Three keys to victory for the Washington Football Team vs. 49ers
1. Set the tone early
Washington bucked this trend on Monday; they won a game in which they started poorly. That had not been done since the come-from-behind victory in Week 1 against the Eagles.
Despite their poor starts, I will give the staff and team credit, they do their best to make up for it. Washington is one of the best second-half teams in football. Twice they have come back from double-digit deficits but, unfortunately, usually, the comebacks fall just short.
In Week 1 they scored 27 unanswered to defeat the Eagles. However, in Week 3 after quickly scored two touchdowns to take a 20-17 lead against the Browns turnovers eventually lost the game. They cut a 20-3 Giants lead to 23-20 before two Alex Smith interceptions iced the game.
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The very next week, Washington fell behind 24-3, came back and tied it at 24-24 but eventually fell 30-27. Finally, they completed another comeback. On Monday, they outscored the Steelers 20-3 in the second half, to win 23-17.
The Washington Football Team, as evidenced, is a great second-half team. Whether it is coaching adjustments, a re-focus from the players, a riveting speech from Rivera and the team leaders or some form of magic juice, I cannot pinpoint why they are so much better in the second half. But they clearly are a very good second-half team.
However, and a big reason for their 5-7 record not being better, they start games so poorly. You can read my piece from about a month ago on the matter to just see how poorly they start games. They consistently put themselves behind early. They will fight back but as has been proven it is not sustainable.
It worked against the Steelers but that won’t be able to repeated very often. In the two games prior, against the Bengals and Cowboys, they took leads into halftime. They outscored the two opponents by a combined 35-6 in the second half and won both games by double digits. They beat the Cowboys 41-16. Pure domination.
See what happens when a fast start happens? Not only does the Washington Football Team have a much better chance at winning but they have a much better chance to control the game. No heart attacks needed.
Against the 49ers, with an offensive expert in Kyle Shanahan, it will be paramount to set the tone early. Make the 49ers be the one having to mount a comeback and force Shanahan to have to adapt his game plan. That will be a recipe for success with for Washington, especially against Nick Mullens. Set the tone early.