10 quick thoughts from Week 10 as Washington upsets Tampa Bay

UPSET IN LANDOVER.

The Washington Football Team came into Sunday’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as nearly double-digit underdogs and walked out as double-digit winners, knocking off the reigning champs 29-19 at FedEx Field.

It was the type of performance fans had been clamoring for all year.

Tom Brady was terrified of attempting a pass beyond five yards. Taylor Heinicke played like a franchise quarterback. Jonathan Allen delivered an All-Pro-level performance. All en route to Washington pulling off maybe the upset of the year in the NFL, which says a lot given how much chaos ensued in Week 9.

We know one win doesn’t mean Washington has saved their season, but fans deserve to celebrate this victory. There was a lot to take away from the W, but here are some thoughts we jotted down as the game went on.

Washington Football Team: 10 quick thoughts from Week 10

Gutted for Chase Young: FedEx Field was absolutely rocking on Sunday … until the face of the franchise was writhing in pain after suffering a knee injury on a pass-rushing snap. Young refused to get carted off, but could barely put any weight on the knee as he was assisted to the locker room.

The former No. 2 overall pick was quickly ruled out and there’s growing concern he suffered a season-ending ACL injury. Just devastating. Young had been taking some heat from fans for his slow start and we were eager to see how he was going to respond over the course of the remaining schedule.

We might not get that chance now.

Jonathan Allen is inevitable: What more can be said about Jonathan Allen that hasn’t been said already? How about this — if you took Allen’s current stats and he didn’t play another snap in 2021, he’d STILL make the Pro Bowl.

Allen made his presence felt early and often on Sunday, registering a QB hit on Tom Brady before taking out a run in the backfield. He was particularly dominant against the run, which is significant given it’s his supposed area of weakness.

Simply put, the four year, $72 million extension Allen inked in the offseason is looking like a bargain and he deserves to be mentioned alongside the best defensive linemen, not just tackles, in the game.

Give Antonio Gibson some respect: No, Antonio Gibson wasn’t efficient in the game. 24 carries for 64 yards is an abhorrent stat line. However, the Bucs have the best run defense in the league and Gibson showed up in the red zone.

The second-year RB notched two second half touchdowns, the first of which gave Washington a 10-point cushion and the second of which put the game on ice in the final minute. It’d be nice to see Gibson be more effective earlier in games, but let’s remember he’s playing through a stress fracture in his shin.

Put some respect on his name.

Chase Roullier was missed: Chase Roullier getting hurt in Week 8 kind of got swept under the rug, as it happened in the latter stages of the loss to Denver right before the bye. The 28-year-old fractured his fibula and is out for the year, and to say Washington missed his sturdy presence would be an understatement.

We’re not going to overreact to one game, but this rep from Tyler Larsen is one of the worst we’ve seen from an OL. The sixth-year pro was no match for Vita Vea, who went untouched (!) before making a stop against the run.