3 stats that defined Washington’s thrilling upset over Tampa Bay

2. Third down dominance & Time of Possession

A major theme from the first half of the season was Washington’s inability to get off the field on third down. Had the tables been turned in that regard in a couple games, they might have a few more wins on their resume.

Since time machines don’t exist, Washington had to make adjustments coming out of the bye and boy, did they ever.

For the game, they limited Tampa Bay to just 4-for-10 on third down. Not a great number, but you’ll take that all day against Brady and the reigning champs. Conversely, Washington finished an incredible 11-for-19 (57.8%) on third down, including going 4-for-5 on their punishing final drive to clinch the game.

That drive included conversions on 3rd and two (gain of three), 3rd and one (gain of four), 3rd and four (gain of five), and 3rd and five (gain of six). What’s that they say about football being a game of inches? My goodness!

None were better than Terry McLaurin’s 3rd and five catch in traffic. McLaurin got lit up on the play, but further proved that his pain threshold is as high as any player in the NFL by popping right back up and flexing for the fans.

https://twitter.com/WashingtonNFL/status/1459986669818552325

Washington’s 58% conversion rate was their best of the season and helped them establish a significant advantage in the time of possession battle. For the game, the Football Team ran 71 plays compared to the Buccaneers’ 49 and out-possessed Tampa Bay by almost 20 minutes (39:08 to 20:52), per ESPN.

What a rush.