Takeaways from Week 10 win over the Buccaneers

2. Washington’s best players show up every single week

Week in and week out, Jonathan Allen and Terry McLaurin have been Washington’s best players this season.

Through 10 games, they’ve been here and have proved their effectiveness no matter the matchup. Week 10 was the embodiment of this statement, as Allen was the best defensive player on the field yesterday between both teams, and McLaurin was the best offensive player on the field yesterday, between both teams.

In the case of Allen, the $72 million-dollar man had five pressures yesterday against a strong Buccaneers offensive line. He affected the passing game with his dominance at the line of scrimmage and proved to be no slouch against the run as well.

In the case of Terry McLaurin, he didn’t go for 8 catches for 150 yards, but of his six catches, three went for first downs, one of which extended Washington’s final offensive drive to put the final nail in the coffin. McLaurin also had two contested catches, zero drops and has been the epitome of consistency, leadership, and All-Pro caliber play that’s worthy of any contract imaginable when the time comes.

3. Taylor Heinicke played his best game of the year

Taylor Heinicke has had better “raw stats” in other games, but in my opinion, his best game of the year came against his toughest opponent of the year.

Heinicke was a game-manager, but with a little spark to him. He used his legs in and out of plays when needed, he made timely and efficient throws, nothing spectacular, but he kept the game in front of them. Heinicke had his share of bad plays, like creating his own sacks or a few missed throws, but all-in-all, he played well.

The 28-year-old seems to be at his best when in rhythm. Whether it’s on third down facing man coverage, he can drop the ball in the bucket. He’s typically an accurate passer when the first 8-10 plays go well on script and it’ll eventually lead to plays that we all have come to love and appreciate. He progresses as the game goes on, but getting into a rhythm is key for Heinicke.

This week’s game plan was the perfect blend of clock management, proper QB play, knowing your limitations and finding a rhythm, never turning away from it, and riding it all the way home to a W. When he’s on, he’ll play like a low-end starter.

When it comes to the “game-manager” status that Rivera and Turner want from Heinicke, I’d assume it looks something like this, no? If that’s the case, you’ll live with the results, because this level of play, despite being limited, is good enough to keep you in games week to week should your defense do its job.

4. Hail to…. Joey Slye?

A kicker has finally made its debut on the “positive” side of the Takeaways series, and I hope you as a reader, are excited. Joey Slye went 3-for-3 on field-goal attempts, one of which was from nearly 50 yards out, and he was 1-for1 on extra-points while also forcing out speed-demon Jaelen Darden on a kickoff return.

Slye’s debut for Washington went as good as it possibly could have. He proved to be an asset rather than a liability, his leg proved to be big enough on kickoffs and accurate enough to put points on the board. The V-Tech product seems to be a breath of fresh air, with more leg than Dustin Hopkins and overall much more polished than Chris Blewitt. Finally, Washington may have a long-term fit at kicker.

Who knew? Turns out that kickers are, and always have been, football players. You just gotta find the right one.