Washington Football Team Reality Checks for Week 5 vs New Orleans
By Tim Payne
5. The Reality Is, Bostic going down for the season may force the right kind of adjustments.
My thoughts on the Bostic situation were summed up in this tweet:
Clearly one of Rivera’s blind spots. Every coach has them. Bostic was never going to be held to the same standards as others because of locker room/meeting room/practice field presence in Ron’s eyes. Jamin Davis now has the opportunity to step up. #washingtonfootball
— TheRealityIs (@TheRealityIs__) October 5, 2021
While fans almost universally have not understood what Rivera and Jack Del Rio see in Bostic, it was going to take something dramatic like his season-ending pec injury to get them to move on. But necessity is the mother of invention, and maybe, just maybe, having to move on from Bostic will push them to a more effective lineup and play calling combination. Bostic’s physical limitations severely handicapped the middle of Washington’s defense whether the coaching staff admitted it or not. Could this force Landon Collins into a linebacking role? Could Jamin Davis get dramatically more comfortable with the additional reps? Will Washington play more 4-man fronts with 1 LB, 3 Safeties, and 3 corners? In my view, more playing time for Davis and Curl, more “LB” reps for Collins….all very likely ramifications of the Bostic injury, are all good things for this defense moving forward.