Washington Football Team: This overlooked player could have bigger role in Week 3
By Jerry Trotta
The Washington Football Team’s offense has been firing (mostly) on all cylinders ever since Ryan Fitzpatrick left injured in the second quarter of Week 1.
We like to call it the Taylor Heinicke effect. Over six-plus quarters, the fan favorite quarterback is completing 73.8% of his passes for 458 yards — 336 of which came in the win over the Giants — and three touchdowns to just one interception.
Since Heinicke took over, it’s clear Terry McLaurin, Adam Humphries, Logan Thomas, and JD Mckissic have emerged as his favorite targets.
It also seems noteworthy that Dyami Brown logged three catches for 34 yards on six targets against New York after a lackluster showing in Week 1, so hopefully the rookie third-round pick can use that as a springboard moving forward.
You know what’s been rubbing Washington fans the wrong way, though? The usage, or lack thereof, of Cam Sims.
Well, Ron Rivera hinted to reporters on Tuesday that Sims could be in for a bigger workload vs the Bills on Sunday.
Ron Rivera on Cam Sims: "We've got to get him on the field a little more. The truth of the matter is the coaches have talked about that."
— John Keim (@john_keim) September 21, 2021
He said those first couple games are learning experiences for even the coaches.
Washington Football Team head coach Ron Rivera admitted that Cam Sims needs to be more involved.
You see? Complaining on Twitter can be productive! Who knew?
In all seriousness, this quote had to make Washington fans smile. Over the first two games, Sims has managed just one catch for 17 yards, which isn’t surprising when you consider he’s played a combined 10 (!) snaps, or 7.5%. That’s indefensible given the mismatch he presents for defenses at 6-foot-5 and 220 pounds.
We know the Football Team’s receiving corps is deeper than its been in years — Curtis Samuel hasn’t even played yet — but you simply can’t have that kind of athleticism wasting away on the bench.
To Rivera’s credit, Sims has played 59% of the snaps on special teams, but most fans would agree he needs to be more involved in the offense. After all, the Alabama product emerged as a pleasant surprise for Washington last year, hauling in 32 catches for 477 yards, which finished fourth on the team, and a touchdown.
Ron Rivera wants to get WR Cam Sims more involved in Washington's offense https://t.co/p7N5m7gsHz
— NBC Sports Commanders (@NBCSCommanders) September 21, 2021
Sims piggybacked off that momentum with a career performance against the Buccaneers in the playoffs, when he tallied seven catches for 104 yards on 13 targets, all of which were career-highs.
Care to guess who quarterbacked that game for the Football Team? That’d be Heinicke, so he and Sims definitely have some chemistry.
For any fans concerned that Rivera is just giving the media what it wants to hear, he admitted after Week 1 that McKissic didn’t get enough touches vs the Chargers. In Week 2, he was one of Washington’s most important players.
We’re not saying Sims will have that kind of a role, but expect the 25-year-old physical specimen to have an impact in what figures to be a high-scoring affair against Buffalo, who just hung 35 points on a solid Miami defense.
