3 things that will keep Washington fans thankful during holiday season
By Jerry Trotta
2. No more injuries to the offensive line
What did Washington’s offensive line do to disturb the football gods?
Credit it where it’s due, the line has remained consistent despite a ton of turnover. However, Taylor Heinicke was under constant duress during the latter stages of Sunday’s win, indicating injuries are slowly starting to take their toll.
As things stand, Charles Leno, Ereck Flowers and Brandon Scherff are the only healthy Day 1 starters. Not a doomsday scenario, but far from ideal, especially considering Sam Cosmi and Tyler Larsen both left injured.
Their status for Week 12 is currently unknown, but the fact Washington promoted guard Deion Calhoun and center Tyler Gauthier from the practice squad on Wednesday isn’t a good sign.
A starting lineup of Leno (LT), Flowers (LG), Wes Schweitzer (C), Scherff (RG) and Cornelius Lucas (RT), one of the best backup swing tackles in the league, should be enough to hold down the fort in Week 12 and beyond.
However, if one or two of those guys goes down, fans have our permission to panic, as Washington will be forced to rely on third- and fourth-stringers to log starter’s snaps. With the playoffs suddenly a real possibility for the Burgundy and Gold, they cannot afford another injury to one of their remaining starters.
A clean bill of health for Washington’s OL for the remainder of 2021 would be just what the doctor ordered for the holiday season.