10 catches on 10 targets for 70 yards. He continued to move the chains in the second half and kept several scoring drives alive with his timely plays. McKissic filled in nicely for the injured Antonio Gibson and he is under contract for another year at a very reasonable cost. Advantage, Washington.
Negative 5, Make it Positive 6
Here is a negative. Once again, Washington didn’t score in the first quarter. That’s it – that is your fifth negative.
And now for the bonus – a sixth positive for the second week in a row. Jon Bostic and Cole Holcomb brought plenty of heat against the Steelers. Pittsburgh’s ground game was grounded. The tight ends were limited and all but taken out of the equation in the second half. Bostic and Holcomb combined for 19 tackles. Bostic intercepted the game-clinching pass and he also contributed a pass deflection.
Washington will need their linebackers to perform in the reaming games this season and Monday was a good start. With their superb efforts against the Steelers, Jon Bostic and Cole Holcomb were solid positives.
Final Thoughts
First place in the division is a nice place to reside. It’s true that the WFT is 5-7. It’s also true that they possess a three-game winning streak and just capped off one of the biggest upsets in NFL history.
NFL analysts across the board did not expect it, but Washington’s coaches and players knew they could go into Pittsburgh on a cold Monday night and hand the Steelers a fight like no other.
Yours truly is still munching away on that humble pie. It’s really neat to see a rebuild that could also include a playoff appearance. The team we see now is far different than the team we saw just a few weeks ago. The San Francisco game (in Arizona) now looms large, but this team has the blueprint to win on the road and do so with sheer grit and determination.
The fans are celebrating this week and rightfully so. Enjoy it, but it is back to business on Sunday in the desert. We could be talking about a team that is all alone in first place when the dawn of day arrives on Monday.
We’ll return following the 49ers game for five more positives and negatives. Is a fourth straight victory coming?