Washington Football Team Reality Checks for Week 4 vs Atlanta

I thought a few days of separation from the sheer unmitigated disaster of Sunday’s loss to Buffalo might help me gain a bit of perspective or clarity on what exactly happened against the Bills. But inexplicably, a couple press conferences by Ron Rivera and countless words written and spoken by fans and pundits seeking to explain the causes of Washington’s slow start to the season didn’t make me feel any better.

In fact, I find myself more conflicted about the cause and durability of their struggles. The defense looked inept. At all three levels. The shiny new quarterback looked pedestrian. The reigning defensive rookie of the year looked lost and ineffective.

And the coaching staff’s explanation for the early season struggles fell way short of being satisfying. In fact, it was so much coach-speak, it had many beginning to rumble about whether this coaching staff has what it takes to get this team back on track for real.

The Reality Is, there’s no single explanation for the early season struggles in Washington. And while the buck stops with the head coach who also makes all the final football decisions, the nature of the NFL is that it’s a week-to-week league, and there’s very rarely a simple explanation for the ups and downs that teams experience within a season.

So, rather than trying to diagnose or pick sides, I’m sticking to what I know…and trying to bring Washington Football Team Reality Checks across the board, one week at a time, to keep myself and the rest of the fanbase from going off the deep end. Washington goes to Atlanta with a near must-win on the docket, so, without further ado, let’s get to #5.